We did it! The 162-game MLB regular season marathon is in the rearview mirror and now the sprint to crown a World Series champion is set to begin. Who will survive the best-of-three wild-card round to face the top two seeds in each league? We polled more than 20 of The Athletic’s staff to get their predictions for the first round of the playoffs. Let’s see what their crystal balls had to say …

Detroit Tigers (6) vs. Cleveland Guardians (3)

This AL Central battle has seemingly been running for weeks. Now the stakes are at their highest, as the surprise division winner takes on the team they were chasing until the season’s final weekend.

Staff vote

Fabian Ardaya (CLE): “It’s a cop-out to simply say they’re rolling. But the Guardians’ play over the last month simply defies explanation. Same for the Tigers, in all the wrong ways.”

Grant Brisbee (DET): “The Guardians are the second-ever postseason team with an on-base percentage under .300. They offend me. At least the 1968 Cardinals had an excuse for their under-.300 OBP (league-wide scoring) and Bob Gibson to make up for it. ”

Jon Greenberg (CLE): “The Tigers are lucky they didn’t wind up like the Mets. I think it’s fair to say Cleveland is the hotter team right now.”

Jayson Stark (DET): “The baseball gods are wily. So wouldn’t it just make perfect sense — after the Tigers lost two straight series to the Guardians in the last two weeks — if they ride Tarik Skubal and pitching chaos to win this thing?”

David O’Brien (CLE): “The Guardians are playing relaxed and loose under Stephen Vogt, while the Tigers have been reeling for weeks and barely got in. Pressure’s on Detroit, and the Guardians and Vogt were here a year ago, so now they know better what to expect and how to go about things.”

Eno Sarris (DET): “Tarik Skubal isn’t going to lose to the Guardians three times in a row, and then the Tigers just have to pitching chaos their way to one more win.”

Tyler Kepner (CLE): “In a matchup of two uninspiring offensive teams, I’ll take the one with the better overall pitching staff. That’s Cleveland.”

Brittany Ghiroli (DET): “I’d love to say the Guardians because momentum matters, especially in baseball, but the Tigers have Tarik Skubal. Assuming they win with him in Game 1, this series could be decided quickly. Detroit played pretty poorly in the final month, but at some point they have to be better. Riley Greene is important for this lineup, and it will be fun to watch A.J. Hinch piece together the rest of the pitching. It wouldn’t shock me if Cleveland won, but their offense as a whole just doesn’t do enough damage for me to justify it. ”

Levi Weaver (CLE): “I try not to infer what big-league players are thinking, but if I were playing for the Detroit Tigers in 2025, it would be hard not to feel that this Guardians team is a little bit inevitable.”

C. Trent Rosecrans (DET): “The Tigers, despite their collapse, seem like a better team. A win, too, could erase memories of said collapse.”

Boston Red Sox (5) vs. New York Yankees (4)

It’s Yankees versus Red Sox once again, this time on the October stage. (Vincent Carchietta / Getty Images)

October series between these two longtime rivals have been special before. Are we set for another instant classic series?

Staff vote

Andy McCullough (NYY): “After a fairly brutal August, the Yankees cranked it up these past few weeks. They are deep and dangerous.”

Katie Woo (BOS): “The Yankees bang. The backend of the Red Sox bullpen is lights out. Defense is questionable for both teams. But in a playoff series — especially a three-game set — the advantage always goes to the arms. Having a bona fide ace in Garrett Crochet start Game 1, plus the high-leverage relief tandem of Garrett Whitlock and Aroldis Chapman to close out games leans the advantage to Boston.”

Dennis Lin (NYY): “Aaron Judge is due for a big postseason. In the meantime, Trent Grisham has already shown he can do a decent Juan Soto impression.”

Jayson Stark (BOS): “I know the Yankees have gone 32-12 over the last 2 1/2 months. So it wouldn’t shock me if they won the World Series. But they get Crochet in Game 1, and they haven’t beaten him all year. And no team has played better in the Bronx this season than the Red Sox.”

Johnny Flores (NYY): “When you have Aaron Judge in your lineup, you’re never truly out of any game. Also, ‘Postseason Stanton,’ anyone?”

Sam Blum (BOS): “The Yankees put a lot into unsuccessfully overtaking the Blue Jays in the division. It might not be easy to mentally be ready for a series the Red Sox have had circled for weeks.”

Chandler Rome (NYY): “Boston has the best starting pitcher and closer in the series, but the Yankees have the best player and, perhaps, the best offense of any team in October.”

Chad Jennings (BOS): “This one feels like a toss-up, but I like this Red Sox pitching staff in October. The inexperience of the No. 4 and 5 starters doesn’t matter in a three-game series, and the Red Sox can lean on Crochet then leverage their bullpen to tame the superior Yankees offense. If the Yankees win this series, though, I might pick them to win the whole thing.”

Mitch Bannon (NYY): “The Red Sox played the Yankees extremely hard this year, but Judge and Stanton enter October locked in. Those constant homer threats will be the difference.”

Ken Rosenthal (BOS): “Yankees have yet to solve Crochet.”

Cincinnati Reds (6) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (3)

Two of the game’s most exciting players will square off in this series. (Luke Hales / Getty Images)

The Reds clinched a postseason berth on the last day of the season. Their reward? A matchup against the superteam that was supposed to bulldoze its way to another World Series title. Will that version of the Dodgers show up, or will the Reds continue to survive, somehow, some way?

Staff vote

Chris Kirschner (LAD): “The Dodgers have an immense amount of talent on their roster. I don’t see how the Reds can keep up. The talent gap is large.”

Patrick Mooney (CIN): “The Dodgers will find it hard to flip a switch against a team that you don’t want to face in a short series.”

Grant Brisbee (LAD): “Based on my calculations, it appears that the Dodgers are the superior baseball team. Let me run the numbers again …”

Sam Blum (CIN): “The Dodgers have the better team. But these best-of-three series can be totally random. Los Angeles has the arms to get through the innings, but it’s hard to trust their actual relievers. The Reds aren’t a great team, but they’re solid top to bottom. Los Angeles native Hunter Greene going in Game 1 will give them a shot.”

Eno Sarris (LAD): “The Dodgers’ only big flaw is their bullpen, and they’ll be moving some pretty pretty good starters into that unit early in the playoffs.”

Brittany Ghiroli (LAD): “I’d love to go Reds here, but I can’t. The Dodgers have the most talented roster in baseball and even in a short series, are tough to beat. Cincy didn’t exactly impress down the stretch, barely going over .500 and making the playoffs after the Mets’ collapse.”

Katie Woo (LAD): “Good luck telling the Reds anything right now. They have all the momentum, and a strong starting rotation. But as impressive as Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo and Andrew Abbott have been this year, Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani (if the series gets that far) are the obvious favorites.

The Dodgers are not a perfect team. Their bullpen woes are well-documented. But in almost any series, the advantage should go to the billion dollar team.”

Chad Jennings (LAD): “The Dodgers are the better team. I’m all for scrappy underdogs, but I can’t look at this matchup and find any way to justify a surprising pick. Sure, the Dodgers aren’t nearly as dominant as we expected, but the Reds just haven’t hit, and I still trust the top of the Dodgers’ lineup to find a way against a pretty good Reds rotation.”

Sahadev Sharma (LAD): “Tempted to go with Reds and their great starting pitching, but think Dodgers’ star power wins out.”

Mitch Bannon (LAD): “There is a path to a Reds win here, if Cincinnati’s starters keep games close and the bats take advantage of a shaky Dodgers bullpen. But Los Angeles’ lineup should be able to build a big enough cushion.”

San Diego Padres (5) vs. Chicago Cubs (4)

There will be plenty of good outfield defense on display in this series. (Jamie Squire / Getty Images)

They’ll be partying like it’s 1984 in this postseason rematch from an era when neither team was ever expected to make the playoffs. Now these two clubs are perennial postseason contenders with plenty at stake for both franchises.

Staff vote

Johnny Flores (SD): “San Diego is too talented to bow out so soon. Much like it did post-trade deadline, the Padres’ lineup, rotation and bullpen will come together.”

Jon Greenberg (CHC): “The Cubs’ offense has been iffy for months and now they’re without Cade Horton. But they do have the comforts of home and Wrigley isn’t an October haunted house anymore.”

Jim Bowden (SD): “Horton on the IL for the Cubs is the difference-maker.”

Katie Woo (CHC): “This one is a real toss-up for me. The Padres’ bullpen, even without Jason Adam, is elite. The Cubs’ rotation took a significant hit with Horton’s rib fracture. Chicago can slug and their defense is clean, but San Diego’s star power throughout the lineup — even without Ramón Laureano — makes them dangerous. The home-field advantage at Wrigley Field is real, so I’ll go Cubs here. But this series is a true coin flip.”

Levi Weaver (SD): “The Cubs didn’t pick up an ace at the trade deadline because they believed in Cade Horton as That Guy™️. And for the regular season, it worked. But without him (and, lest we forget, Justin Steele) — plus Kyle Tucker and Pete Crow-Armstrong running hot-and-cold this year, I just think the Padres have the edge.”

Sahadev Sharma (CHC): “The Cubs’ offense has turned a corner and they’ll get enough from their pitching backed by elite defenders.”

Sam Blum (SD): “The Padres have been a disappointment since the trade deadline. But on paper, they’re still one of the best teams in the field.”

Chad Jennings (CHC): “It’s a good matchup that could logically go either way, but the Padres weren’t very good against lefties this season, and the Cubs can throw a couple of good left handers in Games 1 and 2. That feels like an advantage, though the Padres’ bullpen is also a force. Close call, but if I have to pick one — and my bosses say I do — then I’ll take the Cubs.”

Tyler Kepner (SD): “Leon Durham’s glove will get soaked in Gatorade, leading to a devastating error in the final game.”

Jayson Stark (SD): “It’s hard to believe these teams last played each other on April 16! I think this series goes three games. I also think that the Padres’ bullpen is so overpowering, when they take a lead, those games feel over. Isn’t October always about bullpens these days?”

Dennis Lin (SD): “A bullpen featuring Mason Miller can make up for more than a few flaws. On offense, the power-challenged Padres just had their best month in terms of home runs.”

(Top photo: Nick Cammett / Getty Images)