Playoff Miscellany: Two Teams Clinch, Two More To Go

Oct 10, 2017

The Chicago Cubs managed to squeak out a win against the Washington Nationals last night, which means they *could* secure a ticket to their third consecutive NLCS this afternoon.

That game is scheduled for 4:38 CT at Wrigley Field, thanks to some inclement weather expected tonight, and will be the ONLY playoff game of the day.

And that’s because …

In Boston, the Red Sox came up just short in their elimination game, losing 5-4 against the Houston Astros and dropping the series 3-1. BUT that one wasn’t without it’s late drama. Down two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning, Rafael Devers started things off with an inside-the-parker to make it a one-run ball game:

Inside the park homerun by Rafael Devers pic.twitter.com/8W1rnWzJxC

— Eric Rosenthal (@ericsports) October 9, 2017

Unfortunately, that rally was short-lived as the Red Sox went down in order immediately thereafter, and the Houston Astros advance to the ALCS.

https://twitter.com/astros/status/917504561912442880

Unlike the Red Sox, the Yankees avoided elimination at home, beating the Cleveland Indians a second time, by a final score of 7-3. That series is now tied at 2 with one game to play. And don’t forget, the Yankees blew an 8-3 lead to lose the second game in this series and go down 0-2 against the World Series favorites and have battled back. That’s crazy impressive. Now, they’ll head back to Cleveland to try and disappoint the Indians fans in the worst way possible.

Yankees force a game 5! pic.twitter.com/pz28ArVDKm

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) October 10, 2017

Shifting to the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers swept the Arizona Diamondbacks in three straight, stopping their big bounce-back season in its tracks. Zack Greinke didn’t pitch well in this one, going just 5.0 innings while allowing three earned runs on four hits, including two homers, and FIVE(!) walks. Frankly with those sort of numbers, you’re surprised he didn’t give up way more. He may have simply used up all of his pitches this year.

On the flip side, Yu Darvish also went just 5.0 innings, but he allowed just one earned run on two hits, no walks and seven strikeouts. The Los Angeles Dodgers are now advancing to the NLCS and there could be an NLCS rematch if the Cubs win tonight.

So where does everything stand? Well, it goes a little something like this:

Here's your updated look at the 2017 MLB Postseason Bracket (via @MLB): pic.twitter.com/kjbDn4To1t

— Baseball is Fun (@flippingbats) October 10, 2017

written by

Michael Cerami

Michael Cerami began covering the Chicago Cubs for Bleacher Nation as a part-time contributor in 2015. One year later, he joined Bleacher Nation full-time, covering the Chicago Cubs and Major League Baseball. Today, Michael runs Bleacher Nation, contributing as a writer (Cubs, MLB) and an editor for all sections of the site, including the Chicago Bears, Bulls, and Blackhawks, as well as MLB, NBA, NHL, and NFL. In 2019, Michael was the co-host of NBC Sports Chicago's Cubs Post-Game Show Outside the Ivy. You can find him on Twitter/X @Michael_Cerami

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