The day was ruled by the Wild Card teams, with each of the three games won by the Wild Card team in the series, and two of them going up 2-1 in the series.
I generally agreed with Jed Hoyer’s point this week that the playoff bye in this new format was a huge advantage. But that’s not the same thing as being insurmountable, and it would be pretty good and fun if at least a couple of the Wild Card teams move on to the LCS …
Philadelphia Phillies 9, Atlanta Braves 1 – PHI Leads Series 2-1
The energy in this one was off the charts. These Philly fans were ITCHING for a game like this, and when Rhys Hoskins hit a three-run homer in the 4th inning off of Spencer Strider, the explosion from the fans was matched only by the explosion of energy from Hoskins, himself, as he SPIKED his bat to the ground:
The Phillies just kept adding from there, and now the Braves are staring down elimination. The highlights:
The teams play Game Four this afternoon at 1:07pm CT, with Charlie Morton facing Noah Syndergaard, trying to keep the Braves alive.
Cleveland Guardians 4, New York Yankees 2 – Series Tied 1-1
It took a 10th inning to settle this one, and it was Jose Ramirez who ignited things when he just kept going:
Shane Bieber gave up a two-run homer to Giancarlo Stanton with two outs in the first inning, and then the Yankees did absolutely nothing else for 9.1 innings.
The full highlights:
Game Three is tonight at 6:37pm CT, with Luis Severino facing Triston McKenzie.
San Diego Padres 2, Los Angeles Dodgers 1 – SD Leads Series 2-1
The Padres are just a game away from vanquishing their NL West rival Dodgers, with Blake Snell and the Padres bullpen throwing a gem. On the other side, Tony Gonsolin struggled from the jump, and although neither he nor Andrew Heaney were terrible in trying to fill up those first 4/5 innings of the game, in the postseason just a couple slips can be the difference.
Josh Hader’s adjustment to the Padres after a shocking midseason trade from the Brewers was rough. But he sure seems to be finding an extra gear now that the postseason has arrived:
The full highlights:
The potentially-decisive Game Four is tonight at 8:37pm CT, with Tyler Anderson facing Joe Musgrove’s ears in San Diego.