Saturday, October 10, 2015

Does The Second Wild Card Prepare You For October?


Does winning the second Wild Card prepare you for the rest of the postseason in Major League Baseball? The second Wild Card spot is the final playoff spot in the postseason in both leagues and you would think neither team would want it but ever since the addition of a second Wild Card team that team may have actually benefited from it.

In 2014 the second Wild Card members in the league were the Oakland Athletics and the San Francisco Giants while in 2015 the two teams that made the playoffs by the skin of their teeth were the Houston Astros and the Chicago Cubs. We all know that the Athletics nearly took out the eventual American League Champions while the San Francisco Giants made it all the way to the World Series. The Houston Astros took down the New York Yankees while the Chicago Cubs dominated the Pittsburgh Pirates inside PNC Park. Are either team headed to the World Series?

I believe the second Wild Card prepares you most for the rest of the postseason. The second Wild Card team has presumably been playing meaningful games all the way through the month of September while some of the division winners, especially the team with the best record in their respective leagues, coasted to the finish line. Having to go out on the road and win one game or go home trying truly takes all the pressure off a team after that fact.

I'm not saying that I'd like the Yankees to win the second Wild Card, I prefer the division obviously, but I can't say, if history is an indicator of the future, I'd be especially worried if they won the second Wild Card in the American League in 2016 either.

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Sorry for the Capatcha... Blame the Russians :)