October. A word that has different meanings depending on who hears it. Some think of Halloween, others think of the beginning of fall. But there’s another thing it means. The MLB regular season has come to a conclusion, and the postseason is about to begin. Twelve teams will enter, eleven leaving in heartbreaking fashion as one will win the World Series. Each team has strengths and weaknesses going into the playoffs. Let’s look at the strengths and weaknesses of each team going into the playoffs. We will also look at an X-Factor for each team in the playoffs and each team’s biggest player of concern.
For the X-Factor’s and the players of concern, I’m going to try and avoid saying the likes of Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani. Even though they are game-changing players, I’m going to go for more under-the-radar players to make an impact in October.
Brewers
The class-act of baseball during the regular season, the Milwaukee Brewers have the 1-seed and a bye. A lineup that is led by second baseman Brice Turang, left fielder Christian Yelich, and catcher William Contreras being a lineup that has been top 10 in offense throughout the season. Along with a consistently good lineup, the Brewers pitching has been great, led by Freddy Peralta and Quinn Priestor being consistently good.
X-Factor: Jacob Misiorowski
A rookie all-star after just six starts, who, if able to pitch in the playoffs (and well) in those opportunities, the pitching staff for the Brewers goes from consistently good to consistently good with a pitcher who throws over 100 mph on his fastball.
Biggest Player Concern: Their own past narrative
Can the Brewers finally make a deep playoff run and beat the narrative of them not being able to make it through the playoffs? They are looking to avenge what happened after letting Pete Alonso go yard in the NLDS last season.
Phillies
A team that has been waiting for the playoffs, it’s time for Red October in Philadelphia. With a first round bye clinched, they’ll be waiting for their opponent for after the Wild Card. A lineup led by Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber, the only thing actively hindering the lineup is the absence of shortstop Trea Turner, but he should be back for the playoff run. A rotation led by Christopher Sanchez and Jesus Luzardo is a great postseason duo, with newly acquired closer Jhoan Duran. The only thing that would make this Phillies team better for a postseason run would have been ace pitcher Zach Wheeler would have been able to pitch, but his season ended in blood clots. With contracts such as J.T Realmuto expiring at the end of the season, this could be the last chance to win with this core.
X-Factor: Bryce Harper
If Bryce Harper can take his play to the next level for the playoff run, then the top of the order for the Phillies would be Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper, and J.T Realmuto. Harper has elevated his game for past playoff runs, so will he do it again?
Biggest Player Concern: Narrative
One of the few teams where it’s a preexisting story line and not a player, but will the Phillies finally win when it matters? As said before, with multiple major pieces about to become free agents, this run could be the last one of the runs with this core.
Dodgers
Summarising the Dodgers’ September is a difficult task. On one hand, Mookie Betts has seemed to return to pre-2025 form, with him hitting .349 with a 1.039 OPS since the start of the month, Shohei Ohtani doing Ohtani things, and Teoscar Hernandez having his best month since June. The rotation has the potential to be one of the best in the postseason, with Yoshinobo Yamatoto pitching like an ace, and a deep supporting rotation with Clayton Kershaw, Tyler Glasnow, and Blake Snell. On the other hand, the bullpen has blown multiple games down the stretch, notably blowing a 3-run lead after taking a no-hitter in the 9th inning with one out left and blowing multiple games to the Phillies. Even though this team does have some red flags, there is a reason why they are defending World Series Champions.
X-Factor: Mookie Betts (SS)
This is between either Mookie Betts or Clayton Kershaw, but I’ll continue to lead on Mookie Betts. If Mookie can continue to be a consistently great player through October, that can make the combination of Ohtani, Betts, and Freeman a pitcher’s nightmare. Kershaw is being mentioned due to the recent news of his upcoming retirement after this run with the Dodgers, so one last ride with the Dodgers to try and get one more ring to add to an already Hall-of-Fame career.
Biggest Player Concern: Tanner Scott (Closer)
With Scott getting a 4-year, $72 million contract, the Dodgers thought they were getting a lockdown closer in the 9th. Instead of this, the Dodgers have gotten one of the more inconsistent closers in the league with a tendency to give up contact, resulting in a nearly a 5 ERA with 10 blown saves throughout the season.
Chicago Cubs
A red hot first half and a solid second half was enough to get the Cubs back into the playoffs for the first time since 2020, the Cubs have a solid lineup across the board. The lineup led by Seiya Suzuki and Micheal Busch and the potential of Kyle Tucker returning for the postseason run, the lineup has the talent to be dangerous. The postseason rotation led by Matthew Boyd and Shota Imanaga is solid, but will they hold up for the entire postseason run. Along with that, the bullpen is solid across the board, with a highlight being Caleb Thielbar.
X-Factor & Biggest Player Concern: Pete Crow-Armstrong
Pete Crow-Armstrong is going to be the pick for both the X-Factor and the Player of Concern. The season for PCA has been a tale of two halves, with him being an All-Star throughout the first half of the season, but him having a brutal season following the All-Star break. Which PCA will the Cubs get for their playoff one, the MVP candidate PCA or second half PCA?
Padres
The Padres have put their chips in the middle and want to win it soon. Trading the number prospect in baseball shortstop Leo De Vries for star closer Mason Miller and acquiring Ryan O’Hearn and Roman Laureano have been good additions to join Fernando Tatis and Manny Machado. A pitching staff spearheaded by Dylan Cease and Nick Pivetta led a good rotation and the best bullpen in baseball into October.
X-Factor: Micheal King (SP)
If Micheal King can bounce back to what he was prior to the injury this season, that adds him to a rotation with Cease and Pivetta for a good rotation if the Padres can make it to that point in the playoffs.
Biggest Player Concern: The Catcher Position
The acquisition of Freddy Fermin at the trade deadline has given the Padres a solid enough catcher, but even after that they rank towards the bottom of the league with production from the catcher position, just something to note.
Reds
The Red make the playoffs on the back of both being just good enough to stay in the playoff hunt, while also standing back and choking themselves to death, falling all the way out of the playoff race. The Reds pitching staff is led by ace Hunter Greene and Andrew Abbott having a career year, along with a lineup led by shortstop Elly De La Cruz and center fielder TJ Friedel. The Reds this year are the team that made the playoffs because of the Mets’ historic collapse and a good pitching staff. This team has the ultimate house money for the playoffs.
X-Factor: Hunter Greene (SP)
Before his placement on the IL, Hunter Greene was a possible Cy Young candidate in the NL, he ended up going onto the IL for a good chunk of the season. If Hunter Greene has this form for the Reds playoff run, then the Reds have a dangerous 1-2 combo with him and Abbott.
Biggest Player Concern: Austin Hays (CF)
This is another player that is in this category due to injury. Hays was reported to be day-to-day with back spasms in the regular season finale versus the Milwaukee Brewers. This leaves his status for the wild card series versus the Dodgers in question.
American League
Blue Jays
Heading into October, the Blue Jays have been the class-act of the American League. With great production throughout the lineup, the only that has hampered that has been the injury to star shortstop Bo Bichette with a PCL sprain in his left knee, who was having a career year batting .311 with .840 OPS and 94 RBI. A lineup with Vladimir Guerrero Jr., George Springer, and Alejandro Kirk looks to see how they hold up for a postseason run with Bichette in question. A postseason rotation with the likes of Kevin Gausman and Chris Bassett should be a solid postseason rotation. The bullpen has been solid but nothing to write home about, with one exception who will be covered in a moment.
X-Factor: Daulton Varsho (CF)
If the Blue Jays are able to get Bo Bichette back from injury during their postseason run, that dramatically increases the ceiling of this team, but if not, my X-Factor would be Daulton Varsho. At the time of writing, he has 18 home runs with an .856 OPS after missing a good chunk of the season with a hamstring injury. If he stays hot it is a great bat to help this already solid lineup.
Biggest Player Concern: Jeff Hoffman (CP)
The biggest concern is closing pitcher Jeff Hoffman, who has been on a downward spiral since the start of August, with a 6 ERA and 4 blown saves and 4 losses since the start. Not what you want to see from the pitcher who you want to close out games.
Tigers
From 15.5 games up in the division, the Tigers have completely collapsed into trailing the Guardian for the division with 5 games to go, with the Guardians holding the tiebreaker over the Tigers. They have been able to score off the homerun ball as of late, but getting runs home from in scoring position has been a struggle since the start of September. Hitters like Kerry Carpenter and Riley Greene have been good, but chucks of the lineup have struggled massively, with a focus on Javier Baez and Zach Mckinstry struggling since the All-Star Break. A rotation lead by past Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal, the #2 spot is a battle between Casey Mize and Jack Flaherty. The bullpen has been league average, but the return of Kyle Finnegan will help with that.
X-Factor: Wenceel Perez (OF)
My X-Factor for the Tigers would be outfielder Wenceel Perez. At the time of writing this, Perez is in a 2 for 34 skid. If Perez snaps out of the skid, he has both defensive versatility in the outfield along with being a solid middle of the order power bat.
Biggest Player Concern: Tommy Kahnle (RP)
Lots of players can be named here after the collapse, but the one I would choose would be Tommy Kahnle. After being the second best reliever in the Tigers bullpen up to the all-star break, a disastrous July with a 19.64 ERA in the month showed massive struggle and hasn’t been the same reliever since. September has been his best month since the break, but can the production keep up in the playoffs?
Mariners
What a season so far for the Mariners, clinching the AL West and probably having a first round bye due to the Tigers collapse! Led by MVP favorite catcher Cal Raleigh hitting his 60th homerun of the season, along with a good lineup with Julio Rodriguez and Randy Arozarena and deadline acquisitions in Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suarez. The pitching staff lead by Bryan Woo and Luis Castillo, along with closer Andres Munoz leading a very good Mariners pitching staff.
X-Factor: Eugenio Suarez (3B)
My pick for this would be Eugenio Suarez, who while still being a prolific power bat in the Mariners lineup, he has slowed down in both average and home runs since his reunion with Seattle. If he hits league average throughout the playoffs, that makes this Mariners lineup even more difficult for opposing pitchers.
Biggest Player Concern: Bryan Woo (SP)
Bryan Woo, for the main reason of being in this spot is that he is currently dealing with a pectoral injury. Just something to keep an eye on, but is said to be ready for the Mariners’ playoff run.
Yankees
The Yankees have been the Yankees. Aaron Judge is having another MVP caliber season along with the rest of the lineup leading the league in team homeruns. Max Fried and Carlos Rodon lead a very solid Yankees rotation, with multiple questions in the bullpen. The Yankees are looking to avenge their disastrous 5th inning collapse against the Dodgers in the World Series last year, but will they be able to make it all the way?
X-Factor: Cody Bellinger (OF)
A bounceback season from Cody Bellinger since coming to New York gives the Yankees lineup a new form of depth. With a top of the lineup of Judge, Bellinger, and Stanton any one of these three are capable of changing a game in an instant.
Biggest Player Concern: Devin Williams (RP)
This spot could have also gone to deadline acquisition Camilio Doval, both relievers are having the worst years of their career with multiple blown saves between the two. Williams appears to be the closer of choice for now in New York, but keep an eye for when the Yankees have to trust their bullpen to finish a game out in close games.
Guardians
From 15.5 games down, the Guardians rallied all the way back to win the AL Central from a Tigers team that was scuffling at the deadline. Tanner Bibee and Gavin Williams have been elite pitchers down the stretch, along with the entire Guardians pitching staff. The offense, led by Jose Ramirez and Steven Kwan get enough hits to let their pitching staff do what they do best. Cade Smith has filled in nicely in the closer role with the loss of Emmanuel Clase with a gambling investigation.
X-Factor: Bo Naylor (C)
After a rough season for the most part, Naylor has had himself a great month of September, with him batting .290 with 10 extra base hits. If the Guardians get this type of production out of Naylor during their playoff run, it would be a massive boost to the Guardians lineup.
Biggest Player Concern: Angel Martinez (CF)
Due to the injury of Lane Thomas, Martinez is getting more playing time. Throughout the year, he has struggled to consistently get on base and there has been a lack of consistent power from him.
