There are still a couple weeks left to go in the 2022 MLB regular season, but a few teams are already looking toward October.
The Dodgers have officially secured the season’s first playoff berth, and the Houston Astros, New York Mets, Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees, Cleveland Guardians and St. Louis Cardinals followed next. Meanwhile, clubs such as the Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres, are battling it out for the remaining wild-card spots. Beyond division races, there are many storylines to watch as the regular season comes to an end and October begins, such as Seattle’s attempt to break a 21-year playoff drought, Aaron Judge‘s race to 62 home runs and Albert Pujols‘ reaching 700 career home runs.
Where do the current playoff matchups stand? What series should you be paying attention to in the coming week? And what does the playoff schedule look like? We have everything you need to know as the regular season winds down.
Key links: Standings | Wild-card standings | New tiebreaker format
What are this October’s MLB playoff matchups as it stands now?
American League
Wild-card round: (6) Mariners at (3) Guardians*, (5) Rays at (4) Blue Jays
ALDS: Mariners/Guardians vs. (2) Yankees*, Rays/Blue Jays vs. (1) Astros*
National League
Wild-card round: (6) Phillies at (3) Cardinals*, (5) Padres at (4) Braves*
NLDS: Phillies/Cardinals vs. (2) Mets*, Padres/Braves vs. (1) Dodgers*
*Clinched playoff berth
Who is in?
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers secured the season’s first playoff berth — L.A.’s 10th straight trip to the postseason — and followed that by clinching the NL West with a win in Arizona the next day.
Dodgers at Padres: Sept. 27-29
The Dodgers have the franchise single-season wins record within reach, while the Padres are battling the Phillies and the surging Brewers for wild-card positioning.
Rays at Guardians: Sept. 27-29
Cleveland has now clinched the AL Central but will look to keep proving itself against fellow playoff contenders. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay is locked in back-and-forth wild-card race with Seattle and Toronto.
Playoff schedule
Wild Card Series
Best of three, all games at better seed’s stadium
Game 1: Friday, Oct. 7
Game 2: Saturday, Oct. 8
Game 3: Sunday, Oct. 9*
Division Series
Best of five
ALDS
Game 1: Tuesday, Oct. 11
Game 2: Thursday, Oct. 13
Game 3: Saturday Oct. 15
Game 4: Sunday, Oct. 16*
Game 5: Monday, Oct. 17*
NLDS
Game 1: Tuesday, Oct. 11
Game 2: Wednesday, Oct. 12
Game 3: Friday, Oct. 14
Game 4: Saturday, Oct. 15*
Game 5: Sunday, Oct. 16*
League Championship Series
Best of seven
ALCS
Game 1: Wednesday, Oct. 19
Game 2: Thursday, Oct. 20
Game 3: Saturday Oct. 22
Game 4: Sunday, Oct. 23
Game 5: Monday, Oct. 24*
Game 6: Tuesday, Oct. 25*
Game 7: Wednesday Oct. 26*
NLCS
Game 1: Tuesday, Oct. 18
Game 2: Wednesday, Oct. 19
Game 3: Friday, Oct. 21
Game 4: Saturday, Oct. 22
Game 5: Sunday, Oct. 23*
Game 6: Monday, Oct. 24*
Game 7: Tuesday, Oct. 25*
World Series
Best of seven
Game 1: Friday, Oct. 28
Game 2: Saturday, Oct. 29
Game 3: Monday, Oct. 31
Game 4: Tuesday, Nov. 1
Game 5: Wednesday, Nov. 2*
Game 6: Friday, Nov. 4*
Game 7: Saturday, Nov. 5*
* If necessary
