After calculating a host of crazy potential playoff scenarios entering the MLB postseason, it turns out we didn’t need any of them. When the dust cleared, all 10 teams had been decided. There are compelling potential matchups throughout the playoff tree, but which potential World Series combinations would make for the best storylines?
(AP Photo/Kathy Kmonicek)
AP Photo/Kathy Kmonicek
#9: San Francisco Giants vs. Baltimore Orioles
Longtime Orioles fans will remember the days they heard the soothing voice of Jon Miller calling Baltimore games, which he did from 1983-96, when Peter Angelos decided not to renew his contract. Miller left for San Francisco, where he has been ever since, through the Giants’ trio of title runs. Could the two orange and black teams meet in the World Series just as Halloween hits?
(AP Photo/D. Ross Cameron)
AP Photo/D. Ross Cameron
#8: New York Mets vs. Toronto Blue Jays
In 2012, R.A. Dickey won the NL Cy Young Award, one of the lone bright spots in a lost season for the Mets. He was traded in the offseason, in a move with long-lasting implications for both clubs. The most significant return to Queens in the deal were a pair of prospects, catcher Travis d’Arnaud and pitcher Noah Syndergaard. Dickey never replicated his numbers, while Syndergaard has become one of the game’s great young hurlers. Could they square off on the game’s biggest stage, with d’Arnaud behind the plate?
(AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
AP Photo/Kathy Willens
#7: San Francisco Giants vs. Texas Rangers
It’s only been six years since the Giants and Rangers met in the Fall Classic. In 2010, the Giants won their first title since moving to the West Coast while denying the Rangers a shot at their first-ever championship. Could San Francisco reignite its even year magic, or would its run of a championship every other year come to an end at the hands of the team it first beat?
(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
AP Photo/David J. Phillip
#6: Washington Nationals vs. Texas Rangers
The Rangers began as the second iteration of the Washington Senators back in 1961, playing 11 years in the District before moving to Texas. But ancient history isn’t the only thing that connects these two teams. After the Nationals let Ian Desmond — the longest-tenured player in the organization — walk in the offseason, he went to Texas, where he turned in a 20-20 season in center field and made the All-Star Team. And who wouldn’t want to see Bryce Harper square off with Cole Hamels, who famously “welcomed” him to the big leagues back in 2012?
(AP Photo/John Minchillo)
AP Photo/John Minchillo
#5: Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Boston Red Sox
The Vin Scully retirement tour reached a head this weekend. And though Scully says he won’t be behind the mic during the postseason, you can be sure if the Dodgers make the World Series that he will be at the ballpark, a presence larger than the game. Can you imagine if it’s against the storied Red Sox? Only one player is left on either squad from the 2012 blockbuster trade between the clubs, but he could be a big factor — Adrian Gonzalez.
(AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
#4: Washington Nationals vs. Baltimore Orioles
There is only one crosstown matchup possible in this year’s playoff field and it’s the Battle of the Beltways. It’s a showdown that hasn’t really come close to happening yet, but can you imagine it now? After five years of increasingly hostile rhetoric between the respective ownerships over the still-to-be-resolved MASN debacle, there is no love lost between the franchises. If we get a Beltways Series, they should just let the outcome on the field determine who gets what they want.
(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
#3: New York Mets vs. Boston Red Sox
The Mets made the Series last year, but they still haven’t won a title since 1986, one of the most iconic championships in American history. The Mets and Sox have the chance to meet again on the 30th anniversary of the ’86 series. If they did, New York would be a clear underdog, but would that just add to the pressure, magnifying the ghosts of Bill Buckner? Don’t forget who voiced the iconic call of that Game 6 — Vin Scully himself.
(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
#2: Chicago Cubs vs. Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Cavaliers snapped the city’s long championship drought, but the Indians haven’t captured a World Series title since 1948, three years after the Cubs’ most recent pennant. The Tribe is now managed by Terry Francona, of course, the same skipper that helped the Red Sox end their own seemingly eternal title drought. And the architect of that 2004 Red Sox team? None other than Theo Epstein, who built the Cubs into the only 100-game winner in baseball this year.
(AP Photo/Matt Marton)
AP Photo/Matt Marton
#1: Chicago Cubs vs. Boston Red Sox
Theo Epstein broke the curse in Boston. He was brought to Chicago to do the same. He’s got the most exciting, dynamic team in the Major Leagues 11 wins away. The most fitting final opponent would have to be the Red Sox, his old team, with the retiring David Ortiz playing out his final postseason. A full 108 years since the Cubs’ last title, will it take beating the Red Sox to make this year finally the year?
(AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
