The Chicago White Sox clinched their first playoff series win since the 2005 World Series by sweeping the Houston Astros in the American League Wild Card Series. Their 7-3 victory on Wednesday secured a place in the AL Division Series against the Cleveland Guardians, who hold the No. 2 seed in the American League despite an 85-77 regular-season record. The White Sox finished the regular season with 84 wins.
Meanwhile, the New York Yankees completed a dominant sweep of the Boston Red Sox, beating them 9-2 in Game 2 to set up an ALDS clash with the top-seeded Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays, who are the American League’s No. 1 seed, earned a first-round bye and will host the Yankees in the opening ALDS game on Saturday, October 3, at 6:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on TBS, truTV, and HBO Max.
On the National League side, the San Diego Padres also completed a two-game sweep, dispatching the Chicago Cubs with a 4-1 victory in Game 2. The Padres will face the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Division Series. The Brewers secured the No. 1 seed in the National League with an impressive 103-win campaign and will host the first game of the NLDS on Saturday. The Los Angeles Dodgers, the two-time defending champions with 100 wins this season, await the winner of the Atlanta Braves-Philadelphia Phillies Wild Card Series.
The Phillies managed to stay alive after a thrilling 4-3 extra-innings win over the Braves in Game 2 on Wednesday, evening the series at 1-1. The decisive Game 3 takes place on Thursday, October 1, at 8 p.m. and will be televised on NBC and fubo. The winner will face the Dodgers, who have a bye through the Wild Card round.
The White Sox’s success in the Wild Card round is their most significant playoff breakthrough in over two decades. Their sweep of the Astros included a 6-3 win in Game 1 on Tuesday, September 29, followed by Wednesday’s 7-3 victory that wrapped up the series. Chicago will face a Guardians team that finished 10th among the 12 playoff qualifiers but earned the No. 2 seed in the American League due to the playoff format.
The Yankees followed a similar pattern, routing the Red Sox 9-0 in Game 1 and then securing the series with a 9-2 win in Game 2. The ALDS opener on October 3 will take place at the Rays’ Tropicana Field. The White Sox visit the Guardians for their ALDS opener at 1 p.m. on the same day, with the series continuing on October 5 and beyond.
In the NLDS, the Brewers and Dodgers both boast over 100 wins, making them the favorites in their respective matchups. Milwaukee’s first game against the Padres will be followed by Game 2 on Sunday, October 4. The Dodgers await the outcome of the Braves-Phillies series, with their NLDS opener scheduled for Saturday as well.
The full playoff schedule is now taking shape. The ALDS Game 1 matchups are White Sox at Guardians and Yankees at Rays, both on October 3. NLDS Game 1 will feature Brewers hosting Padres and Dodgers hosting either Braves or Phillies. The series will continue with Game 2s on October 4 and Game 3s on October 6 for the NL, while the ALDS Game 2s are set for October 5.
The postseason is progressing toward the League Championship Series and ultimately the World Series, which is scheduled to begin on Friday, October 23, with Fox, Fox Deportes, and fubo set to broadcast the games.
The Phillies-Braves Wild Card Series remains the only Wild Card matchup still undecided heading into Thursday’s Game 3. The winner will face the Dodgers, while the Padres prepare to challenge the Brewers in what promises to be a closely contested NLDS.
According to CBS.
