Camden Yards in Baltimore photo by Chris6d, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
MLB Plots Postseason Schedule; World Series Begins October 27
Major League Baseball is making its final preparations for the post-season, and the league announced its schedule for the annual event, which kicks off with Wild Card action on October 3. The schedule will feature up to 12 Wild Card round contests, as many as 20 games in the Divisional Round, then up seven games each in the ALCS, NLCS and World Series, which is scheduled to play its first game on October 27.
World Series Game 7, if needed, would take place on November 4.
Mark your calendars! The 2023 #postseason starts on Tuesday, October 3. pic.twitter.com/3lQXFtxpBw
— MLB (@MLB) August 8, 2023
The 2023 MLB playoffs will feature six teams, having expanded a year ago with an additional Wild Card entry. Two division winners from each league will earn a bye into the Division Series, with the third division winner playing the Wild Card entry with the fewest wins and the top two Wild Card clubs facing off in the other first round, with the winner of each 3-game series advancing to the best-of-5 Division Round.
As of the morning of August 9, the playoff matchups would be as follows:
American League
Byes: Baltimore (70-43- East); Texas (68-46 – West)
Wild Card Round: Toronto (64-51 – WC3) at Minnesota (60-55- Central); Houston (65-49 – WC2) at Tampa Bay (69-46 – WC1)
Divisional Round: Toronto/Minnesota vs. Texas; Houston/Tampa Bay vs. Baltimore
National League
Byes: Atlanta (71-40 – East); Los Angeles (66-46 – West)
Wild Card Round: Chicago (59-55 – WC3) at Milwaukee (61-54 – Central); San Francisco (62-52 – WC2) at Philadelphia (62-52 – WC1)
Divisional Round: San Francisco/Philadelphia vs. Atlanta; Chicago/Milwaukee vs. Los Angeles
Naturally, this is subject to significant change as the remainder of the regular season plays out.
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2023 MLB Playoffs Tentative Schedule
Wild Card Series
| Game Date | Series | Matchup | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/3/2023 | AL Wild Card A, Game 1 | AL Wild Card #3 at AL Division Winner #3 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 |
| AL Wild Card B, Game 1 | AL Wild Card #2 at AL Wild Card #1 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 | |
| NL Wild Card A, Game 1 | NL Wild Card #3 at NL Division Winner #3 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 | |
| NL Wild Card B, Game 1 | NL Wild Card #2 at NL Wild Card #1 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 | |
| 10/4/2023 | AL Wild Card A, Game 2 | AL Wild Card #3 at AL Division Winner #3 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 |
| AL Wild Card B, Game 2 | AL Wild Card #2 at AL Wild Card #1 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 | |
| NL Wild Card A, Game 2 | NL Wild Card #3 at NL Division Winner #3 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 | |
| NL Wild Card B, Game 2 | NL Wild Card #2 at NL Wild Card #1 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 | |
| 10/5/2023 | AL Wild Card A, Game 3 * | AL Wild Card #3 at AL Division Winner #3 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 |
| AL Wild Card B, Game 3 * | AL Wild Card #2 at AL Wild Card #1 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 | |
| NL Wild Card A, Game 3 * | NL Wild Card #3 at NL Division Winner #3 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 | |
| NL Wild Card B, Game 3 * | NL Wild Card #2 at NL Wild Card #1 | ABC, ESPN or ESPN2 |
* If necessary
Division Series
| Game Date | Series | Matchup | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/7/2023 | ALDS A, Game 1 | AL Lower WC Winner at AL Division Winner #1 | FOX or FS1 |
| ALDS B, Game 1 | AL Higher WC Winner at AL Division Winner #2 | FOX or FS1 | |
| NLDS A, Game 1 | NL Lower WC Winner at NL Division Winner #1 | TBS | |
| NLDS B, Game 1 | NL Higher WC Winner at NL Division Winner #2 | TBS | |
| 10/8/2023 | ALDS A, Game 2 | AL Lower WC Winner at AL Division Winner #1 | FOX or FS1 |
| ALDS B, Game 2 | AL Higher WC Winner at AL Division Winner #2 | FOX or FS1 | |
| 10/9/2023 | NLDS A, Game 2 | NL Lower WC Winner at NL Division Winner #1 | TBS |
| NLDS B, Game 2 | NL Higher WC Winner at NL Division Winner #2 | TBS | |
| 10/10/2023 | ALDS A, Game 3 | AL Division Winner #1 at AL Lower WC Winner | FOX or FS1 |
| ALDS B, Game 3 | AL Division Winner #2 at AL Higher WC Winner | FOX or FS1 | |
| 10/11/2023 | ALDS A, Game 4 * | AL Division Winner #1 at AL Lower WC Winner | FOX or FS1 |
| ALDS B, Game 4 * | AL Division Winner #2 at AL Higher WC Winner | FOX or FS1 | |
| NLDS A, Game 3 | NL Division Winner #1 at NL Lower WC Winner | TBS | |
| NLDS B, Game 3 | NL Division Winner #2 at NL Higher WC Winner | TBS | |
| 10/12/2023 | NLDS A, Game 4 * | NL Division Winner #1 at NL Lower WC Winner | TBS |
| NLDS B, Game 4 * | NL Division Winner #2 at NL Higher WC Winner | TBS | |
| 10/13/2023 | ALDS A, Game 5 * | AL Lower WC Winner at AL Division Winner #1 | FOX or FS1 |
| ALDS B, Game 5 * | AL Higher WC Winner at AL Division Winner #2 | FOX or FS1 | |
| 10/14/2023 | NLDS A, Game 5 * | NL Lower WC Winner at NL Division Winner #1 | TBS |
| NLDS B, Game 5 * | NL Higher WC Winner at NL Division Winner #2 | TBS |
* If necessary
League Championship Series
| Game Date | Series | Matchup | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/15/2023 | ALCS, Game 1 | AL Lower Seed at AL Higher Seed | FOX or FS1 |
| 10/16/2023 | ALCS, Game 2 | AL Lower Seed at AL Higher Seed | FOX or FS1 |
| NLCS, Game 1 | NL Lower Seed at NL Higher Seed | TBS | |
| 10/17/2023 | NLCS, Game 2 | NL Lower Seed at NL Higher Seed | TBS |
| 10/18/2023 | ALCS, Game 3 | AL Higher Seed at AL Lower Seed | FOX or FS1 |
| 10/19/2023 | ALCS, Game 4 | AL Higher Seed at AL Lower Seed | FOX or FS1 |
| NLCS, Game 3 | NL Higher Seed at NL Lower Seed | TBS | |
| 10/20/2023 | ALCS, Game 5 * | AL Higher Seed at AL Lower Seed | FOX or FS1 |
| NLCS, Game 4 | NL Higher Seed at NL Lower Seed | TBS | |
| 10/21/2023 | NLCS, Game 5 * | NL Higher Seed at NL Lower Seed | TBS |
| 10/22/2023 | ALCS, Game 6 * | AL Lower Seed at AL Higher Seed | FOX or FS1 |
| 10/23/2023 | ALCS, Game 7 * | AL Lower Seed at AL Higher Seed | FOX or FS1 |
| NLCS, Game 6 * | NL Lower Seed at NL Higher Seed | TBS | |
| 10/24/2023 | NLCS, Game 7 * | NL Lower Seed at NL Higher Seed | TBS |
* If necessary
World Series
| Game Date | Series | Matchup | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/27/2023 | World Series, Game 1 | League Champ #2 at League Champ #1 | FOX |
| 10/28/2023 | World Series, Game 2 | League Champ #2 at League Champ #1 | FOX |
| 10/30/2023 | World Series, Game 3 | League Champ #1 at League Champ #2 | FOX |
| 10/31/2023 | World Series, Game 4 | League Champ #1 at League Champ #2 | FOX |
| 11/1/2023 | World Series, Game 5 * | League Champ #1 at League Champ #2 | FOX |
| 11/3/2023 | World Series, Game 6 * | League Champ #2 at League Champ #1 | FOX |
| 11/4/2023 | World Series, Game 7 * | League Champ #2 at League Champ #1 | FOX |
* If necessary
