The U.S. Major League Baseball, which has finished its regular season, will begin its fall baseball season. Attention is focusing on whether the prestigious New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers, which represent the east and west, will face off in the World Series for the first time in 43 years.
Major League Baseball, which finished its regular season schedule on the 30th (Korea Standard Time), will start the postseason on October 2.
In the Major League, six teams each from the American League and the National League will compete in the post season. Three teams that won the district and three other wild cards will participate.
The Yankees recorded 94 wins and 68 losses and the Dodgers 98 wins and 64 losses, ranking first in the American League and the National League, respectively.
In the American League, the Cleveland Guardians (winning the Central Division) took the second seed, the Houston Astros (winning the Western Division) took the third seed, and the Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals, and Detroit Tigers, who are the first to third wild cards, took the fourth to sixth seed.
Four of the six teams in the National League have been decided on fall baseball. The Dodgers are the No. 1 seed, the Philadelphia Phillies (winner of the East Division) the No. 2 seed, the Milwaukee Brewers (winner of the Central Division) the No. 3 seed, and the San Diego Padres (winner of the wild card) the No. 4 seed.
Atlanta and the New York Mets will play a doubleheader on Oct. 1 for two games that they failed to play due to rain. The two teams are currently recording 88 wins and 72 losses, and the results will also determine whether the Arizona Diamondbacks (89 wins and 73 losses) will play in the fall.
The biggest concern of the postseason is whether the Yankees and Dodgers will make the World Series.
The two teams had the best hitters in the two leagues, Aaron Judge (Yankees) and Shohei Ohtani (Dodgers).
Judge hit 58 home runs this year, the most in the two major leagues, and Ohtani showed a monstrous performance with 54 home runs and 59 steals, stepping on 50 (homerun)-50 (stealing), an unanswered goal before the Major League.
Locally, both teams have the strongest capabilities in their respective leagues. This means that chances are high that they will face off in the World Series.
The Yankees won the World Series 27 times, the most in major league history, and the Dodgers also won seven times. The latest championships were won by the Yankees in 2009 and by the Dodgers in 2020.
As a prestigious team that represents the Major League, it also had a number of competitions in the World Series. In total, the team faced off 11 times in the World Series, with the Yankees winning eight times and the Dodgers winning three times.
However, a World Series match between the two teams has never been held since 1981. If it is held this year, it will be the first big match in 43 years.
The team was the best in the regular season, but there are many variables in the tournament-style postseason. Both teams have to pass through difficult gateways.
In the American League, Houston is considered the Yankees’ biggest opponent. Houston played in the American League Championship Series for seven consecutive years until last year and won the title in 2022, showing particularly strong performance in big games.
In the National League, Philadelphia is the biggest obstacle for the Dodgers to advance to the World Series. Philadelphia showed off stable offense and defense this season and won the East Division championship for the first time in 13 years. Notably, it overwhelmed the Dodgers with five wins and one loss.
The World Series starts from October 26 with the best-of-seven series. Baseball fans are paying keen attention to whether the “dream showdown” between the Yankees and the Dodgers will become a reality this fall.