The MLB playoffs are set to kick off on Friday with the wild-card round.
The new playoff format should make the wild-card round very competitive and the whole playoffs thrilling.
October is when players make a name for themselves.
Anyone has the opportunity to get hot and carry their team through the playoffs.
Just like we saw last year with the Atlanta Braves winning the world series.
They were not the favorites heading into the postseason but they got hot at the right time.
So which team will make a run to the championship this year?
Here are three bold predictions for the upcoming MLB playoffs.
One Wild-Card Team Will Make The World Series
Each league is sending three wild-card teams to the playoffs instead of two like years past.
That means there is another opportunity for a wild-card team to make a run.
This year the wild-card teams are the Blue Jays, Mariners, and Rays in the AL.
With the Mets, Padres, and Phillies representing the NL.
One of those six teams will play in the World Series.
Playoff bracket is set.
How do you think it plays out pic.twitter.com/XI8pGEJOii
— Starting 9 (@Starting9) October 5, 2022
Each of them brings something different to the playoffs.
Some will be carried by their pitching like the Mets, while others like the Padres and Blue Jays are going to count on their hitters.
All it takes is one team to get hot during the wild-card series and allow them to take that all the way.
The first-round bye for some of the top teams can force them to be rusty heading into the divisional series.
This postseason is set up better than ever to have a wild-card team make it to the world series.
The Yankees Will Lose In The ALDS
Despite being one of the best teams in the American League all season, the Yankees will lose in the ALDS.
In that series, they will face the winner of the Cleveland Guardians and Tampa Bay Rays.
Both teams can cause problems for the Yankees in the second round.
The Rays are very familiar with the Yankees who played each other 19 times this season.
With the Yankees winning 11 of those games.
But, the Rays are a scrappy team that never seems to go away.
With Shane McClanahan and now Tyler Glasnow back in the fold, this team can be dangerous.
The Guardians, are one of the surprise teams of the MLB season.
They have great starting pitching and a good group of hitters that love to get on base.
The Yankees beat the Guardians five of six times this year but that could change in the playoffs.
Both the Rays and Guardians can match up with the Yankees in a five-game series.
With both good enough to send New York home early.
Freddie Freeman Will Win World Series MVP
One of the biggest moves of the MLB offseason was when Freddie Freeman signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
It never seemed possible that Freeman would play for someone other than the Atlanta Braves.
But, once the Braves traded for Matt Olsen it became apparent Freeman would not return.
After an awesome regular season with the Dodgers, Freeman is set up for a revenge tour in the playoffs.
If the Dodgers and Braves both win their first series’ they win meet in the NLCS.
That will be a big series for Freeman as he goes up against the team he just won a world series with.
Freddie Freeman (guy who won WS title with an 88-win team) on #Dodgers franchise record 107 wins: "Once October 11 hits, nobody is going to care how many wins you had in the regular season. But we’re here, we’re in the regular season – might as well get as many wins as we can."
— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) September 29, 2022
It seems like Freeman is set up to have a monster postseason.
He is one of the best pure hitters in baseball and plays for the best team in the league.
Anything short of the World Series for LA would be a disappointment.
Freeman will be relied on to put up monster numbers this postseason.
With the World Series MVP as the ultimate prize for one of the sports’ best players.
NEXT: Shohei Ohtani Ends His Season With A Historic Feat