Wild Card Games
By MIRIAM ZUO ‘20
The Wild Card Games, which announce the start of every baseball playoff season, embody the winner-take-all principle. In both the American and National Leagues, two regular season runner-up teams face each other for the opportunity to advance to their respective division series.
On October 1st, the National League Wild Card game was played between the Milwaukee Brewers– missing their star player, Christian Yelich -- and the Washington Nationals– the perennial almost-playoff team. In the first inning, Yasmani Grandal, a catcher for the Brewers, hit a two-run home run against the Nationals starter Stephen Strasburg. Then, Eric Thames, a first baseman and outfielder, hit a home run in the second inning, extending the Brewers’ lead to 3-0. Shortstop Trea Turner revived the Nationals’ hopes in the bottom of the third when he hit a home run to left field, but then the Nationals slipped into a scoring drought. By the eighth inning, I was ready to turn off the broadcast-- what’s the point of listening on? My team was clearly winning! But celebrating too early can be dangerous: the Brewers replaced relief pitcher Drew Pomeranz with Josh Hader, who proceeded to fill the bases. Michael Taylor (outfielder), Andrew Stevenson (outfielder, pinch-running for Ryan Zimmerman), and Anthony Rendon (third baseman) were ready to score when a critical error occurred. Juan Soto, Nationals outfielder, hit a devastating single to right field. The ball flew past rookie right field Trent Grisham and all National four runners scored. After a scoreless ninth inning, the Nationals beat the Brewers 4-3, landing themselves a spot in the National League Division Series.
The following day, the Tampa Bay Rays and the Oakland A’s, two teams known for their relatively cheap rosters and their focus on statistics, played against each other for the American League Wild Card spot. This game lacked the dramatic lead reversal of the night before. Yandy Diaz, Rays’ third baseman, hit a solo home run off A’s starter Chris Manaea in the first inning. In the second, outfielder Avisail Garcia hit a two-run homer, and in the third, Diaz hit his second home run of the evening -- a rare occurrence, especially because postseason pitching is less conducive to power hitting (all the star pitchers are used). By the end of the top of the third inning, the Rays led the A’s 4-0. In the bottom of the third, A’s outfielder Ramon Laureano (the man with a cannon for an arm) hit a sacrifice fly, enabling his teammate, shortstop Marcus Laureano, to score. The fourth was scoreless, but in the fifth, the Rays extended their lead to 5-1 when outfielder Tommy Pham hit a home run off Yusmeiro Petit. The last four innings of the game didn’t yield any runs; therefore, the Rays held their lead throughout the entire game.
A week later, the Dodgers, the reigning National League champions, have swept the Nationals in the National League Division Series, effectively knocking them out of the playoffs. In the American League Division Series, the Rays have won one game versus the Astros’ two, which means that the Rays are one loss away from their own elimination. Though the Nationals and the Rays have recently experienced the exhilarating joy of winning a high-stakes Wild Card game, the playoffs are only just beginning, with everything else left to play for.
Image courtesy of The Washington Post