MLB 2018 Postseason Bracket and Predictions (Post-World Series Edition)
It turns out that my predictions for the 2018 MLB Postseason ended up being exactly true, following the completion of the League Championship Series, of course.
The Red Sox defeated the Astros in five games to advance to the World Series. They then defeated the Dodgers in five games to advance to, well, celebration.
We all knew this would be the result of a dominant Red Sox season. There was no way the Dodgers, or any other NL team, would beat the Sox, let alone any other AL club (well, maybe Cleveland, but they got swept, so). This also means that all series in this postseason were won on the road, which is nifty.
If we were to take a look at my initial predictions (that is, before the playoffs even started), you’ll see that I had the Red Sox as champions throughout. Of course, there have been teams that won 100+ games and then choked in the postseason, but from the second week of the season, when the Red Sox were already 7–2 and the best team in the league, you could tell they weren’t one of them. On the other side, I predicted the Cubs would be their opponent, and we all know how that worked out.
Fast forward to my predictions when the postseason started, and you’ll see some differences: same predictions, different teams. Back before the NL was settled, and there were two tiebreaker games, there was a team in the bracket that ended up not even making the playoffs: the Cardinals. They were ultimately replaced with the Rockies, and some predictions changed. But you can look at that bracket yourself and compare the predictions.
After the Wild Card games were finished, my bracket looked the same on the AL side, but wildly different on the NL side. The Cubs had blown the Wild Card game, so they were flying the L. The Dodgers had won the division, as I predicted, and were getting ready to face Atlanta. Originally I predicted Atlanta to win that series, but that was before the playoffs even started, so obviously, I began to have my doubts about that as soon as the NLDS began.
Now it’s October 10, and the Dodgers and Brewers have beaten the Braves and Rockies, respectively. In the AL, the Red Sox have defeated New York and will advance to play the defending champion Astros in the ALCS. My prediction for a Brewers-Red Sox World Series, a prediction that began after the Cubs were eliminated, continued. And now it’s October 21, and the Red Sox have defeated the Astros in five, and the Dodgers have defeated the Brewers in 7.
Now the fire is raging.
Fans get NBA vibes as the idea of a Boston-Los Angeles championship matchup sinks in. As a Yankees fan, this is the series I was hoping for. Although it is unfair to claim that the Brewers would’ve gotten severely beaten and swept by the Sox, because it never happened, it is a valid claim. The Dodgers didn’t seem to be any better than the Brewers, but they proved they were in Game 7 of the NLCS, beating the Brewers by a score of 5–1 — the same score that the Red Sox beat the Dodgers in Game 5 of the World Series, the same score that the Astros beat the Dodgers in Game 7 of the 2017 World Series — a score that could possibly be the curse of the Dodgers. Maybe?
Either way, we’ll never know, because the Sox stomped all over the Dodgers in their home. Five minutes after the game, the colors of the crowd transitioned from a scene of white and blue to a scene of red and white. Red Sox fans had filled the seats, chanting with their distinguishable accents “Let’s Go Red Sawx!” The stage was set, literally, on the field. Coaches and players were presented. Awards were given out. For Sox fans, the day was lit.
A page in the baseball history books this was. Or multiple pages.
The 2018 season is over, my series of articles and predictions throughout the Postseason is over, and the official MLB 2018 Challonge bracket is complete.
The only thing left to do now, as fans, is to wait for 2019.
And it’s right around the corner, peering at us with menacing eyes.
Chris is a writer and publisher who travels America, and loves doing it. He also loves pizza, video games, and sports, and can tell you a thing or two about each. Follow him on Medium to be informed of new articles.
