How To Watch AL Wild Card Series: Baltimore, Houston Are Favored

The resurgent American League Central Division made a statement this season. Now it is poised for another.

Detroit and Kansas City will join Central division winner Cleveland to give the division three of the six teams still standing as the wild card round that begins today. (The Guardians have a first-round bye.)

It is a division first and a rebuttal to recent history. The Central had not had even two postseason qualifiers in a full season since 2017, and it had not had two teams finish with a winning record in a full regular season since 2019.

This also is the first season in which three AL Central teams finished a full regular season with a winning record since Kansas City won the World Series in 2015 in the second of the Royals’ back-to-back Series appearances.

Neither Kansas City nor Detroit is favored in its best-of-three series against Baltimore and Houston, respectively, in the latest wild card iteration adopted in 2022 that is heavily weighted toward the best teams in the regular season.

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Baltimore and Houston will play all necessary games at home.

No. 4 seed Baltimore (91-71) vs No. 5 seed Kansas City (86-76)

Tuesday: Kansas City (Cole Ragans, 11-9, 3.14 ERA) at Baltimore (Corbin Burnes, 15-9, 2.92), ESPN2, 3 pm ET

Wednesday: Kansas City at Baltimore, ESPN, 3:30 pm ET

Thursday: Kansas City at Baltimore, ESPN, 3 pm (if necessary)

Season series: Baltimore won, 4-2. The teams have not played since April 21 after meeting each other twice in the first three weeks.

Players to watch/things to know

Kansas City: SS Bobby Witt Jr. is the first player in major league history to begin his career with three straight 20-homer, 20 stolen-base seasons. He became the first shortstop in history with multiple 30/30 seasons when he had 32 homers and 31 stolen bases this year after going 30/49 a year ago.

Witt, who signed an 11-year, $289 million contract extension in February, leads the AL in batting average (.332) and hits (211) and should finish in the top three in the AL MVP voting.

Righty Seth Lugo (16-9, 3.00 ERA) and lefty Ragans head a starting rotation that has a 3.55 ERA, the second in the AL behind Seattle. Both and were first-time All-Stars. Lugo, in his first full season in a rotation, ate innings — his 206 2/3 were second in the league.

Baltimore: RF Anthony Santander turned his “walk year” into a career year with 42 homers and 102 RBIs as he enters free agency this winter. SS Gunnar Henderson had career highs with 37 homers, 21 stolen bases a 159 OPS+ in his second season as a regular.

The Orioles needed an ace after being bumped from the first round by World Series champion Texas a year ago, and 2021 NL Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes stepped up in his first and perhaps only season in Baltimore. Burnes, who also will become a free agent this winter, was 15-9 with a 2.92 ERA, fourth in the AL.

No. 3 seed Houston (88-73) vs No. 6 seed Detroit (86-76)

Tuesday: Detroit (Tarik Skubal, 18-4, 2.39) at Houston (Framber Valdez, 15-7, 2.91), ABC, 1:30 pm ET

Wednesday: Detroit at Houston, ABC, 1:30 pm ET

Thursday: Detroit at Houston, ABC, 1:30 pm ET (if necessary)

Season series: Houston won, 4-2. The Astros took two-out-of-three in both series. Valdez won his only start while Skubal split his two.

Players to watch/things to know

Detroit: Skubal will win the American League Cy Young Award after a dominating season in which he won the pitching triple crown with a Randy Johnson-like performance, leading the majors in victories, ERA and strikeouts (228).

OF Riley Greene has team highs with 24 homers and 74 RBIs in what became a whole-is-greater-than-the-sum-of-its-parts season in Motown.

No Tigers’ player has as many as 150 hits, 25 homers, 25 stolen bases or 75 RBIs, yet the Tigers are 31-13 since Aug. 10, the best record in the majors. (Houston is second in the AL, at 27-18). Detroit was 16 games out of the AL Central lead on Aug. 2, a few days after trading free agent-to-be Jack Flaherty to the Dodgers.

Houston: DH and premier power hitter Yordan Alvarez led the offense with 35 homers and 86 RBIs, although his status is in question. He has not played since Sept 22 after suffering a right knee sprain, but he was scheduled to take batting Monday. 3B and pending free agent Alex Bergman had 26 homers and 2B Jose Altuve had his third 20/20 season, his first since 2017, with 20 homers and 22 steals.

Valdez and righties Hunter Brown (11-9, 3.49) and Ronel Blanco (13-6, 2.80) saved the rotation after Cristian Javier was lost for the season and Hall of Famer-in-waiting Justin Verlander scuffled in his return from a neck injury. Brown is 10-5 with a 2.31 ERA since late May. Josh Hader had 34 saves.

The Astros were 10 games out of first place in late June before recovering to win their seventh NL West title in the last eight seasons under first-year manager Joe Espada.