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It’s playoff time in Major League Baseball. Since the adoption of a second wild card team in each league, there’s also a greater sense of urgency when the postseason begins because you have only one game to get everything right.

There are a lot of myths surrounding playoff baseball, not the least of which is this idea of momentum. We’ve seen teams with 85 wins capture a World Series, so how much forward movement did those teams really have?

What makes October baseball so special is you don’t have to be the best team to win a World Series. You just have to be the best team on a given day, three times in a five-game stretch and four times in a seven-game span. 

Before we get into the meat of playoff baseball, it’s time to examine the two games that will kick things off. Here is our look at the American League and National League Wild Card games, including the start times and predictions. 

Oakland Athletics vs. Kansas City Royals

You are going to notice a running theme throughout this particular predictions piece about starting pitching. Every year, the postseason discussion revolves around what happens on the mound but it’s never more apparent than a winner-take-all situation. 

Billy Beane made the deal for Jon Lester at the trade deadline specifically for this moment. He may have thought the A’s would be waiting to start the AL Division Series at the time, but following their brutal second half, it’s good to have that proven horse at the top of your rotation to lean on. 

Looking at Lester’s postseason stats, via MLB‘s official Twitter account, you know this moment won’t be too big for him:

Lester will also have the easier task in this game, because Kansas City’s lineup is the worst among playoff teams. The Royals are an empty offensive team, the kind that will struggle to find runs against the power pitching in October. 

The Royals did post the fourth-best batting average in baseball and were the only team to strike out less than 1,000 times, but also have the lowest slugging percentage among AL playoff teams (.376) and only had three players with more than 10 home runs. 

Kansas City manager Ned Yost is going to drive people nuts because of how frequently he gives up outs with sacrifice bunts, with Andy McCullough of The Kansas City Star noting the criticism recently on Twitter:

On the other side, the Royals made the trade for James Shields in December 2012 hoping he would get an opportunity to pitch in a playoff game before leaving via free agency after this season. They will get their wish in the city’s first postseason game since 1985. 

Much like Pittsburgh last season, there’s no doubt that Kansas City and Kaufmann Stadium will be bouncing long before the first pitch is thrown. Sometimes we underestimate the power a crowd can have in baseball. It was easy to see with the Pirates last year, as Cincinnati looked overwhelmed by the stage it was on. 

However, the A’s are a playoff-tested team with one of the best playoff pitchers in baseball on the mound. They won’t be intimidated by the spectacle of Kaufmann Stadium. It also doesn’t hurt that, for all the problems after the All-Star break, they are more likely to find a three-run homer than Kansas City. 

Shields hasn’t been great at home this season with a 3.51 ERA and 108 hits allowed in 102.2 innings, so the A’s should have opportunities to score. If the game should come down to the bullpens, the A’s finished third in ERA (2.91) and batting average against (.222). Kansas City was 10th (3.30) and 11th (.235) in those categories. 

You almost want the Royals to win because it would be a great story to talk about, but from a starting pitching perspective and talent-for-talent examination, the Athletics are a better team and should come out on top. 

Prediction: A’s 4, Royals 1

San Francisco Giants vs. Pittsburgh Pirates

The National League Wild Card Game is much easier to figure out. San Francisco will start Madison Bumgarner, one of the best pitchers in baseball, while Pittsburgh will for some reason counter with Edinson Volquez. 

I recognize that Volquez‘s ERA of 3.04 looks solid and he threw 192.2 innings during the regular season, but how do you trust a pitcher in a must-win game who has 71 walks and the lowest strikeout rate of his career (6.54)?

For all the control problems he’s had this year (81 walks in 162.1 innings), Francisco Liriano would have been a much better choice for the Pirates in this game because he’s still missing a lot of bats (175 strikeouts). Unfortunately, he started Saturday and would be pitching this game on short rest.

Gerrit Cole would have been the best choice to start this game, but Clint Hurdle decided to use him on Sunday in hopes of catching St. Louis for the National League Central title. 

If you believe in observing small sample sizes, Andrew Baggarly of Comcast SportsNet Bay Area points out that Volquez has been really good late in the season:

The counter to that, via Jon Morosi of Fox Sports, is the Giants finished 14 games over .500 this season because of how they performed against right-handed pitching:

Volquez might be a changed pitcher right now, but that feeling it can all go wrong at any given moment is more present with him than even an average postseason pitcher. You can’t put your entire season on his right arm. 

Finally, as mentioned earlier, the biggest problem for Pittsburgh will be Bumgarner. The Pirates are terrible against left-handed pitching, scoring the second-fewest runs (137) and hitting the second-fewest homers (23) this season. 

Bumgarner doesn’t need extra help to succeed, especially on the road where he held opponents to a .619 OPS and 0.98 WHIP. Adding Pittsburgh’s ineptitude against southpaws into the mix only makes the Giants bigger favorites in the game. 

Prediction: Giants 5, Pirates 2

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Derek Jeter‘s final series as a member of the New York Yankees could end with a whimper. The soon-to-be retired star was taken out in the fifth inning of Saturday’s game against Boston at Fenway Park for undisclosed reasons. 

According to Wallace Matthews of ESPN New York, Jeter was lifted for a pinch hitter in the fifth inning with the Yankees losing 9-0:

There was no immediate word on why Jeter was removed from the game, but the 40-year-old captain seemed to be moving gingerly as he returned to the dugout after legging out a third-inning infield single. It seemed odd that manager Joe Girardi would take him out that early, even with the Yankees trailing 9-0 after a poor performance from starter Masahiro Tanaka.

Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News provides more details on the move from Girardi:

Jeter confirmed he is ago for tomorrow, (via Feinsand):

After getting a walk-off hit in his final game at Yankee Stadium on Thursday, Jeter sat out Friday’s game against the Red Sox before returning to the lineup today. Girardi said the plan was for him to play tomorrow as well, per Matthews, although it bears watching whether he’s healthy enough to do so. 

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The Cincinnati Reds may have had a disappointing season on the field, but that doesn’t mean ownership has lost faith in the work of general manager Walt Jocketty. 

Per Major League Baseball’s official Twitter account, Jocketty has agreed to a two-year contract extension that will keep him in Cincinnati through 2016. 

Jocketty talked about his extension to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com on Friday before it was officially announced, simply saying that he likes where he’s at and stating his goals for the future:

I’ve got a great relationship with [Reds CEO] Bob [Castellini]. In my position, there are two things that are important. You have to have a great relationship with your owner and you have to have a great relationship with your manager. I have that here with both those guys.

I’m fully committed to trying to get this team back into the postseason because I think we’re good enough to do that with a little bit of help here. I think our ownership certainly deserves it and our fans deserve it.

It hasn’t been a pleasant year in Cincinnati though a lot of that has to do with the rash of injuries to key players more than anything Jocketty wasn’t doing. It’s hard to win games when Joey Votto misses 100 games, Jay Bruce posts a .656 OPS and two of your top three pitchers (Homer Bailey and Mat Latos) make a combined 39 starts. 

Votto,  in particular, was impossible to replace in Cincinnati’s lineup. As Aaron Gleeman of NBC Sports noted in August, he’s a rarity among left-handed hitters because he can actually hit left-handed pitching at close to the same level he does right-handers:

Jocketty, who has been with the Reds since 2008 and took over as general manager in April 2008 after the team fired Wayne Krivsky, is one of the most decorated executives in baseball. He built the Reds into one of the better teams in the National League, with three playoff appearances in four years from 2010-2013. 

Before arriving in Cincinnati, Jocketty worked in St. Louis for 13 years and was a key part of helping that franchise win seven division titles, two National League championships and a World Series in 2006. 

There’s a lot of work facing Jocketty to get the Reds back in the playoff mix. They aren’t exactly an old team, as five regulars and five starting pitchers all entered this season under the age of 30, but bad contracts and poor performances have left the future of this team cloudy. 

Given his track record, Jocketty should be given the benefit of the doubt. Ownership believes in the direction he’s got the team headed in, and they are just one year removed from winning 90 games and appearing in the NL Wild Card Game. 

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After quietly returning to the big leagues in 2014 after a one-year hiatus, New York Mets outfielder Bobby Abreu has officially called it a career.  

According to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, Abreu made the announcement Friday with a simple, quiet message:

You could be forgiven if you forgot Abreu was still a Major League Baseball player. He has only appeared in 76 games for the Mets this season, posting a .246/.338/.338 line with 10 extra-base hits in 130 at-bats. That doesn’t take away from the incredible talent he was at his peak. 

Paul Boye of Crashburn Alley and ESPN tweeted this stat about Abreu’s career numbers that puts him in some very elite company:

Joe Morgan and Rickey Henderson are Hall of Famers while Barry Bonds should be but probably won’t get in for obvious reasons. You likely won’t hear much about Abreu when he becomes a candidate for Cooperstown in five years.

The overall numbers are fantastic, and he had some terrific individual seasons, including three consecutive years (1998-2000) with more than six FanGraphs wins above replacement, but he was more of a compiler than someone who was ever in the conversation as best player in the game. 

Abreu also spent the bulk of his career in Philadelphia before the Phillies became a championship contender. He was traded to the Yankees in 2006 and left there to sign with the Los Angeles Angels after the 2008 season, one year before the Yankees would win their most recent World Series. 

For someone who was never the best player in baseball and never finished higher than 12th in MVP voting, Abreu was an incredible hitter. His .395 career on-base percentage is 78th all time, ahead of Gary Sheffield, Tony Gwynn and Rod Carew. 

That’s good company for a guy whose resume is likely to fall short of a Hall of Famer. 

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The New York Mets front office and dugout will look familiar next season with the team announcing on Twitter a contract extension for general manager Sandy Alderson and that manager Terry Collins will return in 2015. 

The team’s official website included a press release (h/t ESPN New York’s Adam Rubin), which states that Alderson’s extension is through the 2017 season and includes a quote from COO Jeff Wilpon about the decision to extend the general manager:

We are excited about the direction the team is headed and look forward to Sandy continuing his efforts to build the Mets into a postseason contender. Sandy and his staff have built our Minor League system into one of the best in baseball, and will continue to balance player development along with making key additions that will help us reach our goals.

Alderson is also quoted as saying that he is grateful for “the opportunity to continue what we have started” and that there “have been positives this season, but there is still a lot of work to do.”

During the press conference, Alderson was honest about his assessment of where the team is right now, via Mike Puma of the New York Post:

However, Alderson also added that even if there isn’t a spike in the money spent in free agency it won’t be due to lack of available funds, via Puma and Anthony DiComo of MLB.com:

Collins has been with the team since 2011, compiling a 301-341 career record, and will become the Mets’ longest-tenured manager since Bobby Valentine was fired in 2002 after six full seasons with the team. 

While there will be questions about Collins’ staff for 2015, Alderson didn’t go into specifics about rumors that former Mets second baseman Wally Backman would move up from his position as manager of the team’s Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas, via Rubin:

Even though New York fans just look and see another year without a playoff appearance, the future is bright thanks to the efforts of Alderson. The Mets are currently tied for second place in the National League East at 76-80 with a chance to finish at .500 for the first time since 2008.    

Alderson addressed the topic of New York’s future postseason hopes, via DiComo:

Their young pitching staff led by Zack Wheeler, Rafael Montero, Jon Niese, Dillon Gee and Jacob deGrom will get even better in 2015 with the return of Matt Harvey and eventual promotion of top prospect Noah Syndergaard. If they can find offense—the Mets are ranked 20th in MLB with 609 runs—to support those arms, they will be very interesting in a mediocre division. 

All you have to do is look at the numbers to see that the Mets are getting better. They are one of only six National League teams with a positive run differential (plus-nine) and the only one in that group under .500. 

With all the pitching depth Alderson and Collins will have to play with in 2015, they have the luxury of using a veteran guy like Bartolo Colon or even a younger guy like Niese or Gee in a trade to make sure they get a bat. Alderson has the franchise moving in the right direction, while Collins has to put all the pieces in place to arrive at the next level. 

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San Diego Padres shortstop Everth Cabrera was reportedly arrested on Wednesday for operating a vehicle under the influence, according to TMZSports.com.

Per the report, Cabrera was under the influence of marijuana and arrested as a result. The incident happened just after midnight on September 3.

A rep for the California Highway Patrol confirms … U.S. border patrol agents initially made contact with the 27-year-old near a checkpoint on the 94 Freeway around 12:30 AM. 

We’re told the agents suspected something was wrong — and contacted the CHP to check things out. 

After CHP arrived to the scene, deputies were convinced Cabrera was under the influence of marijuana and arrested him for DUI. 

The Padres released a statement on the team’s website:

 “We were made aware of an incident involving Everth Cabrera this week, and we take this matter very seriously. We are in the process of gathering information and are in communication with Major League Baseball. We refrain from further comment at this time.”

After the arrest, per TMZ’s report, Cabrera had his blood drawn and was cited before officers released him to his mother-in-law. 

This isn’t the first off-field incident for Cabrera. Major League Baseball suspended him for 50 games during the 2013 season for being involved in the Biogenesis scandal. He told reporters at the time his punishment was handed down, via Corey Brock of MLB.com, that he took performance-enhancing drugs to recover from an injury:

In 2012, when I made the decision to take this, my shoulder wasn’t even at 50 percent, and I wanted to be healthy for the spring. 

…

My heart and my conscience were killing me. I knew it wasn’t the best decision to make.

Cabrera was in the midst of his best season as a professional last year before being sat down. He made the National League All-Star team and set career highs in average (.283), on-base percentage (.355) and slugging percentage (.381). 

He’s currently on the disabled list, though the team was hopeful to get him back soon. Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune quoted Padres manager Bud Black as saying the shortstop was due to begin a rehab assignment soon, but his hamstring wasn’t where they wanted it to be:

“We’re still formulating a plan for him moving forward,” Black said. “Hopefully Lake Elsinore can extend their season. When Cabby is ready and healthy (enough) to play, he can maybe jump on board there and get some at-bats.”

In 2012, according to a report from Brent Schrotenboer of the San Diego Union-Tribune, Cabrera was arrested for domestic violence. The case was later dismissed and charges dropped before going to trial. 

This year has been the worst year of Cabrera’s career on the field with a paltry .232/.272/.300 slash line in 90 games. He’s still under team control to the Padres through 2016 and is making around $2.4 million. The team doesn’t have to tender him a contract after the season since he’s eligible for arbitration. 

There’s no denying Cabrera is a talented player. He’s not a dynamic offensive talent but has shown the ability to record stolen bases and play good defense at shortstop. His inability to get out of his own way has never been more evident after this latest incident. 

If you want to talk sports, hit me up on Twitter. 

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Updates from Saturday, Aug. 30

Dan Connnolly of The Baltimore Sun provides an update on Steve Pearce’s injury:

Original Text:

The Baltimore Orioles have built up a huge cushion in the American League East, but the team can ill-afford to lose any more core players down the stretch as it prepares for the postseason. 

Steve Pearce, who has been one of the most pleasant surprises in the league this year, was taken out of Friday’s game against Minnesota. According to Brittany Ghiroli of Orioles.com, the versatile slugger strained his abdominal muscle:

Ghiroli provided more details after the game:

With Manny Machado out for the season following another knee operation and Chris Davis essentially being relegated to a pinch-hitting role thanks to a .684 OPS, Pearce’s presence in the lineup was more important than ever. 

The 31-year-old veteran is having the best season of his career in 2014. He’s hitting a robust .290/.355/.534 with 16 home runs in just 283 at-bats. He’s been streaky, with Matthew Pouliot of Rotoworld.com noting on August 20 how the extra-base hits seem to come in bunches:

With a seven-game lead over the New York Yankees entering Friday, it would take an epic collapse in September for Buck Showalter’s team to miss playing in October. The important thing is to enter the second season with all of your core players ready to go. 

Pearce certainly wasn’t a player many had high expectations for when the season started, but he’s been as valuable as any position player on the team not named Nelson Cruz. 

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Allen Craig was acquired by the Boston Red Sox prior to the trade deadline, but a bum ankle has limited him to just one game with his new team. It turns out the severity of the injury is enough to keep the outfielder out for a lot longer. 

According to MLB writer Maureen Mullen, Craig will be placed on the 15-day disabled list because of his faulty ankle:

Alex Speier of WEEI.com confirmed the report, citing a Red Sox team source, and adding some additional insight into Craig’s injury:

Craig is heading to the disabled list due to an ankle injury, according to a Red Sox team source. Craig went 1-for-4 with a double in his Sox debut on Friday, but in his final at-bat, he tweaked his ankle while crossing first base while running out a grounder.

…

Craig missed considerable time last year due to a Lisfranc fracture in his foot. On Sunday, Sox manager Johnsaid that the Red Sox were trying to discern if there was any connection between last year’s injury and this one.

Despite a rough 2014 season that has seen Craig hit .237/.291/.348 in 98 games, Marc Normandin of OverTheMonster.com did note that this could just end up as a blip on the radar when we look back on his career:

Keep in mind that Craig was one of the best pure hitters in the National League from 2011-13, when he hit .312/.364/.500 with 46 home runs. He just turned 30 on July 18 and is signed to a very reasonable deal that pays him $25.5 million from 2015-17. 

The Red Sox can take a cautious approach with Craig this season since they aren’t going to the playoffs, let him get healthy and hope that 2015 sees a return to form for the former NL All-Star. 

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Even though the traditional trade deadline has come and gone, with a flurry of activity that changed the landscape of this year’s postseason race, Major League Baseball teams are still working diligently to make trades through August 31.

The difference between the two trading periods is that players must clear waivers now to be traded anywhere or teams can work out a deal with another club that puts in a waiver claim, but in that latter scenario, there is a 48-hour window for trades to be worked out. 

General managers are always looking to upgrade their rosters, either for the stretch run or for next season, so there are plenty of notable players who could still be dealt before the calendar flips to September. 

Here are the teams that we believe have reasons to make big moves, either buying or selling, during the waiver period. 

Philadelphia Phillies

No team had a worse deadline than the Philadelphia Phillies, which is saying something about the state of the franchise considering general manager Ruben Amaro did nothing. 

There were rumblings about potential deals, like Marlon Byrd to the New York Yankees, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, but the deadline came and went with no activity from Amaro. 

Making matters even worse were Amaro‘s comments after the deadline, per Matt Gelb of The Philadelphia Inquirer, in which he couldn’t understand why no one was going all-in to land his prized possessions:

Of course, those prized possessions include Ryan Howard, making $50 million total for the next two seasons with a .676 OPS; Cliff Lee, who is back on the disabled list with an elbow injury and due to make $25 million next season; and Jonathan Papelbon, who publicly questioned where the Phillies were headed.

With the vitriol getting louder in Philadelphia, thanks to an old team full of bad contracts and little financial wiggle room for the next two years, Amaro finds himself in hot water. Bob Brookover of The Philadelphia Inquirer noted that Amaro has said team president David Montgomery has not committed to him being general manager next season. 

If the pressure wasn’t enough for the GM to make a move before July 31, perhaps he just rests on his laurels and manages to convince himself that the team as presently constructed, a team that is in the National League East cellar, can contend next year. 

The best thing that can happen to Amaro is finding someone to take Byrd or A.J. Burnett before August 31, though the he will clearly have to lower his asking price. 

San Diego Padres

Unlike the Phillies, the San Diego Padres, who don’t currently have a full-time general manager, were active before the deadline. They dealt Huston Street to the Los Angeles Angels for four prospects and sent Chase Headley to the Yankees. 

However, there are still plenty of trade options for the Padres to entertain this month. The problem the team faces, unfortunately, is that its potential partners will be limited because their top players are likely to be claimed. 

According to Heyman, who spoke with four MLB executives, in a piece for CBSSports.com, Ian Kennedy and Joaquin Benoit are in the top tier (“The Claimers”) of players likely to be claimed in August. 

Benoit is a tricky trade candidate because he’s a reliever due to make $8 million next season. But Kennedy is one of the most pleasant surprises this year, with a career-high 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings and solid 3.66 ERA. 

The right-hander is only 29 years old, making $6.1 million this season and under team control for 2015. San Diego can ask a lot for him because of his cheap salary and contract status. 

Since some team is likely to claim Kennedy, even if it’s just for the sole purpose of preventing a rival from getting him, the odds of a move seem slim. 

Benoit, on the other hand, could slip through waivers unclaimed because of his salary next season and fall into the hands of a contender in need of bullpen help. He’s got a 1.88 ERA with 23 hits allowed and 51 strikeouts in 43 innings. 

Heyman speculates that the Los Angeles Dodgers, who essentially gave away $10 million to re-sign Brian Wilson last winter, could be in the mix for Benoit. The Dodgers certainly aren’t strangers to making deals in August and have a need for relief help, so it would make sense if something materialized. 

Texas Rangers

To say this has been a disappointing season for the Texas Rangers would be an understatement. Things started out badly, with Derek Holland getting hurt in January, and only got worse. Their disabled list would be a playoff-contending team.

Despite all of the injuries and an MLB-high 66 losses through Friday, general manager Jon Daniels didn’t have a fire sale. No one can blame him, because next year, assuming even half of those players on the DL return, Texas will be competitive. 

However, the one move everyone expected to happen, Alex Rios getting dealt, never materialized. Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reported July 30 that there were four suitors in the mix for the outfielder:

Rios has a $13.5 million team option that could scare teams off since he’s not a traditional corner outfielder due to declining power numbers, but the 33-year-old is hitting .300 with 16 stolen bases and an above-average OPS+. 

The Rangers have plenty of depth in the outfield for next year, with Beltre, Shin-Soo Choo, Michael Choice and Leonys Martin currently on the roster, not to mention any potential free agents the team looks at this winter, so moving an aging outfielder would be a wise move. 

Stats and contract info courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com. 

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Shane Victorino was a key factor in the Boston Red Sox‘s run to a World Series in 2013. This year, however, he’s been unable to stay on the field, playing just 30 games and landing back on the disabled list with back and hamstring problems.

Red Sox manager John Farrell told reporters, via CSNNE.com’s Jimmy Toscano, it’s not out of the question that Victorino could be shut down for the remainder of this season if that’s what doctors say:

I think until we get the information back, it’s probably too early to tell.

But the one thing that we do have right now is we do have some time on our side. So whatever is recommended for Vic to get back to full strength, and if we can use the remaining months in this calendar year to our advantage, we’ll see if that makes sense.

Following up on Farrell’s statement, Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald tweeted that Victorino would be seeking out a second opinion in the near future:

In many ways, Victorino perfectly sums up the 2014 Red Sox. There was so much optimism following last year’s incredible turnaround, resulting in a championship, but things weren’t right from the first game.

The 33-year-old didn’t debut until April 24, played roughly one month before going on the disabled list for the second time, came back on July 19 and played in nine games before going back on the DL.

Set to make $13 million next season, it will be interesting to see what the Red Sox do with Victorino this winter. They were selling any impending free agents at the trade deadline, adding a lot of outfield depth in the process and making someone expendable.

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