A pandemic-shortened season birthed a permanent shift in baseball's postseason
In short: The 2020 MLB postseason was a laboratory for structural change. Faced with a 60-game season, the league introduced a best-of-three Wild Card series—a format that was so successful it became a permanent fixture of the sport starting in 2022.
The 2020 postseason was defined by logistical adaptation. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the league played a truncated 60-game regular season. To accommodate the compressed timeline, the tournament began on September 29 with an expanded 16-team field. While most games were held at neutral sites, the most significant structural change was the introduction of a new best-of-three Wild Card round to serve as the opening bracket. The tournament featured a diverse array of teams, including the New York Yankees and Houston Astros, who both secured their fourth consecutive appearances. Additionally, the Minnesota Twins and Toronto Blue Jays also returned to the playoffs. The expanded field included the Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers, and the St. Louis Cardinals.
This experimental format proved durable enough to be codified as a permanent addition to the postseason starting in 2022. The tournament also served as a milestone for several franchises. The Miami Marlins ended a nearly two-decade drought, clinching their first postseason berth since 2003. Meanwhile, the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox both reached the playoffs for the first time since 2008, marking a rare dual-city appearance for Chicago. For the initial time post-2013, the Cincinnati Reds rejoined the playoffs, creating a unique situation where both Ohio-based clubs qualified. The Cleveland Indians reached the postseason for a fifth time throughout the previous eight years in the American League. The Tampa Bay Rays also qualified for the second year in a row.
The tournament concluded on October 27 with the Los Angeles Dodgers securing their first title since 1988. The Dodgers defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in six games to claim their seventh franchise championship. The 2020 run also marked the final postseason appearance for the Oakland Athletics before their relocation to Las Vegas, and the last time the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum hosted a postseason game. Globe Life Field in Arlington hosted the start of the World Series on 20 October. During the opening rounds, the Oakland Athletics defeated the Chicago White Sox to advance. The Tampa Bay Rays also secured a victory over the Toronto Blue Jays in the first round. The New York Yankees swept the Cleveland Indians to move forward.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: 2020 Major League Baseball postseason
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