2019 Major League Baseball postseason
Tournament details
DatesOctober 1–30, 2019[1]
Teams10
Final positions
ChampionsWashington Nationals
(1st title)
Runner-upHouston Astros
(3rd World Series appearance)
Tournament statistics
MVPStephen Strasburg
(WAS)

The 2019 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2019 season. The winners of the League Division Series would move on to the League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.

In the American League, the Houston Astros and New York Yankees returned for the fourth time in the past five years, the Minnesota Twins returned for the second time in three years, the Oakland Athletics made their fifth appearance in the past eight years, and the Tampa Bay Rays returned for the first time since 2013. This was the second postseason in a row in which the American League had at least three teams finish the regular season with 100 or more wins (Astros, Yankees, Twins).

In the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers made their seventh straight appearance, the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers clinched a postseason berth for the second year in a row, the St. Louis Cardinals made their first postseason appearance since 2015, and the Washington Nationals made their fifth appearance in the past eight years. The Dodgers also finished with at least 100 regular season wins, making this the first postseason to feature four 100-win teams.

The postseason began on October 1, and ended on October 30, with the Nationals upsetting the heavily-favored Astros in seven games in the 2019 World Series. It was the first title in franchise history for the Nationals, and the first World Series title won by a team from Washington, D.C. since 1924.

Playoff seeds

The following teams qualified for the postseason:

American League

  1. Houston Astros – AL West champions, AL best record, MLB best record, 107–55[2]
  2. New York Yankees – AL East champions, 103–59[3]
  3. Minnesota Twins – AL Central champions, 101–61[4]
  4. Oakland Athletics – 97–65[5]
  5. Tampa Bay Rays – 96–66[6]

National League

  1. Los Angeles Dodgers – NL West champions, NL best record, 106–56[7]
  2. Atlanta Braves – NL East champions, 97–65[8]
  3. St. Louis Cardinals – NL Central champions, 91–71[9]
  4. Washington Nationals – 93–69[10]
  5. Milwaukee Brewers – 89–73[11]

Playoff bracket

Wild Card Games
(ALWC, NLWC) 		Division Series
(ALDS, NLDS) 		League Championship Series
(ALCS, NLCS) 		World Series
1 Houston 3
4 Oakland 0 5 Tampa Bay 2
5 Tampa Bay 1 American League1 Houston 4
2 NY Yankees 2
2 NY Yankees 3
3 Minnesota 0
AL1 Houston 3
NL4 Washington 4
1 LA Dodgers 2
4 Washington 1 4 Washington 3
5 Milwaukee 0 National League4 Washington 4
3 St. Louis 0
2 Atlanta 2
3 St. Louis 3

American League Wild Card

(4) Oakland Athletics vs. (5) Tampa Bay Rays

Wednesday, October 2, 2019 5:09 pm (PDT) at RingCentral Coliseum in Oakland, California, 70 °F (21 °C), partly cloudy
Team123456789RHE
Tampa Bay121010000571
Oakland001000000180
WP: Charlie Morton (1–0)   LP: Sean Manaea (0–1)
Home runs:
TB: Yandy Díaz 2 (2), Avisaíl García (1), Tommy Pham (1)
OAK: None
Attendance: 54,005
Boxscore

The Rays defeated the Athletics 5–1 to advance to the ALDS for the first time since 2013.

National League Wild Card

(4) Washington Nationals vs. (5) Milwaukee Brewers

October 1, 2019 8:08 pm (EDT) at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., 83 °F (28 °C), clear
Team123456789RHE
Milwaukee210000000372
Washington00100003X450
WP: Stephen Strasburg (1–0)   LP: Josh Hader (0–1)   Sv: Daniel Hudson (1)
Home runs:
MIL: Yasmani Grandal (1), Eric Thames (1)
WAS: Trea Turner (1)
Attendance: 42,993
Boxscore

The Nationals rallied from an early 3–0 deficit to defeat the Brewers by a final score of 4–3 to advance to the NLDS.

American League Division Series

(1) Houston Astros vs. (5) Tampa Bay Rays

Houston won the series, 3–2.

GameDateScoreLocationTimeAttendance 
1October 4Tampa Bay Rays – 2, Houston Astros – 6Minute Maid Park3:2443,360[12] 
2October 5Tampa Bay Rays – 1, Houston Astros – 3Minute Maid Park3:4643,378[13] 
3October 7Houston Astros – 3, Tampa Bay Rays – 10Tropicana Field3:3732,251[14] 
4October 8Houston Astros – 1, Tampa Bay Rays – 4Tropicana Field3:4932,178[15] 
5October 10Tampa Bay Rays – 1, Houston Astros – 6Minute Maid Park3:1243,418[16]

This was the first postseason meeting between the Astros and Rays. The Astros defeated the Rays in five games to return to the ALCS for the third year in a row. Both teams would meet again in the 2020 ALCS, which the Rays won in seven games despite the Astros coming back from a 3–0 series deficit to force a seventh game.

(2) New York Yankees vs. (3) Minnesota Twins

New York won the series, 3–0.

GameDateScoreLocationTimeAttendance 
1October 4Minnesota Twins – 4, New York Yankees – 10Yankee Stadium4:1549,233[17] 
2October 5Minnesota Twins – 2, New York Yankees – 8Yankee Stadium3:3449,277[18] 
3October 7New York Yankees – 5, Minnesota Twins – 1Target Field4:0241,121[19]

This was the sixth postseason match-up between Minnesota and New York. The previous five meetings were in the ALDS in 2003, 2004, 2009, and 2010, as well as the 2017 AL Wild Card Game — with the Yankees winning each of those prior meetings. This was just the second time the ALDS featured a match-up of two 100-win teams, following the 2018 ALDS between the Yankees and Red Sox.

The Yankees again swept the Twins to advance to the ALCS for the second time in three years. The loss gave Minnesota its 16th straight postseason defeat, 13 of those in games against the Yankees; and their 28th straight year without winning the title.[20]

National League Division Series

(1) Los Angeles Dodgers vs. (4) Washington Nationals

Washington won the series, 3–2.

GameDateScoreLocationTimeAttendance 
1October 3Washington Nationals – 0, Los Angeles Dodgers – 6Dodger Stadium3:2353,095[21] 
2October 4Washington Nationals – 4, Los Angeles Dodgers – 2Dodger Stadium3:3753,086[22] 
3October 6Los Angeles Dodgers – 10, Washington Nationals – 4Nationals Park3:5843,423[23] 
4October 7Los Angeles Dodgers – 1, Washington Nationals – 6Nationals Park3:2436,847[24] 
5October 9Washington Nationals – 7, Los Angeles Dodgers – 3 (10)Dodger Stadium4:0654,159[25]

This was the third postseason meeting between these two teams. The Nationals upset the 106-win Dodgers in five games to return to the NLCS for the first time since 1981, when the team was then known as the Montreal Expos.

The Dodgers won Game 1 in a 6-0 shutout thanks to a solid pitching performance from Walker Buehler. In Game 2, Stephen Strasburg out-dueled Clayton Kershaw as the Nationals prevailed by two runs to even the series. When the series shifted to the nation's capital, the Dodgers blew out the Nationals in Game 3 to regain the series lead. Max Scherzer pitched seven solid innings in Game 4 as the Nationals won 6-1 to even the series headed back to Los Angeles. In Game 5, the Dodgers jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, but it would not hold as the Nationals put up three unanswered runs in the sixth and eighth innings respectively to tie the game. Howie Kendrick would then win the series for the Nationals in the top of the tenth inning with a grand slam, giving the Nationals a 7-3 victory.

The Dodgers would redeem themselves the following season as they would go on to win the 2020 World Series against the Tampa Bay Rays.

(2) Atlanta Braves vs. (3) St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis won the series, 3–2.

GameDateScoreLocationTimeAttendance 
1October 3St. Louis Cardinals – 7, Atlanta Braves – 6SunTrust Park4:0742,631[26] 
2October 4St. Louis Cardinals – 0, Atlanta Braves – 3SunTrust Park2:4642,911[27] 
3October 6Atlanta Braves – 3, St. Louis Cardinals – 1Busch Stadium3:2246,701[28] 
4October 7Atlanta Braves – 4, St. Louis Cardinals – 5 (10)Busch Stadium4:0642,203[29] 
5October 9St. Louis Cardinals – 13, Atlanta Braves – 1SunTrust Park3:1743,122[30]

This was the fifth postseason meeting between the Cardinals and Braves. The Cardinals defeated the Braves in five games to advance to the NLCS for the first time since 2014. With the win, the Cardinals moved up to 4–1 against the Braves in the postseason, having won in 1982, 2000, and 2012.

American League Championship Series

(1) Houston Astros vs. (2) New York Yankees

Houston won the series, 4–2.

GameDateScoreLocationTimeAttendance 
1October 12New York Yankees – 7, Houston Astros – 0Minute Maid Park3:1143,311[31] 
2October 13New York Yankees – 2, Houston Astros – 3 (11)Minute Maid Park4:4943,359[32] 
3October 15Houston Astros – 4, New York Yankees – 1Yankee Stadium3:4448,998[33] 
4October 17Houston Astros – 8, New York Yankees – 3Yankee Stadium4:1949,067[34] 
5October 18Houston Astros – 1, New York Yankees – 4Yankee Stadium2:5948,483[35] 
6October 19New York Yankees – 4, Houston Astros – 6Minute Maid Park4:0943,357[36]

This was the third postseason meeting between the Yankees and Astros. The previous two meetings (2015, 2017) were won by the Astros. History once again repeated itself, and the Astros defeated the Yankees in six games to return to the World Series for the second time in three years.

Masahiro Tanaka pitched six shutout innings as the Yankees blew out the Astros 7–0 in Game 1. In Game 2, the Astros prevailed after 11 innings thanks to a walk-off home run from Carlos Correa. In the Bronx, the Astros stole Game 3 on the road thanks to a solid pitching performance from Gerrit Cole. The Astros convincingly won Game 4 by an 8–3 score to take a 3–1 series lead. The Yankees would send the series back to Houston with a 4–1 win in Game 5, but the Astros ultimately capped off the series with a walk-off two-run home run by José Altuve off Aroldis Chapman in the bottom of the ninth inning of Game 6, securing the pennant.

The Astros returned to the ALCS the next year, but fell to the Tampa Bay Rays in seven games. They would win their next pennant in 2021, against the Boston Red Sox in six games.

With the series loss, this marked the first decade since the 1910s that the Yankees failed to win the AL pennant. The Astros and Yankees would meet in the ALCS again in 2022, which the Astros won in a sweep.

National League Championship Series

(4) Washington Nationals vs. (3) St. Louis Cardinals

Washington won the series, 4–0.

GameDateScoreLocationTimeAttendance 
1October 11Washington Nationals – 2, St. Louis Cardinals – 0Busch Stadium3:2445,075[37] 
2October 12Washington Nationals – 3, St. Louis Cardinals – 1Busch Stadium2:5346,458[38] 
3October 14St. Louis Cardinals – 1, Washington Nationals – 8Nationals Park3:2643,675[39] 
4October 15St. Louis Cardinals – 4, Washington Nationals – 7Nationals Park3:0243,976[40]

This was the second postseason meeting between the Nationals and Cardinals. This NLCS marked the first time that the Nationals franchise had ever played in a seven-game playoff series. The Nationals swept the Cardinals to reach the World Series for the first time in franchise history.

This series was heavily lopsided in favor of the Nationals. Aníbal Sánchez pitched seven solid innings as the Nationals shut out the Cardinals 2–0 to take Game 1 on the road. The Nationals would also win Game 2 thanks to a solid pitching performance from Max Scherzer. By holding the Cardinals hitless through the first five innings of each of their starts, Scherzer and Sánchez repeated a feat they accomplished in Games 1 and 2 of the 2013 ALCS as members of the Detroit Tigers, a feat no other pair of pitchers has ever accomplished in the postseason.[41] When the series shifted to the nation's capital, the Nationals blew out the Cardinals in Game 3 to take a 3–0 series lead. In Game 4, the Nationals jumped out to a 7–0 lead early, and despite the Cardinals cutting their lead to three after the fifth inning, the Nationals held on to secure their first and only NL pennant.

As of 2023, this is the last time both the Nationals and Cardinals have appeared in the NLCS.

2019 World Series

(AL1) Houston Astros vs. (NL4) Washington Nationals

Washington won the series, 4–3.

GameDateScoreLocationTimeAttendance 
1October 22Washington Nationals – 5, Houston Astros – 4Minute Maid Park3:4343,339[42] 
2October 23Washington Nationals – 12, Houston Astros – 3Minute Maid Park4:0143,357[43] 
3October 25Houston Astros – 4, Washington Nationals – 1Nationals Park4:0343,867[44] 
4October 26Houston Astros – 8, Washington Nationals – 1Nationals Park3:4843,889[45] 
5October 27Houston Astros – 7, Washington Nationals – 1Nationals Park3:1943,910[46] 
6October 29Washington Nationals – 7, Houston Astros – 2Minute Maid Park3:3743,384[47] 
7October 30Washington Nationals – 6, Houston Astros – 2Minute Maid Park3:4243,326[48]

This was the second World Series to feature two expansion teams, as well as the first World Series since 1933 to come to Washington, D.C., when the Washington Senators fell to the New York Giants in five games. In the first championship series in the history of North American sports in which neither team won a home game, the Nationals pulled off one of the biggest upsets in World Series history, defeating the heavily-favored Astros in seven games.

The Nationals took Game 1 narrowly, and blew out the Astros in Game 2 to go up 2–0 in the series heading back to Washington, D.C. The Astros held the Nationals to one run in each of the next three games to take a 3–2 series lead going back to Houston. In Game 6, the Nationals blew out the Astros to force a seventh game. The Astros held a 2–0 lead going into the top of the seventh, when the Nationals’ Anthony Rendon hit a solo home run to cut the Astros’ lead to one. Then, Howie Kendrick hit a two-run home run to put the Nationals in the lead for good. The Nationals then scored three more unanswered runs in the top of the eighth and ninth innings to complete a major upset and secure the title.

It was the first World Series title in franchise history for the Nationals, as well as the first World Series title for the nation's capital since 1924, when the Senators defeated the Giants in seven games. Despite the win, no MLB team from the nation's capital had won a home game in the World Series since 1933.

Along with the Washington Capitals winning the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals, the Nationals and Capitals brought the first major league championships to D.C. since 1992, when the Washington Redskins won Super Bowl XXVI.

To date, this is the last postseason appearance by the Nationals franchise. The Astros returned to the World Series in 2021, but they were defeated by the Atlanta Braves in six games. The Astros would win their next championship in 2022 over the Philadelphia Phillies in six games.

Broadcasting

This was sixth year of eight-year U.S. TV contracts with ESPN, Fox Sports, and TBS. ESPN aired the American League Wild Card Game, Fox Sports 1 and MLB Network split the American League Division Series, and the Fox broadcast network and Fox Sports 1 split the American League Championship Series. TBS had the National League Wild Card Game, Division Series, and Championship Series, with sister network TNT used as an overflow channel. The World Series then aired on the Fox broadcast network for the 20th consecutive year.

References

  1. ↑ "2019 Major Leagues Schedule". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  2. ↑ "2019 Houston Astros Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  3. ↑ "2019 New York Yankees Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  4. ↑ "2019 Minnesota Twins Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  5. ↑ "2019 Oakland Athletics Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  6. ↑ "2019 Tampa Bay Rays Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  7. ↑ "2019 Los Angeles Dodgers Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  8. ↑ "2019 Atlanta Braves Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  9. ↑ "2019 St. Louis Cardinals Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  10. ↑ "2019 Washington Nationals statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  11. ↑ "2019 Milwaukee Brewers statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  12. ↑ "Game 1 boxscore". MLB.com. October 4, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  13. ↑ "Game 2 boxscore". MLB.com. October 5, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Game 3 boxscore". MLB.com. October 7, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  15. ↑ "Game 4 boxscore". MLB.com. October 8, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Game 5 boxscore". MLB.com. October 10, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  17. ↑ "Game 1 boxscore". MLB.com. October 4, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  18. ↑ "Game 2 boxscore". MLB.com. October 5, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  19. ↑ "Game 3 boxscore". MLB.com. October 7, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  20. ↑ Miller, Phil (October 8, 2019). "Swept again: Twins' playoff losing streak hits 16 games, 16 Octobers with loss to Yankees". Star Tribune. Minneapolis. Retrieved October 8, 2019.
  21. ↑ "Game 1 boxscore". MLB.com. October 3, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  22. ↑ "Game 2 boxscore". MLB.com. October 4, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  23. ↑ "Game 3 boxscore". MLB.com. October 6, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  24. ↑ "Game 4 boxscore". MLB.com. October 7, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  25. ↑ "Game 5 boxscore". MLB.com. October 9, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  26. ↑ "Game 1 boxscore". MLB.com. October 3, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  27. ↑ "Game 2 boxscore". MLB.com. October 4, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  28. ↑ "Game 3 boxscore". MLB.com. October 6, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  29. ↑ "Game 4 boxscore". MLB.com. October 7, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  30. ↑ "Game 5 boxscore". MLB.com. October 9, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  31. ↑ "Game 1 boxscore". MLB.com. October 12, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  32. ↑ "Game 2 boxscore". MLB.com. October 13, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  33. ↑ "Game 3 boxscore". MLB.com. October 15, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  34. ↑ "Game 4 boxscore". MLB.com. October 17, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  35. ↑ "Game 5 boxscore". MLB.com. October 18, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  36. ↑ "Game 6 boxscore". MLB.com. October 19, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  37. ↑ "Game 1 boxscore". MLB.com. October 11, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  38. ↑ "Game 2 boxscore". MLB.com. October 12, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  39. ↑ "Game 3 boxscore". MLB.com. October 14, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  40. ↑ "Game 4 boxscore". MLB.com. October 15, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  41. ↑ DiComo, Anthony (October 12, 2019). "Max's G2 masterpiece gives Nats 2-0 NLCS lead". MLB.com. Major League Baseball. Retrieved October 12, 2019.
  42. ↑ "Game 1 boxscore". MLB.com. October 22, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  43. ↑ "Game 2 boxscore". MLB.com. October 23, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  44. ↑ "Game 3 boxscore". MLB.com. October 25, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  45. ↑ "Game 4 boxscore". MLB.com. October 26, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  46. ↑ "Game 5 boxscore". MLB.com. October 27, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  47. ↑ "Game 6 boxscore". MLB.com. October 29, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
  48. ↑ "Game 7 boxscore". MLB.com. October 30, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
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