The Major League Baseball playoffs are approaching and a Shohei Ohtani vs. Aaron Judge matchup in the World Series looms as an enticing October possibility.
But first, the National League needs to get its waterlogged mess of a playoff race out of the way.
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The Major League Baseball playoffs are approaching and a Shohei Ohtani vs. Aaron Judge matchup in the World Series looms as an enticing October possibility.
Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper hits a single during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) is honored during the first inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies in Los Angeles, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. Ohtani was the first MLB player to achieve 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
A tarp covers the infield as rain comes down at Truist Park after the baseball game between the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves as postponed, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024, in Atlanta. The Mets-Braves games scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday are postponed and will be made up as a doubleheader Monday, Sept. 30. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)
New York Yankees' Aaron Judge grabs a bat from the dugout before a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
Arizona Diamondbacks' Ketel Marte, right, and manager Torey Lovullo, far right, greets Eugenio Suárez after Suárez's home run against the San Diego Padres during the seventh inning of a baseball game, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Darryl Webb)
While the rooting interests of baseball fans vary widely, there's little doubt MLB and television executives are drooling over the potential matchup between two of the top sluggers of this generation. Ohtani recently became the first player to have 50 homers and 50 stolen bases in one season while Judge is up to 58 homers.
On top of that, Ohtani (Los Angeles Dodgers) and Judge (New York Yankees) play in the nation's top two media markets for two of the sport's most storied franchises.
Of course, there will be 10 other teams trying to block those teams from the Fall Classic. Last season, the Texas Rangers beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 4 games to 1 for their first title in franchise history.
Here’s a look at what’s coming:
The Diamondbacks are going to be big fans of the New York Mets or Atlanta Braves for a few hours on Monday afternoon.
They're just not sure which one.
The National League playoff race comes down to a doubleheader between the Mets and Braves on Monday. The two games were moved to the day after the scheduled end of the regular season because of Hurricane Helene, which washed out two games of the crucial Mets-Braves series last week.
The Mets (88-72) and Braves (88-72) will both make the playoffs if they split the doubleheader. But if there's a sweep, the Diamondbacks (89-73) will sneak into the bracket as the No. 6 seed while the team that gets swept goes home.
Once the first game is over, the D-backs will know who they're supporting. They'll go through a light workout at Chase Field on Monday in case their season continues.
The Dodgers, Phillies, Brewers and Padres have already clinched four of the six NL playoff spots. Both the Brewers and Padres will host a Wild Card series starting Tuesday while the Dodgers and Phillies earned some rest by claiming the top seeds.
The American League's bracket is set. The No. 6 Tigers travel to face the No. 3 Astros while the No. 5 Royals are on the road against the No. 4 Orioles in the two Wild Card Series starting Tuesday. The Yankees and Guardians are the top seeds.
The best-of-three wild-card format is in its third season. The format was changed in 2022 from the sudden death one-game format that was in place since 2012 with the exception of the COVID-19 pandemic-affected 2020 season.
Six teams each from the American League and National League will qualify for the postseason, including the three division winners in each league. The three wild-card teams in each league will be the teams with the best record that didn’t win their division.
The top two division winners with the best records in each league will get a bye and don’t have to play in the wild-card round. Those four teams get a few days of rest. Right now, that would be the Yankees and Guardians in the American League and the Phillies and Dodgers in the National League.
The wild-card round will feature four series: The No. 6 seed will play at the No. 3 seed in both the AL and NL. The No. 5 seed will play at the No. 4 seed.
One big advantage for the higher seed in those wild-card series is they get to host all three games.
Many of baseball’s recent rule changes are still in effect during the postseason, including the pitch clock, a ban on extreme infield shifts and a limit to how many times a pitcher can disengage from the rubber. The pitch clock has been a huge change for the sport and widely celebrated, cutting game times by about a half-hour.
There is one rule that won’t make the postseason cut: the so-called “ghost runner” in extra innings.
During the MLB regular season, if a game goes to extra innings, a runner is placed at second base to start the 10th inning when each team bats. That won’t happen in the postseason. Extra innings will be played just like the previous nine.
The Dodgers are the current betting favorites to win the World Series at +325, followed by the Yankees (+450) and Phillies (+450), according to BetMGM Sportsbook.
The wild-card rounds will be broadcast on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC. The later rounds will be split between FS1, TruTV, TBS and Fox.
Wild-card series: Oct. 1-3
Division series: Oct. 5-12
League Championship series: Oct. 13-22
World Series: Oct. 25-Nov. 2
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
Cleveland Guardians' Jose Ramirez rounds the bases after hitting a three-run home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Philadelphia Phillies' Bryce Harper hits a single during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) is honored during the first inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies in Los Angeles, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. Ohtani was the first MLB player to achieve 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
A tarp covers the infield as rain comes down at Truist Park after the baseball game between the New York Mets and Atlanta Braves as postponed, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024, in Atlanta. The Mets-Braves games scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday are postponed and will be made up as a doubleheader Monday, Sept. 30. (AP Photo/Jason Allen)
New York Yankees' Aaron Judge grabs a bat from the dugout before a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Nic Coury)
Arizona Diamondbacks' Ketel Marte, right, and manager Torey Lovullo, far right, greets Eugenio Suárez after Suárez's home run against the San Diego Padres during the seventh inning of a baseball game, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Darryl Webb)
An apparent Israeli airstrike on central Beirut has leveled an apartment building. It came after Israel hit targets across Lebanon and killed dozens of people, as Hezbollah sustained heavy blows to its command structure, including the killing of its leader, Hassan Nasrallah.
The early Monday airstrike — the first to hit central Beirut in nearly a year of conflict — hit a multistory residential building, according to an Associated Press journalist at the scene. Videos showed ambulances and a crowd gathered near the building in a mainly Sunni district with a busy thoroughfare lined with shops.
Separately, an Israeli airstrike early Monday killed a family of four in central Gaza, Palestinian officials said.
In the past week, Israel has frequently targeted Beirut’s southern suburbs, where Hezbollah has a strong presence — including a major strike on Friday that killed Nasrallah — but had not hit locations near the city center.
The Lebanese Health Ministry said at least 105 people were killed around the country in airstrikes on Sunday. Two strikes near the southern city of Sidon, about 45 kilometers (28 miles) south of Beirut, killed at least 32 people, the ministry said. Separately, Israeli strikes in the northern province of Baalbek Hermel killed 21 people and wounded at least 47.
Lebanese media reported dozens of strikes in the central, eastern and western Bekaa and in the south, besides strikes on Beirut. Israel says it targets militants, but the strikes have hit buildings where civilians were living and the death toll was expected to rise.
Here is the latest:
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Yemen’s Houthi rebels claim they shot down another American-made MQ-9 Reaper drone over the country, with videos purportedly showing a surface-to-air missile striking it. The U.S. military did not immediately acknowledge losing any aircraft.
The claimed attack comes as the one-year anniversary of the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip approaches. The Houthis have targeted ships traveling through the Red Sea over the war as U.S.-led airstrikes pound their positions in Yemen. That’s imperiled a waterway that typically sees $1 trillion of trade pass through it, as well as crucial shipments of aid to war-torn Sudan and Yemen.
The Houthis also continue to launch missiles targeting Israel, drawing retaliatory airstrikes from the Israelis this weekend on the port city of Hodeida.
The Houthi-run broadcaster Al-Masirah claimed shooting down the MQ-9, hours after video footage circulated online showing the purported missile striking the aircraft over Yemen’s Saada province. A single image online also appeared to show wreckage of the drone, with pieces resembling that of an MQ-9.
BEIRUT — Hezbollah’s deputy leader vowed to continue fighting Israel and said the militant group was prepared for a long war after much of its top command was wiped out, including its leader, Hassan Nasrallah.
In his first speech since Nasrallah was killed, Naim Kassem said in a televised statement Monday that if Israel decides to launch a ground offensive, Hezbollah fighters are ready to fight and defend Lebanon.
As deputy secretary-general, Naim Kassem now is the acting leader of Hezbollah until a replacement for Nasrallah is chosen.
Kassem added that despite the killing of Hezbollah’s top military commanders over the past months, Hezbollah is relying on new commanders.
“Israel was not able to affect our (military) capabilities,” Kassem said. “There are deputy commanders and there are replacements in case a commander is wounded in any post.”
PARIS — France has delivered 12 tons of medical aid to Lebanon, including two mobile clinics that will be able to treat 1,000 seriously injured people currently in hospitals’ emergency wards across the country, according to a statement from the French Foreign Ministry on Monday.
French military aircraft also delivered critical supplies of medicine to Lebanese emergency, pediatric and general hospitals and clinics, which have been overwhelmed with thousands of injured people since Israel’s bombardment of the country began over a week ago.
During his visit to Beirut on Monday, France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said that Paris is also releasing 10 million euros ($11.1 million) in emergency humanitarian aid to support the work of local humanitarian organizations, particularly the Lebanese Red Cross.
“In the face of the escalating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, France stands by Lebanon and remains committed to protecting civilians,” the statement said.
Barrot is scheduled to meet with Lebanese leaders on Monday, including with Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Army chief Joseph Aoun and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
BEIRUT — Lebanese officials have asked people who lost relatives in recent Israeli airstrikes to provide DNA samples to match with unidentified remains.
Lebanon’s Internal Security Forces on Monday called on residents across the country to visit police stations with an identity card to give their samples. It said more than one person from each family should provide a sample, if possible.
A wave of Israeli airstrikes across large parts of Lebanon have killed more than 1,030 people — including 156 women and 87 children — in less than two weeks, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Satellite images analyzed by The Associated Press show the site of the Israeli airstrike that killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.
The images, taken Sunday by Planet Labs PBC, show the site just some 2 kilometers (1.25 miles) northeast of Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport.
The images show multi-story buildings at the site now cratered in the densely populated predominantly Shiite southern Beirut suburb known as Dahiyeh.
Israel said the Friday night strike targeted a meeting at an underground Hezbollah compound located beneath the towers and at least one empty lot at the site.
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Palestinian officials say an Israeli airstrike early Monday killed a family of four in central Gaza.
The strike hit a house in the central town of Deir al-Balah, according to the al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, which received the bodies.
The dead included two children and their parents, according to hospital records. An Associated Press reporter counted the bodies at the hospital morgue.
Israel says it only targets militants and accuses Hamas fighters of hiding among civilians, putting them in danger. It rarely comments on individual strikes, which often kill women and children.
Gaza’s Health Ministry says at least 41,595 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since the start of the war. It does not distinguish between militants and civilians but says women and children make up a little more than half of the fatalities.
The war began on Oct. 7, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians.
BEIRUT — The Palestinian militant group Hamas says one of its commanders has been killed in an Israeli airstrike in Lebanon.
Fatah Sharif was killed early Monday in an airstrike on the Al-Buss refugee camp in the southern port city of Tyre, the group said in a statement. His wife, son and daughter were also killed in the strike, it said.
Sharif was a commander in Lebanon and a member of Hamas’ command outside the Palestinian territories, Hamas said.
Since the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7, Israeli airstrikes have killed several Hamas officials in Lebanon.
This satellite image from Planet Labs PBC shows the site of an Israeli airstrike that killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)
A man passes by a damaged car where an Israeli airstrike hit a nearby building in Beirut, Lebanon, early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Damaged apartments, right, are seen in a building that was hit by Israeli strike, in Beirut, Lebanon, early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Damaged cars are parked in front of a building that was hit by an Israeli airstrike early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Beirut, Lebanon. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Yemenis stand in front of a portrait of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, in Sanaa, Yemen, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
A large fire and plume of smoke is visible in the port city of Hodeida, Yemen, on Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, after Israeli strikes on the Houthi-controlled city. (AP Photo)
A Lebanese policeman looks at damaged apartments that were hit by Israeli strike early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Beirut, Lebanon. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
People look up at a damaged building that was hit by Israeli strike early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Beirut, Lebanon. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
People walk past damaged cars near a building hit by an Israeli airstrike early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, in Beirut, Lebanon. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Policemen and civil defense workers stand next to damaged cars near a building that was hit in an Israeli airstrike, in Beirut, Lebanon, early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
Policemen and civil defense workers inspect a damaged car near a building that was hit in an Israeli airstrike, in Beirut, Lebanon, early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
Women pass the damaged cars where an Israeli airstrike hit a building in Beirut early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
A damaged apartment is seen on a building that was hit by Israeli strike, in Beirut early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Damages are seen on a building that was hit by Israeli strike, early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
A Lebanese soldier passes next to damaged cars where an Israeli airstrike hit a building in Beirut early Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
