A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
 | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | October 2–28, 2018[1] |
| Teams | 10 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Boston Red Sox (9th title) |
| Runner-up | Los Angeles Dodgers (20th World Series appearance) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| MVP | Steve Pearce (BOS) |
The 2018 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2018 season. The winners of the 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 Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Indians made their third straight appearances, the Houston Astros and New York Yankees made their second straight appearances, and the Oakland Athletics made their fourth appearance in the past seven years. This postseason was notable for being the first in which the American League had three teams that won at least 100 games or more in the regular season.[2]
In the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers made their sixth straight postseason appearance, the Colorado Rockies made their second straight appearance, the Chicago Cubs made their fourth straight appearance, the Atlanta Braves made their first appearance since 2013, and the Milwaukee Brewers made their first appearance since 2011.
The postseason began on October 2, and ended on October 28, with the Red Sox defeating the Dodgers in five games in the 2018 World Series. It was the ninth title won by the Red Sox organization, tying the Oakland Athletics for the third most World Series championships.
Playoff seeds
The following teams qualified for the postseason:
American League
- Boston Red Sox – AL East champions, AL best record, MLB best record, 108–54[3]
- Houston Astros – AL West champions, 103–59[4]
- Cleveland Indians – AL Central champions, 91–71[5]
- New York Yankees – 100–62[6]
- Oakland Athletics – 97–65[7]
National League
- Milwaukee Brewers – NL Central champions, NL best record, 96–67[8]
- Los Angeles Dodgers – NL West champions, 92–71[9]
- Atlanta Braves – NL East champions, 90–72[10]
- Chicago Cubs – 95–68[11]
- Colorado Rockies – 91–72[12]
Playoff bracket
| Wild Card Games (ALWC, NLWC) | Division Series (ALDS, NLDS) | League Championship Series (ALCS, NLCS) | World Series | ||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Boston | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 4 | NY Yankees | 1 | 4 | NY Yankees | 1 | ||||||||||||||
| 5 | Oakland | 0 | American League | 1 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||
| 2 | Houston | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Houston | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Cleveland | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| AL1 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| NL2 | LA Dodgers | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Milwaukee | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Chicago Cubs | 0 | 5 | Colorado | 0 | ||||||||||||||
| 5 | Colorado | 1 | National League | 1 | Milwaukee | 3 | |||||||||||||
| 2 | LA Dodgers | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| 2 | LA Dodgers | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Atlanta | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
American League Wild Card
(4) New York Yankees vs. (5) Oakland Athletics
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oakland | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| New York | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | X | 7 | 7 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP: Dellin Betances (1–0) LP: Liam Hendriks (0–1) Home runs: OAK: Khris Davis (1) NYY: Aaron Judge (1), Giancarlo Stanton (1) Attendance: 49,620 Boxscore | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This was the fourth postseason meeting between the Athletics and Yankees. The Yankees had won the previous three meetings (1981, 2000, 2001). The Yankees defeated the Athletics 7–2 to advance to the ALDS for the second year in a row.
National League Wild Card
(4) Chicago Cubs vs. (5) Colorado Rockies
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| Chicago | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| WP: Scott Oberg (1–0) LP: Kyle Hendricks (0–1) Home runs: COL: none CHC: none Attendance: 40,151 Boxscore | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Rockies upset the Cubs in a 13-inning duel, 2–1, to advance to the NLDS for the first time since 2009.
American League Division Series
(1) Boston Red Sox vs. (4) New York Yankees
Boston won the series, 3–1.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 5 | New York Yankees – 4, Boston Red Sox – 5 | Fenway Park | 3:41 | 39,059[13] |
| 2 | October 6 | New York Yankees – 6, Boston Red Sox – 2 | Fenway Park | 3:31 | 39,151[14] |
| 3 | October 8 | Boston Red Sox – 16, New York Yankees – 1 | Yankee Stadium | 3:41 | 49,657[15] |
| 4 | October 9 | Boston Red Sox – 4, New York Yankees – 3 | Yankee Stadium | 3:28 | 49,641[16] |
This was the fourth postseason meeting in the history of the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry. They had last met in the 2004 ALCS, where the Red Sox became the first team in MLB history to win a series after facing a 3–0 series deficit. The Red Sox again defeated the Yankees to advance to the ALCS for the first time since 2013. The Red Sox took Game 1 by one run, but the Yankees evened the series with a 6–2 victory in Game 2. Game 3 was the most notable matchup of the series, as the Red Sox blew out the Yankees 16–1 in Yankee Stadium, handing the Yankees their worst postseason loss ever. The Red Sox took a 4–0 lead in Game 4, and while the Yankees cut their lead to one in the bottom of the ninth, the Red Sox still held on to close out the series.
The Yankees and Red Sox would meet once more in the 2021 AL Wild Card Game, which was won by the Red Sox at Fenway Park.
(2) Houston Astros vs. (3) Cleveland Indians
Houston won the series, 3–0.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 5 | Cleveland Indians – 2, Houston Astros – 7 | Minute Maid Park | 3:36 | 43,514[17] |
| 2 | October 6 | Cleveland Indians – 1, Houston Astros – 3 | Minute Maid Park | 3:12 | 43,520[18] |
| 3 | October 8 | Houston Astros – 11, Cleveland Indians – 3 | Progressive Field | 4:02 | 37,252[19] |
The Astros swept the Indians to return to the ALCS for the second year in a row. The series was not close — the Astros took Game 1 in a blowout, and won Game 2 by a 3–1 score. The Astros completed the sweep with a blowout victory in Game 3 in Cleveland.
This was the last postseason appearance for the Indians until 2020.
National League Division Series
(1) Milwaukee Brewers vs. (5) Colorado Rockies
Milwaukee won the series, 3–0.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 4 | Colorado Rockies – 2, Milwaukee Brewers – 3 (10) | Miller Park | 4:04 | 43,382[20] |
| 2 | October 5 | Colorado Rockies – 0, Milwaukee Brewers – 4 | Miller Park | 3:45 | 44,547[21] |
| 3 | October 7 | Milwaukee Brewers – 6, Colorado Rockies – 0 | Coors Field | 3:14 | 49,658[22] |
The Brewers swept the Rockies to return to the NLCS for the first time since 2011. The Rockies were simply outmatched by the Brewers' offense and pitching, aside from a close extra-innings duel in Game 1, the Brewers took games 2 and 3 in shutouts to move on to the NLCS.
As of 2022, this is the last time the Rockies appeared in the postseason.[23]
(2) Los Angeles Dodgers vs. (3) Atlanta Braves
Los Angeles won the series, 3–1.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 4 | Atlanta Braves – 0, Los Angeles Dodgers – 6 | Dodger Stadium | 3:13 | 50,947[24] |
| 2 | October 5 | Atlanta Braves – 0, Los Angeles Dodgers – 3 | Dodger Stadium | 2:35 | 54,452[25] |
| 3 | October 7 | Los Angeles Dodgers – 5, Atlanta Braves – 6 | SunTrust Park | 3:36 | 42,385[26] |
| 4 | October 8 | Los Angeles Dodgers – 6 Atlanta Braves – 2 | SunTrust Park | 3:42 | 39,586[27] |
This was the third postseason meeting between these two teams. The Dodgers defeated the Braves in four games to return to the NLCS for the third year in a row. The Braves were shut out in Games 1 and 2, but managed to win Game 3 by one run. However, the Dodgers won Game 4 to close out the series and move on to the NLCS.
The Braves and Dodgers would face each other two more times in the postseason — in the NLCS in 2020 and 2021, with the Dodgers winning the former, and the Braves winning the latter.
American League Championship Series
(1) Boston Red Sox vs. (2) Houston Astros
Boston won the series, 4–1.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 13 | Houston Astros – 7, Boston Red Sox – 2 | Fenway Park | 4:03 | 38,007[28] |
| 2 | October 14 | Houston Astros – 5, Boston Red Sox – 7 | Fenway Park | 3:45 | 37,960[29] |
| 3 | October 16 | Boston Red Sox – 8, Houston Astros – 2 | Minute Maid Park | 3:52 | 43,102[30] |
| 4 | October 17 | Boston Red Sox – 8, Houston Astros – 6 | Minute Maid Park | 4:33 | 43,277[31] |
| 5 | October 18 | Boston Red Sox – 4, Houston Astros – 1 | Minute Maid Park | 3:32 | 43,210[32] |
This was the second postseason meeting between the Astros and Red Sox. The Red Sox defeated the defending World Series champion Astros in five games and returned to the World Series for the first time since 2013.
The Astros stole Game 1 convincingly at Fenway Park thanks to more solid pitching from Justin Verlander. However, the series would tilt the Red Sox's way afterward. Game 2 was an offensive slugfest which the Red Sox narrowly won to even the series headed back to Houston. Nathan Eovaldi kept the Astros' offense at bay in Game 3 as the Red Sox prevailed in a blowout win, 8–2. Game 4 was a back-and-forth offensive duel between both teams, which the Red Sox won 8–6 to take a 3–1 series lead. In Game 5, David Price pitched eight solid innings as the Red Sox jumped out to a big lead early and didn't relinquish it, securing the pennant with a 4–1 victory.
As of 2023, this is the last time the Red Sox won the AL pennant. The Astros would return to the ALCS the next year, where they defeated the New York Yankees in six games to return to the World Series. The Red Sox and Astros would meet again in the ALCS in 2021, in which the Astros returned the favor and defeated the Red Sox in six games before falling in the World Series.
National League Championship Series
(1) Milwaukee Brewers vs. (2) Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles won the series, 4–3.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 12 | Los Angeles Dodgers – 5, Milwaukee Brewers – 6 | Miller Park | 4:02 | 43,615[33] |
| 2 | October 13 | Los Angeles Dodgers – 4, Milwaukee Brewers – 3 | Miller Park | 3:31 | 43,905[34] |
| 3 | October 15 | Milwaukee Brewers – 4, Los Angeles Dodgers – 0 | Dodger Stadium | 3:25 | 52,793[35] |
| 4 | October 16 | Milwaukee Brewers – 1, Los Angeles Dodgers – 2 (13) | Dodger Stadium | 5:15 | 53,764[36] |
| 5 | October 17 | Milwaukee Brewers – 2, Los Angeles Dodgers – 5 | Dodger Stadium | 3:35 | 54,502[37] |
| 6 | October 19 | Los Angeles Dodgers – 2, Milwaukee Brewers – 7 | Miller Park | 3:34 | 43,619[38] |
| 7 | October 20 | Los Angeles Dodgers – 5, Milwaukee Brewers – 1 | Miller Park | 3:15 | 44,097[39] |
This was the first postseason meeting between the Brewers and Dodgers. The Dodgers narrowly defeated the Brewers in seven games to return to the World Series for the second year in a row.
Corey Knebel held off a late rally by the Dodgers in Game 1 as the Brewers won 6–5. In Game 2, the Dodgers overcame a 3–0 Brewers lead by scoring two runs in the seventh and eighth innings to even the series. When the series shifted to Los Angeles, the Brewers' pitching staff pitched a five-hit shutout as the Brewers won 4–0 to take the series lead in Game 3. In Game 4, the Dodgers evened the series after a 13-inning duel thanks to a walk-off RBI single from Cody Bellinger which scored Manny Machado. Game 4 lasted 5 hours and 15 minutes, making it the second longest NLCS game behind only Game 5 of the 1999 NLCS, which lasted 5 hours and 46 minutes.[40] In Game 5, the Dodgers overcame another Brewers lead to win 5–2 and go up 3–2 in the series headed back to Milwaukee. In Game 6, the Brewers jumped out to a big early lead and didn't relinquish it, winning 7–2 to force a seventh game. The Brewers jumped out to an early lead again in Game 7, but it wasn't enough as the Dodgers scored five unanswered runs to secure the pennant.
The Dodgers' win was marred by controversy, as the team was accused by the Brewers' Eric Kratz of using a video camera to steal signs. An anonymous source reported to The Athletic that "They use video people to get sequences", and that "It's known throughout the league. MLB knows it's an issue." Kratz also pointed to a moment in the sixth inning of Game 5 when he saw Manny Machado motioning toward Chris Taylor, who was at the plate in what he thought was an attempt to inform him of the upcoming pitch.[41]
As of 2023, this is the last time the Brewers appeared in the NLCS. The Dodgers would win their next NL pennant in 2020 over the Atlanta Braves in seven games after trailing 3–1 in the series.
2018 World Series
(AL1) Boston Red Sox vs. (NL2) Los Angeles Dodgers
Boston won the series, 4–1.