A return to the MLB postseason is so close that Milwaukee Brewers players and fans can taste it. The team's magic number to win the NL Central is officially down to just two and soon it will no longer be a matter of whether the Crew makes the playoffs but who they will face.
For a while, it felt like the top two Wild Card spots would be claimed by the Phillies and Cubs while the third, which would belong to the team that the Brewers would face in the first round of the playoffs, would be grabbed by one of a small handful of other teams.
But while the Phillies appear well on their way to securing that first Wild Card spot, the Cubs have been crashing and burning and have seen the Diamondbacks put a strong hold on the second Wild Card. Now it's the Cubs who are battling with a number of other teams just to get into the playoffs at all. That begs the question....
If the season ended today, who would the Milwaukee Brewers face in the MLB playoffs?
As of September 22nd, the Milwaukee Brewers would end up facing the Miami Marlins in the first round of the 2023 postseason. Yes, that means that the Chicago Cubs would be on the outside looking in when it comes to the playoffs.
As it currently stands, the Cubs and Marlins are actually tied for the final Wild Card spot with indentical 79-74 records. But Miami would get as a result of winning the first tiebreaker, which is head-to-head record. The Marlins won four of the six games that they played against the Cubs this season.
Brewers fans probably wouldn't mind that matchup. The Crew recently took three out of four games against the Marlins in a home series last week. They held Miami to just five runs over those four games and the two wrap up their season series this weekend.
Milwaukee's first round matchup is far from set, however. The Diamondbacks are just two games up from the final Wild Card spot and could always fall back with a poor final week of the season. On top of that, the Reds lurk just a half game behind the Marlins and Cubs while the Giants have a fighter's chance at three games back. And if you really want to get crazy, the Padres are four games back and on a seven-game winning streak so don't count them out just yet.
Even though the Brewers are about set to clinch their playoff spot, plenty could happen between now and the end of the regular season. Get ready for a wild ride in that National League to end the month of September!