How to watch AL Wild Card Series: Baltimore, Houston are favored

The resurgent American League Central Division made a statement this season. Now it’s ready for another one.

Detroit and Kansas City will join Central Division winner Cleveland to give the division three of the six remaining teams in the wild-card round, which begins today. (The Guardians have a bye in the first round.)

It is a novelty and a refutation of recent history. Central hadn’t even made two postseason qualifiers in a full season since 2017, and there hadn’t been two teams that finished a full regular season with a winning record since 2019.

This is also the first season in which three AL Central teams finish a full regular season with a winning record since Kansas City won the World Series in the Royals’ second consecutive Series appearance in 2015.

Neither Kansas City nor Detroit are favored in their best-of-three series against Baltimore and Houston, respectively, in the latest wild-card iteration in 2022, which is heavily skewed toward the best teams of the regular season.

Baltimore and Houston will play all necessary games at home.

No. 4 seed Baltimore (91-71) vs. No. 5 seed Kansas City (86-76)

Tuesday: Kansas City (Cole Ragans, 11-9, 3.14 ERA) at Baltimore (Corbin Burnes, 15-9, 2.92), ESPN2, 3 p.m. ET

Wednesday: Kansas City at Baltimore, ESPN, 3:30 p.m. ET

Thursday: Kansas City at Baltimore, ESPN, 3 p.m. (if required)

Season series: Baltimore won 4-2. The teams have not played since April 21 after meeting twice in the first three weeks.

Players to watch/Things to know

Kansas City: SS Bobby Witt Jr. is the first player in Major League history to begin his career with three consecutive 20 home run and 20 stolen base seasons. He became the first shortstop in history with multiple 30/30 seasons when he had 32 home runs and 31 stolen bases this year after going 30/49 a year ago.

Witt, who signed an 11-year, $289 million contract extension in February, leads the AL in batting average (.332) and hits (211) and should finish in the top three in AL MVP voting.

Righty Seth Lugo (16-9, 3.00 ERA) and lefty Ragans lead a starting rotation with a 3.55 ERA, second in the AL behind Seattle. Both were All-Stars for the first time. Lugo ate innings in rotation in his first full season – his 206 2/3 was second in the league.

Baltimore: RF Anthony Santander turned his walk year into a career year with 42 home runs and 102 RBIs when he hit free agency this winter. SS Gunnar Henderson set career highs with 37 home runs, 21 stolen bases and a 159 OPS+ in his second season as a starter.

The Orioles needed an ace after being knocked out of the first round by World Series champion Texas a year ago, and 2021 NL Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes was entering his first and perhaps only season in Baltimore. Burnes, who will also become a free agent this winter, was 15-9 with a 2.92 ERA, fourth in the AL.

No. 3 seed Houston (88-73) vs. No. 6 seed Detroit (86-76)

Tuesday: Detroit (Tarik Skubal, 18-4, 2.39) at Houston (Framber Valdez, 15-7, 2.91), ABC, 1:30 p.m. ET

Wednesday: Detroit at Houston, ABC, 1:30 p.m. ET

Thursday: Detroit in Houston, ABC, 1:30 p.m. ET (if required)

Season series: Houston won 4-2. The Astros scored two of three points in both series. Valdez won his only start while Skubal split his two.

Players to watch/Things to know

Detroit: Skubal will win the American League Cy Young Award after a dominant season in which he won the pitching Triple Crown with a Randy Johnson-like performance and led the majors in wins, ERA and strikeouts (228).

OF Riley Greene set team highs in Motown with 24 home runs and 74 RBIs in a season where the whole was greater than the sum of its parts.

No Tigers player has more than 150 hits, 25 home runs, 25 stolen bases or 75 RBIs, yet the Tigers are 31-13 since August 10, the best record in the majors. (Houston is second in the AL at 27-18). Detroit was 16 games out of the AL Central lead as of August 2, just days after trading future free agent Jack Flaherty to the Dodgers.

Houston: DH and premier power hitter Yordan Alvarez led the offense with 35 home runs and 86 RBIs, although his status is questionable. He hasn’t played since September 22 after suffering a sprained right knee but was expected to start batting on Monday. 3B and impending free agent Alex Bergman had 26 homers and 2B Jose Altuve had his third 20/20 season, his first since 2017, with 20 homers and 22 steals.

Valdez and right-handers Hunter Brown (11-9, 3.49) and Ronel Blanco (13-6, 2.80) saved the rotation after Cristian Javier was out for the season and Hall of Famer-in-Waiting Justin Verlander in his Comeback after a neck injury. Brown is 10-5 with a 2.31 ERA since late May. Josh Hader had 34 saves.

The Astros were 10 games out of first place at the end of June before recovering to win their seventh NL West title in the last eight seasons under first-year coach Joe Espada.