SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA – AUGUST 19: Juan Soto #22 of the San Diego Padres walks to the dugout after striking out looking during the third inning of a game against the Washington Nationals at PETCO Park on August 19, 2022 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
While there is still some time left in the 2022 MLB regular season, it’s never too early to start looking ahead to the postseason and which teams could make a deep postseason run and potentially win the World Series.
With that thought in mind, let’s take a look at the MLB power rankings for the teams that will likely make this year’s postseason. The field is mostly set, with the Philadelphia Phillies holding the highest chance of any team in the postseason if the season ended today to not make the playoffs at 17.3 percent per FanGraphs.
Entering Monday’s play, here are the teams set to play in this year’s expanded postseason format:
American League — Cleveland Guardians, Houston Astros, New York Yankees, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, and Toronto Blue Jays
National League — Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, and San Diego Padres
Twelve teams will enter the postseason, with all of them looking to dethrone the Braves as the World Champions.
MLB Power Rankings for postseason field
12. San Diego Padres
The Padres simply haven’t seen the expected benefits from the Juan Soto trade, with the All-Star outfielder slashing just .221/.386/.366 since arriving in San Diego. The same could be said for Josh Bell, who also came over from Washington in the blockbuster deal but has struggled to a .203/.313/.301 slash line.
Add in that the Padres, if they were to be the fifth or sixth seed, would be sent to Atlanta/New York or St. Louis in the Wild Card round and it could be a very short stay in the postseason. However, it could well be a battle for the reminder of the regular season for the fifth and sixth seed between the Padres and Phillies, the two bottom teams in our rankings.
11. Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies could well be matched up against one of the NL East rivals in the Mets or Braves. Atlanta swept Philadelphia this weekend and has four more games against the Phillies starting on Thursday, so the two teams could play a big role in each other’s destiny before the week is over.
Philadelphia’s outfield has been an albatross for the team all season, with the group collectively ranking 27th in all of baseball with minus-3.7 bWAR. So far in September, the Phillies are 7-8, sputtering into the postseason.
