 | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | September 29 – October 27, 2020[1] |
| Teams | 16 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Los Angeles Dodgers (7th title) |
| Runner-up | Tampa Bay Rays (2nd World Series appearance) |
| Tournament statistics | |
| MVP | Corey Seager (LAD) |
The 2020 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2020 season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the league played only a 60-game season, and an expanded 16-team postseason tournament began on September 29, with games of all but the first round being played at neutral sites.[2][3][4] A new best-of-three Wild Card series was added as the opening round of this postseason due to the shortened season caused by the pandemic; it would become a permanent addition to the postseason format starting in 2022.
In the American League, the Tampa Bay Rays made their second consecutive appearance, the New York Yankees and Houston Astros made their fourth consecutive appearance, and the Cleveland Indians made their fifth appearance in the last eight seasons. Also appearing in the AL side were the Oakland Athletics, who made their third consecutive appearance, and it would be their last during their time in Oakland as the team would relocate to Las Vegas. The Chicago White Sox returned for the first time since 2008, the Minnesota Twins made their third appearance in the past five seasons, and the Toronto Blue Jays returned for the third time in six seasons.
In the National League, the Los Angeles Dodgers made their eighth consecutive appearance, the Atlanta Braves made their third straight appearance, the San Diego Padres made their first appearance since 2006, the Milwaukee Brewers made their third consecutive appearance, and the St. Louis Cardinals made their third appearance in the past six seasons. Also on the NL side were the now-Miami Marlins, who ended nearly two decades of futility by clinching their first postseason appearance since 2003, ending what was the second longest postseason appearance drought in the majors. The Chicago Cubs returned for the fifth time in the past six seasons, marking the first time since 2008 that both teams from Chicago made the postseason. Last but not least were the Cincinnati Reds, who returned to the postseason for the first time since 2013, marking the first time since then that both teams from Ohio made the postseason.
The postseason began on September 29, and ended on October 27. The World Series began on October 20 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, and ended on October 27, with the Los Angeles Dodgers defeating the Tampa Bay Rays in six games to win their first title since 1988. It was the Dodgers' seventh title in franchise history.
- ^ "2020 Major Leagues Schedule". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
- ^ "MLB 2020 season is officially a go". New York Post. June 24, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
- ^ "2020 MLB schedule released with Yankees-Nationals, Giants-Dodgers set for opening night". ESPN. July 6, 2020.
- ^ "MLB announces 2020 postseason schedule". MLB.com.