Pete Alonso was having a rather disappointing evening in what could have been his final game for the New York Mets.
Then everything changed with one swing of the bat.
The slugger broke out of a prolonged slump by smashing a three-run homer off closer Devin Williams in the ninth inning to put the Mets up for good in a 4-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday in the decisive third game of their NL Wild Card Series.
So when, and who, do the Mets play next? It's a familiar foe.
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Waiting for the Amazins are the Philadelphia Phillies, who won the NL East and earned the No. 2 seed in the National League.
The Division Series will see the introduction of the top two teams in each league to the postseason. Joining the Phillies will be the Los Angeles Dodgers, who finished with the best record in baseball during the regular season. They will face off against a division rival as well, in the Padres.
On the American League, the junior circuit is topped by the New York Yankees, the top seed for the AL, who will play the Royals. The No. 2 Cleveland Guardians will take on the Tigers.
Sports
From the matchups to the schedule and more, here's what to know about the ALDS and NLDS:
MLB playoff bracket: ALDS, NLDS matchups in 2024
Here's a look at the Division Series bracket:
National League
- No. 1 Los Angeles Dodgers vs. No. 4 San Diego Padres
- No. 2 Philadelphia Phillies vs. No. 6 New York Mets
American League
- No. 1 New York Yankees vs. No. 5 Kansas City Royals
- No. 2 Cleveland Guardians vs. No. 6 Detroit Tigers
How many games are in the ALDS, NLDS?
The Division Series features a best-of-five format where the higher seed has home-field advantage for Games 1, 2 and, if necessary, 5.
When do the ALDS, NLDS start?
All four Division Series showdowns are slated to get underway Saturday, Oct. 5.
NLDS, ALDS schedules
Here's a full look at the Division Series schedule (* = if necessary):
No. 2 Phillies vs. No. 6 Mets
- Game 1: Mets at Phillies, Oct. 5, 4:08 p.m. ET
- Game 2: Mets at Phillies, Oct. 6, 4:08 p.m. ET
- Game 3: Phillies at Mets, Oct. 8, TBD
- Game 4*: Phillies at Mets, Oct. 9, TBD
- Game 5*: Mets at Phillies, Oct. 11, TBD
No. 1 Dodgers vs. No. 4 Padres
- Game 1: Padres at Dodgers, Oct. 5, 8:38 p.m. ET
- Game 2: Padres at Dodgers, Oct. 6, 8:03 p.m. ET
- Game 3: Dodgers at Padres, Oct. 8, TBD
- Game 4*: Dodgers at Padres, Oct. 9, TBD
- Game 5*: Padres at Dodgers, Oct. 11, TBD
No. 1 Yankees vs. No. 5 Royals
- Game 1: Royals at Yankees, Oct. 5, 6:38 p.m. ET
- Game 2: Royals at Yankees, Oct. 7, 7:38 p.m. ET
- Game 3: Yankees at Royals, Oct. 9, TBD
- Game 4*: Yankees at Royals, Oct. 10, TBD
- Game 5*: Royals at Yankees, Oct. 12, TBD
No. 2 Guardians vs. No. 6 Tigers
- Game 1: Tigers at Guardians, Oct. 5, 1:08 p.m. ET
- Game 2: Tigers at Guardians, Oct. 7, 4:08 p.m. ET
- Game 3: Guardians at Tigers, Oct. 9, TBD
- Game 4*: Guardians at Tigers, Oct. 10, TBD
- Game 5*: Tigers at Guardians, Oct. 12, TBD
How to watch the ALDS, NLDS
ALDS games will air on TBS and be available to stream on Max, TBS.com and the TBS app. NLDS games, meanwhile, will air across Fox and FS1 and be available to stream on FoxSports.com and the Fox Sports app.
