Okay, I'm a little wary of invoking bad joo joo with this post, but I figured if I kept it to discussing the playoff matchups in the entirety of baseball it'd lessen the potency of any joo joo impact on the Cubbies...

Anyway, since about the All-Star break I've been doing informal calculations on playoff matchups. That is, I take a look at the possible playoff match-ups in both the AL and the NL to determine (based on previous series this year between teams) which teams would be most likely to advance if they faced each other. I do this partly because I get bored at work, and partly because I'm curious as to which composition of teams in the playoffs (across both leagues) would be most beneficial to the Cubbies... In this fanpost I've included 3 interesting scenarios for the playoffs. There are a lot of other scenarios that could be included, but 3 seemed like a good number to me.

If the season ended today:

Sox @ Rays
Red Sox @ Angels

Arizona @ Cubs
Brewers @ Mets

Are the division series matchups. The format for the division series is 2-2-1. With that in mind...

In the White Sox @ The Rays:

The first two games of the series would be played in Tampa, where the White Sox are 3-4. Because the record is nearly even, I'm splitting the first two games of the series.

The next two games would be played in Chicago, where the White Sox are 1-2. Again, because the teams are nearly even in record, I'm splitting the next two games. That means the final game would be played in Tampa Bay, and because the Rays have a better record overall vs the White Sox, they win the last game and advance to the ALCS.

In the Red Sox @ Angels series:

The first two games of the series are played in Los Angeles. In games played there, the Red Sox are 0-3 vs the Angels. Therefore, I give the first two games of the series to the Angels.

The next two games of the series are played in Boston. In Boston, the Red Sox are 1-5 vs. the Angels. Therefore, the Angels take the next game of the series and cleanly sweep the Red Sox and advance to the ALCS.

Over to the NLDS....

In the Diamondbacks @ Cubs series:

The first two games of the seris are played at Wrigley, where the Cubs are 3-0 vs the Diamondbacks. Therefore, the Cubs take the first two games of the series. The next two games of the series are played at Arionza where the Cubs are 1-2 vs the Diamondbacks. This means the next two games are split, which gives the Cubs a victory over the Diamondbacks in 4 games and they advance to the NLCS.

In the Brewers @ Mets series:

The first two games of the series are played in New York, where the Mets are 1-2 vs the Brewers. Therefore, the first two games of the series are split. The next two games are played in Milwaukee, and unfortunately we don't have much data to go on at the moment, so I'm just going to split the next two games. This sends the series to a fifth game, which the Brewers win based on overall record to advance to the NLCS.

Back to the AL for the ALCS...

LA Angels @ Tampa Bay Rays

Both the ALCS and the NLCS follow a 2-3-2 format.

The first two games of the series are played in Tampa Bay where the Angels are 1-5. Therefore, the first two games of the series go to Tampa Bay. The next three games are played in Los Angeles where the Angels are 2-1. Therefore, the Angels take two out of 3 at home which puts the series at 3 games for the Rays and 2 for the Angels and takes it to a sixth game. The sixth game would be played at Tampa Bay, and given the Angels abysmal record there, the Rays take the next game and win the ALCS to advance to the World Series (what a shocker!)...

To the NL for the NLCS...

Brewers @ Cubs

The first two games of the series are played at Wrigley. The Cubs are currently 2-4, which means that Milwaukee takes the first two games of the NLCS. The next three games are played in Milwaukee, where the Cubs are 4-0. Thus, the Cubs win the next three games of the NLCS. The next two games are played at Wrigley where the two teams split, which means the Cubs win the NLCS in 7 games and advance to the World Series (yeeey!).

To the World Series...

Cubs @ Rays

The AL has home field advantage from the All Star game, and the series follows the 2-3-2 format.

The first two games are played in Tampa Bay where the Cubs are 0-3. The first two games therefore go to Tampa Bay. The next three games are played in Wrigley. At this point, we have no data, but because the Cubs play so well at home, we give them the next three games. The series then moves back to Tampa, where Tampa Bay wins the sixth game. During the seventh and final game... well, let's just say to avoid the bad joo joo I'm going to let y'all make up your own conclusions on this one. ;)

Now for the second of our three scenarios...

If the teams currently in 2nd in the AL East, AL Central, NL East, and NL West end up in first.

This scenario is pretty much what it sounds like. I took the two divisions in each league that are the most contested (which leaves out the AL West and the NL Central) and flipped the first and second place teams. To determine the wild card in this scenario, I made the assumption that the teams in question would continue playing pretty much as they have - that is, even if Boston wins the AL East, because both Tampa Bay and Boston have been playing better than either the Twins or the White Sox, the wild card in the AL still comes from that division. The wild card in the NL is unchanged because all the contending teams in the NL East and NL West have worse records than both the Cubs and the Brewers.

In this scenario:

Boston wins the AL East, Minnesota wins the AL Central, and the Angels win the AL West. Tampa Bay is the AL Wild card. Philly wins the NL East, the Cubs win the NL Central, and the Dodgers win the NL West. Milwaukee is the NL Wild card.

Rays @ Angels
Twins @ Boston

Dodgers @ Cubs
Brewers @ Phillies

For the ALDS...

Rays @ Angels

The first two games of the series are played in LA. The Angels are 2-1 at home vs the Rays. The first two games of the series split. The next two games are played in Tampa Bay, where the Angels have an abysmal 1-5 record. The next two games therefore go to Tampa Bay, and the Rays advance to the ALCS.

Twins @ Boston

The first two games of the series are played in Boston, where the Red Sox are 3-0. The first two games of the series go to Boston. The next two games of the series are played in Minnesota, where the Red Sox are 1-3. The next two games therefore go to Minnesota. The fifth game of the series goes back to Boston, where the Red Sox win based on record to advance to the ALCS.

For the NLDS...

Dodgers @ Cubs

The first two games of the series are played at Wrigley, where the Cubs are 3-0 vs the Dodgers. The Cubs win the first two games. The next two games of the series are played in LA, where the Cubs are 2-2. The next two games are therefore split, which gives the Cubs a win over the Dodgers in 4 games to advance to the NLCS.

Brewers @ Phillies

The first two games are in Philly, where we don't yet have data. Philly has a marginally better home record than the Brewers' road record, so we split the first two games of the series. The next two are played in Milwaukee, where Philly is 1-1. Again, we split the two games. The crucial fifth game is played back in Philly, where based on the slightly better Phills home record, they take it to move to the NLCS.

Back to the AL for the ALCS...

Rays @ Boston

Again, the ALCS follows the 2-3-2 format.

The first two games of the series are played in Boston, where the Red Sox are 6-0 vs the Rays. They win the first two games. The next three games are played in Tampa Bay, where the Red Sox are 0-6 vs the Rays (odd, isn't it?). The Rays take the next three games of the series. The final two games of the series are played in Boston, where the Red Sox win in 7 games based on record to advance to the World Series.

Over to the NL for the NLCS...

Phillies @ Cubs

The NLCS also follows the 2-3-2 format.

The first two games of the series are played at Wrigley, where the Cubs are 2-2. The first two games of the series are therefore split. The next three games of the series are played in Philidelphia, where the Cubs are 1-2. Therefore, the Cubs win one game and the Phillies win two games. The next two games are back in Wrigley. Based on the Cubs far superior home record vs. the Phil's road record, the Cubs take the next two games to win the series and move on to the World Series.

World Series

The AL has home field advantage from the All Star game, and it follows a 2-3-2 format.

Cubs @ Boston (exciting!)

The first two games of the series are played in Boston. We have no data for the two teams, so I'm going solely based on home records vs. road records for the two teams. Boston has a better home record than the Cubs have a road record (Boston is nearly as good as the Cubs at home, while the Cubs are only a few games over .500 on the road) so I'm giving the first two games to Boston. The next three games are played at Wrigley. The Cubs are fantastic at home, while Boston is below .500. Based on this, the Cubs take the next three games. The last two games are played in Boston. Based on records, Boston evens up the series in the sixth game. The seventh and final game is played in Boston where... again, to avoid the bad joo joo, I'm going to let you make your own conclusions.

And now on to our third and final scenario...

If the teams I dislike the most miss the playoffs

As a Cubs fan, there are certain teams that I have a personal dislike for. These include (in no particular order) the Brewers, the Cardinals, the White Sox, the Diamondbacks, and the Marlins. This scenario is therefore based on a situation in which none of these teams are in the playoffs. Based on this and current standings...

Tampa Bay wins the AL East, Minnesota wins the AL Central, the Angels win the AL West. Boston is the AL Wild card. The Mets win the NL East, the Cubs win the NL Central, and the Dodgers win the NL West. Philly is the NL Wild card.

Twins @ Rays
Red Sox @ Angels

Philly @ Cubs
Dodgers @ Mets

For the ALDS...

Twins @ Rays

The first two games are played in Tampa Bay. As of right now, the Twins have not played the Rays in Tampa Bay. But, based on record, we know that the Rays are ridiculously good at home, and the Twins are below .500. Therefore, the Rays take the first two games of the series. The next two games of the series are played in Minnesota, where the Twins are 1-1. The Twins therefore win the 3rd game but lose the 4th, which sends the Rays to the ALCS.

Red Sox @ Angels

The first two games of the series are played in Los Angeles. In games played there, the Red Sox are 0-3 vs the Angels. Therefore, I give the first two games of the series to the Angels.

The next two games of the series are played in Boston. In Boston, the Red Sox are 1-5 vs. the Angels. Therefore, the Angels take the next game of the series and cleanly sweep the Red Sox and advance to the ALCS.

For the NLDS...

Philly @ Cubs

The first two games of the series are played in Wrigley, where the Cubs are 2-2. The first two games are therefore split. The next two games are played in Philly, where the Cubs are 1-2. I'll give the next two games to Philly. The fifth and crucial game in the series is played in Wrigley, where, due to the Cubs superior home record, the Cubs win to advance to the NLCS.

Dodgers @ Mets

The first two games of the series are played in New York, where the Dodgers are 1-2. Based on the closeness of the record, I'm splitting the first two games. The next two games are played in LA, where the Dodgers are 2-1. Again, based on the closeness of the record I'm splitting the games. The fifth and crucial game is back in New York, where the Mets win to advance to the NLCS.

Back to the AL for the ALCS...

Red Sox @ Rays

The ALCS follows a 2-3-2 format.

The first two games are played in Tampa Bay, where the Red Sox are 0-6. The Rays therefore take the first two games. The next three games are played in Boston, where the Red Sox are 6-0. The Red Sox therefore take the next three games. The last two games are back in Tampa, where, based on superior record, the Rays take the last two games to win the series and advance to the World Series.

Back to the NL for the NLCS...

Mets @ Cubs

The NLCS also follows the 2-3-2 format.

The first two games are at Wrigley, where the Cubs are 2-0 vs. the Mets. The Cubs take the first two games. The next 3 games are in New York. We don't have any data for the Cubs in New York yet, but the Cubs are only a few games over .500 on the road, while New York is 41-25 at home. Based on that, we give the next two games to the Mets, with the last game going to the Cubs. The last two games are back in Wrigley. The Cubs crush the Mets in the sixth game to win the NLCS and advance to the World Series.

World Series

The AL Has home field advantage in the World Series, and it follows a 2-3-2 format.

Cubs @ Rays (haven't we seen this before?)

The first two games are played in Tampa Bay where the Cubs are 0-3. The first two games therefore go to Tampa Bay. The next three games are played in Wrigley. At this point, we have no data, but because the Cubs play so well at home, we give them the next three games. The series then moves back to Tampa, where Tampa Bay wins the sixth game. During the seventh and final game... a meteor strikes the stadium prior to the start of the game (nobody is hurt) but the series is postponed indefinitely while the population of the Earth attempts to fight off the invading Zerglocks of planet Alpha Centaris 11. ;)

So... which playoff scenario would you like to see the Cubs in? Do you have any other wacky configurations for the playoffs? And if we get invaded by scary aliens, will we all die horrible horrible deaths, or win like in Independence Day?