NL Wild Card Series Picture

Just as it is in the American League, the National League has eight teams that clinched spots in their Wild Card Series. The four matchups will be: (1) Los Angeles Dodgers vs. (8) Milwaukee Brewers, (4) San Diego Padres vs. (5) St. Louis Cardinals, (3) Chicago Cubs vs. (6) Miami Marlins, and (2) Atlanta Braves vs. (7) Cincinnati Reds. I believe the four winners of these matchups will be the Dodgers, Padres, Cubs, and Reds. I firmly believe the Reds will upset the higher seed Braves, as the Reds have terrific starting pitching. Their big three starters are Trevor Bauer, Sonny Gray, and Luis Castillo. Bauer is the front-runner for the 2020 NL Cy Young Award, and Gray has had a terrific year thus far as well. Castillo had a terrific 2019 season, but got off to a slow start to this year. He really picked it up in his last handful of starts, and he has ace potential when he is on his game. I did not see any big mismatch in the AL Wild Card matchups, but the Dodgers and Brewers series looks as if it can be an easy series win for Los Angeles. The St. Louis Cardinals have veteran leaders in Adam Wainwright, Yadier Molina, and Paul Goldschmidt, but the Padres have exciting young talent in Manny Machado. Fernando Tatis Jr., and Jake Cronenworth. The results of these matchups will be directly related to who has the better pitching, and who executes opportunities when they are presented.