MLB Playoff Format 2023: How will the baseball postseason be played?

The moment we’ve been waiting for is finally here. The most popular baseball competition on Earth is back as the 2023 MLB regular season gets underway on Thursday, March 30.

Two exciting matchups will kick off the new seasonwhen the Yankees host the Giants while the Braves take on the Nationals in the first games of an eventful Opening Day. From then on, the battle for the trophy will be on.

This time, all teams will be looking to dethrone reigning champions Houston Astros. Even though we are still far from the Major League Baseballpostseason, many already wonder what the playoff format will be like after the 162-game regular season.

2023 MLB playoff format: How will the postseason work this year?

Last year, the MLB and the Players’ Association agrred on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) that included an expanded playoff field. Consequently, the typical baseball postseason was expanded from 10 to 12 teams— adding an extra Wild Card spot per league.

Just like in 2022, there will be six playoff berths per league (American League and National League). The top two seeds (the two division winners with the best record) both in the AL and NL skip the first round, receiving a bye to the Division Series.

Meanwhile, the rest of the teams— the third-best division winners and the best three teams among non-division winners— have to go through the Wild Card round in a best-of-three series, with the higher seed hosting all games. No matter which teams advance, there won’t be reseedings.

The Division Series is played to a best-of-five series with a 2-2-1 format, giving home field advantage to the higher record. Then comes the League Championship Series with a best-of-seven format, with winners advancing to the World Series— also played to a best-of-seven with a 2-3-2 format.

Seeds (per league):

• Seed #1: Best overall record
• Seed #2: Second-best division winner
• Seed #3: Third-best division winner
• Seed #4, #5, #6: Best three among non-division winners, ordered by record

Wild Card (first round, best-of-three format at higher seed):

• #3 vs. #6
• #4 vs. #5

Division Series (best-of-five format):

• DS1: #1 vs. Winner of 4-5
• DS2: #2 vs. Winner of 3-6

League Championship Series (best-of-seven format):

• DS1 vs. DS2

World Series (best-of-seven format):

• ALCS winner vs. NLCS winner

When do the 2023 MLB playoffs start?

The regular season ends on Sunday, October 1. It won’t be long before the postseason gets underway, with the 2023 MLB playoffs starting on Tuesday, October 3.