And then there were four. With the Brewers’ 3-1 victory over the Cubs in Game 5 of their National League Division Series on Saturday night, the league’s two championship series are now set. Milwaukee will face the Dodgers in the NLCS, and the Mariners and Blue Jays will face off in the ALCS.
Milwaukee qualified for the LCS for the first time in seven years and gets a rematch of the 2018 NLCS – the Dodgers won it in seven games. The first game is Monday night at American Family Field (8 p.m. ET on TBS).
In the American League, it took an epic contest that will go down as one of the greatest playoff games in Major League history to decide which club would have a chance to win the pennant — the Mariners beat the Tigers, 3-2, in 15 innings at T-Mobile Park on Friday to advance to their first ALCS in 24 years. Awaiting them in Toronto for Sunday’s Game 1 (8 p.m. ET on FOX) are the Blue Jays, who earlier in the week clinched their first trip to the ALCS in nine years by beating the Yankees in four games.
Here’s a look at each LCS match.
Blue Jays (1) vs. Mariners (2)
Calendar
Game 1 (at TOR): Sunday, 8:03 p.m. ET on FOX
Game 2 (on TOR): Monday on FOX/FS1
Game 3 (at SEA): Wednesday on FOX/FS1
Game 4 (at SEA): Thursday on FOX/FS1
Game 5 (at SEA, if necessary): October 17 on FOX/FS1
Game 6 (on TOR, if necessary): October 19 on FOX/FS1
Game 7 (on TOR, if necessary): October 20 on FOX/FS1
Season series: The Blue Jays went 4-2 against the Mariners in the regular season, losing two of three in Toronto in April before sweeping Seattle at T-Mobile Park in May.
Playoff history: In the only playoff meeting between the two teams, the Mariners swept the Blue Jays two games to none in the 2022 AL Wild Card Series, with both games taking place at Rogers Center. Seattle won 4-0 behind 7 1/3 scoreless innings from Luis Castillo in Game 1, then erased an 8-1 deficit to win Game 2.
The keys to the match: A captivating contrast of styles. The Mariners do a little bit of everything – they were third in MLB in home runs and stolen bases, and sixth in the AL in ERA during the regular season. The Blue Jays don’t have the firepower or pitching depth of Seattle, so they attack in a different way. Toronto led baseball in on-base percentage and had the second-fewest strikeouts. The Jays can wear down an opponent with long at-bats and pressure a defense by putting the ball in play more frequently than anyone else. On the other side, Toronto has an elite defense with top-tier gloves like Andrés Giménez, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Myles Straw, Daulton Varsho and Alejandro Kirk.
Player to watch: Josh Naylor. The well-traveled Seattle first baseman and native of Mississauga, Ont., will start this series – and perhaps clinch a World Series berth – in his home province. As if the fiery Naylor needed any more motivation. He fit in seamlessly in Seattle after a deadline trade with the D-backs, putting up an .831 OPS and stealing 19 bases in 54 games without getting caught. Naylor is a career .314 hitter in Toronto, albeit with just one home run. He had five hits in 14 at-bats for Arizona during a three-game series at Rogers Center in June. Naylor owns a career postseason OPS of .642, with nine extra-base hits and 11 RBIs in 99 at-bats.
Brewers (1) vs. Dodgers (3)
Calendar
Game 1 (at MIL): Monday, 8:08 p.m. ET on TBS
Game 2 (at MIL): Tuesday, 8:08 p.m. ET on TBS
Match 3 (at LAD): Thursday on TBS
Match 4 (at LAD): October 17 on TBS
Match 5 (at LAD, if necessary): October 18 on TBS
Match 6 (at MIL, if necessary): October 20 on TBS
Match 7 (at MIL, if necessary): October 21 on TBS
Season series: The Brewers owned the Dodgers in 2025, sweeping all six of their meetings while outscoring them 31-16. Both series between the two teams took place in July, one before the All-Star break and one immediately after.
Playoff history: This will be the third playoff meeting between the Dodgers and Brewers. Their 2018 NLCS matchup was a contentious affair that lasted seven games, with Los Angeles winning 5-1 on the road in game seven. The Dodgers once again dominated the Brewers in the 2020 NL Wild Card Series, this time in a sweep.
The keys to the match: The Dodgers’ bullpen has been their weak link, and the question is: Can their starters give them enough length to minimize the use of middle relief and get the ball to Roki Sasaki, who has proven to be a weapon in the backfield this postseason? One of the benefits of the entire Dodgers staff is the three days of rest they will have received before Monday’s opener. On the other hand, will the Brewers’ hitters be able to capitalize by striking out the Dodgers’ starters early?
Player to watch: Shohei Ohtani. If it seems like he’s always the answer to these kinds of questions, that’s because he largely is. In this case, it’s partly because of his struggles at the plate thus far in the postseason – since a two-homer performance against the Reds in Game 1 of the NL Wild Card Series, the two-way superstar is 2-for-22 (.091) with nine strikeouts. Add to that the intrigue of his exploits on the mound after putting together six solid innings with nine strikeouts in Game 1 of the NL Division Series, and the spotlight will shine on him in the NLCS — not that he’s not used to that sort of thing.
