What Does ALDS Mean in Baseball?
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If you’re a baseball fan, you’ve probably heard of the American League Division Series (ALDS). But what does it mean? In this post, we’ll break it down for you.
American League Division Series
The American League Division Series (ALDS) is a best-of-five series that determines who moves on to the American League Championship Series (ALCS). The ALDS is played between the two American League division winners with the better record.
What is the ALDS?
The American League Division Series (ALDS) is a best-of-five playoff that determines which two teams from the American League will advance to the League Championship Series. The Division Series is played in two 2-2-1 formats, meaning the team with home-field advantage will host Games 1, 2, and 5 (if necessary), while the other team hosts Games 3 and 4 (if necessary).
The ALDS schedule is as follows:
Game 1: Wednesday, October 3
Game 2: Thursday, October 4
Game 3: Saturday, October 6
Game 4: Sunday, October 7*
Game 5: Monday, October 8*
*if necessary
How does the ALDS work?
In each Major League Baseball season, the American League (AL) and National League (NL) play a series of games known as the “League Championship Series” (LCS). The ALDS is the AL portion of these playoffs.
The ALDS is a best-of-five series between the two division winners from the AL. The team with the better regular-season record gets to host Games 1, 2, and 5 (if necessary).
The winner of the ALDS advances to the “American League Championship Series” (ALCS), where they will play the winner of the NLDS. The ALCS winner then advances to the World Series.
What teams are in the ALDS?
In baseball, the American League Division Series (ALDS) is one of two preliminary rounds of the American League playoffs. It consists of two best-of-five series between the three divisional winners and the winner of the wild card play-in game. The winners advance to the American League Championship Series.
In 2012, the ALDS featured the Baltimore Orioles (East winner) against the New York Yankees (Wild Card winner), and the Detroit Tigers (Central winner) against the Oakland Athletics (West winner). The Orioles and Yankees both swept their opponents, setting up an ALCS matchup between those two teams.
National League Division Series
The National League Division Series (ALDS) is a best-of-five series played in October in Major League Baseball (MLB) between the winners of the two American League (AL) divisional series. The ALDS began in 1969 when MLB split into two divisions.
What is the NLDS?
The National League Division Series (NLDS) is a best-of-five series played between the two division winners of the National League. The winner of this series advances to the National League Championship Series (NLCS).
In baseball, the term “division series” (or “DS”) refers to the first round of the playoffs. Before 1995, this round was known as the “League Championship Series” (or “LCS”). The change in name coincided with the addition of a second wild card team to each league, which created a new playoff format.
In the current format, two division winners from each league face off in the DS, with the winner advancing to the LCS. The LDS is also a best-of-five series, but it is played in a 2-2-1 format (meaning that the higher seed hosts Games 1, 2, and 5, while the lower seed hosts Games 3 and 4).
The LDS began in 1969, when Major League Baseball implemented divisional play. The Kansas City Royals and New York Mets met in the first LDS, with the Mets winning three games to one.
How does the NLDS work?
The National League Division Series (NLDS) is a best-of-five playoff that determines the winner of each National League (NL) division. The three divisional winners and one wild card team compete in two separate series. The team with the best record plays the team with the worst record while the team with the second-best record plays the team with the second-worst record.
The NLDS schedule is as follows:
Game 1: Wednesday, Oct. 3 – lowest seed at highest seed
Game 2: Thursday, Oct. 4 – lowest seed at highest seed
Game 3: Friday, Oct. 5 – highest seed at lowest seed
Game 4: Saturday, Oct. 6 – highest seed at lowest seed (if necessary)
Game 5: Sunday, Oct. 7 – lowest seed at highest seed (if necessary)
What teams are in the NLDS?
The National League Divisional Series (NLDS) is a best-of-five game playoff played between the two winning teams of the National League’s (NL) two Divisional Playoffs. The winners of each series advance to play each other in the National League Championship Series (NLCS).
The Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves met in the NLDS in 2018. The Dodgers won the series 3–1 and went on to lose to the Boston Red Sox in the World Series.
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) and concludes the MLB postseason. A best-of-seven playoff, the World Series begins in late October as the two final teams remaining in the MLB postseason play each other in a best-of-seven games series.
What is the World Series?
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) in North America, contested since 1903 between the American League (AL) champion team and the National League (NL) champion team. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff, and the winning team is awarded the Commissioner’s Trophy. As the series is played during the Fall Classic, one of the tradition-laden working titles for the series was the “Autumn Classic”.
How does the World Series work?
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) and concludes the sport’s postseason. First played in 1903, the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and is a contest between the champions of MLB’s American League (AL) and National League (NL). Frequently referred to as the “Fall Classic”,[1][2] the modern World Series has been played every year since 1903 with two exceptions: in 1904, when the NL champion New York Giants declined to play the AL champion Boston Americans;[3] and in 1994, when the series was canceled due to the players’ strike.[4]
The best-of-seven style has been the format of all World Series except in 1903, 1919, 1920, and 1921, when the winner was determined through a best-of-nine playoff. From 1915 to 1918 and again in 1921,[5] the World Series was a best-of-seven game series played between October 23 and November 1. These dates effectively excludes pre-divisional play and Divisional Playoffs before 1969 because each round of playoffs are completed within those dates. Postseason baseball before1969 typically ended no later than Halloween.
The practice of scheduling Game 1 of the World Series on a Thursday night—even if October 23 falls on a different day of the week—also dates back to 1915.[6][7] In recent years there have been exceptions when a Wednesday night opener was necessary due to scheduling conflicts or inclement weather.[8][9]
Beginning with 1986 World Series, home field advantage in the Fall Classic has been awarded to whichever team had won that year’s pennant with the better regular season win–loss record; beforehand home field advantage alternated between East Division team one year and West Division team next year regardless of which teams advanced to play for it.[10] The Los Angeles Dodgers have represented both sides of this phenomenon: they were AL champions as recently as 1988 but have since moved to the NL West; thus they have played only NL teams since then in postseason series.
What teams are in the World Series?
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB) and concludes the MLB postseason. First played in 1903, the World Series championship is a best-of-seven playoff and is a contest between the champions of baseball’s National League (NL) and American League (AL). Usually, one team hosts four of the seven games, determined by a pre-planned rotation, alternating between the two leagues. As of 2019, the World Series has been contested 114 times, with baseball’s American professional championship title awarded 106 times to 54 different teams. The most recent champions are the Washington Nationals, who won in 2019.
