The BLB playoffs are about two weeks away from beginning, so I thought I’d take a look at how the races and matchups are shaping up:

Ale

Edmonton (1) vs Newcastle (4) – Newcastle can still catch Narragansett for the top wildcard slot but they are 3 games back with 6 games in hand heading into the final few weeks of the season.  Assuming this matchup holds it should be an entertaining first round, as Ron has played me tough all season even though I’ve taken the season series 13-5.  Of those 18 games, 11 of them were decided by 2 runs or less, and I managed to go 10-1 in those 11 games. Needless to say, it should be a close and fun series if the standings hold.

Shiner (2) vs Narragansett (3) – Narragansett is only 3.5 games back of the division and with a sweep of Cincinnati can close that gap to 2 games.  These two teams face off one more time this season in the second to last series of the year that could have division title implications.  So far Narragansett owns the season series 5-10, meaning that in the event of a tie in Narragansett would take the division (no one game playoff since the loser of the tie still makes the playoffs as a wild card).

Lager

Ottawa (1) vs Dakota (4) / Woodbury (2) vs Nickel City (3) – Unlike in the Ale where the four playoff teams have been known for some time, the playoff teams and seeding is still up in the air in the Lager.  Ottawa is a lock to win the Bock division, but could still be passed by either Woodbury or Nickel City for the #1 seed.  Meanwhile, Dakota has a 7 game lead for the last wildcard spot over both Sudbury and recently hot Naptown (winners of 7 straight) with 2 series to go to catch up in games played.  Dakota can do well in those 6 games and effectively lock up the wildcard, or do poorly and open the door for either team to claw their way back in.

Meanwhile in the Pilsner, Woodbury owns a slim half game lead over Nickel City for the division with a series in hand (they go 1-2 in their games against Dakota and the division is tied).  Woodbury and Nickel City (just like Shiner and Narragansett) play one last time this season in the schedule’s second to last series.