By now everyone knows the Cincinnati Reds control their path to the playoffs with six games to play, thanks to the tiebreaker they have in hand over the New York Mets.
The Reds and Mets enter play Sept. 23 tied for the final playoff spot in the National League, with the Arizona Diamondbacks one game behind. The Reds own the tiebreaker against Arizona, too.
It’s the only National League berth left to be clinched after the Padres beat the Brewers in extra innings Sept. 22 to clinch a spot.
So if the Reds hold serve through their final two series against the Pirates and Brewers, who would they face in the first and potentially second rounds of the playoffs?
Hunter Greene would start wild card series for Reds
The way the pitching rotation lines up, Hunter Greene (7-4, 2.74) would get the Game 1 start in the best-of-three wild-card round on Sept. 30, against the division winner with the third-best record.
Unless the Dodgers gain five games on the Phillies in six games, that would mean the NL West champs would host the Reds (Phillies have tiebreaker vs. Dodgers). And that would mean a trip to Dodger Stadium for the first round for the Reds unless the Padres pull off a 2 1/2-game swing in less than a week (Dodgers have tiebreaker vs. Padres).
The Reds are 1-5 against the Dodgers this season, including getting swept in L.A. less than a month ago. They’re 4-2 against the Padres.
All three games in the wild-card series are played on consecutive days at the same upper-seed site.
How about another ‘if’ to think about?
Phillies or Brewers? Reds could determine Division Series opponent
If the Reds make the playoffs and advance a round for the first time in 30 years, they would then face the NL division winner with the second-best record in a best-of-five Division Series – and the Reds might have something to say about who that opponent would be.
The NL East-leading Phillies are that No. 2 team for now, trailing the NL Central-leading Brewers by 2 1/2 games with six games left for the Phillies and five left for the Brewers. The Brewers hold the tiebreaker edge, so the Phillies make a 3 1/2-game gain to earn the top seed in the league.
The Reds face the Brewers the final three games of the season.
The Reds are 3-3 against the Phillies this season, 3-7 against the Brewers. They haven’t beaten the Brewers in a series since 2022.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Here’s every MLB playoff scenario for Reds with 6 games remaining
Reporting by Gordon Wittenmyer, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
