The A.L. Championship series begins tonight with the Royals and Orioles playing Game One in Baltimore. The N.L. Championship series starts tomorrow with the Cardinals and Giants facing off in a repeat of the 2012 NLCS when the Giants defeated the Cards in seven games on the way to winning the 2012 World Series.
These two matchups are steeped in a distinct contrast: The Cards and Giants are each post-season regulars in the past few years and beyond. The ALCS foes, however, are a different story; the Royals are making their first post-season appearance since they won the title in 1985. The Orioles are playing in their second playoffs in three years, but they have made it to the post-season only twice since 1998.
With their appearance this year, the Royals became the 29th of the 30 MLB franchises to play at least once in the post-season since 2000. The Toronto Blue Jays are now the only MLB team to have not played a playoff game in this century. The last time the Blue Jays played in the post-season was in 1993 when they won back-to-back World Series.
Let’s take a look at each of the 30 MLB teams and their playoffs seasons since the turn of the century. The New York Yankees top the list with 12 post-season appearances since 2000. The Cardinals top the National League teams; they have played in the post-season in 11 of the 15 seasons since 2000.
Here’s a look at how many seasons since 2000 each of the MLB franchises have played in the post-season.
12: New York Yankees
11: St. Louis
9: Atlanta
8: Oakland
7: Boston, Los Angeles Angels
6: Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota, San Francisco
5: Detroit, Philadelphia
4: Arizona, Tampa Bay
3: Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Houston, Texas
2: Baltimore, Colorado, Milwaukee, New York Mets, Pittsburgh, San Diego, Seattle, Washington
1: Kansas City, Miami
0: Toronto
Follow Jerry on Twitter @StatsonTapp