The 2018 major league baseball postseason felt like a fever dream that started in a tie-breaker and ended with a blowout in Los Angeles. It was loud. It was exhausting. If you were a Red Sox fan, it was the validation of a juggernaut. If you were anyone else, it was a masterclass in how modern bullpen usage can simultaneously win games and make viewers want to pull their hair out.
Remember the 108-win Red Sox? They weren't just good; they were inevitable. But the road there was weirdly jagged. We had two Game 163 tiebreakers—one for the NL Central and one for the NL West—just to decide who even got to play in the "real" playoffs. The Brewers took down the Cubs, and the Dodgers beat the Rockies. It set a chaotic tone that didn't let up until Steve Pearce was hoisting a World Series MVP trophy that nobody predicted he’d be holding three months earlier.
The Year of the "Opener" and Bullpen Madness
By the time the 2018 major league baseball postseason rolled around, the "Opener" wasn't just a quirky Tampa Bay Rays experiment anymore. It had gone mainstream, and traditionalists hated it. Craig Counsell and the Milwaukee Brewers took this to the extreme. They had Corey Knebel, a closer, starting Game 5 of the NLCS against the Dodgers. He pitched one inning. It was tactical. It was jarring. It worked, until it didn't.
This postseason was the peak of the "three true outcomes" era hitting a wall of elite pitching. We saw 535 strikeouts across the entire playoffs. Think about that number. It’s staggering. Games became chess matches played with 98-mph fastballs and sliders that started in the zone and ended in the dirt. The 2018 major league baseball postseason showed us the future of the sport, for better or worse. Managers like Alex Cora and Dave Roberts weren't looking for six innings from a starter. They were looking for matchups. They were looking for the slightest edge in a high-leverage count.
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Red Sox vs. Everyone: The 119-Win Path to Glory
Boston was a machine. Alex Cora, in his first year, seemed to have the Midas touch. Everything he did worked. He put Jackie Bradley Jr. in the lineup, and the guy drove in nine runs in the ALCS to win MVP honors despite barely hitting over .200 in the regular season. He used Chris Sale out of the bullpen to close out the World Series. It was aggressive baseball.
The ALDS against the Yankees was supposed to be a war. It ended up being a statement. Boston went into the Bronx and dropped 16 runs in Game 3. Brock Holt hit for the first cycle in postseason history. Imagine that. A utility man doing something Babe Ruth or Lou Gehrig never did in October. That’s the magic of the 2018 major league baseball postseason. It wasn't always the stars; it was the guys who were just "on" for three weeks.
Then came the Astros. Houston was the defending champ. They were terrifying. But the Red Sox took four straight after losing Game 1. It wasn't just talent; it was a refusal to beat themselves. Andrew Benintendi’s diving catch in Game 4 of the ALCS basically sucked the soul out of Minute Maid Park. If he misses that ball, the Astros likely win, and the series is tied. Instead, the Red Sox took a 3-1 lead. Small margins. Inches.
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That Eighteen-Inning Marathon
We have to talk about Game 3 of the World Series. Dodgers versus Red Sox. It started on a Friday night and ended on a Saturday morning. 18 innings. Seven hours and 20 minutes. It remains the longest game in World Series history.
Max Muncy finally ended it with a walk-off homer, but the real story was Nathan Eovaldi. He pitched six innings of relief on two days' rest. He threw 97 pitches out of the bullpen. He lost the game, but he won the respect of every person in that locker room. His teammates literally cheered for him when he walked in after the loss. It was an old-school performance in a new-school playoffs. It felt like the last time a pitcher was allowed to just go out there and empty the tank regardless of the "analytics."
Why the 2018 Major League Baseball Postseason Still Matters
Honestly, 2018 was the bridge. It was the bridge between the "old" way of managing and the total data-driven era we see now. You had the dominance of Mookie Betts and J.D. Martinez, but you also had the emergence of the "bullpen day" as a legitimate playoff strategy.
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The Dodgers were in their second straight World Series, beginning to cement that "always a bridesmaid" reputation that they wouldn't shake until the 2020 bubble. Clayton Kershaw’s postseason legacy was further complicated. He struggled. He looked human. Meanwhile, the Red Sox cemented themselves as the team of the 21st century, winning their fourth title since 2004. No other franchise was even close.
What most people get wrong about this year is thinking Boston just "bought" it. Sure, their payroll was huge. But look at the contributions. Steve Pearce was a mid-season pickup from Toronto for a minor leaguer. Eovaldi was a reclamation project with two Tommy John surgeries. Joe Kelly became a fire-breathing dragon in the eighth inning after being mediocre for months. It was a chemistry experiment that actually exploded in a good way.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Historians
If you’re looking back at the 2018 major league baseball postseason to understand where the game is today, keep these specific points in mind:
- Study the ALCS Game 4 Catch: Watch Andrew Benintendi's positioning. It was one of the first years where "outfield positioning data" was visibly changing how playoff games were won at the catch point.
- Analyze Eovaldi's Game 3 Usage: This is the blueprint for the modern "High-Leverage Multi-Inning" reliever. If you’re a coach, this is the tape you show to explain "wanting the ball."
- Review the 163 Tiebreakers: This was the last great year of the tiebreaker game before MLB moved to purely mathematical tie-breaking formulas. It shows why the "sudden death" aspect of baseball is so vital for TV ratings and fan engagement.
- Check the Box Scores for "The Opener": Look at the Brewers' box scores from the NLCS. It provides a perfect case study on why MLB eventually changed roster rules regarding how many pitchers a team can carry.
The 2018 major league baseball postseason wasn't just a tournament; it was a shift in the sport's tectonic plates. It gave us a dominant champion in the Red Sox, a record-breaking marathon in L.A., and a glimpse into a future where the starting pitcher might just be the guy who starts the game, not the guy who finishes it.