MLB Power Rankings: Milwaukee tops the last four, and the title odds still run through Los Angeles

The Division Series ended Saturday and cut the field to four clubs. The Cleveland Guardians lost the first two games to the Chicago White Sox, then won three straight. The clincher came at home, 2-0. The Tampa Bay Rays swept the New York Yankees, and the Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Dodgers each finished their National League series in four games. 12

Both championship series are under way. The Brewers beat the Dodgers 2-1 in Sunday's National League opener at American Family Field. The Guardians visit the Rays for the American League opener on Monday night. 23

The board below covers all 30 clubs. The four still playing are ranked first, and the 26 whose seasons are over follow them in the order those seasons finished.

Four clubs are still playing, and only they can still move. MLB.com's panel of contributors ranked them on Sunday. The numbers beside them come from FanGraphs' model, refreshed Monday morning, from ESPN's simulations and from the sportsbooks. 45

The 26 clubs whose seasons are over hold the order they finished the regular season in, grouped by how far they advanced. Cleveland's climb from seventh last week to fourth is the only rise; the four clubs beneath it are the four that lost their Division Series.

Four clubs left the board this week, and each left for a different reason.

New York Yankees, 93-68. Tampa Bay beat them 1-0, 5-2 and 4-3, holding the Yankees to five runs across three games. Aaron Judge missed the whole series with a right calf strain, and the club chose to let him keep recovering. 19

Atlanta Braves, 94-68. Atlanta won the only wild-card series that reached a third game, beating Philadelphia. Then it lost three of four to Los Angeles and was outscored 14-8. Chris Sale started Game 3 at home and lasted five innings against a lineup that wore him down. 110

San Diego Padres, 91-71. San Diego swept the Cubs by a combined 12-1 in the wild-card round, then dropped three of four to Milwaukee. Three of the four were decided by one run, and the Brewers took the last one 3-1 at Petco Park. 1

Chicago White Sox, 84-78. The lowest seed won the first two games in Cleveland, 3-0 and 4-3, then lost the next three. Cleveland outscored Chicago 20-8 over those games, and José Ramírez finished the series with five hits and seven RBIs across the last three. 13

MLB.com's panel and ESPN's voters put Milwaukee on top of the board. The model and the betting market put Los Angeles there instead.

ESPN asked 15 of its writers and analysts to pick the two series. Thirteen picked Milwaukee over the Dodgers, and 14 picked Tampa Bay over Cleveland. 11

FanGraphs splits the Brewers-Dodgers series nearly in half, 52.8% to 47.2%. It still gives Los Angeles a 39.9% chance at the title against Milwaukee's 27.2%. That gap sits in the round after this one. The model makes the Dodgers a heavier favorite in a World Series than the Brewers, whoever comes out of the American League. 5

The two clubs are the only 100-win teams in baseball, and their regular seasons were close to a dead split. Milwaukee finished 103-59 against Los Angeles's 100-62. The Brewers' run differential was +214, the Dodgers' +201; the team ERAs were 3.51 and 3.55; the on-base percentages .341 and .338. Milwaukee won the season series 4-3 and took three of four at Dodger Stadium in August. 7

ESPN's temperature readings lean Milwaukee on current form. The Brewers sit at 113 degrees against the Dodgers' 106, on a scale whose average is 72. The Rays (101) run hotter than the Guardians (97). 10

Tampa Bay shut down Shane McClanahan for the rest of the postseason. He left a Sept. 3 start with left forearm tightness, and manager Kevin Cash said the left-hander is healthy now. Given the forearm fatigue and the workload he carried after two and a half seasons lost to arm injuries, the Rays decided a shutdown made the most sense. 12

The Dodgers added a 13th pitcher for the NLCS, left-hander Justin Wrobleski, and left speed option Hyeseong Kim off the roster. Miguel Rojas is on it after missing time with lower back pain, and he is available off the bench. 1314

Milwaukee went with the same 26-man group it used against San Diego. 14

Cleveland named Foster Griffin its Game 1 starter, after he worked 2⅔ innings in relief in Game 3 of the ALDS. Gavin Williams, who threw 5⅔ innings on Saturday, probably waits until Game 3. 15

Tampa Bay starts Drew Rasmussen in Game 1 on eight days of rest, after he carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning against the Yankees. Cleveland arrives having played into Saturday night and flown to Florida on Sunday. 15

The ALCS runs Monday and Tuesday at Tropicana Field, then Games 3 through 5 at Progressive Field from Oct. 15 to 17. Games 6 and 7, if needed, return to Tampa Bay on Oct. 19 and 20. 3

The NLCS continues Monday at American Family Field. Games 3 through 5 move to Dodger Stadium from Oct. 14 to 16, and Games 6 and 7 return to Milwaukee on Oct. 18 and 19. The World Series opens Friday, Oct. 23. 13