There have been some seasons where the playoff picture is set well before Game 162. The final day of the season is often just a chance to rest key pitchers and players ahead of the postseason. That was not the case in 2021.
Neither the AL wild-card nor the NL West Division races were concluced until Sunday, when the Red Sox and Yankees won to clinch the two spots in the American League while the Giants won to earn the top seed and the division crown over the Dodgers.
The Blue Jays and Dodgers both won on Sunday as well, meaning that the Red Sox, Yankees and Giants needed to win to maintain their positions heading into the playoffs.
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Sporting News tracked scores in the key games Sunday and provided updates from each of the matchups.
MORE: MLB playoff power rankings | SN’s MLB postseason predictions
MLB playoff bracket 2021
Here’s a complete look at the 2021 MLB playoff bracket.
MLB playoff schedule, results
National League
Wild-card game
| Date | Game | Start time | TV channel | Result |
| Wed., Oct. 6 | Cardinals at Dodgers | 8:10 p.m. | TBS | 3-1, LAD |
Division Series
TBS will handle the broadcast for all NLDS games in both series.
| Date | Game | Start time (ET) | TV channel | Result |
| Fri., Oct. 8 | Dodgers at Giants, Game 1 | 9:37 p.m. | TBS | 4-0, SF |
| Fri., Oct. 8 | Braves at Brewers, Game 1 | 4:37 p.m. | TBS | 2-1, MIL |
| Sat., Oct. 9 | Dodgers at Giants, Game 2 | 9:07 p.m. | TBS | 9-2, LAD |
| Sat., Oct. 9 | Braves at Brewers, Game 2 | 5:07 p.m. | TBS | 3-0, ATL |
| Mon., Oct. 11 | Giants at Dodgers, Game 3 | 9:37 p.m. | TBS | — |
| Mon., Oct. 11 | Brewers at Braves, Game 3 | 1:07 p.m. | TBS | — |
| Tue., Oct. 12 | Giants at Dodgers, Game 4 | 9:07 p.m. | TBS | — |
| Tue., Oct. 12 | Brewers at Braves, Game 4 | 5:07 p.m. | TBS | — |
| Thu., Oct. 14 | Dodgers at Giants, Game 5* | 9:07 p.m. | TBS | — |
| Thu., Oct. 14 | Braves at Brewers, Game 5* | 5:07 p.m. | TBS | — |
* If necessary.
Championship Series
TBS will continue its National League playoff coverage with coverage of every NLCS game.
| Date | Game | Start time | TV channel | Result |
| Sat., Oct. 16 | TBD at TBD, Game 1 | TBD | TBS | — |
| Sun., Oct. 17 | TBD at TBD, Game 2 | TBD | TBS | — |
| Tue., Oct. 19 | TBD at TBD, Game 3 | TBD | TBS | — |
| Wed., Oct. 20 | TBD at TBD, Game 4 | TBD | TBS | — |
| Thu., Oct. 21 | TBD at TBD, Game 5* | TBD | TBS | — |
| Sat., Oct. 23 | TBD at TBD, Game 6* | TBD | TBS | — |
| Sun., Oct. 24 | TBD at TBD, Game 7* | TBD | TBS | — |
*If necessary
American League
Wild-card game
| Date | Game | Start time | TV channel | Result |
| Tue., Oct. 5 | Yankees at Red Sox | 8:08 p.m. | ESPN | 6-2, BOS |
Division Series
MLB Network and FS1 will carry all the ALDS games, until potential Game 5s, which would be broadcast exclusively on FS1.
| Date | Game | Start time (ET) | TV channel | Result |
| Thu., Oct. 7 | Red Sox at Rays, Game 1 | 8:07 p.m. | FS1 | 5-0, TB |
| Thu., Oct. 7 | White Sox at Astros, Game 1 | 4:07 p.m. | FS1 | 6-1, HOU |
| Fri., Oct. 8 | Red Sox at Rays, Game 2 | 7:02 p.m. | FS1 | 14-6, BOS |
| Fri., Oct. 8 | White Sox at Astros, Game 2 | 2:07 p.m. | MLB Network | 9-4, HOU |
| Sun., Oct. 10 | Rays at Red Sox, Game 3 | 4:07 p.m. | MLB Network | 6-4 (13), BOS |
| Sun., Oct. 10 | Astros at White Sox, Game 3 | 8:07 p.m. | FS1 | 12-6, CHI |
| Mon., Oct. 11 | Rays at Red Sox, Game 4 | 7:07 p.m. | FS1 | — |
| Mon., Oct. 11 | Astros at White Sox, Game 4 | 3:37 p.m. | FS1 | — |
| Wed., Oct. 13 | Red Sox at Rays, Game 5* | 5:07 p.m. | FS1 | — |
| Wed., Oct. 13 | White Sox at Astros, Game 5* | 9:07 p.m. | FS1 | — |
* If necessary.
Championship Series
Fox and FS1 will split coverage of the ALCS.
| Date | Game | Start time | TV channel | Result |
| Fri,, Oct. 15 | TBD at TBD, Game 1 | TBD | Fox | — |
| Sat., Oct. 16 | TBD at TBD, Game 2 | TBD | Fox | — |
| Mon., Oct. 18 | TBD at TBD, Game 3 | TBD | Fox/FS1 | — |
| Tue., Oct. 19 | TBD at TBD, Game 4 | TBD | FS1 | — |
| Wed., Oct. 20 | TBD at TBD, Game 5* | TBD | FS1 | — |
| Fri., Oct. 22 | TBD at TBD, Game 6* | TBD | FS1 | — |
| Sat., Oct. 23 | TBD at TBD, Game 7* | TBD | Fox/FS1 | — |
* If necessary.
World Series schedule
Every World Series game will be on Fox.
| Date | Game | Start time | TV channel | Result |
| Tue., Oct. 26 | TBD at TBD, Game 1 | TBD | Fox | — |
| Wed., Oct. 27 | TBD at TBD, Game 2 | TBD | Fox | — |
| Fri., Oct. 29 | TBD at TBD, Game 3 | TBD | Fox | — |
| Sat., Oct. 30 | TBD at TBD, Game 4 | TBD | Fox | — |
| Sun., Oct. 31 | TBD at TBD, Game 5* | TBD | Fox | — |
| Tue., Nov. 2 | TBD at TBD, Game 6* | TBD | Fox | — |
| Wed., Nov. 3 | TBD at TBD, Game 7* | TBD | Fox | — |
* If necessary.
Live MLB scores, updates from Game 162
Red Sox vs. Nationals
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
| Red Sox | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 13 | 0 |
| Nationals | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 1 |
The Red Sox clinch the top wild-card spot and will host the Yankees on Tuesday.
Rays vs. Yankees
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
| Rays | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Yankees | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
The Yankees clinch a wild-card spot with the win.
Angels vs. Mariners
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
| Angels | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 | 0 |
| Mariners | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 2 |
Orioles vs. Blue Jays
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
| Orioles | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 13 | 0 |
| Blue Jays | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 12 | 12 | 1 |
Padres vs. Giants
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
| Padres | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 0 |
| Giants | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | X | 11 | 10 | 0 |
The Giants win the NL West and clinch the No. 1 seed in the National League.
Brewers vs. Dodgers
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
| Brewers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 |
| Dodgers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 3 | X | 10 | 10 | 1 |