The final eight teams in baseball will start the Division Series knowing they all have a shot at something special, but also that, regardless of what happens, their season will be (mostly) considered a success. On the other hand, the four teams that just exited the painfully short wild-card round cannot say the same thing.
The expanded playoffs have created situations where a 162-game marathon can be cut short by a brief mid-week series, as the wild-card round has been mostly a dud since its inception. In 2026, we got more of the same, with three series becoming quick sweeps and the other failing to produce significant drama in its decisive Game 3. With this in mind, the four eliminated franchises will have to analyze why they could not have a more meaningful postseason, and, most importantly, how to retool quickly for another chance in 2027.
In no particular order, here are the post-mortems for the teams that just went home.
Houston Astros (81-81) – Lost 2-0 at home versus White Sox
In many ways, seeing the Astros dismantled by a combined 13-6 score at home against the dynamic White Sox was not surprising at all. This team regressed by six wins and would have been an afterthought in nearly every other season, but the dramatic drop-off of the AL West led them to become the first non-winning division winner in MLB history. That ignominious distinction was quickly exposed in the playoffs, and now the Astros must decide how they see themselves going forward. On one hand, missing out on the 2025 postseason looked like the first step towards a serious rebuild, but this wild-card appearance should not change their trajectory much, as their imbalanced roster needs a serious revamp.
Houston has not seen a full-season losing record since 2014, leading its front office and fanbase to always believe that contention is within reach. That became evident in their Game 1 boos from the home crowd, as Houston’s lackluster effort was not appreciated by the fans who had grown accustomed to memorable playoff games. The counterpart of that feeling was seeing this team underperform through several stretches of the regular season, as the Astros were simply a bad team that lucked into a division title. Outside of Yordan Alvarez’s heroics, which may end up with an MVP award, the rest of the team failed to meet expectations in several ways.
The Astros led all of baseball in homers, but were 13th in runs scored and 19th in OBP, speaking to the uneven nature of their lineup. Alvarez was fantastic, along with the solid complements of Jeremy Peña and Isaac Paredes, but Houston’s offense was mostly full of easy outs and streaky hitters. The pitching staff was a different story, as its innumerable injuries produced a mostly lousy rotation that would eventually be their demise in the playoffs. The Astros had 19 different pitchers with at least one start, with only Peter Lambert and Hunter Brown able to make at least 20 of them.
Pitching will be the team’s top priority in the offseason, as their list of free agents does not include any significant players outside of maybe reliever Bryan Abreu, who has been a solid contributor to the bullpen for years. However, manager Joe Espada was not renewed, and now the front office must make a decision. Similar caveats will apply to franchise legends Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve, as they both showed their age and became non-factors throughout 2026. Their status within the organization and their hefty contracts make them almost sunk costs at this point, but maybe they can start becoming phased out gradually in platoon roles.
With the AL West in limbo and no franchise ready to take a foothold in it, the Astros know that having a player like Alvarez is a great place to start. However, it is unlikely that they can repeat this year’s formula. Making a decision on their field manager should be the first step in this offseason of tough choices, as this is an organization that would benefit from a serious self-analysis of its situation.
Boston Red Sox – (87-75) – Lost 2-0 on the road versus Yankees
The Boston-Yankees rivalry, especially come playoff time, is far from the chaotic days of the early 2000s, but it still carries a lot of weight in both cities. Seeing the Red Sox essentially replicate their 2025 season sure is a disappointment around Beantown, as the team had raised plenty of hope and good vibes with a memorable summer. At the same time, that memorable summer was needed to enter playoff contention in the first place, as Boston was far from any postseason hopes as late as June. While there were plenty of positives around that unlikely run, which included a 15-game winning streak, the full 2026 effort of the Sox left a lot to be desired, culminating in an embarrassing two-game sweep to their rivals.
Boston could only muster one run in the process, and finished the series in a full-fledged public discussion of analytics versus veteran gut feeling. Manager Chad Tracy was utterly conservative with his starters, summoning lefty Erik Miller in both games to disastrous results. Regardless of the staff’s failings, the lack of offense was shocking in its own right, as the Sox couldn’t achieve any kind of success against New York’s power arms. The way the season ended has left a bad taste in Boston’s mouth, erasing the positive vibes around Tracy’s extension and all the individual achievements from its team.
The 20-something trio of Caleb Durbin, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Wilyer Abreu cemented itself as a solid foundation, but there were also enough questions around other homegrown players that led to the trade of Marcelo Mayer and the sad playoff exit of Roman Anthony. The midseason trade for Adley Rutschman gave the team a cornerstone player at a premium position, but the team as a whole looks a bit incomplete compared to the powerhouses of the AL East. What the Red Sox do in free agency will be interesting, as they have operated as a cash-strapped franchise despite their big-market status.
Among its notable free agents, reliever Garrett Whitlock is almost a lock to stay via a club option, but deciding on Sonny Gray may be a different matter. Gray was quite vocal in his distrust of analytics after Boston’s playoff exit, which may not bode well with a front office that has preached that philosophy for years. Picking up Gray’s mutual option is not a given, and the Red Sox could simply trust Payton Tolle as their new ace with Ranger Suarez as a solid #2 starter, instead opting to find other arms in the free agent market. The offense could stay mostly put, but finding a solid utility player could work wonders to cover the oft-injured Trevor Story and create flexibility around the DH spot.
In the end, Boston can walk away satisfied with a fun season but also reflect on its poor ending. Playing in the AL East means that no offseason can be taken for granted, as the Sox will also need to compete with the likes of Baltimore and Toronto as they try to bounce back from lackluster seasons.
Chicago Cubs – (89-73) – Lost 2-0 on the road versus Padres
Much like the Red Sox, the Chicago Cubs have plenty of conflicting ways to look at their 2026 season. The Cubs produced arguably their most entertaining season since 2016, becoming the highest-scoring team in the league while showcasing Pete Crow-Armstrong as the future MVP of the National League. Chicago thrived on chaos, delivering plenty of crazy games and memorable moments along the way. Simultaneously, they never really threatened the Brewers in the Central, losing control of the division by mid-May. A plethora of pitching injuries derailed many of the team’s plans, and it could be argued that the last week of the season sealed Chicago’s fate, as a freak accident put Alex Bregman on the IL while the Cubs went 2-4 and fell to the 5-seed in the NL, which denied them a home series.
The glass-half-full approach says that this offense, with even average injury luck, would have fought atop the NL, while the glass-half-empty could say that the Cubs’ extreme approach was not meant for the playoffs, as they were exposed by a much stronger San Diego team. Chicago was almost no-hit on Game 1, while their bats again went quiet in the deciding contest. After scoring 850 runs in the regular season, the Cubs were limited to one by the Friars, creating a bunch of questions going forward for a team that actually won three fewer games than in 2025, when they reached the NLDS.
Having Crow-Armstrong as a foundational player has opened the team’s contention window as something to maximize, but the Brewers aren’t going anywhere, and the rest of the Central keeps improving. Chicago also has plenty of decisions to make around free agency, as several of its veterans could test the open market. Fan-favorite Ian Happ finished his season by waving goodbye to the Wrigley crowd, which doesn’t bode well for his chances to stay. Meanwhile, the Japanese duo of Seiya Suzuki and Shota Imanaga will be free agents for the first time, and it is unlikely that the team will keep both. Midseason acquisition Kevin Gausman could prove too expensive, especially when the bullpen is in shambles, and the front office might look elsewhere for improvements.
The Cubs certainly have enough weapons and resources to keep this momentum, especially if they expect healthy returns from the likes of Justin Steele, Edward Cabrera, and Ben Brown. Those are big ifs, though, as pitcher health continues to be the ultimate wild card for contenders. The team has gradually taken advantage of having a top-tier manager, while the front office looks ready to invest in the team, but the lack of certainty around the staff creates an intriguing sense of urgency. This season proved that an electric atmosphere around the Friendly Confines is one of the sweetest sights in the game, and the Cubs faithful certainly hope that their expectations will be met.
Philadelphia Phillies – (88-74) – Lost 2-1 on the road versus Atlanta
The diminishing returns of this era of Phillies baseball have reached a new low point, as they have been eliminated in the wild card round after two consecutive seasons of ALDS exits. This came after a final week of the regular season in which they almost collapsed to miss out on the playoffs altogether. In hindsight, the latter fate may have been a more palatable result, as seeing the Phillies flail in October again was a familiar sight for their fans. Despite being the only eliminated team that forced a game three, the final contest was lost since the first inning, as the decision to use Aaron Nola to start quickly backfired. Now the Phillies must face a crucial offseason in which they may opt to blow it all up or try to make a last run with their aging core.
On the surface, Philadelphia had a stellar season, with its rotation of Cristopher Sánchez, Jesús Luzardo, and Zack Wheeler combining for 20 WAR. This was an especially relevant development as Wheeler had started 2026 on the IL, and his healthy return was not a given. Kyle Schwarber hit his customary 45 homers, while Bryce Harper had a nice bounce-back season after being called out by his general manager before the season even started. On the flip side, this is a team that needed a mid-season managerial change only to get a jolt after a dreadful start. Trea Turner and Alec Bohm were below average, while J.T. Realmuto finally showed his age and the Adolis García experiment was an abject disaster.
The Phillies were never in first place after early April, and while they righted the ship under Don Mattingly, the fact that the front office did not extend him to remove the interim tag is not a good sign for Donnie Baseball. Making a final decision on his status seems like the first logical step in the offseason, as it seems likely that ownership will look elsewhere. Alex Cora’s name has been floated around the Phillies for a long time, and bringing him in would add a new layer for a team that has struggled to put it all together in the postseason.
Alec Bohm and José Alvarado are expensive free agents that the team may not consider necessary for their next version, while the status of Luis Arraez will become a fascinating storyline. Arraez arrived at the trade deadline and suffered an untimely injury before the playoffs, but he is also on the wrong side of 30, as the franchise may try to get younger and more dynamic in its next iteration. Playing in the NL East, where even the Marlins and Nationals appear on the right track, makes things tougher for ownership and the front office. The Phillies will be one of the most interesting teams this winter, as they could also decide to start trading away some expensive veterans that may benefit from a fresh start. In any case, keep your sights on their flurry of transactions.
