Every playoff series develops its own personality, with subtle weaknesses suddenly exploited, mistakes magnified and hot-swinging hitters becoming indelible playoff heroes over just a few plate appearances. The excitement of the new wild-card format means that four teams will be fighting for their postseason lives today, and there are plenty of specific elements we'll be watching as the series are decided.
Here are the 10 biggest matchups of the wild-card round.
Phillies-Marlins
The Phillies vs. the pressure
Last year, the Philadelphia Phillies kind of snuck up on everybody in the National League playoffs, repeatedly winning on the road. They took the wild-card series in St. Louis, jumped on the Braves in Atlanta and split the first two games of the NLCS in San Diego before wiping out the Padres in Philadelphia. Bryce Harper got very hot, the Phillies all played loose, and in the end, they came within a couple victories of winning the World Series despite mustering just 87 wins in the regular season.
Expectations are quite different this year, because you could make a case that the Phillies should be favorites to win the World Series, with Harper now seemingly fully healthy and ace Zack Wheeler well-rested after starting just 28 innings in September. But for the Phillies, the role of heavies could feel significantly different to last year -- not that it looked to be the case in their Game 1 win.
