Is The MLB Wild Card 2022 Series a best-of-three?

Believe it or not, the MLB Wild Card Round begins tomorrow! All four of the Wild Card series will start on Friday, with the Tampa Bay Rays kicking off their post-season run in Cleveland at 12:07 pm Eastern Time. Each of the series will be in a best-of-three format. But what does that mean?

For those unaware of the best-of-three format, the winner of the series will be the first team to win two games. If one team wins the first game, and the other team wins the second, they will be forced to play a third game with the winner moving on.

"These MLB 3 games series in the Wild Card Round are going to be WILD. #postseason" - BLima

The higher-seeded team will host the first two games, giving them a home-field advantage. The seeding is based on the team's overall win-loss record throughout the regular season, which incentivizes teams to win as many games as possible to boost their playoff advantage.

Which teams will play in the MLB Wild Card Round?

Cleveland Guardians vs Tampa Bay Rays

The first game of the MLB Wild Card Round will see the 3rd seed Cleveland Guardians host the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Guardians (92-70) may be able to take advantage of a slumping Rays team who have lost 8 of their last 10 games. However, Tampa (86-76) is no stranger to overcoming adversity and making deep runs in the playoffs. In 2020, the team made it to the World Series before ultimately falling to the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games.

"The Cleveland Guardians host a playoff series this week" - Barstool Cleveland

St. Louis Cardinals vs Philadelphia Phllies

Game two of the MLB Wild Card will feature Nolan Arenado and the St. Louis Cardinals (93-69) playing host to the Philadelphia Phillies (87-75), who are making their first playoff appearance in 11 years.

""Firing Joe Girardi wouldn't fix the Phillies problems." The Phillies:" - Barstool Philly

Will the Phillies use their playoff drought as motivation or will Albert Pujols continue his magical 2022 season and lead the Cardinals to the next round? Only time will tell.

Toronto Blue Jays vs Seattle Mariners

The Toronto Blue Jays (92-70) will welcome the Seattle Mariners (90-72) to Canada for the start of their three-game series. This will be the first home playoff action for the Blue Jays' young stars Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette, and Alek Manoah. This series will also be the first taste of playoff baseball for the Mariner's rookie sensation Julio Rodriguez.

"The AL Wild Card round series between the Blue Jays & Mariners is set for this Friday at Rogers Centre" - Sportsnet Stats

Unfortunately, by the end of this MLB Wild Card series, one of these young, exciting teams will be eliminated, but who will it be?

New York Mets vs San Diego Padres

Friday's MLB Wild Card opening round will see 'Polar Bear' Pete Alonso go head-to-head with San Diego's Manny Machado in the final game of the day.

The Mets (101-61) are coming off a heartbreaking collapse against the Atlanta Braves which saw New York lose the division title in the final games of the season.

"The New York Mets since 2021 have spent a total of 789 days in first place (Most in baseball) and have not won their division either year." - Statfax

The Padres (89-73) will be looking to make a deep post-season run and hopefully secure their first World Series Championship in franchise history.

Will the division loss hurt or motivate the Mets? Will the Padres be able to overcome the loaded pitching rotation of New York? These questions will soon be answered.