MLB division series: 8 most important players for playoffs' next round

Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt and Albert Pujols were sent packing. Bo Bichette has plenty of time to play tennis.

Evan Phillips will be the Dodgers' closer in the playoffs. He has a 0.76 WHIP and 77 strikeouts in 63 innings this year. Craig Kimbrel may not make the roster. He was a former Orioles and Rays castoff. The Dodgers had the onramp to give Kimbsrel every chance to get right.

Spencer Strider is injured and unlikely to play in the playoffs. He's a rookie and struck out 202 batters in 131 innings. The Braves won the division without him. If he's able to pitch in this postseason, he'll give them a 1-2-3 shutdown staff of Max Fried, Kyle Wright and Stridler.

Cristian Javier started 25 games and came out of the bullpen in five others for the Houston Astros. He struck out 194 in 148 ⅓ innings and authored the first seven innings of a combined no-hitter at Yankee Stadium.

Yankees are in the playoffs. They are going to play the Boston Red Sox. Their opponent is the New York Yankees. Aaron Judge is an MVP-caliber player. He hit 62 home runs this season. His team won 40-11 in games when he homered. When he didn't, they won 59-52. The team has other players with good statistics.

The chase is over. Now, can Judge avoid chasing and let it all come to him?

Robbie Ray was a success for Seattle Mariners in his first season. He struck out more than 200 batters for a third consecutive year and won a dozen games. Ray gave up multiple home runs in eight of his 32 starts and at least four earned runs on 10 of them. Seattle won 90 games last season, but they were barely a .500 team when Ray took the mound.

The outcome of the game might determine Seattle's playoff fate.

Phillies beat Cardinals in the playoffs. Bryce Harper is playing in his first postseason game in five years. Kyle Schwarber has played in all but one of his seasons. Harper has struggled since returning from thumb surgery. He is batting .227 in 35 games since his return. He has a .339 career clip. The Phillies are taking on the Atlanta Braves in a division series.

Manny Machado was the regular season MVP for the Padres. He was a part of the Dodgers for three months. The Padres have struggled against the Los Angeles Dodgers recently. Juan Soto and Josh Bell are feeling better. They are playing in the playoffs. They have lost 23 of last 28 games to the LA Dodgers.

Cal Quantrill will start Game 1 at Yankee Stadium and probably start a decisive Game 5 in the Bronx. The Guardians are underdogs in this series and they can't play uphill.

Quantrill is going to have to come to the Yankees to take one from Gerrit Cole and Judge. The Yankees have a homefield advantage and a rested pitching staff. Quantrill struck out just 128 times in 186 ⅓ innings this year.