COLUMBIA, Mo. – Major League Baseball’s 2023 Postseason is in full swing, with six former Tigers competing for the Commissioner’s Trophy as players or coaches. We’ll follow each of their postseason quests here throughout the month of October as the 2023 playoffs unfold.
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MLB Postseason Notebook
October 15
Look who’s back…Max Scherzer (2004-06) was officially added to the Texas Rangers’ American League Championship Series roster for their upcoming best-of-seven series with the Houston Astros, beginning Sunday (Oct. 15) evening at 7:15 p.m. CT. Scherzer, who has been sidelined since mid-September with a shoulder injury, will be making his 10th postseason appearance and bidding for a third trip to the World Series in his 16-year MLB career. Scherzer is 2-2 in seven previous LCS starts entering this year’s series.
ALCS Schedule
- Sunday, Oct. 15 – Game 1 – Texas at Houston – 7:15 p.m. (CT) – FOX
- Monday, Oct. 16 – Game 2 – Texas at Houston – 3:37 p.m. (CT) – FOX
- Wednesday, Oct. 18 – Game 3 – Houston at Texas – 7:03 p.m. (CT) – FS1
- Thursday, Oct. 19 – Game 4 – Houston at Texas – 7:03 p.m. (CT) – FS1
- Friday, Oct. 20 – Game 5 (if necessary) – Houston at Texas – 4:07 p.m. (CT) – FS1
- Sunday, Oct. 22 – Game 6 (if necessary) – Texas at Houston – 7:03 p.m. (CT) – FS1
- Monday, Oct. 23- Game 7 (if necessary) – Texas at Houston – 7:03 p.m. (CT) – FOX
The National League Championship Series, featuring the Philadelphia Phillies and the Arizona Diamondbacks, will get underway Monday (Oct. 16) evening. Former Tiger hurler Michael Plassmeyer (2016-18) is a member of the Phillies 40-man big league roster.
NLCS Schedule
- Monday, Oct. 16 – Game 1 – Arizona at Philadelphia – 7:07 p.m. (CT) – TBS
- Tuesday, Oct. 17 – Game 2 – Arizona at Philadelphia – 7:07 p.m. (CT) – TBS
- Thursday, Oct. 19 – Game 3 – Philadelphia at Arizona – 4:07 p.m. (CT) – TBS
- Friday, Oct. 20 – Game 4 – Philadelphia at Arizona – 7:07 p.m. (CT) – TBS
- Saturday, Oct. 21 – Game 5 (if necessary) – Philadelphia at Arizona – 7:07 p.m. (CT) – TBS
- Monday, Oct. 23 – Game 6 (if necessary) – Arizona at Philadelphia – 4:07 p.m. (CT) – TBS
- Tuesday, Oct. 24 – Game 7 (if necessary) – Arizona at Philadelphia – 7:07 p.m. (CT) – TBS
October 6
MLB’s Divisional Round opens Saturday (Oct. 7), with former Mizzou All-American Kyle Gibson’s (2007-09) Baltimore Orioles hosting Max Scherzer’s (2004-06) Texas Rangers for the first two contests of the best-of-five series at Camden Yards. This year marks the third postseason appearance in the last five seasons for Gibson, who appeared in the 2019 ALDS for Minnesota, before logging a total of 2 1/3 scoreless innings for Philadelphia in last year’s playoffs. The right-hander became the 10th former Tiger to play in the World Series when he registered a scoreless inning of relief work in the Phillies’ 7-0, Game 3 victory over Houston.
Scherzer, who has been out of commission since mid-September due to a shoulder ailment, faced live hitters Friday with the hopes of returning to action in the ALDS. If the future Hall of Famer is able to return to action, this year would mark his 10th postseason appearance. The Chesterfield, Mo. product has made 22 career postseason starts, logging a 3.58 ERA in the playoffs, including a World Series title with the Washington Nationals in 2019.
ALDS Schedule
- Saturday, Oct. 7 – Game 1 – Texas at Baltimore – 12 p.m. (CT) – FS1
- Sunday, Oct. 8 – Game 2 – Texas at Baltimore – 3 p.m. (CT) – FS1
- Tuesday, Oct. 10 – Game 3 – Baltimore at Texas – 7 p.m. (CT) – Fox
- Wednesday, Oct. 11 – Game 4 – Baltimore at Texas – TBD (if necessary) – Fox/FS1
- Friday, Oct. 13 – Game 5 – Texas at Baltimore – TBD (if necessary) – Fox/FS1
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October 3
Each of the two American League Wild Card Series, which begin this afternoon, will feature former Tigers going head to head, as Pete Fairbanks (2013-15) and his Tampa Bay Rays will host Max Scherzer’s Texas Rangers in a best-of-three series. Fairbanks figures to be one of two active Mizzou alums on 2023 Postseason rosters (along with Baltimore’s Kyle Gibson), while Scherzer is currently sidelined due to injury. Fairbanks is coming off a 2023 regular season that saw the right-hander post a 2.58 ERA with 25 saves and a career-high 68 strikeouts in 45.1 innings out of the Rays’ bullpen. The Webster Groves product brings a 3.60 career postseason ERA into the series, which opens with a 2 p.m. (CT) contest this afternoon.
The AL’s other Wild Card Series will pit former Mizzou standouts Jayce Tingler (2000-03) and Hunter Mense (2004-06) against each other as members of the Minnesota Twins and Toronto Blue Jays coaching staffs, respectively. Tingler, who piloted the San Diego Padres to a 2020 NL Division Series berth in his previous MLB Postseason trip, is in his second season as bench coach for the Twins. Mense is in his second season as assistant hitting coach with the Blue Jays. The Twins and Blue Jays begin their series this afternoon at 3:30 p.m.
On the National League side of the ledger, former Tiger hurler Michael Plassmeyer (2016-18) is a member of the Philadelphia Phillies 40-man big league roster. The Phillies will open their Wild Card Series with the Miami Marlins this evening at 7 p.m.
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SEASON TICKET REQUEST
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New season ticket requests are available by completing the online registration form.
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