Major League Baseball postseasonThe Major League Baseball (MLB) postseason is the annual playoffelimination tournament held to determine the champion of MLB in the United States and Canada.
1981 Major League Baseball seasonThe 1981 Major League Baseball season culminated with the Los Angeles Dodgers defeating the New York Yankees in the World Series, capturing the franchise's fifth World Series title. The season had a players' strike, which lasted from June 12 to July 31, and split the season into two halves. Teams that won their division in each half of the season advanced to the playoffs.
National League WestDivision of Major League Baseball460km286milesRockiesPadresGiantsDodgersDiamondbacksNational League West Teams LocationThe National League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was created for the 1969 season when the National League (NL) expanded to 12 teams by adding the San Diego Padres and the Montreal Expos.
Minor League BaseballMinor League Baseball (MiLB) is a group of professional baseball organizations below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB teams. The earliest minor league baseball organization was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National League and American League, as the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues (NAPBL or NA).
American LeagueThe American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major league status.
1981 St. Louis Cardinals seasonThe 1981 St. Louis Cardinals season was the 100th season for the St. Louis Cardinals in St. Louis, Missouri and the 90th season in the National League. 1981 was a season of two significant anomalies: A change in the playoff format, which created the first-ever NLDS with a qualification variant that existed only for that season, and the players' strike, which truncated the regular season.1981 Cincinnati Reds seasonThe 1981 Cincinnati Reds season was the 112th season for the franchise in Major League Baseball, and their 12th and 11th full season at Riverfront Stadium. The Reds finished with an overall record of 66–42, giving them the best win–loss record in all of Major League Baseball.
National League (baseball)The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league.1981 Major League Baseball strikeThe 1981 Major League Baseball strike was the first work stoppage in Major League Baseball since the 1972 Major League Baseball strike that caused regular season games to be cancelled. It was the fourth work stoppage since 1972, but actions in 1973, 1976, and 1980 cancelled no regular-season games. The strike began on June 12 and forced the cancellation of 712 games—nearly 34 percent of the Major League schedule—in the middle of the season.
League Championship SeriesThe League Championship Series (LCS) is the semifinal round of postseason play in Major League Baseball, featuring the American League Championship Series (ALCS) and the National League Championship Series (NLCS). The LCS has been conducted since 1969, determining the winner of the pennant for each league and each league's representative in the World Series. In 1981 and since 1995, the LCS matches up the winners of the Division Series from each league.
Major League BaseballNorth American professional baseball leagueMajor League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league in North America composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and is considered the premier baseball league in the world.
Wild Card SeriesThe Wild Card Series (WCS; formerly known as the Wild Card Game (WCG) from 2012 to 2019 and in 2021) is the opening round of postseason play in Major League Baseball (MLB), featuring the American League Wild Card Series (ALWCS) and the National League Wild Card Series (NLWCS). A single wild card game was instituted in 2012.Single-elimination tournamentA single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, whose winner becomes the tournament champion(s). Some match-ups may be a single match or several, for example two-legged ties in European sports or best-of series in North American pro sports.*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.