Winning the World Series last year didn't exactly make the Philadelphia Phillies prime time.
Their first two games games this post-season are afternoon starts at Citizens Bank Park, leaving fans scrambling to get out of work and players adjusting their body clocks.
"Being the defending world champs, I think it's kind of a little weird that we get both games at 2:30," said pitcher Cole Hamels. "I don't think it's fair. I definitely don't think it's fair for the fans because this is all about home-field advantage or just baseball in general.
Hamels will be Philadelphia's Game 2 starter against the Colorado Rockies.
"I understand TV ratings," he added, "but I think at the end of the day, most players would rather play when they're comfortable and that's what we've trained at, 7 o'clock."
Rockies manager Jim Tracy is simply glad his team is still playing.
Tracy took over a team that was 18-28 under Clint Hurdle and went 74-42 the rest of the way to earn the NL wild-card berth.
"I can certainly understand Cole's point," Tracy said. "I'm tickled to death that we've got a game to play. I really don't care what time it starts."
COLORADO'S 1-2 PUNCH: Dexter Fowler and Carlos Gonzalez, the top two batters in Colorado's lineup, have a chance to be there for quite a long time.
Fowler is only 23. Gonzalez turns 24 on Oct. 17.
"Oh, they're ready to start," Rockies manager Jim Tracy said of his youngsters. "When you have the type of talent that Carlos Gonzalez and Dexter Fowler possess, you're looking at special things happening on a day-in, day-out basis for years to come.
"They're both five-tool players. Not many teams can boast about that."
Fowler, the speedy centre-fielder, batted .266 with four homers, 34 RBIs and 27 steals this season. Gonzalez, a left-handed hitting left fielder, hit .284 with 13 homers and 29 RBIs in only 278 at-bats.
BLOWING IN THE WIND: There was a chance for fly balls to be blowing in the wind at playoff openers in Philadelphia and New York.
Weather forecasts called for west winds with gusts to near 70 km/h for Wednesday's series openers. At Citizens Banks Park, the prediction was for winds to blow from left field to right for the Phillies' game against the Colorado Rockies. At new Yankee Stadium, the forecast was for winds blowing to centre and right-centre for the Yankees' game against the Minnesota Twins.
Strong gusts had flag poles shaking at Yankee Stadium before batting practice.
"Sometimes wind can play tricks with the ball," New York manage Joe Girardi said. "If you hit ground balls and line drives, it's not going to have a lot of effect."
EYES ON TIEBREAKER: The Twins' 12-inning victory over Detroit received a 4.2 rating on TBS, up 56 per cent from the Chicago White Sox's win over Minnesota in last year's AL Central tiebreaker. Tuesday night's game was seen by 6,543,000 viewers in the United States, the most for a tiebreak game since 1998. It received a 27.1 rating in Minnesota and a 24.6 rating in Detroit.
BACK IN THE BULLPEN: Starter or reliever? Joba Chamberlain remains a hot topic in New York, but there's no debate about his role for the Yankees against Minnesota.
After going 9-6 with a 4.75 ERA as a starter this season, Chamberlain is back in the bullpen for the first round of the playoffs. It will be interesting to see how - or if - manager Joe Girardi uses the 24-year-old right-hander.
"He can do anything from being a one-inning guy to being a two-, three-inning guy or even a longer guy," Girardi said. "If we need distance, we can use him there as well."
Looking to protect Chamberlain's arm, the Yankees limited him to 157 1-3 innings this year. He made 31 starts and one relief appearance - a tune-up in the regular-season finale Sunday at Tampa Bay.
"It was comfortable. It was good. It's not like it was something that I haven't done before," Chamberlain said.
As a rookie in 2007, Chamberlain was a dominant setup man with a blazing fastball. He said relief work requires "less thinking" than starting.
"You don't have to be concerned that you started him with a breaking ball the last time or you threw him a lot of fastballs in his last at-bat or whatever. You just go out there and throw," he said.
With an extra day off in this best-of-five series between Games 1 and 2, the Yankees need only three starting pitchers. They chose CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Andy Pettitte.
Chamberlain could return to the rotation if New York advances to the best-of-seven AL championship series.
"They are two completely different approaches between starting and relieving," he said. "You don't have to pace yourself if you are a reliever."
During his post-season debut two years ago in Cleveland, Chamberlain was famously swarmed and distracted by tiny bugs that descended on the mound. He walked a batter and threw two wild pitches that enabled the Indians to tie - and ultimately win - the game. Cleveland went on to eliminate New York in four games.
Midges don't figure to be a problem on the road in this round. The Twins still play indoors, though this is their final season in the Metrodome.