The lowest-seeded division winner and three wild card teams in each league play in a best-of-three series after the end of the regular season.

They hosted the fifth-seeded Texas Rangers (90–72), who clinched their first postseason appearance since 2016 on September 30, but they lost their AL West division lead on the last day of the season via a 1–0 shutout loss to the Seattle Mariners and the Houston Astros 8–1 win against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

[12][13] As a result, the Astros won the AL West and clinched a first-round bye by winning the season series 9–4 against the Rangers.

[16] As the top two seeds, the Baltimore Orioles (101–61) and Houston Astros (90–72) earned a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the ALDS.

[25][26][27] Kevin Gausman took the mound for the Blue Jays opposite Pablo López for the Twins, who were looking to end the longest playoff losing streak in North American sports history.

Michael A. Taylor and Carlos Correa made strong defensive plays to keep the Blue Jays off of the board until the top of the sixth, when Toronto plated a run on a Kevin Kiermaier single.

After giving up a leadoff walk in the fourth inning, Berríos was pulled with 47 pitches thrown in favor of Yusei Kikuchi.

[29] Three innings later, Jhoan Durán would pitch around a one-out single to strike out the side and pickup his second save in as many days.

[30][31] Jordan Montgomery scattered six hits and struck out five over seven shutout innings, helping the Texas Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 4–0.

Nathan Eovaldi scattered six hits and struck out eight over 62⁄3 innings, leading the Rangers to a 7–1 victory and their first playoff series win since the 2011 ALCS.