Rejoice, Mets fans! The Braves have been eliminated from the playoffs.

Well, don’t rejoice too soon, because the Phillies have moved on to the National League Championship Series for the second consecutive year.

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The Major League Baseball playoffs are flying by, and for a second straight year, an NL East team has a chance at glory. The Phillies, behind Bryce Harper and strong journalism, handled the Braves easily and knocked them out in four games.

Meanwhile, the Astors, who are immune to failure, handled former friend Carlos Correa and the Twins to advance to their seventh consecutive American League Championship Series.

Standing in the way of the 2022 World Series repeat are the young Diamondbacks and the veteran Rangers. The D’backs moved on to the NLCS after knocking off the NL West Champ Dodgers, relying on their underrated pitching and power from their young position players.

The Rangers powered their way to the ALCS behind five straight wins. They haven’t lost a game in the playoffs. The Rangers first knocked out the Rays, who were stuck in the wild card after winning 99 games, and then swept the AL East Champ Orioles in three games after the O’s won 103 games.

All four teams are impressive. And both series should come down to the wire. Below, I have previewed both the NLCS and ALCS.

Philadelphia Phillies vs. Arizona Diamondbacks

The Phillies and Diamondbacks face off against each other for the first time in playoff history.

Both teams are similar on the mound and throw strong pitchers to defeat their opponents. Former Met Zack Wheeler leads the charge for the Phillies after having another strong season in 2023, finishing with a 3.61 ERA and 212 strikeouts in 192 innings.

Zac Gallen leads the D’Backs rotation and could have finished as the NL Cy Young if he hadn’t faltered in the last month of the season. Still, the right-hander finished with a solid 3.47 ERA and 125 ERA+ in 210 innings in 2023.

Wheeler and Gallen are only the tip of the iceberg for both teams, as Merrill Kelly finished in the top 10 for ERA in the NL and Aaron Nola is an ace when he is on his game. Nola displayed such talent when he struck out nine and allowed two runs in 5 2/3 innings against the Braves in the NLDS.

Both offenses aren’t anything to scoff at as well. The Phillies lineup is potent and powerful, finishing third in the NL in homers (220) and OPS (.765) at season’s end. The D’Backs, meanwhile, relied on the speed of their young outfielders, finishing second in stolen bases (166), eighth in OPS (.730, and seventh in runs scored (746).

Game 1 is slated for 8:07 p.m. on Monday. Gallen takes the ball for the D’Backs, while the Phillies haven’t announced a starter yet. Game 1 will be broadcast on TBS.

Houston Astros vs. Texas Rangers

The Astros and Rangers also haven’t faced each other in the postseason, but for a different reason.

The Astros were originally an NL team and only made the World Series once in 2005, when they lost to the White Sox. Since their move to the AL in 2013, they haven’t run into the Rangers in any round.

Outside of the star-studded lineups of both teams, Mets fans have more reason to watch this series than the NLCS. Max Scherzer is healthy, and the media confirmed the right-hander will pitch against the Astros.

Unfortunately for Mets fans, we won’t see a pitching matchup early between Justin Verlander and Scherzer. Verlander is slated to start Game 1 against Jordan Montgomery and the Rangers and if the series ends early, the two likely won’t match up.

Regardless, the series will still be entertaining. The Rangers lineup is star-studded, featuring Corey Seager, Adolis Garíca, and Marcus Semien, and also features exciting rookies Josh Jung and Evan Carter.

Meanwhile, the Astros lineup is also loaded. Jose Altuve, Kyle Tucker, and Yordan Alvarez power the middle of the order, while former All-Stars José Abreu and Michael Brantley round out the bottom.

The two Texas teams face off in Game 1 on Sunday at 8:15 p.m. Verlander takes the mound for the Astros and Montgomery gets the start for the Rangers. The game will be broadcast on FOX.