These are the best looks of the postseason

All the fresh that's fit to print

October 3rd, 2020
Tom Forget / MLB.com

The postseason is a baseball player's time to truly shine. With everything on the line, this is where you can make your mark and define your legacy. Reggie Jackson -- Mr. October -- did it all in the postseason. Madison Bumgarner will forever be remembered for his October dominance.

But beyond the unbelievable, did-you-see-that moments and the heartbreaking defeats, there’s another reason to tune in: The awe-inspiring looks that the players have put on display. After all, postseason baseball is their red carpet.

What has most impressed us? Read on:

The Year of the Absolute Unit

Baseball fans always point to the sheer variety of body types that can succeed in the sport at its highest level. You can have your absolutely ripped players like Michael Lorenzen, guys as slight as Triston McKenzie, and players who are on opposite ends of the height chart like Jose Altuve and Aaron Judge.

You can also have the largest adult sons, who were on proud display this October.

There was the Blue Jays’ Alejandro Kirk, who made his postseason debut just a few weeks after appearing in his first big league game (and that came after he had never seen a day above Class A Advanced). He stands just 5-foot-8 and clocks in at 265 pounds -- the kind of frame you rarely see in pro sports. And yet, there he was, picking up a single to break up a no-hitter.

He’s not even the lone large man on the Blue Jays, with Hyun Jin Ryu, Tanner Roark and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. helping add up to a Buffalo offensive line.

The Jays briefly added Daniel Vogelbach, a real mountain of a man, for a few days earlier this season. It was like they were trying to construct the beefiest roster possible, one where sheer size had become baseball’s newest inefficiency.

Instead, Vogelbach ended up with the Brewers, who picked him up on waivers. After failing to hit in Seattle and Toronto this season, he caught fire with the Brewers. He was so good, and so much fun, Brewers pitcher Brett Anderson said he was like a train, with Vogelbach “‘choo-chooing’ all over the place, being the conductor of the positivity train."

Then there was the Twins’ Willians Astudillo, a player unlike almost anyone in the sport. Astudillo -- and his giant ponytail -- can play every single position on the field and almost never strikes out.

Sadly, all three are now out of the postseason, having been summarily bounced in three different 2-0 sweeps.

The Lou Albano beard

José Abreu had a career year at the age of 33. He led the AL in hits and slugging percentage. He smashed 19 home runs in a shortened season, and was on pace to easily pass his career-high of 36 in a full campaign. What was his secret? A new offseason workout regime? His young teammates lending him some youthful energy?

No, of course not. It was his beard. Namely, his little Lou Albano-inspired front-ponytail.

The fierce fits

What else is there to say about the Francisco Lindor? Everything he does is cool. When he shows up to the All-Star Game, he looks ready to star as the frontman in a new wave band. The way he fields the ball is smooth and graceful. And his pregame warmup drip is, frankly, worthy of gossip mag attention.

Look at those shoes! The headband! The hair!

And then check out his glove that he uses during games:

Many players may have colorful gloves these days, but Lindor took his to a whole new level. His is a multi-colored kaleidoscope of colors and patterns. It's both a piece of equipment and a fashion accessory.

It’s not just Lindor, though. Ronald Acuña Jr. is always en vogue, donning a large No. 13 medallion when he takes the field. When he laced a double in Game 1 against the Reds, he gave the greatest little shimmy at second base:

And then there's Fernando Tatis Jr., who is simply the coolest person to enter a baseball stadium since Ken Griffey Jr. hung ‘em up. With long flowing bleach blonde locks and vibrant yellow and pink accessories, he could go from the ballfield to the dance floor (if such things existed in 2020) without missing a beat.

He’s even got his elbow guard spelling out his nickname -- El Niño -- on it.

His teammate, Chris Paddack, has another tact of looking fresh on the field. The Padres starter -- who probably would prefer to pitch in a cowboy hat if he could -- makes the Padres' brown-and-yellow uniforms look oh-so-nice with the stirrups pulled high:

The broadcasters even got in the on the action. Jimmy Rollins called his game while wearing Gucci flip-flops:

HR celebrations

There may be no fans in the stadiums, but the players still know how important these games are. They're clearly up for it given the intensity of their dinger celebrations. When the Brewers’ Orlando Arcia hit a two-run home run in Game 1 against the Dodgers, he gave a mighty dab with third-base coach Ed Sedar:

Luis Robert blasted a huge 487-foot home run, with an even bigger bat hurl. Check out the spin rate on this lumber:

When Gio Urshela hit a grand slam off the usually unhittable James Karinchak, he made sure his bat toss was plenty loud:

When Carlos Correa went deep against the Twins, he was ready to hear the boos from all the fans not in the stadium:

Who can forget Marcell Ozuna taking a selfie -- mid-trot -- when he essentially knocked the Reds out of the postseason with his eighth-inning blast?

And then there's Tatis, whose second home run and bat flip in Game 2 against the Cardinals had shades of José Bautista in the toss.

These all came from the Wild Card Series, too. With the stakes only getting higher throughout the month, get ready for even crazier displays.

The ‘Stache

Oliver Pérez made sure he looked the part as one of the postseason's elder statesmen. Just check out his lip fuzz. It practically screams, "If you kids don't settle down back there, I'm turning this car around!"

The Robe

40-year-old Nelson Cruz keeps crushing dingers -- thanks in large part to his noted nap habit. This postseason, he unveiled the newest part of his relaxing routine: The rally robe. Josh Donaldson gave personalized Twins robes to his teammates at the end of the season, so when rain hit during the Twins' must-win second game against the Astros, Cruz got nice and cozy.

Unfortunately for him and Minnesota, it wasn't enough.

The T's

The Marlins were never supposed to be here. They were meant to finish in the cellar of the NL East, and were certainly not supposed to be anywhere near advancing past the NL Central-winning Cubs in the Wild Card Series.

That's why NBC Sports Philadelphia commentator and former Phillies player Ricky Bottalico said, "You have to beat the bottom feeders," after Philadelphia lost to Miami on Opening Day. The Marlins didn't like that, so they used the term "Bottom feeders" as inspiration all season long.

Come postseason time, and the team started rocking T's and sweatshirts with the slogan on it. After defeating the Cubs, they all came out on the field to show what bottom feeders can really do:

The most terrifying mask you'll see this October

Forget Michael Myers masks or scary clowns. The scariest thing you're going to see all month is what A's reliever Liam Hendricks put on for his Zoom call following the A's Wild Card Series victory over the White Sox.

Is that his face printed on the mask? Someone else's? And which is worse? All we know is that it will forever haunt our dreams.

The tattoo

22-year-old super-prospect Sixto Sánchez had made only seven regular-season starts when he was called on to face the Cubs in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series for the Marlins. So, if you hadn't seen the No. 45 tattooed on his neck, you could be forgiven.

What does it mean, you ask? Well, wonder no more: It's for his idol, pitcher Pedro Martínez. Next year, he'll be switching his uniform number to match Pedro's, too.

“Since I was little, I always loved the way Pedro played the game,” Sánchez said through an interpreter. “Pedro had really nasty pitches -- the curveball, the slider, everything. He was one of the reasons I fell in love with the game.”

He didn't have the only MLB-themed tattoo in the Series, though. Javier Báez famously has the MLB logo on the back of his neck:

And then there's, uh, well, this ink. A's pitcher Mike Fiers, who pitched in Game 3 against the White Sox, has his last name spelled out in flames on his arm. Do you, man.