MLB started naming an All-MLB team in 2019 to recognize the top players of the regular season. But how about some plaudits for the players who step up in the postseason? 

We’re going to highlight the playoffs’ brightest stars using the same format the league uses for its regular season honors—one player for each hitting position, five starting pitchers and two relievers.

Catcher: William Contreras, Brewers

The Brewers’ bulldog led all MLB players with 19 hits during the postseason while slashing .373/.448/.588 with three home runs and nine RBIs, tied with teammate Jackson Chourio and Yankees slugger Ben Rice for the most in the playoffs. Behind the plate, Contreras also led all backstops by throwing out 6 of 13 attempted base stealers and correctly challenging 21 of 31 ball-strike calls, a fitting accomplishment for the World Series MVP in the first major-league season of the ABS system.

First base: Jake Bauers, Brewers

Bauers’s overall slash line was not great (.191/.345/.277), but there weren’t any stellar candidates for this spot and the soon-to-be free agent had two of the biggest at-bats of the postseason in the NLCS against the Dodgers. Bauers did strike out 19 times in 57 plate appearances (33.3 K%) but he also walked 10 times and had six RBIs in 13 games.

Second base: Brice Turang, Brewers

Turang’s nine runs scored and 11 walks led all MLB hitters, as he also rapped out 12 hits in 13 games to post a .404 on-base percentage with a .817 OPS to support the middle of Milwaukee’s lineup. Turang also led all players with 45 assists on defense while committing just one error.

Third base: José Ramirez, Guardians

Cleveland’s franchise cornerstone scuffled through a challenging regular season but more than carried his share of the offensive load in October. Ramirez led the Guardians’ comeback against the White Sox in the ALDS, hitting two homers among five hits and driving in seven runs in the final three games. His eight runs scored and eight RBIs were both one short of tying for the overall lead. 

Shortstop: Cooper Pratt, Brewers

Pratt’s 17 hits were nine more than any other shortstop during the playoffs. It was a weak showing for the position until Milwaukee’s rookie caught fire during the World Series, and though his 12th-inning home run in Game 4 didn’t end up being a series winner, it doesn’t diminish how impressively clutch it was in the moment.

Outfield: Chandler Simpson, Rays; Jackson Chourio, Brewers; Chase DeLauter, Guardians

Simpson showed why he’s nominated for a Gold Glove in left field during the Rays’ run to the World Series and flaunted his throwback contact style at the plate to knock 14 hits, second-most among outfielders. 

Chourio’s nine RBIs tied for the most in the playoffs, and he came through in the clutch time and time again for the Brewers. He also stepped up his overall output in the World Series, recording at least one hit in each game en route to an 11-hit explosion over five games.

DeLauter was one of the few Cleveland hitters who could be counted on, slashing .310/.396/.452 with 13 hits over 11 games to conclude his impressive rookie season on an individual high note.

Designated hitter: Ben Rice, Yankees

Despite New York crashing out in the ALDS, Rice’s four home runs in the first two rounds stood up as the most by any hitter for the entire postseason. His 1.605 OPS likewise led all hitters, as he went 8-for-19 across five games with nine RBIs, also tied for the most in the playoffs. Rice is the only player on our All-Postseason team who didn’t make it to the ALCS, but he accounted for a whole lot of production while the Yankees were still alive.

Starting pitcher (5): Drew Rasmussen, Rays; Jacob Misiorowski, Brewers; Gavin Williams, Guardians; Freddy Peralta, Rays; SP Robert Gasser, Brewers

Rasmussen was the biggest workhorse of the playoffs, hurling 28 ⅔ innings (7 ⅓ more than any other pitcher) while compiling 31 strikeouts against just five walks with a 2.20 ERA. Tampa Bay typically doesn’t let its starters go deep into games in October, but the 31-year-old was good enough to earn manager Kevin Cash’s whole-hearted trust.

Misiorowski caught some flak for not pitching as deep into games, but at the end of the postseason he ended up with 19 innings pitched, third most, and posted a stellar 1.89 ERA despite not having his best strikeout stuff. There’s a reason the Brewers won the final 12 starts of the season by the presumptive NL Cy Young winner.

Williams inexplicably struck out over half of the hitters he matched up against across his 16 ⅔ innings, punching out 33 hitters—most in the playoffs—among his 64 batters faced while recording a 2.16 ERA in four games (three starts). 

Peralta was practically untouchable in his first four playoff appearances, allowing just two runs and 12 hits across 16 ⅔ innings for a 1.08 ERA. Even though he was roughed up by his former team in his lone World Series start, the pending free agent still made himself a lot of money in October.

Gasser is deserving of far more buzz than he’s gotten for a remarkable showing, allowing just one run and seven hits in his three starts spanning 15 innings for a sparkling 0.60 ERA. Milwaukee’s unsung rookie couldn’t have been better while shutting down the Padres, Dodgers and Rays in succession.

Padres ace Michael King is the toughest omission on the entire team. He was San Diego’s workhorse, allowing just one run in 14 innings (0.64 ERA) while recording a gutsy two-inning save in the Padres’ lone NLDS victory along with his two stellar starts. 

Relief pitcher (2): Aaron Ashby, Brewers; Bryan Baker, Rays

Ashby was the face of Milwaukee’s dominant bullpen, setting a record with 18 consecutive scoreless innings that comprised his entire postseason. The Brewers’ fireman ended up throwing the fourth-most innings of any pitcher in the postseason, giving up just five hits while recording 20 strikeouts to cement a historic legacy. 

Baker’s heroics may not be as well remembered, but he was equally impressive, allowing just four baserunners (two hits, two walks) and zero runs in his 10 innings of work. Tampa Bay’s closer collected five saves—tied with Milwaukee’s Trevor MeGill for the most—to lock down the endgame for the Rays when they had the lead. Unfortunately for the Rays, they didn’t give him enough leads to hold in the World Series.

Honorable mentions: Michael King, Padres; OF Michael Harris Jr., Braves; C Patrick Bailey, Guardians; DH Yandy Diaz, Rays; DH Christian Yelich, Brewers; 3B David Hamilton Brewers; 2B Chase Meidroth, White Sox; 2B Ozzie Albies, Braves; 3B Manny Machado, Padres; OF Kyle Tucker, Dodgers; SS Xander Bogaerts, Padres; SP Cam Schlittler, Yankees; SP Tyler Mahle, Braves; RP Abner Uribe, Brewers; RP DL Hall, Brewers