MLB: October All-Star Team, stars who ruled the playoffs

Yamamoto, Vlad, Ohtani, Raleigh, here are the players that our panel of experts voted as the best in the playoffs

What an MLB postseason!

After an exciting month of playoffs—so exciting that it extended into early November—our 2025 MLB October Dream Team arrives.

While Yoshinobu Yamamoto won the World Series Most Valuable Player award, thanks to his incredible performance in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ victory over the Toronto Blue Jays in seven games, that doesn’t explain everything. To honor the best from each stage of the postseason, let’s present the awards to October’s star players.

From Wild Card round revelations to World Series breakout players, here are the players our panel of MLB experts from AM850 voted best in each position, along with some awards for October’s brightest stars.

October 2025 All-Star Team

Catcher: Cal Raleigh, Seattle Mariners

Why is he here?: Raleigh’s record-breaking regular season continued in October, hitting five home runs and posting a 1.081 OPS before Seattle’s postseason run ended in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series.

Honorable mentions: Alejandro Kirk, Toronto Blue Jays; Will Smith, Los Angeles Dodgers.

1B: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays

Why is he here?: If the Blue Jays had won one more game during the World Series, the introduction to this story would have focused on Guerrero and his incredible October exploits. The Blue Jays superstar hit an impressive .412 with a 1.330 OPS during the postseason, producing one memorable moment after another and taking Toronto where it hadn’t been in three decades.

Honorable mentions: Michael Busch, Chicago Cubs; Josh Naylor, Seattle Mariners.

2B: Nico Hoerner, Chicago Cubs

Why is he here?: In a slow year for the position, Hoerner had the highest OPS (.973) of any second baseman during the postseason, plus stellar defense, as the Cubs eliminated the Padres and forced a Game 5 against the Brewers in the NL Division Series.

How little production did second basemen contribute this October? One voter chose Miguel Rojas as his favorite for the position based solely on a crucial swing in the seventh game.

Honorable mentions: Jorge Polanco, Seattle Mariners; Miguel Rojas, Los Angeles Dodgers.

3B: Ernie Clement, Toronto Blue Jays

Why is he here?: Clement was instrumental in the Blue Jays’ performance, providing consistent production at bat and solid defense in the field. His 1.032 postseason OPS was the best among third basemen, and his 30 hits were not only the most by any player in October, but set a major league record for most hits in a single postseason.

Honorable mention: José Ramírez, Cleveland Guardians.

SS: Andrés Giménez, Toronto Blue Jays

Why is he here?: Shortstop options were slim, and Giménez earned this spot more for his clutch hits than for his overall stats.

Honorable mention: Trevor Story, Boston Red Sox.

OF: Addison Barger, Toronto Blue Jays

OF: Aaron Judge, New York Yankees

OF: Jackson Chourio, Milwaukee Brewers

Why are they here?: If you didn’t know Addison Barger before, you do now. The 25-year-old, promoted from the major leagues in mid-April, had a spectacular postseason with a .367 batting average, .411 on-base percentage and .583 slugging percentage, including three home runs, nine RBIs and a 1.025 OPS, while also making several impressive catches in right field. But what was the moment that will ensure Barger’s name will be remembered? His grand slam as a pinch-hitter in Game 1 of the World Series, which came after he slept on a teammate’s sofa bed the night before.

Judge’s postseason performances had long been under scrutiny due to his inconsistent playoff record compared to his stellar regular-season numbers. But all of that should be behind him after this year, as he racked up 13 hits in 26 at-bats over seven games and finally had his breakout moment in October with a monster three-run, game-tying home run in a crucial Game 3 of the American League Division Series, keeping New York’s season alive.

Chourio, 21, got off to a roaring start in October, contributing to Milwaukee’s hard-fought NL Division Series victory against the Cubs. In the first game he hit a double and a two-run single, and in the second, a three-run homer — which he delivered against a 101.4 mph fastball, the fastest pitch for a postseason home run in the pitch-tracking era — sealed the victory. Although he didn’t shine when the top-ranked Brewers were swept in the National League Championship Series, Chourio hit the team’s only home run and drove in half of their runs in the series.

Honorable mention: Julio Rodríguez, Seattle Mariners; Kerry Carpenter, Detroit Tigers.

DB: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers

Why is he here?: October was an up and down month for Ohtani. His .254/.397/.714 offensive line in the playoffs was largely fueled by a pair of outstanding games. But precisely those performances turned out to be two of the best individual performances in October baseball history: a three-home run game (with a stellar performance on the mound) in the Dodgers’ decisive game of the National League Championship Series and a historic Game 3 of the World Series in which he reached base nine times in the Dodgers’ 18-inning victory.

Honorable mention: George Springer, Toronto Blue Jays.

SP: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Los Angeles Dodgers

SP: Trey Yesavage, Toronto Blue Jays

Why are they here?: There simply wasn’t a better pitcher in baseball than Yamamoto this October, as the Dodgers ace had one of the best postseasons in recent history. Before taking the World Series MVP award by winning three games in the World Series, Yamamoto had a masterful performance by throwing the full route in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Yesavage burst onto the scene this October in a rarely seen fashion, becoming the Game 1 starter of the World Series just six weeks after his major league debut. He gave Toronto two of the best starts of the postseason: Game 2 against the Yankees and Game 5 against the Dodgers.

Honorable mentions: Tarik Skubal, Detroit Tigers; Blake Snell, Los Angeles Dodgers; Tyler Glasnow, Los Angeles Dodgers; Cam Schlittler, New York Yankees; Cristopher Sánchez, Philadelphia Phillies.

PR: Jacob Misiorowski, Milwaukee Brewers

PR: Will Vest, Detroit Tigers

Why are they here?: Misiorowski played a crucial role on the mound for Milwaukee as a starter coming out of the bullpen to work the most innings in high-pressure situations. His first eight postseason pitches reached 102 mph or more. In 12 innings over three games, he racked up 16 strikeouts, allowing six hits and three runs (two earned), and walking three.

Vest was virtually untouchable in October as Detroit’s primary closer, allowing just two hits and zero runs for a 0.00 ERA in the postseason, and striking out nine in eight innings to help the Tigers beat Cleveland in the Wild Card round and stay competitive against Seattle in the American League Division Series before ultimately falling in a 15-inning Game 5.

Honorable mentions: Roki Sasaki, Los Angeles Dodgers; András Muñoz, Seattle Mariners; Louis Varland, Toronto Blue Jays.