With the regular season coming to an end in a matter of days and the postseason set to begin next week, every playoff team will soon be forced to make difficult decisions regarding its roster.
The number of players a team can roster will drop from the 40 previously allowed in September back to the standard 25 next month. As a result, teams will craft their postseason rosters based on their own strengths as well as the perceived weaknesses of their upcoming opponent.
Many of baseball’s top rookies have a realistic chance of cracking their team’s postseason roster this year, though there will be even more players denied the opportunity to play in October.
Here are five rookies who could carve out huge roles in the 2014 postseason.