The 2026 postseason featured a surprising yet refreshing theme. The team with the better regular-season record won every postseason series. That marked the first time since 1986 that has happened, per MLB's Sarah Langs.

A lot has changed in the last 48 years. MLB added a Division Series and the Wild Card Series to the postseason format. There are three times as many teams that qualify for the postseason in each league as there were back then.

The 2026 postseason ended with the 103-win Brewers celebrating a championship after an 11-2 postseason run. They rolled some very good teams along the way. They took on a Padres team that won 17 of their last 20 games going into the NLDS. They vanquished the Dodgers and Rays, who had 100 and 98 wins in the regular season.

With what they had to go through, it's easy to say that the Brewers were the best team in 2026 and their championship was earned.

Teams With Better Records Won in 2026 Postseason

Given the nature of an ever-expanding postseason, it has become more difficult for the best regular-season teams to advance in October. The randomness of a short series can often decide the outcome of a season and can skew perceptions.

The only "upset" came in the American League Wild Card Series, when the No. 6 seed Chicago White Sox swept the No. 3 seed Houston Astros on the road. But Chicago won 84 games in the regular season compared to Houston's 81.

The closest to an actual upset came in the ALDS matchup between the White Sox and Cleveland Guardians. However, that made sense when looking at the two AL Central team's records. The division was decided by one game, and Chicago had the head-to-head tiebreaker. However, Cleveland came back from a 2-0 deficit to win the series in five games.

Outside of those two specific instances, it never felt like the better team was in danger of not advancing. The Guardians had a 2-1 lead over the Rays, but Tampa Bay won the final three games of that series to close it out.

While there were some close calls this postseason, there won't be too much discussion over whether the better team didn't win. Once in a while, that can be a good thing, because it serves as a reminder that the regular season still matters for teams to put themselves in the best position to win in October.

The last three champions have been division winners, two of them getting a bye. The Brewers clinched home-field advantage, then went 6-0 at home this postseason.