The best-case scenario for the unaffiliated fan in the playoffs: Long series! Make those babies last as long as possible! Thus, each Game 2 of each NLDS turned out perfectly: The teams down 1-0 won, each series is now tied heading back for some home stadiums that are going to be very fired up, and there are some extremely stressful (and pivotal) Game 3s coming up. And because of a rainout, we now get a third game on Friday: Guardians-Yankees Game 2. Prepare yourself.

Here’s a look at the primary storyline for each team in each game.

Guardians at Yankees (Yankees lead 1-0)
Shane Bieber vs. Nestor Cortes
1:07 p.m. ET, TBS

Guardians: Does the rainout perhaps benefit them?
You can make an argument that it does, particularly a team that’s having the offensive issues they’re having right now. The Yankees’ bullpen is missing some major pieces -- and some, like Clay Holmes, still might not be 100 percent -- and now that bullpen might just have to pitch four stressful games in four days, if this series goes the distance. The Guardians are a team that doesn’t hit a lot of homers -- or score a lot of runs in general -- but they are able to put the ball in play a lot, which potentially means putting a lot of stress on the Yankees’ bullpen arms.

The Guardians have a deeper bullpen than the Yankees and certainly have the best pitcher in Emmanuel Clase. (Though the potential of four games in four days limits the potential impact of Clase.) That said, the thinness of the Yankees bullpen could be a factor if this series is extended. Are the Yankees really excited about having, say, Miguel Castro on the mound in a huge moment in a pivotal playoff game? Because that’s more likely to happen now.

Yankees: Can the big right-handed hitters lay off Shane Bieber's breaking ball?
Bieber, alas, does not throw as hard as he used to. But he may be just as good a pitcher, in large part because he rarely walks anyone and because he has become so smart in his approach to hitters. In Game 1 of the Wild Card Series against the Rays, he consistently got ahead with his fastball up and in, then got hitters to chase low and away. This led to eight strikeouts, a high number for him. The Yankees have the right-handed hitters known to chase from time to time. It’s surely going to be his primary mode of attack. If the Yankees can lay off, they can build up his pitch count and potentially get into the Guardians’ bullpen early ... which, for as good as Cleveland's 'pen is, is still a recipe for success when you now have games on four straight days and a 1-0 series lead.

Braves at Phillies (Series tied 1-1)
TBD vs. Aaron Nola
4:37 p.m. ET, FS1

Braves: How many innings can Morton (or Spencer Strider, or both) give them?
The unusual thing about the NLDS this season is that after the travel day off on Thursday, that’s it for days off in this series. If it goes the full five, they’ll play in Philadelphia on Saturday and then back in Georgia on Sunday. That’s to say: You better have your bullpens in order, because they’re about to get worked. This is especially pressing for the Braves, who don’t have one of their workhorse aces going in Game 3 like the Phillies do.

If Morton is the starter, the Braves need him to give some length so they don’t have to burn their entire pen in Game 3 with two more games in the next two days. It’s not certain how Strider will be used -- the Braves could start him in Game 4, theoretically, or have him as a piggyback to Morton -- but, at the very least, the Braves need to cobble together what they can before a theoretical Max Fried Game 5 start. The new playoff format really does throw a wrinkle into your pitching plans, and no team understands this better than the Braves.

Phillies: Can Aaron Nola carry them?
Of course, for all the Braves’ worries, if Nola can’t be as dominant as he was in the deciding game of the Wild Card Series against the Cardinals, the Phillies are in even worse shape. The Phillies’ path to victory in this series was to sneak out a win in one of their non-Nola/Zack Wheeler games and then ride those two aces to the NLCS. That worked out perfectly with their Game 1 rocking of Fried -- though it got a little hairy there at the end -- and was going smoothly in Game 2 until Wheeler buckled in the sixth inning and the Phillies couldn’t score.

It's difficult to find a path for the Phillies winning this series that involves them losing both Wheeler and Nola’s starts. The Phillies not only need Nola to be great in Game 3, they need him to be lengthy, with these three games in three days. What the Phillies need to avoid is facing elimination on two straight days with Noah Syndergaard, Ranger Suárez and a wobbly bullpen. Nola is the best advantage the Phillies have left in this series.

Dodgers at Padres (Series tied 1-1)
Tony Gonsolin vs. Blake Snell
8:37 p.m. ET/5:37 p.m. PT, FS1

Dodgers: What can they expect from Tony Gonsolin?
Considering he has made only one start since Aug. 23 -- and he went only two innings in that start -- it was a little bit of a surprise that the Dodgers went with Gonsolin as their Game 3 starter. This is especially true considering there are no more days off this series. Presumably, Gonsolin won’t go too long in this game, which means the bullpen is going to have to fill a lot of innings -- with two more games coming right afterward. This is especially concerning for the Dodgers, as they’re facing Blake Snell -- a tough left-hander, as a team that is noticeably worse against lefties -- and a Padres bullpen that hasn’t given up a run all series.

We all know that the Dodgers won 111 games this year and have struck fear in the hearts of all opponents all season. But the way this pitching is lining up, and the fact that they’re on the road for two games ... is it possible that it’s in fact the Dodgers who have their backs against the wall right now?

Padres: How nuts is that crowd going to be?
The Padres have been one of the most fascinating teams in baseball over the last three or four years, so it has been easy to forget that this is a franchise without a lot of postseason highlights, or even moments. They missed the playoffs last year, played in front of zero fans in the 2020 Postseason and hadn’t made the playoffs before that since 2006. This is the first playoff game the Padres will play in front of their home fans in 16 years. And if they’re able to get a win in one of these next two games, it will be their first playoff win their home fans get to celebrate since ... Oct. 10, 1998. (Players in that game included Walt Weiss, Andres Galarraga, John Rocker, Dennis Martinez, Sterling Hitchcock and Wally Joyner. Wally Joyner!) Even Mariners fans have celebrated a home playoff win since Padres fans have. This is all to say, Petco Park is going to be rocking. Can the home team ride that momentum to what would be a massive, crushing victory over their hated Southern California rivals?