We turned the calendars to October this morning, which means playoff baseball is upon us. Here’s a brief look at my favorite top dogs and dark horses.

Favorite National League Top Dog: St. Louis Cardinals

In the second-best division in baseball — the American League East remains top-notch — the Cardinals separated themselves as champions, relegating Pittsburgh and Cincinnati to the wild card.

St. Louis can do it all. Like Cindy, who not only used to work the most efficient cash register in the College-in-the-Woods Dining Hall but also put together above-average sandwiches when called upon.

I like that the Cardinals lead the NL in runs scored with a .269 team average, and that they have four starters with shutdown ability.

My one concern: the closing role, recently vacated by the ineffective Edward Mujica.

Two rough appearances in the last two months bloated Trevor Rosenthal’s ERA, but just like poor ratings in the early going belied the awesomeness of Friday Night Lights, the right hander is better than his numbers. Kevin Siegrist should also provide a steady arm, and John Axford has proved to be a worthwhile midseason acquisition.

So, no, I’m not too worried about how they’ll replace Mujica, should Mike Matheny keep him out of the closing role.

Favorite American League Top Dog: Boston Red Sox

Boston carries MLB’s most potent offense into the postseason. Basically every regular in the lineup can inflict damage in one form or another, with David Ortiz leading the bunch with 30 home runs and a .309 average.

But Boston also boasts a solid pitching staff, bolstered by the return of Clay Buchholz and the resurrection of Jon Lester.

John Lackey is like that late-night slice from Pasquale’s. His appearance isn’t all too appealing. He doesn’t always look like he will get the job done for you. But sometimes you just find a reason to trust him. Right now his 3.12 career postseason ERA is that reason.

As long as Boston’s pitchers can keep a lead into the ninth inning, the Red Sox can be confident they will win. Koji Uehara throws slow compared to other closers, but he has allowed just 11 baserunners and one run over his last 37 innings as Boston’s ninth-inning arm.

National League Dark Horse: Pittsburgh Pirates

After 20 seasons as a laughingstock, the Pirates returned to relevancy in 2013 — kind of like Dickinson.

Pittsburgh’s rotation and bullpen can compete with that of any other playoff team. The offense, however, has gone dormant at times, striking out more than a freshman with bad pickup lines.

This just feels like it could be the Pirates’ year, and with a few timely bombs from Pedro Alvarez and others, the Bucs could give anyone a run for their money.

American League Dark Horse: Oakland Athletics

No AL playoff team posted a team ERA better than Oakland’s 3.56, and only Boston and Detroit scored more runs than Billy Beane’s club.

The A’s have won 24 of their last 33 games, and their 44-37 road record ties the Red Sox for the best in the AL.