The Baseball post season is here... Here is a review
The grueling regular season that is American professional baseball is finally over, and a new chapter of history will start very shortly.
The first official game of the postseason will take place in a city that hasn’t seen playoff baseball since 1992. Pittsburgh owns the right to host the N.L. Wild Card against Cincinnati on Tuesday. That game should kick-start a slate of match ups and series that promise much drama and intrigue.
But before Francisco Liriano throws out that first pitch in the Steel City, Tampa Bay and Texas will tussle tonight for the right to play in Cleveland in the American League wild card game come Wednesday. David Price will take the hill in Texas, a location where he has not fared well in the recent past.
Price’s counterpart is Martin Perez, a young but intriguing prospect who has had a promising year for Texas. The lefty is only 22 and possesses just 20 career decisions. To say this will be the biggest game of his life might be an understatement.
There is much to discuss and handicap relative to baseball’s second season, and we are here to help. We’ll attempt to break down the various contenders and point out where the best value may lie in future matchups.
National League:
The national league contains three powerful teams in Los Angeles, Atlanta and St. Louis, with each at the top of their respective divisions.
But both Pittsburgh and Cincinnati should be feared and lauded for what they are; quality front end rotational units that also boast offenses more than capable of getting hot. Both have been playing in anticipation of a one game playoff and have maintained a certain level of fight and consistency in recent months that has been nothing short of impressive.
Pittsburgh is a particularly interesting story given how they finished the season. They have been red hot in the last several weeks and are coming off a sweep of Cincinnati this past weekend.
While Los Angeles has a better roster top to bottom than the rest of the league, they also have questions in their rotation behind Clayton Kershaw. The same cannot be said for St. Louis or Atlanta, two teams who could use more offense but whom have staffs that are nothing short of elite and deep.
Atlanta and L.A. will square off in the N.L.D.S. starting on Thursday night. Kris Medlen will open up for Atlanta as they have home field for this one. Mike Minor and Zach Greinke go in round two come Friday night, with Julio Teheran and Hyun-Jin Ryu squaring off come game three on Sunday.
Atlanta has excellent depth within their rotation. That will come in handy against a lineup as dangerous as the one L.A. sports. This series for me comes down to the health of Jason Heyward, however.
Heyward is a special talent who participated in nine of his team’s final 10 games after coming back from injury. He had a five hit game against Philadelphia last week, but has looked relatively pedestrian otherwise.
Should the Braves make a run in this crowded national league, they will need steady play from the man who has acted as their lead-off hitter in recent weeks. If the Dodgers can win game one behind Kershaw, it sets them up nicely for the rest of what should be a scratch and claw type of series.
Pittsburgh and Cincinnati could easily shake things up against St. Louis given the star power they have in bats like Andrew McCutcheon and Joey Votto. But the supporting cast of whichever team wins the wild card will have to step up in order to have success as well.
Pittsburgh gets to start Francisco Liriano at home on Tuesday night. Liriano is fantastic in this ball park. Considering the expected crowd influence and the way Pittsburgh has played the last few weeks against Cincinnati, you have to like the Pirates in a spot like this.
What makes the Pirates particularly dangerous moving forward against the likes of the Cardinals is Gerrit Cole. Cole is by no means anywhere near the level of bona-fide major league starter, but he is more than capable of limiting lineups like Atlanta or St. Louis in any given series. His presence in a game two or three type of setting evens the playing field tremendously against St. Louis’ dynamic rotation.
Depending on series price, I’d take a long hard look at Pittsburgh in round one. Teams that get as hot as they have been are unlikely to just crash. They could be eliminated Tuesday night, but should they jump into the N.L.D.S., watch out.
Prediction - NLCS: Braves over Pirates in 6 games
The N.L. should be recognized for its overall depth and for the fact they send five very good teams to a playoff lineup that should be exhilarating. But the American League has the most serious contenders in my mind.
Both Boston and Detroit, while having minor flaws at times, are set up extremely well given the rotations of each. Verlander, Scherzer and Anibal versus Lester Bucholz and Peavy could be a battle for the ages.
But Oakland stacks up quite nicely as well. They might not have top end pitchers who are at the level of their first round opposition (Detroit). But what they do possess is an impressive listing of talented arms who give them options in any game.
The scrappiness and mental toughness of their lineup is also worth noting. Anyone who chooses to discredit the ability of the A's to keep opponents in low scoring games and then win such games with clutch hitting hasn't been watching the sport enough this season.
The key for Oakland might just be Bartolo Colon. He had a great year and regained some youth to a certain extent. But he’ll have to face off against Justin Verlander in game one. Young Jarrod Parker takes on Max Scherzer in game two while Anibal Sanchez will get Sonny Gray in the third game.
The fact that Oakland has home field for this should help them. Additionally, it’s difficult to pick against a team like the A’s. While they do grind out runs, they have big bats who can emerge at a moment’s notice in Yoenis Cespedes, Brandon Moss and Josh Donaldson.
For all of the notoriety Oakland has received for their “money-ball” tactics, this might just be the best lineup and roster they have ever put on a field. I don’t see them going down without a battle, but should they lose the opener to Verlander and company, they will be up against a wall.
I like what Cleveland has going on. While Texas and Tampa are both good squads, I look for Cleveland to face off against the “BoSox” in what would mark the official return of Terry Francona to Boston.
Cleveland, like Oakland, can manufacture runs based off leadoff efficiency, quality base-running and other such tactics. They can play small but yet also hit you with power.
The likelihood of them overwhelming Boston in that regard is simply unlikely. Their quality of pitching looks good against some of the absurdly weak lineups in the A.L. central. I highly doubt it will be good enough to beat Boston.
Prediction - ALCS: Detroit over Boston in 7 games
World Series: Detroit over Atlanta in 6 games
Thanks. Dannybwins.com DB
