MLB Playoffs

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Well, they start this week. While I do not think there is a clear cut favorite in the AL, I think the favorite in the NL (and to win the WS for that matter) are the Phillies. Pitching usually wins in the post-season, and there is no one besides the Phillies that can trot out three top-notch starting pitchers. Arguably, they have three pitchers that could be the ace of just about any team in the league. I don't think anyone in the NL matches up well with them, and in the AL, their eventual opponent doesn't have three quality starters to put out there. The Rays, Rangers, and Yankees have one very good pitcher in Price, Lee, and Sabbathia, respectively, but no one really impressive beyond that. The Twins have three good, but no great pitchers. It's the Phillies Championship to lose at this point.

 

No love for this topic. Where the hell is Blades? That was a historic win by the Phillies last night! As I said, I thought they have the best pitching staff in the league, but it's not like you expect a no-hitter. From a pitching perspective, it was the second most impressive performance in postseason history. The only thing that comes ahaed of it is Don Larsen's perfect game in the 1956 World Series. But most people alive today weren't born yet when that happened.

 

I completely agree that the Reds are the worst team in the playoffs, but I wouldn't go so far as to call them Triple A. That's a distinction reserved to teams like the Pirates, Royals, and Orioles - teams that perennially lose 100 games a year and haven't been competitive in a long time. You are also correct that the Reds have a losing record against all three of the other playoff teams, as well as the Padres and Cardinals - second place finishers in their respective divisions.

Still, it's the second no-hitter thrown in baseball history (the first is technically a perfect game, but all perfect games are necessarily no-hitters as well). So yes, you would definitely expect the Phillies to win. In fact, I'd be surprised if Reds win a single game in this series. But you wouldn't expect a no-hitter. I view the no-hitter as the historic part - not the Philles beating the Reds as historic.

 

That part I can agree with. In '56, the post season was just the World Series, and yes, there were only about half as many teams then. So I agree that for it to match up with Larsen, it would have be in the WS - that's why I called it second best. Still, even with all the extra games and teams added, it still must count for something that a post-season no-hitter hasn't been seen in the last 54 years. If it's so much easier now, why didn't we see some when they added the LCS in '68? Or the Wild card teams in '92?

 

Sorry dude, too busy watching BASEBALL BABY! How about my boy ROY!

 

I don't expect the Philles to be challenged before the WS. The Reds got swept - which is pretty much what I expected would happen. The Reds basically lost one game through self-inflicted wounds, but the Phillies were clearly the better team. I wouldn't think any less of the Phillies if the series had gone to a 4th game. I was greatly underwhelmed by that Cuban defector with the 100+ mph fastball as well. He got hammered.

I was impressed with Lincecum as well. I have not watched the Giants much this year, because they're a West Coast team, and they play a lot of their games when I'm asleep. But that's a nasty pitch he's got there. The batters look really silly trying to hit it. It looks like it's going to be a strike, and it drops so suddenly, it sometimes bounces before it reaches the catcher. Unfortunately, he cannot pitch every game, which is why I don't like their chances against the Phillies.

If there is one team that can beat the Phillies in the AL, I think it's the Yankees. Of the Rays, Rangers, and Yankees, they each have on pitcher on the staff that can compete with anyone in the Phillies rotation. Price, Lee, and Sabbathia are all legitimate aces, and all of them can hang with Halliday. But after that, there's nothing in any of the three rotations where the Phillies wouldn't have the better pitcher on the mound. That means I have to pick the team with the best lineup, which when you consider top to bottom, is the Yankees. I don't think the Yankees have the single best individual hitter on their team (they have no real MVP candidates) but their 1-9 is very solid. With the exception of Jeter and Gardener, everyone is a home run threat.

 

So much for my prognistication skills. The Phillies are on the brink of elimination. I didn't expect them to lose 3 games all postseason - never mind in one series. I'd be catatonic at this point if I were a Phillies fan. I really thought this was their year. They certainly could come back, but they still have to beat Lincecum.

I find the Rangers beating the Yankees (currently 3-2) far less surprising. Both of those teams have one good pitcher, and both of those teams have high scoring offensives. So those teams aren't going to be playing games that end 3-2. The Yankees offense just hasn't showed up much this series. They won the two games when they scored 6 or more, and lost the three games when they scored 3 or less (including a shutout). Three runs is typically not going to cut it against the Rangers.

 

Well, Lincecum is out of the way, except for a possible releif spotting in game 7, if Oswalt can get them there. The Giants haven't been able to hit him this year in his starts, so here's to hoping !

 

How does that brewski taste with teardrops in it Blades? The only people more dissapointed than the fans of the Phillies and Yankees are the networks. You know the networks wanted those two teams for the ratings bonanza they got last year. The Giants aren't terrible for ratings, but the Rangers are absolutely the worst draw they could have received out of the AL.

 

Who would have thought that a game in which the starting pitchers were Lee and Lincecum that there would be 18 combined runs scored?

 

It sucks the big one. This really looked like the Phils year to win it all again. If they did, you would defintely start hearing the "Dynasty" term in Philly sportstalk radio. Oh well, here's to next year!

 

While this probably won't make you feel any better, the Giants have a better pitching staff than anyone predicted. The Rangers were the second highest scoring team in the league this year, and the Giants pitching rotation has shut them down. I predicted that the Phillies would win it all because they had the best pitching staff. But the Giants' staff has been crazy-good in the post season.