I think everyone will remember that I sucked at this last year when I tried to do the predictions for the American League and National League Division Series Matchups. So I decided to do it again. This year you will see my predictions along with Steve’s. My predictions will be in blue and Steve’s in red.
This year the four teams playing for the right to represent the American League are the Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and the New York Yankees. The teams trying to represent the National League are the Arizona Diamondbacks, Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs and the Colorado Rockies.
American League Division Series:
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Both the Red Sox and Angels come into this series with their pitching rotations set up the way they want. Since the series provides an off-day after each game except after games 3 and 4, the advantage goes to the Red Sox. Lackey hasn’t had success at Fenway while the Sox will have Beckett and Matsuzaka going. The one thing the Sox have to be aware of is the Angels small ball ways and Vlad. If you make a mistake to Vlad, that ball will be somewhere on Lansdowne Street. Playing the small ball is what got the Angels there and the Red Sox will have to execute flawlessly to counteract that. In the end, I think it comes down to the bullpens and the Sox have the better overall bullpen. Red Sox in 4.
I think the Sox take it in four games. LA steals a game at home but with Josh Beckett going twice in four games and LA having no power threat other than Big Bad Vladdy Daddy they can’t get behind. In fact Guerrero is only expected to DH and with Gary Matthews Jr most likely out that means the outfield will be spread thin as rookies Reggie Willts and Nathan Haynes will most likely have to play. The Angels bullpen isn’t what it has been in past years sure they have Francisco Rodriguez and Scot Sheilds but other than that its weak. The Sox bullpen has been a strength all season and it will continue to be.
Also, please check out the roundtable discussion about the Angels and Red Sox series I participated in over at Red Sox Monster. Three other Red Sox bloggers and myself answered questions about the upcoming series.
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The biggest question out of this series is whether AROD can continue to do what he did in the regular season or will he have another quiet playoffs like years past. The Indians will throw their top two pitchers, Sabathia and Carmona in the first two games and they are as good as anyone out there. The Yankees will go with Wang and Pettitte so it will not be an easy task as well. The Indians lineup is built around speed and power while the Yankees lineup is probably one of the best there is. In the end, I think this comes down to the bullpens and ultimately the Yanks will come out on top in 5 games.
Ok which team shows up here. The Yankees who can’t pitch or the Indians who can’t hit? Everyone is high on Joba Chamberlain but you gotta get to him first. With the Indians having home field I think its big. C.C. Sabathia hasn’t faced the Yanks since 2004, that’s a huge advantage for him in Game 1. The Yankees have a better bullpen and everyday lineup. But they say good pitching stops good hitting so the Indians win in 5 as Sabathia gets two W’s.
National League Division Series
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300 million dollars spent in the offseason by the Cubs helped them get into the playoffs. Bringing in Lou Pinella didn’t hurt either. The Cubs started out the season slowly but turned it on towards the end of the season. Nobody expected the Diamondbacks to win the division but they did and they did it with their pitching. The Diamondbacks have a lot of youth on their roster while the Cubs have a lot of good veterans. In the end, experience wins out as the Cubs take this in 4.
The Cubs played some great ball down the stretch. The Diamondbacks did as well leap frogging a few clubs in the last month or so. I think the Arizona’s pitching is better with Cy Young winner Brandon Webb, Micah Owings and Jose Valverde closing. Plus they have Livan Hernandez who always pitches big come the playoffs. I think the Cubs may have a better linup but their bullpen should scare the crap out of their fans. DBacks win in four and the curse of the goat continues.
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The two hottest teams in the National League at the end of the season faceoff in Philadelphia. The Rockies won 14 of their final 15 games to take the wildcard. They had to do it by winning a one-game playoff. The Phillies over took the Mets in the NL East by overcoming a 7-game deficit in the final 18 days of the season. I am not sure if the Rockies will be able to sustain their momentum as the Phillies have a pretty powerful lineup. Phillies in 5
I saw the Phils in person this year I was impressed with how they played. Both teams have good power hitters, but I think the difference is pitching and Phillies have the edge in starters and the closer. Phillies in four.
