With the end of the Major League Baseball regular season coming to a close, the playoffs are upon us.
From the American League I see the New York Yankees redeeming their AL crown from two years ago. Last year, Cliff Lee dominated the American League, going 2-0 versus Tampa Bay and 1-0 versus New York. This season, Lee signed in Philadelphia after being a free agent.
The AL will not have to deal with Lee this postseason, but they will have to compete with Detroit Tiger’s starter Justin Verlander. He is 24-5 on the season, with a 2.40 earned run average, and 244 strikeouts. Verlander is the first Triple Crown winner since Jake Peavy in 2007, sporting a San Diego jersey. It’s also the first time since 1924 AL and NL pitchers won the Triple Crown in the same year. Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers led in all three categories in the NL.
If the playoffs were about one player or an everyday player, I would take the Tiger’s hands-down to win it all.
But, since it’s not, I believe CC Sabathia and rookie star Ivan Nova will control the pace of games, and the loaded Yankees lineup will be at it again for their eighth AL title in the last 16 years.
From the National League, who better than to choose the Phillies with 102 wins. No one. And I will. Despite their sub-par hitting, they have the best (without a doubt) pitching staff in all of baseball.
Before knocking on the St.Louis Cardinals, I will point out that they do have the best offense in the league, scoring more runs and having a higher batting average than anyone else.
That is where the compliments end.
St. Louis is last in the league in stolen bases, second to last in fielding percentage, and fourth to last in hits given up. Their ERA and WHIP is also middle of the road.
Contending with the Phillies or Brewers in the playoffs with those statistics is a joke.
For the National League pennant it will be a pitching duel from start to finish between Philadelphia and Milwaukee. Although Milwaukee doesn’t have pitching numbers like Philadelphia, they have Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun to compensate.
But, at the end of the day, the Brewers aren’t 100 percent solid in any major category: hitting, pitching, fielding, or base running.
And that is why, the World Series will be the New York Yankees facing off against the Philadelphia Phillies for the 107th Fall Classic.
