American League
Boston Red Sox vs. Detroit Tigers. The Tigers, led by stud Justin Verlander, beat the Oakland A’s in last night’s Game 5. The Tigers’ offense scored the runs it had to, and Verlander was on fire – a dangerous combination for the remaining teams in the playoffs. Unfortunately, Detroit won’t be able to send Verlander back to the mound until Game 3 in Detroit at the earliest. Meanwhile, the Tigers will send Max Scherzer to the mound in Game 2, so at least they have both their aces going in back-to-back games.
The Red Sox are rolling (unfortunately), and seens hell-bent on proving to the sports world that former manager Bobby Valentine was the mother of all fuck-ups. They validated having the best record in the major leagues in making quick work of division rival Tampa Bay in the ALCS. It will be interesting watching how sluggers Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz will do against the Tigers’ pitching staff.
Believe it or not, this will be the first postseason series between these two teams. Both teams have similar batting and pitching stats for the season. This will be a classic hard-fought series, but I think the Tigers’ pitching is a bit better than the Sox’, and that will be the difference. Tigers in 7.
National League
St. Louis Cardinals vs. Los Angeles Dodgers. Both teams are hot and rolling. While the Cardinals had a bit of trouble dispatching the division rival Pirates, they are still clicking on all cylinders. This series will come down to what happens in Games 1 and 2. The Dodgers will be starting aces Zach Greinke and Clayton Kershaw respectively. If the Dodgers are victorious in both games, I do not see the Cardinals winning 4 out of the next 5 against the likes of Yasiel Puig, Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford and company. Sure, Adam Wainwright is scheduled to start for St. Louis in Game 3, but it will be on the road and all the weight would be on his shoulders if his team is down 0-2 in the series.
It’s hard for me to count out the Cardinals – after all, I call them “Team Cockroach” for a reason (you can’t kill those fuckers). However, I think the Dodgers are too strong and will overcome the consistency of a well-managed Cardinals team. I just think it’s L.A.’s time. Dodgers in 6.
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