So long Jerry Manuel. Nice try Albert Pujols. Good riddance Detroit Tigers. After this weekend, there will be no more disappointments, wannabes or losers. Eight teams will remain eight teams will still have the hope of hoisting the World Series trophy. It’s playoff time, baby.
As I pen this column, the National League playoff picture remains murkier than the Charles River. The Braves and Giants have already clinched their respective divisions, but the Cubs, Astros, Marlins and Phillies were still trying to squeeze into the remaining two spots.
The American League, however, seems to be set. The executives at FOX must be wetting themselves over the match-ups they were handed by the baseball gods. In one series, you have the Boston Red Sox, offensive juggernaut, versus the Oakland Athletics, pitching artisans. And would anyone else like to bet their life savings that FOX will milk the David vs. Goliath angle when the New York Yankees square off against the Minnesota Twins? Television ratings aside, the American League Division Series feature two intriguing battles. Let’s examine them more closely.
Boston Red Sox vs. Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics have been eliminated in the first round of the playoffs for the past three years, each time losing the fifth and deciding contest. This year, the A’s try their luck against the hometown Boston Red Sox. The A’s and Red Sox played each other closely during the regular season, with the A’s edging out the Sox, 4-3, in the season series.
The most important key to winning this series will be breaking the home field advantage. Both squads are tailor made for their home ballparks, with Fenway Park being a hitter’s paradise and Network Associates Coliseum being more pitcher-friendly.
The team that steals a game on the road will win this series. That, however, is much easier said than done. The Red Sox and Athletics are completely different teams at home and on the road. The Red Sox are 52-27 at Fenway, scoring 6.5 runs per game at home. The Athletics are a remarkable 56-24 in Oakland, mainly because their pitching staff has a tiny home ERA of 3.04.
Who’s Hot: Despite the controversies, Manny Ramirez has been tearing it up in September, hitting at a .382 clip with five homers and 12 RBIs. For Oakland, Ted Lilly has been nothing short of phenomenal this past month. In four starts, Lilly has four wins and a microscopic 0.40 ERA.
Who’s Not: No-mah has been no-good in September, hitting a measly .175 in his last 20 games. In Oak-town, Tim Hudson has not been himself either, posting a gaudy 5.96 ERA over the past month, while going 1-3 in his past four starts.
Prediction: Make it four in a row for Oakland. Red Sox in five.
Minnesota Twins vs. New York Yankees
A classic battle of rich ($180 million payroll) against poor ($54 million payroll). Good against evil. Grass against turf. That is what you will be treated to when the Minnesota Twins begin their playoff series with the New York Yankees on Tuesday. Among other things, it seems the Yankees own the Twins, having beaten them 13 straight times since the beginning of the 2002 season.
A lot has happened since April, however, as the Twins have shown they are legitimate contenders.
The Yankees are built much like the Red Sox, in that they are an offensive powerhouse. They have the second highest on-base percentage in the league after the Sox.
But the Yankees differ from Boston in two distinct ways. They are the best road team in the majors, with a 51-28 record away from home. The Yanks also have a superior pitching staff, with four 15-game winners and an excellent closer in Mariano Rivera. New York’s main weakness is its middle relief, as the team has used 17 relievers to get the ball from its starters to Rivera. The Twins’ main strength, besides excellent defense, is its bullpen. While the Yankees have a mediocre 4.33 team ERA beyond the sixth inning of a close (three runs or less) game, the Twins have a 3.02 ERA in the same situation.
Who’s Hot: Alfonso Soriano is hitting .379 with eight homers and 14 RBIs in September. For the Twinkies, Brad Radke has been dominant, going 4-0 with a 1.80 ERA over his last four starts.
Who’s Not: Bernie Williams has not been the same since knee surgery, and is batting only .179 over his last 22 games. Luis Rivas of the Twins is hitting only .175 so far this month.
Prediction: The 13-game win streak will end, but the Yankees will move on. Yankees in four.
You know what that means don’t you? Yankees-Red Sox in the ALCS. Too good to be true? Cross your fingers. That’s about all you can do now, anyway. It’s playoff time.
Josh Stern, a senior in the School of Management, is a weekly sports columnist for The Daily Free Press.