Skip to main content

Postseason Ahead...

The 8, ohh, um...9(?) teams for the 2009 postseason are all finalized. The National League will see division champions Philadelphia, St. Louis and Los Angeles, as well as Wild Card winner Colorado fighting it out for a trip to the World Series. The American League has Wild Card winner Boston joining division winners New York and Anaheim, while Detroit and Minnesota still must play a one game play-in to clinch the AL Central.

This postseason should be great for MLB. There are lots of big market teams in the Yankees, the Dodgers, the Angels and the Phillies to draw TV ratings. There is that team with the national following, in the Red Sox, to appeal to the masses. There are also regional favorites like the Cardinals to draw viewers, as well as smaller market Cinderella squads like the Rockies and whoever the AL Central winner turns out to be, that should interest news sources and other fans.

I am definitely looking forward to all the match ups this postseason. It's truly tough to pick a favorite out of this group.

The Phillies have great offense (five '09 all stars) and a couple veteran Cy Young Award winners as well as a World Series MVP on their pitching staff, but that closer situation is shaky.

The Yankees certainly don't have to worry about their closer spot, as Mariano Rivera has had that spot sewn up for over a decade. The Yankees' MLB best record 103-59 is impressive, but there have been times the best record got bounced right out of the playoffs...just ask the 2001 Mariners who won 116 regular season games.

The Dodgers have added some pieces, like Vicente Padilla, Jon Garland, George Sherrill and Jim Thome to help with the stretch drive. Padilla is 4-0 as a starter for LA. Garland went 3-2 with a 2.72 ERA with the Dodgers. Sherrill had a 0.65 ERA in 30 appearances with the Dodgers. Thome was just 4-for-17 for the Dodgers, with no extra base hits, but he is the 12th all time leader in homeruns, so that's valuable.

The Cardinal have a long history, with 10 World Series titles. Manager Tony LaRussa has won a couple of those things too. Albert Pujols is a marquee name who has had another MVP calibre season with 47 homers, 135 RBI and a .327 avg.

Colorado stormed over the Phillies with a first round sweep two years ago, on their way to the World Series. Can Todd Helton and Ubaldo Jimenez do it again?

The Red Sox have all star Jason Bay who set career highs in HR and RBI this season, in his first full year in Boston. They've also got their new franchise leader in saves, Jonathan Papelbon. The Red Sox have won 2 of the past 5 World Series championships and hope to add to it.

The Angels have been riding the tribute vibe all season, as they've been in control on the AL West for months and seem to have been doing it all for teammate Nick Adenhart, who was killed by a drunk driver in April. Their 97 wins were second best in the Majors.

And then there is the Twins or the Tigers. Minnesota won a coin toss weeks ago, to decide home field advantage for this game, if it was necessary. The game would have been played on Monday, but Metrodome plays host to NFL Monday Night Football, so the single game play-in will happen on Tuesday. If the Twins get in, they will be riding momentum, as they won 7 of their past 10 to catch the Tigers. If Detroit advances, they'll be riding high after fighting their way into the second season. The Twins lost a play-in game on the road last year to the White Sox. Head to head this season, the Tigers won 7, the Twins won 11.

No matter who you root for, or against, Autumn baseball is here and we'll all enjoy it. Here's to another memorable second season.

---------------------------
Former Phillie Mitch Williams began a new radio gig, this past Saturday. Airing weekly on Saturday for the remainder of the year on Sirius/XM's MLB Home Plate, Mitch and former ML infielder Rico Petrocelli have teamed up to host Remember When. This adds to Mitch's duties as a studio analyst on the MLB Network. The new show will feature varied talk about the vast history of baseball. The show is call in format and will feature weekly guests. Check it out on MLB Home Plate.

Follow PhoulBallz.com over on Twitter HERE!
BallHype: hype it up!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

PhoulBallz Interview: BlueClaws OF Justin Crawford

Justin Crawford w/ junior reporter Evan At the age of 19, outfielder Justin Crawford has played his way into the conversation of being considered as one of baseball's top prospects. The son of four-time MLB All-Star Carl Crawford, Justin has looked every bit as impressive as his position as the 17th overall draft selection last year would have most fans thinking he should be.  He opened the season with Class A Clearwater where, in 69 games, he notched a .344/.399/.478 slash line.  And since mid-August when he was promoted to Class A Advanced Jersey Shore, the younger Crawford has posted a .300/.364/.440 line.  He's also stolen 44 bases in 52 attempts overall. And while the BlueClaws enter the final week of the regular season 1/2 game out of first place in their division, I spoke with Justin Crawford about the team's hopes of making the postseason for the first time since 2018. I also asked Justin about the similarities and differences between his skillset and his father'

Jersey Shore clinches playoff berth on final day of regular season

Ottto Kemp, image- Jay Floyd With an extra-inning victory over first-half division champions Hudson Valley on Sunday, the Class A Advanced Jersey Shore BlueClaws clinched the team's first playoff appearance since 2018, winning the second-half division title. Key performers in the BlueClaws' clincher were righty hurler Jason Ruffcorn, who threw three innings of relief to earn the victory and third baseman Otto Kemp, notched three hits, a walk, two stolen bases and plated the game winning run in the 11th inning on a sacrifice fly.  On top of that, Kemp, who turned 24-years-old on Saturday, made an absolute game-saving defensive play to help the club hold their lead in the bottom of the 11th frame. One of Jersey Shore's most consistent performers all season long has been right-handed reliever Cam Wynne.  The Phillies' 20th round draft pick in 2021 out of Nebraska.  In 34 appearances, one start, the 24-year-old tallied a 1-1 record with one save, a 2.44 ERA and a .190 batti

RHP Pipkin headed to AFL after hot August

After completing what was easily the best month of his career, righty hurler Dominic Pipkin is ready to face the tough competition of the prominent Arizona Fall Leage.   Pipkin, who was the Phillies' 9th round draft selection in 2018, has had moderate success in his five years as a pro, posting a 4.93 ERA, a 7.6 K/9 mark and a .260 batting average against mostly at the lower levels on the minors. After missing time this year with an unspecified ailment, the six-foot-four 170-pounder proved to be healthy as he dominated AA competition in nine appearances with the Reading Fightin Phils during August.  Pipkin's impressive production resulted in a 1-0 record with a save and a 0.96 ERA while striking out eight and walking three in 9 1/3 innings. The California native says his efforts to improve have helped him touch 100 MPH on the radar gun, while his fastball velocity is mostly around 96 MPH.   Pipkin's arsenal includes that improved fastball as well as a slider while his curve