National League
St. Louis Cardinals vs. San Diego Padres
Yeah, yeah, yeah… the Padres squeaked into the post-season with a less-then-impressive 82-80 record. The thing is, this is a team that can cause some damage in the playoffs. The Padres have a legitimate ace in Jake Peavy and an airtight bullpen. The Cardinals are stumbling into the playoffs despite winning 100 games. Chris Carpenter has been shaky in September. Padres in five.
Atlanta Braves vs. Houston Astros
What is this, the 25th time Houston and Atlanta have ended facing each other in the playoffs? With a rotation of Oswalt-Clemens-Pettitte is tough to beat in the post-season. It was difficult for the Braves in the regular season too, as the Astros took five out of six this season. Astros in four.
American League
Boston Red Sox vs. Chicago White Sox
Before sweeping the Indians, the ChiSox had the look of a Dead Team Walking. This is a very difficult match-up for me. Boston is clearly not the team they were last season. Their bullpen is in shambles and the starters aren’t much better. It becomes very difficult to bludgeon teams in the playoffs, especially with how much better Chicago’s pitching staff is. Still, I can’t pick an Ozzie Guillen-led team over the defending champs. Red Sox in five.
Los Angeles Angels vs. New York Yankees
Hell, who knows? The Yankees have played their best ball down the stretch as Randy Johnson has finally dominated as expected. The Angels struggled for awhile, but they’ve been hot too, winning 14 of 16 down the stretch. The Yankees, like Boston plan to beat opposing pitchers to death, but the Angels have enough pitching to hold them down. Angels in five.
Posted by Frinklin at October 3, 2005 10:39 PM | TrackBack