On Saturday night, the Chicago Cubs’ postseason woes continued as the Los Angeles Dodgers completed a 3-game sweep with a 3-1 victory at Dodger Stadium. This makes 101 years since the Cubs won a World Series. The North Side hasn’t seen the Cubs compete in a single October Classic since 1945. My condolences to all Cubs fans around the world. As they say in Chi-town, “Wait until next year.”
Next year will undoubtedly have to go better than this if the Cubbies are to have any hope, at least as far as October is concerned. Saturday’s loss marked the ninth straight postseason loss for the Cubs, who also were swept in three games by Arizona during their NLDS appearance last year. The Cubs also became the first team since the 2001 Astros to finish with the best record in their league and get swept in their opening playoff series.
Damn or not, the Cubs played horribly. They were outscored by the Dodgers 20-6, an embarrassing stat for one of the most versatile offenses in the National League.
The surprise sweep of the Cubs shows that almost anything can happen in baseball, especially in October. It’s too hard to tell who’s going to emerge victorious these days. Just take a look at the many Wild Card teams that have won each league’s World Series over the past two decades. That number is staggering. That being said, it has inspired me to make my own postseason predictions this year.
Both the ALDS series and a NLDS series have yet to be completed. The ALCS, NLCS, and World Series will take place in the coming weeks throughout this month. Here are my predictions for what’s left to play:
ALDS, Red Sox/Angels: Boston leads this series 2-0. Game 3 takes place tonight at Fenway Park. John Saunders (17-7) will face Josh Beckett (12-10). Beckett has suffered from injuries all season and makes his postseason return to the mound tonight. Beckett went 4-0 in October 2007 and his postseason starts over the past 8 years, with the Marlins and now the Red Sox, have earned him the honor of being called the greatest postseason pitcher of this millennium. Expect Beckett to make his return to glory tonight, as his arm will carry the Red Sox past Los Angeles and to his fifth ALCS appearance in the last 10 years.
ALDS, White Sox/Rays: Tampa Bay leads this series 2-0 with Game 3 tonight in Chicago. Matt Garza faces John Danks. Garza has been exceptional for the Rays all season and Danks has been mediocre at best against the Rays in 2008. Rookie sensation Evan Longoria has been the difference-maker in the first two games of this series. Don’t expect it to be any different in the third game. The Rays lineup comes at you 1-9 and never gives up. Longoria is hitting .571 with 2 home runs and 3 RBIs so far in October. Longoria and the rest of the Rays’ giant offense will be too much for the White Sox pitching staff tonight. The Rays get the sweep and make their first appearance in the ALCS.
NLDS, Brewers/Phillies: Philadelphia leads this series 2-1. The Brewers salvaged a victory Saturday night, but on Sunday they will face Joe Blanton, a midseason acquisition from Oakland. Blanton hasn’t lived up to the expectations of Phillies fans, and they expect him to struggle against Milwaukee. Blanton doesn’t cope well with Brewers hitters like big man and slugger Prince Fielder. However, a powerful Phillies offense will still be too much for the Brew-Crew to match. Expect this series to end tonight, Phillies at 4. 1B Ryan Howard and 2B Chase Utley bats will carry the Fightin’ Phills.
American League Championship Series, Red Sox/Rays: The key to this series is the home field advantage the Rays have. The Rays have been terrific at home, posting a winning percentage over .750 in the regular season. The Red Sox couldn’t buy a win at Tropicana Field in 2008, and most of the games in this series are scheduled to be played in Tampa Bay. The Rays struggled at Fenway during the regular season, but were able to win there more often than the Red Sox at Tampa Bay. I hope this series has the full 7 games. The local team, in all probability, will always win. We saw some fantastic battles between the Sox and Rays this year and that is why this series is going to go down as one of the best 7 game playoff series America has seen in over a decade. My prediction: Rays in 7.
NLCS, Dodgers/Phillies: This series will be dominated by offensive prowess. The Dodgers have been a different team since the acquisition of Manny Ramirez on July 31. Ramirez has changed the culture in Los Angeles and has turned the Dodgers’ offense into one of the most productive in the National League. The only offense he compares to the Dodgers is, yes, the Phillies. Each and every game will be a fight. The pitch will make a big difference in this series, although most pitchers who take the mound will get hit. The Phillies have the edge here with names like Cole Hamels starting games and Brad Lidge closing them out. My prediction: Phillies in 6.
World Series, Phillies/Rays: 5 of the last 10 World Series have been swept. I don’t expect that trend to be any different. The Rays have one of the few pitching staffs capable of shutting down the Phillies’ offense. Philadelphia’s pitching isn’t good enough to calm the Rays’ bats. Let’s face it, the American League is much stronger right now than its National League counterpart. This one is easy to call. The Rays became the second team (Atlanta Braves) to finish a season in last place and then continue the next year in first place. The Braves couldn’t pull off their World Series in ’91, but I think the Rays are a better team than those Braves, and besides, they’re going to face a much weaker team than the ’91 Braves had to face. Everyone wants to see a Cinderella story have a happy ending, myself included. The Rays are too good a team for the Phillies to beat them four different times in seven games. The AL won the All-Star Game, which means the Rays have home field advantage. Let me remind you once again how great Tampa Bay has been at home this year. My prediction: Lightning on an easy 4.
While these predictions come from hours of research on each team, hundreds of regular season games I’ve watched and attended this season, and my vast knowledge of the game of baseball (the greatest sport known to man), you’ll still look at these predictions when the postseason is over and October and get an idea of how great baseball is and also how anything can happen in sports.
The game of baseball means a lot to America. After all, it is our national pastime. Gambling has a lot to do with the growth and prosperity of this country. The game and its players have instilled dreams in the heads of children and adults alike. The legends of the game, legends that will be immortalized forever, show what it really means to be an American. Baseball is 100% American and will always be the standard by which we as Americans live and die.
Let me leave you with this final thought: Major League Baseball is the only business in American history for which the government has waived the Sherman antitrust laws. The NFL, NBA and NHL had to make adaptations in order not to violate the infamous laws. For the game of baseball, the rules somehow didn’t apply.
