Chase-Ing Down A Title No Longer, Phills Drop Rays!

It took two days to finnish the longest game in World Series history but if you ask any fan in Philadelphia it was well worth it. Two days after game 5 was suspended due to rain in the bottom of the sixth inning the Phillies won the 2008 World Series championship 4-3 in there home ballpark.  The night begun for the Phillies with a pinch hit double by Geoff Jenkins off Grant Balfour, he was bunted over to third by Jimmy Rollins and Jayson Werth's dropped a RBI single just over the glove of Akinori Iwamura to give the Phills a 3-2 lead.  

  Then the Rays would tie it in the top of the seventh as Rocco Baldelli's home run to left field off of Ryan Madson would make it 3-3 in the seventh. The Rays would have a chance to take the lead with Jason Bartlett on second in the inning and Iwamura at the plate. Iwamura hit a hard grounder that was headed toward the outfield but was snagged by Chasing Utley who would fake a throw to first and throw out Bartlett at the plate to end the inning. 

   The "Fightin Phills" would then get what proved to be the game winning run in the bottom of the seventh after a Pat Burrell double, his first hit of the World Series and a Shane Victorino ground ball after a failed sacrifice bunt attempt. Pedro Feliz then delivered what proved to be the game winner. 

   The Rays would mount one last rally in the top of the ninth as Dionner Navarro would hit a broken bat single with one out in the inning. Fernando Perez would then pinch run and steal second. Ben Zobrist hit a line drive right at right fielder Jayson Werth and only one out stood between the Phillies and there first championship since 1980.  Was there any doubt with Brad "Lights Out" Lidge and his perfect season on the hill this was the Phillies year. Lidge struck out pinch hitter Eric Hinske to win in five games and the 47,000 in attendance at Citizens Bank ballpark erupted in unison as "We Are The Champions" blared over the stadium loud speaker. Cole Hammels was named World Series MVP to go along with his NLCS MVP award. 

Rays, Phiils Still on Hold!

The Phillies fans have waited 28 years for the chance to win a World championship. That wait got even longer Tuesday when Major League baseball postponed Game five still tied at 2-2 to Wednesday after the weather didn't cooperate again. The Phillies will be batting in the bottom of the sixth inning when the game does resume with the pitcher's spot due up. The Phillies got 2 runs in the first on a two run single by Shane Victorino.  The Rays got one back on a double by Carlos Pena and single by Evan Longoria to make it 2-1 in the fourth. The Rays then batting in the sixth in horrific playing conditions tied the game. B.J. Upton  got a board, stole second on a wet track and scored on a RBI single by Pena. Game five is scheduled to resume at 8:37 PM Wednesday and the chance of rain is expected to be down to 20 percent. Phillies fans have waited 28 years to see a baseball title, what's another 48 hours? 

New Season, Same Result For Cavs!

The Boston Celtics received there championship rings before Tuesday night's game against the Cavs and then did the same thing they did to the Cavs a year ago. Many of the faces changed, Maurice Williams and Lorenzen Wright were in Cavs uniforms while the Celtics no longer had P.J.Brown and James Posey but the result was almost exactly the same as Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals last year. The Celtics topping the Cavs 9-0-85 on this tearful night for Paul Pierce who had played ten years in Boston. 

   Paul Pierce just as he did in the series a year ago carried the Celtics Tuesday scoring 27 points. Kevin Garnett chipped in his 11 and just as he did last playoff series against the wine and gold Ray Allen struggled to find his shot only netting 8 points.  Leon Powe 13 points and Tony Allen were also in double figures for the Celtics, bit it was once again that trademark defense that won the title a year ago that did the job holding the Cavs to just 35 second half points including 13 in the third quarter. 

    The Cavs were led by 22 points from Lebron James who has openly said anything less than a championship in Cleveland this year would be a failure.  Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 15, and Maurice Williams had 12 in his Cavs debut. The Cavs big acquisition of the off season struggled going just 4 of 10 from the field. Daniel "Boobie" Gibson also had a rough night for Cleveland going just 2 of 8 for 6 points.  Anderson Varejao was solid though having 9 points and collecting 9 boards. Th one thing the Cavs will have to clean up before Thursday was the horrific job they did of taking care of the ball turning it over 21 times. The Cavs home opener will be Thursday night at Quicken Loans Arena vs the Charlotte Bobcats. 

Phills Remain Perfect, Go up 3-1!

Whether it be the Philly Cheese Steak, the Liberty Bell or whatever it might be the Phillies have loved home cooking this post season. Behind home runs from Ryan Howard, Joe Blanton and Jayson Werth the Phillies remained perfect at home this post season and moved within one game of there first World Series championship since 1980 with a 10-2 drubbing of the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday Night. 

Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins who have looked like two different players since the series shifted to Philly were dynamite once again Sunday. Howard hit a pair of home runs and went 3 for 4 with 5 RBI. Rollins , the catalyst of the Phillies offense was three for five with three runs scored. This night belonged to Joe Blanton though. Blanton (1-0) went 6 innings and allowed just two runs on 4 hits with seven strikeouts and he hit his first home run of his major league career. When asked to describe the home run Blanton said he closed his eyes and swung as hard as he could. 

  The Rays magical season may be coming to an end. The men who have carried them throughout this season and post season have disappeared in the Fall Classic. Evan Longoria and Carlos Pena have now combined to go 0 for 29 in the first four games. Andy Sonnastine (0-1) was roughed up allowing five runs on five hits in four innings. Akinori Iwamura had the first two error game of his major league career. The Rays two runs came on  a pair of solo homers. Carl Crawford hit the first and Eric Hinske homered in a pinch hit role in his first post season at bat. Game 5 will be at 8:29 on Monday as the Phillies will send ace Cole Hammels to the mound to close it out against the Rays Scott Kazmir. 

Buckeyes Fall at The Shoe!

Terell Pryor and the Ohio State Buckeyes knew they were going to get Penn State's best shot and indeed they did. There were plenty of story lines, whether it was each starting quarterback coming from the state of the other school to the great play of both defenses. On this night it was a little used backup QB by the name of Pat Devlin who carried the Nittany Lions to the 13-6 win. Devlin relieved the injured Darryl Clark with the Lions trailing 6-3 after Clark took a blow to the head from the Buckeyes James Laurinitas. After Terell Pryor fumbled at the beginning of the fourth quarter Devlin engineered what proved to be the game winning drive capped off by a TD run from two yards out. Devlin also engineered another fourth quarter drive that led to a field goal to make it 13-6. The Buckeyes (7-2) would have one last gasp as they would get the ball to the 50 yard line on the last drive before Terell Pryor threw an interception on the two yard line on a pass intended for Brian Hartline. 

   The first three quarters were a defensive struggle as neither team could get there offense going. Dane Sazenbacher had 6 catches for 82 yards to lead the Buckeyes receiving core and Brian Robiskie added 4 catches for 56 yards. The only offense the Buckeyes could muster on this night were a pair of field goals by Aaron Pettrey. The Buckeyes dropped to 12th in the BCS standings with the loss. 

  The Nittany Lions (9-0) could not find any offense either in the first three quarters. There only points came on two Kevin Kelly field goals.  That of course was until the fourth quarter when Devlin had the TD run and the Nittany Lions offense wore out a Buckeye defense who was on the field most of the game. Penn State stayed at number three in the latest BCS standings. 

The Buckeyes will be off this week before they face Northwestern. The time of that game is still to be determined. Here are the latest BCS standings:

1. Texas

2. Alabama 

3. Penn State

4. Oklahoma

5. USC

6. Georgia

7. Texas Tech

8. Florida

9. Oklahoma State

10. Utah

11. Boise State

12. Ohio State

 

  

Phills Take 2-1 Series Lead!

The Philadelphia Phillies took a 2-1 lead in the World Series on Saturday night with a 5-4 win at Citizens Bank Ballpark when Carlos Ruiz hit a dribbler down the third base line with the bases loaded and Evan Longoria's throw went over catcher Dionner Navarro's head. Ryan Howard and Carolos Ruiz each homered in the Phillies win. Ruiz went 2 of 3 and continued his torrid hitting in the Fall classic. Jamie Moyer went 6.1 innnings allowing just three runs on 5 hits in the game after having to wait out a rain delay before the first pitch.  J.C. Romero (1-0) pitched a scoreless ninth to get the win for Philly. 

  The Rays were led by Carl Crawford who was 2 of 4 with two runs scored and a pair of stolen bases in game 3.  Dionner Navarro also had a pair of hits and Gabe Gross had a pair of RBI. B.J. Upton added a pair of hits as well for Tampa. Matt Garza, the MVP of the ALCS went 6 innings allowing 4 runs on 6 hits with a couple walks and seven strikeouts.  J.P. Howell (0-1) took the loss for Tampa. Game Four will be Sunday night at 8:29 PM eastern as the Rays will send Andy Sonnastine to the hill against the Phillies Joe Blanton.  

Rays Even Series!

The Tampa Rays behind the pitching of James Shields and a squeeze bunt executed perfectly defeated the Philladelphia Phillies 4-2 and evened the World Series at a game a piece.

   The Rays did not waste any time scoring, as they scored twice off Brett Myers in the first inning. Akinori Iwamura walked, B.J.Upton singled, both runners moved up on a Jayson Werth error before Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria had RBI ground outs to give the Rays a 2-0 lead. Myers now has an era of 9.00 including the post season in the first inning.  The Rays would make it 3-0 in the third inning as Upton's RBI hit would drive in Jason Bartlett. Bartlett would make it 4-0 as a safety squeeze would score the game's fourth run. 

  James Shields would scatter 7 hits in 5.2 innings to get the win. Dan Wheeler worked a scoreless inning and then David Price allowed two runs in the final two and a third innings. Eric Bruntlett's pinch hit home run made it 4-1 and then the Phills would cut it to 4-2 on a Evan Longoria error.  Price would strike out tying run Ryan Howard to end the game. 

   The Rays were led offensively by a trio of players with two hits. B.J. Upton, Navarro and Bartlett accounted for six of the Rays seven hits. The other belonged to DH Cliff Floyd. 

   The story of this game once again was the Phillies inability to drive in runners in the clutch. The Phills had seven hits off Shields, but could only manage a infield hit by Shane Victorino with runners in scoring position. Victorino and Ryan Howard had two hits a piece for Philly.Carlos Ruiz was two for two with a pair of walks in the losing effort.   The series is now tied at one and will shift to Philly after a travel day Friday. Jamie Moyer will face ALCS MVP Matt Garza in Game 3. First pitch is set for 8:25. 

Phills Draw First Blood!

The Philadelphia Phillies drew first blood in the first game of the 2008 World Series at Tropicana Field behind dominant pitching and a weapon that has led them all season, the long ball. Cole Hammels improved to 4-0 in this season's post season as for the fourth time in as many starts he allowed two runs or less in seven innings. Ryan Madson pitched the 8th and Brad "Lights Out" Lidge saved his 50th consecutive game without a blown save in the Phills 3-2 win in front of a sell out crowd at "The Trop".  

  Chase Utley had a huge game for the Phillies including a two run homer off Scott Kazmir in the top of the first.  Utley was two of 4 and also stole two bases. Shane Victorino and Pedro Feliz each had a pair of hits for the National League champs. 

  The Rays only managed five hits off of the trio of Hammels, Madson and Lidge.  Akinori Iwamura picked up three of those five hits including a RBI double to cut the lead to 3-2 in the fifth. The only other two hits belonged to Ben Zobrist and a solo homer by Carl Crawford. Scott Kazmir (1-1 post season) took the loss. Grant Balfour, Trevor Miller and Dan Wheeler combined for three innings of shut out relief. 

  The Phills took a 1-0 series lead despite going 0 for 11 with runners in scoring position on the night. Game two will be at Tropicana Field Thursday night as the Rays will look to even the series.  Jamie Shields will get the ball for Tampa and will be opposed by the Phillies Brett Myers.  First pitch is set for 8:29 PM and can be seen on Fox.  

Rays-Phills Set To Begin Fall Classic!

The Tampa Bay Rays and the Philadelphia Phillies will begin the World Series at 8:35 from Tropicana Field in St.Pete.  Here is a position by position look at each team and my pick to win it.

Catchers: Dionner Navarro (Rays) and Carlos Ruiz (Phills) 

Outlook: Navarro has improved tremendously and had a all star season this year. He really improved his clutch hitting. Ruiz is a very good receiver but does not do much with the bat.

Advantage: Tampa

First Base: Carlos Pena (Tampa) and Ryan Howard (Philly)

Outlook: Pena had some huge hits for the Rays all season. Howard had great power numbers but his average is way down. Howard has really struggled this post season.

Advantage: Even

Second Base: Akinori Iwamura (TB) and Chase Utley (Philly) 

Outlook: Both guys are unsung heroes on there respectable clubs. Iwamura has made the transition from third to second rather smoothly. Utley really cooled off in the second half, after a MVP type first half

Advantage: Philly

Shortstop: Jimmy Rollins (Phills) and Jason Bartlett (TB)

Outlook: Bartlett is the man that solidifies the Rays dramatic improvement defensively. He has been up and down with his bat.  J Roll has been a non factor this post season with the exception of the two home runs he hit to clinch the NLDS and NLCS in the first inning.

Advantage: Even

Third Base : Evan Longoria (Tampa) and Pedro Feliz

Outlook: This is the most lopsided of the position battles. Longoria has been the heart and soul of  this Rays team and it is hard to believe some times he is only a rookie. As for Philly, Feliz is a solid third baseman defensively and will play when defense is needed. Greg Dobbs will play when they want to upgrade on offense and give up some defense.

Advantage: Rays

Center Field: Rays (B.J. Upton) and Phills (Shane Victorino)

Outlook; These two guys are a big reason why the Phillies and Rays are still playing. Victorino tied a Philly record with nine RBI in the NLCS, while Upton has hit 7 homers this post season.

Advantage: Even

Right Field: Rays (Rocco Baldelli) and Phills (Jayson Werth)

Outlook: Baldelli has been solid although he still is not at 100 percent health. Werth has been pretty good for the Phills

Advantage: Tampa

Left Field: Rays (Carl Crawford) and Phills (Pat Burrell)

Outlook: Burrell has had a very solid post season thus far. He is a very streaky power hitter who could determine how far the Fightins" may go. Crawford has not missed a beat even though he only had nine at bats in the minor leagues in the last month of the season.

Advantage: Rays

Bench/DH: I will use the bench and DH as one category since the DH will not be used in the NL park.  The Rays bench boasts guys like Fernando Perez, Gabe Gross and Cliff Floyd while the Phills have Greg Dobbs and Matt Stairs as there main options. Is there any doubt here?

Advatage: Rays

Starting Pitching: Cole Hammels/Brett Myers/Jamie Moyer and Joe Blanton vs Scott Kazmir/Jamie Shields/ Matt Garza and Andy Sonnastine.

Outlook: Not as lopsided as one might think. The key for the Phillies is that Moyer and Blanton each have pitched in the American league so will not be intimidated by the DH. Of course, both MVP's of the LCS came from this group with Matt Garza and Cole Hammels.

Advatage: Rays

Relief Pitching: Grant Balfour/J.P.Howell/ Trevor Miller/ David Price are some important Tampa arms. Some important Phillies arms include: J.C Romero/ Brad Lidge and Chad Durbin

Advantage: Phillies

Manager: Charlie Manuel and Joe Maddon

Outlook: Madden has never been in the series before and Charlie was twice as a hitting coach. The margin here is slim

Advantage: Even

Pick: Rays in 7

Buckeyes Roll To Fifth Straight!

The Ohio State Buckeyes won there 5th straight game and remained undefeated in the big ten with a 45-7 trouncing of the Michigan State Spartans Saturday. The Spartans had a six game win streak snapped.  The Buckeyes were led by Chris "Beanie" Wells who carried the ball 31 times for 140 yards and two touchdowns. Terell Pryor was 7 for 11 for 116 yards. He had a touchdown pass to Brian Robiskie and a fifteen yard TD run. Pryor had 72 yards rushing. Thaddeus Gibson and Jermale Hines each had fumble returns for touchdowns in the second half. James Lauranitas tallied 11 tackles in the game. 

 The Spartans (6-2) were beaten in all facets of the game. Quarterback Brian Hoyer was 5 of 13 for 27 yards before getting injured at the end of the first half.  Kirk Cousins relieved and was 17 of 24 for 166 yards and had a touchdown strike to Charlie Gantt. The nation's leading rusher Javon Ringer was held to 67 yards on 16 carries. 

   The Buckeyes(7-1) were ranked ninth in the first BCS standings that were released Sunday. The Buckeyes will welcome third ranked Penn State to the horseshoe on Saturday. Kick off is set for 8 PM and can be seen on ABC.  Here are the first BCS standings:

1. Texas

2. Alabama

3. Penn State

4. Oklahoma

5. USC

6.Oklahoma State

7. Georgia

8.Texas Tech

9. Ohio State

10. Florida 

A Ray-Zing!

When the Tampa Rays went on and made the trade with the Minnesota Twins to acquire Matt Garza these are the kind of games they envisioned. Garza threw two hit ball and struck out nine in seven innings and led the Rays to the World Series for the first time in franchise history. Garza was named the MVP of the ALCS after the 3-1 win. Dustin Pedroia homered in the top of the first to give the Red Sox a 1-0 lead.  John Lester pitched well for the Sox but the Sox offense only managed one more hit of Garza by Coco Crisp. The Rays tied it in the fourth on a RBI double by Evan Longoria who has looked nothing like a rookie this entire post season.  The Rays took a 2-1 lead in the fifth and added a solo home run from Willy Aybar in the seventh.  David Price (another rookie) recorded the last four outs for his first save of the post season and knocked out the defending world champions.  J.P.Howell, Dan Wheeler and Chad Bradford  combined to get two outs in the eighth inning. The Rays will open the World Series at Tropicana Field at 8:22 PM on Wednesday Night against Jimmy Rollins and the NL champion Philadelphia Phillies. 

Champagne Still On Ice!

Fenway Park had all the makings of a party on Thursday night. When the Red Sox trailed the Tampa Rays 7-0 in the seventh inning it looked like the champagne was going to be flowing in the visitors clubhouse, then the unthinkable happened.  Sparked by a three run homer by David Ortiz off of Grant Balfour in the eighth inning the Red Sox rallied for the second biggest comeback in post season history in a 8-7 win and it was the Sox who were having the party as they sent this best of seven ALCS back to St.Pete for Game 6.  

  Things were going so smoothly for the Rays thru the first six innings. B.J Upton hit a two run homer to put them up 2-0 in the top of the first.  Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria went back to back again to make it 5-0 Rays in the 3rd.  Scott Kazmir was handed the ball and responded nicely by pitching six innings of 2 hit ball.  The Rays added two more in the seventh to make it 7-0 on a two run double by the red hot Upton.  Then what doomed the Rays a year ago and was the biggest improvement this year reared it's ugly head as the bullpen imploded.  

  The Red Sox got on the board in the seventh with a RBI single by Dustin Pedroia to make it 7-1.  Then the nation came to life for the first time in three days when David "Big Papi" Ortiz belted a three run homer to make it 7-4. Then the bottom of inning eight rolled around.  J.D.Drew hit a two run homer off of Rays reliever Dan Wheeler to make it 7-6.  Then after a lengthy at bat Coco Crisp battled and singled off of Wheeler to tie it but was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double.  Crisp was in the lineup in the lead off spot for the first time in the series.  Then came maybe the biggest sequence of the game.  Jason Bartlett reached for the Rays to start the ninth but Akinora Iwamura flied out and could not advance the runner. After B.J Uptom walked to put runners on first and second off Red Sox reliever Justin Masterson (1-0) Carlos Pena grounded into a inning ending double play.  Then the Sox won it in the bottom of the ninth.  Kevin Youkilis singled and went to second on Evan Longoria's third error of the series.  After Jason Bay was intentionally walked, J.D Drew delivered the game winner and sent Fenway Park into a frenzy.  Game 6 will be Saturday Night at Tropicana Field. James Shield will look to close it out for the Rays as he will be opposed by Josh Beckett. First pitch is set for 8:07 PM.   

"Fightin" To The Fall Classic!

For the first time since 1993 the Phillies are headed to the Fall classic.  Powered by a home run by Jimmy Rollins to lead off the game, his second straight lead off bomb in a series clincher the "Fightin Phills" are on there way to the World Series.  After struggling for much of the series, the Phillies big bats of Rollins and Ryan Howard came thru in Game 5.  Rollins hit the lead off homer, walked, scored twice and stole a base. Howard who had only three hits coming into Game 5 had three in the clincher.  That was plenty for Cole Hammels, who ran his LCS record to 2-0 and post season record to 3-0 and was named the series MVP.  Ryan Madson and Brad Lidge pitched the final two innings of the 5-1 win.  They both did not allow a run in the LCS.  

  For the second time in the series, Chad Billingsley (0-2) could not survive the third inning. The Dodgers only run came on a solo home run by Manny Ramirez in the sixth. The homer was Manny's 28th career "big fly" in the post season.  The Dodgers were let down by poor defense, as shortstop Rafael Furcal committed 3 errors in the Phillies 2 run 5th.  The only real scoring chance the Dodgers had a side from the Ramirez homer was in the fifth inning when  Casey Blake and  Matt Kemp started off the inning with singles.  Blake Dewitt then grounded  into a double play,his second of the night and Cole Hammels struck out Jeff Kent to end the threat.   The Dodgers had another minor threat in the seventh, as they had two aboard with two outs but Hammels after a visit from Charlie Manuel with Ryan Madson warming in the bullpen struck out Kent for the second time on a disputed called third strike.  The Phillies will now await either Boston or Tampa Bay. Game one of the World Series will be Wednesday, October 22nd. 

Buckeyes Prepare For Big Test!

The Ohio State Buckeyes will be tested once again on Saturday as they will take on the Michigan State Spartans. The Buckeyes (6-1 3-0 Big Ten) got some bad news Tuesday when they found out defensive end Lawrence Wilson is out for the season after tearing his ACL. The Buckeyes offense who did not score a offensive touchdown in Saturday's 16-3 win over Purdue will look to bounce back Saturday. The Spartans (5-1 3-0 Big Ten) are coming off a big win themselves as they beat previously unbeaten Northwestern Saturday. Cleveland native and former Saint Ignatius quarterback Brian Hoyer will lead the Spartans who have the nation's leading rusher in Javon Ringer. Kickoff is set for 3:30 and can be seen on ABC. 

Rays Power Way to 3-1 Lead!

For the second straight night the Tampa Rays pounded the Boston Red Sox and not many people were in Fenway Park to see it end. The Rays powered by back to back home runs by Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria in the first inning cruised to a 13-4 win to take a commanding 3-1 series lead in the ALCS.  Andy Sonnastine pitched brilliantly for the Rays allowing 4 runs, only 3 earned on 6 hits in 7.1 innings pitched. Carl Crawford and Willy Aybar took care of the rest for the upstart Rays. Crawford went 5 of 5 with 3 runs scored, 2 RBI and  2 stolen bases. Aybar was 4 of 5 with a HR and 5 RBI serving as the Rays DH on Tuesday. Fernando Perez and Akinori Iwamura were the only Rays without a base hit in the game. 

  The Red Sox Tim Wakefield was roughed up for 5 runs on 6 hits in 2.2 innings and took the loss. Justin Masterson was solid in his 2.1 innings of relief. Manny Delcarmen removed all doubt when he came in and surrendered 5 runs in his one third inning of work in the sixth. Kevin Cash homered in his first post season at bat to cut the Rays lead to 5-1.  Dustin Pedroia added a RBI in the seventh and Kevin Youkillis drove home 2 in the eight.  David Ortiz finally picked up his first hit of this ALCS in game 4 as he was 1 of 4 and is now 1 of 15 in the series. Coco Crisp got the start in center field as Jacoby Elsburry (hitless in the LCS) was relegated to pinch hit duty in the 8th.  Game 5 will be Thursday night in Fenway Park as the Sox will take the off day to regroup. It will be a rematch of Game 1 as game 1 winner Dasuike Matsuzaka will face James Shields. First pitch is set for 8:22 PM Eastern time as the Sox will look to come from down 3-1 for the second straight ALCS. 

LCS Preview "08"

Manny Ramirez and the Los Angles Dodgers will travel to Citizens Bank Ballpark for game one of the NLCS with the Philledalphia Phillies on Thursday night. The pitching matchup will pit Cole Hammels of the "Fightin Phils" against the Dodgers Derek Lowe. This should be a very intriguing series to watch. A few things to look at that could determine what happens in this series. The most obvious is the leadoff spot. Both leadoff hitters are the catalysts for their respective teams. As Jimmy Rollins goes so goes the Phillies offense and the same can be said for Rafael Furcal who is back for the post season after missing much of the regular year. The cleanup hitters will do their share as Manny Ramirez and Ryan Howard could be the two best 4 hitters in the NL. A couple of x factors in this series could be Jeff Kent? Will the Dodgers second baseman return after missing the series against the Cubs (my guess is no). Can Pat Burrell of the Phillies continue his torrid hitting he had against the Brewers which included a two homer ballgame. All of these things could play a part in this series.
Pick: In a we have Lidge and you don't pick, Fightin Phills in 7
The ALCS will begin tomorrow at Tropicana Field in St.Pete. As the defending champion Red Sox proved in the ALDS you can throw the regular season head to head out the window. The Rays did win 10 of 18 for those of you who were wandering. A few questions about this series are:
will the Red Sox defense suffer without Mike Lowell and having to shift Kevin Youkillis to third base and playing Mark Kotsay at first? How effective can Josh Beckett be in this injury plagued season? Will anyone be able to hit Jon Lester this October?
A few questions to ponder for the Rays are these: How will Evan Longoria, B.J. Upton and company react to there first trip to the LCS ever? will inexperience rear its ugly head or not? Can the Scott Kazmir the Rays had the first half of the season please stand up?
Pick: In a we don't know any better pick, Rays in 7!!