On Saturday night, the Chicago Cubs’ postseason struggles continued as the Los Angeles Dodgers completed the 3-game sweep with a 3-1 victory at Dodger Stadium. This makes it 101 years since the Cubs won a World Series. The North Side has not 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 certainly have to be better than this if the Cubbies have any hope, at least as far as October is concerned. Saturday’s loss marked the ninth straight postseason loss for the Cubs, who were also 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 be swept in their opening playoff series.
Damn or no curse, the Cubs played horribly. They were outscored by the Dodgers 20-6, an embarrassing statistic for one of the most versatile offenses in the National League.
The surprise of the Cubs sweep shows that almost anything can happen in baseball, especially in October. It is too difficult to know who will be victorious these days. Just take a look at the many wild card teams that have won the World Series from each league over the past two decades. That number is staggering. That said, it has inspired me to make my own postseason predictions this year.
The ALDS series and one NLDS series have not yet been completed. The ALCS, NLCS and the World Series will take place in the coming weeks throughout this month. Here are my predictions on what is 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 injuries all season and will return to the mound tonight in the postseason. Beckett was 4-0 in October 2007 and his postseason starts over the past 8 years with the Marlins and now with the Red Sox have earned him the honor of being called the best postseason pitcher of this millennium. Expect Beckett to return to glory tonight as his arm will carry the Red Sox past the Angels and into his fifth ALCS appearance in the past 10 years.
ALDS, White Sox / Rays: Tampa Bay leads this series 2-0 with Game 3 taking place tonight in Chicago. Matt Garza confronts John Danks. Garza has been exceptional for the Rays all season and Danks has been mediocre at best against the Rays in ’08. Rookie sensation Evan Longoria has made the difference in the first two games of this series. Don’t expect it to be any different in the third game. The Rays lineup comes to you 1-9 and it never stops. Longoria is hitting .571 with 2 home runs and 3 RBIs so far in October. Longoria and the rest of the Rays’ mammoth offense will be too much for the White Sox pitching staff tonight. The Rays get the sweep and make their first ALCS appearance.
NLDS, Brewers / Phillies: Philadelphia leads this series 2-1. The Brewers salvaged a victory Saturday night, but will face Joe Blanton, an Oakland acquisition midseason, on Sunday. Blanton hasn’t lived up to the expectations of Phillies fans and expects him to fight Milwaukee. Blanton doesn’t play well against Brewer’s hitters like the great man and slugger, Prince Fielder. However, a powerful offense by the Phillies will still be too much for the Brew-Crew to match. Expect this series to end tonight, Phillies at 4. The bats of 1B Ryan Howard and 2B Chase Utley will lead the Fightin ‘Phills.
ALCS, Red Sox / Rays: The key to this series is home-court advantage, which the Rays have. The Rays have been magnificent at home, with a winning percentage over .750 in the regular season. The Red Sox couldn’t buy a victory at Tropicana Field in ’08, 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 they were able to win there more often than the Red Sox at Tampa Bay. I hope this series reaches 7 full games. The home 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 become one of the best 7-game playoff series America has seen in more than 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 acquiring Manny Ramirez on July 31. Ramirez has changed the culture in Los Angeles and made the Dodgers’ offense one of the most productive in the National League. The only offense that 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 get on the mound will get hit. The Phillies have the upper hand here with names like Cole Hamels in the opening games and Brad Lidge closing them out. My prediction: Phillies at 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 corps that is capable of taking 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 counterpart, the National League. This is easy to call. The Rays became the second team (Atlanta Braves) to finish a season in last place and then move on to the following year in first place. The Braves couldn’t get their World Series in ’91, but I do believe that the Rays are a better team than those Braves and, furthermore, they will face a much weaker team than the one the ’91 Braves had to face. The world wants a Cinderella story to have a happy ending, myself included. The Rays are too good of a team for the Phillies to win four different times in seven games. The American League won the All-Star Game, which means the Rays have home-court advantage. Let me remind you once again how great Tampa Bay has been at home this year. My prediction: Damn on an easy 4.
While these predictions come from hours of research on each team, hundreds of regular season games that I have watched and attended this season, and my vast knowledge of the game of baseball (the greatest sport known to man), you will still see these predictions. when the postseason and October are over and get a taste 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. The game has a lot to do with the way this country has grown and prospered. 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 it 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 in which the government made an exception to Sherman’s antitrust (monopoly) laws. The NFL, NBA and NHL had to make arrangements not to violate the infamous laws. To the game of baseball, the rules somehow didn’t apply.