Post by White Sox GM (Michael) on Sept 7, 2014 18:31:45 GMT -5
Barring any major changes, the Twins and Pirates will be moving on to the League Divisional Round. Here are the matchups:
American League
#1 Oakland Athletics vs. #5 Minnesota Twins
The Twins are currently up 7-5-2, and their lead looks fairly safe for the rest of the day. Congrats to the Detroit Tigers on a great season and a close matchup.
The Oakland Athletics are a powerhouse again. No one batter is an absolute star, but the lineup consists of great power bats - four have cleared 20 home runs on the year, and Chris Carter has an outstanding 36 this season. Despite the low AVG, Carlos Santana is a walk machine, and Kyle Seager continues to impress. The rotation is led by staff aces Hisashi Iwakuma and Lance Lynn and key contributors Jason Vargas and Mat Latos. Most of the starters are not elite strikeout sources, but the bullpen consists of strikeout sources like Shawn Kelley and Darren O'Day.
The Twins and Tigers switched identities last week, as Minnesota led most hitting categories and Detroit had more success from the mound. Although they are not so much of an offensive threat, the Twins have Hunter Pence who is quietly having another terrific season across the board. Chase Utley is still a top option at second base and Adam LaRoche will hit his share of homers. Led by Jeff Samardzija and Chris Archer, the pitching staff has several great options to keep the ERA low and counting stats high. Glen Perkins has been hurt, but he and Hector Rondon get their share of saves. The team is fourth in the AL in both saves and holds.
The A's still have the clear advantage on offense, but pitching is pretty even. If the Twins pitch like they have all season, they will have a shot at upsetting the #1 seed.
National League
#1 Arizona Diamondbacks vs. #4 Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pirates won this week handily against the Mets (13-0-1 as it currently stands), but they will be facing a tough challenge ahead.
The Arizona Diamondbacks are probably the scariest team to play in ODC right now. Andrew McCutchen has had another masterful season, but Arizona also has more heavy hitters in Adrian Beltre, Ryan Braun, and Anthony Rendon. Even though Starlin Castro is expected to miss the rest of the season, the Diamondbacks should be able to absorb the blow considering they have had the NL's best lineup. The pitching is also great. People seem to not realize how good of a year Johnny Cueto is having, and Madison Bumgarner has been his usual self. Still, the rotation is not without problems - Justin Verlander kinda sucks, Danny Duffy may be injured, and Drew Smyly is going to be shut down soon on account of an innings limit. The bullpen is fantastic, too, with four saves contributors and the beast that is Dellin Betances.
The Pirates came in to the season as a non-contender, but their success should come as no surprise now. Billy Hamilton is an elite basestealer already, Yasiel Puig is a legitimate star, and Todd Frazier is a great contributor across all categories. Frazier, Lucas Duda, and Nolan Arenado are all corner infielders with good power. The pitching is really terrific. Julio Teheran, Zack Greinke, James Shields, Yordano Ventura, and Zack Wheeler is a 1-5 that is not topped by many. The bullpen has a high ERA, but Trevor Rosenthal gets a ton of saves and Wade Davis balances out the relatively weak rate stats with a sparkling ERA well under 1.
Much like Minnesota, Pittsburgh has to pitch well to keep pace with the #1 seed. If the Pirates can pitch as they did in the Wild Card round and hit reasonably well, the matchup will go down to the wire.
American League
#1 Oakland Athletics vs. #5 Minnesota Twins
The Twins are currently up 7-5-2, and their lead looks fairly safe for the rest of the day. Congrats to the Detroit Tigers on a great season and a close matchup.
The Oakland Athletics are a powerhouse again. No one batter is an absolute star, but the lineup consists of great power bats - four have cleared 20 home runs on the year, and Chris Carter has an outstanding 36 this season. Despite the low AVG, Carlos Santana is a walk machine, and Kyle Seager continues to impress. The rotation is led by staff aces Hisashi Iwakuma and Lance Lynn and key contributors Jason Vargas and Mat Latos. Most of the starters are not elite strikeout sources, but the bullpen consists of strikeout sources like Shawn Kelley and Darren O'Day.
The Twins and Tigers switched identities last week, as Minnesota led most hitting categories and Detroit had more success from the mound. Although they are not so much of an offensive threat, the Twins have Hunter Pence who is quietly having another terrific season across the board. Chase Utley is still a top option at second base and Adam LaRoche will hit his share of homers. Led by Jeff Samardzija and Chris Archer, the pitching staff has several great options to keep the ERA low and counting stats high. Glen Perkins has been hurt, but he and Hector Rondon get their share of saves. The team is fourth in the AL in both saves and holds.
The A's still have the clear advantage on offense, but pitching is pretty even. If the Twins pitch like they have all season, they will have a shot at upsetting the #1 seed.
National League
#1 Arizona Diamondbacks vs. #4 Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pirates won this week handily against the Mets (13-0-1 as it currently stands), but they will be facing a tough challenge ahead.
The Arizona Diamondbacks are probably the scariest team to play in ODC right now. Andrew McCutchen has had another masterful season, but Arizona also has more heavy hitters in Adrian Beltre, Ryan Braun, and Anthony Rendon. Even though Starlin Castro is expected to miss the rest of the season, the Diamondbacks should be able to absorb the blow considering they have had the NL's best lineup. The pitching is also great. People seem to not realize how good of a year Johnny Cueto is having, and Madison Bumgarner has been his usual self. Still, the rotation is not without problems - Justin Verlander kinda sucks, Danny Duffy may be injured, and Drew Smyly is going to be shut down soon on account of an innings limit. The bullpen is fantastic, too, with four saves contributors and the beast that is Dellin Betances.
The Pirates came in to the season as a non-contender, but their success should come as no surprise now. Billy Hamilton is an elite basestealer already, Yasiel Puig is a legitimate star, and Todd Frazier is a great contributor across all categories. Frazier, Lucas Duda, and Nolan Arenado are all corner infielders with good power. The pitching is really terrific. Julio Teheran, Zack Greinke, James Shields, Yordano Ventura, and Zack Wheeler is a 1-5 that is not topped by many. The bullpen has a high ERA, but Trevor Rosenthal gets a ton of saves and Wade Davis balances out the relatively weak rate stats with a sparkling ERA well under 1.
Much like Minnesota, Pittsburgh has to pitch well to keep pace with the #1 seed. If the Pirates can pitch as they did in the Wild Card round and hit reasonably well, the matchup will go down to the wire.
