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October baseball is in full effect! The Orioles are up two games on Detroit after another Tigers bullpen meltdown. The Royals continue surprising the nation with their win over the Angels in game one after a very, very long battle in the Wild Card against the Oakland A’s. This is the time where legends are made and superstars are formed.
Baltimore Orioles v. Detroit Tigers
Baltimore has been a fun team to watch all season. They cruised to an AL East Championship with the Yankees and Red Sox being stuck in first gear for most of the season. The Orioles do not have the intimidating batting order like their opponents, but they do have the depth which means anyone can be the hero for the O’s. They did however, break their team’s postseason record by recording twelve runs in game one. In game two, it was Delmon Young who had a bases-clearing double that gave Baltimore the lead in the eighth inning. The Orioles did their job defending their home field by winning the first two games in Baltimore and now get ready to head to Detroit.
Miguel Cabrera. Justin Verlander. Max Scherzer. All superstars in the league who have not been able to turn that talent into a World Series title in the motor city. Could it be the Tigers lineup is hurting without Prince Fielder being able to provide protection for Cabrera? It has not helped this team, but it is not the cause of them being down two games. This loss has to be placed squarely on the Tigers’ lackluster bullpen. In both games, it was the eighth inning that everything went awry for Detroit. They have a lot of work to get back into this series, but they will have the advantage of being in front of their hometown crowd.
Kansas City Royals vs. Los Angeles Angels
If your team has already been eliminated and you don’t know who to vote for this postseason, try the Royals! Kansas City has not been in the postseason in 29 years and they are definitely making up for lost time. In their Wild Card matchup against Oakland, it took them 12 innings and plenty of bunts to advance to play the Angels. Now they hold a two game lead over the Angels. Their style of play is much different from the power the Angels lineup can have, but it is clearly working! Expect to see Royals manager Ned Yost stick to small ball which means lots of bunts.
The Angels have the best player in baseball, but have underachieved since his debut. The Angels have spent big money, acquiring Albert Pujols, CJ Wilson, and Josh Hamilton through free agency, yet have nothing to show for it. The Angels have only managed to score three runs in this series; the team overall only has ten hits, none by Hamilton or Trout. Not exactly what they were hoping for when they beefed up this lineup for Trout. The Angels will face James Shields in game three which will not help their recent hitting woes.
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. St. Louis Cardinals
This matchup got off to a hot start with a near brawl in the first few innings after Yasiel Puig was hit by a pitch. The excitement did not slow down after that. Clayton Kershaw, the league’s best pitcher, had a complete meltdown coughing up LA’s lead in the seventh inning. Kershaw was cruising along after being given a 4-1 lead in the fourth inning. The game ended up being 10-9 in favor of the Cardinals; not the pitcher’s duel everyone was expecting.
While everyone focused on Kershaw struggling in the postseason again, it was Wainwright who could not get through the fifth inning after giving up six runs. These two teams have history with one another, having met in last year’s National League Championship series. A series that clearly did not sit well with the Dodgers as this game had a lot of jawing between players. The Dodgers have a chance to bounce back as they send their second ace, Zack Greinke, to the mound to face off against Lance Lynn. Lynn has been in these big game situations before and has done fairly well in them.
San Francisco Giants vs. Washington Nationals
The Giants seem to do pretty well on the east coast. First, they knocked off the Pittsburgh Pirates and now they have taken game one in the nation’s capital. The Giants took an early 3-0 lead as Jake Peavy held the Nationals scoreless. He held them hitless until the fifth inning. This was Peavy’s first postseason win despite being a part of the Red Soxs team last season when they won the World Series.
The Nationals had their ace on the mound, Stephen Strausburg, but he ended up taking a loss in his postseason debut. Washington’s defense did not do him any favors with catcher Wilson Ramos allowing a ball to get passed him which gave the Giants a chance to add on a run. The Nationals have Jordan Zimmerman on the mound, a guy Giants’ outfielder Hunter Pence has owned throughout his career.
