BY SCOTT CARSON
sportsnet.ca
After an unusual 163 game season, seven of the eight post-season combatants have punched its playoff ticket in hopes of dethroning the defending champions from Philadelphia. The eighth and final spot will be determined on Tuesday night when the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers play a winner-take-all game at the Metrodome.
SPORTSNET.CA columnist and Blue Jays broadcast third-man-in-the-booth Scott Carson breaks down the four Divisional match ups and provides a non-binding prediction of which teams will live to play another series.
 BOSTON vs. ANAHEIM | TBD vs. NEW YORK | COLORADO vs. PHILADELPHIA | LOS ANGELES vs. ST. LOUIS |
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| CARDINALS ROTATION | DODGERS ROTATION |
| CHRIS CARPENTER | RANDY WOLF |
| ADAM WAINRIGHT | CLAYTON KERSHAW |
| JOEL PINEIRO | CHAD BILLINGSLEY |
SERIES OVERVIEW: The Cardinals won the season series 5-2 and it will be the third time that these franchise have met in the post-season, with the Cardinals having won the two previous meetings (4-2 in the 1985 NLCS and 3-1 in the 2004 NLDS).
There’s a very good chance that the Cardinals will roll into Dodger Stadium and take both games from the hosts. The top two pitchers in their rotation – Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainright – should be neck-and-neck to win the N.L. Cy Young Award and have combined to win 36 games this season. Carpenter is 5-0, 2.20 ERA career against the Dodgers, while Wainright closed out his stellar ’09 campaign going 7-1, 2.29 ERA over his last 11 starts. The Cards’ offence still revolves around future hall of hamer Albert Pujols, who has always hit the Dodgers well (14 HR, 49 RBI in 56 career games). He now has Matt Holliday to help pick up the slack (.353, 13 HR, 55 RBI in 63 games after trade from Oakland).
The Dodgers were forced to ride the Manny Ramirez roller-coaster all season long and despite the distractions they coasted to their fourth post-season appearance in the last six seasons, two in a row under the steady guidance of Joe Torre. The Dodgers’ pitching is a little lean on playoff experience so they may have to hit their way out of this series. Ramirez will be expected to weave more of his post-season magic (28 HR, 74 RBI in 103 career games), but they’ll need big series from James Loney and Andre Ethier, who combined for 196 RBI this season, and a step up from Canadian Russell Martin wouldn’t hurt either.
Torre will need to push all the right buttons for the Dodgers to have a chance.
STATSMAN’S PREDICTION: Cardinals in three. The depth of the St. Louis rotation combined with the booming bats of Pujols and Holliday makes this a recipe for a quick and easy series for the Cards. LA’s only hope is for Manny to go off like he’s done in the past.
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| ROCKIES ROTATION | PHILLIES ROTATION |
| UBALDO JIMENEZ | COLE HAMELS |
| AARON COOK | CLIFF LEE |
| JASON MARQUIS | JOE BLANTON |
SERIES OVERVIEW: This is the most intriguing match-up of the first round with the defending champion Phillies taking on the Rockies, the hottest team in baseball to end the season. Philadelphia won the season series 4-2, although they haven’t faced each other since early August.
For the second time in two seasons, the Rockies got hot at the right time (20-11 in September) and barged into the post-season. The Rockies top two starters – Ubaldo Jimenez and Jorge De La Rosa combined to go 19-5 in the second half, but may be without De La Rosa in the series after he strained his groin in his final regular season start. That may not be a bad thing as the Phillies have him during his career (9.78 ERA in six appearance vs PHI). Veteran Todd Helton is still in the middle of most Colorado rallies along with a rejuvenated Troy Tulowitzki. Keep an eye on Jason Giambi, who salvaged his career in Denver (11 RBI in 19 games after being released by Oakland). He has the most playoff experience on this young team.
The Phillies have all the pieces in place to defend its World Series title, and the addition of Raul Ibanez gives them four players with 30-plus HR and 90-plus RBI. Offensively, the Phillies have the most lethal combination of speed and power among the eight teams still playing. What might ultimately do them in was their strength just a year ago: the bullpen. Closer Brad Lidge was perfect in ’08, saving all 48 opportunities. This year, not so much, having blown 11 saves and seeing his ERA balloon from 1.95 to 7.21. It appears they may have to go with a closer-by-committee approach, which may work in a long regular season but rarely works in the playoffs. It will be interesting to see how Cliff Lee responds to his first post-season action.
STATSMAN’S PREDICTION: Phillies in five. The defending champs just have too many offensive weapons to hold off. While the Rockies run to the playoffs under Jim Tracy made for a compelling story, the Phillies are too strong at the plate.
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| ANGELS ROTATION | RED SOX ROTATION |
| JOHN LACKEY | JOSH BECKETT |
| JERED WEAVER | JON LESTER |
| SCOTT KAZMIR | CLAY BUCHHOLZ |
SERIES OVERVIEW: The Angels won the season series 5-3, but recent post-season encounters have been terribly one-sided in favour of the Red Sox, winning nine of the last 10 ALDS meetings.
The Red Sox come into the series with question marks in their pitching rotation. Josh Beckett missed a start last week due to back spasms, Jon Lester bounced back in his final regular season start after taking a line drive off his knee and Clay Buchholz gave up 13 earned runs over his final two starts, including six home runs. Depending on how this series unfolds, Daisuke Matsuzaka may become a valuable arm. During the season series, Jacoby Ellsbury (.342, HR, 4 RBI) and Jason Bay (.313, 4 HR, 12 RBI) were the offensive catalysts while J.D. Drew (.192, 2 RBI, 7 K) and David Ortiz (.167, RBI, 12 K) left a lot to be desired.
For the Angels, they have to put past quick exits from the post-season, courtesy of the Red Sox, out of their collective memories. Scott Kazmir, acquired from Tampa Bay in late August, may prove to be a valuable pick up with his 6-4 record and 3.05 ERA in 13 career starts at Fenway Park. Jered Weaver was very effective this season against the Red Sox, allowing just one earned run in 13.2 innings over two starts with 12 strikeouts.
At the plate, Howie Kendrick (.379, HR, 7 RBI) and Torii Hunter (.367, 3 HR, 9 RBI) swung the big sticks, while Vladimir Guerrero (.211, HR, RBI) and Kendry Morales (.200, 0 RBI, 12 K) didn’t fare so well. The Angels and their up-tempo offence could run wild against the plodding Red Sox.
STATSMAN’S PREDICTION: Angels in five. Having seen the Red Sox first-hand over the last week when they were swept by the Blue Jays, and knowing that the Angels have rallied together following the death of Nick Adenhart in the spring, the Angels seem to be the more solid pick.
| BOSTON vs. ANAHEIM | TBD vs. NEW YORK | COLORADO vs. PHILADELPHIA | LOS ANGELES vs. ST. LOUIS |
