As I write this piece, Game 7 of the NLCS is being played. The San Francisco Giants host the St. Louis Cardinals. The Giants who were on the brink of being eliminated, having been down 3 to 1, have won 2 in a row to tie the series. They were one game from elimination in the last series against the Reds but came back to win the series. The Cardinals have the best record in MLB history in Game 7’s and the Giants are 0-5 in Game 7’s. With that said, the Giants have the momentum. Personally, I want the Giants to win and do believe they will.
In the American League the Tigers, whom swept the Yankees to win the pennant and a spot in the World Series await the winner of this game 7. Before the season began, sports analyst everywhere picked the Tigers to win the division easily. I also picked them to win the central division by a large margin. The Tigers, however, did not spend much time in first place throughout the season. The division was decided in the last two weeks of the season. The White Sox who were first place for most of the season went cold and the Tigers got hot at the right time.
Without knowing who the Tigers will face, I will go ahead and make my predictions now. Ready? This year’s World Series Champions will be the……wait for it………Detroit Tigers. Sorry White Sox fans. As a Cubs fans I know how much it sucks to see your division rival win the World Series. Let me explain why.
The National League team will have home field advantage in the World Series. This will not matter. Both the Oakland A’s (probably the hottest team in baseball, coming into the playoffs) and the Yankees (best record in American League) held the home field advantage against the Tigers. The Tigers were able to beat both teams, including a sweep of the Yankees. The Tigers were able to get hot at the right time. Just like the Giants did two years ago, and the Cardinals did a year ago. The Tigers will be well rested when the series starts on Wednesday and will have Verlander open the Series. He will be followed by Fister, Sanchez and Scherzer. The Tigers can probably pitch Verlander three times, if need be. However, the other three guys have been equally as good in this post season. The Tigers remind me of the White Sox of 2005. They became hot at the right time, had timely hitting and great pitching from their 4 starters. Let us not forget about the offense. The Tigers have Triple Crown winner Cabrera, they have Fielder, Jackson, and ALCS MVP Delmon Young. That’s a tough line up.
I don’t believe either National League team will be able to compete with the Tigers. Neither team’s ace will be able to pitch until game three of the World Series. This is a major disadvantage for the National League Pennant winner. I do not believe that either team has the offense or pitching staff to compete with the Tigers. The Cardinals offense has consisted of only Beltran and Freese. The Giants offense has consisted of Scutaro and Sandoval. There is no doubt that the Giants have a strong bullpen but before today’s game, only Vogelsong has been consistent. Zito was allowed to start and do well, but we know that he can be hit or miss. The Cardinals have had better pitching but have not had good starts from either Garcia or Lynn.
