By Aaron M Smith
If Charles Dickens was here, I think he would love the upcoming 2010 American League Championship Series. This ALCS features a Tale of Two Cities if you will.. First you have the city/team that is excited to be here ( Texas Rangers). Then you have the city/team that expected to be here (New York Yankees). Both teams took different routes to get here. The Yankees swept the Minnesota Twins, while the Texas Rangers erased the Tampa Bay Rays in the maximum 5 games. Let’s take a look at both teams:
New York Yankees:
Let’s face it – this team was supposed to be here. With a strong lineup led by MVP candidate – Robinson Cano, the Yankees will need to rely on its starting pitching to help them get past the Texas Rangers. CC Sabathia looked good in Game 1 vs. the Twins and will get the start in Game 1 of the ALCS. After the Sabathia, expect Andy Pettite, Phil Hughes and A.J. Burnett to follow. How effective will Burnett be after struggling for most of September? Pettite looked great in Game 2, ,but how much was Pettite and how much was a struggling Minnesota Twins lineup? Kerry Wood has been a star in the Yankees bullpen – can he continue in the ALCS? If the Yankees find themselves down 3-0 or 2-1 hole, do they skip Burnett and bring Sabathia back on short rest?
Texas Rangers:
I read an article today in which they compared the 2010 Texas Rangers to some of the recent Anaheim Angels teams. I completely agree. If Game 5 of the ALDS was any indication, expect this Rangers team to be extremely aggressive on the basepaths. Add in the fact that Jorge Posada threw out less than 18% of baserunners attempting to steal this year and it is a recipe for disaster for Yankee pitchers. The Rangers will send C.J. Wilson to the mound in Game 1 and they were 24-9 in games Wilson started this season. Colby Lewis will start in Game 2 and ace Cliff Lee will take the mound in Game 3. One of the downsides to taking the Rays in 5 – Lee had to pitch twice. With Lee starting in Game 3, Lee should be in line to pitch Game 7 – if necessary. Josh Hamilton was 2 for the series against the Rays. Are the ribs still bothering him or is he just trying to get back in the swing of things? Elvis Andrus wrecked havoc on the Rays in Game 5 and really set the tone for the Rangers. Will he continue to thrive in the ALCS? Will the Rangers starting pitching hold up?
Prediction: Sticking with the unexpected – the Rangers in 7 games.
Have a prediction? Let’s hear it.
Chas makes a good point about Girardi maybe having to “pander” to high paid players. This might be apples to oranges, but the other night Texas scored two runs without getting a ball out of the infield. A big part of that was a sacrifice bunt by Mitch Moreland. Moreland is no Texieria or Rodriguez or, for that matter anybody on the Yankees. He might not even get into the lineup for the Yankees, but he did what Ron Washington and the Rangers needed. With a runner on second, would the Yankees sacrifice?
The same thing with the guy who took second on the fly ball. He took what was available. I am not sure the Yanks would do that. It is almost as if there is a degree of difficulty to the Yankees.
Casey: Smitty actually made the pandering suggestion first. As far as the other stuff goes, Moreland is their #9 hitter. Brett Gardner is the Yankees’ #9 hitter. Yesterday, in the 6th inning, with Granderson on second and no outs, Gardner bunted him to third.
Throughout this postseason, particularly in game 5 vs. the Rays, the Rangers have proven to be better at some of those little things that involved speed, hustle and heads-up play than the Yankees. I certainly agree with you on that, but part of it has to do with what your skill set is, and the Rangers have more team speed than the Yankees.
Let’s not forget what Johnny Damon did, when he stole two bases on one play, in last year’s World Series. I realize Damon isn’t there anymore, but the team isn’t that decidedly different from last year. Gardner, Jeter and Granderson are capable of that “taking what’s there” mentality. The difference with the Rangers is that they also have two legitimate power hitters (Hamilton and Cruz) who are capable of that too.
Smitty: I wasn’t really advocating the kid gloves treatment. I was just trying to explain what I think Girardi’s mentality is. That said, I’m not sure that I would have done things differently. Teixeira-ARod-Cano is a pretty impressive 3-4-5, just as Cano-ARod-Teixeira is. Despite a down year, Tex still had a high OBP and hit over 30 homers, so I don’t think they were suffering by sticking it out with him. But, your original point is a good one that the injury made it easier to shake up the lineup.
Jeter will definitely take what is there.
Any guesses as to what Girardi just said in his visit to the mound?
Chas – it looks like they have a new ball girl.
What is the record for the number of intentional walks issued during a single playoff game?
Sing along y’all!: https://kids.niehs.nih.gov/lyrics/texas.htm
Time to stop and pay respect at the altar of Chas. 🙂