Playoff Preview
As the regular season (thankfully) winds down, Sox fans around the nation are anxiously looking at probable playoff matchups. If the playoffs started today, the 4 A.L. teams in the postseason would be the Sox, the Yankees, the Tigers, and the Rangers. While most sox fans are optimistic that this years team can make a deep postseason run, there are obviously easier ways to get to October then others. Here is one fans analysis of the teams and how they stack up.
The Yankees: The classic post-season matchup. It’s every sox fans dream to beat the Yankees in the ALCS, sending us to the Fall Classic and sending A-Rod and Jeter to the Golf Course. Historically, the Yankees have been a team to avoid in the post-season; as I’m sure any Yankee fan you know will willingly tell you. This year however, the Yankees don’t scare me, and they sure don’t scare the Sox. The Sox have dominated their pin-stripe rivals in the regular season, sweeping both series at Yankee Stadium, a positive sign. Yes, the Yankees have Jeter and A-Rod (when he’s not busy playing poker) and Teixeira, etc. Offense only gets you so far in the post-season. Everyone knows that deep playoff runs revolve around having good pitching, and the Yankees have none. They have 1 quality starter in C.C Sabathia, and the Sox have had his number all season. After C.C comes a “stellar” mixture of Ivan Nova, A.J. Burnett, Freddy Garcia and last, but not least, Bartolo Colon. The Yankees have no pitching, and personally, I would be confident going into a series against them in October.
The Tigers: Detroit has flown under the radar all season, mainly because the A.L. Central has been the biggest disappointment on the MLB season so far. Usually a three-headed monster, this division has been mediocre to date, with all three teams underwhelming opponents. The only thing that should scare the Sox is Tigers ace and probable Cy Young Winner Justin Verlander. This dude is nasty. Every time he goes to the mound, you find yourself thinking that a no-hitter is legitimately possible. He throws gas, hitting triple digits in the 8th and 9th innings. While Detroit’s offense has potential ability to do some damage, age is a factor, and the long season could play a factor in the fatigue of some of their aging sluggers. If I had to choose one team to play, I would have to chose Detroit. Sure, you probably forfeit the game Verlander pitching, but after that, the Sox have the clear advantage.
The Rangers: As every Sox fan will tell you, the Rangers are a pain in the ass. They have been all season, and not just to the Sox. The Rangers are scary. I mean, they really scare me. Their offense absolutely crushes the ball all over the sauna of a ballpark in Arlington. Kinsler, Andrus, Hamilton, Young, Cruz, and Napoli are all major threats, and Nolan Ryan has that pitching staff throwing heat. The Rangers are a serious threat to the Sox postseason run, and I can only hope we don’t cross paths.
