October is in the air and that means the 2010 Major League Baseball postseason is set to get underway. Before the teams take the field to begin the race to 11, we here at The Five wanted to take a look at the upcoming matchups.
#1 Philadelphia Phillies (97-65) vs. #3 Cincinnati Reds (91-71)
Tale of the Tape:
Season Series: 5-2 Philadelphia
Last 30 Games: Philadelphia: 23-7; Cincinnati: 14-16
The Phillies are looking to become the first team since the 1943-1945 St. Louis Cardinals to win 3 straight National League Pennants. Their quest will begin with a tough series against the up and coming Cincinnati Reds.
via USAtoday.com
Philadelphia heads into the postseason as the hottest team in all of baseball. After being just 2 games above .500 on July 21st, the Phils finished the season with a 49-19 record in their final 68 games. While the offense has carried the Phillies in the past, their starting rotation is their strongest suit in 2010 headlined by three bona fide aces in Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt, and Cole Hamels. The trio has combined for a 30-4 record lifetime against the Reds. While Philly’s offense always has the potential to explode, they have suffered through several long scoring droughts throughout the 2010 season. The health of several players including SS Jimmy Rollins and the lack of left handed pitching out of the bullpen could cause problems for the Phillies in October.
Cincinnati is making their first postseason appearance since 1995 and posted their first winning record since 2000 this season. Why the sudden turnaround? Potential NL MVP Joey Votto leads a potent offensive attacked for the Reds highlighted by Votto and OF Jay Bruce from the left side and 2B Brandon Phillips and veteran 3B Scott Rolen from the right. While the Reds starting rotation is young and lacks postseason experience, they do have a lot of talent. Game 1 starter Edison Volquez has had tremendous success against the Phillies lineup in the past. Additionally, Dusty Baker has several left handed options out of the bullpen including 1st time All Star Arthur Rhodes and young flame thrower Alrodis Chapman that could cause issue with the left handed heavy Philadelphia lineup. However, the most telling statistic is that the Reds finished 2010 with a 61-30 record against teams with a losing record and were just 31-40 against winning clubs.
Prediction: Phillies in 4
#2 San Francisco Giants (92-70) vs. #4 Atlanta Braves (91-71)
Tale of the Tape:
Season Series: 4-3 Atlanta
Last 30 games: San Francisco: 20-10; Atlanta: 14-16
It took both of these teams until the final day of the regular season to clinch playoff spots. Atlanta struggled mightily down the stretch and finished the season just 26-23 after Chipper Jones went down with a season ending torn ACL. In addition to Jones, the Braves have lost All Star Martin Prado for the remainder of the postseason, as well as pitchers Jair Jurrjens, Eric O’Flaherty, and Kris Medlen. Atlanta’s remaining players will head into the playoffs led by C Brian McCann and rookie OF Jason Heyward.
via MLB.com
San Francisco returns to the postseason for the first time since 2003. Sporting one of the top starting rotations in baseball (Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Barry Zito, and Jonathan Sanchez), the Giants offense came alive in the second half of the season. Mid season acquisition OF Pat Burrell and rookie C Buster Posey infused new life into San Fran’s offensive attack.
Pitching will rule the day in this series. Both teams have outstanding starting rotations (San Francisco’s mentioned above; Derek Lowe, Tim Hudson, and Tommy Hanson for the Braves) and strong depth in the bullpen. However, Atlanta has limped into the playoffs and this series will come down to pitching and defense and unfortunately for Bobby Cox, this will be the end of the line.
Prediction: Giants in 4
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