Pittsburgh Pirates vs. St. Louis Cardinals
Pittsburgh Pirates (94-68)
Overview:
After not making the postseason in two decades, the Pirates have had a great season making the postseason and winning the Wild Card game. It is one of the best stories this season. They have done it by having a great mix of veterans and young players.
Hitting:
R: 634 (20th) AVG: .245 (22nd) OBP: .313 (17th) HR: 161 (14th)
The Pirates have a mediocre offense. They are anchored by a legitimate superstar in outfielder Andrew McCutchen. They did add some veterans before and during the season that will help in the playoffs: former MVP and first basemen Justin Morneau, outfielder Marlon Byrd, and catcher Russell Martin. Byrd and Martin had big homeruns in the Wild Card game. These veterans are gamers and will be invaluable to the Pirates in this series. The big wild card for the Pirates is slugger, third basemen Pedro Alvarez. He batted only .233 but hit 36 homeruns. He is either feast or famine. Nevertheless, he has the kind of power that can change a series.
Pitching:
ERA: 3.26 (3rd) WHIP: 1.23 (7th) K: 1,261 (9th) BB: 515 (21st)
The Pirates have deep pitching. Their starting rotation has a good combination of veterans who have rejuvenated their careers in Pittsburgh (AJ Burnett and Francisco Liriano) and promising, young pitchers (e.g. Gerrit Cole). Moreover, they have a strong bullpen with setup man Mark Melancon and closer Jason Grilli having incredible years. Burnett and Liriano have pitched like aces at times this year and the Pirates will need them to lead the way.
St. Louis Cardinals (97-65)
Overview:
The Cardinals are one of the model franchises in baseball. They keep on finding ways to win. They had the guts to let go of franchise first basemen, Albert Pujols, after winning the World Series and they are much better off than if they kept him. The Cardinals do everything right: develop prospects into top players, getting strong contributions from other teams’ castoffs, rejuvenate the careers of veterans, etc.
Hitting:
R: 783 (3rd) AVG: .269 (3RD) OBP: .332 (3rd) HR: 125 (27th)
The Cardinals have one of the best offenses in baseball and do it without hitting a lot of homeruns. They have a very deep lineup that has a great combination of veterans, young superstars, and role players. It is anchored by veteran outfielders Matt Holliday and Carlos Beltran along with superstar catcher Yadier Molina. Unfortunately, rising star Allen Craig is out for the NLDS. Moreover, second basemen Matt Carpenter had a breakout, yet under the radar year batting .318 with a .392 OBP and scored 126 runs. The wild card for the Cardinals is first basemen Matt Adams who will fill in for Allen Craig. In only 296 at bats, Adams has 17 homeruns. He is a bit of a hacker but has a solid batting average at .284.
Pitching:
ERA: 3.42 (5th) WHIP: 1.24 (8th) K: 1,254 (11th) BB: 451 (6th)
The Cardinals have the one true ace in this series with Adam Wainwright who had another spectacular season. He struck out 219 batters this season and only walked 35. He is among the handful of starters who could carry a team to the World Series. The starters behind Wainwright are good but not sure things. Game 2 starter Lance Lynn has solid overall numbers and has his moments of dominance. However, he is inconsistent. Their two most talented pitchers behind Wainwright are Shelby Miller and Michael Wacha. However, the Cardinals have elected not to thrust the young hurlers directly into the pressure of the postseason. Miller had a great rookie season overall. While he was still good in the second half, he was not as dominant as he was in the first half. As such, it is uncertain if he will start Game 4. If the Cardinals are up in the series, they will probably start Miller and save Wainwright for a potential Game 5. The Cardinals bullpen is deep but the end of the games is a little uncertain as they demoted closer Edward Mujica who had 37 saves.
Regular Season Series:
The regular season series was very competitive. The Pirates won the series 10-9. However, the Cardinals won the last 4 games in September when they were playing for the division.
The Matchup:
The Cardinals have a big advantage on offense. However, postseason games tend to be low scoring and depend on timely hitting. As both teams have great pitching, I do not expect it to be a slugfest which would favor the Cardinals. While I like the Pirates depth in pitching over the Cardinals, the postseason is usually about the ace pitchers and the Cardinals have the only true ace in the series. However, Liriano pitched like an ace against the Cardinals this year while Burnett pitched very well. Similar to the regular season, I expect this series to be very competitive.
Prediction:
Toss Up. Cardinals in 5 (Wainwright gives the Cardinals a slight edge in my opinion)
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Atlanta Braves
Los Angeles Dodgers (92-70)
Overview:
The Dodgers had a very unique season. They started off horrible and fell way behind in the standings. Then, they called up phenom Yasiel Puig and started to win at a historic clip to run away with the division. While they were one of the hottest teams in baseball for awhile, they slowed down a bit and only finished 12-15 in September. Moreover, they have had some drama with having to discipline Puig for lazy play.
Hitting:
R: 649 (17th) AVG: .264 (6th) OBP: .326 (9th) HR: 138 (24th)
Yasiel Puig got most of the attention. However, veteran shortstop Hanley Ramirez has played like the superstar he has been in the past. He has been even better than Puig. In addition, veteran first basemen Adrian Gonzalez is not as good as he used to be but has been quietly productive. The Dodgers have a couple of wild cards. The first is Carl Crawford. He has been a top player in the past and a demon on the basepaths. He had a very productive stretch but slowed down a lot in September. He can make a difference in the postseason. Next, Matt Kemp is the biggest wild card in the postseason. At his best, he is as good as any player in the game. He had another injury plagued year. He batted .314 and had a .385 OBP in the 11 games he played returning from injury in September. If he gets hot, he can carry the Dodgers to the World Series.
Pitching:
ERA: 3.25 (2nd) WHIP: 1.23 (6th) K: 1,292 (8th) BB: 460 (9th)
The staff is led by the best pitcher in the game, Clayton Kershaw, who had an all-time great season with a 1.83 ERA and 0.92 WHIP. Zach Greinke is a former Cy Young winner and pitched like it going 15-4 with a 2.63 ERA and 1.11 WHIP. Moreover, import Hyun-Jin Ryu had an excellent rookie season and veteran Ricky Nolasco has pitched very well since they acquired him from the Miami Marlins. The Dodgers clearly have the best staff. They have the best pitcher backed up by another ace and two very good pitchers. Moreover, Kenley Jansen has turned into a top, dominating closer who has Kershaw like numbers out of the pen.
Atlanta Braves (96-66)
Overview:
The Braves were supposed to battle the Washington Nationals for the division. However, the Nationals had a subpar year. As such, the Braves took control early and ran away with the division. The Braves are one of the best young teams in baseball with some of the best young players on both sides of the ball.
Hitting:
R: 688 (13th) AVG: .249 (20th) OBP: .321 (13th) HR: 181 (5th)
The Braves are feast or famine. They hit a lot of homeruns and strike out a lot. No one represents that fact better than outfielder Justin Upton. He started the season hot and looked like the early favorite for MVP. Then, he started to strike out, struggled, and looked pedestrian. The Braves have too many similar players. They have some young players that have all the talent in the world but have yet to develop into stars. The one prospect who has turned into a star is Freddie Freeman who is now their best hitter batting .319 with an .396 OBP, 23 homeruns, and 109 RBIs. Brian McCann has also continued to be one of the best hitting catchers in baseball after starting the season injured. Third basemen Chris Johnson was an afterthought in the Justin Upton trade but has had a career year batting .321. The wild card is Justin Upton who can play like one of the best players in the game when he is hot.
Pitching:
ERA: 3.18 (1st) WHIP: 1.20 (2nd) K: 1,232 (15th) BB: 409 (2nd)
The Braves have the best ERA in best baseball. Naturally, they have a ridiculously deep pitching staff. They lost veteran Tim Hudson during the season and promising starter Brandon Beachy gave limited contribution. They had the depth to make up for the loss production. Young pitchers Kris Medlen, Julio Teheran, and Mike Minor all pitched great and are budding aces. Craig Kimbrel lurks at the back of the bullpen as one of the most dominant closers in the sports. He is having another ridiculous season. However, injuries have taken their toll as the Braves have to resort to starting Freddie Garcia in a potential Game 4. He pitched great in September but is not remotely close to the top pitcher he once was for the Seattle Mariners.
Regular Season Series:
The Braves won the series going 5-2. However, they did not face Clayton Kershaw in any of the games. They faced Zach Greinke once and lost that game. They were 1-1 in the games that Ryu started. Their other 4 wins were against starters who will not start a game in the series.
The Matchup:
It is a terrible matchup for the Braves hitters. They have struggled and struck out against the better pitchers in the league in recent postseasons. Kershaw and Greinke are going to feast. The Braves also depend on homeruns and the Dodgers pitchers do not give up a lot of homeruns. On the other hand, the Braves also have the pitching to shut down the Dodgers. Their pitching will have to lead the way, keep the Dodgers hitters down, and hope that their hitters run into enough pitches to edge out the Dodgers. I have a feeling the Braves’ weaknesses will be exposed again this series. While the Braves have three budding aces, Kershaw and Greinke are proven aces and top pitchers in the sport.
Prediction:
Dodgers in 4. The Dodgers are my pick to win it all. Of course, anything can happen in a short series.
About Pat Wong
Patrick is a contributor for Rookerville. He is an avid sports fan. Before joining Rookerville, he was part of a defunct New York Yankees message board, NYYankeefans, where he was its top poster and was inducted in its Hall of Fame for his contributions. Patrick is also a passionate fan of movies. He has enjoyed reading movie reviews over the years and is excited about the opportunity to review movies.