Crazy Finish, Season Wrap-up and Playoffs Preview

Let me start this post by apologizing if I don't sound as motivated to post this week because, as some of you may know, the Red Sox lost the wild card yesterday after a record of 7 wins and 20 losses in the month of September.  The Red Sox and Rays entered Wednesday tied for the wildcard lead in the American League.  The Red Sox were leading 3-2 over the Baltimore Orioles and Papelbon came in to close out the ninth.  The Orioles eventually tied and won the game on a couple of two out hits striking a crushing blow to the Sox's season.  Meanwhile the Rays had come back from a 7-0 deficit against the Yankees and in the bottom of the 12th inning Evan Longoria hit a walk-off homerun to send the Rays into the playoffs.  I just want to start by saying that I'm not mad nor surprised at these turn of events due to they injuries the pitching staff sustained and the key loss of Kevin Youkilis down the stretch.  I am however upset that we paid Carl Crawford 14 million dollars this year to hit a measly .255 with 56 RBIs and the fact that Lackey was supposed to help our rotation, instead had a 6.41 ERA (plus he strikes me as just a bad person to have on a team).

There has been a lot of debate surrounding the MVP of the American League and whether it can be awarded to a pitcher even though there is already a Cy Young award.  In my opinion, for a player to be determined as the most valuable to their team you should take the candidate and replace him with a mediocre player and see if the team would still be where they are at the end of the season.  Due to my interpretation of the award I would give it to Michael Young in the AL and Ryan Braun in the NL.  Michael YOung not only hit .338 with 106 RBIs for the Rangers but he also helped fill many gaps in the infield they had due to injury throughout the season.  Ryan Braun for the Brewers hit .332 with 33 homeruns and 111 RBIs and was a key contributor down the stretch for Milwaukee.  The Cy Young award in both leagues has a clear cut winner in my opinion with Justin Verlander in the AL and Ian Kennedy in the NL.

The playoffs this year should be interesting due to the last second changes in the Wild Card races.  I am predicting that the Rays and Tigers will meet in the American League Championship series with the Rays beating the Rangers, because the Rays are coming in Red hot and ready for the playoffs, and the Tigers beating the Yankees because of their superior pitching.  The National League Division series' should be easier to predict, I have the Brewers beating the Diamondbacks and the Phillies beating the Cardinals.  In the ALCS it will be close and most likely go seven games, but I'm giving the Rays the edge because they can match up with the Tigers pitching wise and have better clutch hitters (such as Longoria, Matt Joyce, and Dan Johnson). In the NLCS I'm predicting the Phillies will win in five games due to their outstanding pitching and the Brewers lack of a solid, reliable rotation.  Now on to the World Series, I guessing that the Phillies will win it in six games due in large part to their solid pitching rotation and experienced bullpen.  This experienced pitching staff will know how to pitch to Longoria, Joyce, and Johnson and not allow them the chance to perform in clutch situations.

Although the Red Sox, A's, or Giants didn't make the playoffs this year my love of baseball and excitement for the playoffs has not been dampened.  Until next time, I hope you enjoyed and will continue to enjoy my blog. See ya! 

A Sports journalist life is the life for me

As this is my first blog post I will explain what will be happening in this blog.  My aspiration in life is to move to Boston and cover all Boston sports in either a magazine or newspaper.  My Dad was a Red Sox fan in the Carl Yastrzemski and Ted Williams era and I have been brought up to love not only the Red Sox, but the Boston culture as well.  I'm sad to say i have never been to Boston or Fenway park, but my Dad has been and sold me on the sheer beauty and history of the place.  In this blog i will not only be covering Boston sports, but also my thoughts on the Bay area teams such as the Warriors, Giants, A's, 49ers, and Raiders.  I am hoping this blog is the first step on the path to my dream life and a good way to get my ideas out.  Until we meet again, enjoy.