06 October 2011

2011 MLB Playoff Update 1

Well, my playoff predictions are already looking bad....

I predicted the Rays to beat the Rangers, and the Diamondbacks to beat the Brewers. I also predicted the Phillies to whoop the Cardinals, and the Tigers to cream the Yankees.

UPDATE 1: So far, in four games, the Texas Rangers have defeated the Tampa Bay Rays. It was a pretty exciting series which saw the Rangers win games two, three, and four, taking both Rays home games and one of two at the Ballpark at Arlington. In game one, the phenom rookie Matt Moore stymied the Texas offense, and actually shut them out over seven innings, 9-0. In game two, the Rangers answered back in a back-and-forth contest, capitalizing on a five-run fourth inning and a big late homer by Mitch Moreland. Game three was the least exciting contest of the series, as Texas outlasted the Rays 4-3, and in game four, Adrian Beltre smacked a record-tying three home runs (tying Reggie Jackson and others) as the Rangers clinched the series 4-3.

UPDATE 2: The Detroit Tigers beat the New York Yankees in a wacky five-game series to clinch their half of the American League Division Series. A Robinson Cano grand slam in game one allowed the Yankees to trounce Detroit 9-3, but the Tigers answered back with victories in games two and three. Game two saw former Diamondbacks pitcher Max Scherzer hold a no-hitter for six innings to beat the Bronx Bombers 5-3, and a Verlander-Sabathia rematch saw the potential AL MVP win 5-4 over the pinstripes in game three. The Yankees victory in the must-win game four 10-1 gave them a record victory - their largest margin of victory in an ALDS in franchise history - to force game five. Game five, which just ended tonight, saw Ivan Nova go just two innings before being removed due to forearm tightness. The Tigers got out to an early lead on back-to-back home runs in the first, and held off a late comeback to win 3-2!

UPDATE 3: The Phillies and Cardinals also got forced into a game five situation on Wednesday, as the Cards' David Freese smacked a huge 2-run home run to center field. Game one of that series saw the Phillies rout the Cardinals 11-6. Game two was a Redbirds come-from-behind victory to win 5-4 against Cliff Lee, and game three was a low scoring affair which saw pinch hitter Ben Francisco launch a three-run bomb to lead the Phillies to victory 3-2. Game five was yet another incredible matchup between former Cy Young winners Roy Halladay and Chris Carpenter. In a 1-0 shutout, the St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Phillies. Chris Carpenter pitched a complete game shutout, and Roy Halladay went 8 innings and gave up just the one run. An epic defeat of the Phillies team won, ironically, by pitching.

UPDATE 4: In the Arizona Diamondbacks and Milwaukee Brewers series, the Brewers took a two-games-to-none lead as they swept the DBacks at Miller Park 4-1 and 9-4 in the first two games. But a magical game three featuring a huge, game-opening grand slam by Paul Goldschmidt - just the fourth rookie to hit a slam in the postseason, and the first Diamondbacks player to ever do it - gave the DBacks life 8-1. A game four in which Chris Young hit two homers and Ryan "Tatman" Roberts launched the Snakes' fourth grand slam in as many consecutive home games (another record) led the Diamondbacks to force a game five 10-6. Game five was a tight, nerve-wracking, extra-inning game where the Brewers finally beat the Diamondbacks 3-2 in the tenth, capped off by a postgame interview which featured Nyjer "Tony Plush" Morgan screaming at the top of his lungs into a live television camera "F*** YEAH! F*** YEAH!" Classy, Brew Crew, classy.

Thus, the Championship Series will feature:
The Detroit Tigers vs. the Texas Rangers (Go Tigers)
The St. Louis Cardinals vs. the Milwaukee Brewers (Go Cardinals)

No comments:

Post a Comment