Baseball Predictions on the Championship Series

The Championship Series for both leagues have been set. For the most part the post-season has stayed true to form as far as baseball predictions go.The first round match-ups looked as though they would be more competitive, but the better teams did prevail.The only major shock in regards to the division series was the relative ease in which the Dodgers disposed of the St. Louis Cardinals. It seems that the dropped fly ball by Matt Holliday in game 2, (would have been the final out) was all that LA needed to seal the deal. Breaking down the league Championship Series is very difficult, because of how evenly these teams match-up with each other.

The NLCS is going to come down to pitching. From top to bottom, the Philadelphia Phillies has a distinct advantage. The addition of Cliff Lee has possibly the most important pick up by any team this season. He has been light out for the Phils, going 7-4 with a 3.39 era. He has been a spark plug for the pitching staff after they had struggled for much of the first half of the year. Cole Hamels didn’t look to be himself for much of the season, but found his groove down the stretch. Adding Lee may have pushed Cole to step up his game.

Many key acquisitions to the Dodgers pitching staff are what helped them hang on to win the division while their bats went cold. Los Angeles was running clear of the pack for most of the season, but found themselves tumbling to a division title as Manny and Company quite hitting. They may have found their stroke again in the Cardinals series, but they will need to step it up a notch against the dangerous Phillies. Ryan Howard’s game tying double in the top of the 9th of game 3 was indicative of how this team scraps and claws for every at bat.

I anticipate a closely contested series. If the Dodgers can get to Lee or Hamels once, and have Wolf and Kershaw hold serve, they may have a shot at taking it in 7 games. If Phily swings the bat they way they are capable of, then the Dodgers will have their hand full.

The Angles exercised the demons with the Boston Red Sox in their ALDS match-up. LA got a key homerun from Torii Hunter in game 1 that propelled them through the rest of the series. Vladamir Guerrero finished off the Sox with a clutch 2 out hit in game 3 that took the air out of Boston for good. The Red Sox didn’t look to be the same gritty team that we are use to seeing year in and year out. Many baseball handicappers had made MLB picks for the Sox to win this series in as little as 3 games. Baseball is a crazy game! In order for the Angels to win their match-up with the New York Yankees they will have to utilize their style of play. They are a small ball type team that likes to move runners through hit and run’s and stolen bases. They will need to score as many runs as possible against the powerhouse lineup of the Yankees. If they can get good starts from Weaver and Lackey when they face New York’s hired guns (Sabathia, Burnett) they may have a chance to take this series in 7.

The 2009 New York Yankees look to be unstoppable! They have scored over 900 runs this year due to a stacked lineup that is strong from the 1-9 spot. The new Yankee Stadium may have helped their insane offensive numbers, but you can’t take away the amount of power that they possess. They had 8 players hit 20 or more homeruns this season which ties a major league record. Derek Jeter leads the way as usual, but Alex Rodriguez looked like he has overcome his label of not being a clutch playoff performer. He hit 2 homeruns and drove in 6 runs in their first round match-up with Minnesota. If the starting pitching holds up it will be hard for any team to stop the Yankees this season. I like the Yankees in 6.

The baseball predictions that I have made for the league Championship series are my opinion. As we all know, making MLB picks is a difficult job because anything can happen. On paper, the Yankees and Phillies are the better teams, but that doesn’t necessarily translate into wins. Regardless of who wins, both of the Championship series should be compelling and full of drama.

Related posts:

1. Yankees Win 2009 World Series-Recap
2. Playoff Baseball Picks Come Down to Wire
3. MLB Predictions: How to Make a Profitable Baseball Pick
4. Sunday Night Baseball: Yankees vs. Red Sox
5. 2009 Divisional MLB Picks

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