MLB Championship Series Preview

AMERICAN LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES

CLEVELAND INDIANS (94-67) vs. TORONTO BLUE JAYS (89-73)

Games 1, 2, 6, and 7 in Cleveland, Ohio

Games 3, 4, and 5 in Toronto, Ontario

Well, I got both AL series wrong, and while it did not surprise me Toronto beat Texas, Cleveland sweeping Boston was a total shock. As I referenced back in the Division Series preview, Cleveland has a bit of a magic vibe going for them. The roster consists of a lot of lesser known players, all doing the little things right for Terry Francona, who continues to prove he is one of the best in the business. Timely hitting, solid starting pitching, and the weapon that is Andrew Miller proved too much for the Red Sox in the division series. Back to Andrew Miller, he will be huge in this series again, and Francona knows how to use him perfectly. As for Toronto, the devastating combination of power and effective starting pitching made them look like they 100-win team people were expecting all year against, quite frankly, and overmatched Texas team. I was wrong about that series. The Blue Jays absolutely blistered Texas pitching all series, and on paper, they should give the Indians’ shaky staff problems as well. But, this Indians team has proved everybody wrong, and what anything means “on paper” is thrown out the window at this stage.

PREDICTION: The Indians magic continues. Francona keeps pushing all the right buttons, and this team of destiny neutralizes Toronto’s power. Cleveland wins the series and never feels seriously threatened. Indians celebrate a return to the World Series, winning the American League pennant in 6 games.

NATIONAL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES

CHICAGO CUBS (103-58) vs. LOS ANGELES DODGERS (91-71)

Games 1, 2, 6, and 7 in Chicago, Ill.

Games 3, 4, and 5 in Los Angeles, Calif.

The Cubs eliminated the Giants in exhilarating fashion, erasing a 5-2 9th inning deficit in Game 4, preventing a winner take all Game 5 in Chicago, while the Dodgers won a Game 5 for the ages in Washington 4-3, with the best pitcher in baseball, Clayton Kershaw, pitching the 9th inning on one days’ rest to close it out. Kershaw won 2 games and got the save in Game 5 of the series, however didn’t pitch all that effectively overall. Whether people want to believe his postseason struggles are real, and have become mental for him, or his back is still bothering him, either way, he did not pitch all that efficiently in the series. My best guess is he pitches Game 3 of the NLCS (at the time of this publishing, the pitching plans for LA weren’t released). The Dodgers’ lineup struggled for stretches of the series, but seemed to come through with big innings at the most opportune time. The Cubs lineup, as a whole, also largely struggled against the Giants. This will be a well-pitched series, even though the Dodgers appear to be thin at the moment. It will come down to whoever pitches better, of course, and who hits more home runs. Both of these teams have big power up and down their lineup.

PREDICTION: The Cubs have no business losing this series. Once again like the division series, all the pressure will be on them as they try to finally get to the top of the mountain, but unlike the Giants, the Dodgers don’t have anywhere close to the postseason pedigree. I truly don’t see how the Cubs are beaten 4 times out of 7 by this Dodgers team. Cubs return to the World Series for the first time since 1945, winning the NLCS in 6 games.