MLB Postseason Preview - League Championship Series
The final four. After another wild division round, we have entered the League Championship. A best-of-7 series with a trip to the World Series on the line. Both teams that made the fall classic last year, the Phillies and Astros, are here again. They are joined by two new teams, the Diamondbacks and Rangers, that haven’t made an appearance in the LCS in over a decade. October baseball never fails to deliver incredible moments and these two series are poised to deliver more. Let’s dive in.
American League Championship
Texas Rangers vs. Houston Astros
The Texas Rangers have reached the ALCS for the first time since 2011. They have yet to lose a game this postseason, sweeping the top two teams in the AL in the Orioles and Rays. The pitching has been what has most contributed to their dominance. Going into the postseason, the arms for the Rangers were banged up and unreliable. They have been anything but that so far. Plus, it’s looking like they will get Max Scherzer back. In 4 of their 5 games they have given up 2 or fewer runs. Add that with their incredible offense and you have a team that’s looking very dangerous. Half of their lineup is hitting over .300 this postseason. Texas is ready to roll.
The Houston Astros have reached the ALCS for the 7th consecutive season. It’s a very impressive run that you just have to respect. They were the only team that had a first round bye to advance to the LCS. Yordon Alvarez is on another postseason tear, already with 4 home runs in 4 games. Jose Abreu has added 3 of his own to give the Astros a potent lineup. The pitching is always a strength with this team, as Justin Verlander and Cristian Javier both had great outings in the division series. The back end of the bullpen has locked it down as well. Houston is looking to make their 3rd consecutive World Series appearance.
My prediction - Rangers win in 7 games. The battle of Texas should be a very entertaining series. I think there will be games that finish 11-9 and others that are 2-1. I’m very excited to see how this series plays out. It always adds a bit of extra drama when you have two division rivals face off in a postseason series, especially from the same state in the LCS.
National League Championship
Arizona Diamondbacks vs. Philadelphia Phillies
The Arizona Diamondbacks upset the Dodgers with a sweep in the division series. They dominated from the first pitch and never trailed in the series. They hit well, pitched well, and played good defense. No one expected them to make it this far and you got to tip your cap to how well they played. They, like the Rangers, have yet to lose a postseason game. Corbin Carroll is becoming one of baseball’s brightest young stars on the biggest stage. He leads a sneaky deep lineup that can get big hits at any time. The pitching has also been impressive. They haven’t given up more than 3 runs all postseason. All 3 of their starting pitchers have performed great and the bullpen has shut down any late inning threat thrown at them. They’re a very focused and confident team playing in the franchises first NLCS since 2007.
The Philadelphia Phillies are back in the NLCS for the second straight year. They dominated the Braves in the division series and they are a team built for October glory. Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler have pitched great and don’t sleep on Ranger Suarez who put together two great starts against the best offense in baseball. Those three have a combined ERA of 1.51. Then there’s the offense which has so many guys that contribute I can pretty much name the whole lineup. We all know the heart of soul of this team is Bryce Harper. It looks like he survived an injury scare late in Game 4 of the NLDS and should be ready to go to lead this phanatic group of ballplayers to fight for another shot at a World Series Title.
My prediction - Phillies win in 5. It seems like there’s no slowing down this Phillies team right now. As much as I appreciate how well Arizona has played, I truly think they will meet their match in this round. I honestly love watching the Phillies play in October and without my Dodgers in it (tiny sadness), I can just sit back and enjoy it as a fan.