The way the St. Louis Cardinals finished the 2006, I didn't figure they would last the first round of the playoffs. After almost losing a comfortable lead the last two weeks of the season, I figured the Padres would finish them in four. So when the Cardinals took the first two games of the series, I knew my prediction was wrong. Meanwhile, in the opposite league, I felt that no one would stop the Yankees bats. Even when the Tigers were up 2-1, I still thought the Yankees would come back to win the final two. But good pitching prevailed, and the Yankees can get some rest. George Steinbrenner will spend the off-season pouting, then spending tons of money for another team that lacks chemistry. Now, which direction do the playoffs go?
Since I know more about the National League, I'll start there. While the Cardinals have mediocre pitching, the Mets seem to be hurting in that category at the moment. Manager Willie Randolph expects to tap into the bullpen a lot, so you'll probably see several four and five inning starts. So the Cardinals have the advantage there. However, I think the Mets line-up is a little more balanced. Pujols is a huge threat, but they'll need a couple other guys to step up. If it's a short series, I'd go with the Mets... long series, Cardinals. I say Mets in five.
In the American League, Detroit doesn't have quite the pop that Oakland has in their line-up. However, they've got some major adrenaline flowing after the Yankee series and those young arms will come through. A tough series, but I go Detroit in six.
Those are my predictions for this round of playoffs. But then again, I could be wrong.
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