DJ_Midnite
October 6th, 2004, 18:34
I'm ganna put this under the personal works section since I am aspiring to be some type of sports writer and this is an article I am writing for my school newspaper. Any criticizm is very welcome since I know this is not my best work since I had to cut it up a bit and I wish I could have had more time to work on it (Only had 3 days)
Playoff Predictions
By: Blaise Collins
The playoff's are now set in stone for the 2004 season. The AL the top teams this year are the Anaheim Angels led by Vlad "the impaler" Guerrero, the Boston Red Sox with as many runs as they have hairstyles, the New York Yankees... Sadly that is enough said , and Johan Santana carrying the entire Minnesota Twins squad on his back. As for the NL we're looking at the indestructible force known as the St. Louis Cardinals, the surprise LA Dodgers, the Houston Astros led by a knew killer B in Carlos Beltran, and the old wise men known as the Atlanta Braves. Many sports analysts are calling this one of the most exciting post seasons in recent memory and I can not disagree on that point. The twists in the roads for everyone to get to this point kept fans on the edge of their seat with the exception of St. Louis and Minnesota fans, who respectively ran away with their divisions (St. Louis by 13 games, Minnesota by 9.5 games) which had those fans leaned back in their seats and waiting for October for a good portion of the regular season.
This is how I see the 2 ALDS games playing out: Due to a rare and horrible mistake by Angels manager Mike Scioscia in pitching normally number 3 starter Jarrod Washburn in game 1 of the ALDS and this will put them behind early and give Boston a huge advantage. Boston in 3. On to the Yanks taking on the Twins. I see this as a very hard to call series. With Santana pitching game one this is all but wrapped up for the Twins in game 1, but it's the rest of the series the Twins should worry about. I don't see the rotation being good enough for the Twins to take it to the Yankees consistently good hitting line-up. Yankees take this in 5.
As for NLDS games, I see this a bit more clear cut to call, If I were a betting man, This is where I'd put my money. Let's take a look at the Astros taking on the Braves. The Braves, you may argue, have great experience in the post season. But with experience comes age, One of the few things the Braves lead the Major Leagues in this year. Carlos Beltran will lead the Astros in the offensive department with a little help from his fellow "Killer B's" Jeff Bagwell, Lance Berkman, and an aging but still solid Craig Biggio. As for pitching, I don't think Clemens has looked this good since I was born! The man has been as consistent and dominating as ever this year. With a young squad under his belt in Roy Oswalt and Brandon Backe. I see this one going to the Astros in 4. Moving on to a much simpler contest in the Cardinals taking on the Dodgers, this game is simply a slugfest and a matter of which pitchers will hold off runs longer. I think that with the steady staff that the Cardinals have that the Dodgers will have trouble reaching the ridiculous amounts of runs that I see Albert Pujols, Larry Walker, and Scott Rolen will be putting up in this series. Cardinals should breeze through in 3.
This is possibly the most exciting match up in recent memory with the Red Sox and Yankees fighting it out for a chance at the World Series (This of course if the Red Sox and Yankees get to the ALCS). I believe that this match up is more uneven than past years, But the rivalry always bring intangibles to the table. This is nothing to worry about if your the Red Sox though. With a deep bullpen for the first time in a long time and a Pair of aces pitching in the rotation this should be tough but doable order for the Bo Sox. The Yankees are rumored to be starting Kevin Brown this post season which in my opinion is plain stupidity after the massacre the Sox put him through in one inning of play when they last met up with Brown. This shows how bad there rotation is other than Mussina, and, with the exception of Mariano Rivera, there bullpen isn't as impressive as it's been in years past. I see the Red Sox taking this in 6.
The NLCS will be yet another good match up and I could see this game going either way really. With the offense of both teams being the best it's been in recent club history I think this will be a battle of the pitchers. With Chris Carpenter being brought back from injury for this series I think this will give the Cardinals the upper hand in this series since this gives them a steady 3 pitchers that are better than average (Matt Morris and Woody Williams had 131 strike outs each, 48 more than anyone who could fill the number 3 slot for Houston). With Clemens and Oswalt being a 2 man show for the Astros I don't think they will have the stamina to stop the slugging ability of the Cardinals outstanding line-up. The Cardinals will take this in 7 games.
Now for the biggest game of them all, The World Series. Sighting my predictions this will be the St. Louis Cardinals taking on the Boston Red Sox. This game will be tougher to predict than any of the games prior to this. With both teams having line-ups known for the long ball (The Sox projected line-up combining for 208 Homers and the Cardinals projected line-up hitting a total of 203 during the regular season). I think that this game is going to be a slugfest. With pitchers pitching on 3 days rest in some cases and guys getting more work than they've ever gotten during a season I don't see many pitchers duels coming out of this. I tell you that to lead you into what I see the key to this series for both teams is. The bullpen. Red Sox have boasted a very deep bullpen this season and it grew this post season with Derek Lowe. While Lowe is a good starter, Lets not forget that he also had a 42 save season in 2000. I believe with a deep bullpen, the Red Sox will take the World Series in 7.
Playoff Predictions
By: Blaise Collins
The playoff's are now set in stone for the 2004 season. The AL the top teams this year are the Anaheim Angels led by Vlad "the impaler" Guerrero, the Boston Red Sox with as many runs as they have hairstyles, the New York Yankees... Sadly that is enough said , and Johan Santana carrying the entire Minnesota Twins squad on his back. As for the NL we're looking at the indestructible force known as the St. Louis Cardinals, the surprise LA Dodgers, the Houston Astros led by a knew killer B in Carlos Beltran, and the old wise men known as the Atlanta Braves. Many sports analysts are calling this one of the most exciting post seasons in recent memory and I can not disagree on that point. The twists in the roads for everyone to get to this point kept fans on the edge of their seat with the exception of St. Louis and Minnesota fans, who respectively ran away with their divisions (St. Louis by 13 games, Minnesota by 9.5 games) which had those fans leaned back in their seats and waiting for October for a good portion of the regular season.
This is how I see the 2 ALDS games playing out: Due to a rare and horrible mistake by Angels manager Mike Scioscia in pitching normally number 3 starter Jarrod Washburn in game 1 of the ALDS and this will put them behind early and give Boston a huge advantage. Boston in 3. On to the Yanks taking on the Twins. I see this as a very hard to call series. With Santana pitching game one this is all but wrapped up for the Twins in game 1, but it's the rest of the series the Twins should worry about. I don't see the rotation being good enough for the Twins to take it to the Yankees consistently good hitting line-up. Yankees take this in 5.
As for NLDS games, I see this a bit more clear cut to call, If I were a betting man, This is where I'd put my money. Let's take a look at the Astros taking on the Braves. The Braves, you may argue, have great experience in the post season. But with experience comes age, One of the few things the Braves lead the Major Leagues in this year. Carlos Beltran will lead the Astros in the offensive department with a little help from his fellow "Killer B's" Jeff Bagwell, Lance Berkman, and an aging but still solid Craig Biggio. As for pitching, I don't think Clemens has looked this good since I was born! The man has been as consistent and dominating as ever this year. With a young squad under his belt in Roy Oswalt and Brandon Backe. I see this one going to the Astros in 4. Moving on to a much simpler contest in the Cardinals taking on the Dodgers, this game is simply a slugfest and a matter of which pitchers will hold off runs longer. I think that with the steady staff that the Cardinals have that the Dodgers will have trouble reaching the ridiculous amounts of runs that I see Albert Pujols, Larry Walker, and Scott Rolen will be putting up in this series. Cardinals should breeze through in 3.
This is possibly the most exciting match up in recent memory with the Red Sox and Yankees fighting it out for a chance at the World Series (This of course if the Red Sox and Yankees get to the ALCS). I believe that this match up is more uneven than past years, But the rivalry always bring intangibles to the table. This is nothing to worry about if your the Red Sox though. With a deep bullpen for the first time in a long time and a Pair of aces pitching in the rotation this should be tough but doable order for the Bo Sox. The Yankees are rumored to be starting Kevin Brown this post season which in my opinion is plain stupidity after the massacre the Sox put him through in one inning of play when they last met up with Brown. This shows how bad there rotation is other than Mussina, and, with the exception of Mariano Rivera, there bullpen isn't as impressive as it's been in years past. I see the Red Sox taking this in 6.
The NLCS will be yet another good match up and I could see this game going either way really. With the offense of both teams being the best it's been in recent club history I think this will be a battle of the pitchers. With Chris Carpenter being brought back from injury for this series I think this will give the Cardinals the upper hand in this series since this gives them a steady 3 pitchers that are better than average (Matt Morris and Woody Williams had 131 strike outs each, 48 more than anyone who could fill the number 3 slot for Houston). With Clemens and Oswalt being a 2 man show for the Astros I don't think they will have the stamina to stop the slugging ability of the Cardinals outstanding line-up. The Cardinals will take this in 7 games.
Now for the biggest game of them all, The World Series. Sighting my predictions this will be the St. Louis Cardinals taking on the Boston Red Sox. This game will be tougher to predict than any of the games prior to this. With both teams having line-ups known for the long ball (The Sox projected line-up combining for 208 Homers and the Cardinals projected line-up hitting a total of 203 during the regular season). I think that this game is going to be a slugfest. With pitchers pitching on 3 days rest in some cases and guys getting more work than they've ever gotten during a season I don't see many pitchers duels coming out of this. I tell you that to lead you into what I see the key to this series for both teams is. The bullpen. Red Sox have boasted a very deep bullpen this season and it grew this post season with Derek Lowe. While Lowe is a good starter, Lets not forget that he also had a 42 save season in 2000. I believe with a deep bullpen, the Red Sox will take the World Series in 7.