Philly Front Office

The sports world rejoiced yesterday as the $340m Mets met their demise at the hands of the monetarily challenged Marlins. So instead of the most expensive series of all time between New York And LA, we have the couldn’t-even-beat-the Pirates-to-save-their-season Reds off to face the Dodgers with the winner getting to play the good guys in Philadelphia. For all those in Queens begging for a 1 game playoff today, the Arizona Diamondbacks sure wish you played a real game against the Braves on the last day of last season. Anyway, let’s take a look at what should be a great week in baseball. I’ll update this as more happens.

Broadcast Schedule:

• Tuesday, September 30
  • 1p – Detroit at Cleveland – Game 1 – ESPN
  • 3p – San Diego at Chicago – Game 1 – ABC
  • 6p – Boston at New York – Game 1 – ESPN
  • 9p – Cincinatti at Los Angeles – Game 1 – ESPN
• Wednesday, October 1
  • 1p – Detroit at Cleveland – Game 2 – ESPN
  • 3p – San Diego at Chicago – Game 2 – ABC
  • 6p – Boston at New York – Game 2 – ESPN
  • 9p – Cincinatti at Los Angeles – Game 2 – ESPN
• Thursday, October 2 (if necessary)
  • 1p – Detroit at Cleveland – Game 3 – ESPN
  • 3p – San Diego at Chicago – Game 3 – ABC
  • 6p – Boston at New York – Game 3 – ESPN
  • 9p – Cincinatti at Los Angeles – Game 3 – ESPN

AL: Detroit (6) at Cleveland (3)

• Game 1: Tarik Skubel vs Gavin Williams
• Game 2: Undecided vs Tanner Bibee
• Game 3: Undecided vs Slade Cecconi

Yes, we’d like some more Tigers and Guardians please. Thank you. The unexpected race in the AL Central captivated baseball over the last 2 weeks and the underdog ended up winning. Normally you would give the edge to the team that just came back, but Tarik Skubel is about to win his 2nd Cy Young and can easily take Game 1 to flip this series. Jose Ramirez is the star here. The Guardians will go as far as he takes them. Winner gets the Mariners.

NL: San Diego (5) at Chicago (4)

• Game 1: Nick Pivetta vs Matthew Boyd
• Game 2: Dylan Cease vs Undecided
• Game 3: Yu Darvish vs Undecided

These two teams have been circling each other for about a month. This has been Chicago’s best team in years but because Milwaukee ran away with the division, no one is really paying attention to them. The Padres have been kind of just around in the second half. The only ones on the team who seem to be doing anything are the guys they brought in at the deadline but their best player, Ramon Laureano (yes, he’s been their best player) is going to miss this series. That’s a devastating blow. They do have the bullpen advantage though. If they can get the lead, Miller, Suarez, and the bunch can make it a very short game. There are so many offensive stars in this one, but it might be the defense that gets showcased with PCA and Tatis looking to star in this series. Winner gets the Brewers.

AL: Boston (5) at New York (4)

• Game 1: Garrett Crochet vs Max Fried
• Game 2: Bryan Bello vs Carlos Rodon
• Game 3: Undecided vs Cam Schlittler

In terms of a first round series, it does not get better than this for Major League Baseball. It could have been a whole lot better for the Yankees though. The Red Sox dominated the Yanks this year including going 5-2 in the Bronx. The Yankees seemed to have fixed all that ailed them earlier in the season and the pitching has been much improved, but let’s not forget how bad their defense was in the World Series last year and how bad Aaron Judge has been in the playoffs in his career. This one is a toss up. I can’t wait to see Crochet vs Fried in Game 1. Winner stays in the division to face the Blue Jays.

NL: Cincinatti (6) at Los Angeles (3)

• Game 1: Hunter Greene vs Blake Snell
• Game 2: Zack Littel vs Undecided
• Game 3: Andrew Abbott vs Undecided

No team has more pitching concerns than the Dodgers. They might end up with the best rotation in the playoffs, but they also might all implode right out of this series. Anyone who doesn’t start will be sent on down to the home team bullpen because their relief situation is not good. Despite not naming a game 2 or 3 starter, the Reds have a pretty formidable rotation, especially for a short series. Hunter Greene has been phenomenal this year and will receive Cy Young votes, while Andrew Abbott and Nick Lodolo are both no slouch lefties themselves. By going with the southpaws, it could take LA out of their comfort zone. Here is a look at how the Dodgers (and other playoff teams) fair against lefties. The winner gets the Phillies starting on Friday.