This World Series could be a classic. It pits two managers (Jim Leyland and Bruce Bochy) that have both won a World Series already in their careers. The matchups are very close in this series and here is a look at them:
CATCHER: Lefty swinging Alex Avila has not played up to his ability in the post-season. He has played in 7 games for the Tigers in the playoffs and he is 5 for 22 (.227 avg, .636 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 1 homer and 1 RBI. Avila has now played in 18 games in the post-season so far in his career and he is 8 for 63 (.127 avg, .392 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 2 homers and 3 RBIs.
Righty swinging Buster Posey might be named the MVP of the N.L. after the World Series, as he is just that good. Posey has played in 12 games in the post-season so far and he is 8 for 45 (.178 avg, .600 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 2 homers and 6 RBIs. He has now played in 27 games so far in the playoffs in his career and he is 25 of 104 (.240 avg, .681 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 3 homers, 11 RBIs and 1 stolen base.
EDGE: HUGE FOR THE GIANTS
FIRST BASE: Lefty swinging Prince Fielder hasn’t looked like himself so far in the playoffs. He has played in 9 games for the Tigers so far in the playoffs and he is 8 for 38 (.211 avg, .558 OPS) with 2 runs scored, 1 homer and 3 RBIs. Fielder has now played in 24 games for the Tigers so far in the playoffs is his career and he is 18 for 90 (.200 avg, .709 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 5 homers and 11 RBIs.
Lefty swinging Brandon Belt has been so-so in the playoffs so far. Belt has played in 11 games so far in the playoffs and he is 8 for 36 (.222 avg, .689 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 1 homer, 2 RBIs and 1 stolen base.
EDGE: TIGERS
SECOND BASE: Righty swinging Omar Infante has been solid so far in the playoffs. He has played in 9 games for the Tigers in the playoffs so far and he is 10 for 35 (.286 avg, .639 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 0 homers, 0 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Infante has now played in 15 games in the playoffs in his career and he is 15 of 56 (.268 avg, .620 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 0 homers, 0 RBIs and 3 stolen bases.
Righty swinging Marco Scutaro has been red hot with the bat so far in the playoffs for the Giants. He has played in 12 games for the Giants so far this year in the playoffs and he is 17 of 48 (.354 avg, .841 OPS) with 8 runs scored, 0 homers and 5 RBIs. He has now played in 19 games in the post-season in his career and he is 22 of 75 (.293 avg, .729 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 0 homers and 11 RBIs.
EDGE: EVEN
SHORTSTOP: Righty swinging Jhonny Peralta is a money player as he almost always steps up when the games get big. Peralta has played in 9 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 12 of 35 (.343 avg, .921 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 2 homers, 3 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He has now played in 31 games in the playoffs in his career and he is 35 of 118 (.297 avg, .874 OPS) with 12 runs scored, 6 homers, 16 RBIs and 2 stolen bases.
Lefty swinging Brandon Crawford has seemed to have a knack for getting big hits so far in the playoffs. He has played in all 12 games for the Giants so far in the playoffs and he is 7 for 34 (.206 avg, .619 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 0 homers and 6 RBIs.
EDGE: TIGERS
THIRD BASE: Righty swinging Miguel Cabrera is hands down the best hitter on the Planet Earth right now. He has played in 9 games so far in the playoffs for the Tigers and he is 10 for 36 (.278 avg, .810 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 homer and 5 RBIs. He has now played in 37 games in the playoffs in his career and he is 39 for 139 (.281 avg, .918 OPS) with 22 runs scored, 9 homers, 27 RBIs and 2 stolen bases.
Switch-hitting Pablo Sandoval has been incredible so far in the playoffs. He has played in 12 games for the Giants so far this year and he is 16 of 50 (.320 avg, .920 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 3 homers and 9 RBIs. The Kung Fu Panda has now played in 18 games in the playoffs in his career and he is 19 of 67 (.284 avg, .812 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 3 homers and 11 RBIs.
EDGE: TIGERS
LEFT FIELD: Delmon Young is going to play LF in the N.L. Parks with Lefty swinging Quintin Berry getting the call in the A.L. Parks. Berry has played in 7 games so far in the playoffs and he is 5 for 18 (.278 avg, .705 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 0 homers, 0 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Berry’s speed really helps the Tigers both on the basepaths and in the field.
Lefty swinging Gregor Blanco has been pretty solid in the playoffs so far this year for the Giants. He has played in 12 games so far in the playoffs and he is 8 for 36 (.222 avg, .780 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 1 homer and 4 RBIs.
EDGE: SLIGHT FOR TIGERS
CENTER FIELD: Righty swinging Austin Jackson is the guy that makes things go for the Tigers, as he is their leadoff batter. Jackson has played in 9 games for the Tigers so far in the playoffs and he is 11 of 37 (.297 avg, .864 OPS) with 7 runs scored, 1 homer and 4 RBIs. He has now played in 20 games for the Tigers in the playoffs so far in his career and he is 19 of 78 (.244 avg, .747 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 2 homers, 8 RBIs and 1 stolen base.
Switch-hitting Angel Pagan is the Giants’ leadoff hitter. He has played in 12 games so far in the playoffs and he is 11 of 53 (.208 avg, .623 OPS) with 7 runs scored, 2 homers and 6 RBIs.
EDGE: SLIGHT FOR THE TIGERS
RIGHT FIELD: Lefty swinging Andy Dirks has played in 9 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 9 for 35 (.257 avg, .592 OPS) with 0 runs scored, 0 homers, 1 RBI and 1 stolen base. Dirks has now played in 11 games for the Tigers in the playoffs and he is 10 for 40 (.250 avg, .568 OPS) with 1 run scored, 0 homers, 1 RBI and 2 stolen bases.
Righty swinging Hunter Pence just hasn’t looked too good so far in the playoffs. He has played in 12 games for the Giants so far in the playoffs and he is 9 for 48 (.188 avg, .475 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 1 homer, 3 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Pence has now played in 17 games in the playoffs in his career and he is 13 of 67 (.194 avg, .482 OPS) with 7 runs scored, 1 homer, 7 RBIs and 1 stolen base.
EDGE: GIANTS
DESIGNATED HITTER: Righty swinging Delmon Young is swinging a hot bat for the Tigers in the playoffs. He has played in 9 games for the Tigers so far and he is 10 for 34 (.294 avg, .851 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 2 homers and 8 RBIs. He has now played in 24 games in the playoffs so far in his career and he is 23 of 92 (.250 avg, .832 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 7 homers, 14 RBIs and 1 stolen base.
The Giants will likely use lefty swinging Aubrey Huff as the starting DH against the Tigers in A.L. Parks. He has played in 9 games in the playoffs so far and he is 1 for 8 (.125 avg, .347 OPS) with 1 run scored. Huff has now played in 24 games in the playoffs so far in his career and he is 16 for 64 (.250 avg, .652 OPS) with 8 runs scored, 1 homer and 8 RBIs.
EDGE: TIGERS
BENCH: Righty swinging outfielder Avisail Garcia is going to play against lefty starters in the outfield for the Tigers, so he is going to get some decent P.T. in this series. Garcia has played in 9 games in the playoffs so far and he is 6 for 18 (.333 avg, .757 OPS) with 0 runs scored, 0 homers, 4 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Righty swinging catcher Gerald Laird might get a start or two in the World Series behind the plate. Laird has played in 4 games in the playoffs so far and he is 1 for 13 (.077 avg, .220 OPS) without any runs scored or RBIs. Laird has now played in 8 games in the playoffs in his career and he is 1 for 14 (.071 avg, .205 OPS). Switch-hitting Ramon Santiago might get to pinch hit some in the N.L. Parks. He has not played in the playoffs so far. Santiago has played in 16 games so far in the playoffs and he is 12 of 50 (.240 avg, .535 OPS) with 1 run scored, 0 homers and 2 RBIs. Lefty swinging OF/IF Don Kelly has played in 2 games in the playoffs so far and he is 0 for 0 with 2 runs scored and a RBI. He has now played in 11 games in the playoffs so far in his career and he is 6 for 20 (.300 avg, .786 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 1 homer and 3 RBIs. Righty swinging infielder Danny Worth has played in 1 game in the playoffs so far this year but he hasn’t batted yet. Worth has now played in 2 games in the playoffs in his career, but he it yet to bat.
Switch-hitting catcher Hector Sanchez is Barry Zito’s personal catcher, so he will start at least two games in this series. Sanchez has played in 3 games for the Giants so far in the playoffs and he is 1 for 7 (.143 avg, .476 OPS) with 1 run scored. Righty swinging infielder Joaquin Arias does a good job whenever called upon. He has played in 8 games in the playoffs so far and he is 3 for 8 (.375 avg, 1.000 OPS) with 3 runs scored. Righty swinging infielder Ryan Theriot has also been very productive so far in the playoffs. He has played in 5 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 2 for 5 (.400 avg, .900 OPS) with 3 RBIs. He has now played in 23 games in the playoffs so far in his career and he is 16 for 61 (.262 avg, .603 OPS) with 3 runs scored, 0 homers, 7 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. Righty swinging OF/1B Xavier Nady hasn’t done much so far in the playoffs. He has played in 4 games for the Giants in the playoffs so far and he is 0 for 5 (.000 avg, .167 OPS). Nady has now played in 6 games in the playoffs so far in his career and he is 1 for 8 (.125 avg, .489 OPS) with 2 RBIs.
EDGE: GIANTS
STARTING PITCHING: The Tigers starting rotation has been awesome 1-4 so far in the playoffs. Righty Justin Verlander has been incredible so far in the playoffs. Verlander has started 3 games for the Tigers so far in the playoffs and he is 3-0 with a 0.74 ERA and a 0.62 WHIP. He has now pitched in 11 games (all starts) so far in the playoffs in his career and he is 6-3 with a 3.80 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. Doug Fister has started 2 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 1-0 with a 1.35 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. He has now pitched in 5 games (4 starts) so far in the playoffs in his career and he is 2-1 with a 3.26 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Righty Anibal Sanchez has been rock solid in the playoffs so far. He has now started 2 games in the playoffs this year and he is 1-1 with a 1.35 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP. Righty Max Scherzer also has outstanding stuff. He has started 2 games so far in the in the playoffs and he is 0-1 with a 0.82 ERA and a 0.73 WHIP. Scherzer has now pitched in 6 games (5 starts) in his playoff career and he is 2-1 with a 3.71 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP.
Lefty Barry Zito is leading off this series for the Giants. He has started 2 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 1-1 with a 1.74 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. Zito has now started 9 games in the playoffs in his career and he is 5-3 with a 2.96 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. Lefty Madison Bumgarner has had a rough time in the playoffs so far. He has started 2 games for the Giants and he is 0-2 with a 11.25 ERA and a 2.13 WHIP. He has now pitched in 6 games (5 starts) in the playoffs so far in his career and he is 2-2 with a 4.71 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP. Righty Ryan Vogelsong will be #3 in line. He has started 3 games for the Giants in the playoffs so far and he is 2-0 with a 1.42 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP. The Giants will be saving their best for last as righty Matt Cain will be the #4 guy in this series. Cain has started 4 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 2-2 with a 3.52 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. He has now pitched in 7 games (all starts) so far in the playoffs in his career and he is 4-2 with a 1.83 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP.
EDGE: SLIGHT FOR TIGERS
CLOSER: It will be interesting to see what the Tigers do at closer for this series. In my opinion, they should go back to using righty Jose Valverde as the closer so that Phil Coke can go back to taking on the best lefty hitters the Giants have. Valverde has pitched in 3 games so far in the playoffs and he is 0-1 with 1 save, a 27.00 ERA and a 3.43 WHIP. Valverde has now played in 13 games (0 starts) in his career in the playoffs and he is 0-3 with 5 saves, a 8.79 ERA and a 1.88 WHIP.
Righty Sergio Romo has been outstanding his whole career for the Giants. He has pitched in 7 games in the playoffs so far for the Giants this year and he is 1-0 with 1 save, a 1.17 ERA and a 0.65 WHIP. Romo has now pitched in 13 games (0 starts) so far in his career and he is 2-0 with 1 save, a 3.18 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP.
EDGE: GIANTS
RIGHTY RELIEVERS: Santiago Casilla is the Giants’ top set-up man. He has pitched in 9 games (0 starts) already in the playoffs this year and he is 0-0 with a 1.59 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. He has now pitched in 13 games (0 starts) for the Giants and he is 0-0 with a 1.74 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. George Kontos has also been used a lot in the playoffs so far. He has worked in 7 games for the Giants so far and he is 0-0 with a 3.60 ERA and a 0.80 WHIP. Tim Lincecum will be the long man in the pen for the Giants. He has pitched in 4 games (1 start) so far in the playoffs and he is 1-1 with a 3.46 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP. He has now pitched in 10 games (6 starts) so far in the playoffs and he is 5-2 with a 2.70 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP. Guillermo Mota will likely be nothing more than the mop up man in this series. He has pitched in 3 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 0-0 with a 21.60 ERA and a 3.60 WHIP. Mota has now pitched in 14 games (0 starts) so far in the playoffs in his career and he is 1-0 with a 6.43 ERA and a 1.64 WHIP.
Joaquin Benoit is a pretty good set-up man for the Tigers. He has pitched in 4 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 0-0 with a 4.91 ERA and a 1.64 WHIP. He has now pitched in 12 games (0 starts) in his career in the playoffs and he is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP. Octavio Dotel is a battle tested veteran. He has pitched in 4 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP. Dotel now has pitched in 24 games (0 starts) in the playoffs in his career and he is 3-1 with a 4.15 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. Al Alburquerque has pitched in 2 games for the Tigers so far in the playoffs this year and he was 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.00 WHIP. He has now pitched in 6 games (0 starts) in the playoffs in his career and he is 1-0 with a 8.10 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. Rick Porcello will be the long man in the pen for the Tigers. He has pitched in 1 game (0 starts) for the Tigers so far in the playoffs this year and he is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.00 WHIP. He has now pitched in 5 games (2 starts) for the Tigers in the playoffs so far in his career and he is 0-1 with a 4.70 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP.
EDGE: SLIGHT FOR THE TIGERS
LEFTY RELIEVERS: Phil Coke has been dazzling so far in the playoffs. He has pitched in 7 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 0-0 with 2 saves, a 0.00 ERA and a 0.82 WHIP. Coke has now pitched in 18 games (0 starts) for the Tigers so far in the playoffs and he is 0-0 with 3 saves, a 3.77 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. Drew Smyly is the only other lefty in the pen and he has worked in 2 games (0 starts) so far in the playoffs in which he is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.43 WHIP
Jeremy Affeldt has been nails for the Giants so far in the playoffs. He has now pitched in 8 games in the playoffs so far this year and he is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.84 WHIP. He has now pitched in 20 games (0 starts) and he is 0-0 with a 1.53 ERA and a 0.79 WHIP. Javier Lopez has also been rock solid in the playoffs this year. He has pitched in 5 games in the playoffs so far and he is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.67 WHIP. Lopez has now pitched in 22 games (0 starts) in the playoffs so far in his career and he is 1-1 with a 3.95 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. Jose Mijares has been pretty awful so far in the playoffs. He has pitched in 5 games (0 starts) for the Giants so far this year in the playoffs and he is 0-0 with a 11.57 ERA and a 2.14 WHIP. He has now pitched in 10 games (0 starts) in the playoffs so far in his career and he is 0-1 with a 8.31 ERA and a 1.85 WHIP.
EDGE: GIANTS
MANAGER: 67-year old Jim Leyland is a crusty old dude that knows how to get the job done. The Tigers are 7-2 (77.8%) in the playoffs this year under his direction. He is now 39-30 (56.5%) in the post-season in his career. He will be aiming for his second World Series’ Championship (1997 Florida Marlins).
57-year old Bruce Bochy also knows how to get the job done. He is 7-5 (58.3%) in the playoffs so far this year. He now has a 26-25 (51%) record in the playoffs in his career and he will also be going for his second World Series’ Championship (2010 San Francisco Giants).
EDGE: EVEN
PREDICTION: I like the Tigers to win the World Series in six hard fought games.
