Another week of postseason baseball has come to an end, and only four teams remain in the hunt for the World Series Championship. In the American League, the Tampa Bay Rays will face the Houston Astros in a matchup we saw last year in the ALDS. In the National League, the Atlanta Braves will take on the Los Angeles Dodgers. These two series will begin on Sunday and Monday, respectively, and could potentially go seven days straight. At the end of next week, we will know which two teams will face off for the 2020 World Series championship.
American League (ALCS)
Houston Astros (#6) vs. Tampa Bay Rays (#1)
After defeating the New York Yankees in five games, the Rays will take on the Houston Astros in the ALCS. These teams met last year in the ALDS, where the Astros were able to take the series in five games. This Rays team is a much different beast this year, however, as they finished with the best record in baseball and haven’t shown any sign of letting up in the postseason. They swept the Blue Jays in 2 games and were, as mentioned before, able to take down the Yankees as well. Their offense was led by outfielder Randy Arozerana who batted above .500 in the division series, while also hitting 2 home runs. Although the Rays starters weren’t impeccable, they were able to keep the team in the game. The biggest story of the Rays, in my opinion, was their relief pitching, which was completely dominant so far this postseason. The Astros, on the other hand, were able to take care of their division rivals, the Oakland Athletics, in just four games. Similar to the Rays, the Astros starters weren’t as dominant as they’d like (besides Framber Valdez), but they did get the job done. Their bullpen was able to shut down the Athletics for the most part, and their offense led by George Springer, Alex Bregman, Jose Altuve, Michael Brantley, and Carlos Correa were able to secure them a trip to the ALCS. Due to cheating allegations in the past, many are unhappy that the Astros are in a position to return to the fall classic, but they have proven thus far that they feed off the hate. Can the Rays win their first pennant since 2008, or will the Astros continue to prove they are a different animal in October?
Potential Pitching Matchups:
Game 1: Framber Valdez vs Blake Snell
Game 2: Jose Urquidy vs. Charlie Morton
Game 3: Zack Greinke vs. Ryan Yarborough
Game 4: Lance McCullers Jr vs. Tyler Glasnow
Game 5: Framber Valdez vs. Blake Snell*(If necessary)
Game 6: Jose Urquidy vs. Charlie Morton*(If necessary)
Game 7: Zack Grienke vs. Ryan Yarborough*(If necessary)
Note: These are all just my projections according to the order starters pitched in the division series and with days rest taken into consideration. These very well may change due to the circumstances of the games, so this is just my assumption.
National League(NLCS)
Atlanta Braves (#2) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (#1)
The Atlanta Braves clinched their first NLCS appearance since 2001 with a sweep of the Miami Marlins on Thursday. The Braves experienced solid pitching performances from rookie Ian Anderson and Kyle Wright along with utter dominance from their bullpen, who only sustained 1 earned run in 3 games. Their offense was led by catcher Travis d’Arnaud, who had an OPS over 2.000 in the three-game stretch. While the Braves are looking to return to the World Series for the first time in over 20 years, the Dodgers are finally looking to win it all after falling short in both 2017 and 2018. Just like the Braves, the Los Angeles Dodgers were able to sweep their opponent in the division series. The Dodgers received promising performances from both Walker Buehler and Clayton Kershaw, along with a highlight-reel catch by last year’s NL MVP Cody Bellinger. The Dodger offense as a whole was able to impress in the sweep of the San Diego Padres, as they scored 23 runs in the series. Since the start of the postseason, neither team has lost a single game, so something has to give when these two teams matchup in Arlington beginning on Monday.
Potential Pitching Matchups:
Game 1: Ian Anderson vs. Clayton Kershaw
Game 2: Max Fried vs. Walker Buehler
Game 3: Kyle Wright vs. Dustin May
Game 4: Bryse Wilson vs Julio Urias
Game 5: Ian Anderson vs. Clayton Kershaw*(If necessary)
Game 6: Max Fried vs. Walker Buehler*(If necessary)
Game 7: Kyle Wright vs. Dustin May*(If necessary)
Again, these are certainly subject to change. Although the order may be a little skewed, I project that all of these pitchers will be used this series in some fashion.
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