Well, I had 1 on the WS teams right— the Phillies— Better than most!
Hats off to both teams. As a fan of two teams(Red Sox and Mets) that came up short, every Phillies and Rays fans should enjoy this! I think this will be an exciting series and either club can win with some breaks. Lets breakdown the series….
American League Champion Tampa Rays
Strengths-Deep, balanced starting rotation with 4 solid starters…..Very good team defense(ALCS aside)… 2 red hot hitters in 3b Evan Longoria and CF BJ Upton…. 4-5 strong bullpen arms…. GREAT home team…. Excellent Manager in Joe Maddon
WeaknessesAverage team power….No true closer…Ace Scott Kazmir is hit or miss, poor control and could pitch into the 8th or last 8 batters…very young team… club strikes out a lot
National League Champions: Philadelphia Phillies-
Strengths-Excellent team power…. Best right side of the infield in MLB in 1b Ryan Howard and 2b Chase Utley…Top flight ace in Cole Hamels… Best bullpen top to bottom in MLB, led by closer Brad Lidge(zero blown saves)… good team speed…team is well equipped to play AL style with ex- AL DH Matt Stairs on the bench
Weaknesses-Not much out of the 3-4 spots in rotation…. average defensive team…. team strikes out a ton…have been off for almost a week… Losing culture of Philadelphia
Pick– I like the Phillies here. Tampa beat a depleted Boston club basically because Mark Kotsay left 20 runners on base. If Mike Lowell plays, the Rays are watching Fox tonight. These teams have advantages that cancel out(Rays starters vs Philies pen) but one thing should scare Rays fans— although he is a lefty, Rookie closer David Price will face Utley and Howard in a big spot. I don’t like that matchup for the Rays plus Lidge has had the best season of any closer in the sport.
Phillies in 6…
