SERIES SCHEDULE
Game 1: at Tampa Bay, Thursday, Oct. 2, 1:30 PM
Game 2: at Tampa Bay, Friday, Oct. 3, 6 PM
Game 3: at Chicago, Sunday, Oct. 5, Time TBA
Game 4: at Chicago, Monday, Oct. 6, Time TBA -*
Game 5: at Tampa Bay, Wednesday, Oct. 8, Time TBA -*
Games 4 & 5, of course, are if necessary. All times are in Chicago time. All games will be aired on TBS.
Some key Rays stats... They scored 774 runs this season (4.78 RPG), 9th best in the American League. 142 stolen bases, the most in the American League (yikes). 30.8 at bats per HR, 4th best in the A.L. 3.82 overall ERA, 2nd best in the A.L. 3.35 ERA vs. the Sox, 3rd best mark in the A.L., and best of the 6 teams that played the Sox at least 10 times this year. Allowed 40 HR in September, 2nd most in the A.L. that month.
Per usual, the Sox are getting very little love; most national, local, and even electronic pundits are raving about the Rays, picking the Rays, etc.
So why will the White Sox win? Pressure. The Sox pushed themselves to the brink of elimination and had to do something no team has ever done in the 130+ years of MLB history; beat three different teams in three different days to finish a season. Maybe they stumbled toward the very end of the year, but when the clock was about to strike midnight, they answered the call. There's no pressure on them; no one expects them to win, while the Rays have been the darling story of the 2008 season; the champs of the best division in baseball, and a cute pick to win the American League and maybe the World Series.
Pressure.
The series kicks off later today, and Javier Vazquez will get the nod to start Game 1. OK, that's not news to anyone by now, but I am surprised at how many folks are up in a tiff about this. I know Javy didn't make any friends these last few weeks, first by essentially saying how he doesn't care about any of this since he's just focused on that beach in Puerto Rico, and then by imploding against Minnesota and Cleveland, further cementing his reputation as a big game choker, and turning in a 12-16 record and 4.67 ERA, one of his statistcally worst seasons of his career.
I get that, but the bottom line here is that the Sox do not need to win both games in Tampa. Even if Javier lays another egg, if the Sox can win one of the first two, they'll be sitting very pretty heading home to Chicago. Regarldess of how Vazquez performs, the move allows Buehrle, Floyd, and Danks to get back to regular rest and hopefully perform to the best of their abilities.
Javy v. Scott Shields, 1:30 PM.
1 comment:
as a realist, i have to say rays in 4. then again the sox were all but buried after saturday night and they rose from the ashes like a phoenix...but 0-0 aside, not every team is the 2007 colorado rockies...which had a nice run yet still failed to capture the prize.
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