At the beginning of the 2013 MLB season the Detroit Tigers almost expected to be back in the ALCS again once they got to October. Well wouldn’t you know it that is exactly where they find themselves now but the Tigers are facing an opponent who had already been written off this year at the end of last season. The Boston Red Sox actually enter the American League Championship Series as a slight favorite in the eyes of America, at least according to a Sports Center poll. Regardless of what the country or anyone thinks, the Red Sox players know they have a team that can beat anybody in almost any fashion. With both teams boasting several slick starting pitchers to match the big bats in their lineups, this ALCS will be settled by a handful of key situations. The team that can capitalize on their moment while denying the opponent theirs will play on into the World Series.
Like the Tampa Bay Rays, the Detroit Tigers have an advantage against the Red Sox in front line starters. This year’s Cy Young favorite, Max Scherzer, and last year’s winner, Justin Verlander, can both be completely lights out on any given night. While Verlander has endured a “down” year going 13-12 with a 3.46ERA, Scherzer went 21-3 with a 2.90ERA. Although Justin just pitched 15 scoreless innings against the Oakland A’s giving up 6 hits and 2 walks. His stuff is unquestionable and you have to imagine he will show up to each game he pitches in but the lineup he will face is much different. After these two the Tigers roll out Anibal Sanchez and Doug Fister. Anibal will actually start game 1 to keep their two aces on regular rest. Neither of these former two are world beaters but they are more than capable starters. Luckily for the Red Sox, their bats have had success against Sanchez and Fister.
The Red Sox lineup is a whole lot better than the Athletics’ lineup by possessing speed, power and patience. Don’t expect Scherzer or Verlander to toss zero’s on the board against this order but you also can’t expect the Sox hitters to chase either of them very early from the game. The patented patience of the Red Sox will need to stay consistent to force all of the Tigers starters to leave the game ASAP and get into their bullpen. The strategy remains the same for the Sox and it will be the execution that once again determines the outcome. Having Jacoby Ellsbury healthy and on top of his game is vital to the Red Sox success. He went 9 for 18 with 7 runs and 4 stolen bases against the Rays. Teaming that up with Shane “Hit by Pitch” Victorino gives the meat of this Red Sox order plenty of RBI chances. David Ortiz made the most of his chances hitting 2 home runs against the Rays but also drew 5 walks leading to even more men on base. Yet the Sox stranded many runners in the ALDS because Mike Napoli has yet to find his swing this post season with just 2 hits. This tandem will need to match or outperform the Tigers deadly duo of Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera.
Well, they haven’t been deadly quite yet either. Cabrera did hit a homer in game 5 against the A’s but injuries have slowed him the entire second half of the season. Even 50% of Miggy is still a devastating hitter that Sox arms would be advised to pitch around and take their chances with Prince Fielder. Both guys have only 5 hits this postseason but they are still the closest combo to what Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz were years ago. With so much run producing potential in Detroit’s lineup the Red Sox pitchers will need similar performances to what they did against Tampa. In the four starts, Boston pitching gave up only 1, 2, 3 and 4 runs while all at least pitched into the 6th inning. With Boston once again having the advantage at closer with Koji Uehara over Detroit’s Joaquin Benoit and in the bullpen as a whole with Craig Breslow as the Sox setup man, the starters will need to continue their form to take advantage of this strength.
When it comes down to it the Championship Series’ feature the two best teams of each league. There are many reasons why they have made it this far and plenty more as to why each team should advance. With matching strengths and very few weaknesses the next 8 days will be a battle between strong starting pitching and even stronger lineups, so the tiniest of details could be the difference makers. Small details like home field advantage in favor of the Red Sox increases their chances to win. Especially since we already saw the ghosts of Fenway act up in the ALDS leading to errors and strange bounces. Also the last time the Tigers were in Fenway, they were getting their butts handed to them 20-4 by these same Red Sox. That game has no direct impact on this series but will surely be in the back of some Tigers minds as baseballs start to smash of the Green Monster. By having home field and their starters lined up on regular or even extra rest the Boston Red Sox hold the tie breakers in this series. Having been the better team over 162 + 4 games the Boston Red Sox will prove that once again with their play on the field and by beating the Detroit Tigers in 6 games. Boston should get off to a quick start Saturday night as soon as 8:07pm hits. They will ride their consistent pitching to an eventual series win back in Fenway next Saturday, which will promptly be followed by another wild celebration in the clubhouse but this time it will spill out onto the grass of the park on Yawkey Way.
Frank Cypriano
@JulioFranko17