Playoff Roundup: ALCS Set

By KYLE KEOUGH
CANSECO COURIER

Season five's ALCS matchup became a no-brainer after Philadelphia and New York went a combined 9-1 in previous series.

That winning percentage (.900) is now destined to slip, as two strong World Series contenders will meet to decide who represents the American League.

The Philly Athletics have gone a perfect 6-0 to sweep their previous two opponents, Seattle and top-seeded Cleveland. 5 of those 6 games were decided by two runs or less.

The other? a 6-3 "blowout" over the Starbucks in game one of the Play-In Series.

The Roid Rage, meanwhile, took control of their series against Mexico City; in dropping only one game, they outscored the Cuachicquehs 24-12 in four games.

Now, how do these two teams match up? We'll examine four key categories: offense, defense, pitching, and head-to-head play:

Offense

Offensively, both clubs are virtually deadlocked; Philadelphia owns a mere +8 run differential over New York on the season (968 to 960), and their team batting averages--.285--are exactly the same. Philadelphia has perhaps the biggest impact bat of the two in Benji Henderson, who has hit .317 with 52 HR and 140 RBI. However, in the postseason, New York's Julian Jose (.303, 44 HR, 122 RBI) could prove just as valuable. The best overall player in either lineup might belong to Philadelphia as well, in the form of one Hector Balboa.

Neither team will scare anyone on the basepaths; Philly's Wil Hardy has played like a sedated version of himself all season, with only 19 stolen bases and less attempts (28) than he had steals last season (37). Hardy has the speed and bat to be a game-changer for the A's, but he's mired in one of his worst seasons to date.

As a hitter versus lefties, Philly's Brett Burnett could have a huge impact when called upon. Though if Jamie Grahe (.267, 43 HR, 110 RBI) starts playing up to his potential, New York could, at least offensively, prove to be better.

At this point, these two are too close for their to be a decisive winner one way or the other.

Advantage: Tie

Defense

Philadelphia was one of the best fielding teams in the entire ML this season. While the A's have no Gold Glove winners from this season, their defense up the middle, manned by Balboa and Hardy, plays at a very high level. The rest of Philly's infield--including SS Damaso Mendoza, 1B Henderson, and 3B Mercado--have all had exceptional defensive seasons and are among the best in the ML as a unit.

Philly's one glaring defensive weakness is its corner outfielders, though most Major League teams sacrifice defense for offensive pop at these positions.

New York, meanwhile, has a third-baseman convert playing shortstop in Brian Yosida (37 errors), and another third-baseman convert playing center field in Andrew Biggio. While both are good defensive players, they've also struggled throughout the season due to these difficult assignments.

Besides Juan Machado, who stands as one of the top defensive 1Bs in the game, Philadelphia has New York outmanned in the field.

Advantage: Philadelphia

Pitching

Entering the ALCS, Philly boasts 16-game winner Rollie Ross (16-10, 4.50 ERA) and 36-year-old Wes McGowan (13-7, 4.97 ERA) as its front-end starters. Young Ariel Mesa, who was a stellar 10-0 this season as a reliever, is a stud closer in the making, and late-season pickup Courtney Neugebauer (5-3, 3.36 ERA) has been stellar, but the Roid Rage have a clear advantage in this category.

All-world starter Brian Mahoney (21-6, 2.42 ERA) will likely add a third consecutive Cy Young Award to his vast list of accomplishments in what has been his most exceptional season to date. Behind him, three-time All-Star Benny Montana (17-10, 3.98 ERA) and former All-Star B.J. Kotsay (15-5, 3.24 ERA) await.

At the end of games, the A's will get to know rubber-armed Gus Jorgensen, who has averaged a shade under 70 appearances per season over the course of his career. Since arriving in New York, he's become one of baseball's premiere closers.

Advantage: New York

Head-to-Head

New York, last season's AL rep, owns a 7-3 season-long record against the A's. In the last two series between the two, the A's have struggled immensely to score runs against the Roid Rage.

If Philadelphia can't put runs on the board, expect for New York to win a series that doesn't go seven games.

Advantage: New York