The Truth about Verlander

All hail AL Cy Young winner Justin Verlander.

Detroit's presence in the playoffs has some fans running scared. How will anyone beat Verlander? He of the 24-5 record and 2.40 ERA!? What about Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez, Alex Avila, Austin Jackson, Jhonny Peralta, and every other All-Star they field!? And DOUG FISTER!!

Okay, I jest. The Tigers scare me just about as much as the Red Sox scare the Orioles right now. In fact, I would like to point out some interesting stats about Verlander.

24-5 is impressive. What we should focus on however is not the overall numbers, but rather who the competition was at the time. Let's put it into relevancy and take only AL playoff contenders (I'll add the Rays in as the Wild Card).

Against the Yankees, 0-0, 4.50 ERA with Detroit taking the loss in both games. Verlander faced them twice in the beginning of the year and that was it. He and CC squared off in the season opener and will do so again in the ALDS.

Against the Rangers, 0-1, 2.00 ERA complete game loss. Faced them once in April, went the distance, lost.

Against the Rays, 1-0, 4.31 ERA. Got hit for 6 earned runs back in May then played them in August where he limited them to 3 hits and 1 earned run.

So he hasn't done exactly the best against the AL Playoff opponents. He played them in the beginning of the year before he heated up? And he leads the leagues in strikeouts!

I'm tired of all this hoopla around Verlander. I don't care what they say. He beats up on middling teams (the AL Central is full of them). Let's take a look!

He has 34 starts. Of those 34, he has faced teams .500 or lower 24 times. He has won 21 of those games. An .875 win percentage! Of the ten remaining games with teams over .500, he is 2-2 with 4 no decisions. Not really inspiring confidence there, bud. Of the 34 starts, he has faced an AL Central team 15 times. His record against them is 14-1.

On May 24, he had an ERA of 3.42. That's when he really lowered his ERA down to the 2.15 mark which made him the clear AL CY front runner. Who did he play in that stretch of time? Nine teams, only 3 of which are .500 + teams.

I'm just putting it out there. I don't think he CAN'T be beaten. No double negatives! I think he can be beaten. . .

See ya next time for Playoff Updates!

The Home Stretch

I was right! Just wanted to get that out of the way. I predicted the Yanks would finish in first and they did. Take that Boston.

Now that I'm done gloating, let's get to business. The Yanks can clinch home field advantage throughout the playoffs with either two more wins or two more losses by the Rangers/Tigers. It's pretty much a guarantee. Speaking of Rangers and Tigers, they both lost last night. Which means that the 2nd and 3rd seeds remain unchanged. I think the Yanks would prefer to have the Tigers finish 2nd and take care of the Wild Card winner (more on that later) in the short series. This way Verlander couldn't pitch games 1 and 4 and then game 1 of the ALCS. Facing the Rangers on the short series isn't that much easier with Cliff Lee starting games 1 and 4. . . Wait a second, Cliff Lee's not on the Rangers! Then the ALDS should be a cakewalk. OK, I'm getting a little ahead of myself.

Of all the Rangers's bats, only one has consistently hit CC and Nova (hint: it's not Josh Hamilton). In fact, it's Michael Young. Whereas some of the Texas Rangers have hit CC well, they've womped on Nova or vice versa. Young, however, has hit over .300 for both this year. As a bonus, he saw everything out of Colon's hand and is 3-3 against him. Small sample size, yes. But discomforting. The Yanks this year against the Rangers are 7-2 outscoring them 69-38. The biggest worry is not a Rangers pitcher but CC. If he doesn't win game 1, do the Rangers gain momentum? Will he be able to come back and pitch game 4 effectively? If history is any reference, then we shouldn't worry too much. Sabathia always seems to bring his A-game (or $152 million dollar game if you prefer) to the ALDS, going 2-0 in game 1 for the Yanks. Nova has really matured and been consistent as of late. I expect him and Martin to have a well prepared game plan and solid execution. At least this year, Robertson won't be giving up HRs to Hamilton. In fact, he's only given up 1 HR all year and that was in Baltimore, who won't be in the playoffs. I wish I could say Burnett wasn't pitching, but we don't know that. Even with him pitching, he won't be serving up 3-run HRs to Bengie Molina (with the SF Giants).

There's hope! I think the Yanks can make a serious run at the title this year. I foresee the Rangers in the ALDS. Yanks win 3-1. Then Tigers in ALCS. Yanks win 4-2.

Go get 'em boys.

MLB Playoff Positing

Each MLB postseason contender's fans swear their team will win it all. Below is a list of the teams and why they will win, according to fans. I think it's quite funny.



Angels: We can catch the Rangers with the final three games of the season being head-to-head! From there, no one can beat our 1-2 punch (Weaver and Haren) with the momentum we'll have!
What they really mean: We gotta win all of our remaining games and hope that Weaver doesn't have a bad performance if we make the playoffs.

Arizona: Upton's a stud! We've got the momentum! And don't forget Ian Kennedy (possible 20 game winner).
The facts: Upton is a stud with no playoff experience. They beat up on the NL West Dodgers, Padres, Giants (who couldn't put up more than three runs all year), and Astros. Ian Kennedy has only faced AL pitchers while he was a Yankee. And they weren't too kind to him.

Detroit: We're the AL Central Champs and Verlander is our Cy Young/AL MVP.
What really happened: They are the only team over .500 in the AL Central. Verlander has been unbeatable for the most part of the season. But Doug Fister as your #2 starter?? Can Verlander pitch every game?

 Milwaukee: We're in Beast Mode with 2 NL MVP candidates! Greinke is one of the best pitchers! And we've got T-Plush, take that!
What they really meant: Please don't let us play on the road. If we could just make it back to Miller Park! (Worst road record among contenders. I mean like really atrocious, 35-38.) I sure hope Fielder's impending Free Agency helps him put up huge contract numbers!

Boston: We're awesome. We've already won the AL Pennant. And Adrian Gonzalez is MVP. Things are so good, Clay Bucholz might even be back before the playoffs.
Truth: They are no longer the favorites to win the world series, let alone the pennant, not even the division. Their pitching is kinda shabby, so much that they're trying to rush Bucholz through his rehab. And they're tailspinning. Do you smell panic?

Braves: It's our year! We can topple the Phillies, no one else!
What's really going on: Braves have lost the wind in their sails. Not to mention two of their best starting pitchers. Cards are close to catching them. Even if they do make the postseason, I see a first round exit.

Yankees: We're going to take the division and use our lineup to push through opposing pitchers! Chase for 28 here we come!
And the hard truth: Who's pitching game 2? Will A-Rod be healthy? Is Granderson going to get back to form? Lots of questions. . .

Phillies: We're the best team in baseball! We have the best pitching!
deja Vu says: Same story they say every year. Didn't they have the best team in baseball last year? Pitching or not, their lineup can throw up some stinkers. And you never know when a team like the 2010 Giants is going to shock and awe you in the NLCS.

And just for fun. . .

Tampa Bay: We can sweep the Sox now, finish strong, gain momentum, win the title.
Abe Lincoln says: You had a good final push, but even if you do make the playoffs, you'd have to face teams that are simply better than you. But it would be nice to see you put Boston in 3rd.

There you have it. If what fans said were true, there would be 9 world series champions. But as we all know

THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE. . .