MLB Playoffs: Can Cardinals Take Advantage of Giant Gift? Who Wins “Sophie’s Choice” AL WC?

It’s been seven long months that at times have felt that much longer in a year that started with a dark pandemic cloud hanging over it. When the season kicked off on April 1, very few fans were in attendance to watch and it was fair to wonder if the 2021 MLB campaign was going to go off without a hitch. And yet here we are, with a wonderful final day of the season reminding us of how life was two years ago before the world took a major hit.

So, as the playoffs approach, what should we expect? Are we going to be subject to a Dodgers “repeat” after a 60-game joke of a season culminated with them on top? Are we going to buy into the hype that ESPN tries to overwhelm us with over a Yankees-Red Sox wild card game? Can the Giants translate their incredible 107-win season into their fourth title in a dozen years?

A closer look at the playoffs:

Wild Card Games

Yankees vs. Red Sox

Is this the start of a dreaded “Yankees Revenge Tour” that will take them past recent playoff bugaboos Boston, Tampa Bay, and Houston? Who knows with this Yankees team. They started the year 5-10. They won 13 straight in late August. Then they completely collapsed again. Then they caught themselves before it was too late.

What to make of the Red Sox? They won 90 games for the 13th time since 2002, but also went through some lulls where you had to think they were in way over their heads. But make no mistake: Boston’s lineup has the edge here, even if the pitching does.

While this is a brutally tough game to pick, for once I’m going to try and go against my negative instincts about a Yankees revenge tour and say that the Red Sox will flip the script on the Yanks after dropping six straight to end the season series. Prediction: Red Sox 8, Yankees 7.

Cardinals vs. Dodgers

This was the gift we all waited for. 106 wins and a date with the Cardinals in a win-or-go-home game for the $275 million Dodgers. LA will start one of its unnecessary trade deadline purchases, Max Scherzer, against his hometown Cardinals. St. Louis has caught fire after five months of very mediocre baseball, but are they that team or the one that ended the year winning 19 of 22?

It seems highly unlikely the Cardinals will stay this hot through October, and the Dodgers are probably seething about being in this spot (Trea Turner, the other unnecessary purchase who is now carrying the team, already confirmed Scherzer’s anger recently). Max Muncy’s injury is a bit of a dent, but the beauty of having a team of All-Stars is that one loss won’t derail your season. After the euphoria of seeing the Giants win the NL West on the final day, I’m afraid reality sets in here as Scherzer deals a gem. Prediction: Dodgers 6, Cardinals 1.

Division Series

Red Sox vs. Rays

Are the Rays as good as their 100-win season indicates? Clearly, last year’s mini-season World Series appearance was no fluke, and the Rays have a ton of power to offset what the Red Sox have. I actually think the Rays should prefer a date with Boston because it feels less likely they’ll knock the Yankees out of October two years in a row, and they matched up just as well with the Sox during the regular season (they went 11-8 against both teams). What does concern me is that the Rays bookended four ridiculous months of baseball (71-34) with very average showings across April and September/October (29-28).

Still, you have to like Tampa’s chances here. And it doesn’t hurt that the city is on a serious roll (you know, like Boston used to be when Tom Brady resided there). Prediction: Rays in 4.

White Sox vs. Astros

This gets very tricky, if only because it looks so darn obvious. I mean, no one has breathed a word about the White Sox, right? And the Astros have appeared in four straight ALCS and looked like world-beaters at times in 2021. The White Sox came out of a weak division and the season series was a lopsided one, with Houston winning five of seven from the Pale Hose. Looks obvious, right?

Hence why I am leaning Chicago here. If for no other reason than it is incredibly difficult to go to five straight ALCS, and the White Sox are healthier now than they were for most of the year. Also, it’s hard to ignore the oddsmakers only making Houston very slight favorites (-125). The pitching is where this series will be decided, and I actually trust Chicago’s rotation just a little bit more. Hopefully for the ChiSox Tony LaRussa’s postseason experience will help offset the team’s lack of experience. Just to change up my usual pattern, I’m taking the upset here. Prediction: White Sox in 5.

Dodgers vs. Giants

What a series this will be, and make no mistake — this series winner will be the World Series champion, I believe. It’d be utterly shocking if the world champ isn’t one of these two teams, but then again you could argue they may beat up so much on each other they’ll be out of steam in the ensuing rounds.

No matter, this will be a tremendous matchup. In 19 regular-season affairs, San Francisco went 10-9, but they also did not have to face Scherzer, nor did they have to deal with Trea Turner very much (three games total). The Brandon Belt and Max Muncy injuries could negate each other, but I just feel like the Dodgers are too talented and too relentless to not win it all again. I hope I’m wrong, but the bullpen has been dominant, something LA fans aren’t accustomed to in recent years, and that very well could be the difference in this series. Prediction: Dodgers in 5.

Braves vs. Brewers

Ah, yes, the other series in the NL. Two teams that seem primed for a slaughter in the NLCS, someone still has to advance. These two teams come in with opposite momentums, as the Braves are rolling and the Brewers have looked stale for weeks. Atlanta has had much more time to cope with the loss of Ronald Acuna Jr. — not to mention made some trades to fill the hole — while the silly Devin Williams injury is both devastating and fresh for Milwaukee.

Can the Brewers muster up enough offense? My instinct tells me no, and as easy as it is to dump on Atlanta sports in general, it’s hard to ignore how dominant Max Fried has been of late. If he keeps it rolling in October, the Braves could not only beat Milwaukee, they could give the Dodgers a series in the NLCS again. Prediction: Braves in 4.

ALCS

Rays vs. White Sox

The ALCS that real fans love and television hates. This would be quite a series in spite of hardly anyone outside of Tampa or Chicago tuning it, and that’s fine by me. I’d love to go upset here, because I can’t see the Rays winning in the World Series against LA, but I’m going chalk in the AL. There is some serious doubt in my mind about the back-end of Chicago’s bullpen holding up for an entire postseason, especially the combustable Liam Hendriks.

On the flip side, Tampa’s pitching staff feels like the baseball version of the 1972 Dolphins “No-Name Defense,” where a bunch of nameless/faceless arms leave you wondering what just hit you. Imagine doing this without Tyler Glasnow, but Kevin Cash keeps opponents guessing all the way through. Prediction: Rays in 7.

Dodgers vs. Braves

Again, you know I’d LOVE to go with the underdog here, and it’s fair to question if the Braves played in any city besides Atlanta whether they actually might be able to pull the upset.

Sure, no Kershaw, no Muncy. But LA is too deep and talented, especially against an Acuna-less Braves team with some questions in the bullpen and the major headache of the Dodgers owning them in October. Prediction: Dodgers in 6.

World Series

Rays vs. Dodgers

Here we go again? They played in front of a limited crowd at a neutral site last year and the Dodgers won in six games, so could we see history repeat itself? The short answer is yes. The Dodgers look deeper and more dangerous this year, even with the potential absence of Muncy. A bigger loss for the Rays – albeit one they’ve had time to adjust to – is ace Tyler Glasnow. That means that all three starters from last year’s World Series that faced LA are gone for Tampa, and the Dodgers have added both Scherzer and Urias, who dominated Tampa in relief last year. Think of it like last year being the previews for the main attraction, where 2021 is like the full season we never got in 2020. Prediction: Dodgers in 6.