Baseball Preview for Today

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

I cheated slightly and finished this before the Dodgers/Padres, Rangers/A's, and Mariners/Angels results were in. As of this writing all the respective leaders are up by five runs, so this seems pretty safe. Nothing earth shattering changes if a big comback occurs.

 

Philadelphia @ Florida

 

Kevin Millwood vs. Dontrell Willis. IT'S ON! Phillies are a game behind Florida in the Wild Card. Lets run down the scenarios.

 

Florida wins 3. Phillies are eliminated from the playoffs.

Florida wins 2. Florida takes a two game lead in the Wild Card.

Phillies win 2. Tied.

Phillies win 3. Phillies take a two game lead in the Wild Card.

 

So as you can see, this race can take quite a turn based on the outcome of these three games. Keep in mind that if this game requires a playoff, it would take place in Florida.

 

Baltimore @ Boston

 

Eric DuBose vs. Tim Wakefield. The Red Sox are five back of the Yankees, and two and a half ahead of the Mariners for the Wild Card race. The Red Sox look to be in good shape at this point.

 

Cleveland @ Minnesota

 

Jake Westbrook vs. Kenny Rogers. The Twins hold a five game lead over both the Royals and White Sox. All three teams have six games left. The Twins can clinch a division tie with a victory tonight.

 

Detroit @ Kansas City

 

Mike Maroth vs. Jose Lima. Last night's win brings the Royals to just five games back, with six to go. Yeah, its about over. A loss here combined with a Twins win would end the playoff hopes of the Kansas City Royals. The best the Royals can hope for is to hang on. Still, this season has been terrific for the Royals, and they should hold their heads high.

 

NY Yankees @ Chicago White Sox

 

Mike Mussina vs. Mark Buehrle. The New York Yankees are five games ahead of the Boston Red Sox in their quest for the division title, and four games ahead of the A's for home field advantage. They have already clinched at least a playoff berth. Like the Royals, the White Sox are fighting for their playoff lives.

 

Seattle @ Anaheim

 

Freddy Garcia vs. Scott Shields. The Mariners are 2 1/2 back of the Red Sox, and four back of Oakland. They've got five games left, and they need three of them to tie, and that's assuming Boston loses every game.

 

Texas @ Oakland

 

Ryan Drese vs. Rich Harden. Oakland looks to maintain their four game lead over Seattle. They're also three and a half back of the Yankees for home field advantage.

 

Chicago Cubs @ Cincinnati

 

Kerry Wood vs. Seth Etherton. The Cubs are now tied with the Houston Astros in the NL Central. The Cubs will get two starts out of Kerry Wood, so its a good chance for Wood to prove himself to the Chicago fans.

 

Montreal @ Atlanta

 

T.J. Tucker vs. Shane Reynolds. The Atlanta Braves are percentage points behind the Giants in the home field advantage department. The Expos are mathematically eliminated, as their is no scenario which would allow them to overtake both the Phillies and the Marlins.

 

San Francisco @ Houston

 

Jason Schmidt vs. Wade Miller. The Astros must break out of their three game hitting streak, but they'll have to do it against the best starting pitcher in the national league. The Giants are simply shooting for home field advantage at this point.

 

St. Louis @ Milwaukee

 

Woody Williams vs. Ben Sheets. The Cardinals are now out of the Wild Card race. They still have an outside shot at the NL Central. They're 3.5 games out, with five to play. They can ill afford another loss at this point.

 

Arizona @ Colorado

 

Brandon Webb vs. Darren Oliver. The best Arizona can do at this point is tie for the Wild Card. If they lose a single game, they're finished. Luckily, they draw Darren Oliver tonight.

 

Los Angeles @ San Diego

 

Wilson Alvarez vs. Jake Peavy. The Dodgers can still finish as high as 89 wins. They've got seven games left to play. They need every win at this point if they're going to have a prayer at the Wild Card.

 

Games that don't matter

 

Pittsburgh @ NY Mets

Tampa Bay @ Toronto

[the pinjockey 0]

I think tomorrow decides the wild card race. If the Phillies lose they are done. I don't think they could win the last two, and if they go into the final series of the season down 2 games it isn't happening.

 

If the Phillies win tomorrow, they at least get one of the last two and go into the last weekend tied. I can't see them not coming up big against Atlanta on the final weekend.

 

Tomorrow is the biggest game Millwood has ever pitched. It is going to determine how much he is looking at this offseason.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

I'm glad to see Bowa shuffled the rotation to set up Millwood twice.

[the pinjockey 0]

Ah fuck. That sets up Millwood on Sunday, doesn't it. The way he has pitched against the Braves this year, he isn't really the guy I want to see on the mound to end it.