Well I admit I was wrong; dead wrong. The Boston Red Sox just defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in game 6 to win the World Series. I made predictions for the postseason and I had the Tigers and Dodgers in the series, neither of which ended up making it. However, up to that point I had predicted every single series correctly. I correctly picked both the Tampa Bay Rays and Pittsburgh Pirates winning the Wild Card games. I also chose the Dodgers, Red Sox, Cardinals and Tigers to all win their respective series. I thought it was inevitable at that point that I would get all my picks correctly. However, neither one of my LCS picks ended up making it and in each series there was a single turning point that changed the courses of the rest of the postseason. I will clarify on both of them.
Dodgers-Cardinals. Both teams were coming off impressive NLDS wins and it looked to be a great series filled with excellent pitching match-ups. It looked to be a long series between two very even teams. The Dodgers took the lead in the first game before the Cardinals came back to tie and eventually win in extra innings. In that game, the Dodgers best hitter Hanley Ramirez was hit in the ribs. He stayed in the game, but didn't look good. That was a key moment of the series because it completely changed the complexion of the Dodgers offense. The rest of the series they barely scored any runs and could not get it going offensively. The Cardinals pitching staff deserves some credit, but with Hanley missing part of the series, and when he played being badly injured hurt all the Dodgers' chances of winning.
Tigers-Red Sox. The Red Sox made the Rays finally come down to earth in their first round matchup and had the best record in the regular season. The Tigers won a close series against the A's and were coming in hot. The Tigers won the first game in Boston and were on their way to taking a 2-0 game lead before this series changing moment occurred. The Tigers were up 5-1 in the eighth inning and on their way to going home happy campers. However, the Red Sox loaded the bases and manager Jim Leyland decided to put in his closer with two outs to face David Ortiz. As everyone knows Ortiz hit a grand slam to tie it and the Red Sox won an inning later. The series was basically over at that point. The Tigers won another game, but obviously were not the same after that and the Red Sox won the series 4-2.
David Ortiz would end up being the World Series MVP after posting ridiculous offensive numbers throughout the series. However, that brings up the question that no one seems to be talking about. Ortiz somehow all of sudden turned it on in the postseason; coincidence based on hard work or something more? Most people do not remember Ortiz's name was on the list of players in 2003 who were anonymously tested for steroids and HGH and tested positive. Steroids likely saved his career and helped him lead the Red Sox to winning the 2004 World Series. So with no evidence I am just putting it out there that it seems to be a big coincidence. I still do congratulate the Red Sox on winning it all after finishing in last place the previous season. The trade the Red Sox made the previous season proves to be effective. Meanwhile the Dodgers are still stuck with Josh Beckett who might not throw another pitch for a long time. Boston's front office did a great job this year bringing in key free agents such as Mike Napoli, Shane Victorino, Johnny Gomes and Stephen Drew. Xander Bogaerts not only has a great name, but also proved to have a great future ahead. David Ross was another free agent brought in who took over as the primary catcher during the series and did a great job with the pitching staff. The Red Sox were the winners this year in a year that was full of many great stories, but just like every other sport, its already time to start thinking about next season.
I will have blog updates during the offseason, but for now it is time to look back at the 2013 regular season.
-Yankees injuries
-Blue Jays disappointment
-Marlins and Astros stinking (Astros lowest payroll)
-Angels cant do it with the biggest sluggers in the game
-Dodgers go from worst to first and cant make it all the way
-Giants bring back same team, much worse results
-Cubs still not close to winning it all
-Cardinals and Tigers make LCS 3rd straight year
-Rays eliminate Rangers and Indians and prove to be amazing once again
Thanks for reading and I will talk about baseball as some offseason transactions take place, but for now it is time for the new NBA season!
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