posted October 3, 2007 at 15:33 in MLB Betting Trends
MLB Betting - Boston Red Sox vs. Los Angeles Angels Postseason Preview
The Boston Red Sox take on the Los Angeles Angels in a matchup that I believe pits the two best teams in the American League against one another for the right to play for the American League pennant.
Although these two teams won't be playing for AL pennant and the right to go to the World Series that goes along with winning the AL title, this series could turn out to be a classic that baseball fans remember for years to come.
Here is a baseball betting preview of the series and a breakdown on each team's strengths and weaknesses.
Game 1 features two of the best starters in all of baseball in Boston's Josh Beckett and L.A.'s John Lackey and Game 2 features two more fine hurlers in Boston rookie Daisuke "Dice-K" Matsuzaka and the Angels' Kelvim Escobar, the hottest pitcher in the AL the second half of the regular season.
Game 3 goes to veterans, Curt Schilling of the Red Sox and Jered Weaver for L.A.
Now that we've got the starting pitchers out of the way, let's look at each team's strengths and weaknesses
Strengths
Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox have plenty of veteran experience up and down their roster, including many of the same players that helped the team to the 2004 World Series. Boston is a well-balanced team that has been in the top 10 all season long in most hitting and pitching statistical categories.
Beckett, Schilling and Tim Wakefield have all already won games they have started in the World Series, so this opening matchup won't mean much to the veterans who have been here before.
Boston has plenty of pop in the lineup with David Ortiz, Mike Lowell, Kevin Youkilis and of course, Manny Ramirez all being able to go deep at any moment.
Los Angeles Angels
With Chone Figgins and Reggie Willits at the top of the order, the Angels can manufacture runs better than the slower Red Sox can and have just as many competent batters as the Red Sox, if not more. Boston Red Sox
The Angels certainly know how to drive in runs as they led the league with a .301 batting average with runners on base. Orlando Cabrera, Garrett Anderson and Gary Matthews Jr., are solid hitters who may go unnoticed on the east coast, but are outstanding players in their own right.
The Angels also have the best bad-ball/good-ball hitter in all of baseball, not to mention a perennial MVP contender in outfielder Vladimir Guerrero and a starting rotation that almost rivals the Sox' particularly through the first three hurlers.
Weaknesses
Ironically, despite their power hitters, the Red Sox ranked just 17th in the majors this season with 165 team home runs while the Angels' pitching staff, incidentally, allowed just 150 long balls to their opponents this season. The Red Sox are also a "slow" team without any major speedsters on the roster. Should any of the contests in this series turn outto be pitcher's duels, the Red Sox will likely have trouble manufacturing runs.
Why they'll lose: Los Angeles is in a similar situation as Boston. While it ranks amongst the American League's best offensive teams it lacks power in the middle of the order. Injuries to Matthews and Maicer Izturis as well as a case of pink eye for Anderson could force manager Mike Scioscia to carry more reserve position players rather than beefing up his bullpen.
The lack of relievers could also hurt the Angels' reserve arms, who haven't pitched well down the home stretch. Middle reliever Scot Shields closed the season with a 7.58 ERA during the last two months of the schedule. Lights-out closer Francisco Rodriguez showed signs of wear earlier this month but has returned to his familiar form in the past week. Los Angeles will depend heavily on its bullpen if the starters struggle against the BoSox like they did in the regular season, posting a 6.04 ERA versus Boston over their 10 meetings.
Prediction: Boston Red Sox in four games
03:00 PM EST
MLB Series Prices
DIVISION SERIES PRICE - Best of Five 2 - 2 - 1
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