MLB Postseason Recap

Here is a recap of yesterday's action:

Tampa Bay Rays 6 Chicago White Sox 4: Evan Longoria and the Tampa Bay Rays started their first playoff series off with a bang as Longoria smashed two home runs and led the Rays to their first ever playoff win. The great thing about watching the Rays for the first time in the playoffs is that we don't know what to expect and who is going to step up for them. Longoria is certainly a future star and he showed it by coming up big in his first ever playoff game. 3 for 3 with 2 home runs and 3 RBI's is a hell of a playoff debut. Javier Vasquez has never been a big game pitcher and the White Sox are going to need a strong performance from Mark Buehrle in Game 2.

Put On Notice: Mark Buehrle

Philadelphia Phillies 5 Milwaukee Brewers 2: Shane Victorino was the man in this game. He finished 3 for 4 with a grand slam, 4 RBIs, and 2 stolen bases. Victorino and the Phillies beat C.C. Sabathia who was pitching his 4th straight start on 3 days rest and it looked like the short rest finally caught up with Sabathia. Brett Myers came up big for the Phillies allowing just 2 hits and 2 runs in 7 innings, as he continues his second half resurgence. I'm calling for a sweep in this series and I'm not surprised one bit. The Brewers rode Sabathia into the playoffs and that will only get you so far in the playoffs. I think this series is over with Jamie Moyer on the mound in Game 3 for the Phillies.

Put On Notice: Champagne for the Phillies

Los Angeles Dodgers 10 Chicago Cubs 3: Wow, the Cubs are just playing horrible baseball right now. Their defense was awful last night, not that I ever thought they were the best defensive team anyway, but still they need to play better than that. They are still not hitting the ball either, which probably has more to do with the Dodgers great pitching. Despite all this, I actually believe that the Cubs could win the next two games on the road in LA. Rich Harden has been dominant since he came over from the AL: 5-1/1.71 ERA/89 SO/254 ERA+, so the Cubs certainly have a very good chance to win that game. In Game 4, the Cubs would be going with Ted Lilly and my guess would be the Dodgers come back with Derek Lowe over Clayton Kershaw or Greg Maddux. If there's one thing I know about Joe Torre it's that he usually goes with the guy he trusts the most even if it's on shorter rest. This is certainly another winnable game for the Cubs, but hey so were the first two and look what happened there. All I'm saying is don't be surprised if this series gets to Game 5. I'm not counting the Cubs out yet but at this point the Dodgers look to be on top of their game.

Put On Notice: The entire Cubs lineup

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