Do-or-Die time has come to the National League Division Series, as both the Cubs and Mets are on the brink of heading to the LCS, while the Cardinals and Dodgers teeter on the brink of 9 AM tee times.
Cardinals at Cubs (4:37pm ET Tuesday, TBS) Cubs ace Jake Arrieta’s reign of terror finally came to end on Monday, as he gave up 4 runs in 5 ⅔ innings, but the Cards failed to take advantage, surrendering 6 home runs in an 8-6 loss to go down 2 games to 1 in this best-of-five series.
And so, with their season on the line, the Cardinals send John Lackey to the hill on three days' rest. Lackey was brilliant in his Game 1 start,... Read More
Dodgers at Mets (8:37pm ET, TBS) The Dodgers on Saturday rode Chase Utley’s dirty slide right through second base, Ruben Tejada’s right fibula and onto a 5-2 victory to even their series against the Mets at one game apiece.
Brett Anderson, who takes the ball for the Dodgers on Monday, was the very model of average in 2015, with a 10-9 record, 3.68 ERA, 1.3 WHiP and 2.52 SO/W ratio. Anderson has never in his career faced the Mets, but Curtis Granderson has a 1.128 in 13 plate appearances against him, and he’s held Michael Cuddyer to 1 hit in 12 at bats.
Celebrity pitcher Matt Harvey will get the start for the Mets, and will no doubt be tasked with avenging Tejada’s... Read More
Cubs at Cardinals (6:30pm ET Friday, TBS) Fresh off defeating the Pirates with another masterpiece from Jake Arrieta in the Wild Card game, the Cubs now have to quickly pivot and face the St. Louis Cardinals in a best-of-five series.
The Cards made the race for the NL Central more interesting than it should’ve been, losing 8 of their last 11 games. Much of that downturn has been attributed to the loss of catcher and team leader Yadier Molina, who hasn’t played since tearing a ligament in his thumb on September 20. Molina has decided to try to return wearing a splint, which should give the Cards a huge emotional boost; whether he’ll be able to hit and catch remains to be seen.
Cardinals at Pirates (7pm ET Wednesday, ESPN) The Cards and the Pirates, owners of the two best records in baseball, were rained out on Tuesday, forcing them to play a Wednesday doubleheader with the NL Central title on the line. A Cardinals win in either game would clinch the division, and relegate the Pirates to the Wild Card.
The Redbirds are sending spot starter Tyler Lyons to face the Pirates’ Charlie Morton in the nightcap. Lyons, who’s made only 7 starts this year, was pressed into service on Friday, when St. Louis fireballer Carlos Martinez was pulled after only 6 pitches with a right shoulder strain prematurely ending his season. Lyons proved to be a savior, pitching 3 2/3 innings of 1-run ball, at one point striking out 5... Read More
More than just divisional rivals, the Cards and Bucs have the two best records in baseball, and, as such, the first two teams two clinch playoff berths. Monday’s showdown is the first of a three-game series that represents the Pirates' last best chance to wrest control of the NL Central, and relegate the Cards to the one-game Wild Card playoff round. It would be sweet revenge for their 2013 loss to St. Louis in the NLDS.
Cardinals starter Lance Lynn has faded down the stretch, going 4-5 in his last 10 starts, while averaging less than 5 innings a game. In 49 innings he’s surrendered 56 hits and 27 walks, while striking out only 35. In three starts against Pittsburgh this year, he’s gone... Read More
There are four MLB games on Sling TV this weekm and all four of them have playoff implications.
There’s no tighter divisional race in baseball right now than the AL West, where the Houston Astros hold a slim 1.5 game lead over their intrastate rival Texas Rangers. With less than a month to go in the regular season, that’s close enough to make the Astros nervous even if the two teams weren’t scheduled to meet seven more times in 2015, but they are, including Tuesday’s game at 8pm ET on ESPN.
The Rangers are surging, coming off a 12-4 spanking of the Oakland A’s Sunday, where offensive leader... Read More
