National League Divisional Series

Los Angeles Dodgers vs. St. Louis Cardinals

The Dodgers are planning to start Randy Wolf and Clayton Kershaw in their first 2 games and surprisingly announced Vicente Padilla and Chad Billingsley as the other two starters. The rotation of the St. Louis Cardinals consists of Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright and Joel Pineiro. If a fourth starter is necessary they’ll choose between John Smoltz and Kyle Lohse.

There is no doubt that the Cardinals possess the better starting pitching but I think that the top of the Dodger’s rotation matches up better against the line-up of the Redbirds. I am confident enough to say that the Dodgers might even have a slight advantage if Joe Torre comes to his senses and inserts Hiroki Kuroda and Jon Garland in place of Padilla and Billingsley.

Against every single expert’s opinion I favour the Dodgers rotation slightly.

Both teams can rely on their closers to convert a save opportunity. Jonathan Broxton blew 6 saves in 2009 and Ryan Franklin blew only 5, however Franklin had a rough September with a 7.56 ERA. The bullpen of the Dodgers is more reliable and especially George Sherrill stands out of the group.

If the game is on the line I’d rather see the Dodgers bullpen finish it off. Advantage Dodgers.

The Los Angeles Dodgers were batting .270 this season compared to a .263 batting average for the Cardinals. St. Louis struggled against left-handed pitchers and this could be exploited by the Blues who have 2 southpaws at the top of their rotation. Los Angeles’ batting cooled off in September which could erase the advantage they had over St. Louis. The Cards, on the other hand, got better in September with a batting average of .276.

I would have said that St. Louis has the advantage if it wasn’t for their batting against left-handed pitchers. I give it a tie but Manny Ramirez could shift it towards an advantage for the Dodgers if he can find his mojo in October.

Prediction: Los Angeles Dodgers vs. St. Louis Cardinals 3-2.