The World Series that very few folks outside of Missouri and Texas wanted to see turned out to be incredibly entertaining. Congratulations to the St. Louis Cardinals and the Texas Rangers on an outstanding Series and season.

The most memorable moment for me was seeing both, the exhilaration and anticipation on the face of MVP David Freese as he approached home plate after his 11th inning walk off homer to win game six.

If you wondered if Albert Pujols‘ comments all year about not paying attention to his pending free agency were sincere, or that all he cared about was his team’s success were legit, the look on his face for most of the Series left no doubt. He resembled a starving lion in the jungle who was not going to be denied the kill he most wanted. He got it and no one deserves it more than he. He is a tremendous player and person.

However, Pujols may have remained hungry had it not been for the demise of the Rangers’ bullpen. The seven relievers had a combined WHIP of a whopping 2.33 after the same pitchers posted a 1.15 WHIP during the regular season. This does not include starters Colby Lewis and C.J. Wilson who each had one relief appearance in the Series.

These same seven walked 41 while striking out 47 in the Series, for a K to BB ratio of 0.60 to 1. During the season their K to BB ratio was an outstanding 2.79 to 1.

These two stats clearly tell the story as to the deciding factor in the Series.

It was evident the Rangers’ relievers were not versed on the 7 reasons why any athlete lacks consistency. If they were, you would have seen stats put up in the World Series similar to the regular season.

Buddy Biancalana
Co-author, The 7 Secrets of World Class Athletes
www.zonetraining.net

“These guys have discovered something in all sports that is going to have a huge impact wherever it is taught.”  George Brett, Baseball Hall of Fame

Written by Rob Bertrand

Who would have thought that an ALCS and NLCS without any of baseball’s major market teams would be so exciting? Lots of people actually. As much as the Phillies, Yankees and Red Sox bring to the table in terms of fan following and TV ratings, there is a whole other audience that loves the underdog and loathes the teams with infinite amounts of capital to spend on talent. America’s heartland is being well represented with the Brewers, Tigers, Cardinals, and Rangers comprising baseball’s Final Four for the 2011 season. Loaded with talent, these smaller market teams have shown they have what it takes to be a contender.

Everyone knows the names of each team’s top players: Verlander and Cabrera for the Tigers, Pujols and Holliday for the Red Birds, Fielder and Braun for the Brew Crew, Hamilton and Young for the Rangers. But it takes more than just a couple of stars to win, it takes a team. Here is a look at a some other key players from each team that have contributed in big ways to their team’s postseason success in 2011. For those fans that treasure a good cardboard memory, we’ve even included a look at their key rookie baseball cards.

Image via Wikipedia

Texas Rangers

By now every baseball fan knows who Nelson Cruz is but that couldn’t be said before the playoffs started. Despite hitting just .212, he has produced some amazingly timely home runs, (5) total, accounting for 11 RBI. His key cards have gained just as much attention as the player himself, so get them while you can.

Key Rookie Card: 2005 SP Authentic #152 (autographed)

St. Louis Cardinals

A prototypical defensive shortstop and top of the order guy, Rafael Furcal brings a consistent glove and veteran postseason experience to a club that suffered through key injuries and was over 10 games out of the pennant race at the start of September.

Key Rookie Card: 1999 Bowman Chrome #364

Detroit Tigers

Victor Martinez led the AL in batting average with runners in scoring position during the regular season. Opposing pitchers have kept him in check this postseason, with him batting just .194, but again, timely hitting proved to be something Martinez had a knack for.

Key Rookie Card: 2001 Donruss Class of 2001 #258

Milwaukee Brewers

A gifted utility player that contributes to the depth of the team, Jerry Hairston Jr, is adept at multiple positions but feels most at home at second base. Platooning at the position with Rickie Weeks, both brought a strong arm and deft footwork to the keystone position.

Key Rookie Card: 1998 Fleer Tradition Update #U32

Image taken from Google Images

For the second straight season, the Rangers beat the Tampa Bay Rays to advance to the ALCS.  For the second straight season, their success was largely based on recent player acquisitions.

In 2010, Rangers GM Jon Daniels made several key moves in both the offseason and prior to the trade deadline, including the additions of Colby Lewis, Bengie Molina, Jeff Francoeur, and the biggest splash, Cliff Lee.  Lee and Lewis earned wins in five of Texas’ eight total postseason victories, and Molina and Francoeur had big hits that led to the club’s first ever American League pennant.

Despite the Rangers’ well-publicized failure to retain Lee for 2011 and beyond, the front office remained vigilant.  Daniels resisted the temptation to shell out the nine figures necessary to lure Carl Crawford to his home state, and opted to sign Adrian Beltre away from Boston for $85 million.  When an opportunity arose to jump in on a three way deal with the Angels and Blue Jays, Daniels pounced, landing Mike Napoli in exchange for reliever Frank Francisco.

While Napoli’s addition gave the offense a boost, the loss of Francisco, combined with the transition of Alexi Ogando from set up man to starter left a large hole in the bullpen.  Daniels responded.  The Rangers dealt for two of the top relief options available in Mike Adams and Koji Uehara in July.  Seemingly never satisfied, Daniels didn’t stop there, and dealt for lefty-specialist and former closer Mike Gonzalez.

Fast forward to the 2011 ALDS.  Napoli and Beltre hit six of the team’s eight total home runs and propelled Texas past Tampa Bay by razor thin margins.  The added bullpen depth gave Ron Washington favorable matchups to work with, and Texas held off the Comeback Kids.

It’s easy to look ahead to next year and expect the Rangers to once again have a good team.  It’s easy to wonder what will happen to them if C.J. Wilson departs as a free agent.  It’s also easy to imagine that the front office will respond accordingly, and make the right moves to send the Rangers deep into October again in 2012.  After all, possibly the best acquisition they have ever made was not a player.  The best move in franchise history may have been the chance they took in signing a young and inexperienced general manager named Jon Daniels.

While both National League Divisional Series will be going to a decisive Game 5 tonight, the Tigers and Rangers have each earned a berth to their league’s Championship Series. We’ll take a look at how these two teams match up to try to determine which club will represent the AL in the World Series.

Offense

Each of these clubs featured one of the more prolific offenses in the AL. The Rangers scored the third most runs of any AL team over the course of the season, while the Tigers scored the fourth most. However, the gap between them is larger than that statistic might indicate. The Rangers were the only team that was able to keep up with the big-money clubs in New York and Boston, as their 855 runs were only 20 behind the league-leading Sox. After the Rangers, there’s a large gap, as the Tigers scored 787 runs to finish fourth in the league. Advanced statistics suggest the gap between the teams’ offenses is a little smaller, as the Rangers’ wRC+ of 113 outpaced the Tigers by only 4%.

The Rangers’ offense got big production from some surprising places this year, while several of the players who carried the team to last season’s World Series have taken a step back. The team’s leader in offensive value was catcher Mike Napoli. Napoli spent 2010 splitting time behind the plate in Anaheim with Jeff Mathis. This offseason, Napoli momentarily went to the Blue Jays in exchange for Vernon Wells, although the deal was more about losing Wells’ massive contract and less about actually acquiring Napoli from the Jays’ perspective. Napoli was sent packing once again almost immediately, this time in exchange for closer Frank Francisco. Napoli has taken advantage of his new opportunity in Texas, putting up a 5.6 WAR in only 113 games through an impressive 178 wRC+. Napoli hit 30 home runs in 432 plate appearances during the regular season. The next lowest PA total for a 30-homer hitter was 525, nearly 100 chances more than Napoli. So, if you picked Napoli to lead the AL in slugging this year, well… I don’t believe you.

I discussed Ian Kinsler in my AL MVP post, but he deserves another mention, as he’s been incredibly valuable on both sides of the ball and had the most prolific offensive year of his career by a long shot. His 7.7 WAR was the best mark on the club. Adrian Beltre’s 5.7 WAR led the team’s position players other than Kinsler, and his 134 wRC+ was second only to Napoli. In his first season in Texas, Beltre earned the first installment of his big multiyear deal signed last offseason and then some, putting up big offensive numbers and playing the premium defense at the hot corner we’ve come to expect from him. It’s rare that 4.2 WAR is considered a letdown, but Josh Hamilton produced less than half as much this season as his MVP campaign in 2010. While his numbers may not make him an MVP candidate again this year, he’s certainly a dangerous hitter. After a season of unrest between Michael Young and his front office that ended with him requesting a trade, Young gave the Rangers some serious reasons to retain him. Young gave the team positional flexibility and another big bat in their deep, potent lineup. The Rangers were the only team in baseball with five players who produced 20 or more runs above average on offense, and that’s not even counting Nelson Cruz, who had a big down year after a breakout 2010.

While the Rangers do have a better lineup, the Tigers aren’t exactly slouches. Led by Miguel Cabrera, the Tigers have a number of big bats in the middle of their lineup. Alex Avila’s breakout season was interrupted by a deep slump down the stretch and during the divisional series. The Tigers will have to hope he can bounce back during this series and continue to cement himself as one of the best catchers in baseball. Victor Martinez, acquired last offseason to protect Cabrera, has been effective in that role, as his 130 wRC+ this season tied a career high. Delmon Young, acquired on a waiver trade, has been a force in Detroit’s lineup over the final stretch of the team’s regular season, and then set a franchise record with three ALDS home runs. However, he left Game 5 with an oblique strain after his first inning home run. If the injury is significant, Young could be done for the postseason. The Tigers will be hoping it’s only a minor strain. Then there’s Jhonny Peralta who led all AL shortstops with 120 wRC+. Peralta put up a career-high 5.2 WAR in an outstanding season.

Pitching

C.J. Wilson is the clear ace of the Rangers staff. Wilson will hit free agency this season, and it’s been speculated that they’re likely to lose him to another team. Wilson’s 3.29 SIERA was 10th in the AL. He’ll be followed by Derek Holland, Colby Lewis, and Matt Harrison. Holland had something of a breakout this year, putting up 3.6 WAR. He was behind only Neftali Feliz among the Rangers’ top pitching prospects in 2009 before joining the big club, and may be beginning to realize some of that potential. Harrison also had a pretty big breakout campaign, putting up 4.2 WAR in 30 starts after never topping 0.7 in his previous three seasons in the majors. Harrison is one of two Rangers who successfully moved from the bullpen to the rotation this season, as Alexi Ogando’s success as a starter has been a big storyline for this team. Ogando has been moved back to the bullpen for the playoff. He performed admirably throughout the Rangers’ series against the Rays, culminating in a spotless eighth inning of game 4 setting up Neftali Feliz for the series ending save. Ogando and Harrison’s success may pave the way for Feliz to move to the rotation next season, but the Rangers won’t begin to discuss that decision in earnest until the end of their playoff run.

Across the diamond, Justin Verlander put together one of the best seasons from any pitcher in recent memory. His last start of the season gave him a shot at being the first 25 game winner since Bob Welch in 1990. Not much else needs to be said about the Triple Crown winner, other than the fact that the Tigers will pitch him as many times as they possibly can in this series and every time they do he will almost certainly give them a chance to win. Verlander will be followed in the rotation by Rick Porcello, as the Tigers used both Doug Fister and Max Scherzer in their game 5 victory. Porcello and Scherzer are both young guys with big stuff, but who haven’t seen the results to match their potential yet. Both put up 2.7 WAR this season, Fister may end up being the most important acquisition by any team at this year’s trade deadline, although Hunter Pence will certainly give him a run for his money. Fister has produced 5,6 WAR this season, including 2.4 and a 2.63 SIERA in 70.1 innings with Detroit. These starters will hand the ball to the Tigers’ impressive bullpen, led by Jose “Papa Grande” Valverde. Valverde certainly has a tendency to make the ninth inning a bit of an adventure, but he’s 51-for-51 in save opportunities this season after closing out the ALDS in New York.

Home field advantage, which the Rangers clinched over the Tigers on the final day of the season, could be a huge deciding factor in this series. In the bandbox in Arlington, the Rangers’ potent office could take over games and simply out-mash the Tigers. However, in the expansive Comerica Park, the Tigers’ pitching will have a decided advantage. I think the Tigers will win at least two of their three home games, and I will be very surprised if Justin Verlander doesn’t give his team a fairly good chance to win at least one of the games in Arlington. If the Rangers can take the other three games in Arlington, that would likely set up a Verlander vs. Wilson in game 7 in Texas for all the marbles. In a deciding game, with the team on his back, it’s hard to bet against the best pitcher in the American League, so I’m going to take the Tigers to advance in what should be a thoroughly entertaining series.

Photo taken from Google Images

With Cole Hamels on the mound Tuesday night, I bet you couldn’t keep your eyes off the little blue batter’s box on TBS with a teeny pitch count above it. We watched Hamels’ pitch count climb higher and higher, while Garcia finished his innings quicker than a trip to the bathroom.

By the third inning it was clear that Hamels was struggling.

Then Rich Dubee made some funny comments. Dubee praised Hamels for his poise and presence on the mound, the velocity on his fastball and the movement on his pitches. Were we watching the same game?

Wait a minute. Let’s think about this for a second. Maybe Hamels deserves the praise. He faced a very dangerous Cardinals team who showed us exactly why they have the best offense in the league. Yes, Hamels threw a lot of pitches, but that was his only choice against a patient Cardinals squad. I mean, look at what happened to Halladay and Lee when they left pitches over the plate, giving up 8 runs between the two of them.

Hamels explained his approach perfectly. “I was trying to make pitches and just keep them down. If I missed, I knew I got another opportunity. If you’re making your mistakes up in the zone, you’re pretty much going to pay for it really bad. But if they’re down, you give yourself probably a better opportunity to get out of the inning.”

You have two choices against an offense like the St. Louis Cardinals. You keep working the corners and watch your pitch count rise or you start creeping toward the middle of the plate and meet the same fate as Hamels’ opponent. Garcia made one mistake and it lost him the game. Hamels made none and wound up the victor.

“I knew that every pitch mattered,” he said. “Every inning mattered. They had a great pitcher on the mound . . . We were 1-1 in the series . . . We’re not in our home park anymore. You definitely focus and try to dig deep.”

Yet his performance has already been gone and forgotten. Go to philly.com and phillies.com and you will see what I mean. Only one article on philly.com about Hamels and none on Phillies.com. In fact, Cole Hamels name was mentioned exactly 4 times in three Game 3 articles on phillies.com. He has the second lowest ERA (1.81) in Division Series history and became the winningest pitcher in Phillies postseason history, yet he had a GRAND TOTAL OF 4 MENTIONS.

A World Series ring and 2008 NLCS and World Series MVP honors didn’t get Hamels noticed and neither did 4 postseason wins in 2008, 7 postseason wins overall, a 2.65 postseason ERA since 2007, or 6 shutout innings last night.

The question is, how many championships will it take before Hamels gets the respect he deserves?

Image taken from Zimbio

When did Michael Stutes all of a sudden become Adam Eaton?

Michael Stutes had one bad month in August and all of a sudden everyone is ready to toss him aside like yesterday’s sports page.

This weekend I heard two reporters (David Murphy and some other guy) agree that essentially Stutes is no more than a last resort or a “mop-up” guy.

Chris Coste said he would have chosen Herndon over Stutes for the final NLDS roster spot. Herndon?! David Herndon?! Admittedly, Herndon’s ERA (3.32) is better than Stutes (3.63), but c’mon! Tell me he hasn’t fallen that far?

Stutes ran into some big time struggles in August, surrendering eight runs in 12.1 innings and an 5.84 ERA for the month. But that was a month ago. Stutes bounced back with a 3.00 ERA in September and seemed to regain his form, but it apparently didn’t put him in favor of the Phillies media.

In some ways, you might say there is reason to have MORE confidence in Stutes, not less. In The Mental ABC’s of Pitching the author writes, “If you want to know who I am, watch me when things aren’t going my way.” Things clearly weren’t going his way in August. But Stutes’ ERA in September ranked 2nd out of his five full months and it was his third best month in BB/9, K/9, and WHIP. Stutes struggled for the first time in his young big league career and survived to find the light at the end of the tunnel. That speaks volumes to the character of Michael Stutes!

Maybe this argument would have been better BEFORE he gave up three runs in a third of an inning in Game 1 of the NLDS, but Stutes does not belong in the back of the bus just yet. You can argue that Madson, Bastardo, Lidge, Worley, and even Kendrick all belong ahead of Stutes, but just not Herndon.

taken from Google Images

The following CNBC video discusses the business of baseball, with Larry Baer, San Francisco Giants COO, and CNBC’s Darren Rovell.

Dated 10/27/10 before the 2010 world Series

Parade photo provided by the author

The Giants’ World Series victory was spectacular!! I had spent the previous day working at the Polling Booth, starting at 6 am until 9 pm. I was utterly exhausted, but I wasn’t going to miss the parade. I kept waking up in the middle of the night trying to avoid my worst nightmare of oversleeping the parade. I would awaken hourly, and look at the clock in horror.

Finally, when I could deal with this no more. I got up, showered and got dressed. It was 6 am, and the BART (subway) trains into San Francisco were already packed with people wearing orange and black. These are my comrades, the people who I suffered with during the long seasons, the seasons of futility and frustration. Yes, I did know that some of these people were “fair weather” fans, and I didn’t care. I was just overjoyed that the team that I had fallen in love with when I was thirteen years old in 1978 had finally won a World Series.

This was one of the most unlikeliest of teams, but they were truly a team, a team that had come together during a very long season. This was a team that the city of San Francisco had fallen in love with, and this was a team that had given us, the fans, the ultimate gift. Whatever, happens in the future at least for 2010 the Giants are the World Series Champions and no one can ever take that away from us. It is also something that the specific players on that team can carry with them not just for the rest of their professional baseball careers, but also for the rest of their lives.

There were two speeches that I absolutely loved. The first one was Duane Kuiper, one of the Giants announcers who said that the Padres, Braves, Phillies, and Rangers were “out of here.” The other speech that I loved was from the Giants announcer Mike Krukow, which was truly special. I do think that he has the ability to keep things in perspective. Krukow told us to think of those people who couldn’t be there. I thought of both sets of my grandparents, and how I would go to Giants games with them, or I would listen to the Giants on the radio or watch them on television at paternal grandparents’ home in San Mateo. I also thought of my friends and those friendships that had been forged over the course of the years made so much better by a shared common love of the Giants.

I was also totally and utterly exhausted! By the time the parade ended at San Francisco City Hall, I had been standing for about six hours. My feet ached in a way that they hadn’t hurt so badly since I had bunion surgery eight years previously (One of my dear friends still calls me Charles Bunion, which cracks me up). It was just a sea of “orange and black” humanity. And, it was very special!!

Occasionally, chants would break out, and there would be a chorus of voices out of the crowd singing “Thank You Giants,” or “Let’s Go, Giants” and it would ripple throughout the crowd. Every once in a while, I would see someone crying, including myself. The tears would flow that one of my lifelong dreams had actually been realized with one of the most unlikely teams. I am sure that this was the case with these other people, as well.

Photo of Charles with proof that this was not a dream!

In the aftermath of the drama of the playoffs and the celebration of the Giants’ World Series victory, it took me a few days to realize that I could let go of the pain and anguish of past years’ disappointments and embrace the joy of 2010. I do know that the composure of next years’ team will be different. Teams do change year-to-year, one of the realities of baseball as a business, but the year of 2010 will always be special for me, and for other Giants fans.

Congratulations to the Giants who have now won World Series Championships in both New York and San Francisco! From the perspective of a non-Giants fan, someone who hasn’t had the priveledge to see them play very often if at all, I’d have to say that I was impressed by the pitching in general on this team. I was especially impressed with Lincecum, now I know why we won 2 consecutive Cy Yong Awards! I was also impressed with rookie Madison Burmgardner and the bullpen. As far as position players go, I love to watch young Posey both behind, in front of (how he handles the pitchers) and at the plate. I was also surprised by the play of Uribe on both sides of the ball and the bat of playoff hero Cody Ross (why the Marlins cut him loose is beyond my comprehension).

For those of you not in town for the parade, here’s a video of the event courtesy of Fox Sports…

For those San Francisco Giants fans who would like a piece of Giants history, the people over at AllPosters.com have put together this collection of 2010 World Series prints that can be framed and purchased. I have picked a few of my favorites below. Clicking on them will bring you to the allposters.com page where you can place your order for the selected print.

San Francisco Giants 2010 World Series Champions Composite

Photo

8 in. x 10 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Texas Rangers v. San Francisco Giants, Game 5: Pitcher Tim Lincecum

Photographic Print

Petersen,…

12 in. x 9 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed Mounted

Lincecum w/trophy

Texas Rangers v. San Francisco Giants, Game 5: Tim Lincecum

Photographic Print

., Pool

9 in. x 12 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed Mounted

Texas Rangers v. San Francisco Giants, Game 5: (L-R) Brian Wilson #28 and Tim Lincecum #55

Photographic Print

., Pool

12 in. x 9 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed Mounted

Texas Rangers v. San Francisco Giants, Game 5: Brian Wilson

Photographic Print

Pensinger, Doug

12 in. x 9 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed Mounted

Texas Rangers v. San Francisco Giants, Game 5: Brian Wilson

Photographic Print

Petersen,…

9 in. x 12 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed Mounted

Texas Rangers v. San Francisco Giants, Game 5: Buster Posey

Photographic Print

Martinez, Ronald

Buy at AllPosters.com

Texas Rangers v. San Francisco Giants, Game 5: Cody Ross

Photographic Print

Martinez, Ronald

9 in. x 12 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed Mounted

Texas Rangers v. San Francisco Giants, Game 5: World Series MVP Edgar Renteria

Photographic Print

., Elsa

12 in. x 9 in.

Buy at AllPosters.com

Framed Mounted