Kevin Youkilis has been the unsung hero for Boston this season. Youk’s 29 home runs and 115 RBI are both team highs. His glove has been just as valuable, playing substantial time at both corner outfield positions.
Advantage – The return of Lowell, coupled with Jed Lowrie and AL hits-leader Dustin Pedroia shoring up the middle infield, gives the defending champs the edge.
Pitching
Top-shelf talent on the mound won’t be hard to find in this series.
Four of the top-10 ERA marks in the American League belong to pitchers in this series. The aces of both staffs—Boston’s Josh Beckett and Los Angeles’ John Lackey—have World Series-clinching victories in their careers. And when the game is close in the ninth, two of the best closers in all of baseball will be available.
As is the case in most postseason series, the bullpen will be the deciding factor. Last year, it was Hideki Okajima that led Boston’s bullpen to the ice-cold Jonathan Papelbon.
Los Angeles’ team ERA of 3.99 ranks third in the American League and the bullpen is just as responsible as the starters. When a team wins more than 90 games decided by three runs or less, the bullpen is surely responsible.
Advantage – Despite Boston’s experience in last year’s postseason, Los Angeles has to have the advantage. A lights-out bullpen is a great weapon to have in the playoffs.
Intangibles
Los Angeles has the best record in the American League, but the Red Sox are the defending World Champions. Both teams are perennial playoff threats and consistently win more than 90 games per season. An edge is may be hard to find.
The Red Sox have won their last six playoffs games against Los Angeles. Boston has been fighting for the last three weeks while the Angels haven’t had much to fight for since winning the division in early September.
Advantage – The two factors mentioned in the previous paragraph will give the champs a slight edge.
Who Wins?
The winner of this series could very well be punching a ticket to the Fall Classic. The Red Sox and Angels established themselves as the best in the A.L. early in the season and have the firepower, pitching, and experience to win it all this year.
Despite having the best record in the league and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, the Angels' offense relies too much on the pitching. Los Angeles doesn’t score a ton of runs, which is why the bullpen has played such an integral role in the team’s success this season.
Only the Texas Rangers and Chicago Cubs scored more runs this season. The Red Sox are also in the top-10 in the majors in team ERA. If the Angels were playing an average offense, they’d cruise to victory. Unfortunately for the Angels, the Red Sox are anything but average.
Prediction – Boston in five.
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