Big MLB Stars Who Came Up Small in the 2014 ALDS, NLDS

The field of four for the National and American League Championship Series has been set, with the Baltimore Orioles, Kansas City Royals, San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals, the underdogs from each League Division Series, moving on to the next round.

The aforementioned teams feature plenty of stars, whether it’s Adam Wainwright, Madison Bumgarner, Buster Posey, Alex Gordon or Adam Jones.

However, the eliminations of the Angels, Dodgers, Tigers and Nationals—arguably the favorites to win the World Series heading into October—means we’ll be forced to move forward without Mike Trout, Clayton Kershaw, Miguel Cabrera and Bryce Harper.

For some of those players, the fact that their team failed to reach the LCS falls on their shoulders.

Here are five big MLB stars who came up small in the 2014 ALDS or NLDS.

NOTE: Not every losing team is represented here, as their stars may have performed admirably (such as a David Price, Bryce Harper or Miguel Cabrera) even if the team as a whole did not.

Clayton Kershaw, LHP, Los Angeles Dodgers

Charles Rex Arbogast/Associated Press

Clayton Kershaw won his final seven starts to finish the regular season with a ridiculous 21-3 record, while his 1.77 ERA and 239 strikeouts both were tops in the National League. Kershaw also established a new record, per MLB.com, by winning his fourth ERA title in the last four years.

In Game 1, Kershaw yielded a solo home run to the second batter of the game, rookie Randal Grichuk, but then proceeded to retire the next 16 batters. When the seventh inning came around, however, Kershaw yielded six earned runs and coughed up a four-run lead.

Manager Don Mattingly called on his ace to start Game 4 in St. Louis on three days’ rest, and, unsurprisingly, Kershaw pitched brilliantly through the first six innings, allowing only one hit and zero runs.

But the seventh inning once again proved to be Kershaw’s downfall, as the left-hander yielded a pair of softly hit singles before serving up a go-ahead, three-run homer to Matt Adams. The Cardinals would win the game 3-2.

"I felt great, it just didn't work out," Kershaw said, via AJ Cassavell of MLB.com.

"The season ended and I'm a big part of the reason why. It doesn't matter how I pitched. It's bad deja vu all over again. I felt we had a really good chance to win. I'm thankful we got here and hope to be back."

Kershaw registered a 7.82 ERA between the two outings, allowing 11 earned runs on 12 hits (three home runs) to go along with a 19-2 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 12.2 innings.

But don’t get too caught up in those un-Kershaw-like numbers (save for the strikeouts and walks, of course), argues Bleacher Report’s Zach Rymer:

"

That's a 7.82 ERA that jumps off the page, grabs you by your shirt collar and insists in ominous tones that every pitch Kershaw threw in the series was an utter disaster.

But you and I actually watched Kershaw pitch. And while there's no getting around that the results are disappointing, that means you and I know that Kershaw was actually Kershaw for the most part.

"

Well said, Zach.

Don't worry, we’ll be reminded of Kershaw’s greatness in a month when he’s named the Cy Young Award winner of the National League and, quite possibly, its MVP.

Josh Hamilton, LF, Los Angeles Angels

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Injuries limited Josh Hamilton to only 89 games this season, during which he batted .263/.331/.414 with 10 home runs, 21 doubles and 44 RBI. He also struck out 108 times during that span, compared to just 32 walks, and batted .228/.283/.318 with six home runs in 43 games following the All-Star break.

Hamilton missed most of September with right shoulder soreness as well as right rib and chest pain, playing in only one game between Sept. 4 and Game 1 of the ALDS. In retrospect, it would have been better if Hamilton were unable to suit up for the postseason.

The 33-year-old left fielder looked utterly clueless at the plate during the ALDS, going 0-for-13 with two strikeouts and six weakly hit groundouts to the right side of the infield. According to Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com, Hamilton became the seventh player in the Wild Card era to record at least 10 plate appearances without reaching base.

Hamilton shared in the disappointment, per Gonzalez:

"

Of course it's frustrating. I'd be lying to you if I said it wasn't. But I'm not going to not do what I can to get back and help the team. Last year ended on a positive note. This year, going to the playoffs is pretty positive. That's something to build off and fuel the fire for next year going to Spring Training.

"

One positive takeaway from Josh Hamilton’s disappointing year is that he doesn’t have a surgery scheduled for the offseason for the first time in what seems like an eternity.

Yasiel Puig, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Yasiel Puig is considered an X-factor every time he takes the field.

That wasn’t the case in the NLDS against the Cardinals, however, as the Dodgers outfielder struck out in seven consecutive at-bats from the ninth inning of Game 1 through the third inning of Game 3. Puig broke that streak with a triple in the sixth inning of Game 3 and scored what was then the game-tying run, but it was hard to overlook his eight strikeouts in 12 at-bats heading into a must-win Game 4.

With Puig’s struggles seemingly at the heart of the Dodgers’ overall lack of production, manager Don Mattingly decided it’d be best to bench his All-Star outfielder in favor of Andre Ethier.

Though Puig was said to be healthy, Mattingly defended his lineup change by saying that "this gives us a better chance to win today. It’s not about anything bad with Yasiel."

Right, because we all know benching the best player on the team with the season on the line is always a recipe for success.

Anyway, Puig entered the game as a pinch runner with one out in the ninth inning and represented the potential game-tying run, but he ultimately was stranded on second base to end the game.

The Dodgers will now spend the offseason wondering, "What if?"

Mike Trout, CF, Los Angeles Angels

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It was yet another monster season for Mike Trout, as he batted .287 while leading the American League in both runs (115) and RBI (111), and ranking third in home runs (36), triples (nine), slugging percentage (.561) and OPS (.939). More impressively, Trout led all MLB position players in WAR (7.8) and finished second to Andrew McCutchen in wRC+ (167).

Trout likely will be named AL MVP for the first time—we all know it really should be his third straight year winning the award—following the conclusion of the postseason.

Naturally, big things were expected of Trout in his first trip to the postseason. However, the 23-year-old phenom didn’t make much of an impact through the first two games of the ALDS, going a combined 0-for-8 with a strikeout and two walks. He was also caught stealing.

Trout’s only bright spot came in his first at-bat in Game 3, when he launched a first-inning solo home run to left-center field off James Shields. Otherwise, he struck out for the final outs of Games 2 and 3, finishing the series with an .083 batting average (1-for-12).

"Sometimes you hear the crowd going, you want to do so much, and you get out of your approach sometimes," Trout said, via Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com. "You try to do a little too much, and that's when you get in trouble. It's something you have to work on."

Trout will go down as baseball’s best player in 2014 and finally claim his first AL MVP award, but there’s no denying his performance this October was a huge disappointment. 

C.J. Wilson, LHP, Los Angeles Angels

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The Angels desperately needed a strong start from C.J. Wilson in Game 3 of the ALDS. In fact, the team’s season depended on it.

Unfortunately, 0.2 innings was the best the left-hander could do, as the Royals tagged him for three hits and three runs in the first inning. Alex Gordon delivered the crushing blow with a bases-clearing double to left-center field following Wilson’s two-out free pass to Billy Butler.

Wilson threw only 23 pitches before manager Mike Scioscia lifted him in favor of a righty-righty matchup, but the damage had already been done. The Angels were unable to climb back from the early deficit, and Kansas City completed the three-game sweep with an 8-3 win.

Wilson commented on his outing, via Lyle Spencer of MLB.com:

"

I like to think in general I'm the kind of guy who can give the team a good start even with a bad inning. In the situation we're in, backs to the wall, what can I do? It's a little frustrating.

I walked Butler and turned around and saw Vinnie warming up in the bullpen, and I was a little bit upset. I felt like I made some good pitches, but I didn't get the result. They're hot right now, obviously. That's what happens.

"

The 2014 season was the worst of Wilson’s career since his conversion to a full-time starter in 2010. The 33-year-old pitched to a disappointing 4.51 ERA (4.31 FIP) and 1.446 WHIP over 175.2 innings (31 starts), while his walk rate jumped to 4.4 BB/9 from 3.6 BB/9 in 2013. He also walked more batters (85) than any other pitcher in the American League.