13 Predictions for the 2011 MLB Postseason

The 2011 Major League Baseball season is almost 100 games old, and although there are still many games left, it isn't too early to start making end of the season and playoff predictions. In the following slides, I'll predict who wins each division, each wild card and each playoff series.

Sure, I'll probably end up being wrong more than once, but remember that my speculations are about a league where the Pittsburgh Pirates are in first place!

As Kevin Garnett would say, "Anything is possible!"

AL East Winner: Boston Red Sox

If you believe home-field advantage in the playoffs is important, this division race will be one of the most exciting in baseball as the postseason approaches.

If you're like me and think that home-field advantage in the playoffs is overrated, you probably won't give too much attention to this division race because the two teams that realistically have a shot at winning this division, the Red Sox and Yankees, will most likely both make the playoffs.

I wouldn't stick a fork in the Rays just yet, but I find it hard to believe that they can catch either the Red Sox or the Yankees. Those two teams are extremely deep and even if they experience some major injuries in the next few months, they should still have plenty to hold off the Rays.

The Sox almost have the best record in baseball while experiencing a 2-10 start and getting almost nothing from Carl Crawford and John Lackey.

The Red Sox probably won't run away with this division, but they have enough to finish ahead of their rival Yankees.

AL Central Winner: Chicago White Sox

This is probably surprising given that the White Sox are currently in third place in the AL Central and aren't even .500, but I think they will make a second-half run and get past the Tigers and Indians.

The Indians have been a great story so far, and it wouldn't be out of the question to think they'll be in it until the end of the year, but I don't see them winning this division.

The thing that I think will separate the White Sox come September from their division rivals is the depth of their pitching, especially their starters. Detroit might have the AL Cy Young winner in Justin Verlander and Cleveland has Justin Masterson (8-6, 2.64 ERA), but neither team has much else.

If the Sox can get better contributions from Jake Peavy and Gavin Floyd, they have enough hitting and relief pitching to win this competitive division.

AL West Winner: Texas Rangers

Even if the Rangers weren't having this recent hot streak, I still wouldn't pick anyone else to win this division. They are the class of a pretty weak AL West.

The A's and Mariners look like their playoff hopes are done. The Angels aren't bad, but they don't have much of a chance against the firepower of the Rangers.

Texas' lineup, with players like Michael Young, Josh Hamilton, Elvis Andrus and Adrian Beltre, is one of baseball's best but their pitching staff has also been really good, which is a surprise to many.

If the Rangers avoid the injury bug and keep getting good pitching, they could be headed to their second straight World Series.

AL Wild Card Winner: New York Yankees

I hope I didn't shock too many people with this pick. The AL Wild Card race is really between two teams: the Yankees and the Red Sox.

You can't really call it a race because both teams are fighting for first place in the AL East, but who else challenges for the wild card?

The Yanks currently hold a 5.5 game lead over the Rays for the wild card and as long as the Bronx Bombers stay fairly healthy, don't expect that lead to shrink.

Other than CC Sabathia, the pitching staff is flawed but not any more than the teams chasing them in the wild-card race. Everyone knows how great the Yankees lineup is, so as long as they stay healthy, expect the Yankees to contend yet again for a World Championship.

NL East Winner: Philadelphia Phillies

How good are the Phillies? They have a four-game lead over a Braves team that would be leading any other division other than the AL East.

Everyone knew the Phillies were going to be great this season, and they have proven it by holding the best record in the majors for what seems like the whole year.

Their pitching is unbelievable, and their hitting has been very solid, although not as good as it has been in the past. A little more production out of their bats could result in a World Championship for a fanbase that has had so little to cheer for these past few seasons.

(That was a joke, in case you were wondering.)

NL Central Winner: Milwaukee Brewers

I love that the Pirates are playing so well right now. With six more wins, they'll have reached their win total for the entire 2010 season. The last time they made the playoffs, I hadn't even reached my first birthday. Stories like this season's Pirates are what make baseball so great.

The Pirates have a very bright future, but I don't think that future includes a 2011 NL Central Championship. The Brewers are better than the Pirates, as well as the Cardinals and the Reds.

Milwaukee's hitting is great and their pitching is extremely solid. With the addition of Francisco Rodriguez, their bullpen added a ton of depth that is crucial for September and October baseball.

If the Brewers can start winning on the road, they shouldn't have much trouble winning this division.

NL West Winner: San Francisco Giants

The Giants have shown just how important pitching is. They won the World Series last year because of their pitching, and they are having another good season this year because of it. With all of the injuries they've had this season (Scott Cousins will tell you), they've needed all the pitching they can get.

The Giants offense hasn't been great, but it has been good enough to help the Giants hold first place in the NL West since June 25.

The Diamondbacks have been a surprise contender, but I don't think they're good enough to win this division unless the Giants experience even more injury problems.

The team Giants fans fear the most is the Rockies, but they need to make a run very soon if they want to have a chance at winning the NL West.

When Buster Posey went down, I expected the Giants' chances of winning a second straight World Series to be slim-to-none, but as long as they have that pitching, don't count them out of another championship run.

NL Wild Card Winner: Atlanta Braves

The Braves are a really good team. Jair Jurrjens is probably the Cy Young front-runner, Tommy Hanson is also a Cy Young contender, Brian McCann is one of the game's best catchers, and Jonny Venters and Craig Kimbrel lead one of baseball's best bullpens.

It's not like those are the only good players on this team, either. They're good in just about every facet of the game, and if they weren't in a division overshadowed by the Phillies, they'd be getting much more attention.

I don't think the Braves will be able to catch the Phillies in the NL East but come playoff time, they'll be a force to be reckoned with.

ALDS Winners: Yankees and Red Sox

If my previous predictions are correct, the Yankees would face the Rangers and the Red Sox would face the White Sox in the two American League Division Series.

In a rematch of last year's ALCS, I think the Yankees will have an easier time against these Rangers, especially because they won't have to deal with Cliff Lee. The Rangers' pitchers are very young, and I think they'll get roughed up by the potent Yankees lineup. I expect a 3-1 series victory for the Yanks.

The Red Sox are too good to lose this series to the other Sox, and I don't even expect them to lose a game in this ALDS matchup. Superior hitting and more experienced pitching will help them sweep Chicago.

NLDS Winners: Brewers and Braves

The NLDS matchups would be Brewers vs. Phillies and Braves vs. Giants if my previous projections are correct.

It might seem crazy to think the Brewers can beat the Phillies, especially because Milwaukee is not a good road team and they'd have to win at least one road game in that series, but I think they will be similar to the Giants of last year and ride a hot end of the season into the playoffs. It will be close, but I think the Brewers pitching will keep the Phillies offense in check, and I think their hitting will be good enough to overcome the dominant Phillies pitching.

In the other series, expect a bunch of low-scoring games between the Braves and Giants. The Braves offense is considerably better than the Giants offense, and their pitching is just as good.

The Giants have proven many critics wrong over the last two seasons, but I think their injuries and average hitting will cost them in the playoffs.

ALCS Winner: Yankees

I can't imagine how much coverage ESPN would give this series. They might create an entire channel devoted to 24-hour analysis of the Yankees and the Red Sox.

As overhyped as these two teams may be, they are really good and I think this series would be extremely exciting if it happened. I would expect six or seven highly-contested games out of these two very evenly-matched teams.

The player who I think will make the difference is CC Sabathia. He's been a dominant pitcher the last several seasons, and although his playoff stats are mediocre (4.66 ERA in 13 games), I think this postseason will be much improved.

With Sabathia, the bullpen and the great lineup, the Yankees will be headed for another World Series berth.

ALCS Winner: Braves

The Brewers have a very good team that will really challenge the Braves, but the Braves are more consistent across the board than the Brewers, and that consistency should be the key to victory.

The Braves lineup, lead by Brian McCann, should be just as solid as it has been all year, but I expect the pitching to be lights-out in the postseason.

I expect Jair Jurrjens to have a Cliff Lee-esque series, as well as brilliant performances by the other starters and the bullpen.

The Brewers are a little more flawed than the Braves, and I expect the Braves to expose those flaws and get to the World Series—a place they haven't been since 1999.

World Series Champ: Atlanta Braves

There usually isn't a World Series participant that is better than the other, unless one league is drastically superior, so picking a champion is not the easiest thing to do. Many people picked the Rangers in last year's series and look how that ended up.

I think this Yankees-Braves series would be close and exciting with the Braves being victorious, but I can't really provide specific reasons because it's July and both teams seem evenly matched.

I simply think the Braves will play better than the Yankees in the World Series, and that's all they'll need to do in order to lift the trophy.