MLB Playoffs 2011: Ranking the Best Pitching Matchups of Game 1

With only a day or two of rest between the end of the regular season and the playoffs, just a few teams have the luxury of sending their top starter to the mound considering the majority of teams in the field were playing till the very end.

Here are the rankings for the pitching match-ups in the four Game 1’s:

1. Justin Verlander (DET) vs. C.C. Sabathia (NYY) Friday 8:07 PM TBS

This one is easy.

It could be argued that Verlander, the potential Cy Young winner who has notched 24 victories, just completed the best regular season a pitcher has had in the last decade.

His final stats: 24-5, 2.40 ERA, 0.92 WHIP.

Wow.

CC Sabathia is right behind him with a 19-8 record, 3.00 ERA and 1.23 WHIP.

The winner of this game is going to get a huge leg-up in arguably the best series of the first round.

2. Ian Kennedy (AZ) vs. Yovani Gallardo (MIL) Saturday 2:07 PM TBS

Yovani Gallardo reached the 17-win plateau and sports a respectable 3.52 and 1.22 WHIP.

He has a terrific right-hander who has a nasty array of off-speed pitches. He's 2-0 in his last three starts, with double-digit strikeouts in each of those games.

Ian Kennedy has been nothing short of incredible, posting 21 wins, a 2.88 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. He became the fourth pitcher in Arizona Diamondbacks' history to win 20 games, and first since Brandon Webb in 2008. Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling won 20 games apiece in 2001 and 2002.

It will be interesting to see how these aces fare against two very potent lineups.

3. Jeff Nieman (TB) vs. C.J. Wilson (TEX) Friday 5:07 PM TBS

The Rays have more pitching depth than any other American League team and will be throwing their third-best starter on the mound in Niemann. He doesn’t have eye-popping numbers (11-7, 4.06 ERA, 1.24WHIP).

C.J. Wilson has been the Rangers' ace, posting a 16-7 record, 2.94 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. In the month of September he has pitched 15 innings against the Rays rather weak lineup, giving up a grand total of two runs.

The Rangers have the clear advantage in this one.  

4. Kyle Lohse (STL) vs. Roy Halladay (PHI) Saturday 5:07 PM TBS

This one is a big-time mismatch.

Halladay threw a no-hitter in his first postseason game last year, and enters the playoffs in 2011 after posting a 19-6 record with 2.35 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. 

He is the most dangerous pitcher left in the National League.

Lohse has been extremely inconsistent this season, finishing 14-8 with a 3.39 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. He is prone to giving up a big inning and I can imagine the heart of the Phillies lineup devouring his weak fastball.

This will likely be the one blowout of the slate.