Kuzul

It’s no secret San Francisco is basking in its NLCS glorious victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. You can’t walk down a street in San Francisco without seeing someone with some sort of Giants merchandise.

The Giants Dugout Stores have lines flowing for, what seem like, miles. A person could walk from AT&T Park to the Ferry Building and back and the line would not have moved. Giants fever is extremely contagious.

But for all the fever, we have to remember there is still a series to be played. Game 1 is tomorrow night and the American League Champion Texas Rangers await.

Game 1: Tim Lincecum vs. Cliff Lee

Game 2: Matt Cain vs. C.J. Wilson

Game 3: Jonathan Sanchez vs. Colby Lewis

Game 4: Madison Bumgarner vs. Tommy Hunter

Game 5*: Tim Lincecum vs. Cliff Lee

Game 6-7*: TBD

How much of the Giants’ former catcher Bengie Molina’s knowledge of the pitchers help the Rangers? Probably not that much. Molina can tell them all he wants, but they still have to hit the ball.

Will Buster Posey and Pat Burrell begin to hit? Will Cody Ross continue his MVP type play? There are many questions to be answered and let’s start at the beginning.

The Game 1 matchup is the most intriguing because of the success of both pitchers. Cliff Lee has never lost in the postseason or to the Giants. Tim Lincecum has been his normal dominant self in the postseason.

In Lee’s previous three starts against the Giants, he is 3-0 with a 1.12 ERA. Now this Giants team is a much different team from the one he saw last year. That team has inept offensively and had no pop in the lineup.

If the Giants take a similar approach to Lee, as they did to Roy Halladay, they will fare pretty well against the Rangers.

The designated hitter, or lack thereof in San Francisco, will take its toll on Texas. In Game 1, they are starting Vladamir Guerrero in right field.

As most of the National League can attest, the right field at AT&T Park is like playing centerfield. Many have to play well toward the right centerfield gap to prevent anything from entering Triples Alley. With Vlad’s limited range, this creates a significant advantage for the Giants.

Guerrero has been limited to only 61 at bats as the right fielder. In those 61 at bats, he had an average of .246 with a .767 OPS.

The Giants crowd will create all the home field advantage the team needs. The Texas Rangers have never won a game at AT&T Park, if they take Game 1 from Cliff Lee, they will carry that momentum to a 2-0 series lead heading to Arlington.

The Giants will struggle to contain the Rangers full lineup in Arlington. Guerrero will be back in his normal DH spot. Nelson Cruz will be able to get his arms extended against the Giants’ two lefties in the rotation.

The Rangers have a predominately right-handed lineup which most would think favor Texas against Sanchez and Bumgarner. The answer to that is yes and no.

The Rangers have hit only .266 as a team against lefties (.280 against right-handers). Their OPS is nearly 60 points lower against lefties. But Ian Kinsler, Guerrero, Cruz and Michael Young all hit above .320 against left-handed pitching this year.

Sanchez has to lower his walk total and Bumgarner needs to be weary of pitching to contact in their live ballpark.

Once going up 2-0 in the series, all the Giants have to do is win one game in Texas before bringing it home for Cain in Game 6. They would have to beat either Colby Lewis or Tommy Hunter because I do not see the Giants beating Cliff Lee twice.

The other three pitchers for the Rangers have been solid all postseason. They shut down a potent Yankees lineup and a dysfunctional Rays order.

The Giants offense will have the task of doing just enough to win. What has been shocking about the Giants’ run is the lack of power from the lineup. This is a lineup that has the ability to take a pitcher out the yard but have, overall, failed to do so.

Aubrey Huff, Buster Posey and Andres Torres have all gone homer-less. The Giants have six as a team in 10 games. There has not been a time during the season where all three of these guys have failed to hit one out. This should change in this series.

Despite having not hit a home run, Torres is starting to swing the bat better, and Freddy Sanchez has started to swing a hot bat. The table setters are getting it done in front of Huff and Posey. It’s up to them to get Torres and Sanchez in.

The bullpens have been very good as well.

This series will key on Brian Wilson and Javier Lopez. Lopez will be granted the singular task of shutting down Josh Hamilton. No one has yet to do it, but Lopez has already done it to Ryan Howard and Chase Utley.

Hamilton is just next in this list.

Wilson has his own brand of torture. Let runners on base only to tightrope his way out of danger for the save. The Phillies were not hitting well going into the series with the Giants. The Rangers, on the other hand, lit up the Yankees rotation and may not leave potential runs stranded.

If the Giants can contain the opportunities of the Rangers, they will scratch and claw their way to four more one-run victories.

The stars will line up in the next week plus and the monkey sitting on the Giants’ back will be released. The Giants win this series 4-2.

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Baseball fans rejoice. 

The Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants have made it to the World Series, and once the first pitch is thrown on Wednesday night, we will each be able to bear witness to one of the more unique championship series that has happened in our lifetimes.

So what if we lost the entire east coast in the two League Championship series and the television outlets are crying over lost revenue, or that neither team has a $100 million payroll—Texas is below $60 million—or that the Yankee lineup and the Phillies rotation will not be seen again this October. I’m here to focus on the decedent positives. Here are the best reasons to love the 2010 World Series:

One reign of futility will end: The last time the Giants won a World Series, 1954, Willie Mays was competing with Duke Snyder and Joe DiMaggio for the title of “best center fielder in New York”, DiMaggio won the title by marrying Marilyn Monroe that year. Teams didn’t even play major league baseball further west than Chicago.

Rangers fans have not waited as long for a championship only because they haven’t even existed for that long. They began their hapless lives as the Washington Senators. First in war. First in peace. Last in the American League. Those Senators. 
They weren’t even the cool ones that won a World Series in 1924 or were managed by Ted Williams for a few seasons. Those Senators became the Minnesota Twins. 
One of these two clubs has to win the World Series, and it will be nothing like any of their fans who are not collecting social security has ever seen.

Both teams are likeable underdogs: On top of everything I said above, there are more recent debacles each franchise has had to overcome. 

When I say “San Francisco Giants”, I am willing to bet Allen Iverson’s Turkish salary that the first image that comes to your mind is still the maligned Barry Bonds. He became the face of the steroid era and did more damage to the image of the sport than Tiger Woods would have if he played for the Mets. 

That subconcious image should be of Kung Fu Panda’s doughy frame jovially manning third with an equally doughy Juan Uribe literally filling the gap at short, or Brian Wilson’s playoff beard, which should count against their playoff roster, or Lincecum’s contortionist routine to deliver in the high 90’s despite being listed under six feet tall. That’s a fun team to pull for. 

They will still not draw as many cheers from neutral fans, because the Rangers have a World Series story that if it were turned into a movie, you would scoff at it for its unbelievability (editors note: that last word does not exist).

It is every classic underdog story rolled into one. 

Before the season started, manager Ron Washington resigned from the club and admitted that he had been using cocaine, only management would not let him quit. (Character in need of redemption) 

One of the players he manages, Josh Hamilton, was a promising young ballplayer with limitless potential until he fell into drugs that included heroin. Hamilton cleaned up and has redeemed himself by realizing his potential. (Feel-good character and quazi-role model) 

The Rangers were bankrupt under owner Tom Hicks and had to be sold. (Team at its low point) 

The commissioner continued to let them spend money on key free agents even though all their income came from revenue sharing. (Benevolent leader showing trust in the underdog) 

One of the principle investors was none other than Nolan Ryan, the greatest baseball player ever to pitch in Texas. (Hero returning to save the club) 

The team traded for the best available player in the game when a better offer was made by another team. (Luck, perhaps divine) 

That same team that made the better offer, the Yankees—the reigning World Series champions with four times the payroll who used to routinely beat Texas in the playoffs the last time they were any good. They became the last obstacle the Rangers had face in order to get to the World Series and a chance to be the first champions in franchise history. (Overcoming the odds to defeat the antagonist)

The entire season plays out over-the-top.

Even if the Giants win, the average viewer will still have to feel good for the Rangers for getting this far, and cheer the team that saved itself from collapsing simply by playing their hearts out. 

Like many here in New York, I was rooting for the Yankees as a loyal fan. But now that they are out I see no reason to abandon my high level of interest in the postseason. I want to see a fan base celebrate for the first time in most of their lives. I want to see Lee duel Lincecum. I want to see if this Rangers movie gets the Mighty Ducks treatment or the Rocky treatment. At least, as baseball fans, we are all going to win.

— Matthew Donato

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The 2010 World Series is going to be a thing of beauty. Sure, nobody in their right minds picked the San Francisco Giants to be playing against the Texas Rangers in this year’s addition of the fall classic, but both teams reached baseball’s grandest stage in a similar fashion.

San Francisco has relied on its dominant starting pitching all season and through the playoffs to shut teams down.

Texas has a pretty potent offense to go along with a shutdown ace in Cliff Lee, who is still unbeaten in the postseason.

Josh Hamilton is adding even more memories to his storybook return to baseball, and he will probably end up walking away with the AL MVP award once the Series is over.

So, who you got? The Giants have home field advantage, thanks to the NL’s win in the All-Star game.

First pitch is Wednesday night. Tim Lincecum vs. Cliff Lee at AT&T Ballpark. First pitch is scheduled for 7:57 p.m. EST.

Here is what needs to happen for the Giants to be victorious.

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So awesome. So. AWESOME!

There’s something special about playoff baseball that just kicks so much ass.

The intensity goes through the roof! It doesn’t matter which team is playing, the ante is always higher the later and later we get into fall.

Last round, I went 0-2, dropping me to 3-3 this season. Good, I’m glad.

How unpredictable has this postseason been? Who knew the Rangers and Giants would be playing in the World Series as they send the Phillies and Yankees—the last two teams to win the Series, as well as the last two teams to participate in the last two seasons—home empty-handed?

I sure as hell didn’t. I said from day one, Phillies over Yankees in the WS. Glad I’m wrong. These playoffs have been incredible to watch. Fortunately, it’s the World Series. Unfortunately, playoff baseball is ending in 4-7 games.

Behold the schedule…in all its glory:

Game 1: TEX@SF – Oct 27 7:57pm
TEX: LHP Cliff Lee
SF: RHP Tim Lincecum

Game 2: TEX@SF – Oct 28 7:57pm
TEX: LHP C.J. Wilson
SF: RHP Matt Cain

Game 3: SF@TEX – Oct 30 6:57pm
SF: LHP Jonathan Sánchez
TEX: RHP Colby Lewis

Game 4: SF@TEX – Oct 31 8:20pm
SF: LHP Madison Bumgarner
TEX: RHP Tommy Hunter

Game 5: SF@TEX – Nov 1 7:57pm
SF: RHP Tim Lincecum
TEX: LHP Cliff Lee

Game 6: TEX@SF – Nov 3 7:57pm
TEX: LHP C.J. Wilson
SF: RHP Matt Cain

Game 7: TEX@SF – Nov 4 7:57pm
TEX: RHP Colby Lewis
SF: LHP Jonathan Sánchez

Game 1. Cliff Lee. Tim Lincecum. I’m not making this up. And if there is a god, we get to see this again in Game 5.

It’s going to be a *terrible* series for TV, but for baseball fans and enthusiasts, they’ve been salivating over it for days. Neither the Giants nor the Rangers were supposed to get this far, but both have proven they deserve it. The Giants are gunning for their first championship since 1954, while the Rangers are going for their first one ever. Both crowds are going to be bananas.

How’s this for karma? Coming into this season, the Giants have not won a World Series Championship in 52 seasons. The Rangers went 49 years without even a postseason series win, let alone a World Series appearance. These two teams account for two of the top four clubs with the longest World Series Championship droughts. Add them up, and what do you get? 101, the number of years the Cubs have been waiting. That damn goat!

We BeLEEve!

I’m going to throw some stats at you, just to show you how unfair this is.

In eight postseason starts, Cliff Lee is 7-0 with a 1.26 ERA. Only Sandy Koufax and Christy Mathewson have a lower ERA among pitchers with at least five starts in the postseason.

He’s the first pitcher ever with three straight postseason games of at least 10 strikeouts. He has five 10-strikeout games in his postseason career; one more and he’ll be the only one ever with six, passing legend Randy Johnson. Lee had 30 strikeouts in between walks, another postseason record. There have been eight postseason games in history in which a pitcher has struck out 10 and walked none; Lee has four of them.

This dude is dirty. He’s got a solid fastball, jams hitters inside, and has an outstanding curve and cutter. You know he’s throwing strikes, but you can’t do anything about it. Lee will be on more than full rest for Game 1 (as per all starts), but can he go on short rest if he has to, something he’s never done in the postseason?

Pitching

The Giants’ starting pitching is very good, but with one “Giant” hazard (so to speak): Jonathan Sanchez.  He lasted only two innings in Game 6. If he’s again caught up with the different release points of all his pitches, he’s going to be wild and will walk/hit a bunch. Such an issue is non-existent with the Rangers’ No. 3 starter, Colby Lewis, who dominated the Yankees twice in the ALCS.

Both teams had solid pens in the regular season, but the Giants get the edge in the postseason (the Rangers imploded against the Yankees, and the Giants relieved seven innings when Sanchez was pulled after two-plus).

RHP Brian Wilson became the fourth pitcher to win or save four games in one postseason series. His postseason game plan has been low, outside fastballs until he gets two strikes, followed by a breaking ball strike. He’s been lights-out.

Both teams have great lefty relievers, but the Giants will need help from their righty setup men—they were good in the regular season, but were unsteady by the end of the NLCS, thus, Lincecum’s relief appearance in Game 6.

How did THEY get here?

Many people are asking how the Giants got here.

Statistically, they don’t belong—they’re not a good defensive team. They aren’t patient at the dish, and they don’t steal.

They’ve got good pop from No. 1-8 in the order, but is that it? They don’t get many hits, but the ones they do get are key, critical base knocks at exactly the right time.

Proof? They’ve won six games by one run in this postseason, tying a record for the most one-run wins in a single postseason. But that’s exactly the way their team is built—the team is primarily composed of castoffs and misfits from other teams. As third-base coach Tim Flannery says, “They’re Street Fighters.”

Oh…well then, who invited THEM?

The Rangers’ offense has been the primary reason why they’ve gotten to the Fall Classic. In this postseason, they have hit 17 home runs and stolen 16 bases. They’ve homered in 11 consecutive postseason games, one short of the record set by the Astros in ’04 . They beat the Yankees four times by at least five runs, the second team ever to do that in a seven-game series.

They’ve got a ton of pop, too–OFs Josh Hamilton hit four bombs in the LCS, and Nelson Cruz has five this postseason.

The big thing that I’ve been stressing for years is finally being showcased—speed wins ballgames! Take Rangers’ SS Elvis Andrus for example. He runs constantly. Even if he doesn’t steal, his speed intimidates pitchers and throws them off their game, as they constantly have that stolen base threat staring right at them. Andrus even scored on an infield ground out while at second base. And it doesn’t end there: Cruz, Hamilton, Kinsler, Murphy, Francoeur and Young are all good-to-excellent runners, just to name a few.

This team runs the bases exceptionally well, and they’ve even managed to turn C Benjie Molina into a (more) aggressive runner. And what does poor pitcher concentration lead to? Poor pitches. And what do poor pitches lead to? See Hamilton and Cruz, above.

Finally, the Rangers have scored 59 runs in 11 postseason games. They scored 36 runs against the Yankees in the ALCS. San Francisco has scored 24 runs this entire postseason.

Cody Ross 4 Prez

Fate, destiny. Whatever you want to call it, it’s thrown around a lot. But the Giants can certainly make a claim for being the team of destiny.

It’s hard to explain, but sometimes when the bounces go your way, the bounces go your way. And when they don’t, they don’t—you can’t do much about that, either.

The Giants have been lucky to get a lot of little benefits throughout the 2010 postseason. Case in point: Game 6 of the NLCS against the Phillies, where Andres Torres got a perfect bounce off the center field wall to stop Jimmy Rollins from scoring.

If you’re talking destiny, let’s look at Cody Ross’ story—he’s claimed on waivers because the Giants didn’t want him to go to the rival Padres, essentially a blocking claim. He drove in seven runs in 73 at-bats with an over-crowded Giants’ outfield. Then he hit four home runs, two in one game off Roy Halladay, and drove in eight runs, slugging .794 in the postseason with a .362 average against changeups.  I defy any rational explanation for this.

Stories like Ross’ are so incredibly rare in every other sport—there’s no way the 11th man on an NBA team ends up as the best player in any playoff series—but in baseball, it happens constantly. He’s been the reason why Giants have made it this far. Key hits at the right time. Oh yeah, Ross wanted to be a rodeo clown as a kid.

But, Cody Ross isn’t going to hit a home run every night. The unlikely NLCS star is great at breaking up no-hitters, but nobody else is getting on base in front of him. All four of Ross’ home runs have come with the bases empty.

Final Thoughts

The true winner: Benjie!

The rotund backstop gets a World Series ring regardless of whether he wins or loses. Talk about having your “bases” covered! He is about to become the first catcher in baseball history to appear in the Fall Classic against a team he played for earlier in the season.

Molina, with the Giants since 2007, played 61 games for San Fran in 2010, was then dealt to Texas for RHP Chris Ray and a minor leaguer, then played 57 games for Texas during the regular season.

He’s also been solid in the postseason, batting .333 with two homers and seven RBIs in nine games. He belted a three-run shot against the Yankees in Game 4 of the ALCS that helped propel them to the big dance.

Ray, a reliever who pitched well for both teams, could also end up with a ring regardless who wins, although the Giants haven’t put him on their playoff rosters. Does Molina hold a wild card when it comes to knowing the Giants’ pitching tendencies?

The team of destiny is the Lone Star. I’ve doubted them from the beginning, and they continue to make me look stupid. This ends now. I keep looking for a reason to think the Giants are going to win, and I keep coming up empty. This is going to be an outstanding series, an absolute thriller, but Texas comes out on top.

Pick: Rangers in 7

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Mark my words: Bengie Molina is going to get a World Series ring.

Impressed with the boldness of my prediction?  Don’t be: Bengie Molina is currently the catcher for the Texas Rangers, but he began the season as the catcher for the San Francisco Giants. Thus, by virtue of time served, he’ll get a World Series ring no matter which team wins.

Rest assured, though, he’d probably rather win the World Series and get the ring.

In anticipation of the Fall Classic match-up between the San Francisco Giants and the Texas Rangers, which begins tomorrow, here are some other World Series Fun Facts.

Begin Slideshow

The 2010 World Series will commence on Wednesday evening from San Francisco.  It can last as long as nine days or as few as five.  It should be interesting to see how this unlikely World Series will play out.  

Pitching matchups will be at the forefront, but this slide show will attempt to go even deeper. I will examine all things that need mentioning and present fun facts for each game.  

Here are some major league reasons to watch this 2010 World Series between the Texas Rangers and the San Francisco Giants.  

Begin Slideshow

Many fans on the East Coast aren’t too excited about the 2010 World Series matchup. No, it’s not the 27-time World Champion Yankees against the postseason favorite Philadelphia Phillies.

Instead, it’s just the two best teams.

It’s the Texas Rangers, the team with the best hitting, against the San Francisco Giants, the team with the best pitching. One hasn’t won the World Series for 56 years. The other has never been to the World Series.

Instead of watching two teams whose fans expected to be here, we’ll be watching two teams whose fans still can’t believe they actually are here. Those fans, like the players, will be pumped up and ready to go come Wednesday.

For all those East Coasters who were in bed by the time these teams were throwing out the first pitch during the regular season, let’s take a position-by-position look at the Giants and the Rangers to see what we can expect from this series.

Catcher: Bengie Molina vs. Buster Posey

When the Giants traded Molina to Texas back in July, they may have lost their title as the Fattest Team in Baseball. Juan Uribe and Pablo Sandoval just weren’t sure if they could carry the load without the veteran backstop.

But Brian Sabean knew that to win in the Big Leagues, you have to prioritize talent. That talent came in the way of Buster Gerald Dempsey Posey. The 23-year-old catching phenom made Molina expendable.

After a monster rookie season, Posey hit .375 against the Braves in the NLDS. He slowed down some in the NLCS, but this Rookie of the Year candidate has proven that he can perform on the big stage.

Despite only hitting five home runs during the regular season, Molina hit some huge homers for the Rangers in the playoffs, including a key three-run bomb in the ALCS. But Buster Posey isn’t just good for a rookie. This guy is already one of the best catchers in the league (you’ve probably heard the Joe Mauer comparisons) and on his way to becoming one of the best players, period.

Advantage: Giants

First Base: Mitch Moreland vs. Aubrey Huff

This is probably the weakest spot for Texas, but Moreland really stepped it up against the Yankees, leading the team with a .389 average and three RBI in the ALCS. His natural position is right field, but since being inserted at first base, he has played solid defense. Ron Washington has the option of going with right-hander Jorge Cantu against southpaws Jonathan Sanchez and Madison Bumgarner, but unless Moreland completely falters, he’ll stick with the rookie.

While the Rangers struggled all year to find a solution at first base, the Giants found more consistency there than in any other position on the field. Hitting in the heart of the Giants’ lineup, Huff had a comeback year. His .386 OBP was a career-high and he led the team in home runs (26) and RBI (86). Offense wasn’t easy to come by for the Giants in 2010, but from start to finish, Huff was the most reliable source.

Advantage: Giants

Second Base: Ian Kinsler vs. Freddy Sanchez

Sanchez had shoulder surgery in January and missed the first 39 games of the season, but once healthy, he came out of the gate hot. In his first 18 games, the three-time all-star hit .379. He couldn’t keep the average up all year, but finished batting .297 and playing a very good second base, making four errors in 108 starts.

Kinsler also missed time, about two months of the season, with a left groin strain. Without him, the Rangers hit worse and win at a lower rate. Simply put, Kinsler is a key to Texas’ success.

He’s a very solid hitter and especially kills lefties, off of whom he hit .376 in 2010. Against the Rays in the ALCS, he went 8-for-18 with three home runs and six RBI. He’s much better known for his hitting, but with arguably the best range of any AL second baseman, he’s underrated defensively.

Sanchez is a good hitter, but he has never again come close to batting .344 as he did when he won the NL Batting Title with Pittsburgh in 2006. Kinsler has hit consistently well over his career, has far more power, and gets on base more than Sanchez.

Advantage: Rangers

Third Base: Michael Young vs. Juan Uribe/Pablo Sandoval

This is one of the bigger question marks of the series for the G-Men. The hot corner has been The Panda’s world for the last two years, but after he struggled mightily all season long, Bruce Bochy had to make a change.

With lefties Cliff Lee and C.J. Wilson set to start the first two games, all indications are that Bochy is going to go with the same setup he had for NLCS Game 6. That means Edgar Renteria at shortstop and Uribe at third.

Uribe won’t be winning any Gold Gloves, but for a guy his size he moves pretty well. He’s not going to get on base a lot, but is a threat to knock the ball out of the park at any time. During the regular season he had 24 home runs, and in the final game of the NLCS, he hit the knockout punch Giants fans will never forget.

Michael Young has spent 10 years in the majors, all with the Rangers. He’s had 200 hits five times, won a batting title, and appeared in six All-Star Games, once winning the game’s MVP award.

After winning the Gold Glove at shortstop in 2008, the Rangers told the veteran to move to third base to make room for Elvis Andrus. He obliged, returning to the All-Star Game again last season.

This year he became the franchise’s all-time leader in hits, on the way to his first postseason appearance. He had a good ALCS, going 9-for-27 with three doubles and four RBI. In a lot of ways, Young is to the Rangers what Derek Jeter is to the Yankees.

Advantage: Rangers

Shortstop: Elvis Andrus vs. Edgar Renteria/Juan Uribe

It looks like Juan Uribe will play third, at least to begin the series, and that means Renteria gets the nod at short.

Of course, Renteria was the World Series hero for the Marlins in 1997, driving in the game-winning run in the 11th inning of Game 7. Times have changed a bit for Renteria. The two-time Gold Glove winner doesn’t have the same range he had as a 20-year-old, but he’s still a decent fielder.

After appearing in only 72 games this season for the Giants, he was just 1-for-16 in the NLCS. But San Francisco has gotten this far by relying on production from unlikely sources, and he’s a career .304 hitter in the World Series. Expect Bochy to look to the veteran to fill the hole at short.

If Josh Hamilton is the best position player in this series, Elvis Andrus is the most exciting. The 22-year-old finished second in last year’s Rookie of the Year balloting and played well enough in the first half this season to earn a spot on the All Star Team.

He slowed down in the second half, hitting only .247, but he’s hitting .333 in the postseason. This leadoff man is the team’s spark plug, and he has a chance to steal anytime he is on base—he also has a chance to get caught as he did 15 of 47 times during the regular season. However, in these playoffs he has stolen seven bases and only been caught once.

But as far as Andrus’ game goes, the offense is secondary. There is no doubt this guy is going to win a ton of Gold Gloves before his career comes to an end. He’s one of the smoothest fielders you will ever see and has the range to make plays that most shortstops wouldn’t even consider trying. Case in point, earlier this season he made a ridiculous play in the hole on a Torii Hunter ground ball. Hunter, the 13-year veteran, said it was the best play that anyone has every made on him.

Advantage: Rangers

Outfield: Josh Hamilton, Nelson Cruz, Vladimir Guerrero, David Murphy vs. Andres Torres, Cody Ross, Pat Burrell, Nate Schierholtz

Things get a little tricky when looking at the outfield because, between the two teams, there will almost certainly be some mixing and matching between outfield and DH.

We can be sure that MVP candidate Josh Hamilton and Nelson Cruz will start every game for the Rangers (assuming both stay healthy). Hamilton says his ribs are just about fully recovered after missing most of September. Upon returning from injury, he struggled in the ALDS. But he looked to be at full health in the Championship Series against the Yankees, going 7-for-20 with four home runs, seven RBI, and eight walks—five were intentional.

As dangerous as Hamilton is, Nelson Cruz can be just as deadly. Despite missing 51 games this season, the 30-year old hit .318 with 22 homers and 78 RBI. He didn’t skip a beat in his first postseason, going 15-for-40 with five home runs and eight RBI. Cruz had to leave ALCS Game 5 with a hamstring injury, but seems to be healthy now. And as long as he’s healthy, he can hit.

Ron Washington has also confirmed that Vlad Guerrero will play right field in Game 1 in San Francisco. Guerrero, who only started 16 games in the outfield this season, is definitely a better hitter than any other option the Rangers might have.

During the regular season he hit .300 with 29 home runs and a team-leading 115 RBI. How he does defensively may determine if Washington decides to start him in Game 2, which the skipper says is a possibility. That pretty much means if Vladdy isn’t a liability defensively, we’ll see him in Game 2 as well.

When the series switches to Texas, Guerrero will move to the DH spot. Jeff Francoeur and Julio Borbon have both seen time in the outfield, but David Murphy has been the most productive of the three. When Guerrero moves to DH, Murphy will probably take his spot in the outfield.

For the Giants, Andres Torres injured his hip while beating out a bunt single in the ninth inning of NLCS Game 6 on Saturday night. All indications are that he will be back in center field and leading off for the Giants on Wednesday, which you can bet Bruce Bochy will be happy to see. After batting only .125 (2-for-16) in the Division Series against Atlanta, Torres hit .350 (7-for-20) in the NLCS.

Then there’s Cody Ross. By now, you know everything about Ross. The Marlins didn’t want him, so San Francisco took him. He hasn’t just been the star for the Giants; he’s probably been the star of the entire playoffs. He’s a good, scrappy player who got hot at the right time and is playing out of his mind. In this postseason he’s hitting .324 with four home runs, eight RBI, and some clutch hitting. It will be interesting to see if the three-day layoff will have any cooling effect on Ross.

Pat Burrell is another castoff who has found a home in The Bay. He hasn’t played particularly well in the postseason, but has completely resurrected his career in San Francisco. With 18 home runs in 96 regular season games, Burrell is always a threat to leave the park. He’s not much defensively—when the Giants have a lead late in the game Bochy, will replace him in the field with Nate Schierholtz.

It’s hard to beat the Rangers’ outfield, especially when Guerrero is in right.

Advantage: Rangers

DH: Vladimir Guerrero vs. Pat Burrell/Pablo Sandoval

After he plays at least one game in right field in San Francisco, Guerrero will certainly move to DH. What Bruce Bochy will decide to do isn’t quite as clear, but the indications are that he plans to play Burrell at DH against lefties Cliff Lee and C.J. Wilson (although Wilson probably won’t end up pitching at home). He will likely call on the switch-hitting Sandoval to face the right-handers, Colby Lewis and Tommy Hunter.

Advantage: Rangers

Starting Pitching: Cliff Lee, C.J. Wilson, Colby Lewis, Tommy Hunter vs. Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez, Madison Bumgarner

You may have heard that pitching wins in postseason baseball. In Texas, Nolan Ryan changed the culture, putting an emphasis on pitching and bringing in Cliff Lee. In San Francisco, Brian Sabean has not only compiled one of the youngest, but also the best pitching staff in all of baseball.

For the second series in a row, Tim Lincecum is the second-best pitcher. Wow. He’s a 26-year-old, two-time Cy Young Award winner. In his playoff debut he had one of the greatest pitching performances in postseason history.

Still, the Rangers have Cliff Lee. When you’re 7-0 with a 1.26 ERA, three complete games, 67 strikeouts, and seven walks in 64 1/3 postseason innings, I’m not going to be the guy that bets against you. What we’re witnessing Lee do in these playoffs can only be compared to Orel Hershiser’s legendary run in the 1988 postseason.

After Lee, the Rangers starters, C.J Wilson, Colby Lewis, and Tommy Hunter, are good. None had a regular season ERA above 3.73. And Colby Lewis’ journey from the Hiroshima Carp back to the Big Leagues is just as good as any feel-good story the Giants throw at you.

But as a starting staff there is no matching the Giants, who have the best four in the majors. No question Lincecum is the best of the group, and at 3.43, he had the highest regular season ERA. I didn’t like Bochy pushing Sanchez ahead of Cain in the NLCS. Naturally, I like the move to switch them back. Looking into the future, the scariest thing about this staff  is that the 21-year-old Bumgarner is only going to get better.

Advantage: Giants

Bullpen: Neftali Feliz, Derek Holland, Darren Oliver, Darren O’Day, Alexi Ogando, Michael Kirkman, Clay Rapada vs. Brian Wilson, Sergio Romo, Santiago Casilla, Jeremy Affeldt, Javier Lopez, Ramon Ramirez, Guillermo Mota

These are two loaded bullpens. During the regular season the Rangers’ relief core managed an ERA of just 3.38. That’s pretty remarkable.

But on the other end the Giants’ led the majors with an incredible 2.99 ERA from the bullpen. San Francisco was led by Brian Wilson’ 48 saves and 1.81 ERA. He has kept it going in the playoffs, throwing nine innings without allowing an earned run.

In 2009, Rangers fans got a sample of what Neftali Feliz brings to the table. With a chance to be the full-time closer in 2010, the 22-year-old didn’t disappoint. He turned a lot of heads in his rookie campaign, saving 40 games with a 2.73 ERA. Unlike Wilson, Feliz struggled a bit in the Division Series. Being a closer is all about dealing with pressure, so it will be interesting to see if that World Series pressure gets to the young reliever.

The Rangers relied heavily on their bullpen during the season and, at times, during the playoffs. Ron Washington considered moving Derek Holland to the starting rotation, but decided to keep him in the ‘pen. He has thrown some important innings and will definitely be called on if any of the starters struggle early. Darren Oliver is the elder statesman of the bunch, whom Washington likes to go to in tough situations.

Brian Wilson gets a lot of attention for his beard, but Sergio Romo is no stranger to facial hair, either. He’s got a solid beard himself and, with a 2.18 ERA, has proved effective for Bruce Bochy all year. Bochy has also learned to count on Santiago Casilla and lefty Javier Lopez, who allowed one hit in five postseason innings.

Advantage: Giants

Bench:  Matt Treanor, Jorge Cantu, Andres Blanco, David Murphy, Jeff Francoeur, Julio Borbon vs. Aaron Rowand, Nate Schierholtz, Edgar Renteria, Pablo Sandoval, Mike Fontenot, Travis Ishikawa, Eli Whiteside

Obviously, the makeup of the benches will depend on the adjustments that each manager makes throughout the series. The Giants definitely have the advantage in experience with the likes of Aaron Rowand and Edgar Renteria. And assuming Sandoval will be on the bench for at least a couple games, he is a dangerous bat as far as power potential is concerned.

The Rangers also have talent coming off the bench. David Murphy is certainly capable of starting and most likely will. But when Vlad Guerrero plays right field in San Francisco, Murphy will be a valuable left-handed pinch-hitting weapon for Washington. The same goes for Jeff Francoeur and Jorge Cantu, who have both started in their careers.

Advantage: Rangers

It’s going to be a close, fun series. In the end, I think the Texas offense will be able to squeak out just enough against the Giants’ excellent pitching. In a series this tight, predictions don’t mean much. But what the hell. Rangers in seven…I told you I’m not betting against Cliff Lee.

You can read more from Nathaniel Edelstein and others at www.sittingandwatching.com

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We’re less than 24 hours away from the first pitch of the 2010 World Series between the Texas Rangers, champions of the American League, and the San Francisco Giants, champions of the National League.

There have been all sorts of predictions leading up to this game since both teams clinched their respective leagues.

Some have taken the Rangers and some are going with the Giants, but one thing is for sure, this could be a better series than most think.

Sure the Yankees aren’t there and neither are the Red Sox, Dodgers or Phillies, but who’s to say that this series couldn’t be better than a Phillies and Yankees showdown?

The Giants have three great young starters, while the Rangers have a shut-down ace and an offense that made a throttling of the New York Yankees look easy.

For me, I’m going to go with the Texas Rangers. They’ve shown me far too much not to pick them to win. Here are 10 moments that will lead them to bringing home the World Series trophy to Arlington.

Begin Slideshow

I love me some Timmy Jim, but I don’t want him in my house.      

Before you start in about the fact that Tim Lincecum wouldn’t want to come over to my dumb house in the first place, he would. It’s close to the ballpark, always has a full fridge, is smoker friendly (on deck) and he could relax on my sectional pregame.

So save it—he’d want to hang out…but he can’t, because he’s covered in disgusting dog hair.

I am an expert in such things, unfortunately. My girlfriend has an English Bulldog named Margaret Thatcher, who, at the very least, enjoys equal voting power in our household.

When I get home, I can’t even look this animal in the eye lest she start urinating on my hardwood floors. She ripped up some Dita sunglasses once, and I almost stroked out when she annihilated my leather John Varvatos jacket last summer…that adorable little scamp.

It’s San Francisco, pal, and I enjoy looking fabulous, okay?…guilty.

Know what I also love? Beach Blanket Babylon and watching Ryan Howard strike out looking, thus catapulting my beloved San Francisco Giants into the World Series.

While dog-loving friends come over and coo and fawn over Margie, I spend the time usually sweeping and trying to reclaim my floors. This, of course, never gets me anywhere, as the bone-white dog hair falls off her back like so many snowflakes in winter.

Fellow dog agnostics will certainly affirm when I state that Margaret’s hair is literally everywhere. It is her legacy. It permeates every crevice of my house and snuffs out a little of my soul each passing day.

This hair is not just gross but may also contain the reason for the dominance of Tim Lincecum…and also why he is not welcome at my place.  

Tim has a pair of French Bulldogs named Cy and Young, who have super names, are cute as a button, and guaranteed, shed like gangbusters all over the two-time Cy Young Award winner and everything he owns. 

It’s on his uniform, all over his house, in his car; it coats his beanie collection and is stuck to his straightening iron right this second.

You can’t escape this stuff, trust me. Each time he accepted his back-to-back Cy Young Awards on the field at AT&T Park, he did it full of dog hair. When he struck out 14 Atlanta Braves in the NLDS, he had the little Frenchies’ cheveux de chien all over him.

When he outdueled Roy Halladay in Game 1 of the NLCS, and then again in Game 3 (well, arguably), that crap was on him again…100 percent certain    

This is no fluke, and Lincecum’s otherworldly performance should not be blindly lauded as a timely “finding of his game” or “taking it to the next level”…this is a pattern.    

Experts contend that hitting a baseball is the hardest thing to do in professional sports, and that is when the pitcher is not rubbing up the ball with French bulldog hair.

Seriously, you think a little Vaseline or spit does something to pitches? You think a surreptitiously hidden emery board used to scuff up the ball gives an edge? You think testicle-shrinking PEDs might do the trick?

What if I could offer a technique that spun micro-fine dog hair into a batter’s eye right before they swung? Fox Sports has that ridiculously cool, super-slow motion replay, the one where you can watch every rotation of the ball. All I’m asking you to do is look a little closer next time, watch the fur fly and be honest with yourself.

Lincecum does not appear to be cheating knowingly, so I would please ask the government to continue focusing most of its vast taxpayer resources on chasing down a retired offender who happened to be using the more traditional PEDs.

Even though that guy was just too scared to come clean, because at the time, the entire world had singled him out as the only problem and the U.S. Government was (and is) after him like Al Capone.

You know the guy I’m talking about—the one who caught all the heat for his silent peers and then watched every one of their subsequent tearful confessions. The one who watched these cheaters get nary a slap on the wrist or even praised for “coming clean” after their names were released in the Mitchell Report.

Even though baseball fans have strangely misplaced their syringe signs, and even though the entire public whose money is financing this witch hunt is already past it…or humbled because of a taint on their own favorite player… Let’s still get that first guy! Yeah!

So, I offer continued success to the U.S. Government in their valuable pursuit against only one of the cheaters.

That being said, if you are going to be consistent, you might consider a few dollars towards looking into the effects of dog hair, how it changes the physics of a baseball and whether you can hit an already unhittable changeup when bulldog hair mist is launched into your eyes.

Because I believe that’s exactly what Tim Lincecum is doing, and it’s endangering the integrity of our national pastime.

Go Giants!…but let’s do this the right way. When Josh Hamilton steps out tomorrow seemingly because a little dirt got into his eye, let’s just make sure that really is dirt and win this thing fair and square…

…and to Tim Lincecum, please don’t drop by.

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It is quite ironic that two of the biggest topics in the news this week are the World Series and the upcoming election, which will determine our 106^th winner of the Fall Classic and our 112^th United States Congress.

There isn’t a whole lot that links the San Francisco Giants and the Texas Rangers, who are making their first appearance in the World Series.

The two teams have played just 22 times with the Giants winning 15, including 11 in a row in San Francisco—dating back to the days of Candlestick Park. The Giants have also won seven in a row overall, even though they have not faced each other this season.

The Giants did trade catcher Benjie Molina in midseason to the Rangers to make room for rising star Buster Posey.  

So, it will be a World Series in which two clubs have about as much in common as the areas they represent, which makes this World Series one that could divide the national fan base between the two teams on political lines.

            The Giants represent San Francisco, perhaps the most liberal major city in the nation. It is home to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Senators Barbara Boxer and Diane Feinstein. It is an area that Democrats have a firm grip on.

The Rangers represent Texas, one of the more conservative states in the union. Sen. John McCain defeated President Barack Obama by a 56 to 44 percent margin two years ago and Texas has gone Republican in every presidential election since 1980.

The Rangers were also once owned by President George W. Bush and their current president, baseball strikeout king Nolan Ryan, is a staunch Republican who has appeared in ads supporting the National Rifle Association.

One kind of gets the feeling that if the Giants win, the Obama administration would open their doors right away for San Francisco to make their visit to the White House. And if the Rangers win, one might wonder if the team would rather meet with President Bush on his ranch in Texas than go to the White House, as is traditional for the champion of all major sports teams in the country.

While some believe this World Series may not be the most interesting, it looks like a world championship title fight on political grounds.

In a week’s time we’ll know the results of both.

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