Out of Bounds | Playoffs 2004: It begins

Gabe Mosca Columnist

Let’s just throw out some phrases and feel free to shout out the first word that pops into your mind. Highly anticipated. . .huge salaries. . . intense drama. . .bragging rights. . .deep-seated hatred. . .hours of fun. . .always a surprise. . . and America’s pastime. Any guesses? No, “pornography” was not what we were looking for. The 2004 Major League Baseball playoffs have all those things and more.

The battle for the final playoff spots last right up until the final weekend of the season. The Los Angeles Dodgers used some late-inning magic to send Barry Bonds and the Giants home. The Houston Astros managed to overtake the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central. However, it should be noted that the Astros didn’t so much win the NL wildcard as the Cubbies lost it. By the season’s final game, Sammy Sosa and company were having a friendly competition against Avril Lavigne as to who could suck more golf balls through their respective garden hoses. And the Oakland A’s decided that they would just go ahead and start playing poorly a week earlier this season. So, rather than losing three straight games in the first round of the playoffs, the A’s got their asses kicked out of contention by Vlad Guerrero and the Anaheim Angels.

What we are left with is a fruitful bounty of great games. Here at Out of Bounds, we hope to usher you through the first round of the playoffs while making some predictions that will undoubtedly make a hopped up weatherman look like Kreskin.

Twins versus Yankees
First of all, Minnesota is my team. The whole, “journalist being impartial” thing is for sports writers who get paid. With that said, picking the Twins to beat New York is not out of the scope of reality. First of all, the Twins have a demigod of a pitcher in Johan Santana, a man who is 13-0 since the all-star break in July. New York has no starting pitcher of his caliber; I think the Yanks are suiting up MTA workers and letting them pitch every now and then. However, with a line-up that includes Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, and Hideki Matsui, a transit worker may be all that is needed. This series also features two of the best closers in the league. If the Yankees have a lead going into the eighth inning, Mariano Rivera will shut the door in the Twin’s faces. On the other side, Minnesota’s reliever, Joe Nathan, ain’t no slouch.
A man should never bet against his team; good thing I go to this school.
NY in five.

Dodgers versus Cardinals
Neither of these teams can claim that pitching is their strong suit. For Los Angeles, they rely on great defense and timely hitting. For St. Louis, hitting and lots of it has propelled them to the best regular season record in baseball. They hit everything. And when Scott Rolen, Jim Edmonds, Larry Walker, and Albert Pujols are at bat, pay attention. The Dodgers, valiant in holding off the Giants for the last few weeks of the season, have limited pitching depth and their offensive sluggishness won’t be able to help them erase deficits.
St. Louis in four.

Astros versus Braves
Does either team actually have to win this series? Houston and Atlanta are perennial disappointments in the playoffs. When the deciding game five goes into 46 extra innings, take it as a sign from God that neither team should ever advance in the playoffs. But with that said, the Astros are the hottest team in baseball. They won their last eight games, including a sweep over the Cardinals. Roger Clemens and Roy Oswalt offer Houston a good one-two pitching punch. Atlanta is a bit of an enigma. They won 96 games this season and that fact has left me with the same kind of jaw-dropped expression usually reserved for reruns of early Melrose Place episodes with that temptress Heather Locklear.
Anyway, I don’t see any reason why the Astros would stop playing well. I’ll take them in four over Atlanta and their slugger J.D. Drew, due for an injury in about. . . what time is it?

Red Sox versus Angels
I’m sorry, could everyone please get off their knees and stop paying homage to the starting pitching of the Red Sox? On your knees for a different reason? I’m sorry I interrupted. Yes, Curt Shilling is a great pitcher. Yes, Pedro Martinez is still a very good pitcher. However, I fail to see how they compare even favorably to Minnesota’s Santana and Brad Radke. Lest we forget, Boston is all about offense. The tandem of Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz has been super all season. The Angels don’t really have another big bat to go with Vlad Guerrero. They had Jose Guillen and his 27 home runs, but he threw a tantrum and the Angels decided to suspend him for the remainder of the season.
Anaheim won a championship two seasons ago; they know how to stand up to playoff pressure. On the other hand, Boston is Boston.
Angels in four.