Angels And Red Sox Destined To Grit Out Five Games
L.A. ANGELS VS BOSTON (starts Wed.)
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This series is destined to come down to the ninth inning of the the deciding fifth game. The Angels might not win Game 1 at Fenway Park against Josh Beckett, but the rest of the series points to the Halos advancing.
We hear so much about Boston's pitching, but think about it would you rather have John Lackey, Kelvim Escobar and Jared Weaver or Beckett, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Curt Schilling?
The Angels top three can be dominant and consistent while the Red Sox will rely on a proven post season starter, a proven international player and a proven champion on his last legs.
I think the suprise of this series is that Matsuzaka will be the lone bright spot for Boston. He's use to pitching with a lot a rest and has actually thrived. Beckett can be unstable and I wouldn't be surprised if Lackey uses tenacious style of gamesmanship to play some chin music on the Red Sox hitters.
The Angels are scrappy, speeding and consistent. They are tailored made to Mike Scioscia's NL style of baseball. They're going to do little things like hit and running and bunting to put pressure on the Red Sox defense and that's a game plan that will work more times than not in the postseason.
Even though, the Red Sox finally beat out the Yankees for AL East, I don't think this team is as good as past postseason entrants. David Ortiz can be handled nowadays as can Manny Ramirez. Rookie secondbaseman Dustin Pedroia could shine in this series. He's the rightful heir at second to Jerry Remy, Marty Barrett and Jody Reed. ANGELS IN FIVE
