MLB Season Wrap: The Best Games of the 2009 Postseason

The Yankees won the title this past Wednesday night, so the media has been less inclined to criticize or ignore baseball than usual of late. They’re also more likely to wrap the season up for 48 or 72 hours (instead of 24 or fewer) before moving 100% into football, instead of the 95% coverage the NFL has enjoyed since September.

But during the MLB playoffs, I did hear, nationally and locally, on TV, radio, and the blogs, that the postseason “lacked.” While it’s true no series went the distance, close to half of the 30 total games played went down the last  inning or even the final batter. The media’s consensus could not be more incorrect; this was a GREAT postseason overall.

Let’s take a look at the best games, in no particular order:

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Could Sammy Sosa’s Pale Appearance Be the Result of Vitiligo Brought on By Steroid Use?

A post that we made here on Friday afternoon regarding Sammy Sosa’s shockingly white appearance (hat tip again to Jimmy Traina) kicked off a flurry of activity around the web (for example: here, here, and here) and rightfully so.

The pictures are jarring.

It’s been a while since Sammy Sosa has been in the public eye, and we all remember a much darker version of him than what we are seeing in this current pictures. (Not to mention, as Big League Stew pointed out earlier this evening, when did Sammy start wearing green contacts?)

The obvious question in the immediate aftermath of these pictures making their way around the web is, what might be the root cause of Sammy’s paleness?

I decided to do a little digging — admittedly with a hypothesis that steroid use might have something to do with it — and found some interesting information.

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What Is Going On With Sammy Sosa?

After reading this tweet and following the link supplied by Jimmy Traina, I had to quickly post this.

Does anyone know what is going on with Sammy Sosa?

As Traina’s tweet wonders, did Sosa get a facelift? Botox? Is he possibly dealing with vitiligo (the disease Michael Jackson suffered from that causes splotches of pigment-less skin)?

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Quick World Series Five-Game Recap and Revised Prediction

I need not recap the past five games too much, since TV ratings, as expected, have been extraordinary.

I think any baseball fan (not of the Yankees, I suppose) is happy we’ll see a World Series Game Six for the first time since 2003, due primarily to AJ Burnett’s ineffectiveness on three days rest, and of course, the magical bat of one Chase Utley.

I picked the Phillies in five, especially after they split in New York, and was wrong.

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Message to Larry Dolan: If You Pay Them, They Will Come!

Have you been paying attention to the Major League Baseball Playoffs? If so, and you’re a present or former Cleveland Indians Fan, you have noticed the ridiculous amount of former Indians playing outstanding baseball.

Meanwhile, Cleveland Indians owner Larry Dolan can’t figure out why the Indians’ attendance has plummeted since the Dick Jacobs days.

Here is a hint Larry: you have only paid Grady Sizemore, and that is it.

The Indians produce a mediocre team year in and year out, and the fans day by day miss Dick Jacobs more and more.

The title, “If You Pay Them, They Will Come” means that if you pay the players you let go, your fans would appear in groves to Progressive Field. With the talent you let go and that is currently stretched across the eight teams that made this year’s playoffs, you too would be contending for a World Series title.

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ALCS Preview: Anaheim Angels vs New York Yankees

[Writers's Note: As someone raised in southern California who attended dozens of Angels games during his college years, including two playoff games in 2002, I will refer to the Angels' city as Anaheim, not Los Angeles nor "Los Angeles of Anaheim."]

No doubt we have the two best teams in the AL — perhaps in baseball — playing for the American League pennant.

The New York Yankees surpassed 100 wins this season and reclaimed the AL East as their own. The Anaheim Angels continued their dominance of the AL West with another 90+ win season and division title.

Fans should be ecstatic to see this quality matchup.

It also presents many story lines.

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2009 NLCS Preview: Phillies-Dodgers Analysis and TV Schedule

What can you say about this year’s L.A. Dodgers?

They dominated their division and most of their league all season, yet were overlooked, as many (wrongly) felt they played in a weak division. (See the NL Wild Card winner two of the past three seasons.) They then closed the regular campaign by scuffling during the season’s final fortnight and received intense criticism.

Most, including local writers, therefore picked Los Angeles to lose to the potent St. Louis Cardinals in the Division Series. Instead, now that they’ve swept a stellar NL central champ for the second year in a row, the Dodgers are set to host the Philadelphia Phillies Thursday night in a rematch of the 2008 NLCS.

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Phillies-Dodgers NLCS Betting Preview: Odds and Prediction

Even if you prefer NFL betting or mixed martial arts or NASCAR or whatever, it’s tough for any sports fan to deny the appeal of October baseball.

The crisp fall air, the drama of a one-on-one matchup between hitter and pitcher — ahhh, you have to love it.

Time to preview the National League Championship Series, which features a rematch of last year’s NLCS between the Phillies and Dodgers.

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Yankees-Angels ALCS TV Schedule and Pitching Matchups

Apparently, this series was inevitable.

Neither the New York Yankees nor the Angels had any trouble disposing of their first round foes, the Twins and Red Sox, respectively.

It sets up a meeting between the AL’s two most consistent teams in 2009, and one that should be far more interesting than the ho-hum ALDS series that we just witnessed.

Here is your quick preview of the Yankees-Angels ALCS, with the TV schedule, pitching matchups, and some other resources for you:

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MLB Playoffs Preview: LDS Matchups Begin Wednesday

On Wednesday afternoon, the postseason finally gets underway just as crisp weather spreads through the Midwest. After a semi-lackluster September ended another memorable campaign, the final few days were intense, especially in the AL Central, where we enjoyed a four and a half hour Tuesday night “play-in” classic that had everything a sports fan could desire.

To me, 2009 does not give a clear favorite for the title.

No, the Yankees, despite their 103  wins, are not a shoo-in. They have not won a playoff series since 2004; therefore, no matter their lineup, they need to prove it in October 2009.

I should elaborate that NO ONE can predict baseball, especially at playoff time, and that’s the beauty. History has proven that anything can happen, and unlike other sports with crooked, homecooked officiating (NBA, NHL), umpires RARELY decide a baseball playoff game.

Also dissimilar to the NBA, where the team with the most superstars usually wins, between pitching, the mental aspects of the game, and other variables, we have no idea what will occur in the coming weeks. Often the teams playing the worst coming in, succeed in the end. Momentum can mean very little. Just look at Octobers past.

Therefore, these are previews, sans prognostications.

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Leadership and Commitment, Miguel Cabrera Style

With the Detroit Tigers reeling and its months-long grip on first place quickly dwindling, you would think that the Tigers’ players would be extra focused. 

More video work, more work in the cage, extra stretching…whatever each player needs to play at his best.

Certainly, as a fan or if I were a manager, I’d at least expect my team’s players to be well rested and, you know, not hungover and in jail until 8:00 on the morning of a huge game.

Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers, it seems, would not agree.

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Fascinating Video: Joe Mauer Tipping Pitches From Second Base

Just made my morning jaunt over to Deadspin and caught a fascinating video that shows Joe Mauer blatantly tipping pitches to Jason Kubel during the Twins-Tigers series.

Mauer is on second base with Justin Verlander pitching. The cat and mouse game, exquisitely captioned by whoever created the video, is a rare glimpse into the game-within-the-game that can be so often overlooked when watching a baseball game.

For some reason, all I can think about right now is how much I would love to hear Hawk Harrelson announcing this sequence.

Video after the jump.

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MSF Joins NFL in Promoting, Supporting National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

When you came to the site just now you might have noticed something a little bit different about our logo and navigation bar. 

The nav bar is pink and the logo features a pink ribbon. Why the change? It’s not permanent, but there is certainly a good and noble reason.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Midwest Sports Fans is following the lead of the NFL in promoting and supporting the world’s fight against breast cancer.

Throughout the month of October, we are accepting donations in support of breast cancer awareness and research, with all of the donations going directly to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Use the button below to donate securely through PayPal.

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Eric Wedge Likely Out Today in Cleveland

Courtesy of the good folks at the Dugout Sports Show (@DugoutSportsShow) and Waiting For Next Year, we can inform you that the Cleveland Indians have scheduled a 1:30 press conference, presumably to announce the firing of manager Eric Wedge.

According to Scott from Waiting For Next Year, the entire staff will finish out the year and then be replaced.

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Big MB on NFL Injuries, the Incredible Colts, the MLB Playoff Races, and the Lions Finally Winning

In this week’s edition of I’ll Tell You This, we feature a new segment at the end of the article. Check it out and give me your feedback! Here we go….

1 – NFL Injuries

Three weeks are now in the books in this young NFL season, and injuries have already began to raise its ugly head.

First of all, and likely worst of all, The Miami Dolphins received news today that Chad Pennington’s shoulder injury, which occurred during Miami’s loss to San Diego, is likely to end Pennington’s season. Pennington tore a capsule in his throwing shoulder, and will likely be replaced for the season by back up QB Chad Henne.

The upstart 49ers took what could be a devastating hit to their offense as Frank Gore went down on his first rushing attempt. X-rays were negative as to any broken bones, although Gore underwent an MRI late on Monday evening. The 49ers are claiming that this injury is not related in any way to Gore’s ankle sprain last week in his 207 destruction of the Seattle Seahawks.

In the third quarter of the Colts’ handling of the Arizona Cardinals, pro-bowl DE Dwight Freeney was taken to the locker room with what was said to be a quad injury. Freeney said when he was held by a member of the Cardinal’s OL, he felt a pop in his quad. Freeney was also scheduled to have an MRI on Monday night.

On Bill Polian’s radio show, Polian gave little information, but did go on record saying:

“The docs will report to us later this evening, so we’ll know something then, but I don’t think there will be anything definitive for quite a while… The positive side is that he basically said, ‘I can walk, I can play.’  The good news is I don’t have any bad news.”

I’ll Tell You This: All three of these injuries are devastating to their respective teams.

Miami is 0-3 and cannot afford to lose another game. Unfortunately for them, their star QB is now gone for the season. Chad Henne is unproven, and things could go from bad to worse for the Phins.

I don’t think the Frank Gore’s injury is really worth worrying about. With no broken bones, at worst, Gore may be out a couple of weeks. In a weak division, San Fran already has a 2-1 record.

The Colts have got to be worried about losing Freeney. Who knows when Bob Sanders will come back, and the last thing that this defense wants to see is their leader, and best player, on the sidelines for any large amount of time.

2 – The Colts

Speaking of the Indianapolis Colts, they displayed quite an impressive game in a blowout win of Arizona.

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