Giants vs Cubbies
The way the pitching matchups are laid out, this series will go either 3 or 5 games. The Cubbies could easily sweep the Giants, but SF could also possibly sweep Chicago. SF may not have the team they had in their past 3 championships, but this is still a matchup for the ages. Two of the games’ best managers and pitching rotations. Game 1 may be the most important, as both Lester and Cueto had phenomenal Septembers and know how to pitch in the postseason. But, knowing what Lester did for Boston in the past postseasons, and the game being at Wrigley Field, the favorites are the Cubs. SF has not yet announced their starter for game 2, but whether its Shark or Moore, the true test will be how truly good is Kyle Hendricks? Game 3 most likely will be MadBum vs Arrieta. It is not unlikely that Cueto defeats Lester, and the Giants could fall into their postseason form, which has allowed them to win 10 straight series, and hit Hendricks pretty good, then have MadBum do his thing, but as the past few postseasons have shown, the bullpen and big hits win series. The Cubbies have plenty of depth on the bench and in the bullpen. If Lester can come out and dominate in game 1, and Bryant and Rizzo can collect a few hits, the Cubbies could take the series by storm, unless Bruce Bochey has other plans.
3-0 Cubbies
Dodgers vs Nats
Both teams have been pretty dominant the whole year. Both bullpens on paper have been marvelous, but what stands out are two things. One, is Washington’s offense has been consistently excellent all year with Daniel Murphy leading the charge. Two, Dusty Baker is one of the best managers in the game, and despite him not having a ring yet, he has plenty of postseason experience. However, with Stephen Strasburg and Wilson Ramos out for the Nats, that gives the Dodgers a lot of help. With Harper underperforming this year, Ramos has picked up the slack by having a career year, and Stras was nothing short of God-like before his injury in late August. Dave Roberts may be no Dusty Baker, but he has done a magnificent job with the bullpen, Seager is lifting the Dodgers’ offense to great heights, Kershaw is set to go in game 1 to potentially steal home field, and Maeda and Hill have been pitching well.
3-2 LA
NLCS
The only thing the Dodgers would have going for them against the Cubbies is that they play extremely well at home and would have 3 in a row at Dodger Stadium in this series. They may be able to defeat Dusty Baker, but Joe Maddon is Joe Maddon. The Dodgers may have an abundance of crafty relievers, but the Cubs have dominance in Pedro Strop, Rondon, and Chapman. The Dodgers have Seager, the Cubs have Bryant. The Dodgers have 3-4 good starters, the Cubbies have 5 dominant ones. The Dodgers have Dodger Stadium, the Cubs have Wrigley Field. Unless the Dodgers bullpen can somehow match Chicago’s and Puig goes nuts, the Cubbies have this one without a doubt.
4-1 Cubbies
