I must say that seeing the Rangers and the Giants in the Series is a breath of fresh air. It's nice to see two different unthought of teams in the spotlight.
I think I would have barfed if I had to watch another Yankees/Phillies snoozefest. I mean everyone except for true New Yorkers and bandwagoners hate the Yankees. Everyone is sick and tired of the "Evil Empire." It's poetic justice every time "the Best Team Money Can Buy" craps out, and doesn't make it to the Series. It's like a revolution. You can hear pilgrims rejoicing in the streets screaming, "the Yankees didn't make it, the Yankees didn't make it!"
On the other side, the Phillies are by far the most boring team to watch in the league. Their "do it by the book" gameplan puts me to sleep faster than warm milk. They don't even give you anything stimulating to look at, as their uniforms match their flavorless style of play. Their all red hats with the white P is almost as bad as Penn State's helmets in College Football, and that's bad because Penn State has nothing but a strip of navy blue electrical tape on their helmet. Add in the fact that their number one "slugger" Ryan Howard can't hit the side of a barn, and the Phillies are blander than grits without butter. Pass the salt and pepper please.
Now to the interesting teams that matter.
This marks the first World Series appearance ever for the Texas Rangers franchise, and it's much deserved. Nolan Ryan, probably the greatest pitcher to ever play the game, couldn't lead the Rangers to the Series as a player, but now he does as an owner. What a story. Ryan helped the New York Mets win their first World Series in 1969, and now through some savvy managing moves he's helped his Rangers to the Fall Classic. All aboard the Von Ryan Express!
The Giants franchise has been to its fair share of World Series, and its won five. Yet the City by the Bay hasn't seen any of those championships. That's because the last time the Giants won the Series was way back in 1954, four years before the franchise moved to San Francisco. The last time San Fran has been to the World Series was in 2002, as they were led by the enhanced slugger Barry Bonds. The Giants came up just short in game seven versus the Angels. I guess steroids can only take you so far. The now Bondsless Giants team has the opportunity to bring San Fran its first baseball championship, and they won't even have to worry about putting an asterisk* beside it.
Now to the preview.
The Rangers are heavily favored to take home the grand prize despite having a slightly worse record than the Giants (T=90-72, SF=92-70). They have the highest batting average of all the major league teams, and are fifth in runs scored. They're batting attack is led by outfielder Josh Hamilton, who has a .359 batting average with 32 home runs, and seasoned veteran designated hitter Vlad Guerrerro, who has a .300 batting average with 29 homers respectively. To put it simply they've got more firepower than well...the Texas Rangers.
The Rangers also have a knack for fielding the best pitcher in baseball. In the past the top gunslinger was of course Nolan Ryan, but now there's a new sheriff in town. His name is Cliff Lee. Lee has had the best postseason that a pitcher could ever ask for. He finished with 3 wins off of 3 starts with 34 strike outs, while giving up just 2 earned runs. You heard right, 2 earned runs. That's an ERA of 0.75. Take a picture, because you just don't see that everyday. That's lights out.
While the Rangers look unstoppable, I'm definitely not counting the Giants out of this one.
As I stated earlier the Giants do have a slightly better record, but that means peanuts and cracker jacks at this point. They do however have home field advantage thanks to the National League finally winning an All Star game. That could be big. The Bay is an exciting place to play, and it brings a crazy fan base with it. (See the guys in kayaks with fishing nets carousing around in the Bay waiting anxiously for homer balls like hungry sharks waiting on slow seals.)
The Giants also have momentum after winning an NLCS that no one thought they would win, and did I mention they have a pretty good bullpen? No? Well let me get to that. If you've ever seen the movie Major League, the Giants have a real-life version of the "Wild Thing" pitcher Rick Vaughn in Tim Lincecum. And while Lincecum doesn't have the same outrageous haircut as Vaughn, he does have an outrageous haircut. He also doesn't have Vaughn's trademark glasses, but he has the accuracy and speed that Vaughn had with the glasses on. Personally, I think Lincecum looks like Pee Wee Herman with long hair. What he really has in common with Vaughn is the same hard rock attitude and persona, and the same convict coolness when he's on the mound. Lincecum has led the Giants through the postseason with a 2-1 record, 30 strikeouts, and ERA of 1.93. That's pretty dang good, and what's even better is who he has behind him.
San Francisco's closer is Blackbeard the
In game one we'll see Cliff Lee take on "The Franchise" Tim Lincecum in a pitchers' duel that will be more suitable for pay-per-view than a Tyson/Holyfield rematch. Willie Mays will throw out the first pitch, which automatically elevates this Series to legendary status.
With the first pitch just hours away, I can actually say I'm excited to see this World Series. It's full of legends, colorful characters, good stories, but no villains (like I said, the Yankees didn't make it.) So no matter what the outcome of the Series is, we'll all be winners this time.
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