Without much fanfare, Javier Vazquez is having an incredible second half of 2011, and he continued his good work last night, going 7 innings and giving up two hits while striking out 6 and walking 1. Another brutal offensive performance and a decent start from Derek Lowe (6.1 IP, 6 H, 3 ER) diminished the Atlanta Braves’ Wild Card lead another game as the Florida Marlins won 4-0. A time zone away, the St. Louis Cardinals used some late-inning heroics from David Freese to top the New York Mets 6-5. Heading into the last weekend of the season, the Braves maintain a 1 ½ game lead over the Cardinals.
In the AL, the Boston Red Sox fell 6-4 after surrendering 5 unanswered runs to the Baltimore Orioles. Josh Beckett pitched well through five frames, but a second Mark Reynolds home run tied the game awaiting a late 2-run single from Vladimir Guerrero. Luckily for the Sox, the Rays lost both games of a doubleheader against the New York Yankees as the Yankees first clinched the Wild Card before then clinching the division.
Both the Red Sox and Braves, my pre-season picks to get to the World Series, find themselves in horrifying situations. At the beginning of September, the Red Sox not only led the Wild Card but led the AL East and were ahead of the Rays by 9 games, and the Braves led the Cardinals by 8.5. Fast forward to the present, the Red Sox cling to a 2.5 game lead while the Braves have watched their lead dwindle to 1.5 games. As they both continue to slide, the fanbases continue to worry that their teams are choking away their lead. Can they still hold on?
The Red Sox have six games left. Up first are the Yankees before the Sox finish up against the Orioles. The Yankees may not be motivated to play after wrapping up their playoff spot, and they may be even less enthusiastic about playing the Rays in the playoffs. Though I doubt there will be any shenanigans, the Yankees aren’t likely the give their absolute best, and the Orioles are the Orioles, though that didn’t matter as they just took 3 of 4 in that last series. The Rays get Toronto for 3 and New York for 4 (including 1 tomorrow), which gives the Red Sox a slight edge. Even with that, the Rays would need to go 6-1 if the Red Sox finish at 3-3 to win force a playoff.
In the NL, the Cardinals have 7 remaining games. They play one more against the Mets before finishing against the Cubs and Astros. That isn’t exactly difficult. The Braves, on the other hand, have Washington and Philadelphia, which will be a bit tougher. If the Braves finish at 3-3, the Cardinals need to go 5-2 to force a playoff.
Both of those are doable, and the Red Sox and Braves may do worse. But lots can happen over the next week, and for those panicking fanbases, you’re still ahead.
Tonight’s Matchups: Jake Westbrook will try to get the Cardinals within one game as he toils against Chris Capuano … Jake Turner takes on Zach Britton in a battle of talented youngsters … Jeff Niemann will try to best Bartolo Colon to keep the Rays’ hopes alive.
