O/T: Cubs fans. Whose your ace?

[TC4THREE]

I find it a little odd that there is so much talk about starting strength with potintial match ups with the Cubs without mentioning Lester. Lester was a nice pick up for the Cubs, but he was brought in to win playoff and WS games something he has showed to excel at. Plus I believe he wins the Cy Young this year.

The Cubs have the best starting rotation and bullpen in Baseball. Maybe that is just a given ?

I'd like the Nationals better if they had Strasburg but since they don't figure to have him I think the Cubs are the better 4-man rotation. The reason why it's significant is because the other teams need good starting pitching to begin to have a chance to win a best of 7 from the Cubs and you figure the more games you have started by an ace the better chance you have to get enough good starts to potentially win 4 games.

FWIW, the Indians are also pretty good at full strength but they aren't at full strength in their starting pitching either.

 

[DG10]

I'd like the Nationals better if they had Strasburg but since they don't figure to have him I think the Cubs are the better 4-man rotation. The reason why it's significant is because the other teams need good starting pitching to begin to have a chance to win a best of 7 from the Cubs and you figure the more games you have started by an ace the better chance you have to get enough good starts to potentially win 4 games.

FWIW, the Indians are also pretty good at full strength but they aren't at full strength in their starting pitching either.

Not only that, but at least for the NLCS, the Cubs have the luxury of setting their rotation and their opponent more than likely will not (unless the Dodgers elected to use Kershaw again on short rest).

 

[TC4THREE]

Not only that, but at least for the NLCS, the Cubs have the luxury of setting their rotation and their opponent more than likely will not (unless the Dodgers elected to use Kershaw again on short rest).

Should be clearer after tonight but what would make sense to me if I were managing the Dodgers would be to plan on using Kershaw for Games 2 and 6 if they advance. Granted, if the find themselves down 3-1 after 4 they might use him on short rest again for Game 5 but I'd be shocked if they tried to use him for Game 1 on short rest anyway since his last start was on short rest already. I think the Nationals would clearly use Scherzer in Game 3 on regular rest and then would have to choose whether to use him again in Game 6 on short rest or Game 7 on 4 days which would probably be determined by the series if they even get that deep.

 

[Inspector100]

Should be clearer after tonight but what would make sense to me if I were managing the Dodgers would be to plan on using Kershaw for Games 2 and 6 if they advance. Granted, if the find themselves down 3-1 after 4 they might use him on short rest again for Game 5 but I'd be shocked if they tried to use him for Game 1 on short rest anyway since his last start was on short rest already. I think the Nationals would clearly use Scherzer in Game 3 on regular rest and then would have to choose whether to use him again in Game 6 on short rest or Game 7 on 4 days which would probably be determined by the series if they even get that deep.

Your suggestion of Dodger strategy is now out the window. With Kershaw closing the game last night, I don't think he will be available to start till game 3 or 4. I think now the Cubs are going to feast on Dodger starters and the Dodger bullpen will be pitching 5 to 6 innings each game. That is until they get to the third or fourth game when Hill and Kershaw are available. And neither of those guys will go more than 6 or 7 innings themselves. I think the Dodger bats are the only thing that can get them to the WS. Those chances are a little better than slim, because Slim hasn't left town just yet.

 

[punaj]

Not so fast my friend

 

[Purdue Grad in Texas]

Your suggestion of Dodger strategy is now out the window. With Kershaw closing the game last night, I don't think he will be available to start till game 3 or 4. I think now the Cubs are going to feast on Dodger starters and the Dodger bullpen will be pitching 5 to 6 innings each game. That is until they get to the third or fourth game when Hill and Kershaw are available. And neither of those guys will go more than 6 or 7 innings themselves. I think the Dodger bats are the only thing that can get them to the WS. Those chances are a little better than slim, because Slim hasn't left town just yet.

One clarification thought here......yesterday was Kershaw's "bullpen" day, and because he threw just seven pitches (although there's more stress under game situations), it's still possible he could pitch Game 2 on Sunday with what some would consider normal rest. I think Kershaw even said last night he expected to be ready for Game 2. We shall see.

I still like Chicago to take this series......as crazy as that seems when you realize what that actually means.

 

[Inspector100]

One clarification thought here......yesterday was Kershaw's "bullpen" day, and because he threw just seven pitches (although there's more stress under game situations), it's still possible he could pitch Game 2 on Sunday with what some would consider normal rest. I think Kershaw even said last night he expected to be ready for Game 2. We shall see.

I still like Chicago to take this series......as crazy as that seems when you realize what that actually means.

Thanks for posting. The Dodger pitching staff is all worn out or has reason to not go a full game. And they also have some guys that are not mature enough for playoff baseball.

I wish I felt differently, but I don't have faith in Kershaw going 7 or 8 innings. I think he lacks the strength it takes to do that after short rest. Yes, that includes only 7 pitches. He hasn't been the same after coming back from the back problem. He hasn't presented that "bulldog" performance like in the past years.

I think you are right that the Cubs will take it. The Dodger players that produced down the stretch to win the division are too young to win the NLCS. Those young players are somewhat like the Cubs young players from last year. We know the either team can come from behind in the late innings, so this may be a crazy series. But I wouldn't be surprised to see the Cubs with in 4 or 5 games.

Pretty cool here that you and I seem to agree on many things on this topic. We are just looking at it from different perspectives.

 

[TC4THREE]

Interesting to see how LA comes out of the gate in this series. Gut reaction is Cubs in 5 but if the Dodgers manage to grab one of the first two we might actually have a decent series.

Conventional wisdom says Cubs win big tonight because Lester has been great and Dodgers suck vs lefties. Saw wind is blowing out though and if Dodgers can get on base they could cause Lester problems if they are aggressive trying to take bases on Lester. They got to knock Lester out of rhythm and hope that Maeda can keep the Cubs in check.

 

[TC4THREE]

Kershaw looked plenty good last night. Wonder if the Dodgers plan to use him in Game 5 on short rest or Game 6 on 5 days. My guess is they'll use him Game 5 unless they happen to be up 3-1 because they could also use him in Game 6 or 7 out of the bullpen if they need to.

Cubs need to take 2 of 3 in LA. They do not want to come back to Chicago down 3-2 with their entire organization trained to expect the worst.

 

[Inspector100]

Thanks for posting. The Dodger pitching staff is all worn out or has reason to not go a full game. And they also have some guys that are not mature enough for playoff baseball.

I wish I felt differently, but I don't have faith in Kershaw going 7 or 8 innings. I think he lacks the strength it takes to do that after short rest. Yes, that includes only 7 pitches. He hasn't been the same after coming back from the back problem. He hasn't presented that "bulldog" performance like in the past years.

I think you are right that the Cubs will take it. The Dodger players that produced down the stretch to win the division are too young to win the NLCS. Those young players are somewhat like the Cubs young players from last year. We know the either team can come from behind in the late innings, so this may be a crazy series. But I wouldn't be surprised to see the Cubs with in 4 or 5 games.

Pretty cool here that you and I seem to agree on many things on this topic. We are just looking at it from different perspectives.

Well, the crow has again landed on my table. I was right that Kershaw would go 7 at most, but he was much better than I expected. The fact that the Dodgers shut out the Cubs in this game gives props to Jansen. Notice the Dodgers have shortened the pitching staff for the games they can win. There seems to be more heart in the guys being used, giving them their best chance in this series. So this crow is becoming a little tasty.

Reshaping my thoughts on this series, the Dodgers play the Cubs pretty tough through the regular season. So they do have a chance to advance. They have already beaten Price, Arrieta, Bumgarner, and Moore in the regular season. Those guys represent most of the best left handers in baseball. So it is not out of the question for them to win these games. I do not have any expectations, just hopes.

 

[TC4THREE]

Kershaw looked plenty good last night. Wonder if the Dodgers plan to use him in Game 5 on short rest or Game 6 on 5 days. My guess is they'll use him Game 5 unless they happen to be up 3-1 because they could also use him in Game 6 or 7 out of the bullpen if they need to.

Cubs need to take 2 of 3 in LA. They do not want to come back to Chicago down 3-2 with their entire organization trained to expect the worst.

Easy to say in hindsight but Dodgers should have used Kershaw in game 5. Cubs didn't want to come back to Chicago down 3-2 and he's better on short rest anyway.

Cubs are celebrating already. They would be wise not to look past the Indians. Indians will need Kluber to pitch like an ace and get at least a couple of other good starts out of the rest of their staff. Indians bullpen is better than the Cubs in my opinion and their lineup will be better than any they faced in the NL playoffs. If Indians had their full pitching staff I'd be picking them. I'll have to look at some things before arriving at my final conclusion for the World Series.

 

[Inspector100]

Well, good for the Cubs. I wanted the Dodgers to advance, but as I said before, their productive players are at least one year too young. Not surprised Kershaw didn't have it. See earlier posts. WS will be something.

 

[Purdue Grad in Texas]

Winner of the WS will end the longest championship drought in its respective league. Should be a good one

 

[DG10]

Easy to say in hindsight but Dodgers should have used Kershaw in game 5. Cubs didn't want to come back to Chicago down 3-2 and he's better on short rest anyway.

Cubs are celebrating already. They would be wise not to look past the Indians. Indians will need Kluber to pitch like an ace and get at least a couple of other good starts out of the rest of their staff. Indians bullpen is better than the Cubs in my opinion and their lineup will be better than any they faced in the NL playoffs. If Indians had their full pitching staff I'd be picking them. I'll have to look at some things before arriving at my final conclusion for the World Series.

Yes, the Dodgers should have used Kershaw in Game 5, but I am not sure that it would have ultimately mattered, especially for as good as Lester was in Game 5. The Cubs did not want to come back home down 3-2, and, to their credit, they did not...more to their credit, they pounced on Kershaw and put the Dodgers away in Game 6 and avoided what would have been a very pressure-packed Game 7.

I don't feel as though the Cubs are celebrating already though...although if they are/were, it would be easy to understand. No way are they looking past the Indians, but at the same time, I think they have been of the mindset for a long time that whatever happens ultimately has more to do with them than whoever their opponent was/is.

While the Indians bullpen is likely better, their rotation is not...and, for that matter, I think it is a huge boost to the Cubs to have two guys that have AL experience in their rotation, that they get Hendricks back home in Game 3, and I think Arrieta will be much better against a lineup that has never faced him.

I like the Cubs chances...they are playing well, playing with confidence and getting Schwarber back could be huge as well. It really could/should be a great series, and truth be told, I am just happy that when I watch the World Series, the Cubs will be playing in it.