#1 White Sox (21-4) vs. #6 Dinos (14-12)
Season Head to Head:
White Sox swept season series 3-0 winning 15-3, 9-2, 11-1
Playoff Leaders
White Sox:
Brendan Rose .429 Avg, 1.000 Slug%, 1 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 2 R
Brett Brittany .429 Avg, .714 Slug%, 2 2B, 3 RBI, 3 R
Jordan Moffat 1-0, 7.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, 9 K, 1 CG
Dinos:
Truth Crosbie Tripp .545 Avg, .727 Slug%, 5 H, 1 3B, 2 RBI, 1 R
Benjamin Hul .500 Avg, .667 OBP%, 4 H, 4 RBI, 6 R, 1 SB
Justin Ivers .364 Avg, .727 Slug%, 2 2B, 1 3B, 4 RBI, 3 R
Preview: Both first round series for these two teams went about as expected. The White Sox swept the Guns in a couple lower scoring games. The Dinos meanwhile were able to knock off the Giants in 3 games thanks to their bats.
The White Sox are missing 5 notable players from their roster this weekend due to commitments at Senior Nationals, which includes three of their top 5 innings eaters from their staff. The good thing for the Sox is that the remaining bats are the ones who put up the bulk of the damage in their three season matchups vs the Dinos, none of which were close. However playoff games are generally a bit tighter games, and if the pitching gets into any trouble, there’s not a ton of moves to make on Sunday’s DH.
The Dinos meanwhile scored 21 runs in their two wins over the Giants, getting shutout in their lone loss by Giant ace Steven Latos. In the three season matchups vs the Sox, the Dinos scored a total of 6 runs. It really will come down to which Dinos team shows up: season or playoff mode. Like we mentioned last series, this is the team with the most reps recently so I think their bats are getting hot at the right time.
These teams last met in the playoffs in this very round last season, with the Dinos winning in three games to advance to the finals. I think this series goes 3 games again.
#2 Dukes (19-6) vs. #4 Diamondbacks (15-11)
Season Head to Head:
Dukes swept season series 3-0 winning 9-8, 6-2, 12-3
Playoff Leaders
Dukes:
Cal Tecklenburg 1-0, 7.0IP, 1.00ERA, 9 K, 1 CG
Kevin Floyd .400 Avg, .600 Slug%, 2 H, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 4 R
Ryan Fleming .429 Avg, .571 Slug%, 3 H, 1 2B, 1 R
Diamondbacks:
Tetsu Nishida .727 Avg, 1.000 Slug%, 6 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 RBI, 7 R, 1 SB
Shea Koller .583 Avg, .583 OBP%, 6 H, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 5 R
Alex Bishop .500 Avg, .600 Slug%, 4 H, 1 2B, 7 RBI, 1 R
Preview: The Dukes took care of business in their opening round sweep of the Longhorns, with a couple close wins. The Diamondbacks bats meanwhile came alive in their Game 3 clinching win over the Wolfpack.
The Dukes are the one team who seem to present a consistent challenge to the Diamondbacks the past number of years now. They are battling a few injuries this year, and will also be missing one player due to Senior Nationals; however the veteran core of their lineup will be there ready to go. If all of their pitching depth shows up as well, they will be a tough out.
The Diamondbacks meanwhile just get it done in the FMBA as always. Down a game to the Wolfpack, vets Joe Sergent and Tom Gayef shut the door and kept the team alive in their quest for 6 titles in a row. They will be missing two big veteran bats this weekend due to Senior Nationals, but the remaining young Diamondbacks players are the ones who carried the offense in Round 1, so they may not miss a beat.
I always love watching these two teams play each other, whoever wins or loses, they are generally always good games. I have no idea what will happen, but if you are around this Saturday, it might be worth stopping in at the Glen.