The intensity of the playoffs in baseball is unmatched. Any single person on base becomes a rally for the home teams crowd. One mistake can cost you the game, the 162 games that are put on the line in the regular season no longer mean anything. If your team is successful and wins they are touted as the best. If your team loses said team is now looked at as “choke” artist.
The first of two wild card games will be getting underway Tuesday night. The Cincinnati Reds will be facing off against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the second ever National League Wild Card play-in game. Both of these teams are from the highly respected National League Central. The Pirates will be the home team as they sport a record of 94-68. The Reds are 90-72 but those numbers are all out the window now.
Pitching matchups are a really big deal as far as the playoffs are concerned. Sure, some teams make the playoffs due in large parts to their bats but you do not see a lot of teams coming into October with a bad pitching staff. The Pirates will have Francisco Liriano taking the bump rocking a 3.02 regular season ERA. He racked up 16 wins on his 2013 season and struck out over 160 men. Liriano has pitched twice in the postseason. Once out of the bullpen in 2009 where he surrendered one home run over two innings pitched. In 2010 he started in a playoff game going 5.2 innings surrendering four runs over six hits, three walks and seven strikeouts. This puts his career postseason ERA at a 5.87, not exactly the numbers you want to see.
The Reds will have stud pitcher Johnny Cueto take the mound sporting a 2.82 ERA over the 2013 season. He has only pitched in 11 games this season due in large part to a lat strain. Cueto has also pitched twice in the postseason; one time coming out of the bullpen facing one hitter and once in 2010. In his 2010 start he went five innings allowing one earned run and two runs overall. He received the loss in this game.
Outside of the pitching matchups you are looking at two teams that have fought hard all season. One, the Pirates who have made the playoffs for the first time since 1992; hungry to prove that they are no joke. The Reds on the other-hand have patience and a big older squad. Joey Votto and Andrew McCutchen will be two of many players that could play a huge impact on this game. Other guys like Brandon Phillips and Pedro Alvarez will also look to lead their teams to the promise lands.
Baseball has a funny way of figuring itself out and with the overall series being pretty even anything is bound to happen. The slates are clean, the 90 wins don’t matter. The only thing that does matter is Tuesday night, one game, for one opportunity to lead their teams to the next round and beyond.Watch as a battle of NL Central foes unfolds in some good, old fashioned October baseball. Are you ready?