Rays or Rangers? The choice is yours

Tonight at the Trop the Rays and Rangers battle to see who will face the Yankees in the ALCS. As a Yankees fan you hope that Cliff Lee and David Price throw over 100 pitches, and the game goes 18 innings. But who matches up better for the Yankees?

The Rays and Rangers can both hit, but the Rays have struck out almost 300 more times then the Rangers as a team. Both teams are made of power and speed, but the Rays have stolen close to 50 bases more then the Rangers. The teams are equal in home runs, with the Rangers having just two more, but batting average is an east win for the Rangers who have hit .29 points better then the Rays. The Rays do draw more walks, and the teams have similar on base percentages.

Now aside from stats both teams do have thier share of scary hiitters. The Rangers have Josh Hamilton who could easily be the MVP, Vlad Guerrero who the Yankees have seen and been hurt by numerous times while with the Angels.Texas also has a pair of all star sluggers in Nelson Cruz and Ian Kinsler who may not have the best stats this season, due to injury but are both major threats.

The Rays on the other hand have a perfect mix of speed and power. Carl Crawford is a perfect example of a guy that can hit one out, but at the same time could get on base and steal with ease. Evan Longoria had another great season, but has been banged up over the end of the season. Carlos Pena has had the worst season of his career, and Ben Zobrist fell back to form. But the Rays as a team each contribute, and the key for the Yankees if they face them is to keep them off base, because with Posada behind the plate the Rays will run all over, it doesnt help that many of the Yanks pitchers dont hold runners on.

Pitching the teams are very similar, both are full of young arms and have a lefty ace. But the Rangers have the better starting staff, with four starters having ERA's below four. The Rays have a slight advantage with experience since many of the starters are the same ones that helped the Rays make it to the 2008 Postseason. The Rangers do have Cliff Lee, but he is the only pitcher other then Darren Oliver to have experience.

The bullpens are again very similar, although the Rays may have a slight advantage since Rafael Soriano is a stronger closer then Neftali Feliz, who has a higher WHIP. Again the bullpen's are very similar, but the Rays have a bit more expereince.

Both teams had great season's and its understandable. They both can hit and pitch and rely on youth. The youth could help a team, but the inexperince could also hurt. I think that tonight the Rays are going to pull out a win at home, but the Yankees should be aware of facing them. I do believe that the Yankees dont care either way who they face and will be prepared no matter what, but of the two teams I feel the Rangers match up better cause of the lack of experience.

Even philosophers have a take on the Yankees...

Alright so this isn't the most exciting thing ever but earlier today myself and MJ from wcwpsports.com had to make a class presentation about philosophers and a current topic. We chose to act as radio hosts for our campus radio station and relate the Yanks and the philosophers, here ya go....


Machiavelli: 6 o clock, welcome to the Sportswire, 88.1 WCWP. Machiavelli and Aristotle with you till 7. Call us at 516-299-2790. Leading off with some 2010 Yankees Baseball and Aristotle, this team really limping their way into the post-season. They have some questions to answer don’t they?

Aristotle: You’re absolutely right and the biggest question mark is starting pitching and who they could lean on after C.C. Sabathia?

Machiavelli: Let’s start with the young guy, Phil Hughes. Yankees took an absolutely wrong approach in dealing with this guy! What’s the deal with this an innings limit? I don’t comprehend the idea of putting a 17 game winner and only letting him pitch 175 innings.

Aristotle: Disagree, it’s all about finding a medium with this guy. Nothing in excess, nothing to deficient. Save him for the long-term and don’t throw his arm out after one season.

Machiavelli: But he is your best pitcher after Sabathia this season, you need to take a head on approach with him in his final couple of games and not just limit him before the post-season, that won’t get him ready.

Aristotle: Alright, well moving on from Hughes let’s talk about AJ Burnett. This guy has just 4 wins since July 1st and is 10-15 with a 5.33 ERA. What a joke he has been and the problem I think he has right now, is that he has no idea who he is. He’s lost all confidence in his pitches, his command is all over the plate, he’s just lost his identity.

Machiavelli: So what’s the plan of action if you’re Girardi?

Aristotle: No way this guy can be relied upon in the playoffs. Let him work things out, hopefully, in the off-season where he work on his faults and become a better pitcher. Again, he needs to know who he is. There is no reason to jeopardize the good of the team by sending him out on the mound this season.

Machiavelli: Moving away from the pitchers, let’s talk about some position players

Aristotle: One of the bigger stories of the Yankees season has been Brett Gardner. Here’s a guy who has surprised everyone in left field but at the same time, might be challenged once Tampa Bay Outfielder Carl Crawford hits the open market in free agency, do you think the Yanks should pursue him?

Machiavelli: You know my feelings. If you have the money to get someone, go and get them! Don’t wait around and let another team scoop up one of the best players in the game. It will make them better and not you. You have to beat them to the punch and the Yankees organization has the tools to get him…Right now we got a caller on the line, this is St. Thomas Aquinas. Thomas, how’s it going?

St.Thomas Aquinas – Hey guys, first time caller, long time listener. I disagree with what Machiavelli is saying about Carl Crawford. I don’t like the idea of the Yankees just using all these millions of dollars and consuming and consuming. I believe in building from within. Brett Gardner started in our minor leagues, was drafted by the team…his roots are in New York. Enough of this spending spree of buying players.

Machiavelli – Well, thanks for the call Thomas, appreciate it. The Yankees going out and spending money is nothing illegal. They are simply getting these players before anyone else. Why risk being hurt by the Red Sox if they sign a big time free agent. If you can prevent it, do so.

Aristotle: So all in all, the Yankees post-season could go either way. They could either falter due to their questions in the rotation, especially with Phil Hughes and AJ Burnett. Or, they could repeat because of their young talent like Brett Gardner. No matter how it ends up, it should make for an interesting October.

Machiavelli: There you have it, the Sportswire on 88.1 FM WCWP. We are out of time for tonight, join us tomorrow where Aristotle and myself will be chatting about the debacle that was the 2010 Mets, you won’t want to miss that.