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MLB Divisional Series Madness😳

MLB Divisional Series Madness😳

The Miracle Mets move on. The ALDS heats up. Dodgers Padres Game 5.

Javier Reyes & Colby Olson
October 10, 2024

The Division Series are down to the wire and Just Baseball is here to preview games 4 and 5 of the pivotal matchups in the AL and NL. We’ll have a full Championship Preview out on Sunday, but for now, enjoy the rest of the Division Series Madness.

American League Update

Cleveland Guardians - Detroit Tigers Game 4 Preview

Tigers up 2-1 in series. Game 4 at 6:08PM ET

Game 4 betting odds (BetMGM): Guardians -120, Tigers +100

The cinderella story Detroit Tigers have kept their hot streak alive. After giving up seven runs in game 1, the Tigers shut out the Guardians in two straight games to take a 2-1 series lead.

It’ll likely be Reese Olson against Tanner Bibee in a rematch of game 1 where both pitchers cruised through five innings before the Guardians broke the game open against the Tigers bullpen. It’ll be all hands on deck for these bullpens in a close game tonight.

If the Guardians take game four, the Tigers will have Tarik Skubal on the mound in a winner take all game five. Skubal has not allowed a run in each of his postseason starts and has a 1.57 ERA in his last 10 starts. He’s unhittable as it gets right now and the Guardians are officially on the ropes.

If the Tigers advance to the ALCS, Manager AJ Hinch will take a ton of credit for his creative pitching usage in this series and down the stretch.

_{Detroit Tigers vs Cleveland Guardians Pick:}
_{Jose Ramirez over 1.5 Hits + Runs + RBIs}

Full analysis on this pick here.

New York Yankees - Kansas City Royals Game 4 Preview

Yankees up 2-1 in series. Game 4 at 8:08PM ET.

Game 4 betting odds (BetMGM): Yankees -155, Royals +125

The Yankees are one game away from moving on to the ALCS and are hoping to make a run to their first World Series since 2009. The Yankees have failed to move on to the World Series in their past five ALCS appearances.

The biggest takeaway for the Yankees in this series thus far is that they’ve found a closer in Luke Weaver, who has 11 straight scoreless appearances and shut the door on the Royals for a five-out save last night.

Aaron Judge’s postseason struggles continue. He’s 1-11 (.091) in this series and dating back to 2019, he’s hitting .156 across 128 postseason at bats. After one of the greatest hitting seasons ever, Judge needs to takeover in the postseason to bring the Yankees to the promised land (#28).

The slump for Judge may continue in game four against Michael Wacha. Judge went 0-for-2 against Wacha on Saturday, striking out and flying out to center field. With that, Judge is now 1-for-20 lifetime against Wacha with 12 strikeouts.

In a must-win game 4 tonight at 8:08 ET, the Royals have Michael Wacha on the bump who will square off against Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, who the Royals roughed up for seven hits and four runs in game one. They’ll need a similar performance from the lineup tonight. Bobby Witt Jr. collected his first hit of the series last night, so we’ll see if that gets his bat going.

National League Update

The Miracle Mets are on to the NLCS!

Francisco Lindor stepped up to the plate with bases loaded and unleashed on a fastball for a go-ahead grand slam in the bottom of the sixth inning. Up until that point the Mets had stranded 8 runners including the bases loaded twice. Lindor made sure they wouldn’t be stranded a third time.

Lindor nonchalantly jogged around the diamond like this was just another home run in a July game and the Mets never looked back, shutting the door on the Phillies and punching their ticket to the NLCS. As the late great Stuart Scott would say, Lindor is as cool as the other side of the pillow.

Just Baseball Show host Jack McMullen proclaimed on today’s episode that the Mets are America’s team right now. The Tigers may have a few words for Jack, but nevertheless the Mets are on fire and loving every second of it. We’ll have a full NLCS breakdown on Sunday, but until then, party on Mets fans!

Check out this article from Ryan Finkelstein breaking down the three magic home runs that changed the Mets season.

Padres - Dodgers Game 5 Preview

Series tied 2-2

Game 5 betting odds (BetMGM): Padres +120, Dodgers -140

The Dodgers and their $340 million payroll kept their season alive utilizing a bullpen game. Seven different relief pitchers combined for a shutout as the Padres struggled to put any offense together at home. Now the teams will travel to Los Angeles for a winner take all game 5 in the Chavez Ravine.

Dave Roberts has yet to announce a starting pitcher for game five, but has hinted at the possibility of Yamamoto or Flaherty and even quipped that "we could run the same playbook back and run a bullpen game”. Glad to see Roberts get his sense of humor back after his close run-in with a baseball rolled in from Manny Machado in Game 2.

The Padres will have Yu Darvish on the bump in game 5, who holds a 2.53 ERA across his last 5 postseason starts and allowed just one run on three hits across seven innings in game 2. The Padres have to feel good about their chances with the veteran Darvish on the mound. Not including the playoffs, Yu Darvish has the 6th lowest ERA against the Dodgers (2.27 ERA) among all pitchers with at least 15 starts since integration.