The bitter rivalry between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox enters the spotlight in the American League Championship Series for the second time since 1999. The teams met 19 times this season, and New York won 10 times. The Yankees have home field advantage in the seven-game series, but Boston won five of 10 games at Yankee Stadium this season.
Key pitchers for Boston include Pedro Martinez, Derek Lowe and Scott Williamson. During the regular season, Martinez (14-4) was second in the American League with 206 strikeouts and led all of major-league baseball with a 2.22 ERA as a starter. Lowe has 17 wins, the most of any Boston pitcher, and Williamson's 21 saves leads the Boston squad. Boston's pitching staff has a 4.81 ERA against the Yankees, allowing a total of 89 earned runs.
For the Yankees, Mike Mussina, Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, David Wells and Mariano Rivera lead the way on the mound. Mussina went 17-8 on the season and was eighth in the American League with a 3.40 ERA. He recorded 195 strikeouts in the regular season, a team high.
Clemens (17-9) recorded 190 strikeouts, while Pettitte (21-8) led the Yankees in wins. His last win came Oct. 2 against Minnesota, when he struck out 10 batters over seven innings. He averages 10.7 strikeouts per nine innings. Rounding out the rotation is David Wells (15-7) who issued just 20 walks in 30 starts during the regular season.
If the starters can get the game to closer Mariano Rivera, Boston will be in trouble. Rivera is 3-0 with four saves against Boston this season and led the Yankees with 40 saves. Against Boston, the Yankees have a 5.48 ERA and have allowed 102 earned runs.
Offensively, Boston is relying on shortstop Nomar Garciaparra, outfielder Manny Ramirez and third baseman Bill Mueller. All three have a batting average over .300. Garciaparra has 105 RBIs, while Ramirez has 104. Mueller leads the team with 45 doubles. Ramirez has a .345 on base percentage.
The Yankees look to shortstop Derek Jeter, designated hitter Jason Giambi and outfielder Hideki Matsui for offensive production. Jeter's batting average of .324 is tops for New York. Matsui has 42 doubles, which leads the Yankees. Giambi hit 41 home runs and had 107 RBIs, both of which were team highs during the regular season.
The National League Championship Series matchup surprises many, as the Chicago Cubs take on the Florida Marlins. The Cubs won the Central Division by one game over the Houston Astros, as Chicago finished with an 88-74 record. Florida received the National League wild-card spot after going 91-71 and finished 10 games behind NL East Division winner Atlanta. Because the Cubs won the division and Florida did not, Chicago has home-field advantage in this series.
Mark Prior and Kerry Wood anchor the Cubs' pitching staff. Prior (18-6) finished third in the National League with a 2.43 ERA. He averaged 10.43 strikeouts per nine innings pitched and finished second on the Cubs with 245 strikeouts. Kerry Wood led the Cubs in strikeouts with 266 and averaged 11.35 strikeouts per nine innings pitched. He went 14-11 for the regular season and had a 3.20 ERA.
Leading the way in pitching for the Marlins are Dontrelle Willis and Mark Redman. Both had 14 wins during the regular season. Willis had 142 strikeouts, while Redman had 151. Willis' ERA was 3.30, while Redman's was 3.59. Willis and Redman gave up just 13 and 16 home runs, respectively.
Chicago looks for outfielders Moises Alou and Sammy Sosa to deliver at the plate. Alou batted .280 with a .357 on base percentage. He is second on the Cubs with 22 home runs and 91 RBIs. Alou hit 35 doubles, which was third on the team. Sosa bats .279 with a .358 on base percentage. His 40 home runs and 103 RBIs led Chicago. Sosa had the highest slugging percentage on the team at .553.
The top two hitters for the Marlins are Derrek Lee and Ivan Rodriguez. Lee had 92 RBIs, which was third on the team. He was second on the team with 31 home runs and also added 31 doubles. He hit .271 and had a .379 on base percentage.
The offseason accusation of Rodriguez has helped put the Marlins over the top. Rodriquez had the game-winning hit against the Giants in the opening round of the playoffs and added a huge three-run homer in the third inning of last nights game against the Cubs.
Outfielder Juan Pierre hit .305 for the Marlins in the regular season and will look to use his speed to get on base early in the game against the Cubs pitching staff.
