World Series Recap: Game 2

Yesterday’s World Series game 2, which took place under the lights of San Francisco’s AT&T Park,  pitted the Giants’ Matt Cain against the Rangers’ CJ Wilson. With the Giants up 1-0 after their game 1 win, Cain was looking to give his team a commanding two-game lead in the series while Wilson looked to even it up going back to Arlington for game 3. 

For much of the beginning of this game, we saw the pitcher’s duel many (including myself) predicted for game 1. Through 4 innings, Wilson had allowed only a Cody Ross double, a Matt Cain single, and a Pat Burrell walk, while Cain allowed just a Mitch Moreland single, and the game remained scoreless. 

Texas nearly opened the scoring in the 5^th, as Ian Kinsler led off by blasting a ball to deep centerfield. Andres Torres looked up and watched as the ball flew over his head and improbably bounced off of the very top of the wall and back into play. I’ve never seen a play like that before, live or otherwise. Your San Francisco Giants: Torture. Torres played the ball off the wall and held Kinsler to a double. Cain got two quick outs and walked Mitch Moreland to face Wilson, against whom Cain induced a groundout to strand Kinsler at second. 

The game would not remain scoreless for long, as in the bottom of the inning, Edgar Renteria curled a ball just around the leftfield foul pole for a solo home run. This one wasn’t coming back, and the Giants took a 1-0 lead. 

Cain kept cruising, and the Giants would double their lead in the 7^th. Cody Ross walked against CJ Wilson to lead off the inning. Wilson then had a quick consultation on the mound with Ron Washington before making the long walk back to the dugout, forced out by a blister. Darren Oliver got Huff to ground out, but Ross advanced to second on the play. Juan Uribe followed with a single to score Ross and make this a 2-0 game, but despite advancing to second on the play, Uribe was stranded by consecutive strikeouts from Renteria and Cain. 

Cain would get two outs in the 8^th before Bruce Bochy decided to play matchups and use lefty-killer Javier Lopez against Josh Hamilton with Elvis Andrus on second after a walk and stolen base. The switch worked, as Lopez got Hamilton to fly out to keep Cain’s shutout intact.

In the bottom of the 8^th, things really got interesting. Darren O’Day got two strikeouts from Torres and Sanchez to lead off the inning. O’Day allowed a single to Buster Posey and was pulled in favor of Derek Holland. Holland is an extremely talented young pitcher, and I have no doubt he has a bright future ahead of him, but something got into him last night. He got an acute case of the jitters in his first World Series appearance, throwing 11 straight balls and walking Nate Schierholtz and Cody Ross on four pitches each. He then went to 3-0 on Aubrey Huff before throwing a strike, but he couldn’t repeat the feat, walking Huff to score Posey. Holland left after throwing 12 balls and only a single strike. Mark Lowe relieved him, and Juan Uribe worked a full count and took another walk to walk in a second straight run. If you’re keeping track at home, that’s 5 straight walks from the Rangers’ bullpen and 2 runs in. Lowe then allowed an Edgar Renteria single into left, scoring two. Mike Kirkman came in to face pinch-hitter Aaron Rowand, who welcomed him with a line drive into triples alley. The hit scored both runners and was true to the name of right-centerfield, as Rowand ended up on third. Andres Torres doubled to score Rowand and make the score 9-0 before Kirkman mercifully ended the inning by striking out Freddy Sanchez, Sanchez’s second K of the inning. Guillermo Mota came in and allowed no more than a two-out walk, ending the game and giving the Giants the victory. 

Let’s break it down.

Giants vs. Rangers:

WPA Leader: Matt Cain (.468)

The man they call “Shotgun” certainly blew a hole in the Rangers’ lineup last night, going 7 and two-thirds innings and allowing only 4 hits to earn the win. Though for the second straight night a Giants’ ace was not able to accrue the gaudy strikeout totals Giants fans have come to expect (Cain only recorded 2 K’s, both of Nelson Cruz), Cain was dominant in giving the Giants the 2-0 lead in the series. With 21 1/3,  he's now the owner of the longest playoff scoreless innings streak in Giants history since Walter Hoyt had 27 in 1921. Renteria was the outstanding offensive player, with a .131 WPA on his home run to open the scoring and two-run single in the 8^th. No, this doesn’t change how I feel about him, but congratulations to Renteria on as big an offensive day as he can ever expect to have.

Biggest Plays:

Renteria’s home run pulled a .162 WPA, opening the scoring in the 5^th. Uribe’s single to score the second run of the game went for a .090 WPA.

The Goat:

Nelson Cruz put up a -.165 on an 0 for 4 day with two strikeouts. However, his biggest negative play came in the 6^th, with the game still 1-0. With runners on second and third and only one out, the Rangers had a golden opportunity to tie the game with a productive out or take the lead with a base hit. Instead, Cruz fouled out to Aubrey Huff for a -.129 WPA, and Cain would preserve the shutout. My father has issues with the fact that Derek Holland and his three consecutive walks don’t make him the goat for this game, but his outing wasn’t as bad, as the Rangers’ win expectancy was already down to 6.1% by the time Holland entered the game, so there was only so much damage Holland could do. 

Check back tomorrow, when I’ll tell you about my experience at the first two games of this series.

World Series Recap: Game 1

Wow. What a game. I had to switch my flights from Detroit to San Francisco 3 times yesterday. I sprinted between terminals at the airport in Phoenix. I flew for 7-8 hours and then went straight to the ballpark from San Francisco International. It was all worth it to watch a game like that.

Much like Lincecum-Halladay in game 5 of the NLCS, Lincecum-Lee pt. 1 didn’t produce the expected pitcher’s duel. With both starters working on extra rest and looking a little rusty, and the gloves not exactly up to game speed after the long wait between series, this game was sloppy and a completely unexpected slugfest, but it was a fantastic game to watch nonetheless.

This is gonna be a pretty quick recap, because I’m taking MUNI down to the game as soon as this thing goes up. PUMPED for Matt Cain and game 2.

Lincecum looked shaky early, allowing 2 runs in the first two innings on 4 hits and a walk. He also made a pretty big mental mistake, catching Michael Young in a rundown between third and home and then allowing him to run back to third without a throw with only one down in the first. However, a grounder to Juan Uribe erased the mistake, as Uribe stepped on third and threw to first for the double play. In the second, Lincecum allowed Cliff Lee to double on a butcher boy, putting the whole stadium in a state of shock. Lee’s double moved Bengie Molina to get to third, and he scored on a sac fly the next play.

The Giants would get it back in the 3^rd. After a Young error allowed Renteria to reach base to lead off the inning, Lincecum failed miserably in his sac bunt attempt. Andres Torres took one for the team, and Freddy Sanchez followed with his second double of the game to score one run. Buster Posey singled to score Torres and tie it at two, but two strikeouts looking from Pat Burrell and Cody Ross later, Sanchez was stranded at third.

In the 5^th, the Giants cracked it open in a big way. Lincecum led off by grounding out, but Torres doubled behind him. Buster Posey struck out looking for the second out, and then the rally really got going. Pat Burrell walked. Cody Ross singled to score Torres. Aubrey Huff singled to score Burrell and end Cliff Lee’s day. Juan Uribe welcomed Darren O’Day into the World Series with a line-drive 3-run blast to left center. Edgar Renteria was hit by a pitch, and Lincecum reached on an error by Elvis Andrus. First time I’ve seen someone ground out to short twice in the same inning. Torres would end the inning by striking out swinging, but after the Giants’ batted around and put up a 6-run frame, the score was 8-2 for the home side.

The Rangers would fight back with two in the top of the 6^th, chasing Lincecum with two down. Lincecum struck out the first two batters of the inning, but walked Kinsler. Molina doubled to score Kinsler, and after back-to-back singles from Mitch Moreland and David Murphy, Molina scored and Santiago Casilla came in to retire Andrus and end the threat.

The Giants would reopen the gap in the 8^th. Edgar Renteria hit a liner into right. Vlad let it go by him, which is why you don’t play your DH in right. Travis Ishikawa doubled to score Renteria. After a Torres foulout, Sanchez hit a ball down the line, which Vlad bobbled to allow Sanchez to get to second. It was initially ruled a double, which would be Freddy’s fourth and tie him for the most in any World Series game. However, the scorer soon changed the hit to a single and an error. Regardless, Ishikawa scored, and Sanchez later scored on a single by Schierholtz to “turn it up to 11.”

The Rangers would put up 3 in the 9^th on a single, two walks, a sac fly, and a Nelson Cruz double, but the game would end 11-7 to give San Francisco the 1-0 series lead.

Let’s take a quick look inside the numbers.

Giants vs. Rangers:

WPA Leader: Freddy Sanchez (.364)

Sanchez ended the game with 3 doubles and a single in 5 ABs. The Giants will need production from the top of their lineup to be successful in this series, and Sanchez set the tone as the only real outstanding player in this game (Torres .076 was second).

Biggest Plays:

Sanchez’s doubles to score the Giants’ first run and take the lead were the two biggest plays, at .178 and .145 WPA respectively.

The Goat: Cliff Lee’s -.364, allowing 7 runs (6 earned) on 8 hits and a walk in only 4.2 innings made him the least valuable player of game 1. Lee earned his first postseason lost, and didn’t look good doing it.

World Series Predictions

I’m going to be a little bold and call this one. Now that we’ve looked at each on-field aspect of both teams, we have the information we need to compare them. Home-field advantage is going to be huge, as each team is built to play in the league they compete in, so having to deal with the DH rule will hurt San Francisco when the series goes to Texas, while the Rangers will have some trouble without the DH at AT&T Park. The Giants don’t really have a clear DH candidate, and while Pat Burrell and Pablo Sandoval both provide potentially effective options, there are problems with every way the Giants could play this. It’s really a situation where they have to minimize the advantage Texas gets by having a more settled DH situation. Likewise, Ron Washington will face an interesting decision. On one hand, Vladimir Guerrero has been a great bat in the middle of the lineup, DHing and providing some serious pop behind Josh Hamilton. On the other hand, he’s a defensive liability. Washington has decided to split the difference by starting Vlad in one of the first two San Francisco games and David Murphy in the other. Many in the blogosphere believe they might be better off playing Murphy in both and keeping Vlad as a pinch-hitter and DH in the games in Texas.

On offense, I think the Rangers are clearly the better team. Josh Hamilton is one of the best hitters in baseball, and he’s surrounded by a lot of strong bats. The Giants’ ragtag group of misfits relies on timely hitting, and timely hitting is nice, but it’s not something you can count on consistently.

On defense, the Giants clearly are the better team. Andres Torres will be the best defensive player in this series, and despite having a few guys with somewhat limited range, they’ve been strong this year behind their pitchers. The Rangers won’t blow up defensively like the Braves did, but they are prone to making some defensive mistakes.

The pitching is an interesting issue. Lincecum and Lee are both world-class aces, but with apologies to the mop-haired hero I’d have to say that Lee’s been a better pitcher this season. That said, either has the potential to pitch their team to a win, and I’d be surprised if tonight’s game is anything other than a low-scoring affair. However, that’s what I said about Lincecum-Halladay pt. 2, and we all know how that turned out. I’d take Cain over Wilson, especially in San Francisco’s home park, which isn’t a great place for a guy like Wilson but is absolutely built for right-handed flyball pitchers like Cain. Colby Lewis has the advantage over Jonathan Sanchez in game 3, and I’m partial to Madison Bumgarner in his game 4 matchup against Tommy Hunter. The Giants have the better bullpen, with Brian Wilson leading the way and Jeremy Affeldt and Javier Lopez both looking extremely strong this postseason. The Rangers’ bullpen is good, but they’re not on the same level as the Giants’ relievers. I’m going to say that overall, the Giants have the superior pitching.

In game 1, Tim Lincecum will oppose Cliff Lee at AT&T Park. My mouth is watering as I write. I had as much trouble as a person can possibly have with flights today, and after switching to what is by my count my 4^th flight of the morning, I’m now on track to fly to Phoenix and connect to the City by the Bay in time to get to the ballpark by first pitch.* It’s my first ever playoff game, and it’s Timmy and Cliff Lee in the World Series. Can’t beat that. I think either way the Vlad situation will screw with the Rangers. If he’s in the field, it just seems like a relative certainty that a hard-hit ball will find him. If he’s not, missing his bat in the lineup will be an issue for the Rangers, and cut down on the offensive advantage they enjoy. I’m taking the Giants in this game, with Lincecum and Lee both going 7+. At least.

I’m also going to take the Giants in game 2. As I said before, AT&T Park fits Matt Cain like a glove. It fits CJ Wilson like an ugly Christmas sweater his grandma knitted for him when he was twelve. Guessing 7 or so runs are scored, with the Giants taking the majority of them to go to Texas up 2-0.

I’m gonna say Lewis gets the better of the Giants in the first game in Texas. Sanchez hasn’t developed the consistency under pressure for me to trust him to put up 6 or more quality innings against an offense as good at Texas’. Lewis won’t shut the Giants down, but he’ll be good enough to take the win.

I don’t like the Hunter decision. If I’m Ron Washington, I give the ball to Derek Holland without thinking twice. He’s simply been better than Hunter has this postseason, cleaning up Hunter’s mess in game 4 to get the W. Unlike the Who’s rock opera, this Tommy isn’t blind, deaf, and dumb, but he isn’t a shutdown starter either. Holland will once again come in for mop-up duty, but I’m gonna say Madison Bumgarner has another strong start and Holland’s relief work is not enough to keep the Giants from a win.

Game 5 will feature Lincecum-Lee, pt.2. Pitching in his home park, I think Lee gets the better of Big Time Timmy Jim in another close game, meaning the aces split their two starts with a win each. 

That’d bring the series back to San Francisco for game 6, with Cain facing Wilson once again. Cain’s home-field advantage will prove too much, the Giants will get at least a couple runs off Wilson pretty early in the game, and the Giants celebrate their first World Series in San Francisco. Bias is once again readily apparent. But who says I can’t make picks with my heart? Either way, this should be a close series, and Texas is an extremely strong ballclub. However, pitching and defense will trump good hitting, allowing the Giants to take the series with Cain going 7+ in the final game.

* I’m writing this from the airport, but I can’t get an internet connection until I get home after the game. So when I get home after game 1 and post a completely wrong prediction for a game that’s already happened, you’ll know why.

World Series Preview: Rangers' Pitching and Defense, Giants' Hitting

Rangers Starters:

Cliff Lee will match up with Tim Lincecum in what will be a few of the most exciting games this October (and November. I hate that the playoffs run into November. Start the season earlier, cut down on Spring Training, whatever. Just award the Commissioner’s Trophy before Halloween.) Lee’s been absolutely ridiculous this season, putting up a 2.58 FIP and 7 WAR between the Mariners and Rangers. He also walked 18 batters in 212.1 innings. Not much else needs to be said. The man’s insanely good. In three playoff starts, he’s allowed 2 runs in 24 innings.

Lefty C.J. Wilson will likely start game 2 for the Rangers. Wilson has followed up on an extremely strong 2009 out of the bullpen with another great season, this time in the starting rotation. Like I’ve said before, I have a ton of respect for Wilson’s versatility and his ability to be effective in whatever role the team needs him to fill. He logged a 3.56 FIP and 4.4 WAR this season. Wilson had two good starts in the postseason before getting drilled in game 5, allowing 6 runs (5 earned) in 5 innings.

Colby Lewis, who will start game 3, has quite an interesting story behind his appearance in the World Series. Before this year, his last MLB season was a pretty crappy 2007 campaign with the A’s, when he put up a 5.79. Lewis caught on in the Japanese NPB with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp. Lewis was one of the best pitchers in Japan for two years before coming back stateside and putting up a 3.55 FIP and 4.4 WAR in 201 innings this season. What’s the difference? His fastball has made a huge jump, going from slightly below average in his first stint in MLB to 7.6 runs above average this season. More importantly, however, he’s begun to use his slider (12.6% of pitches in 2007, 27.2% this year) instead of his much weaker curve ( 22.5% in 2007, 9.1% in 2010) as his main secondary pitch. Lewis’ curve has been steady at about 4 runs below average, but he’s honed his slider and it is now the strongest pitch in his arsenal, at 13.6 runs above average.

Tommy Hunter hasn’t been nearly as good as many think this year. His ERA is a strong 3.73, but his 4.99 FIP makes him clearly the 4^th best pitcher in this rotation. In two playoff starts, Hunter’s gone only 7.1 total innings and allowed 6 runs (5 earned). He doesn’t strike anybody out (4.78 K/9), and he doesn’t have any particularly good pitches (his cutter, his best pitch, is 2.9 runs above average). Among the fourth starters, I’d say Bumgarner (or Sanchez if he pitches game 4) will have the clear advantage on the mound.

Rangers Bullpen:

Rookie closer Neftali Feliz has been strong, putting up 1.8 WAR in 69.1 innings. He strikes guys out (9.22 K/9) and was third in the AL with 40 saves this season, the highest saves total by any rookie in the history of baseball. While that might be as tied to opportunity as actual skill, any time somebody sets an MLB record you kinda have to take notice. Feliz throws his 96 mph fastball 82% of the time, and with good reason; it’s been 19.3 runs above average this year. He’s been good in the playoffs so far, allowing one run in 4.1 innings (5 appearances),

Other notables include Darren Oliver, who put up a 2.64 FIP in 64 appearances this season, and Frank Francisco, who had a 3.12 FIP in 52.5 innings while striking out 10.25 per nine.  Derek Holland is also likely to appear in this series. He’s allowed 3 runs in 10.1 innings so far in the playoffs.

Rangers Defense:

The Rangers have been a decent defensive team this season, with an 18.1 team UZR in the regular season. That’s deceptive, however, as it includes Julio Borbon’s 1095 innings of 8.9 UZR ball in center. Borbon hasn’t gotten a start since game 2 of the ALDS, so that’s kind of a moot point. Nelson Cruz’s 7.7 UZR in right is the only 3+ UZR for a starter in the position they’ll be starting in for the World Series. The Rangers essentially are a collection of fielders who are just about average for their positions, with Michael Young’s –5.4 UZR at third the worst score of any player on the team. While they’re not outstanding defensively, there are no huge holes that will really hinder the Rangers.

Giants lineup:

Andres Torres will lead off for the Giants, providing a counterpoint to Andrus’ speed with some giddy-up of his own. Torres’ 6.0 WAR this season has been fueled largely by his outstanding defense, and he’s OBP’d only .343 for the second straight season, but “Andres the Giant” has swiped 26 bags despite starting the season on the bench.

Buster Posey, likely NL ROY and a fantastic all-around catcher, has been a revelation for the Giants this season. He’s put up a .368 wOBA, second among catchers with over 400 at-bats. Seriously. The only catcher with a better wOBA than the rookie in more than 400 AB’s in Joe Mauer. Suffice to say, the kid is special. His high walk rate hasn’t transferred from the minors, but no one’s complaining, as Posey put up a 131 wRC+ and 18 homers in 108 games.

Aubrey Huff has had a serious turnaround year. Huff was the second worst player in baseball last year, his –1.4 WAR beating out only Yuniesky Betancourt. This year, he’s bounced back in every facet of the game, putting up 5.7 WAR with strong defense and a 145 wRC+. He led the Giants with 26 home runs and, after 9 years in the league without being involved in a playoff race, Huff looks like he’s having the time of his life. He’s both a great hitter and a fun guy to watch, especially since the acquisition of Pat Burrell.

Burrell and Huff played together at the University of Miami, so they go way back. Burrell’s been fantastic with the Giants as well, with 2.7 WAR in 96 games (after –0.4 last year and –0.2 this season with the Rays). Giants GM Brian Sabean picked him up off the scrap heap after Burrell was DFA’d by the Rays, and Burrell has responded. He’s had a 133 wRC+ with the Giants, and he’s also played some surprisingly good defense in left.

Finally, we have to talk about Cody Ross. Ross has a career .340 wOBA and .788 OPS. In the playoffs so far, he’s put up a Ruthian 1.189 OPS, hitting 3 home runs in the NLCS to win the series MVP. He had a hit in every game of the Phillies series, including an extra base hit in every game besides game 3. “The Boss” may never hit this well again, but if he can lead the Giants to the promised land, he’ll be remembered in the Bay Area forever. He was claimed off waivers on August 23^rd, probably more to prevent the Padres from getting him than anything else, but he’s done more for the team than Brian Sabean ever could have imagined.

World Series Preview: Giants' Pitching and Defense, Rangers' Hitting

Giants Starters:
Tim Lincecum, all-world two-time defending Cy Young winner, will pitch the first game of the series for the Giants. Lincecum put up a 3.21 FIP this season, striking out 231 in 212.1 to lead the National League, and was good for 5.1 WAR this season. Lincecum has allowed 6 runs (5 earned) in 23 innings of work in his three starts in his first foray into postseason action.

Matt Cain, the Giants “second ace,” will likely pitch game 2 for San Francisco. He was the third starter for the Giants in the NLCS, but Jonathan Sanchez pitched the Giants’ clincher on Saturday, so my guess would be that Cain goes in game 2. He’s allowed a 3.65 FIP this season and put up 4.0 WAR, striking out 177 in 223.1 innings of work. He’s also been fantastic in his first postseason, as he’s yet to allow an earned run in 13.2 innings on the mound in his two starts.

Jonathan Sanchez will be pitching either game 3 or game 4, but which one is not yet completely clear. He’s always been something of a crapshoot for the Orange and Black, coming up huge when he’s on, but looking lost on the mound on nights when his control isn’t quite there. Sanchez is certainly talented, as last season he threw the Giants’ first no-hitter since John Montefusco’s in 1976. However, he’s struggled with his at times this postseason, and could only get through 2 innings in game 6 before being pulled. Sanchez can be maddening for Giants fans, but when he’s on, he’s on. The big lefty won’t have as much of a platoon advantage as he did against the lefty-heavy Phillies (Josh Hamilton is the only lefty in the core of the Rangers’ lineup), but he still has the stuff to shut down Texas’ powerful offense. Sanchez put up a 4.00 FIP and 2.6 WAR this season, striking out 205 batters in 193.1 innings.

Giants’ rookie Madison Bumgarner is the last piece of this rotation, and he’ll pitch game 3 or 4 (whichever Sanchez doesn’t start). The big lefty has been extremely effective for the Giants since his midseason callup, putting up 2.0 WAR in only 111 innings and contributing a 3.66 FIP. He’s had one good and one mediocre start in the playoffs, going 6 innings and giving up two earned to clinch the NLDS against Atlanta, and then giving up 3 runs in 4.2 innings in the Giants’ game 4 comeback win. He also pitched two strong innings in relief in game 6 of the NLCS. Bumgarner may be the Giants’ third strongest starter, but it could be tough for Bochy to trust him in big situations, as he is only a rookie. He’s earned some trust with his strong campaign, however, and he’s at least as capable as Sanchez of holding the Rangers’ offense down.

Giants Bullpen:
The big name here is closer Brian Wilson. The wacky reliever has developed quite a legend along the way to his NL-leading 48 regular season saves and 5 in the playoffs. For me, Wilson simply brings to mind two lyrics:
“Your anger is a gift” –from Freedom, by Rage Against the Machine
“Anger can be power if you know that you can use it” –from Clampdown, by the Clash
Wilson’s deadly arsenal only partially consists of his actual stuff on the mound. Wilson has a strong fastball (8.6 runs above average this regular season) and cutter (4.9), and will mix in a slider once every so often (4.1% of pitches this season, lowest in his career). However, he also provides a dose of raw emotion on the mound, simply seeming to overcome hitters with sheer will and determination. Wilson’s a sight to behold, and probably more than slightly out of his mind (link NSFW), and while he takes pride in giving up a few baserunners and making the game interesting, the bottom line is that he gets his job done, doing so more times than any closer in the league this year.

Others to note are Javier Lopez, the Giants’ lefty specialist turned shutdown reliever in the playoffs, and Jeremy Affeldt, who pitched two strong innings in relief in game 6. Santiago Casilla and Sergio Romo have been strong this season, but after shaky playoff outings the Giants will need them to turn it around and solidify the bullpen in the series.

Giants Defense:
As we’ve stated previously, the Giants’ team 56.4 UZR this year was second only to Arizona. Leading the way was Andres Torres’ 24.8 UZR between each of the three outfield positions. Nate Schierholtz gives the Giants some great defensive innings in right, with a 6.4 UZR in only 542 innings. Schierholtz has been used as a defensive replacement in 8 of the Giants’ 10 games this postseason, so expect to see a healthy dose of JuggerNate in close games. Freddy Sanchez and Aubrey Huff have also provided good defense at first and second base, while only Cody Ross will play in a position where he’s had a negative UZR, and Cody’s only been a –0.4 and –0.6 in center and left in 77 innings at each position. This matchup will be extremely interesting, as the Giants are among the top teams in the league in pitching and defense, while the Rangers’ strength is undoubtedly their bats.

Rangers lineup:
Elvis Andrus is really the igniter for this club. He will lead off for the Rangers, and he’s got some serious wheels, having swiped 30 bags in each of his first two seasons in the bigs. He’s not necessarily sabermetrically sound as a leadoff man, as his OBP of .342 is much lower than you’d like to see from the top spot in the order. However, he’ll still be dangerous on the basepaths, especially against the Giants ace, as Lincecum is pretty bad in his prevention of the running game. Probably the only thing he does poorly.

Josh Hamilton was the best player in baseball this year by WAR, and though he may not win the MVP, he’s as involved in the conversation as pretty much anybody. Hamilton has had the season predicted for him long ago, before his career was interrupted by drug and alcohol problems. He’s a fantastic comeback story and really a fun guy to watch. He looks like he’s having a great time playing the game, and, honestly, why wouldn’t you be when you hit like Hamilton? He hit for a wRC+ of 182, and led the league in SLG at .633. Hamilton was the ALCS MVP, and will hit third for the Rangers.

Nelson Cruz was second in WAR among Rangers hitters, with 5.1 this season. He put up a 156 wRC+ this season, and he can also swipe a bag, with 17 steals this year. Ron Washington will likely want to put Cruz in motion as much as possible with Lincecum on the mound, but with an arm like Posey’s behind the plate, he’ll have to be careful about the situations he runs in and the pitchers he tries to run against.

Ian Kinsler provides a decent bat at a premium position. The second baseman logged a .357 wOBA for a wRC+ of 122, which puts him behind only Robinson Cano among AL 2Bs. Like many others in Texas’ lineup, he provides a dual threat by producing with the bat and also wreaking havoc on the basepaths, having stolen 15 bases in 103 games this season after 31 last year.

Check back tomorrow, when we'll be taking a look at the other side of the series, with the Giants at the plate and the Rangers in the field and on the mound.