MLB: Saturday’s ALCS, NLCS preview
By Ed Carroll
Both League Championship Series are in action for the MLB playoffs today. The Baltimore Orioles trying to even the ALCS against the Kansas City Royals in Game Two and then the NLCS kicks off with the St. Louis Cardinals hosting the San Francisco Giants.
It’s a double dose action today in the MLB playoffs, as both League Championship Series have games today. The Baltimore Orioles will host the Kansas City Royals in Game Two of the ALCS at 4 p.m. EST while the Orioles will try to slow down the Royals, who haven’t lost yet in the MLB playoffs. Kansas City leads the series, 1-0. It’s a showdown of fresh faces, as neither team has been this far in the postseason for quite some time.
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The NLCS will begin at 8 p.m. EST. The San Francisco Giants will charge in to Busch Stadium, where the St. Louis Cardinals will host. Both teams enter the NLCS with 3-1 records in the MLB playoffs this year, and unlike the ALCS, feature tons of familiar faces with playoff experience. Per ESPN’s Jayson Stark, 38 of the 50 players appearing on the NLCS rosters have played in a postseason series before this October, and 34 of those 38 have World Series experience.
You can catch the ALCS on TBS at 4 p.m. EST when right-hander Yordano Ventura of the Royals will take the mound against right-handed starter Bud Norris for the Orioles. Ventura is a 23-year old phenom who has really helped the Royals rotation this year, posting a 14-10 record and a 3.20 ERA. Norris went 15-8 with a 3.65 ERA for Baltimore and was selected ahead of lefty Wei-Yin Chen, who pitched poorly in Game Two of the ALDS, although Baltimore still swept that series.
The NLCS will start with Game One at 8 p.m. (Eastern) on FOX, with a matchup of aces. San Francisco will send left-hander Madison Bumgarner to the hill. he had a 2.98 ERA in the regular season this year, with a record of 18-10, as well as a stellar start in the Wild Card game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. St. Louis will counter with an ace of their own, right-hander Adam Wainwright, who says his elbow is healthy enough to start Game One. He had a record of 20-9 with a 2.38 ERA.
Check back at Fansided.com for full coverage throughout the MLB playoffs.
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