Fred Bowen's "The Score" column,
September 28, 2007, Washington Post

These Teams May Knock My Sox Off

The Major League Baseball playoffs start next week.

Several teams in the National League are still battling for playoff spots, but the lineup in the American League is set: The Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians and Los Angeles Angels will play for the pennant.

The Yankees and the Red Sox are the biggest names in baseball. They have high-priced superstars including Yankees infielders Alex "A-Rod" Rodriguez and Derek Jeter and Red Sox sluggers Manny Ramirez and David "Big Papi" Ortiz. Lots of kids root for one of these teams and wear a Yankees or Red Sox cap.

But don't forget the Indians and the Angels. Each team won more than 90 games this season and wrapped up a division title a week ago. These teams might not be as popular and famous as the Yankees and the Red Sox, but they are plenty good.

Look at the pitching. Championship teams need two top starters. The Angels' best starter is John Lackey, who has won 18 games and lost 9, with an earned-run average (ERA) of 3.11. That means he gives up a little more than three earned runs -- not counting those that scored because of errors -- every nine innings. Los Angeles also has Kelvim Escobar, who is 17-7 with a 3.46 ERA.

The Indians' top starters are even better. Twenty-three-year-old sensation Fausto Carmona is 19-8, with a 3.06 ERA, lowest in the American League among starting pitchers. At 6 feet 7 inches and almost 300 pounds, Cleveland's Carsten Charles "C.C." Sabathia is a big-time pitcher who has won 18 games and leads the AL in innings pitched.

None of these pitchers has the reputation of the Yankees' Roger Clemens and Mike Mussina or Boston's Curt Schilling, but right now they might be better than those big-name stars.

The teams have other stars as well. Cleveland catcher Victor Martinez has more homers and has driven in more runs than the Yankees' Jorge Posada or Jason Varitek of the Red Sox. Indians center fielder Grady Sizemore might be the best all-around outfielder in the playoffs. The 25-year-old can hit, steal bases and make catches that show up on the ESPN highlights. Sizemore has more home runs this season than Red Sox outfielder Manny Ramirez.

Meanwhile, the Angels might have the most dangerous hitter (Vladimir Guerrero) and the best relief pitcher (Francisco Rodriguez) in all of baseball.

I'm a big Boston fan, so I'm root, root, rooting for my Red Sox. Still, I'm worried about the Indians and the Angels. They might not be well known, but they look like winners.

Fred Bowen writes KidsPost's sports opinion column and is an author of sports novels for kids.

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