Philly and Tampa HOT in October

If you would have told me in April that the Tampa Bay Rays and the Philadelphia Phillies would go to the World Series, I would have told you to get some professional help. While teams like the Cubs and Angels consider their seasons failures after having the best regular season in their respective leagues, the Rays and the Phillies go to show that it’s not the best regular season team that wins in the playoffs. Just as the Rockies of 2007 won 21 of their last 22 games to make it into the World Series, only to lose all their momentum because of a long break after the NLCS, it is usually the team that is playing its best baseball at the end of the season.

The Philadelphia Phillies played phenomenal baseball in September, bolstered by a rejuvenated Ryan Howard and kept steady by the consistent pitching of Cole Hamels. They beat a Milwaukee Brewers team that played its best baseball in August, and now are beating the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Cubs, who many had favored in the beginning of the year and many more throughout the year, got swept by these Dodgers. The Cubs played superbly the whole year minus the last week of the season, where they played lackluster ball and were not as sharp as any other time through the year, ending the year losing 4 of their last 6 games. The Dodgers, on the other hand, had played important baseball and good baseball the last month, passing the Arizona Diamondbacks for the NL West division. But they did not enter as hot as the Philadelphia Phillies.

The Boston Red Sox played well in the last month, snatching the wild card spot from the Twins, and then beating the Chicago White Sox handily in the postseason. The Angels looked like the team to beat, winning 100 games in the regular season, but they did not play an important game since June, easily winning the AL west crown. The Tampa Bay Rays, on the other hand, played possibly the most important baseball in their history in September, and though they only played .500 ball in that month, they could not have had more important wins, clinching their first playoff appearance in team history. They then clinched the division by beating the Red Sox in their season series. They have played the most consistent baseball throughout the whole season, surprising many, but pushed on by solid pitching and contributions from the entire team. And now they are beating a Red Sox team that they have beaten before during this season, and they are oozing confidence.

Teams must play important baseball at the end of the season. And they must not change their routines or determination to win at the end of the year, either. In fact, this is the most important time to stay sharp. So if a manager knows what is best for a team, he should continue playing hard and playing his starters through the end of the season. The Cubs and Angels sat and watched most of October play out from their couches at home, no longer enjoying the 197 regular season wins between them, because of the lackluster performances at the end of the year. Meanwhile the Rays and Phillies played their best and most important baseball in September. This is why they will be playing in the World Series.