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What to watch for in Cardinals-Dodgers series
By David Leon Moore, USA TODAY
USA TODAY breaks down three facets of the St. Louis Cardinals-Los Angeles Dodgers series:
An arm up: The starting pitchers for Games 1 and 2 don't appear to be matchups as much as mismatches. The Cardinals' 1-2 punch of Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright is arguably the best in baseball, two Cy Young Award candidates. The Dodgers counter with journeyman Randy Wolf and youngster Clayton Kershaw.
NLDS PREVIEW: Phillies-Rockies
Carpenter and Wainwright, both right-handers, have a combined record of 36-10. Carpenter has a league-best 2.24 ERA. Wainwright's ERA is 2.63. Wolf (3.23 ERA) and Kershaw (2.79) are a combined 19-15. Game 3 in St. Louis is more of a tossup on paper, with a likely matchup of Joel Pineiro (15-12, 3.49) against late-season Dodgers acquisition Vicente Padilla. Options for Game 4 for St. Louis include John Smoltz and Kyle Lohse, while Dodgers manager Joe Torre has reluctantly scheduled former ace Chad Billingsley, who has all but lost it. Dodgers opening day starter Hiroki Kuroda has had an injury-marred season, including a concussion after being hit in the head with a line drive in August. He returned to pitch effectively but is now suffering from a bulging disk in his neck and is unavailable in the Division Series. Wolf was a back-of-the-rotation signee by the Dodgers after last season. That he would emerge as the Dodgers' starter in their playoff opener says two things: he had a good season, and the front of the rotation fell apart. Whither Manny? The big bat that fueled the Dodgers' playoff run last year has been conspicuously absent lately. Mannywood has fallen silent, except for a smattering of boos. Manny Ramirez has struck out — again and again. Ramirez, who sat out 50 games for violating baseball's performance-enhancing drug policy, has been a hole in the lineup for a month or so. Ramirez hit .520 with four home runs and 10 RBI in eight playoff games last year. But such production seems unlikely going into this postseason. Ramirez has hit one home run since Sept. 9. Since Sept. 1, he's hitting .218. And in his last four games, he's 1-for-14 with nine strikeouts. He has been taking more pitches than usual and is consistently late on inside fastballs. If he remains quiet, that puts more pressure on relative youngsters Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier, who matured into stars but are short of playoff experience. What momentum? The Dodgers roared to the playoffs with a 4-7 record. The Cardinals steamrolled their way in with a 2-8 record. What does that mean? Not much, Joe Torre and Tony La Russa say. Both Torre, with the 2000 New York Yankees, and La Russa, with the 2006 Cardinals, won World Series with teams that limped to the regular-season finish. If momentum is only as good as your next starting pitcher, St. Louis would seem to have the edge, with Carpenter and Wainwright for Games 1 and 2. *** Torre certain Ramirez will rebound LOS ANGELES —Joe Torre's message to struggling slugger Manny Ramirez on how to rebuild his missing swing is this: Start small. "Manny understands his responsibility and he tries to get too big and it affects his balance," Torre said of Ramirez, who finished the year on a 1-for-14 skid. "When he's on his game, he's probably one of the most balanced hitters there is. He just has to think more in terms of smaller, like 'line drive' instead of 'long way.' Usually the long ball will come when you sort of get yourself back in rhythm. "He's been down this road before as far as postseason, and I expect him to show up, for sure." He's back: Cardinals Game 1 starter Chris Carpenter pitched in just five games combined in 2007 and '08 because of elbow and shoulder injuries, making his return to the postseason even sweeter. "This is what it's all about," said Carpenter, who won three playoff games in the Cardinals' 2006 World Series run. "I worked hard to get back and have the chance to play. I'm excited about it." Second choice: Torre is going with Ronnie Belliard, a late-season acquisition, at second base today instead of Orlando Hudson, who had a huge first half before slumping down the stretch. *** Season series The Cardinals won the season series 5-2, outscoring the Dodgers 31-19 and getting dominant performances from Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright. Carpenter was 2-0 with a 1.20 ERA. Wainwright, in two starts vs. Los Angeles, was 1-0 with a 1.20 ERA. And Game 3 starter Joel Pineiro was 1-0, with an eight-inning, one-run performance. The Dodgers have lost 14 of their last 17 games in St. Louis. Playoff pedigree The Cardinals' last playoff appearance was in 2006, when they transformed themselves from a lackluster team that backed in into a fine-tuned machine that rolled past the San Diego Padres, New York Mets and then the Detroit Tigers in a five-game World Series triumph. Carpenter, then and now, is the Cardinals' ace. Wainwright also was tough under pressure. He was the Cardinals' bullpen ace in 2006, and, in nine playoff appearances (four saves), he did not give up a run. The Dodgers haven't won a World Series in 21 years and hadn't won a playoff series since 1988 until upsetting the Chicago Cubs last season. That gave some of their youngsters valuable experience, but that was a team that was carried offensively by Manny Ramirez. Game 1 starter Randy Wolf has no postseason appearances. Prediction The Dodgers are in a bad place, having lost their winning ways down the stretch, seeing Ramirez go into a funk and wondering what happened to their once-formidable starting pitching. The Cardinals are probably better in starting pitching four deep, perhaps neutralizing the Dodgers' edge in the bullpen. Maybe a long fly or two by Ramirez would even things out, but the way he's swinging the bat and considering the state of the Dodgers' rotation ... Cardinals win in four games. *** Projected lineups St. Louis Cardinals
Los Angeles Dodgers
*** Schedule All times Eastern; televised on TBS •Game 1: St. Louis (RHP Chris Carpenter 17-4) at Los Angeles (LHP Randy Wolf 11-7), Wednesday, 9:37 p.m. •Game 2: St. Louis (RHP Adam Wainwright 19-8) at Los Angeles (LHP Clayton Kershaw 8-8), Thursday, 6:07 p.m. •Game 3: Los Angeles (TBA) at St. Louis (RHP Joel Pineiro 15-12), Saturday, 6:07 p.m. •Game 4*: Los Angeles at St. Louis, Sunday, TBA •Game 5*: St. Louis at Los Angeles, Tuesday, TBA *if necessary
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