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| World Series Preview | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Games 1, 2, 5 and 7 are home games for the higher-seeded team in this best-of-7 series. Injuries are turned off for the playoffs, meaning injuries are only for that day's game. Starters are on a four-man skip rotation, so the fourth starter will be bumped if the first starter is ready to go on three days' rest. Since there are off days after games 2, 4, 5, 6 and 7, it's possible (but unlikely) that a team's ace could start three games in the series. Benched starters can be moved to the bullpen. Baseball Like It Oughta Be Any other result would have been anti-climactic. After a season that saw many individual and team records fall, the 2002 World Series could feature no less than two of the best teams in the history of the Diamond Mind Baseball League. It will be division champion against division champion, Morris against Hanover; the league's #1 pitching staff and #2 offense against the league's #1 offense and #2 pitching staff; the reigning World Champion against the team that won a league-record 120 games this season. And -- of course! -- they split 12 games during the regular season, each team going 4-2 on its home turf.
The Newark Sugar Bears (109-53) are hoping to become the first back-to-back champions since that Arkansas squad. They've never lost a World Series -- but they've never beaten Arkansas in the post-season, either, coming up empty against them in the playoffs in 1996 and 1998, losing both series 4 games to 1. Despite their 109-win season, Newark is cast in the underdog role, and it's one they're familiar with: It's the second time that they'll face the team coming off a record-setting season for most wins. In 1997, the Sugar Bears took on the Vancouver Iron Fist, who had a phenomenal 118-44 season to shatter their own league record by 11 wins. Newark entered that series as the No. 3 seed and had to defeat the team that had just set a record for the second-most wins in a season, the 109-53 Louisiana Lightning, just to reach the finals. They shocked the Lightning with a 4-1 series win and then completed the Cinderella story with a thrilling come-from-behind victory over Vancouver in Game 7 of the World Series.
In fact, whichever team wins the World Series will be the first team to win at least two-thirds of their games during the regular season and go on to win the league championship. The other four teams to win at least 108 games have gone home empty handed. Hitting Historically, the Sugar Bears have always been an offense-driven team. "The Crunch With Punch" led the league in scoring again this year -- for the fifth time in their six-year history. They averaged 6.1 runs per game, 995 runs on the season, and also led the league in batting average (.285), on-base percentage (.361), slugging percentage (.513), OPS (.874), hits (1,617), doubles (256), home runs (289), walks (662), total bases (2916) and runs created (1056.2). They led the league in almost every offensive category whether facing righties or lefties, but were particularly abusive to southpaws, posting a .922 OPS against them. Arkansas's offense ranked second across the board, and in most categories, were closer to the Sugar Bears than to the third-place team. Arkansas hit .282 with a .829 OPS, .360 OBP, .469 SLG, 948 R, 1607 H, 238 HR, 889 RBI, 613 BB, 2,666 total bases and 973.2 runs created -- all tops among teams playing outside of Newark. Unlike the Sugar Bears, the Golden Falcons actually did a little better against righties than against southpaws (despite their league-best .818 winning percentage against lefty starters). Whereas the Falcons battered lefties to a .283/.355/.448 clip, they punished righties to the tune of .282/.360/.476 -- leading the league in batting average and on-base percentage, and finishing second (behind Newark) in slugging percentage.
Platoon-happy manager Don Mattingly split time at the other five spots in the lineup, with Desi Relaford (.272, .810 OPS, 44 2B, 67 R) and Chris Stynes (.283, .701 OPS, 11 2B, 27 R) sharing second base; Mark McLemore (.299, .398 OBP, .872 OPS, 96 R) and Jose Hernandez (.307, .637 SLG, .986 OPS, 16 HR, 48 RBI) at short; Cliff Floyd (.274, .834 OPS, 41 2B, 27 HR, 96 RBI) and Stan Javier (.292, .370 OBP, .756 OPS, 10 2B, 37 R) in left; Bobby Abreu (.265, .552 SLG, .905 OPS, 31 HR, 101 RBI) and Raul Mondesi (.302, .698 SLG, 1.079 OPS, 7 HR, 16 RBI) in right; and Jim Thome (.260, .595 SLG, .980 OPS, 44 HR, 100 RBI) and Jose Canseco (.346, .731 SLG, 1.106 OPS, 6 HR, 12 RBI) at designated hitter. With all that platooning, there isn't much room on the bench for reserves. Veteran Charles Johnson has been demoted to Lo Duca's backup and defensive replacement, losing his job after getting off to a slow start and never recovering (.222, .646 OPS, 9 HR, 37 RBI). Infielder Damian Jackson was picked up in August after Stynes went down with an injury and did a credible Joe Morgan impression, hitting .583 (7-for-12) with 2 doubles, 2 stolen bases and 4 runs scored. He smacked a triple in his only at-bat in the series against Vancouver, and played a flawless second base as a late-innings defensive substitute. But there may not be room on the roster for Jackson in the World Series unless Newark is prepared to carry just three starting pitchers again -- a strategy that didn't work out too well against Vancouver. There's no chance youngsters Carlos Guillen or Shea Hillenbrand will see the post-season roster, neither of whom had a hit in a handful of late-season at-bats.
But as tempting as it would be just to walk Sir Barry whenever he comes to the plate, opposing pitchers also had to find a way to deal with Lance Berkman (.299, .898 OPS, 50 2B, 24 HR, 111 R, 88 RBI) and Larry Walker (.297, .909 OPS, 42 2B, 33 HR, 127 R, 97 RBI), who joined Bonds to form one of the most potent outfields in league history. Arkansas's big three combined for 128 doubles, 129 HRs, 401 R and 361 RBI. In any other season, third baseman Phil Nevin would be worthy of Most Valuable Batter consideration, hitting .295 with a .933 OPS, 47 HR, 109 R and 145 RBI and playing every game... Veterans Juan Gonzalez (.288, .842 OPS, 30 HR, 106 RBI) and John Olerud (.274, .773 OPS, 20 HR, 102 R) didn't have their best seasons, but are still clutch performers... Neither Fernando Vina (.258, .626 OPS, 32 2B, 87 R) nor David Eckstein (.265, .642 OPS, 20 2B, 63 R) got the job done at the top of the order. Imagine how many RBIs Bonds and Nevin would have collected with a true lead-off man... Arkansas didn't get much production out of its catcher spot, either. Ben Molina is finally healthy after battling injuries all season, but he could only manage an empty .274 (.313 OBP, .314 SLG), with just 12 extra-base hits in 369 at-bats. Backup John Flaherty was even worse, hitting .237 with a .574 OPS. Arkansas only went to its bench in case of injuries or for a pinch-hitter: Only the nine starters and the backup catcher had 100+ ABs. Utilityman Joe McEwing, who can play short, third or outfield, led the reserves with 95 AB and 50 games, though he hit just .211 (.598 OPS, 25 K)... Alex Ochoa, a perennial All-Star for the Triple-A Texarkana Vultures, got his third cup of coffee in five years with the Golden Falcons and made the most of it, going 7-for-17 with 2 doubles, 3 runs and 5 RBIs... The rest of the bench is made up of little-used lefty cornermen: Randall Simon (.279, .672 OPS, 68 AB); Jeff Liefer (.245, .857 OPS, 53 AB); J.T. Snow (.222, .575 OPS, 45 AB) and Robin Ventura (.233, .805 OPS, 43 AB). The two teams faced each other 12 times during the regular season, splitting the series, with each team winning four games at home and two on the road. Injuries played a key role, with Bonds missed five of the contests, while Berkman sat out four; for Newark, Ramirez missed six games, and Stynes three. Both teams will be back at full strength for the championship series. The man most dangerous to Arkansas pitching this season wasn't Jones, Ramirez or Thome, but Relaford. Desi hit .310 with a team-high 1.084 OPS against the Golden Falcons, leading the team with 8 doubles, 11 R and 11 RBI. Relaford did a lot of his damage in a 10-3 blowout of the Golden Falcons on June 24, going 4-for-4 with a double and two home runs for 4 runs, 5 RBI... McLemore led the team in hits, with 16, and scored 9 runs, while Floyd tied for the team lead in HRs (4) with a second-best 10 RBI... Ramirez hit .316, but with just 1 HR, 2 RBI in 19 AB... This will be a great series if the Sugar Bears can get big guns Abreu (.196, 17 K), Jones (.190, 13 K) and Thome (.119, 17 K) to put the ball in play. Arkansas's big three were as impressive against Newark as they were against the rest of the league: Bonds (.273, 1.421 OPS, 7 BB, 5 HR), Walker (.320, 1.030 OPS, 5 HR, 10 R, 10 RBI), and Berkman (.310, .872 OPS, 3 2B, 4 R). At least one of the three was first or tied for first in every offensive category... Olerud hit .250 with a .758 OPS, Nevin .250 with a paltry .694, and Gonzalez could only manage .234, .669... Flaherty and Molina combined to hit .268 with no homers, no walks and a 11 Ks in 41 ABs... Arkansas's big boppers need tablesetters Vina (.125, .176 OBP) and Eckstein (.182, .250 OBP) to do a better job of getting on base. Baserunning Though neither team is built around speed, Newark has more weapons on the basepaths. The Sugar Bears ranked fifth in 64 stolen bases (out of 82 tries, a third-best 78 percent success rate) and their 38 triples were third-most in baseball. McLemore, at 37, is still one of the fastest players on either team, with 22 stolen bases (3rd in the league), a 78.6 percent steal percentage (7th) and 16 triples (3rd). Floyd (7 steals in 8 attempts), Jones (7-for-10) and Relaford (6-for-10) also can run. The Sugar Bears good speed off the bench, with Jackson, Javier and Mondesi combining for a perfect 10-for-10 in stolen bases. Newark stole six bags off Arkansas in 12 games this season, led by McLemore's 4 SBs (but in 7 tries). Arkansas isn't a running team -- they attempted 50 steals and legged out 16 triples, both ranking second-fewest in baseball -- but they did swipe 39 of those bases for a 76 percent success rate, fifth-best in the league. They attempted just three steals against the Sugar Bears this season, but they made it every time. Veterans Walker (8-for-8) and Bonds (7-for-8) have lost a step, but are savvy enough to swipe a bag from complacent catchers. Ochoa and McEwing are the team's best pinch runners off the bench. The only true spark plugs on this team are Vina (8-for-10) and Eckstein (8-for-12), but even they don't gamble much -- with all those heavy hitters, manager George Brett would rather wait for the three-run homer than run himself out of an inning. Defense
Both teams finished in the middle of the pack according to the defensive metrics. Arkansas ranked sixth in the league with a .983 team fielding percentage; Newark was tied with two other teams in seventh, with a .982. The two teams also ranked sixth and seventh in errors, with Arkansas making 104, Newark 105. The Falcons ranked sixth in double plays, with 155, while the Sugar Bears were tied for second-fewest, with 121 -- but Newark pitchers allowed fewer baserunners than any other team. The Golden Falcons are smoother on the right side of the infield, with Olerud (.991 fielding percentage) and Vina (.990), though neither showed tremendous range. Newark's usual combo of Giambi (.981) and Relaford (.967) isn't impressive, but they have several better glovemen on the bench in Thome (.993) and Lo Duca (.992) at first base, and Stynes (.994) and Jackson (1.000) at second. Newark was marginally better on the other side of the infield, but that was mostly due to Nevin's cold hands at the hot corner. Nevin showed no range, and the few balls he did reach were often booted, with 27 errors against 23 double plays, for a .927 fielding percentage. Jones won't win the gold glove, but his .957 fielding percentage and 2.50 chances per game rank him in the top 10, and his 34 double plays ranked second among third basemen. Shortstop Eckstein posted a .979 fielding percentage, not quite as slick as the combination of Hernandez (.988) and McLemore (.981), but Eckstein did show better range. On paper, Newark has the better outfield defense, with Ramirez, Abreu and Floyd ranking in the top 10 in both fielding percentage and total chances. Newark's best outfielder was probably -- believe it or not -- Ramirez, who had 15 assists and made just 1 error in 143 games; his 3.08 total chances per game ranked third, and his .998 fielding percentage fourth, among all outfielders in baseball. The Sugar Bears also have Javier on the bench as a defensive substitute, who handled 103 total chances this year without making an error. The only Arkansas outfielder to rank among the top 10 in both fielding percentage and chances per game is Walker, who finished 6th (.974) and 9th (2.11), respectively, among right fielders. Berkman, switching between all three outfield positions but mostly playing left field, led both teams with 19 assists, and posted an acceptable .989 fielding percentage. Despite his gold glove rep, Bonds posted just a .950 fielding percentage as a center fielder, making 10 errors against 13 assists. Arkansas catchers ranked fourth in caught stealing percentage, throwing out 26 of 83 basestealers (31.3%); Newark ranked seventh (29.3%), but there were just 58 attempts -- third-fewest in the league. Arkansas's Molina had the second-highest kill ratio in baseball, gunning down 18 of 45 runners (40.0%), but opponents were more successful against Flaherty, who caught only 8 of 37 (21.6%). Lo Duca, who threw out just 2 out of 10 baserunners with Brooklyn, improved dramatically after getting some tips from bullpen catcher Jeff Reed, nailing 9 of 27 (33.3%), while Johnson caught 7 out of 26 (26.9%). Arkansas's pitchers were better catching batters napping, with the sixth-most pickoffs (8), led by Brown (3); Newark was tied for second-fewest, with just 3, one each from Milton, Burkett and Karsay. Starters
Arkansas's big horse is, unquestionably, Pedro Martinez, a favorite for the Ben McDonald Award after going 21-2 with a 3.07 ERA and 10.5 BR/9 this season. He won both his starts against the Sugar Bears in convincing fashion, giving up just 9 hits, 4 walks and 4 earned runs in 15 IP, with 20 Ks. Past Pedro, however, Arkansas starters have had their problems with Newark's offense. Kevin Brown (19-7, 3.07) took a loss and a no-decision in two starts, but pitched better than that, posting a 3.46 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and striking out 14 in 13 IP; Brad Penny (16-6, 3.02) also had a loss and two no-decisions in two starts, but pitched OK (4.34 ERA, 1.77 WHIP)... Roger Clemens (20-8, 3.44) had one dominant start against the Sugar Bears on June 18, going the distance in a 4-1 win (8 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 7 K), but was bombed in his other two starts (14 hits, 7 walks and 13 earned runs in 11.1 IP). Rocket's record averages out to a 1-2 record with a 6.20 ERA, 1.57 WHIP and 19 K in 20.1 IP... Curt Schilling (18-9, 3.82) was demoted to the bullpen in Round 1 of the playoffs and should stay there based on his regular season performance against Newark: 0-2, 14.85 ERA, 2.84 WHIP in two starts. Randy Johnson followed up last year's McDonald Award-winning campaign with another brilliant season, going 19-8 with a 3.49 ERA, 11.0 BR/9 and a league-leading 297 Ks. Though he went 1-2 with a 5.32 ERA in three tries against Arkansas, his other numbers were excellent, giving up 17 hits and 5 walks (1.05 WHIP) with 28 strikeouts in 22 innings... John Burkett (16-8, 3.75) didn't get a decision in two starts, but posted a 2.53 ERA and struck out 11 in 10.2 IP, despite giving up 13 hits and 5 walks for a 1.69 WHIP, while third starter John Thomson (18-6, 3.91) went 2-0 in three starts, with 16 Ks, a 4.50 ERA and 1.27 WHIP... Eric Milton (18-11, 3.88) actually had the most success against Arkansas this season, winning both his starts while allowing just 2 earned runs (1.29 ERA). He struck out 13 and allowed a 1.29 WHIP in 14 innings... Darryl Kile (13-8, 4.80) was released after his untimely death earlier this season, but likely wouldn't have made the post-season roster: He went 0-2 with a 7.15 ERA and 1.68 WHIP in two starts. Sugar Bullies? In just 12 games this season, Newark pitchers drilled 10 Arkansas batters -- but the Golden Falcons didn't hit any Sugar Bears. Every Golden Falcon regular except Berkman took at least one for the team, courtesy of a Newark pitcher. It's not that surprising when you consider Newark pitchers ranked third in hit batsmen this year, with 81, while Newark batters were plunked a league-low 42 times. On the other hand, Arkansas pitchers tied for second-fewest hit batsmen, with 59, but their batters led the league in getting hit, with 103. Newark's Johnson was the league's top head hunter, drilling 23; Arkansas's Eckstein and Vina finished 1-2 in getting bruised, with 24 and 23. Eckstein was philosophical about getting dusted. "You get hit by one pitch a week, by the end of the season that's 50 points to your on-base percentage," he said. "What player wouldn't make that trade?" The Big Unit, who finished third in hit batsmen last year, was less charitable. "That plate and six inches on either side of it is my house," he said. "You start digging in on me, you better dig deep enough for them to bury you there." Relievers In the battle of the bullpens, both teams are impressive in their own way: The Golden Falcons go with a fearsome one-two punch, while the Sugar Bears boast one of the deepest 'pens in baseball. Arkansas can turn the game into a seven-inning affair with setup man Octavio Dotel (9-4, 24 SV, 2.51 ERA, 173 K in 140 IP) and closer Trevor Hoffman (1-0, 16 SV, 3.00 ERA, 60 K in 54 IP) to blow away opponents: Arkansas led the league in team saves, with 47, and went an astounding 106-2 if they were winning after 7 innings, a .981 winning percentage to lead the league; they also posted a ridiculous .738 winning percentage in one-run games, also the best in baseball. Hoffman was unhittable against Newark this season, picking up two saves with 2 H, 0 BB, 9 K and 0 ER in 5.1 IP. Dotel also was overpowering, racking up 18 K and not allowing an earned run in five appearances, with 3 hits and 8 walks in 9 IP for a 1.22 WHIP... If Newark batters can get the starters out early, however, they've had some success against the middle relief. Byung Hyun Kim was the best of the bunch, picking up two wins and a hold and striking out 8 in 8 IP. But he also gave up 4 hits, 8 walks and 5 earned runs, for a 5.63 ERA, 1.50 WHIP... The rest of the bullpen (Rolando Arrojo, Jason Marquis, Travis Phelps, Dan Plesac and Scott Stewart) combined to post a 9.00 ERA and 2.10 WHIP.
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The Arkansas Golden Falcons (120-42) have
played in seven World's Championships, and won it four
times -- both tops in the league. They were halted in
their attempt to pull off the first three-peat in
league history two years ago, after winning the
'98-'99 titles.
Newark's offense was built around the dynamic duo of
All-Stars Chipper Jones (.308, .396 OBP, .956
OPS, 39 HR, 129 R, 118 RBI) and Manny Ramirez
(.290, .596 SLG, .953 OPS, 44 HR, 109 R, 110 RBI). The
only other true regulars were Jeremy Giambi
(.299, .852 OPS, 34 2B, 79 R) and, when he was
healthy, Paul Lo Duca (.311, .867 OPS, 16 HR,
68 RBI in 367 ABs).
Pitchers would still have a devil of a time with
Arkansas if the lineup consisted of Barry Bonds
and eight people chosen at random from the bleachers.
Bonds shattered league records in what is sure to be
his first Mitchell Award-winning season, winning the
Triple Crown by hitting .346 with 72 HR and 176 RBI;
he also led the league in OBP (.520), SLG (.890) and
OPS (1.410); in runs (163), walks (170) and
intentional walks (38); in extra-base hits (111),
total bases (422), runs created (238.2), total average
(1.927), isolated power (.544), secondary average
(.916), at-bats per home run (6.6)... And all this
despite missing 14 games!
Arkansas may have strung together the best starting
five in the history of baseball, and the numbers bear
it out: The Golden Falcons led the league in ERA
(3.41), shutouts (13), quality starts (105) and
strikeouts (1,361). But the Sugar Bears ranked second
in ERA (3.76) and strikeouts (1,218), and first in
baserunners per 9 (11.4) and complete games (19).
Newark spread out its save opportunities to six
different relievers, led by Keith Foulke (8-4,
18 SV, 2.74 ERA, 65 K in 65.2 IP) and Arthur
Rhodes (5-4, 13 SV, 2.77 ERA, 80 K in 74.2 IP).
Both were lights-out against Arkansas, with Foulke
picking up a save in three appearances (2 H, 0 R, 0
BB, 6 K in 3 IP), while Rhodes picked up three saves
and a loss in a team-high six appearances (4 H, 3 BB,
1 ER, 10 K in 7.2 IP)... The rest of the bullpen also
was impressive, with Chad Fox, Steve
Karsay and John Smoltz combining to post a
1.93 ERA, 0.64 WHIP and 14 K in 14 IP... Mid-season
acquisition Felix Rodriguez, who went 3-1 with
3 saves and a 1.57 ERA in 23 games after joining the
Sugar Bears, actually was the team's least effective
reliever against the Golden Falcons, going 0-1 with 6
H, 2 BB and 5 ER in 2 IP. He'll was much sharper in
two appearances with Brooklyn, allowing just 1 hit, no
runs and no walks while picking up two saves.