Pettitte and Hamels in the Postseason

This graphic shows the postseason track records of tonight’s Game 3 lefties.  The experience factor is clearly in Pettitte’s favor, but what’s most remarkable is the number of quality starts he’s given the Yankees over the last 14 years (shown in red).  An amazing run, including this postseason’s 3  quality starts over the Twins and Angels.  Note, Hamels did not submit a quality start in any of his 3 outings this postseason.  The track record points to a win by Pettitte tonight.

Phillies pitching vs. Yankee hitting

Here’s a graphic which matches the Phillies Game 1 and 2 starters – Cliff Lee and Pedro Martinez – against the Yankee lineup. Red means the matchup favors the Phillies, blue means the Yankees are favored, and gray means a wash. Both pitchers have faced these hitters a number of times (line width = # of at bats), but Pedro has fared much better than Lee. Of course, much of Pedro’s success came several years ago when he was a better pitcher. We’ll see in Game 2 if Pedro can cheat father time once again in this post season.

How Good Are the Phillies?

Here’s a graphic of how the Phillies compare with the rest of the NL.

Phillies vs. Dodgers – Who Swings the Lumber?

Yesterday I posted a graphic comparing the power numbers of the Yankee and Angels lineups.  Here’s the same visual for the Phillies Dodgers matchup.  Note the huge power disparity between the two teams.

So much for Diversity

Well, we’re down to four teams in this year’s playoffs and judging from this map, we’re not looking at a ton of geographic diversity.  Out of ALL the teams in major league baseball (indicated by gray dots), somehow we ended up with 2 Southern California teams and two North East Corridor teams.  It’s basically a battle of two coasts now, with lots of frequent flier miles logged for both teams, media, and fans.

Phillies Rockies Theft-Fest

This graphic shows the base stealing of both teams.  The Phillies are the better known team, with base stealers like Rollins and Victorino grabbing most of the headlines.  But don’t overlook the likes of Dexter Fowler.

Phillies Rockies Power Matchup

A visual comparison between the home run hitters on these two teams.  Howard, Werth, and Ibanez loom large.