AL Central champion Overall Record: 96-66 Home Record: 52-29 Road Record: 44-37
How the Indians got there:
The Indians were the only team to make it to the championship series without a sweep, and defeated the Yankees in four games. The Indians faced their fair share of bad weather and late-inning come-from behind victories to become the first team to clinch a division after battling the Tigers for the lead most of the season. This is their first postseason appearance since 2001.
Boston Red Sox
AL East champion Overall Record: 96-66 Home Record: 51-30 Road Record: 45-36
How the Red Sox got there:
The Red Sox advanced after sweeping the Angles and outscoring them 19-4. Once leading the AL East by 11 1/2 games, Boston's lead dwindled but they eventually clinched the club's first division title since 1995.
Infield
Victor Martinez
Consistent all season, Victor Martinez led the Indians' infield with career highs in homers (25) and RBI (114). He continued his offensive production in the ALDS adding a two-run single in Game 4 to solidify the series-clinching win. Ryan Garko, who successfully replaced Casey Blake at first, came up with big plays too - offensively and defensively - and finished the series hitting .364. Jhonny Peralta, called a "pivotal guy" by GM Mark Shapiro, needs to do better vs. Boston then he did during the regular season with no homers and no RBI but, did hit safely in every game of the division series. Boston's infield has been solid but leadoff hitter 2B Dustin Pedroia needs to find ways to get hits and get on base more. Also, Mike Lowell continued his efforts to bring in runs after his 120 RBI season, a career-high and club record for a third baseman.
Cleveland
Boston
Mike Lowell
Outfield
Grady Sizemore
Grady Sizemore was a potent combination of speed and power at the top of the Indians lineup all season. His leadoff homer in the first inning of ALDS Game 4 fueled the offensive surge that ended with the 6-4 victory. Kenny Lofton, the 40-year-old outfielder, needs to also motivate the team with his bat and veteran leadership. He filled a hole for a left-handed hitter with speed and looked on the top of his game, batting in four runs and one stolen base. With Lofton teaching Cleveland's youngsters the ins and outs of the postseason, Boston has Manny Ramirez and J.D. Drew with plenty of postseason appearances. Originally there was concern about Ramirez working his way back from an oblique injury but concerns were lessened after his walk-off three-run homer clinched Game 2. He is now tied for first place in all-time major league postseason home runs (22).
Cleveland
Boston
Manny Ramirez
Designated Hitter
Travis Hafner
Indians DH Travis Hafner drove in 100 RBI this season but overall, his season was somewhat lackluster by his standards. He could finish on a better note if he keeps driving in runs like the game-winning RBI in the bottom of the 11th of Game 2 in the ALDS. Either way, David Ortiz gets the edge here because he knows just when to get hot. With Manny back, Ramirez and Ortiz again will be a dangerous duo.
Cleveland
Boston
David Ortiz
Starting Pitching
C.C. Sabathia
Cleveland's rotation is solid with the 1-2 punch of C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona, both Cy Young candidates, as the foundation. Sabathia started Game 1 of the ALDS and after a rocky first inning, regained composure and finished strong. Carmona also had a solid outing, and the youngster rose to the occasion continuing an incredible turnaround season. Veteran righty Paul Byrd did not disappoint after controversy erupted on manager Eric Wedge's decision to give Byrd the start. His outing was solid and that could give him and the rest of team more confidence as they take on Boston. Jake Westbrook hasn't lived up to his potential and got Cleveland's only loss of the ALDS but has continued to perform when it counts. The Sox's rotation is also impressive with Josh Beckett at the top of the order. He is the only major-league pitcher to reach 20 wins in the regular season and logged the highest Red Sox win total since Curt Schilling posted 21 wins for the Sox in 2004. In Game 1 of the ALDS, he threw his second consecutive postseason shutout, retired 19 consecutive batters and yielded only four hits. Curt Schilling's performance in Game 3 was also impressive, raising his postseason record to 9-2 in 16 career starts while lowering his ERA to 1.93. Daisuke Matsuzaka was impressive at the start of the season but there have been concerns he's showing signs of fatigue. He didn't step up under pressure in Game 2 of the ALDS, when he left the mound with two outs in the fifth inning and gave up all three of the Angels' runs.
Cleveland
Boston
Josh Beckett
Bullpen
Joe Borowski
Cleveland's bullpen has seen significant improvement over 2006, when it saved a major league-low 24 games. Joe Borowski finished the year as the AL's saves leader (45), but the big difference was the development of the young setup pitchers like Rafael Betancourt, Rafael Perez and Jensen Lewis. In Game 4 of the ALDS, Perez and Borowski each gave up a run but hung in for the save. The Red Sox have had their struggles especially in the stretch run. Jonathan Papelbon was virtually unstoppable until, what he calls, his "worst outing" on Sept. 14 in an 8-7 loss to the Yankees. After posting a 0.83 ERA before the All-Star break, Hideki Okajima stumbled in the second half and raised his ERA to 2.22, but he seems rested now and should benefit from it.
Cleveland
Boston
Jonathan Papelbon
The Ultimate Edge
This series pits two excellent rotations head-to-head and each need to go the distance and stop the potent offense of the opposing team. Boston's Beckett and Schilling have delivered time and time again, while Cleveland's top two are younger and less proven in the postseason. But, Cleveland's two wins against the Red Sox were against Dice-K and Josh Beckett, so they are beatable.
