Two first-time postseason meetings will take place during the League Championship Series, with these fresh matchups underlining the upset-filled nature of the 2023 playoffs. We could also be heading towards an entirely fresh World Series matchup as well, or potentially a rematch of last year’s Fall Classic. The ALCS begins Sunday in Houston, with the NLCS getting underway on Monday in Philadelphia.
Rangers vs. Astros
Amidst all of the postseason’s unpredictability, the Astros remain the constant. Houston is in the ALCS for the seventh consecutive year, with two World Series titles (2017 and last season) and two other AL pennants to show for this incredible run of success. The Astros know what to do in October, and their ALDS victory over the Twins also saw a player without a championship ring suddenly step up, as Jose Abreu hit three homers over the four-game series. The regular season was a disappointment for Abreu, but if he has suddenly locked in and found his old White Sox form, Houston’s lineup will look even more imposing.
Then again, the Rangers can roll out an awfully imposing group of hitters themselves. Texas is a perfect 5-0 over its series triumphs over the Rays and Orioles, in part because Corey Seager and the rookie duo of Evan Carter and Josh Jung have been almost impossible to get out. The Texas rotation and bullpen will inevitably have question marks, yet their arms have gotten the job done thus far, with a 2.25 ERA over 45 postseason innings. Plus, the pitching staff might get even stronger with the expected return of Max Scherzer in some capacity for the ALCS.
There is already a fierce rivalry between these two Lone Star State rivals, as the Rangers’ return to prominence will now face a critical test against the benchmark that is the Astros. Though the Rangers led the AL West for most of the season, the Astros slipped ahead to clinch the division on a tiebreaker — both clubs finished with a 90-72 record, but Houston held a comfortably 9-4 advantage in head-to-head play.
Justin Verlander has been announced as Houston’s starter for Game 1, and Jordan Montgomery will take the ball for Texas. Both pitchers were acquired at the trade deadline, though naturally Verlander already has a long history in an Astros uniform.
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Diamondbacks vs. Phillies
The first season of the expanded playoffs saw the Phillies go from sixth seed to NL champions in 2022, and now a year later, the Phils find themselves as the favorites trying to hold off another sixth-seeded upstart. Like the Rangers, the Diamondbacks have yet to drop even a single game in these playoffs, after sweeping away the Brewers and the Dodgers over the first two rounds. The Phillies (1.53, .892 OPS) and D’Backs (2.20, .877) lead all postseason teams in ERA and OPS, showing the well-rounded nature of both clubs’ performances thus far.
Star youngsters Corbin Carroll and Gabriel Moreno have led the way for Arizona, and the rotation depth that plagued the D’Backs during the regular season hasn’t been an issue in the short-series environment of the postseason. Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly are a formidable pair of frontline arms, and rookie Brandon Pfaadt looked sharp in 4 1/3 shutout innings against Los Angeles in Game 3 of the NLDS. Arizona also has an unusual bit of superstition on its side, in that every team to ever eliminate the Brewers from a postseason series has also won at least a league pennant.
While the underdog Diamondbacks have shown no fear during these playoffs, they’ll be facing a tough assignment in facing a tested Phillies team that has both a raucous home crowd and the home-field advantage. Trea Turner, Nick Castellanos, Bryce Harper, and J.T. Realmuto have been a four-man wrecking crew during the playoffs, combining for nine homers and 19 RBI over Philadelphia’s six games. If there is one downside, it is that the rest of the Phillies’ lineup has been mostly quiet, though there is still plenty of talent that could emerge in a new series.
Arizona will start Gallen, Kelly, and Pfaadt over the first three NLDS games. A well-rested Zack Wheeler is expected to start Game 1 for Philadelphia, with Aaron Nola and Ranger Suarez probably lining up for the next two starts.
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