In advance of the ALCS and NLCS, here’s a position-by-position matchups for the four remaining playoff teams.
ALCS _ No. 1 Durham Daddies (122-40 vs No. 3 Detroit Domination (82-80)
CATCHER
Durham _ Erubiel Baez was masterful behind the plate, throwing out 50 percent of runners trying to steal (27 of 54). He also chipped in a .253 average.
Detroit _ Walt Nunnally threw out 28 percent of basestealers (27 of 95) and hit .270 with 16 homers and 80 RBIs.
ADVANTAGE: Durham
FIRST BASE
Durham _ Diego Moya nearly had as many RBIs (135) as games played (148). He also leads the Daddies in strikeouts (102).
Detroit _ Jon Price is Detroit’s biggest offensive threat, leading the Domination in average (.343), homers (40) and OPS (1.080).
ADVANTAGE: Detroit
SECOND BASE
Durham _ Luis Gonzalez hit .277 with 21 homers in 499 at bats.
Detroit _ Miguel Cervantes hit .276 with 8 homers and 62 RBIs, also scoring 72 runs.
ADVANTAGE: Even.
THIRD BASE
Durham _ Josh Rain hit .334 and played a smooth third base, committing only 6 errors.
Detroit _ Ricky Gibson’s power numbers slipped to a career low (15), but he still drove in 95 and hit .294 with an OPS of .805.
ADVANTAGE: Durham
SHORTSTOP
Durham _ Benny Alfonseca smashed 61 homers and drove in 126. He’s also second on the Daddies with 13 steals.
Detroit _ With speedster Roger Conine still ailing with a sore shoulder, Detroit will likely turn to rookie Brian Borbon (.273/14/56).
ADVANTAGE: Durham
LEFT FIELD
Durham _ Lariel Neruda (.325/55/145) has hit at least 55 homers for five consecutive seasons.
Detroit _ Russ Scott was second for the Domination with 37 homers to go with a .272 average. He also led Detroit in runs (129) and strikeouts (131).
ADVANTAGE: Durham
CENTER FIELD
Durham _ Benny Baerga is the speedster of the Daddy lineup, swiping 29 bases and recording a .396 OBP. Just for good measure, he also hit 39 homers.
Detroit _ Highly touted Orber Jimenez hit .323 in the minor leagues, but has struggled in 37 games after his late-season callup, hitting .219 with more strikeouts (24) than walks (14)
ADVANTAGE: Durham
RIGHT FIELD
Durham _ Courtney Rogers hit .300 with 54 homers and 143 RBIs.
Detroit _ Thumper Peavy was second on the team with 16 steals and hit .266 with 57 RBIs.
ADVANTAGE: Durham
DESIGNATED HITTER
Durham _ Gus Cora leads the Daddies in OPS (1.215), batting average (.352), homers (72) and RBIs (159).
Detroit _ Giomar Roque scored 96 times to go with his .277 average and 19 homers.
ADVANTAGE: Durham
STARTING PITCHING
Durham _ Lonnie Glynn, Todd Damon, Jeremy Weston and Tuck Daly combined for 72 wins, and each had a WHIP below 1.30.
Detroit _ David Polanco (16-8) Dominates for the Domination, but others have struggled. Solid performances from Edwards Beech (6-9, 1.29 WHIP) will be a key to the series.
ADVANTAGE: Durham
BULLPEN
Durham _ Arthur Scanlan and Ned Kingland were a nice 1-2 punch late in games, combining for 47 saves in 52 chances.
Detroit _ Sean White (55 games, 83.2 innings, 1.24 WHIP) is dependable. Jin-Che Dong has 2 postseason saves.
ADVANTAGE: Durham.
PREDICTION: Durham in 5
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NLCS _ No. 1 Toledo Dirt Roosters (98-64) vs No. 6 Washington D.C. 42s (96-66)
CATCHER
Toledo _ Durable Lance Kaufman (.316/36/118) had another great year behind the plate and also threw out 34 percent of possible baserunners (38 of 112).
Washington _ Rookie Mateo Medrano blasted 35 homers to go with his .275 average and threw out 25 percent of possible basestealers (23 of 93).
ADVANTAGE: Toledo.
FIRST BASE
Toledo_ Sal Simmons led the Dirt Roosters in hits (199), homers (43), RBIs (127) and batting average (.338).
Washington _ Yamid Encarnacion led the 42s balanced attack with 32 homers, .a 327 average and 101 runs.
ADVANTAGE: Toledo.
SECOND BASE
Toledo _ Rodrigo Romano provided power from the middle infield, hitting 29 homers and driving in 102.
Washington _ Brady Simpson hit .271 with 89 runs, 17 homers and 74 RBIs.
ADVANTAGE: Toledo.
THIRD BASE
Toledo _ Damaso Mesa hit .272 with 26 homers and 81 RBIs.
Washington _ Bernard Hammond led the 42s with 103 runs and hit .302 with 22 homers.
ADVANTAGE: Even.
SHORTSTOP
Toledo _ Al Tavarez hit .284 with 14 homers, and contributed a .977 fielding percentage.
Washington _ Abraham Frascatore was smooth in the field and hit .246 with 7 homers in 363 at bats. Defensive whiz Bobby Nelson surprised with a .345 average in 177 at bats.
ADVANTAGE: Washington
LEFT FIELD
Toledo _ A.J. Powell bashed 35 homers, drove in 114 and scored 109 runs.
Washington _ Max Guerrero knocked 24 homers with his .290 average, but also led the team with 115 strikeouts.
ADVANTAGE: Toledo
CENTER FIELD
Toledo _ Speedy Miguel Rijo stole 33 bases while hitting .285 and scoring 103 runs.
Washington _ Jose Montanez hit .315 with a .378 OBP, adding 19 homers.
ADVANTAGE: Washington
RIGHT FIELD
Toledo _ Nigel Harding and Vladimir Bennett combined to hit 26 homers and drive in more than 100 runs.
Washington _ Rafael Castro hit 14 homers and .279.
ADVANTAGE: Toledo.
STARTING PITCHING
Toledo _ Russ Wall led the team with 16 wins, while Al Turner (15-11) and Winston Surhoff (14-9) provided quality depth to the rotation
Washington _ Sammy Henriquez (13-4, 1.02 WHIP) dominated the regular season but has struggled in the playoffs. Matt Richardson (9-8) and Torey Solano (10-8) are also expected to get starts.
ADVANTAGE: Even
BULLPEN
Toledo_ Setup man Bruce Brown (89 games, 127 innings, 1.44 WHIP will try to bridge the gap to closer Billy Ratliff (45 saves in 50 opportunities).
Washington _ Mendy Griffin played a key role, going 15-4 in 174 innings and 75 appearances. Miguel Prieto had a 1.11 WHIP in 95 innings. Hades Gibson saved 28 games in 32 chances.
ADVANTAGE: Washington
PREDICTION: Toledo in 6
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