To say that the first game of the Postseason was exhilarating would be a drastic understatement. A fan could not have asked for a more entertaining game to commence the postseason with. I do wish to dedicate this next post to analyzing tonights game between the Giants and Pirates, however I want to recap last nights contest first.
In case you were busy or decided to retire for the night when the A's took a 7-3 lead, I regret to inform you that you missed a riveting playoff game. The Royals managed to surmount several A's leads during the game, before they finally managed to walk-off in the 12th via a Salvador Perez RBI hit. If for any reason until this point you have been skeptical of my analytical and/or baseball acumen, then last nights game should significantly alter your views of me. I am not trying to come off as pompous or arrogant, rather than I am trying to verify my worth. How does last nights game corroborate my knowledge of baseball analysis? Let me elaborate:
1) Who did I predict to win? If you can recall, in The Postseason: Game 1 (KC vs. OAK), I predicted that despite the pitching matchup favoring the A's, the Royals would be victorious. For the in-depth analysis and explication, feel free to click on the link above. Although, Ned Yost did appear to attempt to sabotage the Royals chances of winning, when he chose Yordano Ventura out of the bullpen to face Brandon Moss. Moss (A left-handed batter) already hit a home run that night against right-handed pitching and proceeded to repeat that feat against another right-handed pitcher in Ventura, giving the A's a 5-3 lead.
2) Jarrod Dyson. How many times have I made reference to Jarrod Dyson being an integral asset for the Royals success? (Who is Jarrod Dyson? (By: M. Lessard) I mean I even wrote an entire post explaining why he is debatably the most undervalued player in the game. Despite, per usual, not getting the start last night, Dyson managed to impact the game significantly. In the 9th inning, down by 1 run, Dyson was selected to pinch run for Josh Willingham. Dyson advanced to second on a sac bunt, then promptly stole third base. Through advancing himself into this favorable position, Dyson was able to score the game-tying run and force extra innings.
3) Kansas City's speed and timely hitting. The Royals once again utilized their best attributes of timely hitting and speed to overcome the A's. They managed to steal a total of 7 bases during this game, significantly bettering their chances of winning. Once again the Royals hit well when they needed it the most, in extra-innings. During the regular season the Royals managed to hit well in extra-innings and in so doing, creating an auspicious probability of winning. The full analysis can be seen in The Legend of the 2014 Kansas City Royals.
Enough of recapitulating last nights game, I will now begin with my analysis and projections for tonights game between the Giants and Pirates. During the regular season, the Pirates managed to best the Giants in four of the six games they played. This gives the Pirates a .667 win percentage against the Giants (66.7% chance they will win tonight). However, just like in the previous post I wish to examine the stating pitchers and offenses, in order to make a more precise projection.
Madison Bumgarner- Overall: (18-10, 2.98) 2014 Against the Pirates: (0-1, 11.25) Career Against the Pirates: (1-3, 3.24)
Edinson Volquez- Overall: (13-7, 3.04) 2014 Against the Giants: (Did not pitch against the Giants this season) Career Against the Giants: (2-2, 5.72)
Giants Team Offense- Overall: (.255, 665 Runs, 4.1 Runs/Game) Against the Pirates: (3.83 Runs/Game)
Pirates Team Offense- Overall: (.259, 682 Runs, 4.21 Runs/Game) Against the Giants: (4.83 Runs/Game)
All the aforementioned statistical evidence heavily weighs toward the Pirates being the victors of this matchup. However, there is one last piece of evidence I want to bring about, that being the Giants recent success in the Postseason. In the past two postseasons they have participated in, the Giants have managed to win the World Series. With the consideration of this fact, along with having the more dominant pitcher, in Madison Bumgarner, on the mound, I project the Giants to upset the Pirates tonight.
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