Everything You Need To Know Heading In To Giants-Cardinals NLCS Matchup

The San Francisco Giants are back in the NLCS to face the St. Louis Cardinals in a rematch of the 2012 League Championship matchup. This year will mark the fifth consecutive season that one of the two teams will represent the National League in the World Series.

The Giants won it all in 2010 and 2012, and the Cardinals were champs in 2011 but lost to the Red Sox last year in the Fall Classic. Both teams play a similar style of baseball, so it figures out to be an even matchup.

Here is a breakdown of how both teams got this far and a preview of what’s to come:

NLDS #1, San Francisco over Washington:

The Giants, led by manager Bruce Bochy, were able to upend the Nationals in four games in their Divisional Series matchup, despite a decent fight from Washington’s Bryce Harper.

They managed to win an 18-inning thriller in game two, thanks to an exceptional performance by their pitching staff. Starter Tim Hudson tossed more than seven innings of one run ball and reliever Yusmeiro Petit got the win after pitching six scoreless innings out of the pen, striking out seven Nationals.

The Giants’ only loss came in game three and was the result of a self-inflicted wound: a throwing error by pitcher Madison Bumgarner, who was otherwise sensational in the playoffs.

Bumgarner pitched a complete game shut out in Pittsburgh to lead San Francisco to a Wild Card win over the Pirates, putting them in the Divisional Round. He pitched well versus the Nationals before his miscue fielding a bunt cost him and his team, a win.

The rest of the Giants’ rotation was equally strong versus the Nationals. Ryan Vogelsong and Jake Peavy each allowed one run in five and two thirds solid innings.

Catcher Buster Posey has been hot with the bat in the postseason for San Fran. He is 9-23, which is good for a .391 average in five games.

NLDS #2, St. Louis over Los Angeles:

The Cardinals, under the leadership of manager Mike Matheny, also took their series in four games, defeating a star-studded Dodgers team. Two of their three wins came against likely NL Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw, who was 21-3 with a 1.77 ERA in the regular season.

The Cardinals tagged LA’s ace for a combined 11 runs in his two outings. Matt Adams put the nail in the coffin when he took Kershaw deep for a three-run homer in the seventh inning of the decisive game four.

The Cardinals’ bats were effective throughout the series, notching 18 hits — the most by any team in the Divisional Round. Matt Carpenter (3 HR, 7 RBI, 4 runs scored) was the most dangerous hitter against LA, while John Jay also hit well, batting .455 in the series.

The St. Louis starters pitched well, especially John Lackey, who had a seven-inning outing, allowing just one run, and striking out eight. Lance Lynn and Shelby Miller were solid, as well, giving up only two runs a piece in their starts.

The bullpen was also stout, as closer Trevor Rosenthal recorded a save in each of the Cardinals’ wins. Reliever Marco Gonzalez got credited for two of the three wins, allowing no runs while appearing in three games and totaling three innings of work.

NLCS Breakdown:

Pitching:

For the Giants, Vogelsong is 3-0 for his career in the playoffs, with a 1.19 ERA. Peavy was a big trade deadline addition, going 6-4, with a 2.17 in 12 starts after being acquired from Boston mid-season. Tim Hudson has a respectable 3.19 postseason ERA despite just a 1-3 record in 11 career appearances.

The Giants bullpen was exceptional versus the Nationals. As a unit, they pitched to a 1.86 ERA and struck out 18 batters in 19-plus innings of work.

Adam Wainwright didn’t pitch well in his start against LA but was outstanding all season, finishing with 20 wins (second in the NL) and a 2.38 ERA (third in NL).

He recently complained of arm soreness, but is scheduled to pitch game one in St. Louis, nonetheless. Lynn also had a great regular season, finishing with 15 wins and a 2.74 ERA, both good enough for top 10 in the league.

Lackey has come up big in the playoffs before. He is 7-5 in 20 postseason appearances, with a 2.92 ERA. He has two World Series rings, one with the Angels in ‘02 and one with the Red Sox last year. In both cases, he won the deciding game of the World Series for his team.

Rosenthal is a solid anchor for the Cardinals bullpen. He was second in the NL with 45 saves on the year, converting all but six of his 51 chances.

Here’s an astounding stat that shows how evenly matched these two pitching staffs are. Over the course of the regular season, the Cardinals and Giants pitchers both yielded 564 earned runs and both had an overall ERA of 3.50!

Position Players:

For San Francisco, Pablo Sandoval has been a clutch playoff performer throughout his career. In 27 postseason games, he has a .311 batting average, good for 33 hits, 6 HR and 16 RBI. Buster Posey is also a perennial October star for the Giants. He has 38 hits, 4 HR and 16 RBI in 36 post-season games.

Right fielder Hunter Pence, who also plays terrific defense, finished third in National League with 180 hits in the regular season. Posey, the 2012 NL MVP, led the Giants in the other major offensive categories with a .311 average, 22 long balls and 89 runs batted in over the course of the year.

For St. Louis, first baseman Adams led the team in batting average at .288 during the regular season. Carpenter, who plays third, had the most hits with 162; shortstop Jhonny Peralta had 21 homers, and leftfielder Matt Holiday had a team high 90 RBI for an evenly distributed Cardinal offense.

Holiday’s power was a big part of the St. Louis playoff run last year, as he notched 10 RBI and 4 homers.

Catcher Yadier Molina is known throughout the league to be one of the best all-around players at his position. He has a career .289 post-season batting average and is defensively one of the best at keeping base runners put.

Both teams had similar offensive numbers during the regular season, as San Francisco notched a .255 team batting average, and St. Louis came in at .253. The Giants slightly outdid the Cards with hits, 1407 to 1371; homeruns, 132 to 105; and runs, 665 to 619.

The Cardinals offense, however, outperformed their counterparts from San Fran by a small margin in the postseason. Despite playing one less game, St. Louis has more runs, 18-17, and homeruns, 7-2, and they are batting just a hair better at .328, to the Giants’ .236.

Difference Makers:

Michael Wacha could be a huge asset for St. Louis if Wainwright’s ailing arm turned out to be a serious issue. He was 4-1, with 2.64 as a starter and was named the MVP of the NLCS for the Cardinals during their run to the World Series last season.

The Giants also have an X-factor waiting in the wings. Tim Lincecum, a two-time NL Cy Young winner, has a 5-2 record and a 2.47 ERA in 12 post-season appearances for the Giants (six as a starter, six as a reliever) and could be called upon to take the hill for the Giants in a crucial spot, whether it be starting a game or coming out of the bullpen.

Head to Head:

The Giants won the regular season matchup with the Cardinals four games to three. San Fran also outscored the Cardinals in the seven games, 32-20.

The Cardinals, however, will have home-field advantage for the series, thanks to a better overall record in 2014, and that could be a huge deal if the series turns out as evenly matched as the statistics suggest.

Check out the National League Championship Series, starting Saturday in St. Louis, to see how it pans out!

Top Photo Courtesy: Instagram

Read more: http://elitedaily.com/sports/everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-giants-vs-cardinals/793576/