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After the Milwaukee Brewers won 96 games and reached the NLCS in 2011, not a lot people predicted they would make the playoffs last season, primarily because they had lost first baseman Prince Fielder. I wrote before the season that the Brewers' o...

The Cardinals were certainly the favorite to beat Barry Zito and the Giants at home in Game 5, but now have to travel to San Francisco. Molly Knight writes that this added playoff pressure won't faze the Cardinals. Meanwhile, Wayne Drehs asks what we...

Eric and I break down the storylines heading into Game 3 of the NLCS....

Two snapshots from the San Francisco Giants' 7-1 victory against the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 2 of the NLCS that evened the series at a win apiece. 1. Top of the first inning, Matt Holliday on first base, Carlos Beltran on second base with one ...

If you watched Game 1 of the NLCS, you saw an obvious problem with Madison Bumgarner: He was struggling to reach 90 mph and finally fell apart in the fourth inning. After throwing eight shutout innings against the Dodgers on Aug. 20 -- throwing a sea...

You never want a series to turn on the health of a team's ace, but here we are: The Cincinnati Reds, up 2 games to 0 and going home for three games, will need a Game 5 victory to advance to the NLCS. With Johnny Cueto unavailable after his first-i...

I don't envy the decision Brian Sabean and Bruce Bochy have to make with Melky Cabrera: If the Giants advance past the Division Series, Cabrera would be eligible to join the club for the NLCS. For now, the Giants apparently aren't planning on activat...

The most important weekend in Washington Nationals history might have been the final three days of the 2008 season. The Nationals began the weekend 59-99; the Seattle Mariners began the weekend 58-101. Both teams were horrible. The Nationals had lost...

The St. Louis Cardinals were dead in 2011. And then they rose. They rallied to win the wild card on the final day of the season. They beat the Phillies in the Division Series. They beat the Brewers in the NLCS. They rallied to win one of the great...

Some positive things happened under Jim Hendry's tenure: In his first season as Chicago Cubs general manager in 2003, the club won 88 games and reached the NLCS. The Cubs won another NL Central division title in 2007 and in 2008 won 97 games, the mos...

In 2007, just three seasons after losing 111 games, the Arizona Diamondbacks won 90 games and the NL West title and reached the NLCS. They were swept by red-hot division rival Colorado, but it was a terrific season for a young ballclub. The future lo...

Tsuyoshi Shinjo will be the DH for the Giants in Game 1 of the World Series.