Call to the Post - 2037 Playoff Edition
Posted: Sat Mar 25, 2023 2:23 pm
For the 4th straight season the Kentucky Thoroughbreds are heading to the playoffs as a wild card entry. This is the third straight year they have gone is as the #1 seed in the WC series, unfortunately for them they have lost the past 2 years to the London Underground. This year the opponent will be different as the New Jersey Hitmen took the other spot. Either way Kentucky fans are desperately hoping the results will change.
Playoff Matchup
New Jersey and Kentucky should be a hard fought close series. Kentucky won the season series 5-4, but New Jersey outscored the Thoroughbreds during the 9 games as many of Kentucky's 5 wins came in extra innings or 1 run games. New Jersey features 3 quality left handed starters in Chris Pate , Young-Jae Yi and Yasuoka Seki, who combined to go 44-21 on the season. The good news for Kentucky is that they fared well against left handed pitching this year going 29-13 overall, but It isn't great news for 2 of the left handed sluggers on the team - first baseman Alberto Santos hit .174 with 0 homers and 0 RBI vs New Jersey this season. Despite struggling against left handed pitching in general, Santos is expected to be in the lineup everyday due to his ability to get on base at a high rate. Rocky Kowalski, however, will probably not see much playing time vs the NJ southpaws. Despite hitting .280 with 25 HR and 98 RBI on the season, Kowalski did not see much time vs left handed pitching.
This makes rookie DH Dan Gore a very important piece in this series for the Thoroughbreds. After getting called up earlier in the year Gore didn't stop hitting and his bat was tough to keep out of the lineup. His OPS + of 165 actually led the team and he became a fixture at DH when there was a left handed pitcher on the mound. He will be somewhere in the middle of the order during this series.
As far as Kentucky pitching goes, Dong-Hak Yi (5-1 3.05) has pitched well since coming to the Thoroughbreds, including 2 starts against New Jersey in witch he posted a 2.87 ERA in 15.2 innings. How Kentucky does in this series will likely rest on the arm of Yi.
Valke Petiet (13-11 3.34) has struggled in his last few starts but has arguably been their best pitcher this season and will definitely get a start in this opening series. He did not face New Jersey this year, so that might be an advantage to him since their hitters are unfamiliar with his stuff. Expect Petiet to be on short lease due to his recent struggles.
Ju-Hyung Park (16-5 3.16) had another solid season in the middle of the rotation and has most definitely earned a post season start. He was 0-1 with a 4.37 ERA against New Jersey this season.
The wild card in the Thoroughbred rotation is Luis Jimenez (11-11 4.76). Last season Jimenez was an all-star starting pitcher and runner up in the golden arm voting. He also has been the Kentucky's best post season pitcher over the past 2 years. Jimenez has struggled this season, posting a 4.76 ERA - but the deciding factor on whether he gets a start might be that he is left handed. New Jersey isn't nearly as good vs left handers as they are right handed pitching and New Jersey's 2 best hitters, {b]Tomas Martinez[/b] and Dennis Johnson destroy righties. One thing that is likely to hinder Kentucky's chances during this series is the fact that they do not have a lefty reliever to come in and face Martinez and Johnson.
One starter you probably won't see is Jose Mora (15-8 3.83) - Mora does not match up well with N.J. and was pummelled in two starts against them this year. He was largely responsible for the run differential being in New Jersey's favour during the season.
Will this be the season that Kentucky gets their shot at Florida? Or will it be another early WC exit?
Playoff Matchup
New Jersey and Kentucky should be a hard fought close series. Kentucky won the season series 5-4, but New Jersey outscored the Thoroughbreds during the 9 games as many of Kentucky's 5 wins came in extra innings or 1 run games. New Jersey features 3 quality left handed starters in Chris Pate , Young-Jae Yi and Yasuoka Seki, who combined to go 44-21 on the season. The good news for Kentucky is that they fared well against left handed pitching this year going 29-13 overall, but It isn't great news for 2 of the left handed sluggers on the team - first baseman Alberto Santos hit .174 with 0 homers and 0 RBI vs New Jersey this season. Despite struggling against left handed pitching in general, Santos is expected to be in the lineup everyday due to his ability to get on base at a high rate. Rocky Kowalski, however, will probably not see much playing time vs the NJ southpaws. Despite hitting .280 with 25 HR and 98 RBI on the season, Kowalski did not see much time vs left handed pitching.
This makes rookie DH Dan Gore a very important piece in this series for the Thoroughbreds. After getting called up earlier in the year Gore didn't stop hitting and his bat was tough to keep out of the lineup. His OPS + of 165 actually led the team and he became a fixture at DH when there was a left handed pitcher on the mound. He will be somewhere in the middle of the order during this series.
As far as Kentucky pitching goes, Dong-Hak Yi (5-1 3.05) has pitched well since coming to the Thoroughbreds, including 2 starts against New Jersey in witch he posted a 2.87 ERA in 15.2 innings. How Kentucky does in this series will likely rest on the arm of Yi.
Valke Petiet (13-11 3.34) has struggled in his last few starts but has arguably been their best pitcher this season and will definitely get a start in this opening series. He did not face New Jersey this year, so that might be an advantage to him since their hitters are unfamiliar with his stuff. Expect Petiet to be on short lease due to his recent struggles.
Ju-Hyung Park (16-5 3.16) had another solid season in the middle of the rotation and has most definitely earned a post season start. He was 0-1 with a 4.37 ERA against New Jersey this season.
The wild card in the Thoroughbred rotation is Luis Jimenez (11-11 4.76). Last season Jimenez was an all-star starting pitcher and runner up in the golden arm voting. He also has been the Kentucky's best post season pitcher over the past 2 years. Jimenez has struggled this season, posting a 4.76 ERA - but the deciding factor on whether he gets a start might be that he is left handed. New Jersey isn't nearly as good vs left handers as they are right handed pitching and New Jersey's 2 best hitters, {b]Tomas Martinez[/b] and Dennis Johnson destroy righties. One thing that is likely to hinder Kentucky's chances during this series is the fact that they do not have a lefty reliever to come in and face Martinez and Johnson.
One starter you probably won't see is Jose Mora (15-8 3.83) - Mora does not match up well with N.J. and was pummelled in two starts against them this year. He was largely responsible for the run differential being in New Jersey's favour during the season.
Will this be the season that Kentucky gets their shot at Florida? Or will it be another early WC exit?