National League Division Series: Los Angeles Dodgers vs. St. Louis Cardinals

At first glance, this series pits Manny Ramirez against Albert Pujols; two of the best right-handed hitters of this generation. But it runs much deeper than that.

Both teams have secondary weapons on offense. Matt Holliday has raked in his short time in St. Louis. Andre Ethier mixed in a career high 31 home runs with his six walk-off hits this year. On the other side of the ball, the Cardinals could have the top two finishers in the NL Cy Young race in Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright, while the Dodgers finished tied with the Giants for the fewest runs allowed in the National League.

These are two good baseball teams. They've both spent most of the season in first place in their respective divisions and the fight between them for home-field advantage in the National League went down to the wire. In a five-game series, almost anything can happen. In a series between two teams this evenly matched, all bets are off.

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Series Schedule

G1	Oct. 7	Dodgers 5, Cardinals 2 | Box | Jeff Fletcher	9:30 PM ET
G2	Oct. 8	Dodgers 3, Cardinals 2 | Box | Jeff Fletcher	6 PM ET
G3	Oct. 10	Dodgers 5, Cardinals 1 | Box | Jeff Fletcher	6 PM ET

Lineup
No.	Dodgers	Pos	Cardinals	Pos.
1	R. Furcal	SS	Schumaker	2B
2	A. Ethier	RF	C. Rasmus	CF
3	M. Ramirez	LF	A. Pujols	1B
4	M. Kemp	CF	M. Holliday	LF
5	J. Loney	1B	R. Ludwick	RF
6	C. Blake	3B	M. DeRosa	3B
7	R. Belliard	2B	Y. Molina	C
8	R. Martin	C	B. Ryan	SS
9	Pitcher	P	Pitcher	P
Rotation
1	R. Wolf	L	C. Carpenter	R
2	C. Kershaw	L	A. Wainwright	R
3	J. Garland	R	J. Pineiro	R
4	C. Billingsley	R	K. Lohse	R
CP	J. Broxton	R	R. Franklin	R
SU	G. Sherrill	L	K. McClellan	R
SU	R. Belisario	R	J. Motte	R
Scout's Eye View
"The Dodgers are paced by their youthful stars, but if you can turn that against them and force youthful mistakes, then you can stop them." Dodgers Scouting Report "Let's not sugarcoat it -- Carpenter and Wainwright are who they are for a reason, and beating them will take a patient, intelligent approach." Cardinals Scouting Report

Why the Dodgers Will Win

The Dodgers had some trouble clinching the National League West. After taking first place on April 19, they immediately opened up a huge lead on the NL West and looked to be running away with the division for the better part of the season, holding a six-game lead just over a week ago. Their subsequent five-game losing streak nearly cost them the division and has cast some doubt on their playoff aspirations.

It shouldn't. In 2006, the Cardinals ended August 71-61 with a five-game lead in the NL Central. They went 12-16 in September, including nine losses in their last 12 games, but bounced back to win the World Series. Their opponent in the Fall Classic that year was the Detroit Tigers, who blew a 10-game lead in the AL Central and ended up with the wild card. In 2005, the Chicago White Sox went from a 13-game lead on Aug. 7 to a 1 1/2 game lead on Sept. 24. They won their division and the World Series.

The point is, it doesn't matter how a team finishes the season. The Dodgers were the best team in the National League this year for a reason. Their lineup, with Ramirez, Matt Kemp, and Andre Ethier in the outfield, is as imposing as any group in the National League. Between their three main starters (Randy Wolf, Chad Billingsley, and Clayton Kershaw) and their top relievers (Jonathan Broxton, Ramon Troncoso, Ronald Belisario, Guillermo Mota, and James McDonald), not one has an ERA below league average.

That's what makes this Dodger team so dangerous -- they don't really have a weakness. Their worst hitters in 2009 were Russell Martin and Rafael Furcal, two players that have shown they can really hit in the past.. They have Jim Thome as a pinch-hitter. They can use Blake DeWitt and Juan Pierre as defensive subs late in the game. While the Cardinals have questions in their rotation after Carpenter and Wainwright and in their bullpen in general, the Dodgers have overwhelming depth, and that's why they'll win this series.

Why the Cardinals Will Win

They'll win because they have the best player in baseball and two of the best starting pitchers. Obviously, those three players alone wouldn't be enough to beat the Dodgers, but they go a long way.

In Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright, the Cardinals will get three -- and maybe even four, depending upon how much rest they need -- starts from two of the top three candidates for the NL Cy Young. Carpenter's redemption season was as sparkling as any the former Cy winner has ever had; he went 17-4 with a 2.24 ERA and 1.01 WHIP. Wainwright went 19-8 with a 2.63 ERA and 212 strikeouts. The Cards' third starter isn't too shabby either, as Joel Pineiro checks in with a 3.44 ERA.

Offensively, Albert Pujols -- easily the best hitter I've ever seen, which isn't even mentioning his sparkling defense and cerebral base-running -- is the anchor. He'll win the NL MVP again this year, and deservedly so. His presence in the lineup makes everyone around him better, like midseason acquisition Matt Holliday, who has been crushing the baseball since arriving in St. Louis. They mix in some power (Ryan Ludwick, Mark DeRosa) with some good on-base guys, and, thus, will definitely be capable of scoring the few runs they need to support Carpenter, Wainwright and Pineiro.

One portion of the team which appeared to be a grave concern early in September was the back-end of the bullpen. Ryan Franklin had been stellar for most of the season, but he hit a major speed bump in the final month. From Sept. 1-12, Franklin appeared in four games. He allowed six earned runs and five walks in just 2 2/3 innings. In fact, going down to Sept. 19, he blew three consecutive save chances. He closed out the season with three straight scoreless outings, though, so he's set to go in October (for the first time in his 10-year career).

The Cardinals are taking this series and the NLCS en route to their 18th World Series trip -- the third under Tony La Russa.

-- Matt Snyder