Baseball playoffs preview

Well, the Phillies are less than three hours from their 2nd foray into playoff baseball in about 12 months. The last time around, the series ended so quickly, it almost felt like the Phillies weren't even there.

I think the Phillies are going to stick around longer this time - they'd only have to win one game to do so - but how long? I'm wary. All the experts are picking the Phillies, and that usually is not a good thing. I just don't think the Brewers are a good matchup for the Phillies, even if their bullpen is shaky. But I'm going to be a Phan and say Phillies in 5, even though that would entail beating Sabathia (or at least not getting beat by him) in the final game.

Right now, Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder scare me more than Sabathia anyway - I just have a bad feeling about Milwaukee's lineup getting hot at the right time, and Brett Myers' fastball staying on hiatus.

I also like the Cubs over the Dodgers in 4, the Angels over the Red Sox in 3, and the White Sox over the Rays in 4. My World Series pick has been unchanged since about the All Star Break - Angels over Cubs.