[Nick Soulis]

Season 3
Final Standings



American League Championship Series



2003 Boston Red Sox (90-72) vs 1999 Cleveland Indians (87-75)

The 1999 Cleveland Indians let their offense do the talking all season long and in the end won the AL West going away. The 87 wins may not be all the impressive but their ability to get on base and score runs is. Manny Ramirez drove in 106 runs while Kenny Lofton stole 41 bases and scored 103 times. Bartolo Colon won 18 games and a pen by committee worked as the Indians now look for greater glory. The 2003 Red Sox were lead by pitching triple crown winner Pedro Martinez for the season but Pedro will miss the playoffs with a bad back, putting the pressure on Boston to cover for him. Boston went 18-8 in September and are playing determined baseball as super star Nomar Garciaparra, who hit .324, joins Manny Ramirez in the middle of a good lineup. The Sox let up the fewest runs in the league, but Tim Wakefield and Bronson Arroyo will have their work cut out for them in the series against the Indians.

National League Championship Series



1912 Pittsburgh Pirates (111-51) vs 1988 New York Mets (98-64)

The 1988 Mets finished the fight in the NL East defeating the 1914 Robins three out of four in the final series of the season and the month saw them win 13 games in a row and a record of 20-6. Dwight Gooden and David Cone are as good a duo as one can find while Darryl Strawberry hit 31 home runs and drove in 96 for an offence that finished first in home runs. The Pirates won 111 games and haven't played an important game since June. They won their division by 34 games and had a plus run differential of 283. Honus Wagner hit .361 while Babe Adams won 26 games. Pittsburgh went 11-5 against the Mets in the regular season and will be the all out favorites to win the pennant.

Batting Champion



Honus Wagner
(.361, 211 H)