Guest Post: 2012 World Series Predictions

The Detroit Tigers are going to be playing the San Francisco Giants in the 2012 World Series. The Tigers are representing the AL while the Giants are going to be representing the NL. Detroit features a starting rotation that has been on fire this postseason. However, the Giants are coming off a performance in the NLCS that saw them overcome a three games to one series deficit to win in seven games. How Detroit Got To The World Series The Detroit Tigers got to the World Series after defeating Oakland in the ALDS and the New York Yankees in the ALCS. Detroit used timely hitting to defeat Oakland in five games in a series that they were ahead 2-0 in. In the ALCS, the Tigers used outstanding pitching to defeat the Yankees in four games. How San Francisco Got To The World Series The San Francisco Giants defeated the Cincinnati Reds in five games in the NLDS. They overcame a 2-0 series deficit to defeat the Reds in five games. Amazingly, they managed to win three games in a row in Cincinnati to steal the series from the Reds. In the NLCS, the Giants defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. Barry Zito was a catalyst in the comeback. In game five, he pitched his best game in a Giants uniform to carry them to victory. Detroit Wins The World Series If... Detroit needs their starting pitchers to continue to pitch as well as they did against the Yankees. Justin Verlander should be the starting pitcher for Detroit in game 1. However, pitchers such as Max Scherzer are going to be crucial as well. Keep in mind that the Tigers starters are 4-1 with a 1.02 ERA so far in the postseason. Most importantly, closer Jose Valverde will have to overcome a shaky series of outings so far in the postseason. On offense, the Tigers will rely on Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera to provide a spark at the plate. Cabrera, who won the Triple Crown this year, will need to get on base as many times as possible. This is because Prince Fielder is the epitome of feast or famine when it comes to hitting. He will either hit a home run or strike out. Delmon Young could be a sleeper in this series. San Francisco Wins The World Series If... For the Giants, they will need to make sure that they don't waste the momentum that they have built for themselves. Barry Zito will most likely be the starter for game 1 of the World Series for the Giants. If he can repeat his performance from the NLCS, he will give the Giants a huge boost to start the series. With Detroit pitching so well, runs will be hard to come by for the most part. It will also be nice if Matt Cain and Tim Linecum can get their ERAs under four. On offense, they will need Buster Posey to play as well as he did in the regular season. So far this postseason, he his hitting only .178. That is well below his average during the season. However, Pablo Sandoval is playing really well. He has hit three home runs during the postseason while hitting .320 and adding some good defense. Who Will Win The World Series? Like most championship series, this series should go to a seventh game. As with any other sport, defense wins championships. This means that the team that gets the better pitching performances will most likely win the series. As it stands now, it is more likely that the Tigers get those types of outings from their pitchers. However, don't forget that the Giants will get to start and potentially end the series at home. This is because the NL won the All-Star Game in July. Therefore, this could give the Giants enough of an intangible edge to win the series. However, the Tigers should win this series in seven games. Prediction: Tigers in 7 By Don Phan - Just another sports enthusiast.