Dave Paisley

The 2001 post-season got off to a rip-roaring start Tuesday with two incredibly dominant games pitched by the aforementioned Mr. Colon, and the Diamondbacks Curt Schilling, who is obviously worth much more than the 8 cents you'd need to exchange for an English shilling these days.

But the first game of the day featured more offense than the other two combined. The Astros, lucky to have scraped to the NL Central title after squandering a healthy lead in the last two weeks, had every reason to breathe a sight of relief when they bested the Cards last Sunday. However, neither game one option was terribly appealing. Face the Braves and you get Greg Maddux. Face the Diamondbacks and you get Curt Schilling, or maybe Randy Johnson. Neither option is as pleasant as facing, say the Texas Rangers pitching staff, but this is the playoffs, so there are no easy options any more. Throw in the loss of Roy Oswalt, and the Astros are out there with Wade Miller, Shane Reynolds and Dave Mlicki holding down the rotation, although Oswalt is recovering and could pitch in Game 4 if the Astros last that long.

Despite facing one of the best in Maddux, the Astros were managing fine behind Miller in Game 1 until the advent of Chipper Jones in the eighth to put the Braves ahead for good against Billy Wagner. Mike Jackson is no longer the prescription for relief that he once was, and Wagner couldn't put out the fire, coughing up the homer with two of Jackson's runners on. The good news for the Astros is that the Braves pitching gets easier from here on, but it will still be a struggle for them to hold on. Even if Oswalt does come back to pitch, you have to wonder about how effective he will be after the layoff and what his stamina will be like.

Outlook: Brightening for Houston, but not by much.

After a spectacular 116 win season, the Mariners finally get a post-season date, and whaddya know - they don't care for the Colon that Cleveland is wearing. I was actually at the second game of the day in person to see the Mariners completely bamboozled by Bartolo Colon's heat. Registering up to 99 mph on the stadium gun, Colon was untouchable, and never looked to be in any trouble. Despite the line, Freddy Garcia was mostly the same, except for the fateful fourth inning. A leadoff double and a bloop single that scored a run rattled Garcia and he couldn't get his head back into the game until three runs were in on a walk and three more singles, leaving the bases still loaded with nobody out. He came to his senses and struck out Diaz and Lofton and got Vizquel to fly out to left field. After the double, nothing was hit hard, but the inning just unraveled for him. As it was, with Colon pitching the way he was, that was more than enough.

The bad news for Cleveland is that they've used their one bankable quality starter. The good part is they made the most of what he had, banking one win and setting him up for a possible game 5 if needed.

Outlook: Brightening for the Mariners, although Chuck Finley was back with a vengeance in September, so he'll be no pushover in Game 2.

The final game of the day featured Curt Schilling and the D-Backs against the once red hot Cardinals. Was it controversial that Brenly picked Schilling to start game one rather than Randy Johnson? I wouldn't have made that choice, but somebody had to go first, and as it turned out, it couldn't have worked out better for the snakes. And it's not like Matt Morris pitched poorly. It's surely no disgrace to lose 1-0 to a guy that was as dominant as Schilling. The winning run itself was hardly a thing of beauty - a hit batter, sacrifice (by Schilling, no less) and a two out single to bring him home. Erase that and the game might still be going on, with Johnson relieving Schilling in the 11th inning. No, I'm just kidding.

Outlook: This looked bad for the Cardinals before a pitch was thrown, and they look pretty hosed right now, with Johnson up next and Schilling ready for Game 5 if required.

In the series yet to get under way, I have a feeling that it'll be close than the runaway A's blowout that many appear to expect.

it's amazing how popular Dave Paisley found himself when people discovered he has playoff tickets. If you're interested in getting in line, why not drop him a line at drdjp@strikethree.com? Fat chance, of course, but you never know.

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