For years to come we can remember Jeter rounding the bases as he smacked his 3000th hit over Yankee Stadium’s left field wall. We will remember Mariano Rivera breaking into a smile after staring down enough batters to reach 603 career saves. The nation won’t forget Justin Verlander tossing a no-hitter and winning 24 games. Boston fans always will remember the historic collapse of their once promising hometown team, and Dimondback fans will never forget how their team went worst-to-first over the course of two seasons.

All of these moments happened in a thrilling 2011 regular season that baseball fans may never forget.

Now, after 2,430 grueling games in the brisk weather conditions of spring, dog days of August, and cool breezes of autumn, the thirty major league teams became eight and the playoffs began. The AL West champion Texas Rangers, AL Central champion Detroit Tigers, AL East champion New York Yankees, AL Wild Card Tampa Bay Rays, NL West champion Arizona Dimondbacks, NL Central champion Milwaukee Brewers, NL East champion Philadelphia Phillies, and NL Wild Card St. Louis Cardinals became the last eight teams standing.

The leash is short in the playoffs. The 102 game winning Philadelphia Phillies were knocked off the baseball radar after five quick games to the Cardinals. The Yankees fell to the Tigers, the Rangers overpowered the Rays, and the Milwaukee Brewers took down the Arizona Diamondbacks on the last pitch of the last inning of a winner take all fifth game of the NLDS.

The League Championship Series brought baseball fans even more compelling story lines. What would happen in the growing rivalry between the Cardinals and Brewers? Could Detroit Tigers’ Justin Verlander continue his dominance? What bats would step up for Texas if Verlander was stopped?

The Cardinals shocked the Brewers, winning the NLCS in six games. For most of the year, the Cardinals bullpen had been a concern, but that all changed in the NLCS. The bullpen of the Cardinals silenced the bats of Brewers’ sluggers Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder and actually pitched more innings then the Cardinals’ starters. St. Louis native David Freese, who was taught by CHS math teacher Jane Glenn at Lafayette High School, took MVP honors. In the 2011 playoffs Freese has a .425 average and 14 RBIs.

Nelson Cruz of the Texas Rangers stepped up big in the ALCS. Cruz belted seven home runs, an ALCS record, one of which was a walk off grand slam in game two. The 2010 Rangers also managed to get to the World Series, though lost in five games to the San Francisco Giants. The 2011 Rangers are looking to bounce from their World Series showing from a year ago.

Official Globe World Series Prediction

The big bats of Albert Pujols, David Freese, Matt Holliday, and Lance Berkman will be too much for Texas’ starting pitching to handle. With Nelson Cruz hitting in the seven hole in the Ranger line up, the Cardinals’ pitchers can pitch around him at Busch Stadium – knowing that the pitcher spot is coming up in two batters, instead of the DH spot, which only is in effect at AL stadiums. Slowing down Cruz’s momentum for the first two games will prevent him from coming back strong in games 3-4-5 in Texas when there is a DH.
Cardinals over Rangers. Six games.

(Photos by Peter Baugh and MCT Campus)