Preview: Marietta vs Newark

Look for a new This Week in the DMBL and a World Series preview coming later tonight.

After Newark's historic season, most people are expecting a cakewalk for the Sugar Bears. History hasn't favored the historic teams so far, so it's far from a sure thing. Let's see how the teams stack up position by position:

Catcher: Gregg Zaun, Newark vs Jorge Posada, Marietta
Both catchers are in platoons - Zaun with Michael Barrett and Posada with Bengie Molina, so we'll take the tandem in consideration. Zaun has had a very good year, batting .305 with 17 HRs and 97 RBIs, but then again everyone on Newark's team has had a good year. Posada has had another solid season (.979 OPS with 19 HRs and 70 RBIs) and Molina has mashed lefties to a tune of a 1.097 OPS. Barrett has been average for Newark.
Advantage: Marietta

First Base: Nick Johnson, Newark vs Todd Helton, Marietta
Johnson, the current Kevin Mitchell award winner, is having another great season (1.034 OPS, 112 RBI) and Helton has been solid as well (.853 OPS, 96 runs, 92 RBIs). Helton's power has fallen a bit from a perennial 30-HR threat to a 20-HR threat, but he still gets the job done. This is a close one but...
Advantage: Newark

Second Base: Marlon Anderson, Newark vs Ray Durham, Marietta
Anderson platoons with fellow retread Mark DeRosa - both of which have had stellar years for the Sugar Bears. But Ray Durham, who's had a solid DMBL career, has surpassed anything he has done. Durham is one of the offensive leaders of the Mighty Men and has been continuing to excel in the playoffs (.452 average, 4 HRs, 7 RBIs).
Advantage: Marietta

Third Base: Mark Teahen vs Wes Helms
Another tough choice here as both Teahen and Helms have come up huge for their respective teams. Helms, who is a typical Sugar Bear journeyman who has a career year, is lining up for the Mighty Men. Helms has led his team in triples (24), doubles (50), runs scored (120), extra base hits (101) and RBIs(118). Teahen, meanwhile, had a .608 slugging with 33 HRs and 110 RBIs. Tough call, but we have to adjust for home parks...
Advantage: Marietta

Shortstop: Carlos Guillen vs Derek Jeter
A battle of the underrated Carlos Guillen against the very much rated Derek Jeter. Well, I didn't want to say "overrated", since Jeter has had a very good year for the Mighty Men. Jeter hit .324 with a .391 OBP, 30 stolen bases and 119 runs scored. But Guillen batted .359 with 164 runs scored, 139 RBIs, 1.059 OPS and 32 homers. Even with the home park discount...
Advantage: Newark

Left Field: Bobby Abreu vs Matt Diaz
Diaz had a good start to his DMBL career (.292 AVG, 85 runs in 162 games), but he's not in Abreu's class just yet. Abreu scored 160 runs, with a .448 OBP, and 28 stolen bases. This one is the first position battle that is not even close.
Advantage: Newark

Center Field: Jim Edmonds vs Brian Giles
Edmonds was in Giles' position as recently as last year - seemingly washed up on the scrap heap. But Newark rolled the dice and signed the veteran and were rewarded with a career year out of Edmonds. Edmonds batted a league-high .390 with a 1.155 OPS, 39 homers, and 144 RBIs. Giles, a shell of his former self, batted .288 but only managed 10 homers and 45 RBIs. Giles splti time with Milton Bradley, but this one also isn't close.
Advantage: Newark

Right Field: Manny Ramirez vs Wily Mo Pena
Wily Mo has had a breakout season in '07 - 31 homers, 126 RBIs - but those 225 strikeouts will hurt the team against pitchers like Randy Johnson and John Smoltz (if he plays). Meanwhile, Manny is being Manny with his usual productive season. Hey, Manny is no slouch when it comes to strikeouts either (175), and his other numbers match up well with Pena - 41 HRs, 139 RBIs. But Manny obliterates Pena when you compare their OBPs - .391 for Manny and .322 for Wily Mo. If Pena learns to take a walk (not looking good 15 Ks to zero walks in the postseason so far), then he might have a chance to match Manny, but for now....
Advantage: Newark

Designated Hitter: Chipper Jones vs Jim Thome
It's the Clash of the Titans! Jim Thome, a former Sugar Bear, has come back on the rival squad. Thome has put up a typical, Sugar Bear-level season - 1.062 OPS, 39 homers, 115 RBIs. Jones, who joined Thome in the Sugar Bears' inaugural year, is also putting up a career year - 1.128 OPS, 44 homers, 140 RBIs. Both have had great seasons and it's hard to choose between the two. The difference between the two though? a .373 batting average for Chipper vs .293 for Thome.
Advantage: Newark

Starting Pitching:
Marietta certainly has the edge if we're only comparing the staff ace. Francisco Liriano may win the Listach and the McDonald awards this year. But if we look at staff depth, then the battle is much closer. A.J. Burnett and Mike Mussina have played solid second fiddles to Liriano. You may remember Mussina's memorable one-hit shutout of Philly in game two of the semis. But Newark's rotation is no slouch either. Randy Johnson, Chien-Ming Wang, John Smoltz, Javier Vazquez and even Joe Saunders are all capable of getting the job done. Especially when they only need to keep the opposition below five or six runs. Marietta's in trouble once you get past the big three. Jeremy Sowers has been average over the regular season and a disaster in the playoffs. Liriano gives the Mighty Men a fighting chance, but the depth of the staff gives the advantage to Newark.

Bullpen:
Now here is a battle for the ages. Future DMBL Hall of Famers Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman are joined by B.J. Ryan in Marietta's formidable bullpen. The trio has only given up two runs in almost 20 innings in the playoffs so far. But what about Newark's pen? Not too shabby either although they lack the star power of the Mighty Men. Cla Meredith and Scot Shields anchor a very solid and deep corps of relievers.
Advantage: Marietta

Overall, it would be hard to find someone that would pick the Mighty Men over the Sugar Bears, but we've all seen crazier things happen. It wouldn't be a surprise to see the Sugar Bears sweep this series, but Liriano gives the Mighty Men a chance to steal a few games from Newark. We're hoping for the upset here, but reluctantly pick the Sugar Bears to win the series in five games.