Austin Barnes, the Dodgers’ official catcher
The postseason has made something very clear for the Dodgers: Austin Barnes is the starting catcher, not Yasmani Grandal. Barnes has started six games this postseason compared to two for Grandal, and it’s hard to say it’s not deserved.
Barnes has batted .261 with a double, homer and four walks in the postseason. His .805 OPS has been more than respectable. By comparison, Grandal is hitless at 0-for-5, though he has walked three times. Grandal received more than double the at-bats that Barnes did in the regular season.
Barnes has proven to Dave Roberts and his teammates that he is deserving of the starting job. If he’s able to duplicate his success from the NLDS (4-for-8, 3 RBIs), he will give the Dodgers a major boost.
Yuli Gurriel
Few players have enjoyed a bigger breakout during these playoffs than Yuli Gurriel, who has introduced himself to fans outside of Houston. The Cuban slugger has been one of the Astros’ best hitters in the postseason and an unsung hero.
Gurriel is batting .366 with a .921 OPS this postseason and has been as big of an offensive contributor for the team as anyone not named Altuve. He had hits in every single game during the ALDS against Boston, including seven hits over the final two games of the series. He also had hits in six of the seven ALCS games.
Gurriel gives the Astros a consistent bat. Being able to count on him to knock a hit in every game is a major confidence-booster for the team.
Good Charlie Morton or Bad Charlie Morton
Talk about an X-Factor. Houston feels like they can count on Justin Verlander and Dallas Keuchel, and probably Lance McCullers to a lesser extent. But do they really know what they’re going to get out of Charlie Morton?
Morton has now pitched in two close-out games for the Astros this postseason, and the team won both. When he wasn’t pitching in a close-out game, he got bombed. He allowed seven runs over 3.2 innings in a Game 3 loss to the Yankees in the ALCS.
Morton hasn’t gone more than five innings in any of his starts, so Houston knows they’ll need their bullpen on games he pitches. The question is whether or not he’ll be able to give them quality innings before he’s pulled.
Brandon Morrow’s bullpen prowess
Kenley Jansen gets most of the attention in the Dodgers’ bullpen — deservedly so. But Brandon Morrow deserves a ton of love too for what he’s been doing. The converted starter put up a 2.06 ERA and 0.92 WHIP pitching out of the bullpen for the Dodgers this season. As hard as it is to believe, he’s been even better in the postseason.
Morrow has gone 8.1 innings this postseason with three holds and has a 1.08 ERA and 0.48 WHIP. He has pitched in every single one of the Dodgers’ 7 playoff wins, serving as a strong bridge guy between the starters and Jansen. Against the Cubs, he only allowed one hit and one walk in 4.2 innings. He’s pitched more than one inning on three occasions in the postseason.
The Dodgers’ bullpen is a big reason for the team’s dominance in the postseason, and Morrow has been an often-overlooked factor.
Josh Reddick’s slump and revenge
There couldn’t be a better time for Josh Reddick to bust out of his slump than now.
Reddick had arguably his best season as a pro batting .314 with 34 doubles and an .847 OPS in the regular season — all career-best marks. He looked to be continuing that success into the postseason as he batted .375 in the ALDS against Boston, collecting two hits in three of the four games.
The ALCS was a completely different story.
Reddick was a major hole in the ALCS as he went just 1-for-25 with one walk and six strikeouts. He became almost an automatic out in the series. He was even dropped from second to ninth in the Astros’ lineup for Game 7, where he finally got his first hit of the series.
Reddick is looking forward to the World Series because he wants to stick it to Dodgers fans over the way he was treated by them last year. He needs to make sure his slump doesn’t carry over to the World Series, otherwise the Astros will be in trouble.
Just happy to be here
One of the biggest X-Factors in determining success in a late postseason event is figuring out which team/players are “just happy to be here.” Reaching the NBA Finals, Super Bowl, or World Series is an accomplishment in itself. Sometimes players or teams can be satisfied with getting that far. The difference is which team eschews that attitude and maintains the desperation and hunger they felt earlier in the postseason.
If either team eases up one bit, that will show on the field. Clayton Kershaw, for example, showed incredible emotion about reaching his first career World Series. He better not feel satisfied with that, because he has a lot of work left to do.
