Florida Marlins at Chicago Cubs, 8 PM ET (Game 1)

Both teams' offences are righthander-heavy. This is an advantage for the Cubbies, since all their starters will be righties, while lefties are scheduled to start Games 3,4 and 7 (unless McKeon starts Carl Pavano) for Florida.

The only lefthanded hitters we'll see on a regular basis are Kenny Lofton (Cubs), Juan Pierre (Marlins), and the switch hitter Luis Castillo (Marlins). Lefthanded hitting Paul Bako might catch Kerry Wood, and Randall Simon will make a few appearances for the Cubs. The rest of the starting lineups will feature righthanded hitters. It will be a tall order for the Fish to score runs in this series.

As expected, the Bay Area media is having their jollies at the expense of both the A’s and Giants. Below are some selections.

Columnist Ray Ratto's take.

Beat writer Susan Slusser's piece.

Scott Ostler takes both the A's and Giants to task.

Ratto's column resonates most with me -- anything I could add would merely repeat what Ratto says -- and at any rate I'm too tired and bitter to say much more than "I know you are frustrated last night, but just shut up, Beane." (You'll know what I mean when you read the article, and don't worry: I'll get over this soon and be my usual pleasant self. Er, you know what I mean.) But Ratto also says "Shut up, Billy" far better than I could -- even though Ray is just another frustrated journalist lashing out at Beane, of course.

Very likely it's just Bob Elliott looking for filler copy, but the prospect of Cito Gaston managing the White Sox is an intriguing one. The ChiSox appear ready to collect a bunch of veterans and make a strong push for the division flag next year, and few managers are better suited to a veteran team than Gaston. Nonetheless, I wonder if too much time hasn't passed since Cito held the managerial reins; even in five or six years, a lot has changed in how to manage a winning ballclub. And speaking of ex-Glory Jays, here's a nice if somewhat over-the-top piece on Pat Gillick too.

My thanks to Robert, Dave, Mike and everyone else who've kept BB hopping these past few days while Kent, Craig and I have all been largely incommunicado for one reason or another. We aim to have more new features for you soon; starting on Wednesday, look for a multi-part interview with Blue Jays Scouting Director Jon Lalonde. And next Monday, the 2004 Minor-League Review finally arrives: a week-long series of analyses of each level of the Jays' system. And there's still more in store for the off-season; keep Da Box bookmarked.

Boston at Oakland, 8:00 PM ET (Game 5)

First, let me commend Robert, whose playoff work to date has been terrific, but I thought I would lead the game thread tonight, though I will be too nervous and involved with the game to comment on it while it is in progress. I’ll leave the various pre-game machinations and statistical innuendo to ESPN.com and other sites, and instead I will ask one question: Just what is at stake here, as the A’s try—for a ninth time—to close out an ALDS? In short, everything.

Oakland Athletics at Boston Red Sox, 1 PM ET (Game 4)

Tim Hudson starts on 3 days rest - the second pitcher in this year's post-season to do so. Conventional wisdom supposes that a sinkerball pitcher doesn't need a lot of rest between starts, and Hudson threw only 106 pitches on Wednesday.

The Athletics should be celebrating a sweep today, but instead will have to deal with John Burkett. I'm not a big fan of Burkett - he always seemed to me like a pitcher who was reasonably effective only against weaker lineups. Prediction: Oakland 6 Boston 3.

Chicago Cubs at Atlanta, 7:30 PM ET (Game 5)

Great offence has made a comeback - evening up both this and the Oakland-Boston series. When Kerry Wood can't locate with his off-speed stuff, he tend to have problems. We saw him lose his release point in the 8th inning of Game One. Mike Hampton will have to navigate through a lineup that hits lefthanders very well and he'll be pitching on 3 days' rest. If I were a Braves fan, I'd wish Greg Maddux were starting this game.

New York Yankees at Minnesota Twins, 4 PM ET (Game 4)

With Johan Santana at home (provided he's healthy), the Twins should have an edge today. But if the Twins are behind after the 7th it's likely to be all over, as I expect Rivera to come in and get the 6-out save. I'm pulling for the Twins to win and take their chances in Yankee Stadium. It would be great to see the Yankees lose the series in their home ballpark.

OK, I'm back. What did I miss?

By way of explanation for my absence, it's been a very tough week. The courageous Mrs. Coach had three operations on her left eye. Monday, it was scleral buckle surgery to reattach her retina. Tuesday morning, even a layman like me could tell it hadn't gone perfectly. They had to inject (yes, a needle in the eye; yes, she was awake) a gas bubble to reposition everything, then do it again to relieve the pressure because they had put in too much. On Wednesday, still not satisfied, the doctors decided on a laser procedure, which fortunately, seems to be working, though it may be weeks or even months before we know how effectively.

Meanwhile, I've been crippled by back pain, which often flares up in times of stress. We spent a lot of time in bed this week -- it wasn't as much fun as it sounds -- while our kids and our friends looked after us. I was able to watch quite a bit of baseball, but couldn't sit up to write about it. Robert has done a magnificent job with the playoff previews, and I hope to be an active participant in those threads today. First, I have a few questions about what's happened so far, and what might happen today, if anyone has answers.

Boston Red Sox at Oakland Athletics, 7:30 PM ET (game 3)

Here's one for armchair managers. Do you start the lefthander Ted Lilly in Fenway Park against a potent Boston lineup, or do you go with the inexperienced fireballer Rich Harden? Personally, I don't think experience (or lack thereof) is as important as going with the pitcher who's best equiped to succeed in a given environment: I would have gone with Harden.

Cast your ballots! If you're already a BP subscriber, just log in. If not, you can register for a free "basic" subscription to become eligible to vote.

Wow. It doesn't get much better than that. So said Cristian, in his post commenting on the brilliant Game 1 between Boston and Oakland. The quesion is, does it get any better than that?

In a series of articles that will run through the playoffs, I'll pay tribute to the history of postseason baseball. Stay tuned for the Ten Greatest Division Series Games Of All-Time; The Twenty-Five Greatest Championship Series Games of All-Time; and the Fifty Greatest World Series Games of All-Time.

Atlanta Braves at Chicago Cubs, 4 PM ET (Game 4)

Russ Ortiz against Matt Clement is the most favourable pitching match-up for the Braves in this series. Even if the Braves win, Mike Hampton against Kerry Wood isn't a matchup Bobby Cox should like. When the Braves chose Hampton to start game 2 instead of Maddux, it decreased the number of potential righthanded starters the Cubs will have to face this series.

New York Yankees at Minnesota Twins, 1 PM ET (Game 3)

Since Robert hasn't posted a thread for the New York/Minnesota game, here's one.

Florida Marlins at San Francisco Giants, 1 PM ET (Game 4)

This is what I wrote earlier today:

Felipe Alou is taking the biggest gamble today - he's starting Jason Schmidt on 3 days' rest in Florida. The Giants have to win both of the next game, so the conventional thinking would have started Jerome Williams in game 4 today and saved Jason Schmidt for game 5. Two factors Alou might have considered.

1) Starting Schmidt today allows a little more flexibility in regard to the game 5 starter. It could be Williams or Ponson on 3-days rest. If whichever one he chooses struggles, he can quickly bring in the other guy.

2) He wants to maximize the edge in game 4 because he figures game 5 will be the easier one to win. The home crowd, and last at bat will help the Giants' chances in game 5. He may be worried that Jerome Williams, a rookie, will be bothered by the hostile crowd in Florida in his first post-season start.

Scratch that. The Giants will start Jerome Williams.

Jack McKeon wouldn't mind things either way. He would have had the edge against either Williams or Ponson with Josh Beckett pitching. Now, the Marlins have a better shot at winning it at home and the Florida ace will be well rested for game 1 of the NLCS.