ALDS thoughts

The ALDS begins on Tuesday and I think that the Red Sox are in remarkably good shape, considering the shaky state of their pitching staff until now. One huge move that should not be overlooked is Bronson Arroyo's move to the bullpen for this short series. Rookie Jonathan Papelbon has emerged as a solid set-up guy, filling the role that Mike Timlin vacated when he became the closer. But the big hole in the bullpen has been the huge, sucking void in the search for any reliever that can get people out before the 8th inning--enter Bronson. The White Sox have a predominantly right handed line up, which helps even more, as lefties have been giving Arroyo fits lately. Papelbon has been a stud in September and he can easily handle 2-3 multiple inning appearances in this series, if needed. Same for Timlin. But having Arroyo out there to quell any early fires is a dynamic that we've been missing all season.

I also think that despite Matt Clement's second half struggles he has a chance to do really well in game one. The White Sox hitters aren't patient, so Clement's penchant for walks--the one things that gets him in more trouble than anything else--won't be as big a factor. If the Red Sox can take early leads, they can get the White Sox out of their small-ball mindset, and I think they'll do just that in game one against Jose Contreras, a pitcher that the Red Sox have historically lit up. I like the Bosox in game one, and to win the series, probably in four games.