Parity, pitching and youth dominate LCS storylines

Grady Sizemore batted .375 with four walks in the Division Series win over the Yankees. Jim McIsaac/Getty Images

World Series Coverage   Monday John Donovan: Rox, Sox built to last Albert Chen: Ellsbury an unlikely hero Joe Sheehan: Scenes, notes from clincher Red Sox celebrate World Series victory Sunday Sox clip Rockies 4-3 to win World Series John Donovan's Report Card for Game 4 Jon Heyman's 15 Greatest Mr. Octobers Lowell takes home Series MVP honors Dynasty in the making for Red Sox? Clock strikes midnight for Rockies' ride Time.com: Red Sox are the new Yankees Saturday Red Sox down Rockies 10-5, take 3-0 lead John Donovan's Report Card for Game 3 Tom Verducci: The Sox are superior John Donovan: The Coors Field factor Jon Heyman: Four keys to Game 3 Friday Melissa Segura: Corpas gets his wish John Donovan: Rockies' lumber slumber Jon Heyman: How the Sox got Beckett Joe Sheehan: Electric night at Fenway Thursday Schilling, bullpen shut down Rockies 2-1 John Donovan's Report Card for Game 2 Tom Verducci's five cuts for Thursday Albert Chen on the Red Sox's bullpen John Donovan: Rockies turn to a rookie Joe Sheehan: Postseason drama lacking Tale of the Tape: Rockies vs. Red Sox World Series Fungoes Joe Lemire on Rockies-Red Sox Schedule/Box Scores Game 1: Red Sox 13, Rockies 1 Game 2: Red Sox 2, Rockies 1 Game 3: Red Sox 10, Rockies 5 Game 4: Red Sox 4, Rockies 3

The quick removal of New York, Chicago and L.A. (even if it's technically L.A. of Anaheim) from this postseason has baseball's powers disappointed. MLB, TBS, ESPN and all the big-money acronyms are weeping today over losing the largest markets.

But we shouldn't have to feel the same way.

Sure, the Cubs would have been fun. But 2008 is their 100th anniversary of futility, anyway. So wait 'til next year, Cubs fans.

The Yankees are always great for some drama. It'll just have to be of the off-the-field variety this time.

Yes, the big draws are gone. But what remain are four great stories, and four absolutely worthy teams.

What remains is one $150 million collection of colorful international talent, plus three supposed little sisters. Three teams with payrolls in the lower third that were never supposed to be here.

Parity works. Revenue sharing has turned into trophy sharing. None of the teams that remain were playoff entrants a year ago, and three of them had losing records last season.

No matter what anyone says, there's a lot to like about what's left.

There's Manny being Manny and Big Papi imitating Babe Ruth, and together there's that duo forming the best postseason hitting tandem since, well, Lou Gehrig and Ruth.

There's Matt Holliday, who left a piece of flesh near home plate at Coors Field, the spot that marked the culmination of the Rockies' quick mile-high ascension to the playoffs, against all odds. If Holliday isn't the MVP of the National League, he's second to Philly's Jimmy Rollins.

There's Grady Sizemore, Cleveland's multitalented leadoff hitter. Sports Illustrated explained "Why Sizemore Matters" in a cover story early this season. The dear departed Yankees now know the answer firsthand.

There's Chris Young, the first rookie to hit 30 homers and steal 25 bases. He's the total package: strong, fast and young.

There's plenty of pitching to go around, starting with Brandon Webb, who managed to throw 42 straight scoreless innings without anyone noticing -- save for maybe Orel Hershiser. Webb's one of the best pitchers in baseball, even if folks usually forget to include him in that argument.

There's C.C. Sabathia, a 6-foot-7, 270-plus pitching prodigy with perfect form and all the guts in the world. And there's his running mate, Fausto Carmona, who transformed from the worst relief pitcher in creation to one of the best starters, almost overnight. The Yankees know all about Carmona, whose fast-sinking pitches looked unhittable to them, and were unhittable to them, and who became the Lord of the Flies in his Division Series gem.

There's Josh Beckett, who has three postseason shutouts by age 26 in an era when nobody completes games. And there's Daisuke Matsuzaka, who fashioned 15 victories while pitching against hype and stress. Curt Schilling showed he can still pitch in the October of his 41st year, and this time his socks are clean.

There's Jeff Francis, the low-key Canadian who turned into a star during the Rockies' amazing streak of 14 wins in 15 games to end the regular season. And there's newcomers Franklin Morales and Ubaldo Jimenez, who may not yet know where they are.

All four teams are playing great now. But no one's rollin' like the Rockies. They have something special going, with big alliterative contributors like Holliday, Brad Hawpe, Todd Helton and the humidor. They are young, they are exciting and they are on fire.

Three of the four teams advanced on sweeps, so that should tell you who deserves to be here. The fourth, the Indians, knocked off the $200 million Yankees club that was 7½ games better than everyone else since May 29.

There's two great young closers, the widely-acclaimed Jonathan Papelbon and the largely-ignored Jose Valverde. There's also Manny Corpas and his magic liquid. And there's Joe Borowski, who has bigger stones than anyone daring to go out there to close, with only a marginal wing and a prayer. He had the highest ERA (5.07) ever for a league saves leader (45).

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