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ALCS PREVIEW: TORONTO (111-51) vs. SEATTLE (102-60)

<<<<< The Blue Jays need Ankiel to reproduce his stellar season of 18-8, 2.05 era when it counts

OFFENCE: There is no comparison offensively between these two teams. Seattle does have its weapons; Alex Escobar has emerged as a superstar, Womack led the AL in steals and Aaron Ledesma made the all-star team. Plus there is the always dependable "Crime Dog" McGriff to drive in runs, if unspectacularly. But the Blue Jays just have too much pop. Delgado, Green and Batista already formed a potent middle of the order "before" they went and got Garciaparra at the deadline. With Roberts, Boone and Stewart thrown into the mix, the Jays have a dangerous combo of speed and power. ADVANTAGE: BLUE JAYS

Freddy Garcia, 25, has emerged as the ace of a great young Mariners staff by winning 20 games >>>>>>

PITCHING: Mariners GM Sylvain Couture has done a good job of keeping and acquiring youung pitching talent. The results are impressive as Seattle boasts a great young staff that goes five deep. While the Jays don't have the same depth, there is more than enough quality. Ankiel and Yarnall are two pitchers who could lead any staff in baseball. Both teams have dynamite bullpens that are deep, while Toronto's might have a tad more experience. ADVANTAGE: BLUE JAYS

OUTLOOK: These team are pretty much even pitching wise, but the Blue Jays take the cake offensively. Giving up Vernon Wells at the deadline was a gamble, but getting Garciaparra could pay World Series dividends. BLUE JAYS IN FIVE

NLCS PREVIEW: PHILLY (107-55) vs. ATLANTA (94-68)

<<<<< The Phillies didn't shell out $66 million for Neagle in the offseason to just get them to the playoffs. They expect a moneyworthy performance in the fall classic

OFFENCE: Atlanta has a pretty good offence centered around the power of Glaus, Rios, Jones and the speed of Lofton and Furcal. But this isn't even close. The Phillies have the type of lineup that puts you in a state of bliss as you look down the order....in a word its perfect. It's a well oiled machine with expensive, but useful parts like Abreu, Thomas, Gonzalez, Castilla driving it. The proof is in the pudding because its pretty hard to score 1000 runs without a DH, but the Phillies did it. ADVANTAGE: PHILLIES

Stealing 140 bases at 21, Furcal looks like a lock to break Rickey Henderson's record. But that is little consolation to the Braves if he can't run off of Philly catcher Ben Patrick's gun for an arm >>>>>

PITCHING: Philly went to great lengths to improve their rotation by opening up the vault for both Denny Neagle and Jose Rosado in the offseason, giving them four bona fide playoff starters. But they aren't quite as strong as Atlanta whose rotation goes five deep. Don't be mistaken by his injuries of the past two years. Pedro Martinez still has it and can dominate hitters as evidenced by his 307 strikeouts. While the Brave's bullpen isn't quite at par with Philly (making the Troy Percival trade important), there is just a bit more depth on this staff. ADVANTAGE: BRAVES

OUTLOOK: Atlanta GM Joe Bourgeois played the high stakes game in getting Martinez and Percival at the deadline and it worked. The Braves squeaked into the playoffs and look good against the Phillies. But Philly's offence is too strong. Lets put it this way, their bench is better than most starting lineups. PHILLIES IN SEVEN