2006 Postseason

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Summary

The Tigers and Cardinals entered the 2006 season on vastly different planes. The Cardinals were the epitome of "so close, yet so far", appearing in the playoffs numerous times in recent seasons, but never quite finishing the job. The Tigers were never uttered in the same sentence as the World Series, the organization was still only three seasons removed from losing 119 games. When the air cooled and October settled in, these two historic franchises went toe to toe. The Cardinals won in five games, ending the Tigers magical run.

The AL bracket included a strong Yankees club that pounded its way to 97 wins, the always feisty Twins, and Billy Beane's Athletics. The Dodgers and Mets reached the NL playoffs, joining the Padres who reached the postseason for a second consecutive season. The Cardinals made waste of the Padres and took out the Mets in seven games.

NL Team Stats

TEAM	W-L	Manager	BA	HR	R	ERA	WHIP	RA
Mets	97-65	Willie Randolph	.264	200	834	4.14	1.32	731
Padres	88-74	Bruce Bochy	.263	161	731	3.87	1.27	679
Cardinals	83-78	Tony LaRussa	.269	184	781	4.54	1.38	762
Dodgers	88-74	Grady Little	.276	153	820	4.23	1.38	751

AL Team Stats

TEAM	W-L	Manager	BA	HR	R	ERA	WHIP	RA
Yankees	97-65	Joe Torre	.285	210	930	4.41	1.36	767
Twins	96-66	Ron Gardenhire	.287	143	801	3.95	1.28	683
Athletics	93-69	Ken Macha	.260	175	771	4.21	1.41	727
Tigers	95-67	Jim Leyland	.274	203	822	3.84	1.32	675