107th World Series: A capsule look

Season Series: Did not play.

Projected Lineups

Rangers

• 2B Ian Kinsler (.255, 32, 77, 121 runs, 30 SBs)
• SS Elvis Andrus (.279, 5, 60, 96 runs, 37 SBs)
• CF Josh Hamilton (.298, 25, 94 in 121 games)
• DH Michael Young (career-high .338, 11, 106 with 213 hits)
• 3B Adrian Beltre (.296, 32, 105)
• C Mike Napoli (career highs .320, 30, 75 in 113 games)
• RF Nelson Cruz (.263, 29, 87 in 124 games)
• LF David Murphy (.275, 11, 46)
• 1B Mitch Moreland (.259, 16, 51).

Cardinals

• SS Rafael Furcal (.231, 8 HRs, 28 RBIs, 9 SBs with Dodgers and Cardinals)
• CF Jon Jay (.297, 10, 37)
• 1B Albert Pujols (.299, 37, 99, 105 runs)
• RF Lance Berkman (.301, 31, 94, .412 OBP)
• LF Matt Holliday (.296, 22, 75, .388 OBP)
• 3B David Freese (.297, 10, 55)
• C Yadier Molina (.305, 14, 65, both career bests)
• 2B Ryan Theriot (.271, 1, 47, 442 ABs, 18 errors) or Skip Schumaker (.283, 2, 38) or Nick Punto (.278, 1, 20, 133 ABs).

Projected Rotations

Rangers: LH C.J. Wilson (16-7, 2.94 ERA, career-high 223 1-3 IP, 206 Ks, 74 walks), RH Colby Lewis (14-10, 4.40), LH Derek Holland (16-5, 3.95, 4 shutouts; 10-1 with 2.77 ERA in last 15 starts), LH Matt Harrison (14-9, 3.39). Cardinals: RH Chris Carpenter (11-9, 3.49, 237 1-3 innings, 191 Ks, 4 CGs, 2 shutouts), LH Jaime Garcia (13-7, 3.56, 2 shutouts), RH Edwin Jackson (12-9, 3.79 with White Sox and Cardinals; 5-2, 3.58 for St. Louis since trade-deadline deal), RH Kyle Lohse (14-8, 3.49 ERA, 1 shutout).

Relievers

Rangers: RH Neftali Feliz (2-3, 2.74, 32/38 saves), RH Mike Adams (2-3, 2.10, 1 save in 27 games for Rangers; 3-1, 1.13 in 48 appearances for Padres), RH Alexi Ogando (13-8, 3.51 in 31 games, 29 starts, for converted reliever who returned to bullpen for post-season), LH Michael Gonzalez (2-2, 4.39 in 56 games for Rangers and Orioles), LH Darren Oliver (5-5, 2.29, 61 games), RH Scott Feldman (2-1, 3.94 in 11 games, 2 starts, since return from microfracture surgery on right knee), RH Koji Uehara (2-3, 2.35 in 65 games for Rangers and Orioles), RH Yoshinori Tateyama (2-0, 4.50, 1 save, 39 games).

Cardinals: RH Jason Motte (5-2, 2.25, 9/13 saves, 78 games), RH Fernando Salas (5-6, 2.28, 24/30 saves), RH Octavio Dotel (3-3, 3.28, 2 saves), LH Marc Rzepczynski (0-3, 3.97), RH Lance Lynn (1-1, 3.12, 1 save, 18 games, 2 starts, 40 Ks, 34 2-3 IP), LH Arthur Rhodes (0-1, 4.15 in 19 games with Cardinals; 3-3, 4.81, 1 save in 32 games with Rangers), RH Mitchell Boggs (2-3, 3.56, 4 saves), RH Kyle McClellan (12-7, 4.19, 43 games, 17 starts).

Matchups

Quite a contrast in history, these two clubs. The favourite team for generations of fans all over the Midwest, the Cardinals are instantly recognizable with their red birds on the bat and loyal support in baseball-mad St. Louis. They own 10 World Series titles, second-most behind the New York Yankees (27), and are looking for their second championship in six seasons.

Meanwhile, the Rangers franchise began play as the expansion Washington Senators in 1961. The team moved to Texas, with Ted Williams as manager, and changed its name in 1972. … The Rangers were strangers to October success for the club's first 49 years. They were the only current major league franchise that had never won a playoff series until last season's run to the Fall Classic, where they lost in five games to San Francisco. Turns out, that taste of near triumph was not enough for this team. Even after losing ace lefty Cliff Lee in free agency, Texas appeared confident all season and determined to get back to the big stage for a chance at taking care of unfinished business. …

The last team to win the World Series one year after losing it was Oakland (1988-89). Texas is the first team to repeat as AL champions since the New York Yankees won four straight pennants from 1998-2001. …Texas hasn't lost consecutive games since dropping three in a row to Boston from Aug. 23-25. ... The only time these teams met in interleague play was June 2004, when the Cardinals took two of three in Texas.

St. Louis scored 27 runs during the weekend series, but the Rangers beat Carpenter 7-2. …The matchup between two of baseball's deepest bullpens should be fascinating. Cardinals manager Tony La Russa was extremely aggressive during the NL Championship Series against division rival Milwaukee, pulling his starters early at the first sign of real trouble. It worked, thanks to poised performances from unheralded arms such as Lynn, Motte, Salas, Dotel and Rzepczynski. La Russa wanted an eight-man bullpen with enough right-handers to attack Milwaukee's big right-handed bats.

He faces a similar scenario against Texas, especially after Cruz went on a record tear to win MVP honors in the ALCS. … Rangers skipper Ron Washington has a host of weapons in his 'pen, too. Ogando, an all-star starter this season, tamed the Tigers in the ALCS along with Feliz, Feldman, Adams and Oliver. … 

With three left-handers in the Texas rotation, Theriot and outfielder Allen Craig (.315, 11, 40, 200 ABs) could see significant playing time for the Cardinals. Freese, the NLCS MVP who is enjoying a big postseason, might also move up in the lineup, with Jay dropping down toward the bottom. …

Even though they boast some bruising right-handed bats in the middle of the order, the Cardinals had trouble with a pair of lefties in the NL playoffs: Philadelphia's Cole Hamels and Milwaukee's Randy Wolf. St. Louis did rally against Lee to springboard a stunning upset of the heavily favored Phillies in the first round. … Texas has been waiting for a big start from Wilson this post-season. A potential free agent after the World Series, perhaps he's feeling the pressure. The lefty is 0-2 with an 8.04 ERA in 3 outings. … 

Pujols can also become a free agent this fall. He's having a strong post-season, and if he leaves St. Louis it would be a surprise. …The wild-card Cardinals have home-field advantage in the World Series because the NL won the all-star game for the second straight year after a long drought. … 

The versatile Young can start at 1B when NL rules eliminate the DH in St. Louis. Moreland was 2 for 19 (.105) in the playoffs. ... Rhodes can get his first ring either way. He was released by Texas on Aug. 8 and signed with St. Louis three days later. … The Rangers sent Oliver to the Cardinals at the July 1998 trade deadline.

Big Picture

Rangers: Texas set a franchise record with 96 victories and won its second consecutive AL West title after more than a decade out of the playoffs. This is the Rangers' fifth time in the post-season, all as division winners (1996, 1998, 1999, 2010, 2011). … Texas finished the regular season winning its last six games, and 14 of 16, to hold off Detroit for home-field advantage in the first round. That came in handy when the teams met in the ALCS as the Rangers went 3-0 at home to eliminate the Tigers with a 15-5 romp in Game 6. … 

The Rangers have increased their win total each year under Washington, who is in his fifth season. ... Though they lost Lee to Philadelphia in the offseason, the Rangers bulked up their offence with the additions of Napoli in a trade and free-agent Beltre, who chose Texas over the Angels. Beltre, who missed six weeks with a strained left hamstring, hit 12 homers in the last 16 regular-season games. Then he homered three times in the Game 4 clincher at Tampa Bay during the division series. … 

Napoli ended the regular season with consecutive two-homer games at Los Angeles, where he had previously played. Then he had a go-ahead homer in Game 3 of the division series after a key two-run single in Game 2 when Rangers fans were chanting his name. He batted .316 with a HR and five RBIs in the AL playoffs. Murphy quietly hit .391. … 

The Rangers had three players with 30 homers (Kinsler, Beltre and Napoli and DH, the two spots expected for Young after Beltre signed. Once he got to spring training, Young put his focus on the field and in his 11th season hit a career-best .338 while splitting time between DH and the infield. He was struggling in the playoffs before breaking out with five RBIs in Game 6 against Detroit. ...

After winning the AL MVP award last season, Hamilton was only a dozen days into the new season when he sustained a non-displaced fracture at the top of his right arm when he tried to score with a daring dash on a foul popup at Detroit. He was out six weeks. … 

The Rangers were already in first place to stay when Hamilton and Cruz (strained right quadriceps) returned to the lineup May 23. … Texas led the majors with a .283 batting average, was second with 210 seasons with 30 homers, 100 RBIs and a .300 batting average. … Deadline deals for Furcal and Jackson paid off, although Furcal struggled defensively down the stretch, committing five errors in a six-game stretch in the waning days. … 

The hard-throwing Motte was successful overall in an audition for the 2012 closer job after developing a reliable off-speed pitch to complement his high-90s (mph) fastball. He was outstanding in the playoffs, too. … The Cardinals overcame adversity down the stretch. Motte was wild as they blew a four-run lead in the ninth inning against the Mets in game No. 156. In game No. 157, McClellan gave up a tiebreaking homer in the eighth.

Schumaker went 6-for-10 in the division series with 2 doubles and 3 RBIs. He drove in the only run against Halladay in the first inning of Game 5.