The Major League Baseball postseason is a time for unknown players to become household names. Last year the Phillies Shane Victorino became known in more than just Philadelphia for his great catches in center field and his clutch homeruns. He even became hated in Los Angeles for his antics after Dodgers starter Hiroki Kuroda threw at his head. The Phillies Matt Stairs is a folk hero in Philadelphia as his game-winning pinch-hit 2-run homerun off of Dodgers closer Jonathon Broxton will be the lasting memory on Phillies fans from last season’s World Series championship. Last year the Rays David Price became more than just a number one overall pick in the draft. He became a hero in a beleaguered bullpen against Boston, saving Game 7 of the ALCS and sending the Rays to the World Series. There would not have been controversy following the 2006 season about whether or not the Cardinals Adam Wainwright should be a starter, if he had not been dominant in the playoffs and World Series as a closer in 2006. David Eckstein, who introduced himself to the nation as part of the 2002 World Series champion Angels, re-introduced himself as the 2006 World Series MVP with the Cardinals. Eckstein is regularly criticized because of his throwing motion and his stature, yet he carried his teams into the postseason and put up numbers worthy of an MVP (.364, 4 RBI, 3 doubles, and just one strikeout). He also tied for the team lead in World Series RBIs.
Dave Roberts of the Boston Red Sox is remembered for one of the greatest plays in Red Sox history and is a folk hero in Boston. His stealing of second base in the 9th inning of Game 4 of the 2004 ALCS against the Yankees led to him scoring and tying the game. Everyone knew he was going to try and steal and yet he still made it. This then led the way for the Red Sox shocking victory after being down 3-0 in the series. This then lead to the Red Sox winning the World Series and ending the curse. In 2005, White Sox rookie closer Bobby Jenks became known as the tall, wide guy coming out of the bullpen every time manager Ozzie Guillen came out to make a pitching change for him. Who can forget Guillen’s hand signals?
Who can forget Josh Beckett’s dominance of the Yankees in the 2003 World Series for the Marlins? In winning the World Series MVP, Beckett had the most innings pitched of any Marlins pitcher, along with a 1.10 ERA and 19 strikeouts. The other unknown young Marlins also became hot commodities as teams jumped on the chance to cash in on another Marlins fire-sale: Beckett, Mike Lowell, Derek Lee, Juan Pierre, Miguel Cabrera, Brad Penny, Carl Pavano, and Dontrelle Willis. The 2002 playoffs was the year of the Rally Monkey, but a rookie reliever was the player who stood out. Francisco “K-Rod” Rodriguez became an overnight sensation for his devasting pitches (fastball and 2 types of curveballs) and celebratory antics after the final out. K-Rod won 5 postseason games yet had only pitched in 5 games all season for the Angels before making the postseason roster. He had 13 strikeouts in just 8.2 innings pitched in the World Series. The above listing is only of the postseason surprises and heroes of the 2000s. There are so many more and too many to name (like Craig Counsell with both the Diamondbacks and Marlins and others).

So who are the 2009 surprises and heroes? Jeff Mathis of the Angels. The catcher had the worst batting average of any position player in 2009, yet he had hits in 6 straight at-bats in this postseason, along with a game winner. Does this mean Mathis will play more than just catching John Lackey or as a late-inning replacement? We will see.

Carlos Ruiz of the Phillies. “Chooch” could have (and to me should have) won the 2008 World Series MVP. However he seems to still be a secret among fans and opposing teams. Teams run on him and he throws them out trying to steal and they pitch to him and he crushes it (at least in the postseason). Ruiz has learned that the postseason is the time to shine. In 2008, Ruiz hit .261 overall in the postseason, though in the World Series he hit .375 with 3 RBIs and with 3 of his hits being for extra bases (2 doubles, 1 homerun). In 2009, Ruiz has been better, hitting .346 with 7 RBIs. Even NLCS MVP Ryan Howard admitted that without Ruiz, the Phillies would not be in the World Series.

Alex Rodriguez of the Yankees. Okay, A-Rod is not the typical surprise but knowing his career postseason statistics, he is surprising everyone. A-Rod has been absolutely on fire and manager Joe Girardi is usually speechless when talking about what he has done this postseason. And what has he done? Oh just hit .400 with 5 homeruns and 11 RBIs. This after only having 7 homeruns and 17 RBIs in 39 prior postseason games. The postseason is not finished yet, as the World Series is right around the corner. Will there be another unsung hero on the final two teams?