NFL Network analyst and Hall of Fame finalist Terrell Davis said hes sure Manning is looking a lot deeper.My gut tells

BOSTON - As the clock ticks toward Wednesday nights first pitch of the World Series, theres a sense around Fenway Park that justice is being served. In this day of wild card play-in games and short five-game Division Series which can be won as often by the team thats hot as by the team thats truly better, its rare for the two teams with their respective leagues best records to meet in the Fall Classic. Thats what will happen this year when the Boston Red Sox (regular season: 97-65; playoffs: 7-3) meet the St. Louis Cardinals (regular season: 97-65; playoffs: 7-4.) Identical regular season records, nearly the same postseason marks and two organizations considered amongst the best in baseball at drafting and developing talent and molding young men into bona fide major leaguers. It should come as no surprise that since these two teams met in the 2004 World Series, each has returned more than once. The Red Sox swept the Cardinals in 2004. Boston swept the Rockies in 2007. The Cardinals beat Detroit in five games in 2006 and edged Texas in seven in 2011. Both have managers - Bostons John Farrell and St. Louis Mike Matheny - who will skip in the World Series for the first time. Heck, Mathenys so young he played on that 2004 Cardinals team that lost to Boston quickly. "It was a lesson learned," said Matheny of the World Series nine years ago. "Not that our team at that point was half-stepping or we werent prepared but we just hadnt been hit like that all season long. So it was a little bit of a shocker." "Theres probably a little more sense of urgency to the decisions you make, particularly with matchups on the mound," said Farrell of the biggest difference hes noticed while managing playoff baseball. "And sometimes you kind of go a little bit more with your gut with the way guys are currently playing, as opposed to the approach you might take during the regular season." Those who dig great pitching will get a marquee matchup right away. Red Sox ace left-hander Jon Lester will pitch Game 1, up against Cardinals ace right-hander Adam Wainwright. Lester got the ball the last time Boston played in a World Series game. He got the win and the Sox clinched their last title in Game 4 of the 2007 series. "I remember just the anxiety of trying to just get to the field and calm down a little bit," said Lester. "Different point in my career, I think, too. Obviously (Wednesday) there will still be nerves, there will still be all that to be expected, but I think I know who I am a little bit more as a pitcher and what to expect from myself." "This year I felt strong from the get-go," said Wainwright, who won 19 games, with a sub-3.00 ERA, just two years removed from Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery. "I felt strong throughout Spring Training. Usually I get a dead-arm phase in Spring Training. I never once had a dead-arm phase this entire year." The Cardinals lost left-hander Jaime Garcia early in the season but have been buoyed by the emergence of Michael Wacha, who will pitch Game 2. Drafted just last year with the 19th overall pick - a compensatory pick for the loss of Albert Pujols to the Los Angeles Angels - Wacha has taken the Cardinals by storm. After only 15 regular season appearances (nine starts,) Wacha has allowed only one earned run in 21 innings (0.43 ERA) over three postseason starts. His 0.571 WHIP is off the charts. Following Wacha will be a combination of Joe Kelly and Lance Lynn. Boston will start John Lackey in Game 2. Farrell will go with Clay Buchholz and Jake Peavy for the first two games in St. Louis, although he hasnt yet determined the order in which hell use them. St. Louis pitching hasnt seen a lineup the quality of Bostons and so it will be intriguing to see how it handles the Red Soxs potent mix of power (David Ortiz, Mike Napoli) and speed at the top of the order (Jacoby Ellsbury, Shane Victorino.) Ellsbury and Victorino combined to steal 73 bases in the regular season. They were caught a combined seven times. That said, there arent many catchers the quality of Yadier Molina, who threw out a whopping 43-percent of would-be base stealers. As impressive a percentage as that is its actually below his career average of 45 per cent and his career high of 64 per cent, set in 2005. "We all understand and I played against Yadi for many years and I tip my hat," said Victorino. "To me, hes arguably the best catcher in the game both offensively and defensively … Does it shut down your running game a little bit? Absolutely but you have to stay aggressive and capitalize on every mistake and every dirt ball you can possibly do." The Cardinals will get first baseman Allen Craig back. He hasnt played since spraining his left foot in a September 4 game against the Reds. Craig will serve as the designated hitter in the first two games at Fenway Park. If his foot responds, expect to see him at first base when the series shifts to Busch Stadium. As for the challenges of playing in Fenway Park, with the Green Monster and its strange dimensions in centre and right fields, Craig says he and his mates wont be psyched out. "I think we just need to stay really focused and narrow-minded on just playing the game," said Craig. "Were going to go out and play our game and not worry about the Green Monster and all the nooks and crannies in the outfield. Obviously were aware of the field and how we need to attack it defensively and offensively but were just going to focus on playing the game, doing what we do, doing what got us here." Canadian Ryan Dempster, with the Red Sox, is looking for his first World Series ring. So is St. Louis Carlos Beltran, whose career .337/.449/.724 postseason slash line makes him one of the games great playoff performers. This Fall Classic appears poised to live up to the billing. The two best teams will go at it. Bring it on. Carolina Panthers Jordan Scarlett Jersey . The Giants chances of winning the division were dealt a serious blow by the three-game sweep at the hands of the lowly Padres. The Giants open a three-game series at Dodger Stadium on Monday night. San Francisco is still in good shape to clinch a wild-card berth, although it dropped into a tie with Pittsburgh in the race for the top spot. Cheap Carolina Panthers Jerseys Online . The Oilers jumped into the free agent market early by signing defencemen Keith Aulie (six-foot-six, 228 pounds) and Mark Fayne (6-3, 210 pounds) and left-winger Benoit Pouliot (6-3, 197-pounds). Two days earlier MacTavish traded lightweight forward Sam Gagner to Tampa Bay for 6-3, 203-pound right winger Ted Purcell. http://www.cheappanthers.com/ . Mike Trout, Josh Hamilton and Kole Calhoun all homered to help the Los Angeles Angels get their first win of the season with an 11-1 rout of the Houston Astros. Carolina Panthers Jerseys China . The 25-year-old native of Milford, Conn., has 18 points in 41 games this season. The five-foot-eight 166-pound centre also has 28 points (10-18) in 15 games with AHL Oklahoma City. Carolina Panthers Will Grier Jersey .twitter.com/TeZD3KOvlA — Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) September 24, 2014 Sorry for the delay, we just got back from lunch at Papa Vons #NBAFastFood pic.ENGLEWOOD, Colo. - As Peyton Manning considers whether to take the gold watch or make one more run at the silver trophy, there are many factors hes weighing: age, desire, vitality, security, relationships.General manager John Elway said the bottom line is we want him back. So, he asked Manning not to make up his mind until next month after hes had time to process everything.Back in September, Manning said he liked Tom Bradys When I suck, Ill retire quote.Thats a pretty good rule, Manning said on the eve of a season that was filled with fun (planning his own prank after breaking Brett Favres touchdown record) and frustration (another first-round flop in the playoffs after a nagging thigh injury).Hes surely pondering whether an 18th NFL season would look more like the first half of 2014, when a sixth MVP award seemed to await, or the second half, when he struggled to find rhythm and receivers alike.If he decides to come back, hell give everything he has because thats the kind of competitor he is and the love he has for this game, teammate Julius Thomas said Monday while promoting the release of the Havoc DLC pack for Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare.And if he decides his time of running around and getting chased by big guys is over, hell have so much to show for it.Although the sting of that last loss — 24-13 to the Colts — is sure to linger, NFL Network analyst and Hall of Fame finalist Terrell Davis said hes sure Manning is looking a lot deeper.My gut tells me that he comes back, Davis said. But if he comes back just because he didnt want to go out like this, I dont know if thats the right reason. You come back because you love the game, you want to compete, you enjoy working out, you enjoy going to practice.Manning has a lot of things to think about as he ponders his future:NEW FACES: Adam Gase and Manning were the perfect pair in Denver. Two mad scientists who liked to floor the high-octane offence. Now, Gase is in Chicago with John Fox, and Gary Kubiak is the Broncos coach and Rick Dennison his top offensive assistant.Although Kubiaks West Coast offence doesnt att first glance seem to jibe with Mannings improvisational style, Kubiak said its easy to build a playbook for him.ddddddddddddKubiak found it odd discussing the future of a player whos coming off a season in which he threw 39 TD passes.Look what he continues to do. The offence Peyton runs, hes tremendous at it, back there in the gun controlling the game, controlling the line of scrimmage. Nobody has ever done it better and hes the master at it, Kubiak said. Actually, Im looking forward to learning that style and that system that he has.Manning has successfully adjusted before. The last two times he had a new head coach, he went 14-2 and 13-3.BETTER PROTECTION: Manning paid a big price for Denvers trouble-filled offensive line, and Elway said hell fix it this off-season like he did the defence a year ago.Two starters — centre Will Montgomery and left guard Orlando Franklin — are among Denvers dozen unrestricted free agents. The other starters: Ryan Clady, Louis Vasquez and Manny Ramirez will be trying to recapture their old form after substandard seasons.AGE OR INJURY: Was that fizzling finish an omen or an aberration? Even if Manning determines it was health, not age, to blame, he has to decide if hes willing to put his body and mind through the grind of another season.I could see Peyton going both ways, Davis said. Theres no guarantee that if Peyton comes back hes going to be in any better situation. I think any quarterback or any player would love to walk out on top, thats the ideal way to walk out of this game. But the reality is thats not how most of us leave this game.And so, thats really the question that only Peyton can answer: How does he feel right now? And not right now, give him about a month or so and get away from this stuff, detox and heal up, and then start to miss the game, start getting that fire back in his belly.Notes: Kubiaks staff is taking shape. Agreeing to terms Monday were Dennison and TE coach Reggie Herring. 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