October has arrived in all its glory. That means it’s time for the leaves to change colors, Michael Jackson to come back from the dead on Halloween night and, best of all, postseason baseball to hit full swing.It took an extra game between the Tigers and the Twins to finally get us here, but that game was only an appetizer of what could shape up to be a very exciting MLB playoffs.Let’s start with the National League, where the defending champion Philadelphia Phillies will face the Colorado Rockies and the St. Louis Cardinals will meet the Los Angeles Dodgers.NATIONAL LEAGUEExpect both these series to go four or five games. The NL was very strong up top this season, and the hunt for the wild card came down to the final week of the season with the Rockies barely beating out the Braves, who made a strong September push.With that said, it will be the Phillies in four games and the Cardinals in five.The Phillies have so much offensive power, led by Ryan Howard’s 45 regular season homers and Shane Victorino’s .292 batting average. Oh, and let’s not forget their pitching staff is just as good, if not better with veteran Cliff Lee on the mound, as last year’s championship team.The Rockies slumped a little bit at the end of the season and limped into the postseason thanks to the Braves’ faltering at the end. Colorado is a good team, but it just doesn’t have the offense to match up with these Phillies.In the other matchup, the Cardinals will take the Dodgers to five and beat them in Los Angeles to reach the National League Championship series.I can’t say this anymore vehemently than I have already have — I can’t stand Manny Ramirez. He is bad for the game, and he is bad for his team. I hope he just goes far, far away.Los Angeles crawled into the postseason losing six of their last nine games with a divisional title on the line. That is not impressive at all.The Cardinals will then turn around and defeat the Phillies in the NLCS thanks to Albert Pujols blasting a 450-foot shot in game seven to win it for St. Louis.AMERICAN LEAGUEThe AL is a bit trickier for me, especially in the matchup between an East Coast and a West Coast team — the Los Angeles Angels against the Boston Red Sox.My gut instinct tells me to go with the under-the-radar Angels in five, but that other part of me says take the Sox.I’ll go with my gut and say the Angels in five. At one time this season, the Angels had nine players (yes, that’s right) hitting .300 or better. That’s insane. With that kind of fire power on offense, who needs pitching? The Red Sox haven’t impressed me very much this season, as they have fallen victim to lackluster pitching.The Angels will face the Yankees in the American League Championship Series, as New York will take down a tired Twins team, coming off a one-game playoff victory against the Tigers.It will be the Yankees to make it to the World Series in six games against the Angels.Derek Jeter is itching to get back into the World Series, while A-Rod is still looking for his first ring. Those two, along with offseason acquisitions Mark Teixeira and CC Sabathia, will carry the team to the postseason. Plus, don’t forget about the best closer of all time, Mariano Rivera, who will help bring the Yankees to the promised land.WORLD SERIESI said it at the All-Star break, and I’ll say it again: The Cardinals will beat the Yankees in six games.Here’s what it boils down to — St. Louis has a two-headed pitching monster.Adam Wainwright with 212 strikeouts and Chris Carpenter with a 2.24 ERA are both Cy Young candidates, and they won’t let this team down come World Series time. Each will start two games if needed to take care of business against a powerful Yankees team.Those are my predictions. Take ‘em or leave ‘em. Just know this — at All-Star break, I picked seven of the eight playoffs teams. Not too shabby.- – – -Contact Andy Schwehm at [email protected]