You worry a little about Peralta's age (33), but he should have another good season in him.

Left field: Alex Gordon versus Matt Holliday

Holliday has aged well and even at 35 projects to be a force at the plate, although he is coming off a career-worst .270 average and lowest OPS+ since his first two years with the Rockies. Still, Gordon is the guy here. He's an elite defender in left who has deservedly won four straight Gold Gloves. One of the highlights of the playoffs was seeing Gordon -- and the rest of his outfield mates -- get national recognition for their ability to run down everything in the outfield. At the plate, Gordon hit a respectable .266/.351/.432, although a terrible September dragged down his numbers.

Edge: Royals.

Center field:FIP in 2013 versus 3.35 in 2014. Why the ERA improvement? In 2013, batters hit .299 with runners in scoring position; in 2014, .194.

Edge: Cardinals.

No. 3 starter: Danny Duffy versus Michael Wacha

This matchup is all about health. Duffy missed some time in September with rotator cuff inflammation (and has a Tommy John surgery in his past), although returned to pitch out of the bullpen in the postseason. Wacha, meanwhile, missed several months with a scapular stress injury in his shoulder, a fairly rare injury for a pitcher -- Brandon McCarthy suffered one earlier in his career and is apparently the only documented case of recovery. When Wacha returned late in the season he certainly didn't look like the same pitcher. So ... call me concerned. While Duffy's 2.52