A Giant Upset/Red-Less October.

See? What did I say? Anytime I pick a team to win it all, or even to advance, I'm wrong. But it seems that the Cincinnati Reds were doomed before I even picked them, and it started when they were matched up against the San Francisco Giants in the Division Series.

Posey's performance on both sides of the plate has propelled the Giants into another postseason victory.

Before 2010, the Giants hadn't won a World Series since 1954, when Willie Mays made "The Catch" and the team was still located in New York. Then, after handily taking care of the Rangers in 5 games, they missed a repeat appearance in 2011. This year, they weren't necessarily considered favorites. Sure, Matt Cain threw a perfect game, and Buster Posey blossomed into a MVP candidate, but Tim Lincecum's arm mysteriously broke down, and Brian Wilson's absence in the bullpen left no beard to be feared. Matters were only made worse when All-Star Game MVP and burgeoning superstar Melky Cabrera was suspended for 50 games after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug. However, the Giants persevered and clinched their second division crown in 3 years (you'll hear a lot of that "second x in 3 years" in the next few sentences, just a heads up). Their team stats matched up nicely to everyone else's: they ranked 5th in baseball with a .269 team batting average, and were in the top half of every defensive stat, ranking as high as 6th in quality starts with 93. They found themselves down 0-2 to the Reds, the winners in the Central, but when the series moved to Cincinnati, the Giants seemed to come alive, highlighted by the grand slam hit by Posey in Game 5. Posey, for those of you wondering (which is all of you), became the third catcher in history to hit a grand slam in a decisive postseason game, behind the Cubs' Eddie Perez in the 1998 NLDS and the Yankees' Yogi Berra in the 1956 World Series. Against nearly all odds, the Giants turned in a pretty spectacular 3 games in Great American Ball Park, and all while history was against them: they have become the first team to be facing elimination in the National League Division Series 0-2, then come back to win 3-2.

Latos helped the Reds to a division win, but his performance in the postseason was less than helpful.

In comparison, history was not in the Reds' favor either: they are winless in elimination games in 1975. Completely. And today was no exception. After an offseason that saw Joey Votto become the top first baseman in the National League, with Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder jumping to the American League, the Reds led the division for almost the entire year. The Cardinals, Pirates and even the Brewers threatened for a few weeks, but this was always Cincinnati's division to lose. With stellar offensive performances turned in by Votto and fellow powerhouse Jay Bruce, and the addition of hurler Mat Latos behind Cy Young candidate Johnny Cueto, they seemed poised to finish what they started when Bruce's walk-off homer blasted them into the postseason in 2010, which was cut short when Roy Halladay no-hit them in Game 1, and the rest of the Phillies quickly dispatched them in the Division Series. This year's Reds fared slightly better in terms of team stats: they ranked between 13th and 21st in all offensive stats, finding their strength being slugging percentage (.411), but it was their pitching that truly kept their hopes alive, ranking no lower than 7th in any defensive stat, and notching 3rd in baseball in WHIP with 1.23, and 4th in ERA and QS with 3.34 and 98, respectively. Homer Bailey turned in a nice game with a no-hitter against the Pirates in the final week of the season, but their regular season success just didn't translate, and after beasting through the first two games of the Division Series, they faltered and allowed the Giants to advance in their stead. Facing their second first-round exit in 3 years, the Reds will have to figure out a way to make themselves better before missing another opportunity in 2013.

So, the Giants await the winner of the Cardinals-Nationals series for their opponent in the Championship Series. Nothing in the American League has been decided just yet, but seeing as there's at least one Game 5 on the horizon in the next 30 hours, we'll soon have at least one more contender.