Oso planning to go pro
Apparently Ned Yost is managing the pitching for the Dodgers too. Over 100 pitches, into the 7th inning, loads the bases, gives up 2 runs. Hell, lets just keep him in there!
Raise your hand if you had KC and Baltimore 1 win away from meeting in the ALCS.
Anibal Sanchez to the DL, Verlander left tonight's game with right shoulder soreness. Clubhouse lacks a fiery leader, as it has for the last several years. Move your money to KC.
Ahem.
And it won't matter. With the exception of the starting rotation, Cabrera, V Martinez, and Kinsler, Detroit is below average. No dirtbags. No one I expect to raise their game in the playoffs. Several I expect to do worse in the playoffs. Maybe it will be enough, but in my heart of hearts, I think Mr. I is disappointed yet again.
Bump again. My love affair with the Tigers goes back over 40 years. This year, I am saddened, I am disappointed, but I am not surprised. A bad mash up of talent. A new coach who was not the hard ass this team needed. The Fister trade was so mind-bogglingly bad that, IMO, it was foreshadowing how weird this season was going to be. Iglesias injury leading to more bad trades, streaky hitting, streaky starting pitching, a lack of production from half the line up, a dumpster fire of a bullpen where not one guy could be counted on throughout the entire season, the revolving door of other team's castoff closers since Nathan was so bad, never picking up a bat to bring off the bench. The team has lacked a dirtbag since their 2006 run. Just another disappointing year.
Feel for you Tower. I liked Baltimore in this series. Stunned by KC over LAA, though. Angels just didn't hit in the first two games. Big guns (Trout, Pujols, Kendrick, Hamilton) 5-50 in the series. That's not going to get it done. Still like Baltimore over KC.
Underdogs who have won:4 - KC, KC, Baltimore, SFUnderdogs who lead:1- SFFavorites who have won:0Favorites who lead:0Series that are tied:1- STL vs LAWow. Talk about your crap shoots.
Agree with you on the crap shoot part, but was Detroit really the betting favorite over Baltimore? Baltimore better record, home-field advantage, better/deeper lineup, better bench, starting rotation with better ERA and vastly superior bullpen and defense, not to mention manager. I would have thought Baltimore was a favorite in that series.I have a general rule when it comes to betting on baseball. The rule is, "Don't bet on baseball."
Not surprising. I mentioned months ago to you Lenny that having the best record has never meant the best team, especially when injuries down the stretch are masked by that record. Baseball, especially, where you can get the best record because you win your fair share of games with the 4th and 5th starter, who rarely pitch in the playoffs. If you have 3 good starters, and you're hot, key injuries, etc....that's all it takes....especially in baseball where one pitcher can dominate.I love baseball for that reason, the nuance is terrific. The same team is never on the field one game to the next because the pitching is so different. Unlike any other sport.
Sounds like you're saying it's one big crapshoot, a competition in which any of the participants can (and do) win. Unlike basketball (NCAA or NBA) where a big chunk of the teams have no realistic chance of winning. Hmmmmm...
Go back over the last few years and see what I've said. NCAA basketball, biggest crapshoot out there. NBA basketball, not a crapshoot at all. You continue to want to make the NCAA tournament not a crapshoot and you continue to be wrong.You also continue to make the mistake you have always made, which is to assign the "best team" to the one with the best record, which is wildly inaccurate and shown to you many times over. I can't help you on this one.
Are you saying the Angels weren't the best team in baseball throughout the regular season? I would have to completely disagree with you there. The best record in baseball by 2 games in the toughest division in baseball. No question about it, the Angels were the best team in baseball.
This Angles team reminds me of the mid-2000 Yankees who had a home run high octane offense that seemed to disappear in the playoffs when they started facing better pitching. The 2014 Angels were way different than early 2000 Angels that were well balanced much like the Yankees of the late 1990s.
I get what you are saying, but 27 teams would trade their Number 1 starter straight up for Kershaw to start Game 1 of the playoffs. Seattle probably wouldn't and St. Louis might not. His xFIP is 3.69 in the postseason, 3.19 overall in his career.
I can agree with this, but they were still the best team in baseball through 162 regular season games.