#or another astros-dodgers world series?

[blusical]

ngl i think the worst part about this year's world series is the unreasonably toxic and aggressive discourse about whether or not both teams actually deserve to be there and how nobody besides yankees fans, dodgers fans and the mlb themselves actually wanted this world series.

[historicallysam]

I was tagged by @14carrotghoul for WIP Wednesday and since I don't really write except for on Fridays, for the most part, here we are.

Please enjoy another little snippet from my only current WIP, (currently) titled The Artful Dodger:

“My wrist is better,” Alex insists, rotating it so Henry can see.  “I’ve got a clean bill of health and passed the medic-”

“I’m not saying that to worry you, Alex,” Henry interrupts.  “I don’t think there’s anything standing in your way of playing the full year.  Your injury was in the early summer last year and you excelled the rest of the season.  It’s why you were courted so heavily in the off season.”

“You know about my off season?”

“Pez was already in negotiations by the end of the World Series last year.  You had generous offers from six different teams, including the Astros, which would have put you closer to home.”

“Fuckin’ hate the Astros,” Alex mutters and Henry smiles.

“The Dodgers are fortunate to have you, Alex.”  Alex tracks as Henry’s eyes subtly scan his face and upper body.  It’s fucking flattering, for sure.  “These meetings are just so I can get to know the players.  I’ve got lunch scheduled with your agent for Thursday.”

“Don’t let him tell you any lies about me.”

Henry laughs again.  “You and Mr. Brewster have been friends since grade school, I believe, correct?”

“Yup,” Alex agrees.  “He got the business and sports management degrees and I got the MVPs.”

“You studied history and politics at UT?”

“Really did your homework, didn’t you?” Alex asks. 

He’s a little obsessed with the way Henry blushes.  “As I said, I just want to get to know the players.”

[laresearchette]

Sunday, April 28, 2024 Canadian TV Listings (Times Eastern)

WHERE CAN I FIND THOSE PREMIERES? MILF MANOR (TLC Canada) 10:00pm

WHAT IS <i>NOT</i> PREMIERING IN CANADA TONIGHT?: MICHAEL STRAHAN X JON BON JOVI: HALFWAY THERE (ABC Feed) GUILT (PBS Feed) HOW DISNEY BUILT AMERICA (Premiering on April 30 on History Channel Canada at 10:00pm) THE MEGA-BRANDS THAT BUILT AMERICA (Premiering on April 30 on History Channel Canada at 9:00pm)

NEW TO AMAZON PRIME CANADA/CBC GEM/CRAVE TV/DISNEY + STAR/NETFLIX CANADA:

<b>AMAZON PRIME CANADA</b> THE CONTRACTOR

<b>CBC GEM</b> CANADA’S ULTIMATE CHALLENGE (Season 2) RACE AGAINST THE TIDE (Season 4)

IIHF U18 MEN’S HOCKEY (TSN3) 8:00am: Sweden vs. Czechia (TSN5) 11:00am: U.S. vs. Latvia (TSN3) 12:00pm: Canada vs. Switzerland

MLB BASEBALL (SN1) 1:00pm: Dodgers vs. Jays (SN Now) 4:00pm: Phillies vs. Padres (TSN3/TSN4) 4:00pm: Astros vs. Rockies (TSN3) 7:00pm: Cubs vs. Red Sox

NBA BASKETBALL (TSN4) 1:00pm: Game 4 - Knicks vs, 76ers (TSN4) 3:30pm: Game 4 - Clippers vs. Mavericks (TSN/TSN4/TSN5) 7:00pm: Game 4 - Bucks vs. Pacers (TSN/TSN4) 9:30pm: Game 4 - Timberwolves vs. Suns

NHL HOCKEY (SN) 5:00pm: Game 4 - Canucks vs. Predators (SN/SN360) 8:00pm: Game 4 - Rangers vs. Capitals (SN/SN1) 10:00pm: Game 4 - Oilers vs. Kings

RACE AGAINST THE TIDE (CBC) 7:00pm/7:30pm (SEASON PREMIERE):  The world's best sand-sculpting teams arrive in the Bay of Fundy to show off their skills.  In Episode Two, the nine remaining teams travel through time to bring to life giant, jaw-dropping sand sculptures from another era.

CANADA’S ULTIMATE CHALLENGE (CBC) 8:00pm (SEASON PREMIERE):  Twenty extraordinary Canadians form five formidable teams and face-off in a massive cross-country obstacle course competition; the action kicks off in St. John's with two epic challenges.

GHOSTING (CBC) 9:00pm/9:30pm (SERIES PREMIERE): Luke Hutchie and Matthew Finlan, actors turned amateur ghostbusters, step off the script and into their own thriller as they investigate the infamous Merrill House.  In Episode Two,

SULLIVAN'S CROSSING (CTV) 9:00pm: Maggie, Cal, Lola, and Sydney help Edna prepare the campground for a storm; Frank helps Sully figure out what has been eating at him.

BIG BROTHER CANADA (Global) 9:00pm

TRUE JUSTICE (CTV Drama) 9:00pm (SERIES PREMIERE):  A law school student and her friends set out to prove her brother is innocent of murder, but the only way to clear his name is to find the real killer.

HOME TOWN (HGTV Canada) 9:00pm (SEASON PREMIERE):  Ben and Erin plan to celebrate Mother's Day by surprising their close friend with a nursery; Ben plans a surprise of his own for Erin by building a greenhouse in their backyard using recycled materials.

THE PROOF IS OUT THERE: MILITARY MYSTERIES (History Channel Canada) 9:00pm (SERIES PREMIERE): Combat veterans Rudy Reyes and Ronnie Adkins unravel the mysteries behind the strangest and most controversial images, sounds and documents from the modern history of war.

WHEN CALLS THE HEART (Super Channel Heart & Home) 9:00pm: It's Easter in Hope Valley, so Elizabeth organizes an egg hunt with help from Nathan; a visitor from Lucas' past gets the town talking; Angela and Cooper seek to mend a relationship.

PROSPER (Super Channel Fuse) 9:00pm: Issy and Benji take matters into their own hands with their roles in the church.

THE CURSE OF OAK ISLAND (History Canada) 10:00pm: Hairy Situation

BRYAN'S ALL IN (HGTV Canada) 10:00pm: Dreaming of one day living a simpler life on the lake, Michelle and Jesse need to transform their new cabin into a hotspot vacation rental; they hope that this property will be the first of many rentals, but they need Bryan's help to get them back.

[glanzer2]

2024 MLB Predictions

My annual MLB predictions are back, and after two astounding years of exactly predicting the World Series outcomes Braves over Astros in 2021, and Dodgers over Rays in 2020, I came back down to earth with a very incorrect Brewers/Blue Jays guess in 2022, and another poor prediction in Astros/Padres in 2023. I did get over half the playoff teams correct last year, at least, including the Rangers,…

[jose-berojos]

2023 Final Season Predictions

Gonna try to do one of these for each quarter mark of the season, because why not! This one’s a bit late, but I wrote the whole thing last week and am sticking by it even as some of my predictions already look bad.

Standings

AL East Rays: 105-57 (z) Orioles: 91-71 (w) Blue Jays: 89-73 (w) Red Sox: 84-78 Yankees: 79-83

AL Beast is very real. Playing slightly under their post-win streak pace of .640, the Rays easily take the best record in baseball. The Orioles sustain their competitiveness against top teams to snag WC2, and the Blue Jays ride a fluctuating season to WC3. Red Sox cool off but their offense still carries them to above .500, Yankees’ depth issues holds them to a respectable but uncharacteristic last place.

AL Central Twins: 89-73 (y) Guardians: 81-81 Tigers: 72-90 White Sox: 67-95 Royals: 64-98

The AL Central, as expected, takes the worst of the balanced schedule, with 3 of the AL’s 4 90-loss teams. Twins maintain a precarious lead before pulling away late, while the Guardians’ lack of consistent power hurts even as pitching keeps them afloat. The Tigers come back to earth against tough NL teams, but make noticeable improvements. White Sox squeak out over Royals for fourth place, though trending in opposite directions.

AL West Astros: 96-66 (y) Rangers: 94-68 (w) Mariners: 84-78 Angels: 77-85 Athletics: 41-119

The Astros rebound with the return of their injured players, though with a much less commanding lead than usual. The Rangers stay solid behind offense and starting pitching to take WC1, while the Mariners fall back due to offensive struggles but remain above .500. The Angels get Angels’d late, as usual. The Athletics continue their slide with another deadline fire sale (fuck John Fisher).

NL East Braves: 102-60 (z) Phillies: 88-74 (w) Mets: 85-77 Marlins: 74-88 Nationals: 67-95

The Braves cruise to the top seed even with their pitching injuries as the rest of the division falls off. Harper carries the Phillies to WC2 as their pitching rebounds, while the Mets’ roster of expensive old guys never really gets going, but manages a respectable record due to sheer talent. The Marlins’ luck runs out eventually, as does the Nationals’, but this division is primed for a shakeup in the next year or so.

NL Central Brewers: 90-72 (y) Cubs: 85-77 Pirates: 83-79 Cardinals: 70-92 Reds: 65-97

The Brewers’ youth movement works, and they hang on for the lead in a surprisingly competitive division. The Cubs fall just short, snakebitten by close losses. The Pirates drop off but pull a 2022 Orioles by staying over .500. The Cardinals, unable to dig out of their early season hole, have their first 90-loss season since 1990. The Reds’ own youth movement is starting up, but the results are yet to come.

NL West Dodgers: 94-68 (y) Padres: 92-70 (w) Diamondbacks: 87-75 (w) Giants: 73-89 Rockies: 59-103

The Dodgers do typical Dodgers things, coming out on top of a back and forth division battle. The Padres rebound as their offense gets clicking, but can’t quite take the division, settling for WC1. The Diamondbacks snag WC3 on the strength of their young offensive core. The Giants continue their downward slide, while the failing-to-improve Rockies finally have a 100-loss season.

Playoffs

ALWC Rangers 2, Orioles 1 Twins 2, Blue Jays 1

NLWC Padres 2, Phillies 0 Diamondbacks 2, Brewers 1

ALDS Astros 3, Twins 1 Rays 3, Rangers 2

NLDS Padres 3, Dodgers 1 Braves 3, Diamondbacks 1

ALCS Astros 4, Rays 3

NLCS Padres 4, Braves 3

World Series Astros 4, Padres 2

[aestheticvoyage2021]

Day 306: Tuesday November 2, 2021 - “Tomahawk Chop Chop”

A moonshot that left the yard completely, Albert Pujols style 3 run style, was all the Braves would need tonight in Game 6 to end the World Series, and the baseball season.  Ballparks go quiet again until Spring.  It was a fun October, that culminated in a Fall Classic that was watched mostly alongside my mother in law Deni, as we shared in our enthusiasm for the Braves to win it all this year.  I guess if it couldn’t be the Cardinals (out in the wild card), or for her, the Dodgers (out in the NLCS) - it didn’t need to be the Astros.  

Overall it was a great full refreshing season of baseball.  Lots of hours spent listening to the radio while working on flooring projects, or rocking a baby, or soaking in the pool.  My Bulls On Parade ended the year 3rd after a disappointing playoff run - my own season ending over a month ago.  There is always next year.   And I couldnt help tonight, as I watched the Braves light up those victory cigars, resetting the hopes for my two teams, both with some promise ahead, that maybe the fall magic can come visit our house next November and give us really something to cheer about.  And I guess thats what baseball does to you - with its long season and fleeting moments like the All Star Game, or the Field of Dreams, or the Pennant Chases - after 6 months of following all the stats, standings, and storylines, and another month of postseason drama, you can’t help but want for more, for it to not end.  This year it was the Braves, echos of the early 90s when I was a kid.  I ordered a complete set of 2021 Topps Cards for Williams, to stow away from the year he was born, and with the idea of next year I look ahead to fall classics watched with my son, and hope they are as entertaining as this year’s was.

Song: P.O.D. - Boom 

Quote: My motto was always to keep swinging. Whether I was in a slump or feeling badly or having trouble off the field, the only thing to do was keep swinging. ~Hank Aaron

[twins2994]

Astros Shutout Sox To Advance To World Series.

Red Sox 0 Astros 5 W-Garcia (1-1) L-Eovaldi (2-2) 

The Houston Astros somehow took a (3-2) series lead back to Houston and had a chance to clinch a World Series berth with a win tonight. The Astros got off to a good start in the first inning. Alex Bregman lined a two-out single to left to start the inning. The next batter, Yordan Alvarez doubled to center, which scored Bregman and Houston had an early lead. Meanwhile, Luis Garcia threw 5 2/3 shutout innings and allowed just one hit, which was a triple by Kike Hernandez in the sixth. Phil Maton got out of the sixth and the Astros added a run in the bottom of the sixth. Yordan Alvarez led-off with a triple to right and Carlos Correa was hit in the elbow by a pitch. Kyle Tucker hit into a double play, but a run scored to put Houston up by a pair of runs. The Astros put this game to rest in the eighth. Michael Brantley and Yordan Alvarez singled to start the rally. With two outs, Kyle Tucker drilled an Adam Ottavino fastball out to left for a three-run homer. The Astros had a five-run lead as we headed into the ninth inning. Ryan Pressly had a 1-2-3 ninth and the Astros advanced to the World Series with the win tonight. 

-Final Thoughts- Luis Garcia was nothing short of amazing. He threw 5 2/3 shutout innings and allowed a hit with seven strikeouts. His performance was incredible. The Astros bullpen threw 3 1/3 innings and allowed just one hit. Yordan Alvarez has been red hot during this postseason. He had four hits on the night. Houston hit 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base. The Red Sox hit 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position and left four men on base. This was a crazy series where the Red Sox dominated in Games 2 and 3. The Astros won all the other four games and were able to advance to another World Series. They will play the winner of the Braves-Dodgers series on Tuesday night. 

-Chris Kreibich-

[beersfromthebleachers]

2020 Wild Playoff Predictions

The trade deadline arrived and teams are gearing up for the final run in the last month of baseball. In a shortened season that feels like it only started yesterday, the current 2020 season is locking in for the playoffs that follow in October. With the new playoff format shifting to 16 teams in each league, the race is on to see who will be punching their tickets to the postseason. There are a handful of teams who are obvious contenders to make a run in the playoffs; however, with the recent trend of the Nationals and controversial Astros winning their first titles, it would be nice to see other teams try to accomplish that feat. There are also some teams that have been surprising, as their fans had no expectation of them making the playoffs at all. It will be great to see a 'Cinderella story' or a franchise win their first World Series, let's should definitely look at some of the possible contenders to weigh their odds of doing so at the end of the playoffs.

Milwaukee Brewers

The Brewers were particularly quiet at the end of the trade deadline yesterday and made only one move by acquiring David Phelps from the Phillies. They also released Brock Holt and let Logan Morrison elect free agency, which in turn demonstrates that they are losing fire power as far as hitting is concerned. It looks like the Brewers chances are hanging more by a thread of returning back to the playoffs after representing the National League Central over the past two seasons. Still, their playoff odds have not completely gone out the window with their current chances over fifty-percent. What plays more into their favor is who is left on their schedule and which teams they are matched up against. The hardest matchups are against the Cubs, Indians, and the makeup games against the Cardinals. The Brewers should be able to handle the Tigers, Royals, and challenge the Reds on a decent level. The key to returning to the playoffs is outplaying the Cardinals, who will be restless from making up the games they missed from the beginning of the season. Winning those games will be essential for building momentum into the playoffs, and possibly making a deep run trying to win their first World Series.

Toronto Blue Jays

The Blue Jays have been demonstrating how well their farm system has developed and how competitive they can be in their division. They have also been hungry to return to the playoffs since their Wild Card berth in 2016. Currently holding the bottom seed in the playoff of the American League, the Blue Jays have the best tests ahead of them to see if they are ready for the playoffs and possibly gain a higher spot in the seeding. They have yet to play the Yankees all season, who are battered and bruised with injury and are not the same team they were from last year, and are relying on backup players. There is a total of ten games that have to be played between New York and Toronto and if the Blue Jays can win the majority of those games, they could possibly move ahead of the Yankees for second place. Other challenges the team has to face are the Phillies and the surprising Marlins who are current contenders. The rest of the teams the Blue Jays have to face are the Orioles, Red Sox, and Mets; which will not come easy but they can definitely outplay them. The Blue Jays have not lifted the World Series trophy since their last win in 1993, they also won the year before that. It would be great to see Vladimir Guerrero Jr, Bo Bichette, and Hyun-Jin Ryu become champions in the young service time, making this team a bigger threat for their age.

Colorado Rockies

The Rockies are always considered a fringe contender, yet they always seem to lose their footing before the season comes to an end. The Rockies started hot within the first fifteen games of the season going 11-4, but they seemed to be brought back into reality with one game under .500 at 18-19. At a current spot in sixth and behind the Padres and Dodgers, the team will have to do everything possible to win as many games as they can in order to remain a contender for the playoffs. Easy matchups for the Rockies include the Giants, Angels, and Diamondbacks who sold everyone at the deadline on Monday. Harder matchups for the team includes seven games with the Dodgers, a series with the Padres, and two short games with the Athletics. The Rockies have only been to one World Series after winning the National League pennant in 2007. Unfortunately, the team was swept by the Boston Red Sox and have never been back since. The Rockies are another team that could make a 'Cinderella story'.

Miami Marlins

It is funny how things work into your favor after being under the weather for a few days, and the Marlins are no exception to this rule. A true Wild Card in this whole shortened season, this team was not even considered anywhere a part of the competition and has been winning games to remain relevant in the playoff picture. Playing well into their opponents, the Marlins have a decent series against the struggling Red Sox, Yankees, and title hungover Nationals that can be taken advantage of. Their major obstacles include the Braves, Rays, and the Phillies. The series with the Phillies will be a true difference maker on staying relevant in this playoff race, which happens to be makeup games and have yet to display the talent of the two teams playing each other this season. The Marlins won their last title in 2003 during their Wild Card that shocked the world. Will they shock the world again and win a third World Series title? Only time will tell.

San Diego Padres

This is a team that is a definite playoff contender and it could be highly possible that they represent the National League in the World Series. The Padres have broken the "unwritten" rules of baseball and have taken the pedal to the metal in competing into their competition. What is even far more impressive is that they are the team that indefinitely won the trade deadline by acquiring a great deal of talent without sacrificing too much of their farm system. The Padres added Mike Clevinger into their rotation, which can definitely separate them in their division and help them run away with it. They can easily handle the rest of their opponents and all eyes will be on them when they host the Dodgers for the last time of the season in the middle of September. They also have a road series in Oakland, which will test their versatility on who they can challenge from the American League. Like the Blue Jays, this team is young and full of youth; however the Padres have never won a World Series and this would be the team to do so by breaking all the rules.

Tampa Bay Rays

A hot take that no one ever considers from the season prior is that had the Astros scandal surfaced before the postseason, the Rays would have beat them in the opening round of last season. The difference, the Astros represented the American League in the World Series…imagine if the Rays were the team instead of the Astros. No one likes to talk about the year prior, and that goes double for the Rays this season. A team that retooled even better than they were before last year, this team is firing on all cylinders and is sitting atop the American League with the best record. The Rays have also dominated their competition in their division, not losing a series since the beginning of August against the Orioles. Even more to their advantage, their schedule is not too difficult with the last month of baseball, with the Rays having the best chance of finishing the season winning 40-plus games. The Rays only had one trip to the World Series in 2008 and lost to the Phillies. Winning the franchise's first World Series title is everything this team needs to hold a strong presence in baseball, especially if it means saving the franchise from leaving the Tampa Bay area.

In an interesting match-up, the San Diego Padres and the Tampa Bay Rays would make a World Series to see which franchise is hungrier for their first title. Other teams that were not included on the list include a lethal Chicago White Sox team who just earned first place of the American League Central. With their crosstown rival also in first, an all Chicago World Series is more likely to happen than a Subway World Series featuring the city of New York. The Dodgers have been major favorites to win the title since the trade that brought the team Mookie Betts. They have not won a World Series title in 31-years when they beat the Oakland Athletics with the famous Kirk Gibson home run. Of all the teams that will make the playoffs, it will be a wild season to see who will be a part of the first 16-seeded playoffs of baseball, and hopefully it is one to remember.

[y22ich]

Nah, Yu deserves it. Yeli’s reaction was completely justified. Yu needs to keep his commentary to himself; nobody asked for his input.

Yu had an awful 2017 world series. my man had an era of over 21. in two games. thats mindblowing.

dodgers fans blamed Yu for losing the world series. they booed him religiously when the cubs went there after 2017.

imagine learning two years after that all of that was because a team (that racially attacked you during play after hitting a homerun) knew every pitch you were going to throw before you even threw it.

then imagine that offseason you are a free agent. everyone saw how awful you did in the ws just MONTHS before. obviously they’re going to sign you for less, because your value as an asset to a potential championship team is lower, since you basically blew the last ws you pitched in.

now, it’s two years later. you just had a pretty good year for a team that missed the playoffs, and it comes to light that the reason you have that 21.6 ws era is because of a locker room full of cheaters. they raised the banner and got their rings KNOWING what they did was illegal.

even after the world series ended in 2017 Yu watched tapes from game seven to see what he was doing. the astros apparently claimed that he was tipping his pitches (unintentionally). they lied to his face.

if there’s speculation that another team is stealing signs against you after all of this, you’re going to have something to say. the astros not only cost Yu Darvish a world series ring, but also money/years in a new contract, plus probably also a lot of confidence from many front offices in the league.

now, with all of this said, i am not saying yeli would ever cheat. i hope that isn’t the person he is (for the sake of this blog). but, what i am saying is that Yu is rightfully ticked. The impurities of the houston astros organization possibly changed his entire career.

but also i love christian yelich with everything i have and i get why he would be taken aback over all of the new brewers speculation. i think its crazy that people would think he would do that, but i also would’ve thought the same thing from jose altuve and george springer a week ago.

[laresearchette]

Sunday, September 17, 2023 Canadian TV Listings (Times Eastern)

WHERE CAN I FIND THOSE PREMIERES?: PSYCHO: THE LOST TAPES OF ED GEIN (MGM+) THE GOLD (Paramount+) 60 MINUTES (Global) 7:30pm HALLOWEEN WARS (Food Network Canada) 8:00pm ONE NIGHT STAND MURDER (Lifetime Canada) 8:00pm YELLOWSTONE (Global) 8:30pm

WHAT IS NOT PREMIERING IN CANADA TONIGHT?: BUILDING ROOTS (Premiering on September 21 on HGTV Canada at 10:00pm)

NEW TO AMAZON PRIME CANADA/CBC GEM/CRAVE TV/DISNEY + STAR/NETFLIX CANADA:

CBC GEM TELLING OUR STORY 2023 DIAMOND LEAGUE

MEN’S RUGBY WORLD CUP (TSN2) 11:45am: Australia vs. Fiji (TSN2) 3:00pm: England vs. Japan

WNBA BASKETBALL (SN360) 1:00pm: Lynx vs. Sun - Game #2

NFL FOOTBALL (TSN/TSN3) 1:00pm: Packers vs. Falcons (TSN/TSN3) 4:00pm: Giants vs. Cardinals (TSN/TSN3/TSN4/TSN5) 8:20pm: Dolphins vs. Patriots

MLB BASEBALL (SN) 1:30pm: Red Sox vs. Jays (SN1) 1:30pm: Rangers vs. Guardians (SN Now) 2:00pm: Astros vs. Royals (SN 360) 4:00pm: Dodgers vs. Mariners (TSN2) 8:00pm: Diamondbacks vs. Cubs

THE GREAT BRITISH BAKING SHOW (CBC) 7:00pm (SEASON FINALE): Time's up for the bakers; the final three create a picnic with sandwiches, cakes and pies, build pudding bombs and construct a scrumptious salute to the planet.

THE BIG BAKE (Food Network Canada) 7:00pm (SEASON PREMIERE): Host Brad Smith welcomes three teams of returning champions who are seeking another win as they serve up some big bog bakes featuring wicked wetlands to impress judges Ron Ben-Israel, Eddie Jackson and Danni Rose.

SEARCHING WITH CHEF SANG (TLN) 8:00pm/8:30pm: Heading out into farm country, Sang meets Mitchell Good, of Good Family Farms, and tours his massive organic farm. In Episode Two, for many Korean families, a visit to Niagara Falls is a staple holiday - a pilgrimage to a place that might appear superficial, but contains surprising multitudes.

MLS SOCCER (TSN5) 8:30pm: Austin vs. Portland

RACE AGAINST THE TIDE (CBC) 8:30pm (SEASON FINALE): In the season finale, the top three teams go head-to-head for all the glory and the grand prize of $10,000.

ALIEN INVASION: HUDSON VALLEY (DTour) 9:00pm: An investigation into unearthly and sometime violent encounters that happen in the Hudson Valley of New York State.

WHEN CALLS THE HEART (Super Channel Heart and Home) 9:00pm: Elizabeth encourages Gowen to seek forgiveness from Rosaleen to heal old wounds; Montague continues to raise suspicion.

CLEAN SWEEP (Super Channel Fuse) 9:00pm: When Lynch's true identity is uncovered, DSI Crichett in London reopens a 20-year-old cold case linked to Shelly and Charlie that has political implications.

THE WINTER KING (Crave) 11:00pm: Arthur takes Gundleus prisoner, and Nimue begins to plan her revenge; Arthur learns that Gundleus' uncle Gorfydd is preparing for war.

LOVE ISLAND GAMES (Crave 3) 11:00pm (SERIES PREMIERE): Set in Fiji, bringing together Islanders from various Love Island series across the globe, USA, UK, Australia and beyond, for a second shot at love as they compete in a brand-new format to be crowned champions.

[thesportssoundoff]

Playoff Droughts And Who Can Break Theirs

Joey

Baseball season is approaching and in the interest of breaking up the monotony of what figures to be a LONG and painful spring training, I wanted to take a peek whimsically while looking backwards. There's no more enjoyable story than when a team that's been excluded from the postseason dance for quite some time gets their invite. Sometimes it's years of hard work and team building and other years its due to ownership just throwing money around and sometimes? It's just a fluke luck circumstance not to be repeated for quite some time. For the sake of doing something of a bit of a project, I decided to take a brief look at teams that have not made the playoffs in over five years. I chose five years arbitrarily I suppose because to me five years or more without a playoff run is a genuine drought whereas four or less just feels like a lull regardless of expectations. Yankees fans may consider three years without the playoffs to be a drought whereas that's if anything a lull or a break in tradition. Teams that have been out of it for five years or more are teams that are either mired in long term BAD baseball or embracing mediocrity at best and so five years just felt right. Also I wanted to do it since the invent of the two game wild card but then it would be literally just three teams and nobody wants that.

Of the eight teams who have missed the playoffs for five years straight or longer, who are most likely to break that streak and join the dance? Well...

1- Philadelphia Phillies Last Playoff Appearance: 2011

Last year's darling picks, the Phillies have been out of the playoffs since 2011. For fun facts, 2011 was also the first year of the Chromebook, snapchat and the release of Elder Scrolls: Skryim. If you read this space for MMA? 2011 was the year Jon Jones beat Shogun for the LHW title, the Strikeforce HW Grand Prix started and Alistair Overeem's UFC debut. It's been a while and to the credit of Philadelphia, they've tried a multitude of ways from riding out the final years of aging veterans to rehauling their farm system to spending and spending big. It's not for a lack of trying they haven't made it back to the playoffs! Last year they seemed armed to roll through a perceived weak NL East with big names and big money across the board. Of course little did we know the Nationals would be better without Bryce Harper and the Phillies wouldn't even crack the top two of the division. Out goes Gabe Kapler and in comes Joe Girardi who will be tasked with VETERAN MANAGING his way through this ultra talented and underachieving roster that has added the likes of Zach Wheeler, Didi Gregorious as well as Andrew McCutchen who was lost early into 2019 with a torn ACL. The Phillies boast an insane line up as if Didi and Cutch are healthy and productive then you've got a core of Jean Segura, JT Realmuto, Didi, McCutchen, Rhys Hoskins and Bryce Harper. The rotation is pretty damn spiffy (health permitting) with Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Zach Eflin and Jake Arrieta plus flostam as a fifth if need be. The Phillies are always going to be a team that has slumps magnified and streaks glorified (such is life with Bryce Harper) but I can't see them not cracking the playoffs in some form or fashion this year. If they don't make the playoffs, we may need to try and discuss if there's some kind of a curse out there on the Phanatic.

2- Cincinnati Reds Last Playoff Appearance: 2013

Gotta admit I had no idea the Reds had a playoff cameo back in 2013. Guess that's just one of those years lost to time. Fun facts of 2013? Grand Theft Auto 5 came out that year, Yahoo purchased this hell site and the UFC brought women into the organization for the first time ever. The Reds spoke openly about wanting to spend a bit in the offseason and so they did, flexing some financial muscle with deals for Mike Moustakas, Shogo Akiyama and Nick Castellanos to help out a lineup featuring the likes of Joey Votto, Nick Senzel and Eugenio Suarez. If the Reds are going to make a serious run of things, it'll likely be on the arms of a rejuvenated Sonny Gray, mercurial Trevor Bauer and the league's best kept secret to casual fans Luis Castillo. There's obviously going to be concerns about a team that hits a lot of dingers but strikes out a bunch and a somewhat unheralded bullpen but the Reds have power, they've gotten better and they've got a cadre of arms to flex at any time. Also? The NL Central figures to be up in the air as the Cubs seem to coast with the core they have until the rebuild comes around, the Cardinals and Brewers underwent massive changes and the Pirates figure to be flat out bad. There's never been a more clear path for the Reds to make some October noise.

3- Los Angeles Angels Last Playoff Appearance: 2014

The year is 2014. In the real world,  Colorado legalizes the purchase of wacky tobacky, selfies became "a thing" in need of forever going away and the occulus rift creates a youtube grift genre. Sports wise? The MLB struggles through record rating woes, the Cowboys finally break through in the Jason Garrett tenure with a 12-4 record, the UFC is undergoing massive upheaval as stars retire or are suspended for PEDs, Bellator hosts its first PPV which in turn leads to the ousting of Bjorn Rebney for Scott Coker and LeBron James leaves Miami to go back where it all began in Cleveland. That's the last time the Angels saw a playoff game and it's been beaten to death at this point. "WHY DON'T THE ANGELS MAKE THE PLAYOFFS DURING MIKE TROUT'S PRIME?!" is tired and done to death but for those of you who feel the same way, 2020 marks the BEST chance for that to become a fad question (or perhaps just morph into "WHY CAN'T THE BEST PLAYER IN BASEBALL WIN THE WORLD SERIES ON HIS OWN?!") since the Angels are pretty damn loaded for bare. With the Astros about to endure a pretty weird season and the A's always lurking, the Angels will roll into the year with three bonafide superstars in Anthony Rendon, Shohei Otani and Mike Trout. The pieces around them aren't bad shakes either as Andrelton Simmons is a defensive whiz, David Fletcher is one of those solid under the radar types and the rotation isn't flashy but it should be competent with minor league depth to make moves if they see a big fish out there. The Angels would've been higher up had they gotten Ross Stripling and Joc Pedersen in a deal but since that fell off, I feel like 3rd behind the Reds and Phillies is a fine spot to put them in.

4- Chicago White Sox Last Playoff Appearance: 2008

2008 will probably best be known as the year of change headlined by the election of Barack Obama as President of the United States. It was the year Fidel Castro stepped down in Cuba. China got the olympics in Beijing and people were TOTALLY cool about that with nary any controversy whatsoever. Beyond that? 2008 was the year I got into MMA and that was a special time, dudes. It was also the year where the White Sox saw their last real sustained succeed with its last postseason appearance. The White Sox feel like they've been in a rebuild since pretty much the end of the Ozzie Guillen tenure and despite multiple managers, multiple attempts to figure it out, rebuilds aplenty and some damn good talent coming through the organization, it's been a rough go of it for the majority of 2010 to 2019. Put it this way, the LAST time the White Sox made the playoffs, Chris Sale was a 22 year old rookie and Paul Konerko was still an active player. They've got a chance to kick off this next decade as a bit of a sleeper team in the Central. This team can hit and one can assume that another year of development for phenom talents like Yoan Moncada and Eloy Jiminez can only help. Tim Anderson for better or worse has a style and swagger that generates attention but it is fair to remember that for at least one half a season, he was a phenomenal player worthy of the acclaim. The White Sox have tried hard to secure elite free agents (Manny Machado and Zack Wheeler) but it's been a bust so at this point it's going to be up to them to draft, develop and trade for it. It would not surprise me if the White Sox are good enough in June and July to make a big deal to try and push them over the hump and chase for the second wild card.

5- San Diego Padres Last Playoff Appearance: 2006

The Padres last made the playoffs in the year of the Nintendo Wii. Floyd Mayweather hadn't even come up with his Money Mayweather gimmick yet! Lost to baseball obscurity, the Padres had at the very least an interesting team out west. The likes of Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr, arguably the worst defensive outfield in the history of the universe and freakishly good young arms like Chris Paddack and Joey Luchessi at least made them fun to watch. They weren't "good" but this is a team that was still struggling to balance expensive veterans with clout (Machado, Eric Hosmer, Will Meyers) with really good young talent trying to figure things out. The Padres figure to be better with a full season of Tatis Jr, more production from guys like Hosmer and Machado plus improvements in the outfield with Tommy Pham and Trent Grisham (hold your jokes, Nats fans) figure to give this team a chance. There's a pretty good bullpen (Emilio Pagan is a sneaky nice pick up) and plenty of talent in their 26 man roster. The NL West has so much legit top talent with the D-Backs and Dodgers figuring to be really good that it's hard to make an argument for the Padres to be a playoff contender but they figure to try and trying is truly half the battle.

6- Miami Marlins Last Playoff Appearance: 2003

It's kind of a bummer that we didn't get our decennial Marlins "The fuck?" World Series win but they made up for it by giving us Jeffrey Loria and David Samson fucking things up for most of the decade leading to Derek FUCKING Jeter opting to get into the management game much to the chagrin of most folks on all sides. The Marlins are in the midst of rebuilding....again. Don't expect them to compete but they've got some good talent to at least want to see play. Brian Anderson, Caleb Smith, Jorge Alfaro and a bundle of veteran signings that will at the very least make the Marlins a fun trade partner in July will keep this team relevant. Wouldn't surprise me if the Marlins flirt with a 20 win swing from where they were last year.

7- Seattle Mariners Last Playoff Appearance: 2001

My god man. The Mariners were SO close in 2018, winning 89 games and finishing a few spots out of a Wild Card spot. As if they decided that this core couldn't do it, the Mariners went to work tearing their team apart and were rewarded with a pretty blegh squad that was once again picked apart at the deadline. To their credit they have some spiffy talent worth watching, namely the infield duo of JP Crawford and Shed Long. They’ve also got some fun young arms who might take the next step. Just don't expect them to win many games.

8- Detroit Tigers Last Playoff Appearance: 2014

The Tigers are aways away from being contenders. They're not trying to be contenders. They're in the midst of what could best be described as a multiple year rebuild after riding out the end days of the core from the start of the 2010's. They will be bad but god bless 'em for embracing it.

[ahnsael]

I know, I know. I post this FAR too often.

But yesterday was the 31st anniversary of Kirk Gibson’s iconic 1988 World Series home run (yes, the World Series used to be an earlier thing).

But I have one question, which one of you might be able to answer: Vin Scully’s call on this is iconic (”You want to talk about a roll of the dice, this is it!” and “In a year that has been so improbable, the IMPOSSIBLE has happened!”). But there was someone else also in the booth and on mic, who didn’t speak as much as Vin (rightfully so...Vin Scully could read the boring-as-heck cetology chapters of Moby Dick to me and I’d probably find it entertaining and I cannot think of another human being for which I could say that -- I don’t think even Herman Melville, who WROTE those terrible chapters, could make them interesting to me, but Vin could) and for the life of me I cannot remember who it was that shared the booth with Vin that night.. I think it might have been Joe Garagiola, but I’m not sure.

Of course, it being 31 years since Gibson’s home run means that it’s been 31 years (less a few days) since the Dodgers last won a world series. And, as they’re already out of it this year (it’s going to be the Washington Nationals against either the Houston Astros or New York Yankees), it’s going to be AT LEAST one more year before they win it.

But at least it’s not yet on par with the Cubs’ “curse of the billy goat” or the Red Sox “curse of the Bambino” yet, even though both of those curses have since been broken. And, a Pittsburgh Pirates fan mentioned their allegiance to them on twitter, and they last won it all in 1979, so...the Dodgers have that beat as well.

But even if/when the Dodgers win again, I doubt that any single moment in that series will top this. For one thing, the circumstances surrounding this were unique (Gibson was hurt, bad...but while watching the broadcast in the clubhouse, he heard Vin Scully say that he was “nowhere to be found” and took umbrage to that, and told manager Tommy Lasorda that he could pinch hit if needed just out of spite). Lasorda, to his credit, “rolled the dice” and took Kirk Gibson up on it with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, down by one, with a runner on base. And Gibson? Well, I still imitate the two arm pumps that he does when he rounds second base whenever I actually do something right.

To my dying day, I will remember sitting (well, standing...even at 13 years old, I was on my feet once Gibson came up to bat) in my grandma’s living room, and losing my mind when Gibson managed to hit it over the wall,as hurt as he was.

[keyboardavengers-blog]

Friendship

This isn’t a blog. Actually, this is nothing, yet. But, hopefully, it’ll be a digital journal filled with the thoughts of people I like. Hopefully.

I originally wanted to write about how I don’t care that the Astros cheated to win the 2017 World Series. I still don’t care, but I’ve decided to write about something else. 

Earlier this month, I reached out to a couple of my friends, some near, some far, to ask if they would be interested in contributing to this “thought-hive.” Some of them I haven’t spoken to in a couple of months, some I haven’t seen in a couple of years. But that’s life, right? Life pulls us in different directions, and responsibilities become the obstacles that keep us away. 

As I stated above, I initially intended to write about how I don’t care that the Astros cheated to win the 2017 World Series (copied and pasted that last bit, old journalism trick) but decided against it, so I won’t. I mean, cheating is part of the game, and sometimes the reward is worth the consequence. I digress... as I started to receive and read through my friends’ submissions, I felt my cheeks rise, and my lips curl into a smile (for those keeping track at home, that’s called descriptive writing). Although I haven’t seen or talked to some of them in quite some time, after reading their thoughts and ideas, It didn’t feel that way. They felt near. I wasn’t surprised by what they chose to write about either, they were true to themselves. It made me miss them more, and less at the same time. It made me grateful for the friendships I’ve made, and it made me realize that I’m not an exemplary friend. I have my moments, but I should be better. I struggle with that. 

As previously stated above, twice, I said I wasn’t going to write about how I don’t care that the Astros cheated to win the 2017 World Series. So I’m not.  I mean, yes, they cheated, but other teams, mainly the Dodgers, should have been prepared for that. You should assume that the other team is doing everything they can to win. To assume otherwise, means you don’t want to win. Dave Roberts, that one’s free. It’s not like other teams didn’t suspect the Astros were cheating. In fact, Danny Farquhar, former Chicago White Sox pitcher, said in an interview with the Athletic that he had heard banging coming from the Astros dugout when he was pitching in a September 2017 game in Houston. That’s before the World Series. Here’s a two-minute clip from that game. The Astros shouldn’t have cheated, but the Dodgers should have anticipated it, or at least caught on. But that’s for another piece, this piece is about friendship. 

Most of us don’t see or talk to our friends every day, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t be good friends. You need something to tether you, something to nourish the friendship, and hopefully, this can serve that purpose. Although this might not be the best medium, it can be the fire that we will huddle around for warmth. We may not talk to our friends as often as we’d like or should, but in some way or another, true friends are always with us, rooting for us as we build our own world. 

I hope that this does two things. One, that it provides interesting reading material that will benefit us intellectually, emotionally, what have you. And two, remind us of the friendships we have made. Some friends are in different states, some in different stages in life, but if their thoughts and ideas are with us, they’re with us. Confucius said, “If you are the smartest person in the room, then you are in the wrong room.” Shout out, Confucius. I say,  “If you are the smartest person in your group of friends, then you are in the wrong group of friends.” Shout out, me. 

-J

[makingthetwinsrelevant-blog]

Why this year is different (although 5 game series are often skewed by sample size and who knows if it will even matter)

I’ve heard a lot of commentary about the Twins season. None of it is too optimistic about their prospects in the playoffs, and that’s understandable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLIt6xGSqek

That link is the game following the last playoff win in franchise history. It boils down to one mistake, leaving Joe Nathan to try for a third inning. Since then and including that game, the Twins are 0-13, with 10 of those losses coming against the Yankees, who the Twins will play this year for the Division series. But the Nathan mistake isn’t why we lost that series, nor is the Torii Hunter missed catch in ‘06 the reason we lost that series.

A lot of folks think we’re cursed, and that certainly would work as a narrative. A-Rod’s RBI double in 2004, or his home run in ’09 preceding Texiera’s walk-off. Curtis Granderson’s triple in ’10 comes to mind. But everything must come to an end- the curse of the Bambino did, as did the Cubs’, and the Twins aren’t going to lose every playoff game for the rest of their existence. It starts with one game, and I think the 2019 squad is built to do that. Here’s why:

2002 Twins 86-75

2003 Twins 85-77

2004 Twins 87-75

2006 Twins 93-69

2009 Twins 86-77

2010 Twins 92-70

2017 Twins 83-79

2019 Twins 98-64

 These are the Pythagorean records for all Twins playoff teams since I have been conscious, and it really validates what I stress when I talk about the 2019 Twins, which is that this is the first team I’ve ever seen that is actually GOOD. Like good good. ALCS good. Which is why we can beat the Yankees this year, legitimately, or at least take it to game 5. Let me explain:

 2002-2018: From Rick Reed to Addison Reed

The 2002 team had no fear. The playoffs were brand new and they won a weak AL Central with solid contributions from tons of guys- no mid 2010’s Detroit Tigers stars and scrubs BS here. 12 guys had more than 2 bWAR (a measure of overall value from baseballreference.com- 0 means totally replaceable, anything above 5 means a star player), including a career year for J.C Romero, who as a lefty pitched in 81 innings, allowing a total of 17 runs, with 3 home runs, 62 hits. bWAR for his season was 3.6. We also got nice above average seasons from Corey Koskie (How good could he have been not under the Twins slap hitting tutelage and minus his later concussion issues?), Bobby Kielty, Tony Fiore (91 good innings out of the pen), Kyle Lohse, Dustan Mohr; even Rick Reed was pretty good that year. The Giants and the Angels were better constructed teams, and it would have been a miracle for the Twins to go all the way that year. I couldn’t believe when they beat they A’s, and I couldn’t believe when Joe Mays shut the Angels down in Game 1. 8 innings, no runs and the Angels could not get a barrel to the ball to save their lives. We lost to the Angels because they were a better team (They won 99 games that year) but like the Astros in 2015, it was a good stepping stone for a solid core of guys.

The 2003 team was worse. There was no David Ortiz and only Brad Radke had an ERA+ (a measure of pitching that corrects for context, average score is 100) that was above average in our regular rotation. It was 101.  Shannon Stewart and Johan Santana had to save the season and lift us over the White Sox* and Royals, who had a magical season 11 years before they meant to- they had prime Mike Sweeney and Carlos Beltran, but their #1 pitcher (as I recalled but had to confirm) was Darrell May, who had a legitimately good season but would never do THAT again.

*I’m pretty sure the White Sox were the better team that year. They had prime Bartolo, Mark Buehrle, early ok Jon Garland and that one of year of Esteban Loaiza where he almost won the CY Young (226.1 innings of 2.90 ERA ball with a k rate of 8.2, his career k rate was 5.9). They also had prime Magglio Ordonez and Carlos Lee, and this was one of the years in the oughts where Frank Thomas stayed together and hit 42 bombs.

But the Twins prevailed with Shannon Stewart magic plus solid years from Mientkiewicz, Koskie and Pierzynski, won Game 1 against the Yankees because we let Johan Santana free (for 4 innings, as that was the game where he didn’t eat enough potassium and cramped out of the game), and then got swept the rest of the way, getting shut down by Andy Pettite Roger Clemens and David Wells. It was kind of an accidental bullpen game in game 1, but more on that later.

 The ‘04 Twins went back to being pitching dominant, with the first year of full season Johan (and his best year) and Joe Nathan joining the fold along with lights out Juan Rincon (watch him strike out Jorge Posada in the 8th in game 2). Radke was great, and Carlos Silva soaked up the rest. If Joe Mauer hadn’t gotten hurt that team could have been something, because the lineup was rough and relied a lot on career year Lew Ford (more on that later). Doug Mientkiewicz, Jacque Jones, Christian Guzman and Henry Blanco all struggled to various degrees. Morneau provided a spark in the second half, taking over for Mientkiewicz at the trade deadline and hitting 19 bombs.

As I inferred, I put myself through watching game 2 of the ALDS against the Yankees (up 1-0) recently and everything that I remembered from it came rushing back: Koskie’s double against Rivera that would have scored 2 but bounced into the stands, instead tying the game at 5. Then Hunter’s big home run in the 12th, and Nathan to all the world looking like he was out of gas in his third inning of work in the 12th - with 1 out he walked Miguel Cairo as well as Jeter to bring up A-Rod. What I didn’t remember was that Nathan threw a decent slider off the plate down and away, and A-Rod showed why he was one of the top 5 hitters of his generation and almost hit it out, poking a ground rule double (were it a regular double it would have been a walk off) to tie the game. After intentionally walking Sheffield, J.C Romero got Hideki Matsui on a soft fly out to Jones in right, and a good throw would have gotten Jeter. That didn’t happen, and one Carlos Silva start and a Rincon implosion later the Twins were done. The Twins hit well in the series after not doing that all season, but two decisions cost them: leaving Nathan in obviously, and giving Carlos Silva (and Kyle Lohse) a start. The lineup had gotten hot, but archaic ideas about how to use pitching in the playoffs cost them big- although those ideas wouldn’t truly be challenged until Craig Counsell took the Dodgers to 7 games in 2018.

I was jazzed about ’06. They had a good power and speed mix (On base percentages of Bartlett, Castillo and Punto: .367, .358, .352) with Morneau and Mauer both breaking out to post over 10 bWAR between them, Santana winning another Cy Young, and Francisco Liriano having his Greek tragedy. The bullpen was great, with Nathan having arguably his best year, Dennys Reyes giving up 5 runs the whole year and Rincon, Pat Neshek and Crain pitching in solidly.

But Barry Zito outdueled Santana in game 1, Mark Kotsay hit his inside the park home run on the ball Torii dove for but couldn’t keep in front in game 2 (right after we had tied the game with back to back jacks from Cuddyer and Morneau). And that was all the starting pitching we had- with Liriano done, and Boof Bonser pitching out of his mind in game 2, we had can’t-brush-his-teeth torn rotator cuff Brad Radke trying to gut his way through and running out of guts. And cartilage.

Maybe Craig Counsell or Kevin Cash could have made it work, but in 2006 there just wasn’t enough pitching.

In ’09 we had MVP Joe Mauer, Jason Kubel’s best year and Denard Span’s emergence. But the pitching relied a lot on Nick Blackburn and the mad rush to beat the Tigers in game 163 left us with Brian Duensing in game 1 against the Yankees. Brian Duensing was a nice pitcher that year, but he couldn’t handle that assignment. Game 2 was the Phil Cuzzi calling a fair ball foul game, the most errant umpiring call I know of next to the Armando Gallaraga perfect game disaster. Mauer singled anyway to start the 11th. So did Kubel and Cuddyer. Bases loaded, no outs, Delmon Young at the plate- he scaldes a line drive to Texiera at first for a loud out. Carlos Gomez grounds into a fielders choice at home, and Brendan Harris pops out. Kinda deserved that walkoff.

Who are you pitching with this team in a 7 game series anyway? And depth was an issue as well, otherwise Harris wouldn’t have come in for MATT TOLBERT, Gomez wouldn’t have hit with his .623 season OPS, and nor would Delmon with his .733. Blackburn and Pavano combined to go 12 innings, allowing 3 total runs between them in games 2 and 3, so even with those bonuses the fact that the team couldn’t even get to 4 games says a lot.

2010 could have been something, with a good offense led by Mauer and Thome, the one year Delmon Young was good, the year we had J.J Hardy and Orlando Hudson and Liriano had 200 k’s. But Morneau got his concussion, Nathan had Tommy John surgery, Kubel Cuddyer and Span all had bad years and it came down to Curtis Granderson hitting a clutch triple off of a cruising Liriano (The Twins led 3-0 going into the bottom of the 6th). Then the Twins realized that as nice as their seasons were, Carl Pavano and Duensing weren’t pitchers you rely on in the postseason- they pitched to contact and if their command wasn’t perfect they would get exposed. Guess what happened.

In 2017 the team wasn’t good. And they wouldn’t have made the playoffs if the Orioles, Angels and Royals didn’t all collapse while the Twins played .500 ball in September. Their starting pitching was average, with a great Ervin Santana season and a good Berrios one. But unlike the other teams on this list, the bullpen was suspect, with a not-quite-figured-out Ryan Pressly, sinker throwing Tyler Duffey and a Matt Belisle on the right side with a non-slider throwing Taylor Rogers on the left. Alan Busenitz and Trevor Hildenberger had career years but weren’t helpful in the Wild Card game, or really ever again.

The offense was the best of all the teams so far in a bit of foreshadowing, scoring 815 runs and featuring the last good Brian Dozier season, the start of Jorge Polanco busting out, and Joe Mauer having one last .300 season. Miguel Sano looked like a star for 3 months, then busted his shin and got a titanium rod inserted into it because he doesn’t care about baseball or something. Byron Buxton even had his first sustained period of excellence in the second half (and played 140 games!)

 Relying on the back end of the rotation

Those are the 7 playoff teams of the millennium. And here are the Game 3 starters for each ALDS team starting with ’02:

Rick Reed

Kyle Lohse

Carlos Silva

Zombie Brad Radke

Carl Pavano

Brian Duensing

 That group had a combined record of 0-6. This year the hope is that the new regime is smart enough to know that, even though they have 2 starters in Kyle Gibson and Martin Perez who are comparable to that group, and who tried hard and won double digit games, their best bet is to bullpen that game.

One aspect of the playoffs that teams are getting wise to but which have killed Clayton Kershaw in the past, is the inclination to “trust your guys” and “dance with the girl who you brought” or some other idiom about sticking with a certain pitcher out of loyalty or sense of obligation. Carlos Silva had a good ’04 season; of course Gardy would want to give him a playoff start. His results were quite a bit better than Kyle Gibson’s 2019.

But hitters hit .310/.342/.462 against Silva that year. You’re trusting your season to him continuing to get lucky. He gave up 10 hits and the series swung 2-1 to the Yankees.

 Results aren’t predictive

What we have in 2019 is the possibility that the Twins brass has learned from the mistakes of the past. You saw it in 2017 when they traded our closer, Brandon Kintzler, at the trade deadline. They knew that despite what the results showed, the team wasn’t good. Even though they got hot and made the WC game, they knew it wasn’t sustainable yet, and didn’t go crazy on free agents or win-now trades.

What the Levine Falvey regime did was take an objective view of their assets (is Mike Morin’s success sutainable? No? Ok then I won’t pitch him in the 7th inning of a playoff game. In fact, I’ll let him be the Phillies problem). They also threw all the “Twins way” shit out the window. No more getting benched for not going the other way, or for trying to hit a home run. And I know that point of view is very much a feeling and not really tangible- something inferred from David Ortiz’s comments years ago, a general sense watching games announced by Dick Bremer and Bert Blyleven, that power is nice but luxurious, as though wanting it too badly should be a sin. And then you have Joe Mauer, who embodied every aspect of that feeling- a guy who looked for his whole career like he could hit home runs, but didn’t because he wasn’t flashy, he didn’t want to draw attention to himself and must have believed that slapping singles and doubles to left field would be a more productive route in the end.

Here’s the big secret about Joe Mauer: As talented as he was- as a catcher, in his general coordination, in his eye at the plate, and his ability to slap an RBI single in some key spots for 14 years, he was kind of a moron. Seemed like he was a nice guy. But he has never in his life said anything remotely close to insightful and I truly believe that he earnestly and wrongly thought he could best serve his team by staying behind the ball and slapping it to left field. He was probably told that from a young age.

He mistook an illusion for a reality, and so did the Twins for 51 years. Every color guy on every team’s broadcast will talk about the importance of the fundamentals, getting the guy over, laying down a good bunt and going the other way. They will talk up players who do that for eternity, and constantly lament how the game isn’t played that way anymore. To every team trying to win, this is taken with a big fucking grain of Morton brand industrial sidewalk salt. They want 2-3 guys like that. To the Twins it was religion. They wanted 12-15 guys like that. They wanted Matt Tolbert, Nick Punto, Denny Hocking and Juan Castro. The did NOT want J.J Hardy or David Ortiz.

This has changed, hopefully, and with Mauer gone, it may have rinsed away completely. We set the freaking home run record. Mitch Garver openly admits he is trying to hit home runs. Max Kepler found out his power is to the pull side. Jorge Polanco found out he could take a rip early in the count. It’s all new; it’s all different. And I’m not saying the Twins will beat the Yankees in the first round because of this philosophy shift. What I am saying is that the 2019 Twins are NOT:

A Cinderella team getting their feet wet around 12 slightly above average guys (2002)

A decent offense with no pitching plus Shannon Stewart (2003)

A great pitching staff 1-2 with an average offense that gave starts to Carlos Silva and Kyle Lohse in the playoffs (2004)

A team with Boof Bonser as its #2 (2006)

A team that relied heavily on Blackburn, Pavano and Duensing in playoff games (2009 and 2010)

A lucky team with no bullpen and 1.5 starters (2017)

 So maybe they will.

  What’s different now

The best team out of the prior playoff teams is probably the ’04 team, whose struggling offense didn’t struggle in the playoffs. And with Santana being the best and Radke being HIS best, a modern manager could have used their decent bullpen to build something.

Now imagine the ’04 team, except their offense is much better. MUCH better. And despite having only two effective starters, can bullpen their way to wins with a pen that goes 6-7 deep. And unlike a Tony Fiore or a Ron Mahay, or a Matt Capps or Alex Burnett, this bullpen does stuff you can’t fake- stuff you can’t luck your way into.

Opponents are hitting .157/.223/.245 against Tyler Duffey in the second half.

They’re hitting .159/.220/.354 against Trevor May

(Both those guys were good in the first half, too)

Taylor Rogers gave up a .225/.273/.353 line for the year

To my count there are 9 relievers that can be counted on in different spots- Rogers, Duffey, May, Romo, Littell, Stashak, Dobnak, Graterol and Smeltzer (by different spots I mean that Rocco won’t throw Smeltzer into the 8th inning of a tie game to face Aaron Judge).

That depth can be leveraged to overcome the loss of Michael Pineda, and the fact that Berrios and Odorizzi are no locks to be effective. Stashak and Smeltzer can both give you 3 innings of effective mop-up duty that keep games close, and allows the offense to come back by exploiting New York’s middling starting pitching, and mercurial late inning relief (Namely Britton, Green and Ottavino).

 How to cope when Lew Ford leads your team in total bases

Almost as importantly, the offense isn’t going to need guys who had career years to continue thriving in the post when they were clearly playing above their true talent level. Lew Ford carried the ’04 team at times, but he was still Lew Ford, and he showed it against the Yankees and for the rest of his career. Same with Nick Punto in ‘06. Nelson Cruz is a force who scares the Royals as much as the Yankees.

Mitch Garver didn’t hot streak his way into a 1000 OPS; he’s kept it above .919 since April 9th. Check his game log.

These guys are actually good. So is Max Kepler, who I hope is ok. You don’t hit 36 bombs with reverse platoon splits by accident.

Marwin Gonzalez isn’t a great hitter but I trust he’ll take a good at bat when we need him too. You’ll appreciate that when you watch rookie Jason Kubel swing at two straight pitches at his eyes against Rivera in ’04.

Eddie Rosario is the wild card, and teams NEED* a wild card:

*Delmon Young on the Tigers, Yasiel Puig on the Dodgers, Alfonso Soriano on the Yankees, Eric Byrnes on the Diamondbacks. Rafael Devers for the Red Sox last year. That’s Rosario. Everyone needs an underachiever from the regular season to come up in the post.

Rosario, Polanco, Garver, Cruz, Sano and Kepler could all be game changing offensive players in a short series, which is not a quantity we’ve seen since Morneau went down with his concussion in ’10.

There’s no curse, the Yankees just exploited an obvious weakness of the Twins 4.5 separate times. That weaknesses boiled down to smoke and mirrors results that translated to good regular season stats, which led to Terry Ryan and Gardy trusting those results to be predictive. The 2019 team wasn’t built that way, otherwise Brandon Kintzler might still be part of it. The bullpen will have to perform for a lot of innings, the lineup will have to score, and one of Berrios and Odorizzi will have to perform to or above his talent level. As likely as it has ever been, this team could, say it with me here- take it to a game 5.

[optimistredsox]

BOS @ LAD, World Series Game 5, 28th October (5-1, win, BOSTON RED SOX WIN WORLD SERIES 4-1)

That’s the greatest Red Sox team I have had the privilege of watching. Debates are raging already on the whole “but how great were they really?” and those debates can go fuck themselves because they were really, really great. Much like in the ALCS, after the tumult and craziness of the previous two games, behind David Price the Sox just settled in and beat the Dodgers because the Red Sox were the better team than the Dodgers. And yes, as much as I loved Steve Pearce, I do think that Price or Eovaldi should’ve received the World Series MVP nod. 

I’m not really processing everything about the game in the correct order, because the game, the playoffs, and the season as a whole are rolling into one. When I think back to that incredible start to the season, I remember that the only other team in the whole of the MLB that looked anywhere near as dangerous as we were was the Mets. And things did not go the same for them as it did for us. 

But I’m getting distracted. This is about last night’s game, not the whole of the last seven months (spoiler alert, I’m probably going to dwell on the last seven months). Last night’s game was awesome. All the bright sides:

David Price rewrote his Red Sox and postseason story. On short rest, and putting teammates first, he went seven innings, giving up one run on three hits, striking out 5 and walking 2. Up against one of the best pitchers in baseball, he over-performed. Seeing tears in his eyes when asked what it felt like to be considered a good teammate, watching him walk his wee boy around Dodgers Stadium after the victory, it was just great. His full redemption was so great to see. He stepped up all year: when Sale went on the DL, when the chips were down against the Astros. I’m glad he’s a Red Sox.

Speaking of redemption, I don’t know what Joe Kelly worked on to go from disaster-area to absolutely fucking lights out, but he struck out the side in the eighth and posted an ERA of 0.00 for the World Series.

While Chris Sale struck out the side in the ninth. Cora saving him for the end was perfect, and the final pitch to get Machado out was so fucking filthy that the flailing and falling over that followed will be rewatched by me again and again and again. I hope he gets the rest and recovery he needs over the off-season.

Steve Pearce hit a two-run homer in the first, which turned out to be all the Sox needed to win. He then hit another homer because why the fuck not. His contributions have been huge, though I would still venture that the MVP might have been a bit much. Sort of like Cody Ross for the Giants in 2010 (loved Cody Ross back then though).

Mookie hit a homer!

JD Martinez hit a homer!

We just watched one of the greatest baseball teams in history win everything they could possibly win, against three teams that pundits claimed were ‘better’ in spite of having worse records. To see a team full of kids we’ve watched since they were drafted stay together and play to the very height of their potential was just so much damned fun. They’re so young! 

This whole thing, from Spring Training to now, has been incredible, hilarious, astonishing, and couldn’t have been predicted by anything. I stick to my fan-fiction allegory. This was the sort of season that a wildly optimistic Red Sox fan might dream about... “they look so good on paper... what if they just played so that they really are that good...”

Watching Alex Cora manage, and the genuine warmth that his players have for him, was incredible. I loved him as a utility guy. Love him more as a manager. Contract extension, please.

Everyone did their job. Raffy Devers growing up, and becoming a postseason RBI machine, and throwing out Machado like a boss. Mitch Moreland rediscovering his swing when we needed it most. Christian Vazquez with clutch hits. Sandy Leon basically managing the entire rotation for a month. Fast Eddie Nuñez playing hurt. Brock Holt bringing new meaning to super-utility. Xander getting his groove back. JBJr with the triumphant comeback. This is a team with legit superstars that had the help they needed when some of the brightness faded. 

That last fucking out. Machado buckled by a slider, Vazquez leaping into Sale’s arms. 

I’m not sure I’m done writing about this season. 2018 has, outside of baseball, been a rough, horrible, and wonderful year. The Red Sox have made the rest of it somehow easier to deal with.

[twins2994]

Tampa Bay Rays-Los Angeles Dodgers Series Preview

10.20.20-Tyler Glasnow RHP (2-1) 4.66 ERA Vs. Clayton Kershaw LHP (2-1) 3.32 ERA

10.21.20-Blake Snell LHP (2-2) 3.20 ERA Vs. TBA

10.23.20-Walker Buehler RHP (1-0) 1.89 ERA Vs. Charlie Morton RHP (3-0) 0.57 ERA

10.24.20-TBA Vs. TBA

The Rays At A Glance- The Tampa Bay Rays were the best team in the American League in the regular season. They racked up forty wins and swept the Blue Jays in the Wild-Card round. They narrowly edged the Yankees in the Division Series in five games and the Astros pushed them to the limit in the ALCS. Now, the Rays are in their second World Series all-time against a great Dodgers team. Randy Arozarena has been amazing to watch this postseason. He is hitting .382 with seven homers and ten RBI’s and has basically carried the offense in October. Manuel Margot has hits five homers and Mike Zunino has four dingers, but the offense hasn’t been too sharp lately. Brandon Lowe was the Rays best hitters in the regular season and he is hitting just .115 in the playoffs. Austin Meadows is hitting 4-for-35 (.114) in the postseason as well. Kevin Kiermaier struggled and was hit in the hand by a pitch in the ALCS. He did come back and play Game 7 on Saturday, so he should be good to go for the World Series. The Rays have relied on a great pitching staff to help them advance in the postseason. Charlie Morton has been amazing. He is (3-0) with an 0.57 ERA in 15 2/3 innings. Tyler Glasnow has been good with 25 strikeouts in 19 1/3 innings. Blake Snell is a solid lefty option with 19 strikeouts in 19 2/3 innings this postseason. The “stable” of arms is a combination of misfit toys out in the Rays bullpen. Diego Castillo has allowed just one run in 8 1/3 playoff innings. Ryan Thompson has a funky deliver and has a 2.70 ERA. Pete Fairbanks throws extremely hard with a 2.16 ERA. Former Twin farmhand Nick Anderson has turned into one of the best relievers in the game. Former Twin John Curtiss has seen some high leverage innings as well. There’s also Aaron Slegers out in the bullpen. 

The Dodgers At A Glance- The Dodgers have been the best team in baseball for a long time, but still have yet to win a World Series since 1988. The Dodgers swept the Brewers in the Wild-Card round then swept three tough games from the Padres in the Division Series. They went down (3-1) to the Atlanta Braves and won the final three games of the series to advance to their third World Series in four years. Corey Seager has been the best hitter on the Dodgers in the playoffs. He is hitting .298 with six homers and fifteen RBI’s. He gets forgotten on a team with Mookie Betts, Cody Bellinger, and Justin Turner. Cody Bellinger has hit three big home runs. He had his shoulder pop out of his socket on his go-ahead home run in Game 7. He is expected to be ready for Game 1 tonight. Joc Pederson’s bat has woken up in the playoffs. He is hitting 9-for-24 (.375) with five RBI’s. Clayton Kershaw threw two very good games to start the playoffs then had a middle of the road game against the Braves last week. Walker Buehler’s blister keeps healing and he’s getting built back up. Julio Urias has been a great story. It doesn’t matter if he starts or comes out of the bullpen, but he has been getting outs. He has a 0.56 ERA in 16 playoff innings and has struck out sixteen. Kenley Jansen looked better in his last two innings. The velocity hasn’t been what is used to be, but his spin rate is high. Brusdar Graterol continues to show the world how easy it can be to throw 100 mph. Blake Treinen was shaky at times in the NLCS. 

What To Watch For- The Dodgers (10-7) all-time against the Rays. The two teams split four games last year against one another. Tyler Glasnow has allowed six runs in four career innings against the Dodgers. Cody Bellinger has two career homers off Glasnow. Clayton Kershaw is (2-0) with a 1.88 ERA in two starts against the Rays. Blake Snell has threw two scoreless innings in his career versus the Dodgers. Charlie Morton is (0-1) with a 6.55 ERA in two starts against the Dodgers. He also pitched in Games 4 and 7 of the 2017 World Series. He threw 6 1/3 innings and allowed a run in a no-decision in Game 4 and threw the last four innings in relief in Game 7 to pick up the win. Adam Kolarek spent parts of three seasons with the Rays and Jake McGee spent six seasons in a Rays uniform. Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Freidman spent 2004-2013 in the Rays organization. I think the lack of offense by the Rays is alarming. They almost blew a three-game lead in the ALCS and there hasn’t been much offense outside of Randy Arozarena over the past week. The Dodgers showed how deep and talented of a team they are by coming back from a (3-1) deficit to win the pennant. I think the Dodgers win their first World Series since 1988 in five games this week in Arlington. 

-Chris Kreibich-