MLB 2007

[JohnH]

OK, we all know I'm a Royals fan, but it was *painful* watching Baker walk John Buck to lead off the 9th.     You want to see a perfect game get broken up by a legitmate hit, not a walk or cheapo.

And now the no-no is gone.  I was kind of hoping to see my first no-hitter ever.

John

[Jeff]

Goodbye Terry Ryan... 

I'm assuming that he's stepping down as the Twins' GM because he doesn't want to be the guy who let Torii Hunter go and/or the guy who traded Johan Santana.   

Something tells me this off-season is really, really going to suck for my club. 


And, as we head into the last couple weeks I have to say I'm pretty shocked by some teams and their performances these last few weeks.  Seattle  and Toronto have tanked it, pretty much killing any chance they had at Wild Card runs.  Really looks like it's just the Yanks and Detroit left to battle it out.  Over in the NL, I'm surprise to see that the NL Central is still up for grabs and even the St. Louis HGH Squad still has an outside chance there.

[JohnH]

If the Mets and Phillies both win today and the Padres lose, each team will have a 89-73 record.  The Mets and Phils will be tied for 1st in the NL East and the three teams will have an identical record as far as the Wild Card is concerned.  How is this handled in MLB?  Will the Mets and Phils do a 1-game playoff?  If so, how is the Wild Card then handled?

And on an unrelated note, am I the only person here that thinks Saves are the most overrated statistic in baseball?  I was at the Royals/Indians game on Sunday and Borowski reminded me of why I feel this way.  He came in with a 2-run lead, let two runners get on but still managed to hold the lead.  The guy's got more saves this season than anyone in the AL yet his ERA is better than 5.00.  Not to downplay the significance of having a solid closer, but the stat is just way too inconsistent.  A guy can come in with a three run lead, give up two runs and still be the hero as far as stats are concerned.  But the guy that comes in with a 1-run lead, the bases loaded with nobody out and subsequently retires three batters in order gets the Hold (a stat that was only developed to make middle relievers feel important).  Personally I find a save in baseball to be synonymous with a Hold.

John

[Mikey D]

If the Mets and Phillies both win today and the Padres lose, each team will have a 89-73 record.  The Mets and Phils will be tied for 1st in the NL East and the three teams will have an identical record as far as the Wild Card is concerned.  How is this handled in MLB?  Will the Mets and Phils do a 1-game playoff?  If so, how is the Wild Card then handled?

Not that it matters much now with the Mets losing completely ******** the bed, but if the Mets had won yesterday, then the Mets and Phils would have played today (in Philly) to decide the NL East.  The loser would then fight it out with the Padres and Rockies over the next few days to determine the wild card. I think it went NL East loser to play Padres and then that winner to play the Rockies for the final playoff spot.

As it stands, we're only getting one "play in" game today between the Padres and Rockies.  The winner takes the NL Wild Card and opens on the road against the Phillies.

[JohnH]

So Boston and Cleveland each go for the sweep today.  Does anyone know ever there's ever been a four-team sweep in the first round of the playoffs like there could be after today?

John

[Morgbug]

I have to say that this is the first I've heard of this and I am curious about how the general public will react.  I have an extensive White Sox hat collection and I'm not looking forward to having to replace these with new ones...

Just wait until the end of October, after the Yankees win the World Series all of the other teams hats will be 1/2 off on clearance.

 

[ruiner]

It was nice knowin' ya Joe.

 

[Dressel Rebel]

It was nice knowin' ya Joe.

 

Don't be quite so sure just yet.

He managed the Yankees to within 2 wins of the best record in baseball with multiple injuries, and his "ace" Chien-Ming Wang lost 2 games in Round 1 with an ERA of 19.00

It's hard to blame that on Joe.

At this point it's about 50-50.

He does not deserve to be let go.  By the way, there is no way to fire him.  His contract is up.  He simply wouldn't be offered a new deal.  A technicality for sure, but he can't be "fired".

The Yanks lost this series because they were unlucky, not because of managerial mistakes.  They hit almost as well as Cleveland, except Cleveland hit about .500 with RISP, and the Yankees' hits came with nobody on base.  It's baseball, it happens.  No matter who the manager is, the Yankees still come into next year the favorite to win the World Series.

[ruiner]

With all the money they've spent, he does deserve to go 'unsigned.'

Big deal, they were two games off of the best record in baseball - they didn't win the World Series. 

Isn't that what counts?

[Jeff]

No matter who the manager is, the Yankees still come into next year the favorite to win the World Series.

I won't make them my favorite in 2008, but they are in the top five for sure... 

Once they sign Torii Hunter and then trade for Santana, then I'll let you call them the favorites.   

[Matt]

No matter who the manager is, the Yankees still come into next year the favorite to win the World Series.

Just like they were in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007.

But I'm sure next year will be different.

[Dressel Rebel]

With all the money they've spent, he does deserve to go 'unsigned.'

Big deal, they were two games off of the best record in baseball - they didn't win the World Series. 

Isn't that what counts?

In my opinion, the longer the series of games you have to examine, the less luck factors into your performance in that block of games.

Let's look at Torre's record over a HUGE block of games:

13 consecutive playoff appearances
4 World Series championships
1235 - 871 record (rough estimate, unconfirmed but based on average of 95 W's per season)

You can't just fire him because his ace Wang blew his 2 starts against the Indians in a short 5 games series.  The laws of probability have no chance to work and even the playing field over 5 games.  Anything can happen.

[Dressel Rebel]

No matter who the manager is, the Yankees still come into next year the favorite to win the World Series.

Just like they were in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007.

But I'm sure next year will be different.

Oh look who's here.  I knew it wouldn't be long until "He who has no favorite team" showed up.  That train's never late!

[Matt]

Oh look who's here.  I knew it wouldn't be long until "He who has no favorite team" showed up.  That train's never late!

Enjoying your annual mid-October bowl of sour grapes, there, "Dressel?"

[ruiner]

In my opinion, the longer the series of games you have to examine, the less luck factors into your performance in that block of games.

You call it luck.

I call it choking, as in the Bills choked last night.