# MLB 2021 Playoffs **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** baseball-mlb\ **Created:** [October 5, 2021, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930 "2021-10-05T13:47:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![txtumbleweed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/278dde/32.png) [@txtumbleweed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/txtumbleweed)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2021, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/141 "2021-10-11T02:16:15Z")
That’s okay, Det Drebin behind the plate went ahead and spotted the White Sox five runs in the 3rd. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2021, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/142 "2021-10-11T02:38:29Z")
It was the correct call – backed up by MLB rules. Still a crap way to (possibly) lose a game – I say possibly because the Sox could still have won that game anyway. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2021, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/143 "2021-10-11T02:55:34Z")
> [@jaycat](#): > > So I guess that one that bounced off Canseco’s head should have been a double? No, because the ball was still “in flight” after hitting Canseco’s head. In flight, over the wall = home run. Today’s ball hit the ground and was therefore not in flight. Not in flight, out of bounds = 2 bases. And contrary to common usage, it’s not a “ground rule” double. It’s straight from the rule book and doesn’t depend on ground rules (like eg Tampa’s catwalk). ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2021, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/144 "2021-10-11T03:44:22Z")
> [@jsc1953](#): > > And contrary to common usage, it’s not a “ground rule” double. I’ve given up trying to make that correction. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2021, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/145 "2021-10-11T10:16:48Z")
With any luck, Boston will get a real MLB stadium one day, instead of that mickey-mouse mess called Fenway. ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2021, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/146 "2021-10-11T13:07:45Z")
I mean the rulebook double was a fluky play and bad luck for the Rays. But it really does nothing to change the fact that the next guy struck out and then Vazquez hit a 2 run homer in the bottom of the inning. So the Rays still lose by one run instead of two. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2021, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/147 "2021-10-11T19:15:38Z")
It looks like I shouldn’t have given up on the White Sox game! Today’s game has been postponed until tomorrow due to rain. Chicago baseball fans know the drill- get hopeful, get hurt! ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2021, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/148 "2021-10-11T19:51:05Z")
A little further digging shows that the White Sox win was entirely the result of a wizardlike fan. "After watching a Sox player struggle at the plate, Holt pointed his wooden cane and told the player to hit the ball into left field. Miraculously, it worked. A man sitting near Holt cheered him on, saying: “Oh, dude. Way to go!” “Actually, it was utterly ridiculous,” Holt recalled. And the rest is history. What started as a joke quickly turned into a silly superstition of sorts. Holt, 71, did it for the next batter, and sure enough, it worked again. “It’s just totally ridiculous. He did” what I told him, said Holt, a Sox season-ticket holder for more than 30 years. “My son says, ‘He’s Gandalf!’ And that started the whole thing.” > **[Meet ‘Cane Guy,’ the lifelong White Sox fan who worked his magic in Game 3 win](https://chicago.suntimes.com/white-sox/2021/10/11/22720691/white-sox-fan-cane-guy-game-3-astros-rob-holt-alds-american-league-playoffs-guaranteed-rate-field)** > > ‘He’s Gandalf!’ his son declared, and, yes, he’ll be at Game 4 of the American League Division Series on Tuesday afternoon. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/149 "2021-10-12T00:07:29Z")
Aaand the Rays are falling apart. Something about the Sox in Fenway tends to do that. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/150 "2021-10-12T00:11:37Z")
Wow, they’re stepping on the gas pedal. Keep it going, keep it going. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/151 "2021-10-12T00:47:46Z")
Man the Sox are making some serious contact, batter after batter. Even the outs are scary. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/152 "2021-10-12T02:00:57Z")
So much for the Red Sox bullpen. OK, time to cowboy up. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/153 "2021-10-12T02:12:49Z")
What the fuck is with these oven mitts? Total bullshit. Slide with your hands, guys. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/154 "2021-10-12T02:26:16Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > What the fuck is with these oven mitts? They’ve been commonly used for at least 3 years and are designed to prevent injury. > **[Why do base runners in baseball wear an oven mitt? - Dear Sports Fan](http://dearsportsfan.com/2018/10/16/why-do-base-runners-in-baseball-wear-an-oven-mitt/)** > > I was watching a baseball game and noticed that once players get on base, they put on an oven mitt on one hand. Why an oven mitt??!! > **[Why Do Baseball Players Wear Oven Mitts?](https://www.sportscasting.com/why-do-baseball-players-wear-oven-mitts/)** > > A look at why Major League Baseball players can be seen wearing what look like oven mitts while running the bases. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/155 "2021-10-12T02:27:30Z")
God, they might as well wear pink bikinis. Sissy baseball. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/156 "2021-10-12T02:34:14Z")
I think Kike ends it ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/157 "2021-10-12T02:34:47Z")
> [@asahi](#): > > Sissy baseball. So…you only watch playoff baseball? Otherwise you certainly would have seen these sissy mitts before tonight. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/158 "2021-10-12T02:36:18Z")
You think right. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/159 "2021-10-12T02:36:30Z")
And Kike did, in fact, end it. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2021, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930/160 "2021-10-12T02:38:19Z")
Yeah I just recently got cable again – they don’t exactly put games on regular TV anymore. Sissy mitts are sissy mitts. It’s disgusting what’s happening to this sport. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2021-playoffs/951930.md?page=9)