Oh my god. Oh my god.
OK let’s compare post-season offenses:
Average: Indians .216, Cubs .217
OBP: Indians .279, Cubs .277
HRs: Indians 13, Cubs 12
Slugging: Indians .370, Cubs .368
RBIs Indians 33, Cubs 51
Except for those RBI totals, the two teams could hardly be closer. And in each of these categories the top Indian player is ahead of or tied with the top Cubs player including RBIs. So why can less be said about their offense than the Cubs offense? And BTW Lindor is the top only in average and OBP.
Too late to edit, I just wanted to add, the Major League as a whole has batted .203 this post season. It’s the post-season of the pitcher.
Neither of those lines look like what we’ve become used to in World Series winning offenses. But the Indians’ pitching staff has been decimated, and the Cubs haven’t. And even though the popsicle-stick-and-bubble-gum process the Indians have been using to compensate for the fact that they have one ace, a number four starter and a couple of rookies has worked out far better, it still doesn’t create a narrative that makes you trust in the future production of the rotation/bullpen when you have 3 aces and another guy who has Been There a couple of times.
Good to know, but that’s more expensive than either the radio-only sub desertmonk mentions, or the device Little_Pig was asking about.
(I haven’t used any of these options, because I cobbled together my own system to create the same effect a while back–because I had the hardware and software to do it, for other reasons. I use free radio streams, so I do end up with both TV ads on screen and radio ads in the audio.)
It’s a great year to be a Cleveland sports fan, after a half a century in the cold. It may be premature, but congratulations to all of you who have been so patient for so long (including my late mother and grandmother, who told us kids all about Gene Bearden’s exploits in 1948 and took us to his restaurant all the time).
Not as much sympathy here for Chicagoans, who have had a heaping helping from their other teams recently, or for the trendy-yuppie-dilettante faction of Cubs fans (like the similar faction of Red Sox fans, I readily admit) who make up much of their base.
Besides, I’ve always both admired and liked (not the same thing) Terry Francona, who would still be in Boston if not for Lackey and Lester and the fried chicken and beer incident. It’s enough to make me overlook Chief Wahoo’s continued existence.
FTR, the best team is the one that wins. Other considerations are loser’s excuses, nothing more.
For those who noticed Fox’s Joe Buck gushing juuuuust a bit over Kyle Schwerber: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/the-joe-buck-kyle-schwarber-wedding-registry/
That and Chicago had a World Series parade 11 years ago.
That and Chicago had a World Series parade 11 years ago.
Why does Joe Buck land the big primetime things anyway? Does he have a big fanbase? He’s not awful at football but he’s nothing special, but he’s boring and not especially informative in baseball it seems to me. A single announcer in baseball has to do more than the play by play guy in football and Buck doesn’t have it.
Hey Elvis, no Cleveland Indians fan will (or, should) touch this one. As a Giants fan, may I step in here to say that the Baseball Gods are not to be taunted or dis’d or forced into a result that has not yet played out on the field.
The games must be played, the results must be determined on the field.
Many fans, of many teams, know that the Baseball Gods can be so cruel if one dares to predetermine the future. For me and other Giants fans, see Game 6 of the 2002 World Series when Dusty Baker essentially (and very prematurely) congratulated SFG starting pitcher Russ Ortiz for winning (ahem) the Series when he pulled him in the 7th inning, leading 5-0 and with only 8 outs left in the game: as Ortiz left the mound, Baker handed him the ‘game ball’, at Anaheim in front of all those Angels fans, in front of that fucking Rally Monkey, and in front of the Baseball Gods.
AAAAAARGH!!!
The rest, as we Giants fans say, IS FUCKED.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russ_Ortiz:
So, Elvis, even though your sentiments come with good intentions, let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
Now, let me go and put out the incense that has been burning as I typed this…
No one could blow a 3-1 lead when they’ve got two of the last games at home.
Especially if they have the first unanimous league MVP, the best regular season record in history… er, wait, wrong sport.
Stop it.
Trevor Bauer.
Bottom of 4th, and the Cubs’ bats are waking up. 3-1 Cubs, 2 outs.
Cubs just won, the stadium broke out into song. What are they singing?
They’re singing “Go Cubs, Go” the semi-official anthem of the team and its fans.
Six first place finishes in seven years is not a team being raided of talent. They had an excellent run.
Name all the teams in the wild card era who have done that. It’s a short list.
Results and (Likely) Starting Pitchers
G1: CHC 0 @ CLE 6; CHC LHP #34 Jon Lester @ CLE RHP #24 Corey Kluber; WP Kluber, LP Lester
G2: CHC 5 @ CLE 1; CHC RHP #49 Jake Arrieta @ CLE RHP #47 Trevor Bauer; WP Arrieta, LP Bauer
G3: CLE 1 @ CHC 0; CLE RHP #43 Josh Tomlin @ CHC RHP #28 Kyle Hendricks; WP LHP #24 Andrew Miller, LP RHP #6 Carl Edwards Jr, S RHP #37 Cody Allen
G4: CLE 7 @ CHC 2; CLE RHP #24 Corey Kluber @ CHC RHP #41 John Lackey; WP Kluber, LP Lackey
G5: CLE 2 @ CHC 3; CLE RHP #47 Trevor Bauer @ CHC LHP #34 Jon Lester; WP Lester, LP Bauer, S LHP #54 Aroldis Chapman
G6: CHC RHP #49 Jake Arrieta @ CLE CLE RHP #43 Josh Tomlin
The Cubs aren’t playing with good fundamentals. Chapman not covering, Rizzo not running out his double until late, and then Soler. I hope this doesn’t bite them in the series.
I couldn’t watch the whole game – what did Soler do wrong? (Besides swatting flies the whole series).