MLB Playoffs

The Game Room
81

I love it when intentional walks fail to work out. So far I think we’ve seen two fail - this ninth inning when the Mets walked Harper to get to Castellanos.

And there was an IBB of Betts in the Padres/Dodgers Game 1 where Betts ended up scoring the go-ahead run after a hit from Teoscar Hernandez. That one almost worked with a force play at home for out 2, but the idea of giving up a walk in the 4th inning of a 2-run game when you already had two strikes on the hitter just seems insane to me.

Looks like the two NL series could be good ones - let’s see if the Royals or Tigers can even things up in the AL series.

82

Dang, I just tuned in ten minutes ago to the Tigers vs. Guardians game and they’ve got a great one going on. Both the bottom and top of the 8th inning ending with spectacular catches in the outfield.

0-0 going into the ninth.

83

And the Tigers get a 2-out 3-run dinger to win 3-0.

Great game.

84

Rodon struck out the first 3 batters for KC.

I’m hoping the Yanks can get off to a early lead.

85

Well, technically they were the first with the lead. But that Royals blowup in the 4th was something else. (Univision is carrying the game in Spanish over-the-air in one of their side-channels)

86

We may soon have all four division series knotted 1-1.

87

And so we do.

88

First time ever since MLB went to divisional series in 1985.

89

Well that was an enjoyable evening of sports-watching. The Royals pull it together, and so do the Chiefs on Monday Night Football. The umps in the ALDS remain a problem, but I’ve come to not expect any sort of consistency.

TBS is awful at broadcasting baseball. They miss cutting back to the pitch too often, and Bob Costas was terrible. At one point he was waxing poetic at how Fenway and Yankee Stadium are the only places with history these days (ignoring that Yankee Stadium was built in 2009, or that Kaufman is the 3rd oldest AL stadium still in use).

90

That strike zone was all over the place. Kudos to Ron Darling for pointing that out more than once.

He was extremely disappointed when Bobby Witt made a fine defensive play to start an inning-ending double play late in the game. 30 years ago, I thought he was an excellent baseball announcer. But not any more.

Speaking of Witt, he is now 0 for 10 in the series. The fact that KC was able to win one game is big. Of course, Judge has only 1 hit, an infield single tonight.

91

1995, of course.

This is the fifth best-of-5 series the Yankees and Royals have played each other and they have included many classic games.

11 players (and Babe Ruth did it twice) have hit 3 homers in a postseason game. Who’s the only one to do it and still have his team lose?

George Brett of the Royals, in 1978.

92

I didn’t hear that call and now wish I did.

Costas is 72. At some point ya ain’t as sharp as you used to be.

93

Yes, 1995. My bad.

94

As to the other ALDS… poor Emmanuel Clase. He gave up five earned runs ALL YEAR. He never gave up more than one run in ANY game. Kerry Carpenter blasts him for three in one swing.

95

According to an article on the MLB website:

when a Division Series under the current 2-2-1 format has been tied after two games, the team heading home for Games 3-4 has gone on to win the series 29 of 44 times (66%).

As discussed above, all four series are 1-1.

96

Costas is terrible, but he was talking Wrigley not Yankee Stadium. It was Wrigley, Fenway and then Koufax at the third oldest, Dodgers.

97

Here it is. Listen to his voice as the play ends.

98

Jazz Chisholm commenting after the game;

'We still don’t feel like any team is better than us. We had a lot of missed opportunities tonight so they just got lucky."

He may be new to the club, but Chisholm has that Yankee arrogance down pat.

99

I just saw that clip. Not that anybody needs motivation to beat the Yankees, but this will add just a bit of fuel to the fire.

Expect Chisholm to be greeted warmly at the K tomorrow.

100

Guardians fans are pretty stunned that not only did we lose the game, Clase was the one who gave it up. With THREE runs. Wowza.

But, I think we all realized it was going to be a very tough go against Skubal. I’m proud we got some hits off him, and hung in there til the end.

Everyone is 1-1 now, so the Guardians are no worse and no better than anyone else.

I am very sad about the upcoming schedule because I have 2 official Council duties to attend to Wednesday and Thursday and they are going to cut in to my game time. Grrr.