# MLB: The Playoffs **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** baseball-mlb\ **Created:** [October 2, 2023, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989 "2023-10-02T04:45:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2023, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/81 "2023-10-11T05:00:51Z")
> [@Jaycat.again](#): > > More brilliant commentary from John Smoltz. > > “They needed that.” > > When the Orioles, down 6-0, finally put a run across the plate. I’m sorry, I didn’t have anything to take notes with… is your claim here that scoring runs causes your score to accumulate, and that the objective is to have a higher score than the opposing team? ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2023, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/82 "2023-10-11T05:02:12Z")
The vaunted American League East, one of the strongest divisions since they invented divisions, sent three teams to the playoffs. Not one of them won even a single game. They went 0-7. In those seven games, they scored two or fewer runs six times. To be honest, I am not surprised at all the Rangers beat the Orioles. The Orioles’ 101 wins were a bit flukey, while the Rangers were a bit unlucky. The Orioles didn’t have a front line starting rotation I really liked, either. Texas has a VERY difficult lineup to deal with. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2023, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/83 "2023-10-11T06:07:10Z")
I’m a lifelong Orioles fan and I’m not even mad. They were near-universally expected to _regress_ this season and they won 101 games. Best record in the American League. Have a lock on Rookie of the Year. Extremely strong candidate for Manager of the Year. It was a successful season by just about any measure. They were a very good but fatally flawed team this year, in the starting pitcher arena, but they no doubt put the entire league on notice they’re going to be a **huge problem** for at least the next decade. (Of course the Angeloses are an entire family of cheap shitheads and who knows if they will open up the checkbook to even hold onto the stars they already have, let alone to bring in some high-priced free agent starting pitching which is really all they need to put them over the top and EVERYONE can see it.) ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2023, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/84 "2023-10-11T15:10:45Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > I’m a lifelong Orioles fan and I’m not even mad. They were near-universally expected to _regress_ this season and they won 101 games. Best record in the American League. I mean, it’s progress, which is what counts. I’d be surprised if Brandon Hyde doesn’t win Manager of the Year; the only other candidate, really, is Kevin Cash, but Cash has won the award twice in the last three years (he is the only manager to win it two years in a row in the AL.) > [@DCnDC](#): > > (Of course the Angeloses are an entire family of cheap shitheads and who knows if they will open up the checkbook to even hold onto the stars they already have, let alone to bring in some high-priced free agent starting pitching which is really all they need to put them over the top and EVERYONE can see it.) There really isn’t a lot of that available this offseason anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [October 11, 2023, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/85 "2023-10-11T20:34:08Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Texas has a VERY difficult lineup to deal with. Joe Posnanski had a stat in his newsletter that Mitch Garver, the part-time catcher/DH who didn’t even play against the Rays or in the first game against the Orioles, slugged .500 this year. Which is something that exactly zero of the Orioles starting lineup managed this season. The Rangers were just a better team than the Orioles this year, especially in a short-series format where their weak back-end of the bullpen doesn’t really matter. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/86 "2023-10-12T01:47:54Z")
Arizona has taken a slight lead, 1-0 in the bottom of the 3rd. ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/87 "2023-10-12T01:54:47Z")
Not so slight… ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/88 "2023-10-12T01:57:17Z")
Three… ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/89 "2023-10-12T01:57:52Z")
Four. Jeez Louise. ---
**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 12, 2023, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/90 "2023-10-12T01:58:30Z")
Man, tough times in LA. Imagine starting guy with a FIP over 6 in an elimination game. ---
**Author:** ![gnarator](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gnarator/32/8266_2.png) [@gnarator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnarator)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/91 "2023-10-12T01:58:58Z")
A Lone Star ALCS. Twins go down to the Astros. ---
**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 12, 2023, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/92 "2023-10-12T02:02:25Z")
Did Roberts fall asleep in the dugout? The mind boggles. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/93 "2023-10-12T02:02:50Z")
Jeez Louise is right. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/94 "2023-10-12T02:05:59Z")
The “getting a bye is actually a disadvantage because of the layoff” excuse doesn’t really fly by Game 3, surely? And yet here we are, with Atlanta being destroyed 10-2 and the Dodgers peering into the abyss. Sometimes you just gotta play good. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/95 "2023-10-12T02:08:05Z")
It’s an easy game. See the ball, hit the ball. Easy peasy. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/96 "2023-10-12T02:49:37Z")
Nitpick: This is a simple game: You throw the ball, you hit the ball, you catch the ball. You got it?! ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/97 "2023-10-12T02:53:20Z")
Disappointment. I was hoping with all my being that the Astros would not go to a 7th straight ALCS. Oh well, guess we better show them who’s boss of Texas. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/98 "2023-10-12T05:21:26Z")
The game is simple. The quote is not. 🙂 OK, I’m now rooting for a Rangers-Diamondbacks World Series. And the Rangers to win it all. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/99 "2023-10-12T08:53:29Z")
New thread where I ask the question, [MLB 2023 postseason: harmful byes?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-2023-postseason-harmful-byes/991448) ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [October 12, 2023, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989/100 "2023-10-12T14:39:37Z")
It’s always a good day when the Dodgers lose. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-the-playoffs/990989.md?page=6)