04/24/24
September 29, 2003
Tigers win! Tigers win! Tigers win!
A 119 loss season it is then.
In other news Pujols wins the batting title by 0.000223 and Clemens is 1 and 0 as a manager.
And your postseason matchups: NL - Cubs vs Braves, Marlins vs Giants and AL - Red Sox vs A's, Twins vs Yankees. Play Ball.
You know, Sportsline appears to be blazing a new trail in bad reporting. "Eight players in Boston's lineup have 20 or more home runs." Huh? Six players have 20, and Muller has 19. They're not even close. The scouting stuff is ludicrous, too. Yeah, I'm sure Nomar was kept around cause Bill James liked him. Someone's got an axe to grind.
posted by Bryant at 07:36 AM on September 29, 2003
Cubs v. A's in the World Series would be a fantastic (starting) pitching matchup; Braves v. Red Sox would be a slugfest. Cubs v. Giants would be a Dusty-fest, Red Sox v. Yankees would be horrific for the losing city. I guess I'm rooting for a Marlins v. A's Series.
posted by mbd1 at 09:05 AM on September 29, 2003
None of the first round matchups really grab my casual attention save for the Twins v Yankees. I would, however, be closely following the potential Cubs v Giants and Red Sox v Yankees LCSes.
posted by gspm at 10:02 AM on September 29, 2003
I hope the As can find a way past the Sox, because they scare the hell out of me, and I really just don't want to have to hear 90 years worth of endless taunting from obnoxious Sox fans. Not that Yankee fans aren't obnoxious, but they have a bit more of a right to be, and even if they lose, it's still the first time. The Sox would still be 26 World Series wins behind... I have always hated the Cubs, so despite me liking their pitching and the Dusty vs. Giants thing, I can't make myself root for them. Oh wait, they're playing the Braves. Yes I can. Go Cubs! I'm hoping for the same thing I wanted last year - Yankees-Giants. Of course, nothing went according to plan last year... the plan was to see the Yankees on the road in all three playoff series - Anaheim, Oakland, SF. But then they had to go and lose, and my ALCS tickets were voided anyway.
posted by Bernreuther at 10:36 AM on September 29, 2003
Let me be the brave first predictor: AL: Yankees over Twins in 4 A's over Smellies in 5 Yankees over A's in 7 NL: Braves over Cubs in 3 Giants over Marlins in 3 Giants over Braves in 6 WS: Yankees over Giants in 6 Laugh all you want.
posted by billsaysthis at 10:45 AM on September 29, 2003
I'm glad baseball season is over in these parts...bring on the real sports, like hockey... =D
posted by MeatSaber at 11:11 AM on September 29, 2003
Smellies? Really, Bill.
posted by Samsonov14 at 11:14 AM on September 29, 2003
Stepping up to the prediction plate: Yankees over Twins in 5. Red Sox over A's in 5. Giants over Marlins in 4. Cubs over Braves in 5. Red Sox over Yankees in 7. Giants over Cubs in 6 (the fates would NEVER allow a Boston and Chicago team to face each other in the World Series). Giants over Red Sox in 7. And if there is a higher-power, it will grant Barry Bonds the chance to bat in the bottom of the 9th with the score tied and the bases loaded in Game 7. Pitch around THAT! And by the way, I knew who Mueller was as I drafted/picked him up in ALL my baseball pools this year. I was stupid enough to think that it was a fluke and traded him in July/August in half those pools, so what do I know.
posted by grum@work at 11:22 AM on September 29, 2003
Cubs v Red Sox - in a seven game, last at bat barnburner that leaves 78 dead from cardiac arrest in both towns. Cubs fans resort to sacrficing the only guy still around from their last World Series vicotry at home plate in Game 3. Red Sox genetically combine Fisk and Williams DNA and inject it straight into David Ortiz. Plus it guarentees that at least one city will yet again experience the most agonizing of defeats. Since Boston fans complain the loudest - I hope it's them.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 11:59 AM on September 29, 2003
With my team establishing permanent residence in the A.L. West cellar, I'm rooting for a Cubs/Sox World Series, even though it's likely to be one of the harbingers of the end of the world.
posted by rcade at 12:54 PM on September 29, 2003
Twins over Yankees in 4. Red Sox over A's in 5. Giants over Marlins in 3. Braves over Cubs in 4. Red Sox over Twins in 7. Giants over Braves in 6. Giants over Red Sox in 6.
posted by hootch at 01:01 PM on September 29, 2003
i have this feeling that the american league teams just aren't that good a group this year. i'm not overly impressed with any of them and i think any team can pretty much come out the AL champs. with that said.....i think the first round will go much the same way it did last year....mucho upsets. this is the playoffs....the yankee's haven't won on intimidation since 2000....so why are they still the favorites? Twins over Yanks in 5 it's crash and burn time in the bronx. too many bullpen holes and the starters aren't going to be carrying the load in the big innings. there's been bad things on the horizon all year in yankee land. A's over Red Sox in 3 impossible for the sox to recover after first game loss with pedro on the hill. A's over Twins in 6 sweet revenge the national league teams are a much more interesting group. Giants over Marlins in 5 pesky marlins lineup wins a couple of games in the 'joe morgan' method of post season baseball. Cubs over Braves in 3 atlanta fans you know the drill.....plenty of good seats still left for tomorrows game. just can't see them turning it up since they've been on cruise control since may. Cubs over Giants in 7 wood and prior get d-back 2001 fever and pitch the team to a combined four victories. dusty keeps ignoring pitch counts. cubs keep winning. world series.... A's over Cubs in 5 nothing's left in the cubbies tank....and the worst of the A's last three playoff teams wins a world series.... this will be an entertaining post season....lots of good story lines and matchups.....
posted by oliver_crunk at 01:31 PM on September 29, 2003
Oliver: One reason I'm going with the Yankees is that either Contreras or Wells, or both, will pitch innings 6 and 7 a lot of these games, especially in the first round. Jersey girl, sorry could not resist the sock metaphor.
posted by billsaysthis at 01:40 PM on September 29, 2003
billy: that's a good point. it'll be interesting to see how torre handles having to re-configure his pitching situation. it's not something he's had to deal with too much as a yankee manager. it'll also be interesting to see how wells and contreras react to these situations......i'm still not sold on contreras despite what he's shown lately. both of 'em could either make torre look like a genius or a bumb (despite the fact the press has been calling for this configuration for about a month now, such is new york). i've been watching the yanks all year.....i still don't know how they won 100 games, while i'm sure it has something to do with the unbalanced schedule, i think this might be the weakest yankee team they've guided to the post season since their run began. (that includes 2000)
posted by oliver_crunk at 02:21 PM on September 29, 2003
A's over Red Sox in 3 impossible for the sox to recover after first game loss with pedro on the hill. Oh good call, guy. I guess we'll just stay home then. /sarcasm
posted by jerseygirl at 02:32 PM on September 29, 2003
I don't care who wins, as long as it's not the yankees, red sox, giants or braves.
posted by corpse at 03:22 PM on September 29, 2003
Oh good call, guy. I guess we'll just stay home then. Unfortunately, that first game does seem to be all-important in the A's-Sox tilt. I don't think recovery would be "impossible," but it would make things tough. I'd like to thank the MLB for putting the Sox series on @ 10pm local time. Somehow when shit's on the East Coast we have to wait for all the Left Coasters to get home from jobs they probably don't have but when the sandal's on the other ill-kept foot, we get scrod.
posted by yerfatma at 03:24 PM on September 29, 2003
seriously....let's not even get started on those 8:28 start times for world series games in late october. if any of those games occur in NY, CHI or BOS....i feel bad enough for the players....the sleep deprivation i can deal with. ever hit with a wooden bat in that weather?
posted by oliver_crunk at 03:34 PM on September 29, 2003
Why are we assuming Pedro loses the first game in the first place? He's 6-2 against the A's lifetime, sure his last outing against them, a 0-4 loss wasn't grand but it's not like they've got his number.
posted by lilnemo at 03:52 PM on September 29, 2003
Why are we assuming Pedro loses the first game in the first place? thank you. Hudson may be having back problems, and we're already assuming Pedro is going to lose. The line in Vegas already favors Pedro winning. There's a lot of underestimating regarding this Red Sox team.
posted by jerseygirl at 04:00 PM on September 29, 2003
There's a lot of underestimating regarding this Red Sox team. underestimating!?....they haven't won anything (except a wild card) and their fortunes rest on one arm and a lot of bats. unless they hit at the clip the angels did last season, i still don't see what people are underestimating. this is a team whose biggest win this year came against the devil rays.....and until they can show they can get out of the shadow of the varsity team (the yanks).....people will continue to assume failure. and that's coming from a mets fan.
posted by oliver_crunk at 04:33 PM on September 29, 2003
and that's coming from a mets fan.
Nice qualifier.
posted by lilnemo at 04:34 PM on September 29, 2003
their fortunes rest on one arm and a lot of bats. That's a metric tonload of bats. Let's not forget that this is an offense for the ages; I'd feel arrogant about saying that, but they do have the highest slugging percentage ever. Bar none. And it's not really just one arm. Lowe has only lost one game in his last nine starts. Since he opened the season 3-3, he's gone 14-4. He isn't a Cy Young contender this season, but he's not that far off from his form of last season at this point. I don't expect the Red Sox to sweep, but I can't say I'd be surprised if they came home with a 2-0 lead. (Prediction? Red Sox in four.)
posted by Bryant at 04:52 PM on September 29, 2003
Don't discount Wakefield, either.
posted by jerseygirl at 05:17 PM on September 29, 2003
I think Bryant has an important point wrt the Sox- they are ridiculously good with the bats. Sure, the pen stinks, and not all of the starters are great, but on any given night they are a serious threat to score 10-14 runs, and that's hard to top. And they've done it against some good pitching- they've shelled both the As and the Yanks this season. They probably won't win, but they still have to be scary as hell for anyone who faces them the rest of the way out.
posted by tieguy at 06:46 PM on September 29, 2003
Sox should take out the A's. I don't think Zito and Hudson are so much better than Lowe and Pedro (we know niether is better than Pedro) when you factor in the offences. Lilly and Wakefeild are definitely #3 material - we'll see how the pressure affects them, but I give the edge to Wakefield. I think the key to this series isn't just the A's shutting down Boston's bats, but the A's actually scoring runs against some Boston pitching that actually stacks up.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 08:53 AM on September 30, 2003
Plus, Mueller wins the AL batting title... which is pretty incredible considering i had no idea who this guy was in Spring Training. Great regular season, looking forward to a lengthy post season.