IST 2016 NLCS - Dodgers vs Cubs

[Guest d'Kong76]

You sound like one of those 'mando freaks!

[Centerfield]

d'Kong76 wrote: You sound like one of those 'mando freaks!

No way man, that dude was a choker!

[Frayed Knot]

Mostly with closers in the post-season (or ANYONE and post-season records although it's always more pronounced with closers) it's a matter of sample size.
Familia's stats look a bit better than they should because they don't show the inherited runners he allowed to score, but neither do Chapman's and he's allowed a bunch of them so far in this year's playoffs.

On the Dodger side, Kensley Jansen was about as dominant as it's possible to be last night: two 3-pitch Ks, two 4-pitch Ks, a pop-out and a line-out. Two innings, six straight outs, all on just 18 pitches.
On the other hand, six days earlier he was yanked after retiring only one batter while giving up four runs in the 9th inning of a one-run game vs Washington. A few days after that he had to be relieved by Kershaw after issuing back-to-back 9th inning walks in a do-or-die game (albeit in his 3rd inning of work).


Bottom line is that you have to take the good with the bad with these guys. It's easy to say that I'd rather have closer 'X' than our guy but then you have to take his shit outings too.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

I am coming around to realize the Gillaspie Incident needs to resonate with Terry and how the club approaches roles going forward. It was pretty clear from July on that Reed was the "real" ace of the bullpen staff, and arguably even as JF rung up all those early season saves: Way, WAY too many baserunners allowed, just an invitation to bad shit.

I realize TC is taking the big picture into account (longterm results, egos, comfort in roles) etc., and that he appropriately broke the rules when appropriate - more often that event I woulda - last year when JF was going great.

But it needs to be said: I had very little CAHNfidence after Reed departed that we'd win.

[Frayed Knot]

I thought that Familia's 'consecutive save streak' and ultimately his team record for saves in a season combined to exaggerate in many minds how good a season JF was having - and GKR were as guilty as anyone at contributing to that image.
But by baserunners/inning (.27 better for Reed) and ERA (more than 1/2 R/G) Reed was clearly better and was more efficient in his outings. Reed even had more Ks.
Oddly the only place where Familia had the edge was in HRs (1 allowed vs 4 for Reed) until the HR that killed the season.

[Guest d'Kong76]

Chi. Cubs at LA Dodgers
When: 8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, October 18, 2016
Where: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California
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Adrian Gonzalez and the Los Angeles Dodgers are aiming to continue Chicago's longstanding postseason woes, and have a chance to take a 2-1 lead when they host the Cubs on Tuesday in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series. The Dodgers have the luxury of playing three straight games at home after splitting two in Chicago, with the 1-0 win in Game 2 coming courtesy of strong pitching and a home run from Gonzalez.

The Los Angeles first baseman has driven in three of his squad's five runs in the series and manager Dave Roberts said the veteran's production is sometimes taken for granted. "He's one of the leaders on this club, and gets overlooked a lot because of his consistency, but certainly not in our clubhouse," Roberts said at Monday's press conference. "The value of a guy who posts every night regardless of the handedness of a pitcher or the spot, so, yeah, Adrian's been a huge lift to us. The consistent at-bats, and the big hits when we need them." Chicago attempts to regain the series lead behind right-hander Jake Arrieta, who pitched seven innings of two-hit scoreless ball in a no-decision against the Dodgers on May 31. Cubs second baseman Javier Baez is 3-for-7 in the NLCS and has hit in all six games of the postseason, going 9-for-23 with one homer.

TV: 8:08 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cubs RH Jake Arrieta (0-0, 3.00 ERA) vs. Dodgers LH Rich Hill (0-1, 6.43)

Arrieta, who won 18 games during the regular season, gave up two runs in six innings in a no-decision against San Francisco in the NL Division Series. The 30-year-old told reporters he is much more comfortable with the postseason expectations this time around after allowing four runs in two of his three 2015 outings. "I think going through that last year has prepared myself as well as the rest of the guys mentally for a longer run this year, and I think we've been able to handle the moments mentally a lot better as well as physically," Arrieta said at Monday's press conference. "So personally moving forward, I think I'm in a much better place, and I think a lot of our guys are as well.

Hill won 12 games in the regular season but hasn't fared well this postseason. He lasted just seven total innings over two starts against Washington in the NLDS but defended his performance at Monday's press conference. "For me, I go out there and give everything that I have, that's it. That's the bottom line," Hill told reporters. "Your effort is everything. Your ability to go out there and stay in the moment and execute pitch to pitch and do the best that you can, that's it. Let everything else fall where it may."

WALK-OFFS:
1. Cubs 3B Kris Bryant, the probable NL MVP, was hitless in four at-bats in Game 2 but is 8-for-24 with a homer in the postseason.
2. Los Angeles RHP Kenley Jansen struck out four in two innings to get the save in Game 2 and has fanned 13 batters in 7 1/3 innings this postseason.
3. Chicago 1B Anthony Rizzo is hitless in eight at-bats in the series and 1-for-23 in six games this postseason.

[Guest d'Kong76]

That number of feet while taking a lead graphic is most annoying.
It's a baseball game, not a video game. Five years from now they'll
be selling special glasses to see 'added' features.

(I forget if I've kvetched about that before, just saying)

[MFS62]

I thought Yasmani Grandal was a character from Beowulf.

Later

[Guest Mets Guy in Michigan]

Dodgers are making a series out of this.

[dinosaur jesus]

I don't know exactly why, and I'm sure it makes me a terrible person, but it really makes me happy to see the Cubs losing in the postseason. I want their frustration to continue, even if it means seeing the Dodgers in the Series. It's weird, because I don't hate the Cubs at all, and I like Chicago. I think maybe the Cubs not making the World Series is one of those comforting old traditions that help keep us grounded while the world changes around us.

I would have teared up if they'd won one while Banks was alive, though.

[Fman99]

I'm just too tired all the damn time to watch the ends of these games and I'm a grown ass man. Who stays up so late? Kids today and their Red Bull and their oxycontin, that's who.

[Frayed Knot]

Dodgers are making a series out of this.

The Cubs are making a non-series out of this.
They're not just losing, they're barely showing. They've been shutout on 5 hits (4 singles & a double) over the last 17 innings.

oe: 17-1/3

[Zvon]

I am surprised by the lack of bats re:Cubs.
My Cubbies are in trouble!

[Zvon]

Oh, well, there it is. The Cubs can't hit the curve ball.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

See, if the Dodgers beat the Cubs, well, then, you've got a rooting interest in the World Series.

[HahnSolo]

I grew tired of the Cubs story lines so early in this postseason, and enjoyed Roberts' handling of Jensen/Kershaw so much that I am firmly on Team Mary Hart in this round.

*My old man was also a big Dodgers fan, so they have that going for them too.

**As always though, fluck Utey.

[Benjamin Grimm]

dinosaur jesus wrote: I don't know exactly why, and I'm sure it makes me a terrible person, but it really makes me happy to see the Cubs losing in the postseason. I want their frustration to continue, even if it means seeing the Dodgers in the Series. It's weird, because I don't hate the Cubs at all, and I like Chicago. I think maybe the Cubs not making the World Series is one of those comforting old traditions that help keep us grounded while the world changes around us.

That's where I am. I like that the Cubs haven't won a title in 108 years and I'd like to see that tradition continue. I also like that they haven't played a World Series game in 71 years, and I'd like to see that continue as well.

[Centerfield]

Plus, you know what? Fuck the Cubs fans for what they did to that poor headphones guy.

[Guest d'Kong76]

Chi. Cubs at LA Dodgers
When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, October 19, 2016
Where: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California
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Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Julio Urias becomes the youngest pitcher to start a postseason game when he takes the mound against the visiting Chicago Cubs in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series on Wednesday. Urias, who reached the majors in late May, looks to help the Dodgers take a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.

Urias will be 20 years, 68 days old at the start of Game 4, surpassing Kansas City's Bret Saberhagen (20 years, 175 days in 1984) as the youngest postseason starter. "Julio, I think that we expect him to just go out there and compete, use his pitch mix and go after these guys," Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts said at a press conference. "Give us a chance to win a baseball game. It's what Julio's done all year long." Catcher Yasmani Grandal hit a two-run homer and third baseman Justin Turner added a solo blast as the Dodgers recorded a 6-0 victory in Game 3 for their second straight shutout -- holding Chicago to six hits over the 18 innings. "We're not hitting the ball hard," Cubs manager Joe Maddon said after Game 3. "They pitched well, obviously. I have no solid explanation. We just got to keep working at it. ... We're just not getting the results right now."

TV: 8:08 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cubs RH John Lackey (0-0, 6.75 ERA) vs. Dodgers LH Julio Urias (1-0, 0.00)

Lackey makes his 25th postseason appearance (22nd start) and is 8-5 with a 3.22 ERA, but lasted only four innings - allowing three runs and seven hits - in a no-decision against San Francisco in the NL Division Series. The 37-year-old first pitched in the postseason in 2002 with the Angels and later pitched in the World Series for Boston in 2013. "I had a long break in between World Series, so you realize how special they are and how hard it is to get there and how meaningful those games are for sure," Lackey said at a press conference. "They're tough to get to, and they're tough to win."

Urias went 5-2 with a 3.39 ERA in 18 appearances (15 starts) in the regular season and said it is a much more stressful feeling to pitch in the postseason. "The pressure is always there. It's something that you have to deal with," Urias said at a press conference. "I felt the adrenaline when I was on the bench, so I'm thinking that it's something that I'm also going to feel. I felt it in Washington, but then I knew that it was something that I could handle and something I could do." Urias pitched against the Cubs twice this season - getting hammered for six runs (five earned) in five innings in his second major-league start and later giving up one run and six hits in six innings in 3-2 victory Aug. 27.

WALK-OFFS:
1. Cubs 2B-LF Ben Zobrist is 1-for-10 in the series and 4-for-26 in seven games this postseason.
2. Los Angeles SS Corey Seager went 3-for-4 with an RBI in Game 3 after going 1-for-17 over the previous four games.
3. Chicago 1B Anthony Rizzo got a broken-bat field single in the ninth inning of Game 3 to make him 1-for-11 in the series and 2-for-26 in the postseason.

[MFS62]

d'Kong76 wrote: 3. Chicago 1B Anthony Rizzo got a broken-bat field single in the ninth inning of Game 3 to make him 1-for-11 in the series and 2-for-26 in the postseason.

In the movie Grease, Rizzo sings There Are Worse Things I Could Do.
I guess the Cubs' Rizzo could be 0-for-12 in the series.

Later

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

HahnSolo wrote: I grew tired of the Cubs story lines so early in this postseason, and enjoyed Roberts' handling of Jensen/Kershaw so much that I am firmly on Team Mary Hart in this round. *My old man was also a big Dodgers fan, so they have that going for them too. **As always though, fluck Utey.

As always.

I also can't forgive the Dodgers for letting a shitty San Francsico team sweep them in the season's final weekend w/o Bumgarner, putting the Mets in the absolute worst possible scenario to advance.

I want 'em both to lose.

[Centerfield]

Plus it pisses me off that Sandy let Turner walk for nothing. Such a stupid move.

[TransMonk]

C'mon, Turner wasn't worth all that much during his time with the Mets. He's blossomed as a Dodger, but I'm not sure anyone saw that coming.

He was never more than a bench player in NYC (on some pretty bad teams, too).

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

We've been over the Turner thing before. My take is that he got fat, then got hurt because got fat, and he wrote his ticket out because he was unavailable when they needed him.

The other thing about Turner: He gives Marlon Byrd a lot of credit for helping his swing and approach at the plate but given Byrd's shape and being twice whistled for PEDs, I'd be surprised if some of that help he shared with Turner wasn't chemical.

[Ceetar]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: We've been over the Turner thing before. My take is that he got fat, then got hurt because got fat, and he wrote his ticket out because he was unavailable when they needed him. The other thing about Turner: He gives Marlon Byrd a lot of credit for helping his swing and approach at the plate but given Byrd's shape and being twice whistled for PEDs, I'd be surprised if some of that help he shared with Turner wasn't chemical.

I suspect the 5.1% BB rate had a lot to do with it. Someone got him to be more patient and wait for his pitch and drive it, because his BB% go up slightly but his ISO is what really drove the increase. 2014 had a lot of luck too, .400 BABIP, but significant power bump was the big thing. The Mets weren't getting through to him, but someone with the Dodgers did. happens. Ultimately maybe they should've fired Hudgens in the offseason and not May, and kept Turner, but hey.

[Centerfield]

Sure, no one could have predicted how he blossomed, but that is the risk you take when you take a young, versatile player, who is under team control for several years, and cut him loose for absolutely no reason. I criticized it at the time, even before his breakout.

Turner made $500k in 2013. How much could he possibly have made in 2014 that the Mets couldn't afford to keep him?

Turner was a valuable player. He played 5 different positions in 2013, including 18 games at SS. He posted a .704 OPS. If he only held his performance for 2014, that would have placed him fifth on the team among regulars (minimum 150 PAs) in OPS. Only Travis, Murphy, Granderson and Duda were higher.

While there, he showed glimmers of potential. He hit 30 doubles in one year.

Plus, I felt like that team could have used more offense (even at the expense of defense) from SS. This is a team that gave AB's to Omar Quintanilla and Wilfredo Tovar. You're telling me you didn't have room on that roster for Justin Turner?

It was a stupid move. If made for financial reasons, it was poundfoolish. If made because of some personal beef, then it was even dumber still.

Sure, most of the time, cutting a bench player won't bite you in the ass. But if you make a stupid move enough times, you get Justin Turner.

[Frayed Knot]

Fuck the Dodgers!

[MFS62]

Frayed Knot wrote: Fuck the Dodgers!

Amen!

And - Angel Hernandez made a controversial call? Shocking. He seems to be a magnet for them.

Later

[Lefty Specialist]

I want the Cubbies to come back. I think a Cubs-Indians World Series will be fascinating.

[Guest d'Kong76]

Chi. Cubs at LA Dodgers
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, October 20, 2016
Where: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California
SportsDirect Inc.

The Chicago Cubs went 21 innings without scoring before the offense broke out and now aim to regain the series lead when they visit the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series. First baseman Anthony Rizzo and shortstop Addison Russell each broke out of deep postseason slumps as Chicago racked up 13 hits in a 10-2 victory on Wednesday to even the series at two games apiece.

Rizzo (three RBIs) and Russell (two) were each 3-for-5 with a homer to end deep postseason funks that saw them enter Game 4 with a combined 3-for-50 showing -- 2-for-26 for Rizzo and 1-for-24 for Russell. "We just got to keep fighting, and we know that," Rizzo said afterward. "We know what we're capable of in any inning. ... We have to keep going and keep believing and keep pushing." Los Angeles played sloppily and committed four errors in Game 4 but that didn't sway the decision announced earlier in the day by manager Dave Roberts to not pitch ace left-hander Clayton Kershaw again until Game 6 in Chicago. Roberts reiterated after the contest that right-hander Kenta Maeda will pitch Thursday as Roberts cited Kershaw was heavily used (three starts, one relief appearance) over a 10-day span.

TV: 8:08 p.m. ET, Fox Sports 1

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cubs LH Jon Lester (1-0, 0.64 ERA) vs. Dodgers RH Kenta Maeda (0-1, 9.00)

Lester received a no-decision in Game 1 when he allowed one run and four hits and wasn't thrilled when manager Joe Maddon pulled him after six innings. "I don't get paid to make decisions," Lester said at a press conference. "I pitch as long as he tells me to pitch. And as competitors in that particular moment, you're not happy with the decision. That doesn't mean that I'm going to go in there and yell at him or I don't trust him or I don't like him or anything like that. That's just being a competitor." Lester has a stellar 2.57 ERA in 18 postseason appearances (16 starts) but owns only a 7-6 record.

Maeda has pitched poorly in two postseason starts, including Game 1 when he gave up three runs and four hits in four innings. He has pitched five or fewer innings in six straight outings dating back to the regular season and admits his playoff performance has been shaky. "I'm not going to be too careful, even though I haven't been pitching well in the postseason," Maeda said during a press conference. "What I'm going to be really focused on is just pitching well (Thursday) and not worry too much about what I have done in the past."

WALK-OFFS:
1. Cubs RF Jason Heyward was hitless in five at-bats Wednesday to drop to 2-for-24 in the postseason.
2. Los Angeles 2B Chase Utley is hitless in 10 at-bats in the series and 3-for-26 in the postseason.
3. Chicago RHP Carl Edwards Jr. (hamstring) departed Wednesday's contest and his status isn't yet known.