Frayed Knot

Nice of the Rays to finally get on the board with two outs in the 9th. Prior to that, Milwaukee pitching had faced the minimum numbers of batters thru 8. So 24 PAs for the Rays thru 8; the Brewers sent half that many to the plate just in the 4th inning alone. including nine after two were already out. That's about as one-sided as one night can get.

Top 5th: LO-5; Single; FO-7; SB; BB; IF-Single (overturn of what would have been the end of a scoreless inning) -- pitching change -- 2 RBI Single (off SS glove); 2-RBI Single; 2-RBI Double; RBI Double -- pitching change -- RBI Single; 2-RBI Double; FO-7 Jake Bauer made the 1st & 3rd outs in the inning, both on FO to LF. I'm surprised the Brewers didn't release him between innings.

I've figured out the Brewers strategy: wait until you get two outs and then get eleven-teen hits in a row.

He's so fine (Turang, Turang, Turang)

So Freddy will be starting WS Game 3? ... Great!!! Right after he's the MVP of the ALCS? -- Wow, that's even bet ... Wait a minute ... did you say ALCS? Uh oh! Something didn't go right.

Back in the pre-WFAN 1980s the spot where WATPs* were most often discussed was the 'fans speak' (or whatever they called it) page of the Friday NY Post. And one thing that was rather consistent about it was that Met fans and Yanqui fans had very different ideas about trades. - YLDBs were forever proposing absurdly one-sided deals such as Mike Pagliarulo and shitty/injured pitcher for Wade Boggs and Roger Clemens -- Hey, a 3B & P for a 3B & P ... what's wrong with that?!? - NYM fans, otoh, invariably proposed getting rid of half the current team for whatever else was out there, iow, they were deeply immersed in the grass-is-greener syndrome. A mid-'80s proposal might start out with: 'How 'bout packaging Darling, Sid, Knight, Backman, Dykstra, and Santana for ... ' Whatever they had, they always wanted wholesale changes for what they were sure would be an overall improvement. And keep in mind this was their plans for dealing with a good team! * WATP = Wild-Ass Trade Proposals in case you've forgotten.

That I won even a piece of an award demands an immediate recount.

So far there have been two one-run games which could have gone either way on any one of a dozen or more plays within each game. Even the game ending plays in each were controversial: one, a game-ending call overturned (wrongly IMO) allowing the game to continue with tying and go-ahead runners on; the other a call which probably shouldn't have been made which ended a game with tying and go-ahead runners on. Crisply played? No, not always. But not boring, and I don't even know how to address 'obscure'.

This is the type of series when I find myself leaning towards whichever team is behind, either in games or within a game. Ultimately I'm going to side with Milwaukee at the end but it's not like I'm living and dying with each pitch. The only thing Tampa has traditionally had against it is occasionally bad uniforms plus a bad stadium (even before if half fell down). Hopefully the latter of those two gets corrected in the near future. The unis may take a bit more work.

No, looked like a bad call to me. But I'm still leery about video replay for swings. Unlike ABS there's not a clear Yes/No line to be drawn. Tamps simply forgot to score after the 1st inning.

Just settling in for an old fashioned pitcher's duel, eh? (4 - 2 TBR, end of 1)

Yes, definitely some issues, starting Friday night but even more so today. And very non-user-specific judging by the (lack of) traffic going on today.

Misiorowski and Rosnthal should go into a ventriloquist act. Ken would be just perfect sitting on Les Mis's knee.

Do the fireworks get shot off again or did the stadium use them all up the first time?

There's NO WAY this should be overturned!!!!! ... and yet it is. I want someone to argue to my face that that evidence was decisive.

Did Smoltz just say that Trevor Megill went from Mets set-up man to Brewers closer? I think that's what I heard but was only half listening.

The Marlins trading that entire starting OF was now nine winters ago, so not too surprising that Yelich, Stanton, and Ozuna are all pretty much DH's at this point and are all fading. Those guys were 5th, 1st, and 2nd in WAR for the '17 Marlins but turn 35, 37, and 36 in the next few weeks. Stanton [coming off an MVP the year of the trade but < 350 ABs over the last Two seasons combined) has one season plus an option left. The Pirates have an option on Ozuna which they're not going to pick up as he seems to be pretty much toast [67 OPS+ in '26] at this point. Yelich [91 OPS+] still has two seasons plus an option left on his deal so the Brews have to hope he's not toast.

This will be the first World Series since 1980 -- the Royals, then in their 12th season, vs the Phillies -- where each franchise is seeking their first title.

The NYY brass held a post-season press conference/post-mortem today. Among the announcements: - Aaron Boone, who was signed for next year anyway, will be retained despite the fervent wishes of many Yanqui fans to have him drop-kicked outta there. 2027 will be his 10th season at the helm. - GM Brian Cashman, also not as universally beloved as the distance since the last WS title grows, was not only kept but signed an extension so he'll be around for a while. 2027 will be his 30th season in that post. Remember when 30 weeks was high for a NYY exec? - Hal Steinbrenner decided all this was the players' fault (mainly the bats) for not coming through in post-season games.

Yeah, I was short a few updates on my tally. So here's the real scoop. 21st century unique WS winners = 16 (soon to be 17): BOS x 4; LAD x 3; SFG x 3; HOU x 2; StL x 2; plus once each for TEX, ATL, WAS, CHC, KCR, NYY, PHI, CHW, MIA, LAA, ARZ 21st century unique SB winners = 13; NEP x 6; KCC x 3; two each for PHI, SEA, TBB, NYG, PIT, plus one each for LAR, DEN, BAL, GBP, NOS, IND WS participants (23): the above winners plus NYM, COL, TOR, CLE, DET, TBR, and, now, MIL SB participants (20): the above plus CIN, OAK (I'll call 'em what I want), SFO, ATL, CAR, ARZ, CHI Reached but didn't win an NLCS/ALCS (28): add in SDP, SEA, ATH, MIN, BAL Reached but didn't win an AFC/NFC Conf game (28): add in TEN, NYJ, JAC, BUF, WAS, DET, MIN, LAC Outside looking in: MLB = CIN, PIT; NFL = DAL, HOU, MIA, CLE

Best team in each league and two of the top three records: MIL with 103 Wins and TBR w/98 (LAD = 100) It'll be the second 'Fall Classic' for each [MIL in '82, TBR in '08] and one of the two will erase the 'Never' off their resume. This matchup both simultaneously ruins the MLB owners' position that 'small market' (however you want to define that) teams can't compete, and that of the general sports media. This leaves only the Reds & Pirates as teams that have failed to at least reach an NLCS/ALCS this century (vs Five in the NFL). The Brewers winning the NL reduces to seven [Pitt & CIncy plus SDP, BAL, MIN, LAA, SEA] (NFL = 12) the number of teams who haven't reached a WS in that same time frame. And this WS will produce the 17th different champion in these last 26 season (NFL = 13). But, y'know, Salary Caps = Parity!!! Not that the main stream sports media will change their tune on this. They don't know that the NFL's system has resulted in Less parity over a significant length of time because they don't want to know it. It all starts Friday night in Milwaukee: FRI, SAT -- MON, TUE, WED -- FRI, SAT. All games at 8:00 on FOX

Wouldn't it be confusing with Soto and Sato on the same roster? Just for kicks they should hire Sammy Sosa and Chris Sabo as coaches (or as players, although they're kind of old for that). The all-time four-letter Consonant-Vowel-Consonant-Vowel team: Sammy Sosa, Juan Soto, Chris Sabo, Barry Zito, Luis Sojo, John Jaha, Mike Laga. And then you get Lady Gaga to sing the national anthem.

Eh, I kind of like the fact that there are (potentially) four games in a row. The Guardians scored once and have had (at least) three different ABs where the tying run was at the plate in the last two innings (7th & 8th) but have yet to cash in yet. So we go to top-9

It's like Tampa Bay is just showing off at this point: they're pitching better (1 CLE hit thru 5), hitting better (11 hits, a SB, 2 walks), and playing great defense. And yet they're only up 3 - 0 and one wonders if that'll come back to haunt them later on. Lots of LOB plus a runner thrown out at home (good send, better throw/tag).

OK, now we're cooking with gas: down to a two-of-three for the right to go to the WS. Last game in Cleveland, then it's back to 'The Trop' (no days off) for the final two (or one). And there's a top matchup tonight with Drew Rasmussen vs Parker Messick, both of whom will get CY votes.