MLB Playoffs 2022
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I’m not a huge fan of seeing all these intradivision matchups coming up:
Phillies vs Braves
Padres vs Dodgers
Mariners vs Astros
I feel like the regular season already sorted out these matchups, so now we see if any of the inferior teams can pull off an upset.
Partially this is a symptom of the financial inequity in baseball that leads to both leagues’ Central divisions have poor representation in the playoffs.
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Phillies vs Braves
Padres vs Dodgers
Mariners vs Astros
I feel like the regular season already sorted out these matchups, so now we see if any of the inferior teams can pull off an upset.
Partially this is a symptom of the financial inequity in baseball that leads to both leagues’ Central divisions have poor representation in the playoffs.
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Back, not too long ago, when we had one wild card team, if they came from the same division as the top seed they would be bracketed with the second seed to avoid an intradivision match until the league championship series. Much harder to do now that you could potentially have three teams from the same division in the divisional series round.
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So the combined Centrals have only captured 12 of a possible 54 World Series spots. Honestly, I’m surprised it’s not even worse than that. I think those spots would be:
Cardinals: 2004, 06, 11 (won twice)
Cubs: 2016 (won)
Guardians: 1997, 2016 (No wins)
White Sox: 2005 (won)
Royals: 2014, 2015 (won once)
Tigers: 2006, 2012 (No wins)
Astros: 2005 (Lost)
So the Centrals haven’t had a team reach the World Series for the past six seasons, assuming Cleveland doesn’t get there this year. The Brewers, Pirates, Reds and Twins haven’t reached a World Series in the divisional playoff era. The Twins at least are generally competitive most years. The Brewers try. The Reds and Pirates might as well be contracted — totally hapless organizations that often aren’t even trying to win.
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Astros reached from the AL West and NL Central. I actually counted their one trip from the NL as from the West, so subtract one from the NL West and add it to the NL Central. So 13 trips from the combined Centrals.
You missed the 1995 Indians.
14Red
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This didn't age well, Rays got beat by both!
14Red
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We can throw all the common sense ideas in baseball because it's all about generating money now. If you want to get a true baseball champion, go back to the one division winner, one wild card format. Baseball more than any other sport, plays 162 games TO DETERMINE who should be in the postseason. Now a team can get hot in a month and win a world series. It's unfortunate.
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Scott Servais is gonna get second-guessed big time for bringing in Robbie Ray with two out in the 9th to pitch to Yordan Alvarez.
First of all, don’t throw two fastballs down the middle. Second of all, this is the playoffs and you have the lead. Walk him, load the bases, and go after anyone else for the final out, not one of the elite hitters in all of MLB.
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First of all, don’t throw two fastballs down the middle. Second of all, this is the playoffs and you have the lead. Walk him, load the bases, and go after anyone else for the final out, not one of the elite hitters in all of MLB.
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Maple_City_Fan
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Dodgers with a critical Game 1 dub, 5-3.
It was a game I figured LA HAD to win given it was Uriace against Cleavinger and SD was jet-lagged and somewhat hungover
Tonight, Kershaw vs Darvish
It was a game I figured LA HAD to win given it was Uriace against Cleavinger and SD was jet-lagged and somewhat hungover
Tonight, Kershaw vs Darvish
Stirred not Shaken
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Saw highlights of Phillies vs Braves some dork for Philly hits a HR and slams his bat into the ground. 20 years ago, next time up his backside would have been hitting the dirt. Like Paul Brown said about TD celebrations act like you have been there before.
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That was an exuberant moment for a franchise hosting its first playoff game in many years, and the bat slam added to the electricity of the moment. I loved seeing it. Probably everyone else age 50 or younger did too.
P.S. Imagine calling Rhys Hoskins “some dork.” He’s one of the better hitters in the game.
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Yeah, and getting knocked on your ash in your next at bat is another baseball tradition that adds electricity to the game.
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Sure, if you want to give your opponent a free baserunner and risk having a pitcher ejected from a playoff game just to enforce silly, antiquated “unwritten rules.” The batter already beat you once; why let him beat you again by being a damn fool trying to get back at him?
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That’s when you send in that long reliever from your pen that is rarely used.
wolves82
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Stirred not Shaken
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I know the rules and I used to be a big baseball fan but I rarely watch anymore. Partly because of the pacification (wussification) of the sport.
Stirred not Shaken
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Big difference in celebrating winning and being a showboat.
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Really? You used to tune in to watch people get thrown at? Highly unlikely.
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cabezadecaballo
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Nice to see old trippy Bill Walton sitting behind home plate at the Padres game tonight. Evidently the violent homeless crazies in his local park haven’t ripped him off his bike yet.
Bill is way better than the wax dummy of Larry King behind the plate at Dodger games before Covid. Or stupid Spike Lee in right field for Skankee games.
Go Padres until next season
Bill is way better than the wax dummy of Larry King behind the plate at Dodger games before Covid. Or stupid Spike Lee in right field for Skankee games.
Go Padres until next season
14Red
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When you add more teams to the playoffs, this will happen. The regular season has become less important. Too bad.
The objective if pro sports leagues should be to determine who is the best team in baseball, using both 162 games plus playoffs. The best playoff forumla was the old two divisions per league. Best of 5 NLCS/ ALCS and then a best of 7 for the world series. You should be rewarded for having a great regular season. It's ridiculous that the Phillies were a few games over .500 and made the playoffs.
14Red
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One of the good things about the baseball playoffs and the true "team" aspect is that let's face it, in baseball - pitching is key. The Guardians didn't win, but they have impacted this Astros/ Yankees series because the Yankees had to stretch their staff and Houston, by sweeping their series with Seattle, was all set with their rotation. There is not another sport that offers this.
The Yankees, who are thin with pitching already, have now dropped the first two games in this series and things are not looking great for them.
The Yankees, who are thin with pitching already, have now dropped the first two games in this series and things are not looking great for them.
Gh0st
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Didn't age well with Hoskins hitting 2HRs tonight.
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MLB scheduling an LCS game for 2:37 on a Sunday afternoon is the definition of stupid.
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EagleGuy
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An interesting exercise for an ambitious person would be to determine each team's salaries compared to team appreciation. Hmmm...
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MLB missing an opportunity by not starting the World Series on Tuesday night. Why not play Tuesday and Wednesday with no football to go against?
And why drag the season any later weather-wise?
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And why drag the season any later weather-wise?
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14Red
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Couldn't help watching the Phillies/ Padres series and just noticing that very few of the "regular" players in that series are rooted in these two teams. Really shows the state of baseball today. These two teams in particular have a combined payroll of over $490 million dollars. So these are "bought" teams. Now obviously free agency is and has been in baseball for decades so player movement isn't out of the ordinary. But we've never seen a time when some franchises are buying players left and right, forgoing the basic rebuild model. To help this, baseball has expanded the playoffs more than ever before and that helped both the Phillies and Padres as of the 6 teams that made the playoffs in the NL, they had the two worst records. Many seasons in the past, they would not have even qualified.