2021 Baseball Post-Season

[danfrank]

What was that about a Dodger romp from here on? Dang, I did not see this coming. I was thinking that a Dodgers-Astros rematch would be a good story, giving the Dodgers a chance to avenge the cheaters. Not looking too likely at this point.

Tee, I have to say I loved your Red Sox rant. Impassioned AND thoughtful, which is so like you.

[Okri]

. I missed Saturday's game (free tickets to The Lehman Trilogy held way .

What did you think?

[Sabin]

Mister Tee wrote
Just to alert you: thrilling, last-minute come-from-behind wins are probably what got a lot of us hooked on baseball...but, until you've made peace with the agony of crushing defeat, you're not a full-fledged fan.

I'm on an OSCAR BOARD. In my first ceremony, I watched my favorite film of all time win. It's all been downhill from there. I think I got it in me.

[Mister Tee]

Okay, I like baseball now.

Just to alert you: thrilling, last-minute come-from-behind wins are probably what got a lot of us hooked on baseball...but, until you've made peace with the agony of crushing defeat, you're not a full-fledged fan.

We can skip over Monday's game -- another case of the Red Sox exploding early and coasting to a 2-1 series lead. Yesterday was a whole lot different: two teams spent the majority of their games thinking they were about to put a hammerlock on their series, but were delivered a loud "Not so fast" very close to the end. This was a day that woke everyone up.

The NL match-up started off eerily similar to the two preceding games: the Dodgers scoring 2 runs early (in fact, on the same "Seager home run before an out was recorded" as had begun game 2), the Braves coming back in the 4th -- this time not merely tying, but going ahead by 2. It could have been worse: Freeman hit a bullet for the third out, leaving the bases loaded. For most of the afternoon, it didn't seem to matter: the Braves scored another in the 5th, and their bullpen set the Dodgers down inning after inning. The Dodgers were staring at the possible 0-3 hole, from which only one team (which we'll mercifully pass on identifying) has ever rallied.

In the 8th, however, the Dodgers got a tiny piece of luck: Pollock's grounder to 3rd, which looked momentarily like the second out, was ruled foul. The reprieved Pollock subsequently singled, and was aboard for Cody Bellinger's redemptive 3-run homer. Not yet done, the Dodgers got a single/stolen base, which set up Mookie Betts' almost predictable run-scoring double. Like the Braves' 4th, this inning could have yielded even more -- the Dodgers left the bases loaded -- but it was to no avail for Atlanta, as there was only the one inning remaining, and Jansen, pitching way better this year than in previous seasons, struck out the side.

Since the Dodgers are, on paper, a far superior team, this will likely move a lot of fair-weather pundits to predicting them to romp from here on, and they may well be right. But, as always, we'll play it out.

You'd never know from the ALCS, but Houston has relied on a strong rotation (plus offense) to carry it these past few seasons. Last night, a worn-out Greinke became the third Houston pitcher in a row to not get past the 3rd inning. (He lasted only 1 1/3, in fact.) Unlike his predecessors, he didn't leave a deep hole -- a 2-run Bogaerts homer was all he surrendered -- but this did have Houston trailing 2-1 after the 1st. Given the two teams, a 2-1 final didn't seem very likely, but inning after inning flew past and the score didn't change. Until, as in the NL game, the 8th inning arrived.

Boston's bullpen had been pretty much a shambles down the stretch -- two losses in that 3-game September sweep by the Yankees came in the 8th/9th innings -- but they did have one reliable reliever in rookie Tim Whitlock, and Cora called on him for the 8th. He promptly served up a game-tying homer to the inevitable Altuve. When Brantley followed with a single, it seemed the youngster might go all Calvin Schiraldi on us (old-timers get the reference). But Whitlock got Bregman to hit into a double play, and the inning ended.

It turned out, that was just warm-up for the 9th. Cora, having used his best, opted to bring in Eovaldi, his game 2 (and presumably 6) starter to get three outs on his throw day. It looked briefly as if the move might pay off -- despite putting two men on, Eovaldi retired two others by strikeout, and had a 1-2 count on Castro. The Fenway faithful were cued up for moving to the bottom of the 9th, and, surely, yet another walk-off win. And they thought they had it, as Eovaldi threw what looked like strike 3 to everyone in the park (including the TV cameras). But Laz Diaz called it a ball, Castro's at-bat continued, and, two pitches later, he singled to drive in the go-ahead run.

Pause here to say, Red Sox fans have a complaint: the call was clearly wrong. But those probing TV cameras, with their strike-zone measurements, say it was only 1 of 21 such missed calls by Diaz over the course of the game, against both teams. And one against the Astros -- a ball 4 that should have been strike 3 to Devers way back in the 1st inning -- put him on base for Bogaerts' homer. Which is to say, it was only a similar call that had Houston tied rather than leading at that point in the game. So, Diaz's calls had a certain karmic balance.

It didn't much matter, since, unlike in the Braves/Dodgers game, the situation DID get worse. (Red Sox fans may want to avert their eyes, here.) After an Altuve walk, Brantley doubled to clear the bases. And even that wasn't all: an intentional walk, three more singles, and a Boston error, brought the score to 9-2 before the final out was recorded. It was, the broadcast informed us, tied for the biggest-scoring 9th inning in post-season history, matching 1997's Game 3 of the World Series -- a ridiculous effort, where a 7-7 tie entering the 9th turned into a 14-11 final.

This series continues to do weird things to my psyche. I hate both teams equally, but, when Brantley's double split the outfielders, I started whooping -- much as I had in some earlier games when Boston scored. I seem to be rooting for whoever's losing at the time -- with the hopeless hope that somehow both these teams can lose in the end. In any event, a series that Red Sox rooters had begun to think was carrying them aloft by magic has crashed down into a 2-2 tie. So, it's best of 3 now, and at least one more game will be back in Houston. Hold on for dear life.

[Sabin]

Okay, I like baseball now.

[Mister Tee]

Boston is very good at getting its fans and supporters to ignore its history. They relentlessly booed ARod over steroids, while getting ready to erect a statue to David Ortiz.

(Quick summary of the Ortiz steroids investigation:
REPORTERS: David, you tested positive for steroids.
ORTIZ: I don't know how that happened.
REPORTERS: Okay, David; good enough for us.)

For accuracy's sake: the Red Sox were found every bit as guilty of cheating (in their 2018 championship year) as the Astros were for 2017. Their manager -- a coach for the Astros in THEIR cheating year; viewed as a mastermind of that scheme -- got a year's suspension, but is right out there on the field today.

Shameless franchise.

[Sonic Youth]

Mister Tee will just love this headline from the Boston Globe:

"Red Sox Seem to have been annointed by the baseball gods to punish the cheating Astros"

[danfrank]

I'm not sure this feeling is even limited to Yankee fans.

This is certainly true for me. It comes down to which of these two teams do I hate the least, and it’s impossible to choose.

[Mister Tee]

My experience of this second round has been hit-and-miss (I've not watched some of the games) and also bifurcated: one I'm almost unable to watch, the other has turned gripping.

Start with the negative. I realized a few innings into Friday's game just how difficult the ALCS is going to be for me. The Red Sox had men on, and a potential double-play ball was hit to Altuve. Yankee fans have little doubt Altuve was cheating two years ago when he hit the home run that knocked them out of the post-season, and I should have taken great glee at seeing the little bastard misplay the ball, letting runners score -- but how could I, when the beneficiary was the Red Sox? Enjoying post-season ball requires at least a sliver of difference in how much you either like or dislike the teams playing. When it's two teams you despise equally -- for righteous reasons -- there's nothing to be done.

I'm not sure this feeling is even limited to Yankee fans. My mother told me today she spoke to cousins of ours, Met fans/Yankee haters; they were watching the ALCS, but said they had the same issue: hating both teams so much they couldn't find a rooting interest. The baseball media isn't exactly covering this aspect -- most of what I've heard is this match-up is a "nightmare for Yankee fans". But I think it's closer to a nightmare for the America League. These two teams are on the record as having cheated in the immediate past, and that the league championship should come down to them is deeply unfortunate. (Though lucky for Houston: they're playing the only team whose fans can't heckle them as cheaters.)

Anyway, to the games: Boston took the lead on that play I mentioned in Game 1, but then Altuve (again!) tied the game with a home run, and the Astros scored 2 more for a squeaker 5-4 win. Saturday's game was decided far sooner: the Red Sox hit two grand slams in the first innings, and won 9-5 (the game was less close than that sounds, since 2 of the Astro runs came across in the 9th). The series is even, will continue in Boston, and will not improve in character.

Fortunately, the Dodgers and Braves are playing an altogether more interesting match-up. I missed Saturday's game (free tickets to The Lehman Trilogy held way more appeal), a game that had an exciting finish; generously, the teams provided an equally exciting one for me to watch tonight. The two games were in fact quite similar (and also had much in common with Game 5 of LA/SF).

On Saturday, the Dodgers pulled out to an early lead; the Braves tied it by the 4th inning. There it remained, till the 9th. In the top of the frame, the Dodgers had a rally going, but Taylor foolishly ran into the 3rd out on the basepaths. In the bottom, the Braves got a single/stolen base/single combo to walk it off.

Tonight, the Braves doubled the pleasure. The Dodgers led 2-0, after only two batters, on Seager's home run. The Braves tied it on Pederson's home run in (again) the 4th. This time, the Dodgers took a lead in the 7th, on a stupid rally that included an intentional walk, a hits batsman, and a poorly played ball to the center fielder. The Braves tied it in the 8th with two just-barely-safe calls at the plate (after what seemed a foolhardy stolen base attempt had paid off earlier). In the bottom of the 9th, the Braves got the winning run to 2nd with two outs (after a miserably-failed bunt attempt). Jansen was brought in, and it seemed he'd get out of it with one pitch, as Rosario grounded hard to Seager. But the all-star let it go right past him (not quite Bill Buckner. but close enough the broadcast should have been harder on him), and the Braves are up 2 games to 0.

There are reasons not to get too comfortable with this -- not least of which, last year, when the Braves led 2-0, and later 3-1, but fell in the end. I'm also reminded of 1965, when the Twins won the first two games against the Koufax/Drysdale Dodgers, and the great Roger Angell wrote that he felt the result left the Twins only slightly behind. (The Dodgers came back to win in 7.)

But, as Sonic says, there's a sense Dave Roberts isn't handling his 106-win squad particularly well in these games. Max Scherzer is the guy teams want on the mound in a key game; Roberts pulled him after just 4 1/3 innings, when he'd only thrown 79 pitches. No matter how good your bullpen is, managing a game that maximizes use of that pen is something done from necessity -- as with the Rays, who don't have the starters to match, or the Yankees in games without Gerrit Cole. Roberts has the starters, but he's been managing as if he doesn't trust them. And it's been the bullpen that's let him down.

Back to the AL tomorrow (ho-hum); the fun series returns Tuesday.

[Sonic Youth]

I presume at least one member of the Sonic household is pleased.

You said this 5 days ago. You should see her now.

Even though they're in their home stadium, I think it's fair to say no one was expecting the Braves to lead the series 2 games to zip. It of course helps that the Dodgers feel mismanaged, and not at all like a team that won 106 games during the regular season. They have a lot of good players, but it feels more of a hodgepodge than a team.

In any event, whatever the Braves are doing, keep doing it and get this curse off of my household. In 1995, my wife (girlfriend back then) and I were watching the 6th and final game of the World Series, and we both fell asleep during the game and missed the win and the celebrations. Didn't even record the game, and this was way before streaming services. Since then, she's been waiting.... and waiting.... and waiting.....

[danfrank]

A sad loss for my Giants in a series that was about as close as it could be, after a season that was likewise close. In the end the Giants simply did not hit well enough. Credit of course to the pitching of the Dodgers, which was stellar. But you gotta hit, something the Giants did very well throughout the season.

Despite losing to the Dodgers, who have maybe a half-dozen future hall of famers on their roster, this Giants season was perhaps the most satisfying I have witnessed, and that includes those three which ended in Workd Series wins. Just a great team that played as a team at a level that literally no one expected.

I’m like Tee, and have no rooting interest among the surviving contenders. The Braves by default, I guess.

[Mister Tee]

So, I'm 0-for-the-post-season -- all my rooting interests, Wild Card or Division Series, have gone down. But obviously I don't take today's result anywhere near as hard as our remaining Giants fan.

It was a gripping game. The Dodgers employed variations on the Rays' opener strategy (a tactic I'll freely admit I can't stand); the Giants had Logan Webb go a more standard 7 innings. By whichever route, we were scoreless through five. (GIants' fans may have wished they could have played in Yankee Stadium just for one night, as one early inning deep fly after another stayed in the ballpark.)

The Dodgers scored first, after Mookie Betts' third hit on the night, a stolen base, and a double by Seager. The Giants responded about as quickly as they could -- Ruf, who'd been responsible for two of those early flies, left no doubt this time with a 400+-ft. home run to center. It stayed that way till the 9th, when a hit batsman and single set the stage for the till-now comatose Cody Bellinger to knock in the go-ahead run.

With Max Scherzer on for the save, it looked bleak. With one out, though, Justin Turner utterly flubbed a grounder to 3rd, sparking hopes that the ghosts of '51 and '62 -- two times the Giants rallied past the Dodgers in their final at bat -- might make an appearance. Instead, after another out, we got the thoroughly deflating checked-swing appeal play that ended the game. Umpiring had been, shall we say, questionable all night -- all sorts of balls outside the zone being called strikes -- but this was the worst (at least the most debatable) call to end a game since the aborted Galarraga perfect game.

So, the team with baseball's best record is gone in the first round (along with the AL's best). The Dodgers are obviously more deserving than the Red Sox of moving on, but, for me, it means I'm down to the Braves for any team I can faintly root on (and I do mean faintly). I'm pretty close to this-season-is-dead-to-me territory.

[Sabin]

I guess go Dodgers.

[Mister Tee]

The Braves move on to the NLCS (which used to be a yearly event for them, but hasn't it been a while now? -- someone look that up for me).

With more time today, I looked it up myself. It's testament to how unseriously I took 2020's post-season that I find the Braves were in the NLCS (of course losing) just last year. Prior to that, I was correct it had been a while: 2001 their previous appearance, after a decade when they'd only missed one time, in 2000.

[Mister Tee]

A consequential day -- two series came to an end, though not the one our rooting-interest friend dan hoped -- but not all that engaging a one. The short summary:

The White Sox gave their fans a flurry of hope with a first inning homer, but that was the end of the good news, as the Astro offense poured it on from there; the final was 10-1. This leaves us with an All-Cheaters ALCS, and reinforces my conviction that the only people truly suffering punishment for the cheating scandal were the teams that lost to the cheaters.

The Braves/Brewers game was the only one of the 8 NLDS games where a lead changed hands. The Braves had a nearly-unbelievable early blunder -- a base-runner from second was almost to home plate before realizing a fly ball had been caught and doubled him off -- which helped keep the game scoreless til the 4th. The Brewers scored two in the top of the 4th; their pitcher quickly gave those runs back in the bottom of the inning. Trying it again, they scored two more in the top of the 5th -- and the Braves once again answered with two in the bottom. Then all was quiet until the 8th, when Freddie Freeman hit a home run off Josh Hader -- all-star beats all-star. The Brewers put the leadoff man on in the 9th, but Wong utterly butchered a bunt attempt into a popup, and the game ended with Christian Yelich striking out. The Braves move on to the NLCS (which used to be a yearly event for them, but hasn't it been a while now? -- someone look that up for me). I presume at least one member of the Sonic household is pleased.

Incidentally, though the Brewers were 9 games better in the standings than the Braves, score this one as victory for the run differential, which says the Braves actually rated the better record of the two.

Speaking of which...the two teams with the most spectacular records met, with the Giants having a chance to wrap it up. But I don't think anyone saw this series going that easily. The Dodgers got an early lead, and it's to the Giants' credit they didn't let the game slip into forget-it territory until late (a great catch with the bases loaded, among other fine plays, kept the game in range much of the evening). But the Giants' offense couldn't push runs across -- their two scores came on ground-outs -- and Dodger home runs made it an eventual 7-2 breeze of a win for the home team.

Which leaves us with a day off to contemplate (or pace, as I would do if I were danfrank), after which the two teams will meet for the seemingly obligatory one-game shoot-out in San Francisco on Thursday night. One of these teams will be going home after that, and I don't think we know any better which one than we did when this series began.