Originally Posted by Pablo:
It’s amazing how much more of a shit I give about these other games now that the royals don’t suck
Padres look like Dodgers killers to me
They're not far off from having four series that all have a rivalry angle to them. Padres and Dodgers would be World War III. Mets and Phillies is obvious. Cleveland and Detroit are division rivals plus the Ohio/Michigan thing... and the Yankees and Royals have all this history they can play up during that series. [Reply]
Originally Posted by Ocotillo:
I don't know if you followed them late in the season, but some of their relief arms are long guys that are technically starters, but enter the game in relief.
Brant Hurter, who pitched today in relief, pitched 5 2/3 no-hit innings against Baltimore late in the season. He's a lefty with a funky delivery.
Ty Madden is another long relief arm they use in 5-inning stints.
They've even shown a willingness to use relief ace Beau Brieske in three-inning stints at times.
I think their pitching staff is very 2020 Tampa Bay Rays-esque. A lot of interesting arms. Scott Harris hasn't really gotten the love yet, but I think he's one of the best GMs in baseball.
I've listened to some interviews with Harris - he's a bright dude.
And regarding the parallels to the Rays - sooner or later that just doesn't work. You can win a LOT of regular season games doing it. The Rays certainly have. But the more often you go to your 'pen, the more likely you are to eventually find a guy to lose it for you. And in the post-season when pitching is paramount and run scoring can be difficult, one bad inning can unravel the whole thing. [Reply]
Originally Posted by tk13:
They're not far off from having four series that all have a rivalry angle to them. Padres and Dodgers would be World War III. Mets and Phillies is obvious. Cleveland and Detroit are division rivals plus the Ohio/Michigan thing... and the Yankees and Royals have all this history they can play up during that series.
A LOT of good storylines there with what could be the remaining series, and hopefully some compelling, competitive games to boot. [Reply]
Originally Posted by DJ's left nut:
I've listened to some interviews with Harris - he's a bright dude.
And regarding the parallels to the Rays - sooner or later that just doesn't work. You can win a LOT of regular season games doing it. The Rays certainly have. But the more often you go to your 'pen, the more likely you are to eventually find a guy to lose it for you. And in the post-season when pitching is paramount and run scoring can be difficult, one bad inning can unravel the whole thing.
I agree that having horses like the Phillies is the way to go.
But I do think the Tigers can get to the ALCS. Cleveland is in the same situation, heavily dependent on its bullpen and thin starting pitching. This isn't the Cleveland rotation we've grown to known. Tanner Bibee is starting Game 1 and likely Matthew Boyd in Game 2. [Reply]
Hmmm 3/4 teams in the divisional round are from the Central. Maybe the Central isn't overrepresented after all, like our resident blue jay fan thinks. Fuck all the bird teams. [Reply]
