Giant Sized Tiger Bait

The stage is set. The San Francisco Giants rallied from a three games to one series deficit against the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Championship Series, shredding the Cards in Games, 5, 6, and 7 to win the National League Pennant for the second time in three years. Their reward? They get to host the thoroughly rested Detroit Tigers, champions of the American League via a four game sweep of the New York Yankees.

THE JOURNEY

Both teams entered the season with high expectations. The Giants had won the World Series just two years prior. The team had the same stellar pitching staff that it had since 2010. It had All-Star catcher Buster Posey back from injury. It had a lock down defense in the field. Batting…left something to be desired from a power standpoint but much more disciplined and effective compared to 2011. Besides, great pitching is what wins championships.

The Tigers were already good. With the acquisitions of All-Star Prince Fielder (.313, 30 HR, 108 RBI) to augment the threat of eventual Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera (.330, 44 HR, 139 RBI), Gerald Laird (.282, 2 HR, 11 RBI) to help replace the injured Victor Martinez behind the plate, lock down middle reliever Octavio Dotel (5-3, 3.57 ERA, 62 Ks, 58 IP), and mid-season acquisition Anibal Sanchez (9-13, 3.86 ERA, 167 Ks) from the Miami Marlins to fortify the starting rotation, the Tigers expectations soared. This season became a pennant or bust season.

The conditions of the roads traveled were very different for these two teams. The Giants engaged in a near season long slugfest with the Los Angeles Dodgers, with the Arizona Diamondbacks giving close chase, before pulling away in September. The Tigers sleepwalked through the first half of the season before igniting, much later than expected, in the second half of the season. The Tigers wrestled the division away from the upstart Chicago White Sox in the final week of the regular season. Regardless, the presence of both of these teams in the World Series would not have been a shock to anyone looking into an MLB crystal ball this past April. 

Fielder and the Tigers woke up following the Midsummer Classic. 1

TALE OF THE TAPE

Pitching

The Tigers are going to start Justin Verlander (17-8, 2.64 ERA, 239 Ks), Doug Fister (10-10, 3.45 ERA), and Sanchez, in that order in Games 1 through 3 and will continue to rotate that order through the series. No surprises…clear choice for Tigers manager Jim Leyland. The Giants have an embarrassment of riches at starting pitcher, but that actually makes Giants manager Bruce Bochy’s next moves, following Game 1, more challenging in his chess match with Leyland.

Barry Zito (15-8, 4.15 ERA) will start Game 1. Without question, the Game 3 starter would have to be Matt Cain (16-5, 2.79 ERA, 193 Ks) against Sanchez, though it has not been officially announced yet. The third start could be either Madison Bumgarner (16-11, 3.37 ERA, 191 Ks) or Ryan Vogelsong (14-9, 3.37 ERA), with a compelling case to be made for either (Bumgarner was better in the regular season; Vogelsong has been better in the playoffs). Bochy also has the option of tossing in a fourth starter in Tim Lincecum (10-15, 5.18 ERA, 190 Ks), though he may be hesitant to do so after losing 8-3 in Game 4 of the NLCS when starting the inconsistent former two-time Cy Young winner.

Advantage, Pitching: Tigers

Verlander: "Have a seat."
Get used to it, Giants Fan. 2 

Batting

The Tigers are loaded with star power as well as batting power. The Giants are very disciplined at the plate. Both can be problems for pitchers, but in different ways.

The Tigers have no easy outs among their first five hitters in the batting order (Autsin Jackson, Omar Infante, Cabrera, Fielder, and Delmon Young). The dropoff is substantial at the bottom of the order, but the fact of the matter is that every time the Tigers bat around, they pose a serious threat to score multiple runs against even the best pitching staffs.

The Giants are a team of singles hitters and players who can coax out a walk. This is a big improvement over the 2010 World Series winning team that hit a paltry .235. However the power is lacking. The Giants are a true, traditional National League team that needs to manufacture runs to win. They did so in bunches against the Cardinals. I don’t know how easily those runs will come against a Tigers pitching staff whose strength is mowing down and striking out opponents, and forcing double plays. Expect a classic cat-and-mouse game when the Giants are up to bat.   

Advantage: Tigers

Cabrera made Joba Chamberlain look more like Jabba the Hut. 3

Fielding

Both teams are good, but not spectacular with the leather. Do not expect many if any unforced, careless errors by either team. Do not expect too many web gems, either. The Tigers are very hefty at the corners with Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera. The Giants have their own heft at third base with Pablo “Panda” Sandoval.

Both teams have quality middle infielders. The Tigers may be at a slight disadvantage because the Giants style of hitting is more likely to put the ball on the ground in the infield, particularly when Verlander and Fister are pitching. This may give the Giants a chance to pick up some freebie bases on an error or two during the series.

Advantage: Giants

Intangibles

The Giants have some significant advantages in this category. First, most of the players on the 2010 World Series championship team are on this team. They have championship experience. The Tigers have not been to the World Series since losing to the Cardinals in 2006. All of the significant contributors to that Tigers team are gone, except for Verlander.

The Giants have home field advantage. In addition, they are accustomed to playing under pressure, facing elimination. Should the series come down to a sixth and seventh game, those game would be played at AT&T Park in San Francisco, where the Giants would not have to travel, be in their own time zone, and get to bat last.

Advantage: Giants

The Giants should bring back Metallica's James Hetfield for pre-game entertainment for good luck. 4

FINAL ASSESSMENT

In the end, I think Detroit has too many weapons. The team has come together, gelled, and gotten hot at the right time of year: in October. I don’t think the Giants have enough answers to Detroit’s starting pitchers. I also do not think that the Giants pitching staff, as good as they are, can hold the Tigers’ heavy bats down long enough to win many games in this series.

Advantages – Game 1: Tigers, Series: Tigers

Party Like It's 1984? From left to right: Alan Trammell, 1984 American League MVP Willie Hernandez, and Darrell Evans after the Tigers swept the Kansas City Royals, 3-0, in the 1984 ALCS. The Tigers would go on to win its last World Series over the San Diego Padres. 5

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Retweet of the Day - October 22, 2012

Those of you with even a casual interest in Major League Baseball are aware of some of the Houdini style escape acts the St. Louis Cardinals have pulled off since last September. The defending World Series champions have snatched survival from the extermination of elimination and victory from the jaws of defeat over a half dozen times in the past 13 months. The Hat Trick discussed this phenomenon earlier today and briefly on Friday with some detail.

Today's retweet, from MJM @MarkM625 captures the essence of Cardinals magic rather nicely.


"Cardinals will be trailing 11-2 with 2 outs, 2 strikes, no one on base in the 9th and win 14-11 tonight. #Game7"



Cardinals 9th inning? 1

Image from www.walkoffwalk.com

St. Louis Cardinals Comfort Zone

The St. Louis Cardinals are in their third round of the National League playoffs. They are in their third elimination game. They have had their opponent one game away from elimination three different times and failed to advance. Should the defending World Series champions trail in the ninth inning or later of tonight’s Game 7 of the National League Championship Series and be down to their final strike, it would be the third time in the past year the Cards have had their backs against the wall.

THE CARDINALS ARE DOOMED, OR ARE THEY?

In a vacuum, the Cardinals journey in the National League Championship Series looks like wasted opportunities and an omen of doom. St. Louis takes advantage of a light hitting Giants lineup and puts San Francisco into a 3-1 hole with their two best career postseason pitchers, Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter, on the hill for Games 5 and 6.

Barry Zito and Ryan Vogelsong, taking the hill for the Giants in those games, respectively, have their best outings of the postseason at a time when they could ill-afford anything but their absolute best. Now the Giants have their ace, Matt Cain, at home matching wits against the Cardinals best starting pitcher in 2012, Kyle Lohse. Lohse has pitched well in the 2012 playoffs, but has been frequently touched up prior to this year.

Don't get too excited! 3

NINE LIVES

Baseball is not played in a vacuum. Regarding the St. Louis Cardinals recent postseason performances, they appear to have an advantage when their backs are against the wall. Being on the edge of the postseason cliff is beginning to appear like a walk in the park for this team, like they don’t wake up until their season is about to be ended.

This is the same Cardinals team, last season, that was 8½ games back of the Atlanta Braves for the (only) Wild Card spot at the beginning of September. This is the same Cardinals team that trailed the heavily favored Philadelphia Phillies two games to one in the best-of-five 2011 National League Division Series only to rally and win Game 4 at home then go on the road to nip the Phillies, 1-0, in the decisive Game 5. This is the same Cardinals team that was down to its final strike of the season twice in Game 6 of the 2011 World Series, trailing the Texas Rangers three games to two, only to win in extra innings and rout the Rangers in Game 7.

The good fortune extended to 2012, beating the Atlanta Braves in Atlanta in the Wild Card game then coming back from a 6-0 deficit in the deciding Game 5 of the NLDS to beat the Washington Nationals. In short, during the past two postseasons the Cardinals have played in five playoff rounds prior to this NLCS, been one game away from elimination six times, down to their final strike in four at bats, and have safely reached base, survived the elimination game, and won the series each time.



Ask Jayson Werth of the Washington Nationals about dancing on the Cardinals' grave prematurely. 2

WHAT’S PAST IS PAST

While the Cardinals have a track record of surviving the pressure cooker, the only relevant performance, right now, is their performance tonight. Matt Cain vs. Kyle Lohse at AT&T Park in San Francisco is a matchup that would appear to ever so slightly favor the Cain and the Giants. Cain has not been lights out in the playoffs while Lohse (by and large) has been, but Cain has never been rocked while Lohse has only made it to the seventh inning once in his three starts. This means the Cardinals touch and go bullpen will have to come into play.

These dynamics play into the hands of the home team, which gets the final at bat if necessary and has, from top-to-bottom, a better pitching staff. The Giants bats, often flaccid during the regular season, have risen to the occasion this postseason. The Giants know about having their backs against the wall as this will be their sixth game during this postseason in which the Giants have had to win or go home. The scales are very close, but the tipping factors all appear to tip the Giants’ way.

That’s why they play the games. The Cardinals have a longer and deeper recent history of bending in the postseason. Until they break, I expect the Cardinals to win this battle of the last two World Series champions.

Advantage: Cardinals

1

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Even A Broken Clock Is Right Twice Per Day

If you are among the dozens of loyal readers and/or sympathetic friends that read The Daily Hat Trick regularly, I need not tell you how I feel about Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig. He has been a TDHT favorite whipping boy throughout the history of the blog. Selig’s rare brand of cluelessness, callousness, incompetence, aloofness, and apathy about the demands of the average fan is legendary.

Even so, the man has had more lives than a cat. When it was announced, in 2010, that his contract was set to expire before this season and that he would (likely) retire, I thought we would be rid of this nincompoop by now. Yet he has stuck around to spite John Q. Fan, regardless.

ONE TRICK PONY

In spite of my continued expression of contempt for Selig's administration of Major League Baseball, I have always said that he got it right with the playoffs (and the 1994 realignment that facilitates the modern MLB playoff structure). Prior to the 1995 MLB Playoffs, Major League Baseball had 28 teams in four divisions. Only the four division winners reached the playoffs.

The old structure, in such a large sports entity, had a number of undesirable consequences that were out of line with the demands of the late 20th century American sports spectator. The majority of MLB teams were out of postseason contention shortly after the All-Star Game, reducing the significance of a substantial portion of the regular season to exhibition games on the record. A single significant injury could torpedo the season of an otherwise viable contender. Finally, the fewer divisions in each league contributed to greater and more concentrated scheduling inequity.

The three division structure and the Wild Card changed all of that. The majority of MLB teams typically have a dog in the “hunt for October” during the month of September. More regular season games have more significance. More playoff games with more meaning/impact per pitch (with a best of five first round structure) were available for the baseball fan’s consumption. In short, the game was made profoundly and permanently better.

This was the sight at many an MLB park in late July before realignment and the Wild Card. 1

GOING BACK TO THE WELL

Of course, Selig added the second Wild Card qualifier to each league and a single elimination Wild Card game to each league. It pains me to give this man credit, but the move was absolutely brilliant. It placed a very heavy emphasis on the importance of a team winning a division outright.

Gone is the (seemingly) annual tradition of two out of the same three American League East teams – the New York Yankees, the Tampa Bay Rays, and the Boston Red Sox – playing with very little sense of urgency in late September because two of those teams were often running away with the two best records in the league; the result being no consequences for the division runner up except for having one less home game in a best-of-five first round series (which often ended in four or fewer games). Now, all but the most lowly and hapless of cellar dwellers and losing organizations are figuratively in the ball park heading into the September stretch. Division leaders in divisions with strong records had to play hard until the final day(s) of the regular season or risk a single win or go home game. It is “unfair”? It’s cold, but it’s fair and it is great for the collective fans of the game.

The Orioles got to continue a 90+ win season thanks to the additional Wild Card spot. 2

FIRST TEST RUN

So what has the first season of four round MLB Playoffs brought us? A two time defending pennant winner, the Texas Rangers, took its foot off the gas in September was eliminated, in one day, from any chance of a third consecutive American League championship while their Cinderella opponent, the Baltimore Orioles; they will play the Yankees in a Game 4 tonight.

The defending World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals, who came close to circling the drain in September, rose to the occasion when the chips were down, clinched the second Wild Card berth in the final week of the season, and beat the favored Atlanta Braves at Atlanta in the career finale of a future Hall of Famer, Chipper Jones. They are now on the brink of picking up their “never say die” theme from the 2011 playoffs, which led them to their world championship. The Cardinals are one game away from eliminating the upstart Washington Nationals (whom the Cards play this afternoon).

The very hot Oakland A’s, who rallied from 13 games back in the A.L. West to win the division on the final day of the regular season, rallied from a two games to none deficit to force the very star-studded and talented Detroit Tigers to a deciding Game 5 tonight. And the Cincinnati Reds, possibly the best team in baseball from top to bottom, were forced into a Game 5 by the San Francisco Giants by the Giants taking two straight on the road after losing the first two games at home. The deciding game between the Giants and Reds is just underway, in the second inning, with no score.

Oakland Athletics outfielder Coco Crisp robs Prince Fielder of a homerun in Game 3 of the ALDS. The Tigers likely would have won otherwise and swept the A's from the playoffs. The two teams play a deciding Game 5 tonight. 3

HE’S STILL BUD

Foul balls will be called fair. Outs will be called safe. Perfect games will be taken away. No hitters will be awarded to the undeserving. The absence of a salary cap will ensure that some teams have a limitless competitive window while others need to be magicians in scouting and accounting to have a prayer of reaching the postseason. An All-Star exhibition will tip the home field advantage in a World Series in which half of the players involved know that they have no realistic chance of seeing without a ticket or a television. But for the playoffs, Bud got this one right.

Bud's explanation for ridiculous MLB rules: "It's in the book!" What do you want him to do? (smh) 4

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Retweet of the Day - October 10, 2012

New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez has been to the playoffs with the Yankees eight times in his Major League Baseball career. With the exception of the lone World Series championship of Rodriguez's career, in 2009, A-Rod's playoff campaigns have ended with disaster and disappointment. Rodriguez's is off to another customary postseason start, going 1 for 9 in the first two games of their American League Divisional Series with the Baltimore Orioles (series is tied, 1-1).

Speculation has been rampant that Yankees Manager Joe Girardi may move Rodriguez down in the batting order. Rodriguez currently bats third. He could be moved as low as eighth, as many in sports media have speculated. That leads us to today's retweet, by Craig H ‏@Dougggie78, who cleverly ties A-Rod's postseason batting woes to his brief (rumored) fling with Madonna in 2008.

"@mattleibl #ARod is no premadonna. He played very well before he dated her. He's a postmadonna now."

We all do things we regret; fortunately, most of us get to live it down.

Image from http://kompormbeldok.blogspot.com

Farewell to Chipper Jones

The Atlanta Braves lost to the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-3, in the single elimination National League Wild Card Game this past Friday. It ended the Atlanta Braves 2012 season. With that loss, it appears that the Hall of Fame career of Chipper Jones also came to a close.

PHENOM

Larry Wayne “Chipper” Jones made his major league debut as a September call-up in the 1993 season at age 21, with his official rookie year coming in the Braves’ World Series winning year of 1995 (he did not play in the strike shortened 1994 season due to injury). The switch hitting phenom made an immediate splash, hitting 23 homeruns and demonstrated stand out capabilities in every facet of the game. He finished second in National League Rookie of the Year voting to Japanese pitching sensation Hideo Nomo of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Switch hitters are often specialists who have especially high levels of coordination and can leverage the opportunity to reduce the effectiveness of an opposing pitcher’s break on his pitch. There are some very good batters who are switch hitters. There have been a number of switch hitters with good power. Jones was elite hitting for contact and power on both sides of the plate. This made Jones a lethal weapon for the Braves during Jones’ career.

Jones during the Braves' World Series winning season of 1995. 1

HALL OF FAME RESUME

The rest, as the expression goes, is history. Jones would play in the major leagues for a total of 18 service years over 19 MLB seasons. An eight time All-Star, Jones leaves the game with a career batting average of .303, and astonishing on base percentage of .401, a slugging percentage of .529 (for a career on base plus slugging of .930) and 468 career homeruns.

Jones was the MVP of the National League during the Braves pennant winning season of 1999, batting .319 with 45 homeruns and 110 RBIs. Jones won the National League batting title in 2008, at the age of 36, with a .364 batting average. Jones also led the National League in 2008 in on base percentage at .470. Often plagued with nagging injuries, Jones still played in the majority of his team’s games in all 18 of his full MLB seasons, never player less than 95 games in a season.

Jones was a contributor on 13 Braves playoff teams, including 11 consecutive division titles between 1995 and 2005. Jones played in the National League Championship Series six times, with the Braves winning the National League Pennant three times (1995, 1996, 1999) and winning the aforementioned World Series in 1995. In both individual and leadership in team accomplishments, Jones played like a Hall of Famer from the beginning of his career to the very end.

Jones tipped his hat as an All Star for, probably, the final time this July at the 2012 All-Star Game. 2 

PLACE IN HISTORY

There are myriad manners in which Chipper Jones’ career and legacy can be framed. He is so accomplished in so many areas of the game of baseball that no one label can capture the essence of his career. Many in sports media, and I agree with this, have tended to frame Jones’ career as being among the greatest switch hitters of all time. Among switch hitters, only Hall of Famers Mickey Mantle (536) and Eddie Murray (504) have hit more career home runs. Thirty-six year old Lance Berkman of the St. Louis Cardinals is fourth among switch hitters for career homeruns (and will be the active leader when Jones officially retires), more than 100 dingers behind Jones with 360 career homers.

Among players with a minimum of 3,000 lifetime plate appearances, Jones is second all time in career batting average at .3034 (Hall of Famer Frankie Frisch – retired 1937 – is the all time switch hitting batting leader with a .316 lifetime average). Among switch hitters, Victor Martinez of the Detroit Tigers is virtually tied with Jones in lifetime batting average at .3033 and will be the active leader at the start of the 2013 season. The next closest lifetime batting switch hitters are all-time lifetime hits leader Pete Rose at .3029, followed by Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar at .300, then Mantle at .298.

Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle is the MLB switch hitting lifetime homerun leader. 3

ONCE IN A GENERATION PLAYER?

Factoring in his elite career accomplishments and the breadth of his skills, Chipper Jones was in a class by himself during his nearly two decades long career. While a few players can be identified as being more accomplished with a particular tool of the game (contact, power, speed, glove, and arm strength) perhaps only Mickey Mantle and a very select few others who escape my memory or played long before my time can claim to be more accomplished across the broad range of Major League Baseball skill contributions. His status as a switch hitter made Jones a particularly rare find.

Chipper Jones singles in the final at bat of his career in the 2012 National League Wild Card Game in a loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. 4

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Retweet of the Day - October 4, 2012

Detroit Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera finished the season with a .330 batting average, 44 homeruns, and 139 RBI, leading the American League in all three categories. This has not been accomplished by anyone in either league since 1967. It is truly an historic accomplishment.

Still, Cabrera has some past baggage. In the 2011 offseason, he was pulled over for suspicion of driving under the influence. During the traffic stop, he took a swig of Scotch right in front of the patrol officer. Cabrera was arrested.

That leads us to today's retweet, from Bill (‏@fcsfinest1):


"Been a Miguel Cabrera fan ever since he took a swig of scotch in front of deputy during traffic stop. Congrats on Triple Crown (not Royal)."

He's never going to completely live it down.

Image cited in a prior Daily Hat Trick posting.

Rare Company

1878

Paul Hines, Providence Grays (.358, 4 HR, 50 RBI)

1

1887

Tip O’Neil, St. Louis Browns (.435, 14 HR, 123 RBI)

2

1901

Nap Lajoie, Philadelphia Athletics, Hall of Fame (.426, 14 HR, 125 RBI)



3

1909

Ty Cobb, Detroit Tigers, Hall of Fame (.377, 9 HR, 107 RBI)

4

1922

Rogers Hornsby, St. Louis Cardinals, Hall of Fame (.401, 42 HR, 152 RBI)

5

1925

Rogers Hornsby, St. Louis Cardinals, Hall of Fame (.403, 39 HR, 143 RBI)


1933

Chuck Klein, Philadelphia Phillies (N.L.), Hall of Fame (.369, 28 HR, 120 RBI)

6

1933

Jimmie Foxx, Philadelphia Athletics (A.L.), Hall of Fame (.356, 48 HR, 163 RBI)

7

1934

Lou Gehrig, New York Yankees, Hall of Fame (.363, 49 HR, 165 RBI)

8

1937

Joe Medwick, St. Louis Cardinals, Hall of Fame (.374, 31 HR, 154 RBI)

9

1942

Ted Williams, Boston Red Sox, Hall of Fame (.356, 36 HR, 137 RBI)

10

1947

Ted Williams, Boston Red Sox, Hall of Fame (.343, 32 HR, 114 RBI)


1956

Mickey Mantle, New York Yankees, Hall of Fame (.353, 52 HR, 130 RBI)

11

1966

Frank Robinson, Baltimore Orioles, Hall of Fame (.316, 49 HR, 122 RBI)

12

1967

Carl Yastrzemski, Boston Red Sox, Hall of Fame (.326, 44, 121 RBI)

13

2012

Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers (.330, 44 HR, 139 RBI)

October 3, 2012 14

1869-2012

Major League Baseball, 144 seasons, 16 triple crown wins by 14 players (11 Hall of Famers).

15

CONGRATULATIONS, MIGUEL CABRERA, ON YOUR HISTORIC ACHIEVEMENT!


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Déjà vu All Over Again?

Tonight is the final night of the Major League Baseball regular season. Last year’s season finale was arguably the greatest night in the history of regular season Major League Baseball. Four games, three of which were very close and one of which was decided by a walk-off home run to cap a seven run comeback, decided the playoff fates of four different teams. Even the casual sports fan already at home, realizing what was happening, was probably glued to his television set.

ON THE TABLE

This year will not be as dramatic as all 10 playoff spots in Major League Baseball have been clinched. However, there will be a lot at stake in three games today, one of which is underway. The winner of the Texas Rangers at the Oakland Athletics will win the American League West – Oakland leads 8-5 in the bottom of the fourth inning.

The New York Yankees could clinch the American League East with a win at home over the tragic-comic Boston Red Sox. The Baltimore Orioles could clinch the top American League Wild Card spot with a win at the bitterly disappointed and eager-to-play-spoiler Tampa Bay Rays. The Red Sox are playing their bitter archrivals and the Rays, I am sure, would like to take someone down (a little) with them after coming so close to October baseball but falling short.


POSSIBILITIES

Here are the possibilities for the teams with skin in the game today.

New York Yankees

The Yankees clinch the A.L. East with either a win over Boston or a loss by Baltimore to Tampa. Should the Yanks lose and the O’s win, then the Yankees and Orioles will play a 163rd regular season game at Baltimore to determine the division winner. In addition, the Yankees are battling for seeding. A win over the Red Sox guarantees the top seed in the American League playoffs to the Yankees.


Baltimore Orioles

It would behoove the Orioles to win today at The Trop against the Rays. A win would ensure the Orioles of nothing less than the top Wild Card spot, meaning they would host the loser of the Rangers-A’s game should they not win the A.L. East. An O’s win and a Yankees loss will allow Baltimore to host the Yankees for a one game playoff to determine the division champion. A loss to the Rays would lock Baltimore into the second and final Wild Card spot in the American League, meaning they would travel to either Texas or Oakland for one game to fight for their playoff lives.


Texas Rangers

The Rangers win the American League West and the second seed in the American League playoffs with a win in Oakland this afternoon. Should Texas lose and the Orioles defeat the Rays, Texas would be forced to travel to either Baltimore or New York for the Wild Card game, depending on which team does not win the A.L. East. If both the O’s and Rangers lose, the Rangers would host the Wild Card game.


Oakland Athletics

Oakland is in the drivers’ seat, leading the Rangers in the late innings of a winner-take-all game for the A.L. West championship. Should the A’s collapse and lose, their Wild Card position would be determined identically to the aforementioned scenarios for the Rangers.


SAME SCRIPT

While all of the A.L. teams playing in October have been decided, only the Detroit Tigers know in which round they will begin play. All the chips are in the air today. While teams will not be sent packing, the high drama on the final day of the regular season is what Commissioner Bud Selig wanted by adding a second Wild Card. For once, what he did worked.

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Retweet of the Day - October 2, 2012

The expression, "It's about time," is used so frequently that it seldom expresses anything that is profound or dramatic in nature. However, for fans of the Detroit Tigers, the sigh of relief that they can breathe, after clinching the American League Central in their 160th game of a 162 game season, could not be much bigger. The Hat Trick, along with most other written opinions on baseball prior to the season, expected the Tigers to blow the doors off of the American League Central.

That was not the case. The Cleveland Indians got off to a surprisingly fast start out of the gate. The Chicago White Sox had a very consistent and solid season, leading the division for most of the time following the All Star break. Detroit had a very lackluster month of May and the bullpen was hot or miss all season long. What was supposed to be a runaway division race for the Tigers turned into a dogfight.

The Tigers clinched the Central last night with a 6-3 win on the road against the marginally competent Kansas City Royals, who exceeded low expectations by finishing in third place this season. This brings us to today's retweet, by Megan Swiderski ‏(@megswiderski):


"so relieved now that the tigers finally clinched the division. now i can relax for a moment. team gives ya grey hairs i tell ya"

The playoffs haven't even started yet!

Image from http://barmbrack.blogspot.com

Back to Life



3

The Philadelphia Phillies have endured a very difficult year. Winners of the National League East division for the last five consecutive years, the Phillies have spent much of 2012 in or near the division’s cellar. Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong.

The Phillies have suffered from unexpected injuries. They have had longer than expected rehab time for key players like Ryan Howard. Their previously elite pitching staff has been anything but. Shortly after the All-Star break, the consensus was that the Phillies were left for dead.


FIRE SALE

In baseball, when a team’s front office has all but thrown in the towel, they will deal their more attractive players, near the end of their contracts, to teams in contention in exchange for prospects with very low salaries and multiple years remaining on their contracts. Philadelphia joined this dubious group prior to this year’s trade deadline.

During this season the Phillies have dealt future Hall of Fame third baseman Jim Thome (.252, 7 HR, 21 RBI, .450 SLG, 48 GP), former All-Stars outfielders Shane Victorino (.257, 10 HR, 51 RBI, 33 SB) and Hunter Pence (.259, 20 HR, 88 RBI), and former World Series winning pitcher Joe Blanton (9-13, 4.98 ERA). Even former Cy Young winner Cliff Lee (4-7, 3.43 ERA, 170 Ks), who could not record his first win until after the All-Star break, was rumored to be on the trading block. Clearly the Phillies did not expect an October run by trading so many key players in the lineup.

When you dump a young power hitter like Pence, you've thrown in the towel. 1

BACK FROM THE DEAD

The Daily Hat Trick’s stance on the Phillies has been pretty clear this season. Bitterly disappointing…. Underachieving…. No prayer…. Here are some exerpts from prior articles.

“…MLB may as well skip the regular season hand the Phillies the N.L. East division title.”
--April 4, 2012

“Philadelphia had better get its last place butt in gear.”
--June 1, 2012

“It is gut check time for the Phillies.”
--July 5, 2012

“I will not say, ‘Stick a fork in them’ because this team does have the talent and experience to make a furious second half run.”
--July 10, 2012

“Phillies will not be…in the playoffs for the first time since 2006.”
--August 23, 2012

So what happens? True to form, when violating the “never say never” principle or the “don’t count our chickens until they’re hatched” axiom, sports fate decides to make the situation more interesting. Philadelphia has won 14 of its last 18 games and charged back into the National League Wild Card race, with a .500 record (71-71) and just four games out of the final playoff spot as of this morning.

How is this happening? The Phillies, very late in the season, are doing what many expected them to do all years long. Pitching! Pitching! Pitching! In, September, the Phillies have a 2.44 team ERA, and average over nine strikeouts per nine innings. Their starting pitchers are 6-2 in September though 10 games played, meaning the team is jumping on top early, holding its leads, and getting good, quality innings from the starters.

Cliff Lee had his personal Fourth of July fireworks, finally getting the "winless" monkey off of his back. 2

ANOTHER SEPTEMBER TO REMEMBER?

Even the casual baseball fan knows what happened in Major League Baseball last September. Epic collapses…mammoth September runs…and a regular season finale that was unprecedented and may never be seen again in our lifetimes from the standpoints of drama and changes in the postseason picture in a single evening.

I maintain that nothing will ever compare to last season, but with the second Wild Card spot in each league and the seeming unwillingness of any two of the Wild Card contenders to take charge and run away with those spots, the Phillies may do the impossible and reach the playoffs for the sixth year in a row.

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Relieving Boston of Some Old Sox

Just a year ago, former Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt's stubborn refusal to relinquish control of his nearly insolvent baseball team but the image and the future of one of Major League Baseball's most iconic franchises into questionable uncertainty. A year later, the ownership group including Los Angeles sports legend Magic Johnson has the Dodgers in the thick of the playoff race and relieving other trouble franchises of toxic assets with massive contracts.

"We understand that you have to spend money to be good in this league." 

These are the words straight from the lips of Magic Johnson. The Dodgers have acted consistently with that statement. During the second half of the season, the Dodgers had acquired former batting champion Hanley Ramirez (.254, 20 HR, 79 RBI) from the Miami Marlins, and former All-Star and Gold Glove winner Shane Victorino (.260, 10 HR, 47 RBI) from the Philadelphia Phillies.

Those moves, in and of themselves, made a splash in the National League West race. It seemingly forced the hand of the (currently) first place San Francisco Giants to upgrade their anemic batting order via a trade to acquire Hunter Pence (.260, 18 HR, 75 RBI) from the Phillies. Those trades, however, are footnotes in light of the mega deal that went down between the Dodgers and Boston Red Sox last Friday.

A winner who knows how to win.

CHANGE OF SCENERY

The Hat Trick has run multiple articles this year about the dysfunction that is the Boston Red Sox. Going into the 2011 MLB season, many writers, myself included, thought that the season could be skipped and the Red Sox could just be handed the American League pennant. Boston made blockbuster hot stove transactions in the offseason leading into 2011, acquiring All-Stars left fielder Carl Crawford (.282, 3 HR, 19 RBI, 31 GP) and first baseman Adrian Gonzalez (.298, 16 HR, 90 RBI).

The Red Sox's epic collapse at the end of last season and borderline lunacy in their clubhouse this season has resulted in a team with a losing record, a lot of finger pointing, and over a quarter-billion dollars in undesirable contracts. Nowhere did I mention that any of those players tied to the big contracts forgot how to play baseball because I don't think they did. I think they ran their courses in Boston.

Boston isn't always the most wholesome place to be.

GET WINS OR DIE TRYING

The Dodgers are a proud historic franchise. While they are regularly a playoff contender, they were once a fixture in the National League Championship Series and World Series until the late 1980s. The Dodgers have not won the National League since their World Series winning year of 1988, when Kirk Gibson was the Most Valuable Player of the National League and a hobbled hero delivering a pinch hit walk off homerun in Game 1 of the Fall Classic instead of the manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks. In other words, the Dodgers have not tasted real glory in a very long time.

Last week, the Dodgers acquired Crawford, Gonzalez, and All-Star pitcher and 2007 World Series champion starting pitcher Josh Beckett (5-12, 5.21 ERA) in a trade that sent much lower profile players to the Red Sox, except for struggling first baseman James Loney (.254, 4 HR, 35 RBI). The Dodgers acquired what will either be a lottery of All-Star players or a booby prize of roughly $210 million in dead weight contracts.

Magic Johnson and the Guggenheim Group gambled that the three big names they acquired still know how to  play baseball at the highest level and, more importantly, are hungry to prove their former employer wrong and win a championship. The Dodgers will make a very serious run at the postseason in September while the only post-anything in the Red Sox's immediate future is Post Raisin Bran and sour grapes. Both teams in this trade could be really big winners or really big losers.

Matt Kemp: You wanted help? You got it!

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All images cited in prior editions of The Daily Hat Trick

MLB in Review - Three Quarter Point - American League

Today, we pick up from yesterday's evaluation of the MLB heading into the home stretch of the season.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

A.L. East

Tampa Bay Rays (70-55, 2nd place) – This team began to find “it” last September. By and large, the staff is the same, but a year more experienced.

Simply the best managed team in Major League Baseball. Having the brightest budding star starting pitcher in David Price (7-3, 2.44 ERA, 62 K) doesn't hurt, either.

I would never count this team out...ever...and Evan Longoria (.329, 4 HR, 19 RBI) has been out of the lineup since early May (expected to return in August - hamstring). But the race in the American League East couldn't be more competitive. They simply must get more good innings from the
ir starters if they expect to catch the Yankees. Realistically, they are probably hunting for a Wild Card spot.

This team is like Rasputin…cockroaches after a nuclear attack…porcelain toilets…pick something that you just cannot destroy. This team bends but doesn’t break. They’re my favorite American League team. The poor regular season attendance is baffling to me. They are the best managed team, in my opinion. Their pitchers are the best in the league. Their position players are good, quality players.

Now, Evan Longoria (.299, 6 HR, 29 RBI, 38 GP) is back in the lineup. The Rays went from being in a good position for the Wild Card to chasing the Yankees down for the American League East division title. With the rash of injuries the Yanks have suffered (Sabathia, Nova, Rodriguez), I think the Rays chances of winning the division for the third time in the last five years are better than 50/50 right now.  


Toronto Blue Jays (56-68, 5th place) – This is my dark horse team. This team has been competitive the last two seasons. Behind the bat of Jose Bautista, the Jays should continue to put runs on the board in many games. The pitching HAS to improve, but I think that the addition of high-potential Henderson Alvarez to the starting rotation and acquiring closer Sergio Santos from the White Sox can give the Jays the extra backbone to surprise the A.L. East.

Sergio Santos (0-1, 9.00 ERA) has done nothing but Edwin Encarnacion (.279, 17 HR, 43 RBI) has helped give Joey Bats (Jose Bautista - .226, 14 HR, 37 RBI) the extra bat in the lineup to turbo charge the Blue Jays' lineup. Toronto is in fourth place, but only 3 games back of the Rays.

I cannot recall the last time a cellar dweller, at the All-Star break, was in the thick of the Wild Card race, but that is the case with the Jays. This team has lived by the home run and is going to die by it if the pitching staff, with fifth worst ERA in the majors, can't tighten up. Edwin Encarnacion (.296, 22 HR, 56 RBI) and Jose Bautista (.244, 27 HR, 64 RBI) have been the glue holding this team together. Aaron Laffy (0-1, 2.67 ERA), recently promoted to the starting rotation, should give Blue Jays Fan some cause for optimism.

My dark horse blacked out. They are not the worst cellar dweller in the majors. However, the cold, hard facts are if you cannot pitch, then you cannot win.  


New York Yankees (72-52, 1st place) – Solid at every position from top to bottom, but the pitching staff is aging and showed a number of signs of inconsistency last year. Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez cannot outrun Father Time forever, either.

Apparently the pitching staff can't but The Grandy Man can (Curtis Granderson - .261, 17 HR, 33 RBI)! The pitching has to beef up or they will not win this extremely tight, hotly contested division.

I don't think anyone is going to catch them, barring a rash of injuries. This team has been without C.C. Sabathia (9-3, 3.45 ERA, 105 Ks) and Andy Pettitte (3-3, 3.22 ERA) since late June and they appear to have improved. The Bronx Bombers have won three consecutive divisional road games and five of their last seven as of Saturday afternoon. Curtis Granderson (.245, 23 HR, 48 RBI) is making a bid for the American League home run title and Derek Jeter (.309, 7 HR, 25 RBI) appears to have drunk from the Fountain of Youth. I have them penciled in for October. My only concern is the downward strain on the bullpen that will likely be experienced due to Pettitte's prolonged absence (60 day DL - broken ankle).

Last time, I said that they would not be caught barring a rash of injuries. Alex Rodriguez (.276, 15 HR, 44 RBI) breaks his hand, C.C. Sabathia (12-3, 3.56 ERA, 140 Ks) aggravates an elbow injury, and now, Ivan Nova (11-7, 4.92 ERA, 139 Ks) has a rotator cuff problem that has made him so ineffective that he was placed on the disabled List. Voila! We have a division race, again.  


Boston Red Sox (59-66, 4th place) – I think the long term impact of last year’s September meltdown and subsequent management fallout is grossly underestimated by fans and reporters. The loss of closer Jonathan Papelbon won’t help the cause of the BoSox, either. The curse of The Bambino is back, baby!

I have expected doom for the Red Sox all season and, technically, no team in the A.L. East has a worse record, but Bobby V. - in his...unorthodox manner - has the BoSox withing striking distance.

This team just won't go away. Still, they cannot make the playoffs from fourth place. They aren't catching the Yankees this year. If they want to put themselves in the driver's seat for the Wild Card, the pitching staff has to rise to some occasion. It hasn't risen to any this year. Meanwhile, Red Sox $20 million man Carl Crawford (.255, 11 HR, 56 RBI in 2011) has yet to take a swing in 2012 due to an elbow injury and will not play until well after the All-Star break. I'm not ready to stick a fork in them yet, but....

Stick a fork in ‘em. They’re done; on the field and in the clubhouse. To their credit, they are hitting the ball well, but their pitchers have completely sold out. Add the managerial situation, and we have a modern MLB version of One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest.


Baltimore Orioles (67-57, 3rd place) – This has been the best cellar dweller in baseball for two years running. I expect a third. #BigFishInASmallPond

EHHHHHHHH! WRONG! The O's have been the most pleasant surprise of the year. Buck Showalter has been building this once proud franchise back up, brick by brick, for the past two years and the fans at Camden Yards finally have something to cheer about. Adam Jones (.315, 16 HR, 34 RBI, .602 SLG)  appears to be realizing his potential, as is Jason Hammel (6-2, 3.06 ERA, 58 K).

Baltimore is no early season flash in the pan. They will be in the discussion come September and I am just a heartbeat away from saying I expect them to return to the playoffs for the first time in 15 years.

I like everything about what manager Buck Showalter is doing. I love watching centerfielder Adam Jones (.295, 20 HR, 44 RBI) develop into a bona fine star. I don't think there could have been a better pairing of team needs and a player needing a change of scenery than the Orioles and Jason Hammel (8-4, 3.42 ERA, 97 Ks), on pace for the best year of his career.

I see two pitfalls: First, the Orioles rely too much on their bullpen to bail out inconsistent starting pitchers, which will become a problem in September. Second, they rely too much on the long ball without the strong starting pitching to back it up if they aren't flying out.

Everything about this team completely defies logic. Their hitters are mediocre, though they hit better than average for power. Their starting pitchers aren’t very good, though the bullpen has picked this team up repeatedly. Yet they are tied for the second Wild Card spot. Buck Showalter, regardless of how the Orioles’ season ends, deserves a gold medal along with American League Manager of the Year. Not silver…not bronze…not cheap tin…not even 18 carat gold…SOLID…PURE…GOLD!
   

SOLID...GOLD! 1

A.L. Central

Detroit Tigers (67-57, 2nd place) – Instead of a paragraph, how about a haiku?

They’re already good
Then they add in Prince Fielder
Central race is done!

Justin Verlander
Must be the only pitcher
Worth a good ___ damn

Hitting is awesome
"ERA" ain't "GPA"
Time to make some trades

Pitching is better
Closing in on the White Sox
Should not be this close

Cleveland Indians (54-70, 4th place) – If starting pitcher Ubalbo Jimenez can regain his form from his best days in Colorado and stop throwing at former teammates’ heads, perhaps the Indians can finish second and possibly make a run at the American League Wild Card.

They have gotten off to a good start, much like last year. I simply do not think the pitching, particularly the bullpen, is going to give The Tribe what they need to compete into the fall. Ubaldo Jimenez (5-4, 5.79 ERA) has done nothing!

Small ball works, even in the American League, and it has the Tribe in second place as we approach the All-Star break. However there is nothing small about the Indians' ERA. The starters have been mediocre, albeit underachieving, and the bullpen is just not that good. Ubaldo Jimenez (2.78 ERA, 8.9 K/9 IP in June) seems to have settled down after a rough start. His improvement has to continue. Meanwhile, shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera (.291, 11 HR, 42 RBI, turned 59 double plays) continues to to develop into the prototype at his position. 

The recurring theme I heard from the baseball analysts is that the Tribe did not have the pitching to stay in the A.L. race. They fought the good fight, but the experts were right.


Kansas City Royals (55-68, 3rd place) – Stuck in mediocre, which is an improvement over the last decade.

They can't pitch a fit, let alone a decent nine innings.

I haven't said anything of substance about this team yet and I am not going to start now. 

Much like in the movie “Mr. 3000”, a third place finish is a noteworthy achievement for this team. The Royals have not finished better than 4th place in nine years. Dare I say that if this team can get some speed and power in their lineup and some pitchers who can…pitch…they could make a playoff run in the next season or two.


Chicago White Sox (68-55, 1st place) – White Sox Fan is about to find out just how many shortcomings former manager Ozzie Guillen was able to cover up through shrewd management (and the occasional motivational F bomb).

I never doubted that the Sox had talent. I just didn't expect them to put it together like this.The big difference? Adam Dunn (.222, 17 HR, 38 RBI). He already has my vote for Comeback Player of the Year.

Ozzie WHO??? Big props to White Sox management. They are two for two in identifying standout players from their teams in the early 1990s with managerial potential. Robin Ventura is rockin' in his first year as a major league manager. The Sox are in first place in spite of a slew of free agency defections and managerial change. The White Sox are doing it with lights out starting pitching, starting with ace Jake Peavy (7-5, 2.85, 108 Ks). Adam Dunn's (.211, 25 HR, 60 RBI) awakening from a one year hibernation has given them a huge boost, too.

Robin Ventura should get some votes for Manager of the Year as well. This team has weathered its storms and is sitting pretty for a playoff spot. The White Sox’s strength has been starting pitching all year long. The Central division race is going to be very close and Gavin Floyd (9-9, 4.56 ERA) absolutely must pitch no worse than “mediocre” (which he has not done lately) if the Sox are going to stay ahead of the Tigers in this division.  

Minnesota Twins (51-73, 5th place) – 2011 and 2012 – twin disappointments in the Twin Cities!

I like being right, but I'd prefer to be right with something positive. I guess one out of two ain't bad. The batting is mediocre. The starting pitching is awful. The bullpen is awful. The managing is awful. Josh Willingham's (.287, 11 HR, 39 RBI, .409 OB%, with Oakland in 2011) ability to land with a team worthy of his talents is awful.

The stadium is nice.

I was about to write a backhanded, dismissive, sarcastic one-liner. But, upon closer inspection, the Twins are quietly hot. The Twins posted a winning record in the month of June including six of their last nine games. The Twins, from top to bottom, have demonstrated excellent plate discipline of late and it is beginning to pay off. 

Francisco Liriano (3-7, 5.08 ERA) has done an about-face after a disastrous start to the season. Liriano posted a 2.87 ERA in June with 31 strikeouts in 31.1 innings pitched. The pitching staff has a whole has seen a month-over-month decline in ERA after a catastrophic April. While the Twins will have to dig themselves out of a canyon sized hole to get into the Wild Card race, they have a pulse. 

Flatline….  

Get it together, Gavin! 2

A.L. West

Los Angeles Angels (65-60, 3rd place) – They face a daunting battle with the Texas Rangers. The Angels were already pretty good and gave Texas a run all the way into September. Now they get Albert Pujols and former All Star Kendrys Morales returns to the lineup after missing much of 2010 and all of 2011. If your favorite team is not in this division, be glad!

C.J. Wilson (6-4, 2.64 ERA, 64 K) , acquired from the Texas Rangers, has been all he was cracked up to be. Two hundred million dollar man Albert Pujols (.236, 8 HR, 30 RBI) had not been in April. Kendrys Morales (.289, 6 HR, 20 RBI) got off to a bit of a bumpy April, but appears to be pulling it together. The team as a whole is mirroring its big hitters, in spite of stellar pitching. In a division with the Texas

Albert Pujols (.269, 13 HR, 49 RBI, .977 OPS in June) is back, but that does not surprise me one iota. He isn't even the big story in L.A. It is 20 year old sensation center fielder Mike Trout (.344, 11 HR, 39 RBI). The Angels are doing everything right - pitching, hitting, fielding, contact, and power. The problem for the Halos is that they are in the same division with the Texas Rangers, who are doing everything even better than the Angels are. To be determined in September...possibly October.

I don’t think the Angels’ fate will be determined until the final week of the season. They are 2.5 games back of the second Wild Card spot in a very crowded and competitive field. Forget about A.L. MVP candidate Mike Trout (.345, 24 HR, 72 RBI, .410 OBP), Albert Pujols (.283, 28 HR, 86 RBI), the woefully underpaid Mark Trumbo (.285, 30 HR, 79 RBI), or the heavy artillery in the starting rotation. The Angels will either reach the post season or reach for a fifth to drown their sorrows at in October based on the performance of their bullpen. It is not pulling its weight since the All-Star break. Period.


Texas Rangers (73-51, 1st place) – Seeking a third straight American League pennant. All of their key field players are back. There were no major changes to the pitching staff, but their division just got a lot tougher (see Los Angeles). I don’t know if the pitching staff from last year can carry the Rangers past the loaded Angels.

First of all, I don't know what brain fart I was suffering from when I said, "There were no major changes to the pitching staff," Their ace, C.J. Wilson defected to division rival Los Angeles. Boy did I screw the pooch on that one!

Regardless, the two-time defending American League champions haven't missed a beat. No doubt, Josh Hamilton (.348, 21 HR, 57 RBI, .407 OB%) has given this team an unexpected jolt, even by his high standards. Japanese import Yu Darvish (7-3, 3.34 ERA, 73 K) appears to be the replacement for Wilson that the Rangers had hoped for. I don't see how this team doesn't win the A.L. West, barring injury. 

This team has so many weapons on offense that it is almost unfair. Centerfielder Josh Hamilton (.313, 27 HR, 75 RBI, 1.025 OPS) already has his name etched on the American League MVP award. This team is going to the playoffs. How far they go will depend on their very good but not elite pitching staff. The bottom of their rotation has been in the bottom of the toilet this year. While that is slightly less important in October, it is a weakness. And with the talented and surging Angels on their tails, it could factor in the difference between being a division champion or one game from elimination in a Wild Card match.

The Fat Lady is warming up in the A.L. West race. The Rangers have all but completed the first leg of their journey to a third consecutive American League championship. Josh Hamilton (.287, 34 HR, 107 RBI) has reappeared after disappearing in June and July. As long as Hamilton doesn’t attempt an encore, this is your American League frontrunner in the playoffs.


Oakland Athletics (67-57, 2^nd place) – Good, not great, pitching and weak bats are not a recipe for success in Major League Baseball.

I think it is stunning that the A's are in the cellar, especially after a promising first 30 games of the season (16-14). The problem, however, is that if your pitching isn't lights out, and it isn't in Oakland, and your bats are more like rubber hoses, and they are for everyone not named Josh Reddick (.271, 14 HR, 29 RBI), you aren't going to fare well in a 162 game season, and they aren't!

I don't get this team at all. They appeared to be circling the drain in June. So what do they do? Catch FIRE! The A's have won five in a row and 16 of their last 23 games. They have played themselves right back into the Wild Card race with efficient, stingy, consistent starting pitching and a lights out, lock down bullpen. Still this team can't hit the ball off of a tee. This will be their undoing as the season wears on. 

They have not met their undoing yet and are tied for the second Wild Card spot. I believe that undoing is coming, though, because of Bartolo Colon’s (10-9, 3.43 ERA) 50 game suspension for performance enhancing drug use and the continued absence of any real threat with the stick. I don’t think the idea of bringing Manny Ramirez (.302, 14 RBI, .348 OBP in 17 games with AAA Sacramento in 2012) back is as laughable as it may have sounded when he was released.


Seattle Mariners (61-64, 4th place) – You can stick a fork in them before opening day. They can’t hit the broadside of a barn with a shotgun from 10 feet away. Why exactly is Felix Hernandez wasting his career there, still?

They are .003 winning percentage points from being in the cellar, sticking their noses out momentarily while Oakland suffers that dubious distinction. I hope they enjoy their breath of fresh air. "Small ball" doesn't work when you can't hit the small ball!

I think they should be allowed to use metal bats for the rest of the year, just to keep the games close.

I never thought these words would ever cross my lips this season, but the Mariners are back from the dead and have a pulse. Defying all sound reasoning and logic, the M’s, on the strength of Felix Hernandez (12-5, 2.54 ERA, 179 Ks), a stout pitching staff, particularly the bullpen, and a blazing red hot streak that has seen this team win 11 of its last 12 games, including nine straight, are in play for the American League Wild Card race heading into September.

The hitting still continues to be anemic, however. I think the Mariners’ run is a classic case of “too little, too late”, but the fact that I can even say that about this team at all this late in the season is remarkable. Stay tuned for a fantastic finish!

I thought PEDs were supposed to help guys tone up, not tone around! 3

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