2016 Baseball playoffs

mcgsxr · « **on:** 11 Oct 2016, 09:19 pm »

Fair weather fan here, but interested to see how my local Toronto Blue Jays fair against Cleveland.

Should be interesting!

Speedskater · « **Reply #1 on:** 11 Oct 2016, 09:31 pm »

The weather Friday will not be the same as last week's games against Boston.
With the warm Fall weather, the ball just flew out of the park.
This coming Friday it will be about 20F/10C degrees cooler.
I think that Toronto will close the roof for this series.
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I'm not a regular baseball watcher. So I like the games on TBS network. They have the pitch mapping software always turned on. So you can see the at-bat progress with all the pitches shown.

ArthurDent · « **Reply #2 on:** 11 Oct 2016, 09:53 pm »

Go Cubs

zybar · « **Reply #3 on:** 11 Oct 2016, 11:01 pm »

Not having a horse in the race, I am pulling for either Cleveland or Chicago to win it all and end their respective championship drought.

So far, the games I have watched have been pretty entertaining.

Lastly, a fond farewell for Big Papi. One hell of a ball player and a great figure in New England.

He always handled himself with class and it was players like Big Papi and Jeter that brought back the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry and made it "friendly".

A definite Hall of Famer.

George

mcgsxr · « **Reply #4 on:** 11 Oct 2016, 11:08 pm »

Agree that this Friday's Jays game will no doubt be closed Dome, as the weather is predicted to be around 10C, or 50F at game time.

I am far from a baseball fan, but it is fun to see the city get all jacked up for pro sports. Our hockey team has been "less than stellar" for my whole 46 years, other than a brief glint of success around '93. Our basketball team has been up and down, but has never won the whole show.

I think the Cleveland series will be much closer, and for me better games to watch. I will return from a business trip (to lovely Montreal!) Friday about 20 minutes before the game starts. I am guessing my wife and I will watch the game, and my kids will check in on it when they hear noises from us.

JerryM · « **Reply #5 on:** 12 Oct 2016, 12:44 am »

6-5 Dodgers, top of the ninth, win or go home.

Speedskater · « **Reply #6 on:** 12 Oct 2016, 01:19 pm »

In any sports playoff series that I don't have a dog in the fight, I'm for the team in the more eastern time zone.
Exceptions:
Boston or Baltimore
Any baseball team that wears ego jerseys. Those are the one without player names, as everyone is expected to know who they are from the number.

thunderbrick · « **Reply #7 on:** 12 Oct 2016, 01:23 pm »

Quote from: Speedskater on 12 Oct 2016, 01:19 pm

In any sports playoff series that I don't have a dog in the fight, I'm for the team in the more eastern time zone.
Exceptions:
Boston or Baltimore

Speedskater · « **Reply #8 on:** 12 Oct 2016, 04:15 pm »

I live in Cleveland. Think football.

charmerci · « **Reply #9 on:** 12 Oct 2016, 04:19 pm »

Quote from: Speedskater on 12 Oct 2016, 01:19 pm

Any baseball team that wears ego jerseys. Those are the one without player names, as everyone is expected to know who they are from the number.

Not a way to get new fans.

It'd be great to see the Nats win. In addition to being a fan, that would be nice to see any of the 4 teams win the series, none of which have won it in a long time.

mcgsxr · « **Reply #10 on:** 23 Oct 2016, 06:06 pm »

OK, so it is the battle of the C's.

Cleveland vs Chicago.

Although technically I should default to the closer geographic team when I don't have a horse in the race, in this case I am in it for the Cubs. The back story of a huge drought in winning a trophy TOTALLY hits home for a guy who lives in Toronto and is a hockey fan...

I know the series will be good, it will be interesting to see the team that punted the Jays in short order face off with the Cubs.

drphoto · « **Reply #11 on:** 24 Oct 2016, 12:56 am »

Rooting for Cubs. That Hendricks is just fantastic. Reminds me of my all time fav (& former Cub) Greg Maddox. Great late movement. Out thinks his opponents. Thows a 2 seam to both sides of plate. Sweet!

Sure, a 97-100mph is cool, but watching a guy who maybe hits 87 locate his pitches and make it move? That's art.

But there are no losers in this series. Be nice for Cleveland too.

Oh If you like baseball, check out the documentary on Netflix called "Knuckleball". Very cool.

thunderbrick · « **Reply #12 on:** 24 Oct 2016, 01:09 am »

Treading carefully here, but this series coinciding with this election may be a sign of the rapture. Or rupture. Or Armageddon.

Only thing that could make this year weirder would be Cleveland winning the Super Bowl...

Devil Doc · « **Reply #13 on:** 24 Oct 2016, 01:17 pm »

Quote from: Speedskater on 12 Oct 2016, 01:19 pm

In any sports playoff series that I don't have a dog in the fight, I'm for the team in the more eastern time zone.
Exceptions:
Boston or Baltimore
Any baseball team that wears ego jerseys. Those are the one without player names, as everyone is expected to know who they are from the number.

It's not ego. It's tradition. Back in the day you knew your teams numbers, and if you didn't, that's what score cards are for. Remember those? Nobody needed Ted Williams to wear his name on his back. No.9 was all you needed to know.

Doc

Speedskater · « **Reply #14 on:** 24 Oct 2016, 10:07 pm »

The first WS game will be in Cleveland Tuesday evening. The first pitch temperature will be about 45ºF. Compare that to some of the evening play-off games at over 75ºF. Meanwhile just across the street, the NBA champion basketball team will play it's first game of the regular season. Luckily they just opened all the lanes of the major southwest freeway into downtown Cleveland. Wednesday it may be raining before the end of the second WS game.

dB Cooper · « **Reply #15 on:** 25 Oct 2016, 03:05 am »

I turned my back on baseball when they went to the playoff format years ago. The playoff format lengthened the baseball season by weeks and reduces the World Series to just the last round of playoffs, compared to the pennant races of years past. I remember the first year of the playoff format, either Montréal or Toronto, I think Toronto, was in it that year and I remember watching a pitcher rubbing his hands to keep them warm and actually brushing snow out of his face.

This was intended to be a summer game. Almost November in Chicago will be anything but. The only thing that interests me even remotely about it is that it is two teams who haven't been there in ages, and the possibility of a snow cancellation. One of my coworkers pointed out that the last time the Cubs were in the series, the Ottoman Empire was intact. I would like to like baseball again, but I don't think the outcome of the World Series should hinge on whose pitchers' fingers go numb from cold first. Obviously it ain't going back, as the powers that be have determined that they can extract more cash from fans this way. (Does MLB have sham 'nonprofit' status like the NFL does?)

randytsuch · « **Reply #16 on:** 31 Oct 2016, 10:14 pm »

Not much love for the World Series?

Thought it was a great game last night.

Now the question is, can the cubbies complete a miracle comeback, and win the next two games.
Well at least there will be a game 6.

Randy

mcgsxr · « **Reply #17 on:** 31 Oct 2016, 11:23 pm »

I would prefer a Cubs outcome at this point.

But a win at home for any championship is always cool too. The home fans get a super treat.

zybar · « **Reply #18 on:** 1 Nov 2016, 12:23 am »

Quote from: randytsuch on 31 Oct 2016, 10:14 pm

Not much love for the World Series?

Thought it was a great game last night.

Now the question is, can the cubbies complete a miracle comeback, and win the next two games.
Well at least there will be a game 6.

Randy

It was a great game and it has been an excellent series.

I am hoping that Cleveland can win one of the next two, but if the Cubs did win, that wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.

George

randytsuch · « **Reply #19 on:** 1 Nov 2016, 09:11 pm »

I think most of the country feels sorry for the cubs, with their over 100 year drought.

I'm really rooting for a game 7