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[shraeye]

I'm super jazzed up to see the Giants win it all again!  No but seriously, we will win.  I'm excited to watch some postseason games, and post things up in here while things are going on. 

First question, what do you think about the 1-game wildcard playoff system?  I'm a fan, it's gonna be super exciting.  A friend of mine still swears this is the worst thing that has happened to baseball.  Thoughts?

[chwhite]

First question, what do you think about the 1-game wildcard playoff system?  I'm a fan, it's gonna be super exciting.  A friend of mine still swears this is the worst thing that has happened to baseball.  Thoughts?

I think it's just great they've finally caught up to where the NFL was in 1978.

[D Bo]

I have been an Orioles fan since birth so I'm super-excited to see them back in after 15 years of losing seasons. But I'm pretty nervous about them having to play a 1-game playoff to get in the real playoffs essentially. I do like the added emphasis of winning your division, but it's very odd to have anything in baseball decided by 1 game, where you are used to having 5 and 7 game series. Should be exciting either way though!

[Captain_Frisk]

I'm not a super big fan of arbitrary divisions, and being rewarded for winning them.

The Seahawks making the playoffs in 2010 was a crime.

If the one of the 2 teams playing for the wildcard has a better record than one of the division records, then I feel bad that they have to play a playoff game just because they happen to be in a worse geography.

[D Bo]

I don't know if the divisions in baseball are really arbitrary if they are defined by geography. But I certainly understand your point that it sucks if a wildcard team has a better record than a division winner.

[Captain_Frisk]

Abritrary in that the lines separate teams not based on baseball skill.  The conferences sortof make sense, as they play a slightly different baseball variant.

They might as well have organized the divisions by alphabetical order.

[D Bo]

Fair enough - that is true. The problem if you didn't do it by region I guess is as bad as the travel may be already, it would kinda suck to have the Yankees play their division rivals the Athletics 20+ times a year, or something like that. I can't think of any other plausible way to organize divisions, even if they aren't ideal.

But more importantly, if the Orioles can't win I'm rooting for the Athletics. I can barely name three players on that roster, and that's pretty cool.

[theory]

Incidentally you can learn a lot about a baseball fan by asking whether he supports Cabrera or Trout for MVP.

[Captain_Frisk]

I've already answered this one.  Trout is a cooler name!

[D Bo]

It's amazing that someone could win the Triple Crown and there could still be a legitimate argument for another player. But as good as Trout was, I have to go with Cabrera (playoff team should count for something, right?). Not confident in that vote in the least though. Cabrera certainly finished the season strong too, while I think Trout hit 5 HRs and 6 RBIs in September. Certainly not the way you want to end your season as you are pushing for the playoffs.

[shraeye]

I'm for the Orioles and the Braves tonight.  The Orioles because they surprised every preseason prediction by making the playoffs, and the Braves because I live in Atlanta and selfishly hope the giants will eventually play the braves so I can see some games!

[Galzria]

I'm super jazzed up to see the Giants win it all again!  No but seriously, we will win.  I'm excited to watch some postseason games, and post things up in here while things are going on. 

First question, what do you think about the 1-game wildcard playoff system?  I'm a fan, it's gonna be super exciting.  A friend of mine still swears this is the worst thing that has happened to baseball.  Thoughts?

Thank you for reminding me to change my forum picture back to what I'm actually known to be (changed originally for support for Iso, then as my Cosmic power). It may pre-date you joining the forum mafia community, but I'm sure you won't mind.

[Young Nick]

Go Nats! DC finally has a team to be proud of!

Watching Bryce Harper celebrate with water instead of champagne was hilarious, if I may say so myself.

[theory]

It's amazing that someone could win the Triple Crown and there could still be a legitimate argument for another player. But as good as Trout was, I have to go with Cabrera (playoff team should count for something, right?). Not confident in that vote in the least though. Cabrera certainly finished the season strong too, while I think Trout hit 5 HRs and 6 RBIs in September. Certainly not the way you want to end your season as you are pushing for the playoffs.

Trout's team had a better record than Cabrera's.  Hardly seems like his fault he plays in a stronger division and also doesn't have Verlander on his team.

[zporiri]

baseball? seriously? id rather play with philosopher's stone IRL than watch baseball. the nfl is where it's at!

[Captain_Frisk]

baseball? seriously? id rather play with philosopher's stone IRL than watch baseball. the nfl is where it's at!

Amen brother.  +1 to you good sir.  Unless you're a Giants or Cowboys fan.  Redskins fans have suffered enough that they are fine for now.

[jonts26]

It's amazing that someone could win the Triple Crown and there could still be a legitimate argument for another player.

The big reason being that 2 of the 3 triple crown categories are pretty bad measures of hitting ability.

But as good as Trout was, I have to go with Cabrera (playoff team should count for something, right?). Not confident in that vote in the least though. Cabrera certainly finished the season strong too, while I think Trout hit 5 HRs and 6 RBIs in September. Certainly not the way you want to end your season as you are pushing for the playoffs.

Should playoff team count for something? As Frisk mentioned, it's a matter of geography. The angels have a much better record than the tigers. It's a good thing Miggy gets credit for Detroit being located in the center of the country. I'm not saying Cabrera is a bad choice for MVP. He had an amazing year. Good enough to be the best player in many other years. It's just this year, well Trout was even more amazing.

[jonts26]

Dear people disparaging baseball here,

Go make your own thread. Some of us have good taste in sports.


PS: Should this not be in RSP subforum?

[Galzria]

baseball? seriously? id rather play with philosopher's stone IRL than watch baseball. the nfl is where it's at!

I watch all 162 games each season with rapt attention. I cannot watch a single football game start to finish without channel surfing at some point. It's not that I dislike the sport, I just find it (generally) mind-numbingly boring. I fully support my home team (49'rs), and I love Da Bears. I was raised in Michigan, so the Lions will always hold a soft spot in my heart, and well, what can I say? I'm a bit of a Cheesehead too. I keep track of those 4 teams each week, and I know their players, their strengths, and their weaknesses... But outside of that, I just cannot bring myself to watch the sport itself. It's like pulling teeth.

It's nowhere NEAR as bad as Badketball, which I categorically refuse to even watch 20 seconds of (talking NBA, not College). Basketball at the professional level isn't even a sport in my opinion.

[D Bo]

It's amazing that someone could win the Triple Crown and there could still be a legitimate argument for another player. But as good as Trout was, I have to go with Cabrera (playoff team should count for something, right?). Not confident in that vote in the least though. Cabrera certainly finished the season strong too, while I think Trout hit 5 HRs and 6 RBIs in September. Certainly not the way you want to end your season as you are pushing for the playoffs.

Trout's team had a better record than Cabrera's.  Hardly seems like his fault he plays in a stronger division and also doesn't have Verlander on his team.

I've never liked that argument about teammates personally. By arguing that I feel like people are actually penalizing the good player for having good teammates. But since it's been brought up, Trout had Weaver (20-5, 2.81 ERA), and those numbers are arguably better than Verlander's this year. Although I guess I wouldn't complain about having either of those pitchers on my team.

I also like that Cabrera played in 161 games this year compared to Trout at 139. Trout is certainly a way better fielder and baserunner, and some of his missed games were definitely due to his intense playing style.

Luckily I don't feel like either player is un-deserving. It's too bad they both had such a good year at the same time.


EDIT: I should correct myself, forgot that Trout started in the minors in the beginning of the year. I can't fault him for missing games obviously if he wasn't on the roster...

[jonts26]

EDIT: I should correct myself, forgot that Trout started in the minors in the beginning of the year. I can't fault him for missing games obviously if he wasn't on the roster...

Actually you can. And I would. Well, fault isn't the right word. But simply playing in fewer games means he has less time to make an impact with his team. And it comes down to rate stats vs. counting stats. And I think for MVP voting, counting stats should be more important. That way you sort of get rid of the problems with Trout not playing the full season.

[Galzria]

'badketball' - I was going to correct that typo, then decided it was too appropriate.

As for a real sport, and the topic at hand:

I love my Giants. I'm a season ticket holder even if I don't have time to get to many games. I spend a lot of time down in the farm however (I used to work in the press box for their Single A team in San Jose). Two years ago was absolutely magical. This year however, I think our competition is a LOT more difficult.

When we went through Atlanta in 2010, we were facing a beat up and broken team. This year the Reds pitching is absolutely stifling. Cueto is filthy. Arroyo has been nasty for years, and Latos has a history of dominating the Giants. Get past those three, and you have Bailey bringing up the rear - and trust me, he's no slouch either as his recent no-hitter (and near perfecto) is a testament to (yes, it was against a flailing Pittsburgh, but Cain's gem was against Houston. They ARE still major league teams, and you tip your cap to efforts that those two men showed).

On the offensive side, they're a team that might struggle done in the dimensions of AT&T, but they'll certainly be hammering away in Cinci. The Giants almost HAVE to sweep out the two opening home games if we want to win. Despite our offense being considerably better on the road, I don't think we can take 2 of 3 in Cincinnati.

If we get through the Reds, I'll like our chances - no offense to DC/St. Louis/Atlanta. I think that on paper DC is the strongest of those three, with a powerful rotation of their own, a great bullpen, and a power offense. But they are comparable to 2010 Philly to me, and if we won there, we can win here.

Still, my prediction for the National League is the Reds.

In the American League, I would LOVE to see Baltimore beat Texas tonight, and then take it to the Yankees in the ALDS. They're having an awesome year, and they deserve to see this postseason deep. But I've watched a lot of Oakland games this year, and while I'm not usually a huge fan, I'll admit that they really have that magic feeling the Giants channeled in 2010. Here again, if they can make it past a tough opponent in the ALDS, taking out Detroit, look for Oakland to run all the way to the end. If they lose to Detroit, I think you'll see a Detroit/NY (despite my preference for Baltimore) ALCS, and ultimately NY in the Series.

Still, I'll go out on a limb here and pick Oakland.

Oakland v Cincinnati - Oakland in 6.

[jonts26]

Well if we're doing playoff predictions:

Wild Card: Rangers over Orioles, Atlanta over St. Louis

ALDS: Rangers over Yankees, A's over Detroit
ALCS: A's over Rangers (again)

NLDS: Nats Over Braves, Reds over Giants
NLCS: Reds over Nats

WS: Reds over A's

[greatexpectations]

let the record show that miguel cabrera arguably faced easier pitching than any other player in baseball. you play lots more games against teams in division, and the pitching in the al central is god-awful. the other 4 teams rank 19, 23, 28, and 29 in runs allowed. and of course, miggy's rbi totals are boosted by having good obp guys like berry and jackson batting ahead of him.

[greatexpectations]

Actually you can. And I would. Well, fault isn't the right word. But simply playing in fewer games means he has less time to make an impact with his team. And it comes down to rate stats vs. counting stats. And I think for MVP voting, counting stats should be more important. That way you sort of get rid of the problems with Trout not playing the full season.

what he said. it's a big part of the reason pitchers have such a tough time winning the mvp.