MLB 06, Down the stretch!
 

~42 games left. Whats gonna happen? Who comes out on top? Who turns it around? Who bombs? How is your team going to do?


You know I gotta say something about the Dodgers. Holy shit, its fun to be a fan right now. If they keep this up for 2 more weeks, they will find themselves so far out in their division (Next 3 series are SF, SD, and Ari) that only another post-allstar slide can bring them back down.

I cheered when we got Maddux. Somehow I knew that playing for a team with a chance would spark this guy back into his amazing mastery of pitching. He's always been one of my favorite pitchers and I'm so glad he's on my team now. Not only that, he's teaching the rookie pitchers how to pitch better. It's awesome! The loss of Izturis was disappointing, but I can't really complain with so many other things going right. I would rather have Izturis than Furcal, but the luxury of choosing between the two is the treat.

Can they keep it up? Well, they have to rest their players some day. One thing the Dodgers own most teams in, though, is depth. So many great players to swap around and rotate... how can they lose?


I think the tightest race right now is the NL wildcard. Its almost as if nobody really deserves it and whoever does get it is going to get it simply because the other teams didn't want it. I'm gonna guess that San Diego grabs it.

Well, despite me being extrememly pissed off at the Red Sox, I still think they can catch the skanks. I guess we'll find out this weekend. I was quite surprised at the Dodgers. They went from worst offense to a pretty good one.

In the end, I think you'll see St. Louis back in the series.. as for the AL who the fuck knows?

I'm a Rangers fan, mostly because of location and my favorite player is on there (Michael Young). They have moments where they look really good, but they can't seem to put anything together longer than about five in a row. And the A's are on a tear at the moment....

Still a girl can dream. Each division seems a little bit tighter this year, or maybe I just have paid more attention.

Sigh, even though the Angels took the division lead momentarily after an incrediply crappy start to the season, the A's are hot right now and we're nearly 6 games back. :(

An interesting note.. Every team in the NL west has spent at least 20 days in first place and no less than 22 days in last place.

Hey, we've danced on their field celebrating divsion clinching wins the last two years, and we still have a lot of games at hand against them. No need to get too worryed just yet. Every year Choakland gets unbelieveably hot in the second half, only to either: 1. Lose the division title to the Angels in last two weeks or 2. Get their hearts broken by the Yankees, Red Sox, or Twins in the first round. We have a better pitching staff and believe it or not, a better offense than they do. Their only edge is on defense, where the Angels have just been atrocious.

Should be an exciting final stretch.

As for the other races, I really like the Dodgers moves too. Getting Betemit for Aybar and Baez was an absolute steal. Maddux will be worth his weight in gold for the guidance he will give to the likes of DLowe, Penny, and especially Billingsley, nevermind the fact he's been pitching out of his mind.

The AL Central will come down to the last days and I just don't see how the Tigers can hold on. Verlander has been amazing, but will he keep it up under pressure? I still believe the White Sox can and will catch them.

The AL East is another race that I see going to the bitter end, as usual. This weekend 5-game series between the Red Sox and the Yankees will be a nice barometer. I call that race a toss up right now.

The NL is pretty much a yawn fest for me, with the exception of the Dodgers latest hot streak (they did get their asses beat down today though). The Mets are running away with it, and the Central division is going to be more a case of who loses the race, more than who wins it...unless the St. Louis pitching staff catches fire.

A's fan here obviously, but it does worry me only because the last 2 years it has come down to a series with the Angels which they end up losing.

Would be nice to get Harden back and in some kind of form for a playoff run and Chavez might finally be getting his stroke.

We'll see

You hit it right on the head. Chavy and Harden are huge keys.

I think this rivalry has developed into one of the top 5 or so in the league, but, of course, it's gets little mention because we're "out west" and everyone out east has to get their beauty sleep before 10:30 when the west coast games start :)

I enjoy being rivals against Oakland fans as well, they are very boisterous when they come to Anaheim and I wish it would incite Angels fans a little more. We tend not to make too much noise until very, very late in the season and in the playoffs. One group of A's fans at a game in Anaheim a couple months ago even parked their RV's and had a tailgate party right next to the main parking lot entrance to try to rile us up. While a lot of people were flipping them the bird, I liked it. They had to have some balls (and maybe a little gall :) ) to pound their chests like that after the Angels have essentially punked them two years in a row. They are true fans.

I'm right there with you. The Sox have played like complete shit; how the hell did they get swept by the RoyAAAls? However, things will most likely sort themselves out this weekend with the 5 game set versus the MFYs. The are only 2 games back of Judas and Company. Pitching, as always, is the key to the series as we have to start Jason Johnson and Jon Lester the first two games, which definitely not the most idea situation.

Mark my words: the Red Sox will get their shit together and will win the division, finally.

While it's not the ideal situation to have those two pitching, it's really no worse than having Beckett on the mound lately. *sigh*

Now with Hinske most likely coming over that gives us another corner outfielder and a desperately needed left handed bat. This could prove a difference in the series with the skankees. I just wish the kid would put up numbers like he did in '02.

has no one seen the twins play?
as a darkhorse choice from the junior circuit, i'd pick them.
only because i can't stand to think of the bronx bitches at it again.

as for the NL,
yes hal, the dodgers are undoubtably on to something here.
and i love there chances against a west (heck, a league)
that has a hard time keeping anyone over .500.

and as a lifelong Reds fan,
it's very hard to count all of my unhatched chickens
while i'm holding my breath like this.

i hope no one discounts the presence of whoever gets the 'card from either league.
you all know that the last team in has had decent success since the (admittedly recent) beginning of the wildcard.

Very true keeping holding that breath, and not counting those unhatched chicks. But the Reds win or lose, have given some excitement this year.

I like their chances. The bad thing is, there are a few pieces missing before they can go all the way. The good is, they made trades and showed under the new owner they'll spend the money and do what they can to win.

So next year, they have a nice foundation, a few holes to fill, and LOOK out...

My DBacks finally traded Shawn Green last night, I'm so excited. Carlos Quentin can finally have right field to himself. Maybe this can help him break out of the slump he's been in the last week. Drew has impressed. Chris Young got the call but I don't see him getting much time in CF right now.

I'm not so concerned about how the team finishes this season. They need to shut a few pitchers down and save their arms for now.

Well, I guess we can count both colors of Sox out. My precious Red Sox have succeeded in choking again. Even though they have lost what 10 1/2 games to the yanks since the all-star break, I'm one of the few who isn't mad at Theo. I know what he's doing, he's not tearing apart the farm system for one run, he's setting things up for a run that lasts for years. *cross fingers*

I'm really surprised at the Twins. I would never have thought they would mean business this late in the season.

Why count the White Sox out? They still have a half game lead. Liriano just played catch Tuesday for the first time since being on the DL. Without him 100%, logic states the defending champion White Sox have the advantage. At the least, you certainly can't count them out.

I dunno, it's just a feeling I had. I wasn't really going on any roster or management clues when I said that. Maybe I just want another team to share my humiliation. ;) Sure the White Sox have a chance, I just don't see it happening for some reason. I think they will stumble really late at the really wrong time. :shrug:

I'm all for the White Sox. :o


They have to capitalize on their leniant schedule the next week or two, and the Twins have to see some ill effects from their injuries, but if the ChiSox can rebound anything can happen come October. :cool:

Well, it might already be over :( The A's are not losing. I'll play the cop out card, and say they are lucky for getting the Red Sox with both Papi and Manny out. If Papi doesn't play against the Angels last week, the Angels sweep that series too (Papi hit HR's in both Sox 1-run wins). The Angels would still be 5 1/2 out though. I hope the Angels can get it to about 4 games at the most when the teams meet for their last 7 meetings.

I just want to thank all of the Red Sox fans for your team taking Javy Lopez off my team's hands.

You shouldn't be thanking us. Thank Theo and his momentary lack of any baseball knowledge. Fucking Javy Lopez. W.T.F.

Theo bent Kevin Towers over really badly. They got Kottaras back in the Wells trade. He's a 23 year old catcher and supposedly he was the No. 2 prospect in the Padres' system. How can you trade a top prospect for a one month rental that isn't all that good? If they even make the playoffs they won't make it far.

I don't know if Hal is up at 2 AM New York time, I hope Mr. Dodger fan is, but the Dodgers just pulled one of the most unbelieveable comeback wins in their history, and it puts them back in 1st place to boot. It wasn't really the magnitude of the deficit, down 9-5 in the bottom of the 9th, but the way they did it. They hit 4 consecutive solo HR's (back to back to back to back) to tie the game in the bottom of the 9th, proceed to give up a run in the 10th, only to have Nomar win it with a 2 run shot in the bottom of the 10th. With my Angels fading hard and fast, it was nice to see the Dodgers pull off a great win. By the way, the back to back to back to back HR's were only the 4th time in history it has happened, and first time since 1964.

Here is a Tigers fan hoping that are collapse is staunched. That win over the Sox last night was huge. I can only hope that either the HR's keep coming (Sox style), or that we figure out some way to produce runs (Twins style). Verlander for Rookie of the Year!

I woke up this morning, still dazed from the game last night. Oh my god. It was just sone of those moments where you sit and stare for a long long time, shaking your head and babbling incoherently to yourself. Just amazing.

We needed that.

And then we proceed to get shut out by Freddy Garcia. Arrgghh! My only solace is the fact that we have far exceeded expectations. Playoffs or bust!

The whitesox as a team gave up in July, you could see it in their faces, they were burned out and I think that ring last year has made them a bit complacent.

That being said Detroit has played like complete shit the second half as well, you are just lucky the sox didn't do a lot better.

I don't think you have to worry about making the play offs, the Sox just don't have a big win streak in them. Right now though the twins are the best in the central, they deserve to win it.

For the White Sox to get to the post season, they'd have to beat Minnesota enough to let the Tigers sneak in ahead of them both! The Tigers haven't gotten past game 1 of a series in a month, but they've got enough cushion to salvage at least the wild card. A great season, considering their dependence on young players.
Since August 1, they've been just as bad as the team that got Alan Trammell fired last year. If Pudge and Magglio don't find some consistency, they'll be one-and-done in the playoffs.

How bout' them Twins!!! :thumbsup:

World Series here we come!!!!!

While my wonderful Indians are not playing anywhere near up to par, they are playing the spoiler role well.

Beat out the White Sox's last chance to be in the playoffs last night 14 to 1.

The AL Central is a scary league indeed.

Tigers, Twins, W.Sox, and Indians. 4 Teams that are not to be messed with, 2 of which are going into the playoffs.

Two teams from the AL Central, unheard of! Woohoo.

Wow, the Cardinals are in a freefall of epic proportions. Houston has gained 7 games on them in the past week and are now only a game and a half behind. Carpenter got shelled and his Cy Young chances should be shit now.

Looking forward to the CYA, I really hope the voters don't go the sentimental route and give it to Hoffman. Webb deserves it by far.

The Awards could be contentious this year. A lot of debate about the AL/NL MVP, I think Morneau and Howard. Cy Young should no doubt be Santana in the AL, in the NL it could be Hoffman, he has solid numbers, is a big part of Padres push, and the mile stone helps, especially in a weaker pitching field in the NL.

Toronto is almost Mathematically out... so really... I don't want Boston or the Yankees to win!

Giving the CYA to Hoffman is a load of shit. Plain and simple. He's had a hell of a season, no doubt about it but his season is nothing compared to what Gagne did when he won.

It was Webb vs. Carpenter until Carpenter tanked it in his last two starts. Suddenly, the voters forgot about Webb (who was better than Carpenter to begin with) and they go for Hoffman. Webb leads Carpenter in ERA, W, and IP. All of the categories that CYA voters supposedly look at.

Cy Young Award voters are retarded plain and simple. They view W-L as the the ultimate stat and it's bullshit. We saw it in 2004 when they gave it to Clemens over Randy Johnson. RJ OWNED Clemens in ERA, K, IP, CG, Shutouts, BB, and WHIP. He also won 16 games for a team that lost over 110 games.

Whatever though, the voters screwed Webb out of the ROY in 2003 and gave it to Willis, despite the fact that Webb was statistically superior to Willis.

How 'bout them Twins?

What a break they received over the weekend, with the lowly Royals taking three in Detroit. The Twins were only able to win one from the ChiSox, but that was enough.

Soooo, instead of Minnesota going to New York to face the Yankees, they will get to stay at home to play the A's. I love those Royals!

Now, if Detroit could pull themselves back together and take out the Yankees, and the Twins beat the A's, the Twins would again have home field advantage in the LCS.

Unfortunately, the Tigers seem to be stumbling much like the Cardinals in the NL; maybe the pressure of making the playoffs being off them will help them refocus. On the other hand, if the teams were wilting under the regular season pressure, post-season will only be more intense.

It sucks that the Twins won the Division. The Twins are the best bet to beat NY and NY will destroy the Tigers.

Well, stranger things have happened, but I agree with you that it's not likely for Detroit to beat the NYY. On the other hand, if the Twins take care of the A's, the result will be the same--just a week later.

The Tigers have done nothing over the past 2 months to inspire confidence in this die-hard fan. However, they have been the toughest road team in baseball this season, and, had they given Nate Robertson even 3 runs a game, he could have won 25! With nate on the bump in game one, hope lives!

Well, the A's took out the twins in Game 1,
thats a fun Start.

Somebody forgat to explain to the Tigers' rookies that they were supposed to get destroyed! Verlander, Zumaya, Granderson and Thames all starred while Stienbrenner's all-stars steamed! Meanwhile, Oakland is poised to sweep the Twins!

There's a lot of ball to be played! We can't count anyone out, yet:thumbsup:

That's pretty cool that they beat NY in Game 2. Zumaya and Verlander are amazing young pitchers. I'm very interested in Game 3 and kind of torn. I hate the Yankees but I'm a Randy Johnson fan. I guess I can hope for Randy to go 8 shutout innings and then have Rivera blow the save.

Rogers starting has me a bit concerned... he has the highest ERA among starting pitchers in the history of playoff baseball, and his record against the Yankees is even worse.
Johnson is pitching with a bad back. It's possible that neither starter goes far tonight. If it becomes a battle of the bullpens, advantage Tigers!

People made too much of a big deal about Rogers' previous postseason career. The last time he pitched in the playoffs was in 2003. Throughout his entire career, he had accumulated 20.1 postseason innings. That was not significant in any way at all.

Overall, teams need to put less stock in what players have done in the past and start relying on projections for future performance that account for age.

I guarantee that if more GMs looked past the pretty statistics like AVG, HR, and RBI for hitters, and W-L, ERA, and K for pitchers there would be a lot less bad free agent signings.

Another thing, I'm happy as hell that the Yankees got bounced but I'm sick of the ARod bashing. If they are really going to trade him, they are retarded. They won't get equal talent in return and they will have to pay at least $10M to get any deal done.

Congrats to Kenny Rogers for proving my fears unwarranted... twice! I wish that I could claim that I've had nothing but confidence in the Tigers from the beginning. I don't think that even the players can make that claim.
Now, I can claim confidence going into the World Series. I've witnessed 1968, 1984, and now 2006, and I've never seen the Tigers lose a World Series.

A-Rod was given incredible money, then forced to play an unnatural position. He's been asked to play second-fiddled to Derek Jeter, and on most occasions, performs. But under the pressure and scrutiny of the post-season, I'd bet he wishes he were at shortstop instead of third base, and that impacts his performance in the field and at bat. He needs to go somewhere he can play short and be "The Man." Then he could finish his career strongly and go to the Hall-of-Fame on a positive note.

ARod doesn't need to go back to SS. 3B will be better for him in the long run, especially as he ages.

If the Mets win this Game 7, Endy Chavez's catch will go down in history as one of the top 5, if not, the greatest play in MLB history, IMO.

If the Mets lose, it still is one of the best plays ever. I don't remember anyone robbing someone of a sure HR ever in a Game 7. Similar plays are Puckett's 1991 World Series Game 6 catch and, of course, the Willie Mays catch.

I was in a somewhat reserved restaurant with some people watching the two TV's in the corner's, but everyone let out a OOOOO, AHHHHH, and WOW! when that play happened.

NOTE: As I am typing this Molina just hit a go-ahead HR in the 9th.

I'll admit, I expected the Tigers to own the Cards. I was wrong, of course. The Cards have a lot of players I really respect, so I'm quite glad they won. The title itself has a ton of stories buried within it and the media is talking all about every one of it. Its a whole lot more interesting than "Everyone expected ____ to win, and they did!" Even if nobody gave a shit and the ratings sucked, and the gameplay sucked, and the whole playoffs were boring in comparison with last year's absolutely gripping postseason, the stories are there and they're quite compelling.

Jeff Weaver. I am so happy for this guy. Nobody gave him any respect and he got the ultimate snub earlier this year, being sent down to make room for his kid brother. In the end, he's pitching an absolutely brilliant game (like I always knew he was capable of, I might add!) and he's a world champion.

David Eckstein, of course, is another great story. Proves that work ethic is better than ability. He was right in the middle of every important play, making shit happen. Thats very worthy of MVP.

Congrats to the Cardinals. On baseball's biggest stage, they kept their poise and made the plays.

For the first time in two decades, we Detroit fans are really anxious for next season! Expect a few roster teaks, but those young pitchers ought to be even better for this high pressure experience.

RE: Eckstien

Don't get me started on that 'double' he hit off of Zumaya.

Hater. He plays hard and gets shit done. Nobody knocks on Earl Boykins, nobody should knock on Eckstein.

Agreed! the only reason to hate on Eckstein is 'cause he beats you.

As for Eckstein's hits: both teams were on the same field under the same conditions. Granderson's slip was critical, yes. Duncan slipped, so did Preston. Fortunately for the Cardinals, those didn't cause any damage. On a dry field, Monroe would have been playing a bit deeper, and quite likkely sould have caught that ball that tipped his glove. So what? The pitcher's errors were more devastating than both of those plays.

The bottom line is that the Cardinals took advantage of the Tigers mistakes. Detroit didn't.

GO CARDINALS!!!!!!

My problem with Eckstein is that he, like other small, scrappy IFs is that they get way too much credit for what they do. For his entire career, he has an 88 OPS+ (OPS league and park adjusted, average is 100). His career high is a 103 but based on the press the dude gets you would never know it. He's even recieved MVP votes in two different years! Usually, those non-sluggers can make up for it by being able to steal a base or two, but he can't even do that.

His 'thing' is the bunt and people who don't understand that in most (please note I said most, not all) situations a bunt is a very bad move.

I had to live through years of Craig Counsell worship as a DBacks fan, Eckstein is the same thing.

Another thing, I'm not making excuses for the Tigers, they straight up sucked in that series.