THERE'S ONLY ONE POSTSEASON (thread for 2019)

Nationals are unconscious right now. AL should hope they get all of these two-out hits out of their system this series.

At this rate they’re going to have a a whole week to cool off.

You're probably right--Scherzer and Strasburg could use the rest, but I bet they'd just as soon move right into the WS.

I like, I like.

http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/starting-pitchers-are-getting-more-work-this-postseason-they-deserve-it/

this is a little weird

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/27846892/sources-forecast-rain-wednesday-alter-nlcs-alcs-schedules

Speaking of Correa/Bautista:

https://www.mlb.com/news/best-home-run-reactions-over-the-years

Posting that because of the Sam Miller quote in the Bautista entry: "ESPN writer Sam Miller called this homer 'the most psychologically violent' baseball moment he’d ever seen." The most word-perfect description of that moment I've ever come across.

I would tie fluctuation in starting pitcher usage for the next few postseasons to how good the staffs are. HOU & WAS frontline starters are among their bedrock strengths.

so, i trust that we are all rooting for the cardinals tonight so that the nats can stay a bit warmer for the WS?

i'm gonna double livestream the game and the dem debate so that i can really ruin my night

I'm torn between wishing a miracle for you and more realistically wanting a sweep so these guys have a few days to remember they didn't win their division and are playing above their heads

But even acknowledging the opposition, the Astros hitters have underperformed. When a hitter the quality of the aggregate Astro lineup faces off against a pitcher the quality of their aggregate opponent, odds ratio gives the expected outcome as a .313 wOBA. Instead, they’ve produced a .278 wOBA, which is as bad as it sounds; that was Mallex Smith’s wOBA this year, and he hit .227/.300/.335 in the year of the home run.

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/houstons-offense-has-hit-a-bump-in-the-road/

SSS....

just because it's a small sample doesn't mean they haven't underperformed

October is a small sample! but if you go cold, you lose

Bad news for postseason broadcasters: Shadows DON'T appear to affect offense, according to @gschifman, who found no difference in strikeout/walk rates in shadow after accounting for talent, time, the position of the sun, and the orientation of the ballpark.https://t.co/C02PquUQTX

— Ben Lindbergh (@BenLindbergh) October 15, 2019

speaking of broadcasters, TBS' Brian Anderson is really getting on my nerves. in the first NLDS cards/braves game, he noted (accurately) that ozuna had won a gold glove, but that his days of being a good outfielder were behind him. then he repeated the same anecdote for every single game he has covered since. WE GET IT

the same anecdote in almost the same words every time, like he prepared an index card with only 4 talking points on it

is FS1 typically on standard cable these days, like ESPN or TNT? or is it in a more expensive tier?

it is no longer offered by sling (after a rate hike) and i don't care enough to sit in front of an illegal stream on my computer for four hours a night, so i have not been watching the ALCS. doesn't seem ideal

xxp This is paywalled so I can't read but it must be short on variables, right? I mean I'm not sure how suddenly not being able to see the baseball would not affect one's ability to hit it? Also today's "broadcasters" who testify to this are mostly color guys with extensive big league experience.

idk some of these "but wait!" bubble bursters seem a little try-hard

I don't mean to suggest ex-ballplayers aren't still buying into a lot of misguided old school assumptions but this one eh

genetically freakish eyes can see the baseball

i thought the shadows led to soto getting a bad read on the goldy hit that broke up scherzer's no-hitter

mookie, Fox and Sling reached a new carriage agreement last week! Fox, FS1 and FS2 are back on Sling and Dish, though the regional sports nets are apparently gone forever.

ooh excellent thanks -- i actually checked that on thursday and they were still missing

i thought the shadows led to soto getting a bad read on the goldy hit that broke up scherzer's no-hitter

that actually had to do with his cup, it needed a big time streeeetch and adjustment, but there wasn't time

Marly Rivera, ESPN Writer:

Several players told me that they've been told they will likely not play tomorrow due to weather. No decision has been made yet. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said: "We're watching the forecast. We're mindful of two things, We don't want to affect the competitive complexion of the series, and we wanna be mindful of our fans. We don't want to bring them here and we know we're not going to be able to play. Just too early to tell."

jose!

ALTUUUUUUUUVE

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EG8flrkWkAINBqo?format=png&name=large

Severino missing w/ every changeup, sez C Singleton

action in the bullpen

33 pitches and counting

Loving these 9pm start games here in the UK.

I wish more guys--as the situation warrants, like right now--would do what Judge just did.

if the Nats do wind up winning the World Series that would be the first real example of Bill Simmons' Ewing Theory actually coming true yes?

Had to look that up...The best example I can think of, even if they didn't win everything, would be the post-Griffey-Johnson-Rodriguez '01 Mariners. They must be a cornerstone of his theory.

i'm gonna stick w/ my cornerstone belief that Bill Simmons is a dope

They were talking about this the other night, and it's hard to miss: Judge looks overmatched on breaking stuff low and away. (Hard for most hitters, but they said his height is a real problem on those pitches.)

Well, if you liked "James Paxton goes 2 1/3," I've got a ballgame for you...

— Joe Sheehan (@joe_sheehan) October 15, 2019

yeah the theory is garbage - it doesn't even really apply to Patrick Ewing - but it's kinda fun to talk about. obviously will have to be renamed Bryce Harper theory after this

Past a twisting/drifting/roaming Gardner.

i imagine simmons is only dimly aware of the situation, as it involves neither the NBA nor boston teams

cole's first four-walk game of the season

if they were using the regular season ball it would probably be 3-2 Yanks now lol

bold move to bring severino back out, at 90 pitches, to face altuve/brantley/bregman a third time

that is a Ned Yost move if I've ever seen one let's see how it plays out

doesn't seem like it should take kerwin danley this much time to put his gear on

ottavino really fell apart at the wrong time

i feel like the 2019 cardinals thing to do is win 2 games in WAS and then lose the 6th in STL

we'll need the extra two games to fully learn about ozuna's defense