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I will still be pulling for Red Sox over Dodgers
Angels vs Cubs
Angels in 6
I will still be pulling for Red Sox over Dodgers
The Dodgers will be lucky to win a game in the NLDS let alone get to the world series.
doesn't mean i can't root for them
The Dodgers will be lucky to win a game in the NLDS let alone get to the world series.
That white sox/tigers isn't really a playoff game
Correct. That's why WGN has it.
It is for the White Sox.
it may hold somewhat of the same value, but its not a playoff game
They lose they are out.
If they don't win they don't even get a chance at a 1 game playoff.
I'd say the White Sox are going for 2 straight playoff games in a row.
You can make that argument for any late regular season game
Because you're either an Angel fan or a Codger fan out here growing up.
I made the better choice.
Nope.
I live in L.A. county.
You like the Codgers, Rai s AND Lamers?
For those reasons alone you should be sterilized, if not euthanized altogether.
im pulling for the Cubs in the NL. Although they are a Rival, I grew up watching them on WGN and I have a lot of family who are cubs fans. I always pull for them in the post season if the Stros dont make it. Plus, I dont care for the Dodgers, Brew Crew, or philly.
In the AL I like the Ray or Angels and even the Whitesox(if they make it). I dont care for the Twins and I dont want the Bosox to win it again.
ing Codgers? is that a word? Rai s are lame too. Most people give me the "Traitors" for leaving LA. And I never met an Angel fan until 2001. So growing up there was only one option, the Blues. Of course we started sucking for so long people jumped ship.
White Sox game is finally under way.
, I never even heard of an Angels fan between the time Carew retired and 2001.
The Detroit bullpen officially hates the Twins worse than the WhiteSox. Put in on the boards. Wise scores on a succession of wild pitches. Walks to Dye, Konerko, and Griffey. WhiteSox have the bases loaded with one out in the bottom of the 6th. Score knotted at two.
EDIT: No more. Ramirez hits a GS. 6-2, WhiteSox. Methinks they will live to fight tomorrow. Minnesota Twins delenda est!
Bring on the Angels. A rematch of last years alds but this one will be much tougher. I like the Sox's chances against anyone. Go Dodgers in the NL. Manny is my all time favorite sox player and I would love to see him give dodger fans more reasons to love him in the playoffs. If Sox dont make it I want the Dodgers to win it all. If neither get the job done, then I am rooting for the anyone but the Angels and possibly the White Sox.
Cubs are choke artists. More so than the Dodgers. I like our chances in the first round. Time for our pitching staff to step up!!!
Such brilliant analysis. Thank God we have someone like you who understands what happened in 1969, 1984, 1989, 1998, and 2003 is MUCH more important than the fact that the Cubs have the highest run differential in MLB in 2008.
Number of Cubs from the 1969, 1984, 1989, 1998, and 2003 rosters still with the team = 2 (Aramis Ramirez and Kerry Wood, 2003).
Obviously, there is more overlap from last year. However, it' not the same team. The 2007 Cubs #3 starter was Rich Hill; this year it's Rich Harden. The 2007 Cubs actually gave significant playing time to Jacques Jones and his hat, as well as Cliff Floyd on a Rascal Scooter. The 2007 Cubs didn't choke; they were the eighth-best team in the postseason. They backed into the NL Central in 2007; the Brewers just kept losing games in August and September faster than the Cubs could. You can't "choke" when no one expects you to win.
The Cubs may have been the best team in 1984. They certainly were not in 1989, 1998, and 2003.
Just for example, look at the 2003 Playoffs. Atlanta went 101-61 in 2003, and had the best offensive club of their dynasty. San Francisco went 100-61; most of their current aging core where still in their primes. The Marlins were 91-71, and look at how many current big stars were youngsters on that 2003 roster. The Cubs finished 88-74, after going on a hot streak late in the season, and barely passed the Cardinals and Astros, who were probably better teams overall that year. The 2003 Cubs had Prior, Wood, and Sosa, and that was about it.
It's not choking when you weren't expected to win. Only Cub fans could have believed that the Cubs had the chance of an icicle in at the beginning of the 2003 Playoffs.
This is a great game. Neither pitcher is breaking.
Danks...
Are you still going with your be all end all stat of run differential
You hold onto it more than Hollinger and his ridiculous PER. There are other factors that lead to playoff success. I happen to think pitching (starting and relief) and defense are the most important ones. The Cubs haven't won a Championship in how long? No matter how you slice it they've continually choked. They should have at least backed into 1 le in all those years. Even the White and Red Sox have won in recent years.
I also thought it was funny you don't consider all the errors after the Bartman play as choking. I guess the Cubs answer to a different reality.
Again, you show your ignorance. Whether or not the Cubs choked in 2003, that team has zero relevance to this team. That's just common sense.Are you still going with your be all end all stat of run differential
You hold onto it more than Hollinger and his ridiculous PER. There are other factors that lead to playoff success. I happen to think pitching (starting and relief) and defense are the most important ones. The Cubs haven't won a Championship in how long? No matter how you slice it they've continually choked. They should have at least backed into 1 le in all those years. Even the White and Red Sox have won in recent years.
I also thought it was funny you don't consider all the errors after the Bartman play as choking. I guess the Cubs answer to a different reality.
Bartman = choking? So something totally random in 2003 that didn't directly involve a Cubs' player (otherwise it is interference) is indicative of how the 2008 Cubs will perform. I see our public schools are still letting us down. Can you find Canada on a map?
The Cubs lost that game because of Alex Gonzalez. Anyone who watched the 2003 Cubs could have told you that Alou had no chance at the Bartman ball. (He never left his feet in LF all year.) You can make a damn strong argument that any team starting Alex Gonzalez can't choke by definition, because you shouldn't have very high expecations for a team that has to start Alex Gonzales. The 2003 Cubs had to have near-perfect outings from Prior, Wood, or Zambrano to win games; they couldn't manufacture runs when necessary. (This may be the hallmark of Dusty teams, come to think of it.)
My point is that a lot of this "curse" talk is pure bull . You aren't cursed if you just flat out suck. Cubs' fans use angst as a way of avoiding the ugly truth: the 1989, 1998, 2003, and 2007 Cubs just weren't that good, particularly on offense. Those teams all backed into the playoffs.
1984 was a choke. 2008 is potentially a choke. You can't "choke" if you were just plain lucky to make the postseason. It's called "reverting to the mean," or more commonly "playing to your true potential."
Statistics are "real," because they measure "real" events. Little gnomes don't come along and create them in your computer. Do you think that pitching and defense somehow aren't reflected in run differential?Are you still going with your be all end all stat of run differential
You hold onto it more than Hollinger and his ridiculous PER. There are other factors that lead to playoff success. I happen to think pitching (starting and relief) and defense are the most important ones. The Cubs haven't won a Championship in how long? No matter how you slice it they've continually choked. They should have at least backed into 1 le in all those years. Even the White and Red Sox have won in recent years.
I also thought it was funny you don't consider all the errors after the Bartman play as choking. I guess the Cubs answer to a different reality.
A differential is defined as "data extracted from the level of difference between two variables." Thus run differential is the difference between runs scored (hitting) and runs allowed (pitching and defense). Ain't science grand?
Some basic points for you to consider:
1) Dodger Stadium is a barn with huge foul territory.
2) Wrigley is a bandbox without much foul territory.
Dodgers’ Team ERA = 3.68 (1st in NL)
BAA = .251 (5th in MLB, 2nd in NL)
Cubs’ Team ERA = 3.87 (2nd in NL)
BAA = .242 (1st in MLB)
By this crude measurement, the staffs are roughly equal. Park effects explain how the Dodgers have a worse Batting Average Against, yet still allow fewer runs. In practical terms, these numbers are functionally identical even without accounting for park effects.
This season, Cubs’ pitching has outperformed Dodgers’ pitching head-to-head. However, the difference is also inconsequential in practical terms.
2008 Dodgers’ ERA v. Cubs = 2.49
BAA = .238
2008 Cubs’ ERA v. Dodgers = 2.47
BAA = .235
Abandoning statistics entirely, my eyes tell me that Ted Lilly, the Cubs’ fourth starter, would be the second-best starter on the Dodgers staff at this moment.
Turning to offense, this is where the Cubs really dominate the Dodgers.
2008 Cubs = .278 BA, .354 OBP, .443 SLG, .797 OPS (2nd in MLB, 1st in NL)
2008 Dodgers = .264 BA, .333 OBP, .399 SLG, .732 OPS (24th in MLB, 13th in NL)
Head-to-head numbers greatly favor the Cubs, because the Dodgers obtained Ramirez after finishing the season series with Chicago. Unfortunately, I cannot find a “Manny Split,” so I will use the Post All-Star Game Split.
Cubs in 2nd Half = .273 BA, .346 OBP, .443 SLG, .789 OPS (8th in MLB, 1st in NL)
Dodgers in 2nd Half = .279 BA, .350 OBP, .434 SLG, .784 OPS (19th in MLB, 8th in NL)
Even with Ramirez, the Dodgers lost eight games in a row in August, including a sweep by the Washington Nationals. During this stretch, LA averaged less than two runs per game. The Cubs played their AAAA configuration for most of September, and the kids scored more runs per game.
The Dodgers should have zero chance against the Cubs. So do the Brewers or Phillies, for that matter. If the Cubs don’t win the NLCS, then I would call this season a “choke.”
God how awesome was Cole Hamels today.
8 IP 2 hits 1 walk 9 Ks
Damn hes lived up to the hype.
Heres a shocker.
Cubs are losing 4-2.
Different year, same old Cubbies
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