I can't help but get the feeling they are peaking too soon and will fall back to earth.
Right?
Sure is fun though.
I guess their 1-run-game record would make them particularly unstable (not to mention their strength being their bullpen... those are always unstable) but might as well enjoy it for however long it lasts.
You wonder if the starting pitching is sustainable...whether Britton, Gonzalez & Chen can keep it up. But that was my concern when Hammel went down and so far, so good. Hammel is back tomorrow but will Tillman be healthy and effective? Can Saunders step up? The bullpen is at least not overextended thanks to the SP and now that expanded rosters are here that shouldn't be much of a concern. Strop has been volatile but overall I think the bullpen is legit.
They need more from Jones down the stretch but Reynolds is coming on strong and overall Buck has more options now for piecing together Ws.
You wonder if the starting pitching is sustainable...whether Britton, Gonzalez & Chen can keep it up. But that was my concern when Hammel went down and so far, so good. Hammel is back tomorrow but will Tillman be healthy and effective? Can Saunders step up? The bullpen is at least not overextended thanks to the SP and now that expanded rosters are here that shouldn't be much of a concern. Strop has been volatile but overall I think the bullpen is legit.
They need more from Jones down the stretch but Reynolds is coming on strong and overall Buck has more options now for piecing together Ws.
The Yankees have their share of questions. Specifically regarding the rotation and injuries, and lately their bullpen has been suspect. The Rays are in good shape, but the O's essentially control their own fate having two more series against them.
I'm sure I must have attended a game or two that was more fun than that one in Anacostia, but I'm drawing a blank at the moment. Sure, the weather was conducive for the ball to carry, and sure, the Cubs have some pitching woes after Samardzija... but 12 home runs in two games is impressive any way you slice it, at least for National League ball.
Gio taking a no hitter into the early fifth inning was pretty cool too there for a while.
I guess their 1-run-game record would make them particularly unstable (not to mention their strength being their bullpen... those are always unstable) but might as well enjoy it for however long it lasts.
I somewhat bought this argument around the All-Star break, but at this point it's pretty untenable. 136 games are already in the books, and only 26 remain (or probably somewhere around 5 or 6 one run games). Even assuming their record in one run games was actually a random variable (rather than a result of having a strong bullpen), they're not going to regress towards the mean substantially in 26 games (16% of the season). Especially given that if you're viewing it as a truly probabilistic issue, then the previous results should have no bearing on the future ones. If they go .500 the rest of the season in one run games, they're still going to post a w% in one run games over 70%.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Capitlols
The Rays are in good shape, but the O's essentially control their own fate having two more series against them.
Rays also have six more games against Texas. They definitely have the worst schedule of the three contenders in the AL East.
I'm sure I must have attended a game or two that was more fun than that one in Anacostia, but I'm drawing a blank at the moment. Sure, the weather was conducive for the ball to carry, and sure, the Cubs have some pitching woes after Samardzija... but 12 home runs in two games is impressive any way you slice it, at least for National League ball.
Gio taking a no hitter into the early fifth inning was pretty cool too there for a while.
Man Samardzija is one good pitcher. Remember him from earlier on the season. Great pitch placement. Wonder if he'll be a Gio type trade to improve the prospect pool though admittedly not up on the Cubs prospect depth. That being said first MLB game I saw was a Cubs game in Chicago the brief time I live there. Typical early season game where on sweat-ed in the sun and froze in the shade.
Man Samardzija is one good pitcher. Remember him from earlier on the season. Great pitch placement. Wonder if he'll be a Gio type trade to improve the prospect pool though admittedly not up on the Cubs prospect depth. That being said first MLB game I saw was a Cubs game in Chicago the brief time I live there. Typical early season game where on sweat-ed in the sun and froze in the shade.
That'll be Garza, probably. Although his trade value this offseason won't be what it was before he got hurt.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mystlyfe
I somewhat bought this argument around the All-Star break, but at this point it's pretty untenable. 136 games are already in the books, and only 26 remain (or probably somewhere around 5 or 6 one run games). Even assuming their record in one run games was actually a random variable (rather than a result of having a strong bullpen), they're not going to regress towards the mean substantially in 26 games (16% of the season). Especially given that if you're viewing it as a truly probabilistic issue, then the previous results should have no bearing on the future ones. If they go .500 the rest of the season in one run games, they're still going to post a w% in one run games over 70%.
It wouldn't so much concern for their record down the stretch, but it would certainly matter wrt their future prospects (both in a potential wild-card matchup and moving forward next season). If they're making hay by eking out one-run wins and are more or less getting lucky, you might expect their luck to run out more than you would a team that's winning a different way (be it the Rays etc.). If they're relying on their bullpen as their driving force, you might have trouble predicting it'll be as good next season since relievers are particularly volatile.
Of course they're set up in a good position right now and you have to enjoy it.
Not surprising given the magnitude of the series, the fact that the Yankees bring their own crowd, and (most importantly) the ceremony unveiling the Cal statue and honoring him.
Cubs just made the last out of the ballgame by tripping on a no-doubt double. Weird game.
Fun game. Love the MLB At Bat app has both scrums as video clips, heh. Baseball scrums always entertaining but one side thing is one gets a feel of which players got each others back, so to speak.
@markzuckerman: It's Rookie Dress-Up Day for the #Nats, so if you're at Union Station in about an hour, look for Bryce Harper & Co. in gymnastics leotards.
