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You are here: Home / Sports / MLB Wild Card Open Thread

MLB Wild Card Open Thread

by John Cole|  October 1, 20147:48 pm| 51 Comments

This post is in: Sports

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Let’s go Bucs!

I haven’t been this excited about baseball since Andy Van Slyke was in uniform.

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Reader Interactions

51Comments

  1. 1.

    Comrade Colette Collaboratrice

    October 1, 2014 at 7:53 pm

    Left Coast checking in. Let’s go, Giants! The Killer P’s will sting ya.

  2. 2.

    John Revolta

    October 1, 2014 at 7:56 pm

    I moved to KC fairly recently and am not all that emotionally invested in the teams. Also, my interest in pro sports has been waning for some years.
    Having said that: last night’s game was one of the best goddamn ball games I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen a few.

  3. 3.

    madmommy

    October 1, 2014 at 8:01 pm

    Watching with my 13 year old son, and he asked who the old guy who threw out the first pitch was. I told him, and mentioned that I remember watching him pitch. He said “So you can remember when that guy was a pitcher in the major leagues? Guess you’re feeling pretty old now, huh?” Blergh!

    I really hope the Pirates can finish this off in 9 innings, I can’t stay awake till midnight two nights in a row!

  4. 4.

    tybee

    October 1, 2014 at 8:02 pm

    i thought the price’o’corn was a football team.

  5. 5.

    SFAW

    October 1, 2014 at 8:05 pm

    John –
    Who do the Mets have pitching for them tonight, against the Pie-RATS? DeGrom?

  6. 6.

    Mike J

    October 1, 2014 at 8:05 pm

    @madmommy:

    Watching with my 13 year old son, and he asked who the old guy who threw out the first pitch was.

    For those of us not watching, who was it?

  7. 7.

    Howard Beale IV

    October 1, 2014 at 8:06 pm

    Barry Ritholtz linked to Balloon Juice.

  8. 8.

    Wally Ballou

    October 1, 2014 at 8:06 pm

    I know the TV people (and the Yinzers with day jobs) likely wouldn’t agree with me, but I really wish this had been an afternoon game, if only because no ballpark in MLB looks better dappled in sunlight and shadow than PNC.

  9. 9.

    Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism

    October 1, 2014 at 8:09 pm

    @Mike J:

    For those of us not watching, who was it?

    Supposed to be Kent Tekulve. (Not actually watching.)

  10. 10.

    Comrade Javamanphil

    October 1, 2014 at 8:15 pm

    Quietly rooting for a Birds-PIrates rematch. It’s time.

  11. 11.

    khead

    October 1, 2014 at 8:18 pm

    Last night’s game was fantastic.

  12. 12.

    Tommy

    October 1, 2014 at 8:31 pm

    @Wally Ballou: I am with you. Play some day games. I will admit there will be sea of red when The Dodgers come here. Cardinals, Cardinals, Cardinals.

  13. 13.

    PopeRatzy

    October 1, 2014 at 8:31 pm

    Regardless of outcome John can be consoled that he didn’t have to watch the Pirates lose last night as he was planning.

  14. 14.

    Poopyman

    October 1, 2014 at 8:36 pm

    @Comrade Javamanphil:

    Quietly rooting for a Birds-PIrates rematch. It’s time.

    At which point the former pitcher throwing out the first pitch will be Steve Blass.

  15. 15.

    raven

    October 1, 2014 at 8:42 pm

    Best fight I ever saw was at Three Rivers. Must have been 35 years ago but what I remember is that it was in the lower level, 1st base line and the cops just let em hook. It was abut 6 guys and it lasted 10 minutes.

  16. 16.

    LT

    October 1, 2014 at 8:49 pm

    Go Bucs!

    But for entirely different reasons than yours…

  17. 17.

    wmd

    October 1, 2014 at 8:52 pm

    @Comrade Javamanphil:

    NLCS or WS Birds vs Pirates? There are two sets of birds still in play. For some reason I though of Cardinals before Orioles when i saw your comment.

  18. 18.

    madmommy

    October 1, 2014 at 8:56 pm

    @Mike J:
    It was Kent Tekulve, I was surprised at how old he looked. I’ve been watching games so long
    that I’ve gone from “he’s cute, I’d date him” to “I’m old enough to be his mother”.

  19. 19.

    John Cole +0

    October 1, 2014 at 9:03 pm

    @madmommy: He just had a heart transplant a couple weeks ago. He’s allowed to look old.

  20. 20.

    Morbo

    October 1, 2014 at 9:16 pm

    Crack, … booooooo.

  21. 21.

    Ellie

    October 1, 2014 at 9:20 pm

    @John Revolta: it really was a good game. What a comeback!

  22. 22.

    Edo

    October 1, 2014 at 9:25 pm

    Goooo Giants!

    Having said that McCutchen should win the NL MVP. Yes, it’s partly because I hate the Dodgers. Natch.

  23. 23.

    madmommy

    October 1, 2014 at 9:26 pm

    @John Cole +0:

    Damn! I didn’t hear that part, we had the game on while working on a school project. Checked the WIki, he’s a year younger than my mom. I knew I remembered seeing him pitch in those striped hats the Pirates wore back in the day but couldn’t place the year.

  24. 24.

    Edo

    October 1, 2014 at 9:26 pm

    Goooo Giants!

    Having said that McCutchen should win the NL MVP. Yes, it’s partly because I hate the Dodgers.

  25. 25.

    Kathleen

    October 1, 2014 at 9:28 pm

    I’m rooting for Not The Cardinals. I’ve always liked the Pirates – saw them play at GABP this summer and while the Reds won finally the Bucs looked good.

    I’ve never been a Dodger fan, but I will definitely take them over the Cards. “Not The Cards” is a Cincinnati thing.

  26. 26.

    khead

    October 1, 2014 at 9:28 pm

    Kent Tekulve had a heart transplant? Damn I’m old.

  27. 27.

    Edo

    October 1, 2014 at 9:30 pm

    D’oh. Apologies for duplicate entry

  28. 28.

    Gravenstone

    October 1, 2014 at 9:41 pm

    Hoping for a Royals/Bucs series. unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that Pittsburgh got that memo (yet, anyway). If I can’t have that, then please let the NL proffer anyone but the fucking Cardinals! Anything bearing the taint of LaRussa needs to be burnt to the ground, then salted.

  29. 29.

    khead

    October 1, 2014 at 9:44 pm

    I’m rooting for either a Royals/Bucs or Wash/Balt series. BW Parkway series!

  30. 30.

    khead

    October 1, 2014 at 9:49 pm

    Well, shit.

  31. 31.

    poptartacus

    October 1, 2014 at 10:08 pm

    It will be a giant/kc series. Giants in 6. KC will then return to thier usual position of being 26 GB at the all star break.

  32. 32.

    kindness

    October 1, 2014 at 10:24 pm

    Doesn’t look good for the Pirates. Sorry John. I am a Giants fan. Forgive us our team rivalries.

  33. 33.

    poptartacus

    October 1, 2014 at 10:31 pm

    Giants deserve the win, to balance the karmic scales of the A’s digusting “performance” last night

  34. 34.

    Linnaeus

    October 1, 2014 at 11:10 pm

    Looking forward to Los Tigres tomorrow versus the O’s. Go Tigers!

  35. 35.

    Eric S.

    October 1, 2014 at 11:18 pm

    I rot for the team the East Coast elite media deemed the most hated of the team’s in the playoffs. Femur like sir hairs to this Cardinals fan but whatevs.

    I wad routing fire the Buckos in this one. I love the “underdog” story. Plus the Giants just beat my Birds too often.

  36. 36.

    divF

    October 1, 2014 at 11:24 pm

    @poptartacus: The A’s performance wasn’t disgusting, just sad. The starting catcher Soto having to come out of the game early with an injury allowed KC to run wild on Norris. Center fielder Crisp having to come out of the game injured turned what should have been a Hosmer double in the 12th into a triple, and then a run on an infield hit to the third baseman Donaldson.

    The A’s did better than they had any right to. Low-budget teams can’t sustain injuries, and the A’s had a bunch. I don’t fault Beane for any of the trades he made in July – after 14 years of grinding out postseason appearances (8 since 2000, I think) and then not having the guns to get to the WS, who can blame him for trying something different?

    Some general takeaways from this season.
    (1) Replay is good, as it is currently structured. Umpires get the calls on the field right almost all of the time, and on those rare occasions they don’t, the replay challenge allows it to be fixed.
    (2) Particularly given (1), I’ve pretty much had it with plate umpires having their “personal” (or worse yet, inconsistent through the course of the game) strike zones.
    (3) The financial structure of the game needs to change. 29 years is too long for a team to wait to get to the postseason (KC). Eventually the fans will figure out that all of the expanded postseason hoopla still leads to the same 6-8 teams with payrolls north of $150M making it to the WS, and will lose interest.
    (4) With the rule changes on plays at the plate intended to protect the catchers, we are still seeing catchers’ injuries going up. A backswing that hits a catcher should be an automatic out.

  37. 37.

    Eric S.

    October 1, 2014 at 11:24 pm

    “felt like sour grapes to this Cardinals fan …”

    Damn I hate auto correct.

  38. 38.

    Eric S.

    October 1, 2014 at 11:30 pm

    @divF: re: replay
    I accepted the inevitability but didn’t think I’d like it. I’ve changed my tune. My biggest complaint is the number of times managers come out on the field and stall while an assistant reviews video. I’d like to see rule changes to eliminate that to speed up the game.

  39. 39.

    M. Bouffant

    October 1, 2014 at 11:39 pm

    Now Andy’s son Scott is w/ the Dodgers. Where do your loyalties lie now?

  40. 40.

    randy khan

    October 1, 2014 at 11:39 pm

    @Eric S.: The manager stall while waiting for the in-house review is a feature, not a bug – it reduces the number of challenges and speeds up the game. It’s actually technically against the rules because there’s supposed to be a time limit for challenges, but everyone’s figured out that it’s better than having teams make half-baked challenges and wasting the couple of minutes it takes to resolve them.

    I kind of miss managers arguing about calls, but the truth is that the challenge system makes the game run more smoothly, so on the whole I’m pretty strongly in favor of it as it’s actually been implemented.

  41. 41.

    divF

    October 1, 2014 at 11:41 pm

    @Eric S.: I don’t mind the stalling. It happens infrequently – less often than pitching coaches’ visits to the mound, which take the same or less time. It is not nearly as bad as the extended television-driven breaks between half-innings, time which has to be filled with such inanities as dot racing.

    ETA: feature not bug – good observation.

  42. 42.

    randy khan

    October 1, 2014 at 11:51 pm

    @divF: Most of the teams that don’t make the playoffs year after year are not particularly competent, and use money as an excuse. In the last ten years (2004-2013), we’ve had:

    6 different World Series champions
    11 different teams in the World Series
    22 different division champions, plus one team that didn’t win a division that got in as a wild card

    That’s not so bad, particularly considering that the Yankees had only 1 World Series appearance (which, sadly, they won) in that time. For comparison, the NBA has had 5 different champions and 9 different teams in the Finals in the same period.

  43. 43.

    Eric S.

    October 2, 2014 at 12:02 am

    The manager stall may not shlw the game as much as it seems to me but it is new and stands out in my mind. And for the record I don’t have complaints about game time in general.

    I saw MLB will be trying new rules to speed up games in the Arizona league this fall. There will be clocks timing pitchers, batters won’t be allowed to step or of the box willy nilly, and there will be a limit on mound visits that don’t result in pitcher changes. I don’t know how much it will shorten games but I agree with trying.

    An interesting theory I’ve heard is newer ballparks have less foul territory. Per the theory this results in more foul balls in the stands and less foul ball fly outs. That means more pitches per at bat and longer games. I have to think the data for this wouldn’t be too hard to put together. Maybe I’ll play with that soon.

    When one thinks about pitchers like Buerhle though you have to think the pitchers control the game tempo as much as anything.

  44. 44.

    divF

    October 2, 2014 at 12:12 am

    @randy khan: My POV may be skewed by my following the American League, where in the last ten years the WS teams have been Boston (3), Texas (2), Detroit (2), Yankees (1), Tampa Bay (1) and Chicago (1). All but the last two I would consider high-payroll clubs, i.e. 8 out 10. Go back 5 more years and you get 4 more Yankees appearances, plus Anaheim, another high-roller, so 13 / 15. Not much competitive balance here.

  45. 45.

    divF

    October 2, 2014 at 12:17 am

    @Eric S.: Since the Oakland Coliseum has probably the largest foul ground in baseball, it may explain why I don’t notice the length of the games :-).

  46. 46.

    Tree With Water

    October 2, 2014 at 12:19 am

    Bumgarner would have beat any team in baseball tonight. That cat is a phenomanal big game pitcher.

    I also remember when the Giants got beat by the Pirates in the playoffs by a team that included Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, and Manny Sanguillen, circa 1971. I remember the vibe of the crowd filing out of Candlestick that day with the series headed back to Pittsburg, resigned almost to what indeed awaited the Orange & black back there. Still, I’ve always had a soft spot for the Pirates, and there are a lot of other teams I’d rather have seen whipped like they were tonight. But oh well, wait till next year.

  47. 47.

    Honus

    October 2, 2014 at 12:38 am

    @Tree With Water: those were great days. Your Giants had a few guys too named mays, mccovey, bonds perry and marichalm

  48. 48.

    Steeplejack

    October 2, 2014 at 1:48 am

    @divF:

    [. . .] I’ve pretty much had it with plate umpires having their “personal” (or worse yet, inconsistent through the course of the game) strike zones.

    Agreed. Especially when (to compare with another sport) in tennis they now have technology that can (allegedly) tell down to an incredibly small margin whether a serve is in or out. And all the TV games now have “PitchTrack” or something similar to show where the pitches go.

    I don’t think that pitch-calling should be automated, but there should be some review/remedial program to monitor what umpires call and to whip them into line with some sort of “standard” strike zone.

  49. 49.

    Paul in KY

    October 2, 2014 at 10:16 am

    @Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism: Kent Tekulve was a great relief pitcher. HOF material, IMO.

    He had a wicked sidearm throwing motion.

  50. 50.

    Darkrose

    October 2, 2014 at 4:38 pm

    @Steeplejack: Inconsistent through the game is bad. Inconsistent through the same at-bat drives me absolutely insane. So does the excuse that “they’ll give you the call once you’ve proved that you can throw strikes”. Every time Krukow says that I scream: “That’s not okay!” at the TV.

  51. 51.

    Darkrose

    October 2, 2014 at 4:40 pm

    This article on the Giants TV broadcasters is pretty awesome. You may find your allergies acting up.

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