Before we jump into the first two days of the Division Series, a plea to Fox, which now has the rights to the entire baseball postseason through 2006: while it’s probable that they will push some of the games off to their cable network, I hope they give some serious thought to having the whole…
This series shapes up as an interesting experiment. How important is positive momentum going into October? The Yankees set a new standard for backing into a division title, losing their last seven games and 13 of their last 15. The A’s, however, drove from out of a playoff spot to a division title in the…
Most of you probably remember the hullaballoo back in May after Rick Ankiel tossed 121 pitches in a start against the Marlins. Those of us prone to paranoia in that area were quick to excoriate LaRussa for his handling of his talented left-hander. We weren’t the only ones drawing swords: Ankiel’s agent, Scott Boras, made…
A lot of my mail today has been asking about or offering opinions on the status of next Monday’s schedule Oakalnd/Tampa Bay game. People want to know whether the A’s will have to play the game if they and the Mariners have already clinched playoff spots, even if the game would decide the AL West…
OK, so maybe I’m just cranky this week about second-basemen-turned-ESPN-announcers. Last night, during the Mets/Braves game, Joe Morgan was insistent that the Braves should go all out for the home-field advantage in the postseason as opposed to resting their starters. The discussion was spurred by the possibility that Greg Maddux would skip his last start…
I suppose one of the problems with baseball’s current postseason format is that teams good enough to play very, very well down the stretch lock up playoff spots and remove themselves from the pack, leaving us with lesser lights battling to see who can suck the least. A harsh assessment? Yeah, but it’s Monday morning…
A 17-game schedule Wednesday provided enough baseball to last anyone…OK, about one day: The Indians impressed the hell out of me, sweeping a doubleheader at Fenway to move back into first place in the wild-card race and push the Red Sox ever so close to extinction. The Tribe got seven innings of one-run ball from…
Now, the fun begins. The Indians looked like the 1995-1999 version over the weekend, winning three of four games from the Yankees, two by blowout and the third with a one-hitter. Coupled with Boston’s split in Detroit, their performance sends them into Hell Week with a three-game lead over the Red Sox. Then again, the…
(Today’s Daily Prospectus is brought to you by NBC Sports.) Another Midsummer Classic is behind us, as the American League defeated the National League Tuesday 6-3. The Yankees’ Derek Jeter, one of the many players whose spot in the lineup came at the expense of an injured starter, had three hits and became the first…
With sincere apologies to the late, great Allan Malamud… On June 21, Bobby Cox brought John Rocker in to start the ninth inning with the Braves trailing 3-1. It was Rocker’s third appearance since his recall from Richmond, and he was brutal: one out, four walks, a hit and five runs. Since then, Rocker has…
Who’s the best Cy Young candidate on the Braves? ERA GS CG ShO IP W-L Tom Glavine 3.62 31 3 1 214.0 19-7 Greg Maddux 3.09 32 6 3 230.1 17-8 As I write this, I don’t have updated Support-Neutral or VORP data. Suffice to say Greg Maddux has extended his lead over Tom Glavine…
He won’t set any home-run records this season, nor will he get close. He’s not going to be the MVP, and it would be hard to argue that he’s enjoyed this season as much as the last two. Nevertheless, this is probably the best season of Sammy Sosa‘s career. Yup. Better than his award-winning, crowd-pleasing…
All the many positive and exciting things that happened this weekend were overshadowed by the horrifying event of Friday night. Red Sox reliever Bryce Florie was hit in the face by a line drive off the bat of the Yankees’ Ryan Thompson. Florie suffered a broken orbital bone and damage to his right eyeball, and…
Who has the best record in baseball? OK, the White Sox. Who has the biggest lead in any division? OK, the Cardinals. But do you know who has the second-best record and second-biggest lead? The San Francisco Giants. The mid-payroll, mid-talent, picked-in-the-middle-of-the-division San Francisco Giants are playing just shy of .600 ball and have just…
It’s fair to say that Pedro Martinez has locked up the American League Cy Young Award. I’d like to think of it as a small feather in our cap: at midseason, our informal poll gave all ten votes to Mr. Martinez, while many other polls gave some votes, even the award at that point, to…
A week ago, the American League wild-card chase looked like a six-team scramble, with none of the contenders emerging as a favorite. Now, however, we’re seeing some separation at both the top and the bottom of the standings. At the top of the list, the Cleveland Indians have won six of eight games and established…