FIRST-ROUND PLAYOFF CLUSTERFUCK OF 2020

I don't care about "predicting" 2-of-3 series (esp as I didn't find out that's what they're doing til last night. Beyond ludicrous). Who are you rooting for?

Rays, A's, Twins, Cleveland, Dodgers, Reds, Cubs, Padres

Jays, White Sox, Twins, A's, Brewers, Braves, pass, SDP

check your match-ups, a's and white sox are playing each other

rays, white sox, twins, cleveland, brewers, braves, cubs, padres

i don't care much for cleveland or NYY but i guess i want to see shane bieber progress into the playoffs
otoh i feel mildly positive about both atlanta and cincinnati

Rays, Tribe, Twins, A's; Brewers, Padres, Cubs, Braves

Sorry: Jays, White Sox, Twins, Indians, Brewers, Braves, pass, SDP

donaldson out for the twins

sorry everyone, but the st louis cardinals WILL defeat the padres. but then they'll lose to the brewers (who humiliate clayton kershaw again) in the next round. after that it's a crapshoot

posted for reference:

https://i.imgur.com/0s8XOcu.jpg

Well, the midges are back just in time for postseason baseball in Cleveland pic.twitter.com/s7T5zIb4G2

— Matt Wright Fox 8 (@mattwrighttv) September 29, 2020

looking at that i got temporarily distracted trying to rearrange the playoffs by team logo. obviously st. louis and san diego go together, but the cubs should be playing the reds and the braves should be playing the marlins. white sox-a's is ok but white sox-yankees would be better.

padres/cardinals vs twins would be a very nice logo matchup in the WS

these days, about the only thing i can get excited about is a solid intertwined letter logo

TEAMS I WOULDN'T MIND WINNING IT ALL: Rays, Blue Jays, Indians, Twins, A's, White Sox, Dodgers, Brewers, Padres

TEAMS ABOUT WHICH I AM MEH: Cardinals, Reds

HELL NO: Yankees, Astros, Cubs, Marlins, Braves

why meh on the reds?

because of the brennamans? honestly i'd love to see them make a flukey run, get some Joey Votto action in there while his body is still partly functioning

also why do people dislike the marlins? just ownership/management?

honest question, i barely have any idea who's on the team but i always like an underdog

ownership/management, stadium ripoff, have already won twice in their relatively short existence, florida

it's probably hypocritical that i sort of like the rays, but i feel like they're less blatant about being cheap and they have not yet ripped off taxpayers for a ridiculous ballkpark

xxp love votto, but i just never really liked the reds. say no to chris sabo, marge schott, those vest-like unis and david bell imo

kinda like mattingly though i don't think he's a great manager or anything

idg why they're making CWS-OAK play at noon local when there's no late game tonight

I have no idea who WILL win in this crazy baseball postseason, so instead I've just ranked the 16 teams on the basis of who I WANT to win it all. Here we go:

— Rany Jazayerli (@jazayerli) September 29, 2020

stoked that the jays are in the post-season for the first time since 2016.

pretty sure they're going to lose to tampa.

hope tampa wins it all

no late game = our duty to watch debate

fuck that, i'm going to stand up and salute the flag and sing the national anthem this evening, just like i do every night

as posted on the other thread:
Rays, Cleveland, Twins, A's
Dodgers, Dads, marlins, Reds

Nice, a 30-minute first inning. Going to take a long nap and catch up in the 3rd.

lotta good pitching matchups today . . . and then there's matty shoes

A Hall of Fame starting pitcher has exited after giving up one run and throwing 79 pitches four innings.

The playoffs are back, baby.

— Andy McCullough (@ByMcCullough) September 29, 2020

Anyone think sometimes Eduardo Perez has no idea what he's talking about?

giolito perfect through 6

broken up in the 7th

i guess dusty bringing in valdez wasn't a terrible idea after all

lol the fake crowd noise in tampa is *way* too loud

plz stfu about bunting

You can almost feel Minnesota's noose tightening, they had so many chances to win this game.

And there it is.

North Side nervous

Sergio Romo is the first pitcher in MLB Postseason history to walk in the go-ahead run in the 9th inning https://t.co/6kqdbMHFHG #Twins #Astros pic.twitter.com/5RNWjUUNKn

— Baseball Reference (@baseball_ref) September 29, 2020

South Side xp

headed for the 17th straight twins playoff loss

alas, poor willians

THE GOD RICH WALTZ

year keeps getting worse

That Twins playoff losing streak is a pretty fluky weird thing.

I was watching the game in real time as they collapsed... has anyone officially deemed it a curse?

this is one of those games where i miss the ability to change audio feeds

The Twins thing is unbelievable (I knew about their Yankees problem, but had no idea). That is exceptionally hard to do in baseball. Sooner or later, someone--especially on a playoff team (this isn't the '88 Orioles)--is going to throw a good game.

other streaks:

cleveland has lost nine straight games when facing elimination

dusty baker has lost ten straight games when in a position to clinch a series

Twins haven’t lost the series yet jeez.

Huge blow for the Milwaukee Brewers: Rookie right-hander Devin Williams, the best reliever in baseball this year, has been left off the roster for their wild card series against the top-seeded Los Angeles Dodgers, sources tell ESPN. He's dealing with an arm issue, sources said.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) September 30, 2020

You weren’t kidding.

losing teams playing megasloppy today

brewers better pull this series out, i still think the sub-.500 astros winning the WS is the best and funniest possibility but along the way i need the sub-.500 smallest market team in the world to kill the dodgers in the first round

marlins over cubs too, obviously

if the brewers just have to lose then i need the astros to beat the yankees in the ALCS again and the dodgers in the WS again

marlins-cubs game 2 postponed

now up to 18

The Reds have been held scoreless through 16 innings to start the postseason.

That's the 3rd-longest streak of scoreless innings by a team's hitters to start the playoffs (+ still in progress).

Only longer:
1921 Giants -- 20 innings
2018 Braves -- 19 innings

(h/t @EliasSports)

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) October 1, 2020

scoreless after 5

Groundhog Day

broke that up

i bet not even Siri remembers this schedule

brewers better pull this series out, i still think the sub-.500 astros winning the WS is the best and funniest possibility but along the way i need the sub-.500 smallest market team in the world to kill the dodgers in the first round

their star player is in a long slump and they have no starters, I'm not exactly hopeful right now

rip reds

22 scoreless innings

My goodness pic.twitter.com/mia7BZ5PbF

— Daren Willman (@darenw) October 1, 2020

^^^longest homer hit in oakland in the statcast era

(by luis robert)

lol they were interviewing ramon laureano in-game and he swore very loudly after the jimenez double. also doesn't sound very thrilled at being interviewed in general

the ball keeps getting hit to him while they're asking him questions and he's so pissed off

Love to watch playoff telecasts modeled after MTV Rock 'n' Jock baseball games.

"playoff"

https://media.gettyimages.com/photos/robin-ventura-david-wells-dr-dre-at-mtvs-rock-n-jock-baseball-game-in-picture-id111182729

white sox on their sixth pitcher . . . in the fourth

Setting aside the public health concerns, which take precedence to be sure, has anyone at MLB thought about what a miserable atmosphere you get with 11,000 people scattered about a 50,000 seat basemall? It will be like a Marlins game.

— Joe Sheehan (@joe_sheehan) September 30, 2020

renteria is definitely over-managing this game

wonder what the record is for walks issued while winning a playoff game

I'd say the Reds hitting performance in this years playoffs is another fluky record, going 22 innings without scoring a run.

Of course, I would figure that this years Reds team batting average being something stupid like .214 is probably part of the problem.

This is the year of the most fugly pro baseball I can ever remember. Unwatchable.

tatis is pretty good

TATIS

uh oh

MACHADO

That lovable scamp Will Myers!

That bat flip just beheaded the cutout of shirtless Ed Whitson.

that scamp, that wil myers

Sixto Sanchez, Unhittable 93mph Front Door Changeup. 😯 pic.twitter.com/DgkVKzHEh1

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 2, 2020

wild that that's a changeup and not a 2 seam

Chipper Jones is such a bore.

puts him ahead of Larry tho

i meant A-Rod

sorry, medicated

sixto threw 65 four-seam fastballs, averaging 98.3

statcast called that pitch to rizzo a 'sinker' so i think jimmy is correct

also when you throw 101 as a matter of course everything is a changeup

kintzler getting some help from will little

cubs managed one run on nine hits in the two games. ian happ had four of them. rizzo and bryant went 0-for-16

Yeah Baez, Rizzo and Bryant were atrocious all year long.

Go Pads! (sorry Karl love u)

i truly understand

who are you going to root for, boring young tatis, or the emotional rollercoaster that is paul goldschmidt??

plus, last time the padres were in the playoffs (2006), i think they were eliminated by the cardinals team on their way to their current "greatest WS team ever, as measured by pure talent" status

there was also that game 163 in 2007 where (future cardinal stalwart) matt holliday never touched home plate

i love you too KM. Hope the Cards get smoked.

Is this a Pads bullpen game?

yep

i am ready for a ~signature dylan carlson rookie moment~

why isn't polyphonic in here challenging you to fite

san diegans are mellow

<3

so seven Central teams made the playoffs and they collectively won two games before dying

this helps trump, doesn't it rip real america