NLDS game thread

[54thMA]

I am happy for Kershaw. And fuck the Mets.1986. Never forget.

This.
 
Plus they brought that stupid fucking apple to the new stadium.
 
They'd better win or Will from Queens will have a meltdown, him crying on the air the other day was delicious.
 
"Mike, my sister CAULD me and told me about it"..............Good God that fucking accent; say what you want about the Boston accent, the New York accent is like fingernails down a blackboard.

 

[InsideTheParker]

This.
 
Plus they brought that stupid fucking apple to the new stadium.
 
They'd better win or Will from Queens will have a meltdown, him crying on the air the other day was delicious.
 
"Mike, my sister CAULD me and told me about it"..............Good God that fucking accent; say what you want about the Boston accent, the New York accent is like fingernails down a blackboard.

Believe me when I tell you that they are both terrible and incredible to normal people. 
 
Red Sox fans who root for the Dodgers should never ever again rag on the Yankees for "buying" teams. The LA pay-roll is ridiculous. There needs to be a salary cap in baseball.

 

[hbk72777]

Believe me when I tell you that they are both terrible and incredible to normal people. 
 

 
You'd think that, but moving from Long Island to NC, people love my accent.
 
And I'm someone who's accent is so thick that my parents make fun of it.
 
My nephew is the real kicker. He listens to us at home, and then goes to school and gets the southern treatment. I think he invented a new dialect

 

[foulkehampshire]

Red Sox fans who root for the Dodgers should never ever again rag on the Yankees for "buying" teams. The LA pay-roll is ridiculous. There needs to be a salary cap in baseball.

 
The Sox have the 3rd highest payroll in MLB. It's a little hypocritical to be complaining monetary advantages at this point, no? The Sox are absolutely in the same boat as NYY and LAD.

 

[rembrat]

Sure but the Dodgers have about $93MM more in payroll than the Sox do so we aren't exactly on their heels. There are 7 teams that opened the season under $93MM.

 

[singaporesoxfan]

Believe me when I tell you that they are both terrible and incredible to normal people. 
 
Red Sox fans who root for the Dodgers should never ever again rag on the Yankees for "buying" teams. The LA pay-roll is ridiculous. There needs to be a salary cap in baseball.

 
What would a salary cap achieve besides putting more money in owners' pockets? The current system doesn't seem to be an issue in terms of turning low-payroll teams into contenders, and certainly MLB doesn't seem to have significantly less parity than the NFL or the NBA. Here's the rank of the 10 playoff teams in terms of opening-day salary:
 
Dodgers (1st)
Yankees (2nd)
Rangers (8th)
Blue Jays (10th)
Cardinals (11th)
Cubs (13th)
Royals (16th)
Mets (21st)
Pirates (25th)
Astros (29th)

 

[Buzzkill Pauley]

 
What would a salary cap achieve besides putting more money in owners' pockets? The current system doesn't seem to be an issue in terms of turning low-payroll teams into contenders, and certainly MLB doesn't seem to have significantly less parity than the NFL or the NBA. Here's the rank of the 10 playoff teams in terms of opening-day salary:
 
# 6 Dodgers (1st)
# 9 Yankees (2nd)
 
# 8 Rangers (8th)
# 5 Blue Jays (10th)
# 1 Cardinals (11th)
# 3 Cubs (13th)
# 4 Royals (16th)
# 7Mets (21st)
 
# 2 Pirates (25th)
#10 Astros (29th)

 
Edited with their overall rank in the MLB standings. Six of the top ten teams' payrolls cluster within the MLB mid-range for payroll, with two outliers each above and below.
 
Parity really has been achieved pretty well, at least this year.
 

 

[E5 Yaz]

"Catching Hell" is available on the ESPN.com home page at the moment, in the center carousel. 

 

[jon abbey]

So many great pre-FA players playing for relative peanuts and so many big money duds on the downside of their careers, it really seems like the next CBA will need to incorporate some massive changes.

 

[InsideTheParker]

 
The Sox have the 3rd highest payroll in MLB. It's a little hypocritical to be complaining monetary advantages at this point, no? The Sox are absolutely in the same boat as NYY and LAD.

I don't like this approach by the Red Sox, and it doesn't seem to be paying off. HR and the Fatman are recent failures of big contracts, and the reasonable contracts to Napoli, Victorino and others got us a WS. I am afraid I am an admirer of the #11/#1 Cardinals with their 50% home-grown line-up. Anyway, all of you above are making good points.

 

[54thMA]

"Catching Hell" is available on the ESPN.com home page at the moment, in the center carousel. 

Anyone who hasn't seen this owes it to themselves to do so; afterward, if you still think Cubs fans are cute and cuddly lovable losers, then you need to watch the program again.

 

[Al Zarilla]

Went to ESPN.com and saw mentioned there and on hittracker that Schwarber's bomb was estimated at 438 ft. More like it than whoever was quoted on the telecast and had 419 or something. I think it came off the bat at  a > 45º angle, so that hurt the distance a bit. Still, the fact that Schwarber had to pull his arms in to barrel up the inside pitch, and he still hit it that far, tells me this guy should rival Cespedes and anyone else for gargantuan home runs. 

 

[phrenile]

Went to ESPN.com and saw mentioned there and on hittracker that Schwarber's bomb was estimated at 438 ft. More like it than whoever was quoted on the telecast and had 419 or something. I think it came off the bat at  a > 45º angle, so that hurt the distance a bit. Still, the fact that Schwarber had to pull his arms in to barrel up the inside pitch, and he still hit it that far, tells me this guy should rival Cespedes and anyone else for gargantuan home runs.

But thanks to that height, he hit it onto the scoreboard. The cubs are leaving it up there for at least the rest of their postseason, under a plexiglass case they're installing this afternoon.

 

[54thMA]

But thanks to that height, he hit it onto the scoreboard. The cubs are leaving it up there for at least the rest of their postseason, under a plexiglass case they're installing this afternoon.

Great; can't wait to see it on the broadcast of NLCS game three in Chicago 4,678 times.

 

[rembrat]

I don't like this approach by the Red Sox, and it doesn't seem to be paying off. HR and the Fatman are recent failures of big contracts, and the reasonable contracts to Napoli, Victorino and others got us a WS. I am afraid I am an admirer of the #11/#1 Cardinals with their 50% home-grown line-up. Anyway, all of you above are making good points.

 
Can you please stop doing this? His name is Pablo Sandoval not Fatman, not fattie, not fatso.

 

[E5 Yaz]

 
Can you please stop doing this? His name is Pablo Sandoval not Fatman, not fattie, not fatso.

 
Thank you

 

[Blundatola]

Anyone who hasn't seen this owes it to themselves to do so; afterward, if you still think Cubs fans are cute and cuddly lovable losers, then you need to watch the program again.

 
Get over it already. Yes, a minority of Cubs fans were total jerks and made Steve Bartman's life a living hell for a while. It's terrible that it happened and we as fans are collectively embarrassed by it. Most of us, though, realize the loss had nothing to do with Bartman and recognized we probably would've reached for the ball, too. The actions of some assholes (who would've been assholes no matter who they rooted for) do not mean we don't deserve to win. I wish Red Sox fans of all people could see this.

 

[derekson]

Anyone who hasn't seen this owes it to themselves to do so; afterward, if you still think Cubs fans are cute and cuddly lovable losers, then you need to watch the program again.

 
This is pretty funny to see on a Red Sox forum, considering how Buckner was treated prior to 2004. If you think Bartman would've been treated any differently if that had happened at Fenway you're kidding yourself.

 

[E5 Yaz]

 
Get over it already. Yes, a minority of Cubs fans were total jerks and made Steve Bartman's life a living hell for a while. It's terrible that it happened and we as fans are collectively embarrassed by it. Most of us, though, realize the loss had nothing to do with Bartman and recognized we probably would've reached for the ball, too. The actions of some assholes (who would've been assholes no matter who they rooted for) do not mean we don't deserve to win. I wish Red Sox fans of all people could see this.

 
Agreed, to disparage all things Cubs for the treatment Bartman received goes too far. If that's the soapbox Sox fans want to stand on, then how do you feel about Sox ownership trashing Francona on his way out the door, not to mention team executives being the last in MLB to field an integrated team and refuse to sign Willie Mays?
 
What happened to Bartman in that aftermath, and to today probably, serves as a cautionary tale to how fan bases should react ... but there isn't a team out there without some ugly incident among its fans , players or management

 

[Remagellan]

Sox fans who gave Buckner a hard time were idiots.  THE GAME WAS ALREADY TIED AT THAT POINT!  
 
But what Bartman went through went beyond whatever grief Buckner got from Sox fans.  There were people, highly drunken people, in Wrigley that night who would have beaten him to death if given the chance.  

 

[Average Reds]

 
This is pretty funny to see on a Red Sox forum, considering how Buckner was treated prior to 2004. If you think Bartman would've been treated any differently if that had happened at Fenway you're kidding yourself.

 
Hasn't it been well established that this is something of a myth?

 

[InsideTheParker]

 
Can you please stop doing this? His name is Pablo Sandoval not Fatman, not fattie, not fatso.

I will stop because you asked me to, but in my opinion he can't play with all that weight, and if he is still carrying it next year,  people will be calling him much worse words. It looks as though he signed with Boston because he didn't want to comply with SF's dietary and exercise requirements.

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

 
Agreed, to disparage all things Cubs for the treatment Bartman received goes too far. If that's the soapbox Sox fans want to stand on, then how do you feel about Sox ownership trashing Francona on his way out the door, not to mention team executives being the last in MLB to field an integrated team and refuse to sign Willie Mays?
 
What happened to Bartman in that aftermath, and to today probably, serves as a cautionary tale to how fan bases should react ... but there isn't a team out there without some ugly incident among its fans , players or management

I guess I just don't see the parallel.  Francona is in the business and in the spotlight.  Bartman is just some loyal Cubs fan, lucky enough to go to a playoff game, who acted on instinct, just as others in his section did.
 
And while there are plenty of ugly incidents to go around, do we know any of the other victims' names?  I know of two fans--Jeffrey Maier, who became a hero, and Bartman, who was vilified.  I'm just not sure there is any comparison to him and what happened to him.
 
I have plenty of other reasons to root against the Cubs, but my personal opinion is that this a fine reason on its own.

 

[54thMA]

 
Get over it already. Yes, a minority of Cubs fans were total jerks and made Steve Bartman's life a living hell for a while. It's terrible that it happened and we as fans are collectively embarrassed by it. Most of us, though, realize the loss had nothing to do with Bartman and recognized we probably would've reached for the ball, too. The actions of some assholes (who would've been assholes no matter who they rooted for) do not mean we don't deserve to win. I wish Red Sox fans of all people could see this.

You get over it; a minority?  You're shitting me, right?  You mean the ones who were throwing beers at him, swearing at him and would have torn him to shreds if they got their hands on him?
 
They had to disguise the poor bastard and smuggle him out of the stadium like a hostage, then he had the police watching his house like they would have in one of those cheese ball Halloween movies in case Michael Meyers stopped by.
 
Give it a rest.

 

[Blundatola]

Do you even know what minority means? Also, me give it a rest? I'm not the one rehashing a terrible thing that happened 12 years ago to justify why an entire fan base doesn't deserve to ever be happy. Some of you make me regret how much I pulled for the Red Sox in 2003 (boo) and 2004 (yay). Then again, I understand you are a minority.

 

[54thMA]

 
This is pretty funny to see on a Red Sox forum, considering how Buckner was treated prior to 2004. If you think Bartman would've been treated any differently if that had happened at Fenway you're kidding yourself.

 
Yeah, I was waiting for someone to draw the Buckner comparison, should have ended my post with "And the comparison to Buckner comes in 3, 2, 1,......................"
 
Buckner to Bartman is apples to hand grenades, comparing an error a player made on the field to a fan reaching for a foul ball that the player who claims would have caught the ball would have been better served using a trash can lid instead of a glove out in left.
 
 
By the time it got to that error, the train had come off the rails.  Even if he fields that ball cleanly, Wilson beats Stanley to the bag and he's still going to be safe.  Buckner is way down the list of goats that night; he's part of the problem, but not the sole reason why they lost that game.
 
In my eyes, it was never on Buckner that they lost that game, any fan with an IQ two above plant life can see it.
 

 

[derekson]

 
Yeah, I was waiting for someone to draw the Buckner comparison, should have ended my post with "And the comparison to Buckner comes in 3, 2, 1,......................"
 
Buckner to Bartman is apples to hand grenades, comparing an error a player made on the field to a fan reaching for a foul ball that the player who claims would have caught the ball would have been better served using a trash can lid instead of a glove out in left.
 
 
By the time it got to that error, the train had come off the rails.  Even if he fields that ball cleanly, Wilson beats Stanley to the bag and he's still going to be safe.  Buckner is way down the list of goats that night; he's part of the problem, but not the sole reason why they lost that game.
 
In my eyes, it was never on Buckner that they lost that game, any fan with an IQ two above plant life can see it.
 

 
And intelligent Cubs' fans know that the loss in the "Bartman game" was due to Alex Gonzalez booting a double play ball on an ensuing play that really unraveled the inning instead of ending it. But it's the loudmouthed idiots that drive the media impression of fan reaction.

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

 
And intelligent Cubs' fans know that the loss in the "Bartman game" was due to Alex Gonzalez booting a double play ball on an ensuing play that really unraveled the inning instead of ending it. But it's the loudmouthed idiots that drive the media impression of fan reaction.

I'm amazed at how many Cubs' fans I've talked to over the years that don't remember the Gonzalez error.  Or at least don't acknowledge it.

 

[Al Zarilla]

Sox fans who gave Buckner a hard time were idiots.  THE GAME WAS ALREADY TIED AT THAT POINT!  
 
 

I wish I had a sawbuck for every time I've pointed that out to someone. If it weren't for that being the signature play that's always shown about the '86 series, the Stanley wild pitch would be my most vivid recollection. BTW, BBREF calls it a wild pitch, not a passed ball by Gedman. I don't know. 

 

[hbk72777]

I'm amazed at how many Cubs' fans I've talked to over the years that don't remember the Gonzalez error.  Or at least don't acknowledge it.

 
 
There were 2 Alex Gonzalez', so if anyone brings it up,  he probably just blames the other one anyway 

 

[OnWisc]

I'm amazed at how many Cubs' fans I've talked to over the years that don't remember the Gonzalez error.  Or at least don't acknowledge it.

I'm guessing you're amazed because it's far fewer than you'd expect given your low opinion of Cubs fans? Because in my experience it's pretty much common knowledge.

I certainly can't prove anything, but anyone who believes that a parallel occurrence at Fenway at that point in time wouldn't have elicited a pretty identical response is, in all likelihood, fooling themselves.

 

[soxhop411]

something to keep you entertained until the game
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSvrIZKI8mk

 

[rembrat]

Can he bat righty?

 

[Darnell's Son]

Here's our preview for tonight's game.

 

[Sprowl]

Greinke and deGrom -- gotta love those Germanic names. Greinke sounds low German, and deGrom must be nearly inundated Dutch.

 

[Lars The Wanderer]

Beat the stupid fookin' Dodgers.

 

[E5 Yaz]

1. Curtis Granderson (L) RF
2. David Wright (R) 3B
3. Daniel Murphy (L) 2B
4. Yoenis Cespedes (R) CF
5. Lucas Duda (L) 1B <- about time for him to show up
6. Travis d'Arnaud (R) C
7. Michael Conforto (L) LF
8. Wilmer Flores (R) SS
9. Jacob deGrom (L) P
 

1. Howie Kendrick (R) 2B
2. Corey Seager (L) SS
3. Adrian Gonzalez (L) 1B
4. Justin Turner (R) 3B
5. Andre Ethier (L) RF
6. Yasmani Grandal (S) C
7. Enrique Hernandez (R) LF
8. Joc Pederson (L) CF
9. Zack Greinke (R) P

 

[Al Zarilla]

Still remember 1986. Go Bums.

 

[thehitcat]

Still remember 1986. Go Bums.

. I agree anyone rooting for the Mets is either young or amnesiac. Go Dodgers!

 

[rembrat]

These aren't the Mets that hurt you, friend.
 
LETS GO METS!

 

[E5 Yaz]

Rooting against the laundry for a one-year aberration is ridiculous.
 
Go Mets!

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

I loved going to Ebbets Field as a kid to watch the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Of course, Ebbets Field was apartments and the Dodgers were in LA, but I had a lively imagination.

Go Dodgers!

 

[Dahabenzapple2]

Let's Go Mets!!

Fuck Dodger Blue and all that shit

Fuck Tommy Lasorda while we are at it

 

[valentinscycle]

Beat L.A.!

 

[PayrodsFirstClutchHit]

These aren't the Mets that hurt you, friend.
 
LETS GO METS!

 
We're not your friend, buddy!
 
Still not over 86!  Go Blue! 

 

[E5 Yaz]

World Series titles since 1987
 
Red Sox 3
Dodgers 1
Mets 0

 

[Sprowl]

Turner pulls an impressive Pedroia.

 

[rembrat]

METS METS METS

 

[Sprowl]

Joc's no Jackie.

 

[ifmanis5]

Mary Hart looks sad.