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Post by jmei on Oct 2, 2013 19:17:09 GMT -5
There's nothing like playoff baseball crowds, and this one in Cleveland looks pretty awesome.
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Post by beasleyrockah on Oct 2, 2013 19:19:34 GMT -5
What are you guys gonna say if the Rays beat the Red Sox? " If only Cleveland would have beaten the Rays, the Red Sox would have totally beaten them" No. I think Tampa is especially well built for a short series. Cleveland is good enough to be here, and Jimenez seems to be peaking right now, but I think the Sox would prefer that match up since there is not Cobb, Moore and Archer waiting behind Jimenez but Kazmir, Klubler and Salazer. That's a proposition I think the Sox would prefer (and so would I). ADDED: I never bought into the idea that "We so totally beat so-and-so." I am a firm believer that anyone in the playoffs can win in a short series, and that the playoffs are basically a crap shoot. No worries though, Norbit. I never take anything out here personally. Cheers and go Sox. I don't know how much separation there is between Cobb and Archer vs. Kluber and Salazar. Kluber and Salazar (shorter sample but way more dominant) were just as good if not better over the course of this season. Given one start each I wouldn't be surprised to see Kluber and Salazar outpitch Cobb and Archer, I just don't see any track record that suggests those guys are significantly better options. All four are quality pitchers but none of those guys are aces or on their own tier, they are fairly similar...yet the Rays are getting pre-2004 Yankee fear from certain posters while the Indians are being talked about like a default first round bye.
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Post by brianthetaoist on Oct 2, 2013 19:30:14 GMT -5
I just hope the Indians put up a decent showing against the incredible Team That Must Not Be Named, the Mightiest, Scariest Team in Baseball History.
Meanwhile, did Pedro really say what I think he said? "I gotta go with Cleveland because I feel sorry for what I did to them in 1999." HAHAHA!
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Post by jmei on Oct 2, 2013 19:31:30 GMT -5
Does anyone else think that it's sad that TBS is promoting Bleacher Report content? Or has BR improved from the cesspool of awfulness that it was the last time I seriously browsed it?
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Post by thelavarnwayguy on Oct 2, 2013 19:32:52 GMT -5
I think Cleveland actually is likely to win this game. Salazar's numbers are solid and a lot of time hitting against a rookie pitcher you've never seen can be a huge problem. I also think Cobb may not keep getting those low strike calls forever. The guy rolls it over the plate and it's called a strike.
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Post by jmei on Oct 2, 2013 19:41:54 GMT -5
Delmon Young, decider of playoff games.
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Post by beasleyrockah on Oct 2, 2013 19:44:58 GMT -5
Delmon Young, decider of playoff games. That's baseball. I'm not sure whether I love or hate it.
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Post by fenwaythehardway on Oct 2, 2013 19:52:56 GMT -5
Does anyone else think that it's sad that TBS is promoting Bleacher Report content? Or has BR improved from the cesspool of awfulness that it was the last time I seriously browsed it? I got curious and headed over there. Tried to read their year end Top 100 prospects list, and it basically broke Chrome. After 30 seconds of loading something, some kind of annoying popup appeared and I gave up on the whole exercise. I can't even imagine what kind of Javascript devilry was going on in the background to slow things down so much. This is all on my fancy expensive nerd computer, mind you. How anyone can even stand the site on a technical level is beyond me. So yeah, as far as cesspools go, I couldn't stand this one long enough to even load any content. That seems bad to me.
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Post by fenwaythehardway on Oct 2, 2013 20:20:44 GMT -5
Rays up 3-0.
I hate Cobb's stupid delivery. It's stupid.
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Post by jmei on Oct 2, 2013 20:34:06 GMT -5
Well, ****.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Oct 2, 2013 20:36:13 GMT -5
No. I think Tampa is especially well built for a short series. Cleveland is good enough to be here, and Jimenez seems to be peaking right now, but I think the Sox would prefer that match up since there is not Cobb, Moore and Archer waiting behind Jimenez but Kazmir, Klubler and Salazer. That's a proposition I think the Sox would prefer (and so would I). ADDED: I never bought into the idea that "We so totally beat so-and-so." I am a firm believer that anyone in the playoffs can win in a short series, and that the playoffs are basically a crap shoot. No worries though, Norbit. I never take anything out here personally. Cheers and go Sox. I don't know how much separation there is between Cobb and Archer vs. Kluber and Salazar. Kluber and Salazar (shorter sample but way more dominant) were just as good if not better over the course of this season. Given one start each I wouldn't be surprised to see Kluber and Salazar outpitch Cobb and Archer, I just don't see any track record that suggests those guys are significantly better options. All four are quality pitchers but none of those guys are aces or on their own tier, they are fairly similar...yet the Rays are getting pre-2004 Yankee fear from certain posters while the Indians are being talked about like a default first round bye. The fear comes from the fact that David Price kills the Red Sox and is available for Game 2 and 5. Matt Moore pitched the best game of the year against the Sox. Absolutely shut them down. I'm hopeful that his recent control issues will hamper him for Game 1. I look at Game 1 as a must win because I don't expect the Sox to beat Price in Game 2. Lackey is not going to match zeroes with him. Cobb has pitched excellently as of late and I hope the extra rest works for Buchholz rather than deters him, but I'm hopeful for that game. I like the depth of Tampa's pen more than the Sox, although we have the big edge in closer as Rodney is a cardiac closer. I expect a bunch of low scoring tight tense games and given the Sox middle relief issues and how dominant Price, who is now healthy, can be I'm pretty concerned about the Sox' chances. Cleveland wouldn't be a cakewalk, and Kluber and McAllister have been tough on the Sox in the past - I was at Fenway for the Ellsbury walkoff game in May and Kluber was tough - but despite that these guys are not as good as what Tampa has to offer. Not even close. Tampa is the much tougher matchup for the Red Sox. What stinks for the Sox is the fact that Tampa is supposed to be punished for being a wild card team, stuck in a one game playoff and in their case having to play a tiebreaker just to get to that point, but with all the off days, they are able to have their pitching intact and use Price twice in five games. I would have hoped that they wouldn't have had that advantage.
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Post by fenwaythehardway on Oct 2, 2013 20:53:12 GMT -5
Did a Molina just try to steal second or am I having a stroke right now?
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wcp3
Veteran
Posts: 3,833
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Post by wcp3 on Oct 2, 2013 20:54:11 GMT -5
Has there been a better combination of talent, charisma, and cojones from any athlete in our lifetime? Ever? Maybe Jordan. Bird wasn't as charismatic. Eh. Maybe not to the media, but I'm not sure there's ever been a better smack talker in sports.
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Post by jmei on Oct 2, 2013 20:55:06 GMT -5
See, Maddon is usually a pretty good tactician, but then he does mindblowingly dumb stuff like have Jose Molina try to steal a base.
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Post by redsox04071318champs on Oct 2, 2013 21:09:20 GMT -5
Another major squander by the Indians. I knew Cleveland was going to lose this game. Cobb is there for the taking and the Indians aren't able to cash in. The Indians have had traffic all over the base paths. Top of the order up with 1st and 3rd and no outs and they can't score. Yeesh.
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ericmvan
Veteran
Supposed to be working on something more important
Posts: 8,941
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Post by ericmvan on Oct 2, 2013 21:17:48 GMT -5
So, at one point Cobb gives up four straight line drives and then a rocket ground ball single, and at another point he retires one batter out of six, giving up two doubles, two singles, and a walk. But three of the four line drives are hit at people, and the one out he records in his second awful stretch is a one-out, bases-loaded GDP. Has anyone ever pitched five shutout innings in a game this important while getting hit this hard?
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Post by pedroelgrande on Oct 2, 2013 21:21:26 GMT -5
ADDED: I never bought into the idea that "We so totally beat so-and-so." I am a firm believer that anyone in the playoffs can win in a short series, and that the playoffs are basically a crap shoot. No worries though, Norbit. I never take anything out here personally. Cheers and go Sox. We good, we good.
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Post by jmei on Oct 2, 2013 21:43:12 GMT -5
Seriously, the Indians have been hitting line drives off Cobb all night long.
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Post by pedroelgrande on Oct 2, 2013 21:49:19 GMT -5
Seriously, the Indians have been hitting line drives off Cobb all night long. They haven't been hitting in the clutch. Clutchness is a thing.
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ericmvan
Veteran
Supposed to be working on something more important
Posts: 8,941
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Post by ericmvan on Oct 2, 2013 21:50:48 GMT -5
When you hit 8 line drives to your opponent's 1 (and strike out 5 times to their 7), you generally don't expect to get outscored 2-0 on non-home runs.
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Post by pedroelgrande on Oct 2, 2013 21:54:49 GMT -5
And then you have Nick Swisher who stinks in the playoffs.
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Post by nhdave on Oct 2, 2013 21:55:24 GMT -5
I so don't want to play Tampa. I think we're better than they are this year... but generally, I think they can be a pain in the ass. did not like the "we own the east shirts" for the very reason that we could meet someone from the east in the playoffs... and even more annoyed that I'll be in tampa all weekend and flying back Monday.
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Post by Don Caballero on Oct 2, 2013 21:55:46 GMT -5
I really really really REALLY hope Cobb brings that godawful curve to the series against us.
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Post by grandsalami on Oct 2, 2013 21:56:22 GMT -5
Cle is crap.......not shocking though given they suck against teams above .500.... They are lucky they even made the playoffs
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Post by FenwayFanatic on Oct 2, 2013 22:01:46 GMT -5
Don't panic... Don't panic....
OK start panicking.
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