In World Series Thread - 2024

[MFS62]

I've temporally suspended calling him Freddie F'n Freeman.
The sportscaster on WABC-NY this morning mentioned how he has hit the Mets in the past and then led into last night's grand slam.
Later

[batmagadanleadoff]

This series is uninteresting because there’s no juice to the matchup. No underdogs, no surprises, no teams that have engineered a turnaround.
This is an uncompelling and uninteresting series regardless of how one feels about the teams.

Gotta say, this is the first time I've heard the argument that having the top teams and several of the games top stars in the WS makes it a less interesting matchup.
Also didn't know that this one was unique in using the universal DH.
Personally I prefer seeing two first place teams playing for the championship over last year's AL's 4th best vs NL's 6th

It's crazy talk. Maybe he wants a playoff system where the very best teams aren't even eligible. Also, the Lakers/Celtics Magic/Bird rivalry probably ruined the NBA. /sarcasm

[Lefty Specialist]

I want the Dodgers to beat the Yankees in 5 games or less, just so I can say to my Yankee friends, "At least we took them to 6".

[Frayed Knot]

I don't think I would have called for the IW to Betts, but it's a defendable call in a situation where you're gong to be pitching to an MVP-level player either way.
Pro: left on left (and those super-selective stats above aren't relevant); MUCH slower runner, force at any base, tying and winning runs already in scoring position
Con: Cortes hadn't pitched in a while (so maybe using him AT ALL is your issue, not the IW); now a BB ties the game/less room for error
The cool part was that Cortes threw just two pitches to three hitters: Ohtani popped out on his 1st pitch, the no-pitch IW to Mookie, 1st pitch GS by FF
so we didn't have to wait long for the judgement.

Yanqui fans are just pissed that when Cleveland IW'd Soto to load the bases w/one out and face Judge in the previous round they merely got a Sac Fly out of it.


As far as the other topic, I guess I'm going to have to research the difference between those top teams who are interesting vs those who are 'Meh' because the distinction isn't clear to me.
What is clear to me is that these are two of the best teams all season with some of the top stars/MVPs in the game and it's a matchup in which I have a very passionate rooting interest. So I'm going to be watching until there's no more baseball to watch. Oh, and Game 1 was a terrific watch (even if not always a great listen).

[Frayed Knot]

I want the Dodgers to beat the Yankees in 5 games or less, just so I can say to my Yankee friends, "At least we took them to 6".

As always, my hope is that the Yanx lose in three, meaning they get so humiliated going down 3-0 that they simply never show for game 4

[kcmets]

I want the Dodgers to beat the Yankees in 5 games or less, just so I can say to my Yankee friends, "At least we took them to 6".

I like this.

I went to sleep assuming the Yankees won. I watched the Knicks
home opener and at some point the Garden faithful went into their
"Let's go Yankees" rah rah mode and I assumed they put the score
up and didn't bother to follow up/check. I watched a bunch of the
post game and went to bed. Didn't know about the heroic ending
until early this morning. Francisco Lindor was on celebrity cam.

Dodgers in four.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Also, the Yankees have no chance to win because the Dodgers have Max Muncy and Max Muncy is the best baseball player in the whole wide world who ever lived. Muncy got a lot of hits against the Mets in the playoffs ......... oooh! ............ the playoffs. And it's so much harder to get hits in ... oooooh! ... the playoffs. You have to be the best player in the world to get a hit in the playoffs. Because I'm with the Vipers! And in the playoffs, the stakes are higher. So the game is different. The pitchers turn on their magic play-better buttons because they're in the playoffs and suddenly, their fastballs come in at 120 MPH. And the fielders are as fast as the flash. No -- I mean as fast as The Flash. Because it's the playoffs. Ans so you have to be a really great hitter to get hits in the playoffs with the fast fastballs and the Flash fielders. Not like in the middle of May. The middle of May is not the playoffs. So the players play sucky and shitty. Muncy is the greatest. The Mets had no chance against the Dodgers. If the Mets and Dodgers played 100 games, there would never be a seven game sequence in those 100 game where the Mets won more games than the Dodgers. Max Muncy would not let that happen because he is the greatest baseball player ever. You can tell because of his NLCS four game hitting streak. A four game hitting streak in the playoffs is like hitting in 200 straight games in the regular season. I bet Max Muncy renegotiates his contract in the off-season and gets paid like a billion dollars a year. It's the playoffs.

Also, the Dodgers are just better than the Mets. What that means is that if the Dodgers and the Mets played each other 500 times, the Dodgers would win all 500 games. So what chance did the Mets have in ooh the playoffs? If they can't beat the Dodgers once in 500 games, how are they supposed to take a seven game series from the Dodgers? They can't. I'm with the Vipers.

[Frayed Knot]

Game 2: Carlos Rodon (L) vs Yoshinobu Yamamoto (R)
Same First At-Bat Time, Same First At-Bat Channel

[Frayed Knot]

Y'know, if Aaron Judge keeps this up he's never going to become a 'True Yanqui'
1-1 middle of 3rd on solo HRs by Tommy Edman and Juan Soto

[MFS62]

What ever happened to the pride of the (MF)Y pinstripes?
The manager and coaches wearing black sweatshirts that say "World Series 2024" is really tacky.
Are they ashamed of their uniform?
Or do they want to hide their name out of embarrassment? (I just started watching and don't know if L.A. is doing the same. Either way, it sucks.)
Later

[Frayed Knot]

Yamamoto can be chore to watch. He goes to deep counts a lot (3-2 on each of the first three hitters of the game [BB, GO, K])
and sometimes seems almost incapable of getting quick outs. iow, he'd have fit right in with our staff this year.
On the other hand, the solo HR to Soto in the 3rd is the only hit the Yanx have thru five.

[Frayed Knot]

And now they pull him after 6-1/3

[metirish]

Ohtani looks hurt after trying to steal second , fuck

[Frayed Knot]

This doesn't look good for the home team.

[metirish]

Booth is reporting that Japanese TV is saying Ohtani said he pooped his shoulder out , Smoltz then added he popped his 13 times one season 😆

[Frayed Knot]

It is his left shoulder so it won't be another blow to his pitching career.
The big question at the moment remains the remainder of this series.

[Frayed Knot]

Top 9, 4-1 LAD
Soto singles (off the wall) to open the inning, Judge K's, Stanton singles (off 3B bag)
Soto scores, tying run at plate.

I'm afraid that at some point this week, Blake Treinen is going to wake up and remember that he's Blake Treinen.
Jazz Chisholm batting.

[Frayed Knot]

Chisholm singles
1st & 2nd, one out, Rizzo at the plate

[Frayed Knot]

HBP, bases loaded
Volpe up, tying run at 2nd (Chisholm)

[Frayed Knot]

strike, ball, ball, foul, foul, K!!!

[Frayed Knot]

The booth is referring to Volpe as 'Jeter's replacement'.
Yeah, there were only nine years between Jeter's final season and Volpe's first.

Dave Roberts going to lefty Alex Vesia for the final out.
Alex Trevino PH's for Austin Wells ... and FO to CF on the first pitch!!!!

[Lefty Specialist]

Halfway there, Dodgers.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Booth is reporting that Japanese TV is saying Ohtani said he pooped his shoulder out

I didn't know that was anatomically possible. It certainly does sound painful though.

[metirish]

Haha , yes it does sound worse than popped

[MFS62]

MFY luck. I was looking forward to seeing Ohtani pepper the short porch in that bandbox.
Later