On Baseball

Last night's NLCS Game 7 between the Mets and the Cardinals was the best I've watched in a while. I don't get to watch many baseball games, but the point is, this one was excellent. Good pitching, good defense, high stakes (obviously), clutch performances, etc. The first thing to comment on is Endy Chavez's catch. Check it out at mlb.com. In a game tied 1-1, with his team performing horribly on the offensive end, he saves a two-run homer by jumping a good few feet from the fence, and catching the ball that was well over the wall--his elbow was above the top of the wall when he caught it. And this was a snow-cone. Then they double up the runner on first. He turns a potentially crushing two-run deficit into an inning-ending double play. The problem is, the Mets ended up losing anyway. If the Mets were to win, this play would go down as one of the best ever, given the circumstances. As is, people will be talking about it for days, maybe weeks, but not years.

Next up is that curve ball by Cardinal 9th inning pitcher Adam Wainwright. That thing was nasty. I don't even blame Cliff Floyd and Carlos Beltran for striking out looking.

Thirdly, if you are a Met fan, you have to regard this season as a failure. Since the beginning of the season the Mets were supposedly the only good team in the National League. It was gonna be them vs. the AL rep in the World Series. What they forgot was this: teams tend to pick it up in the Playoffs. Not that the Mets didn't necessarily. But they were not challenged at all in the regular season. So to face a challenge in the Playoffs--they just weren't ready for it. Their bats faltered. Good pitching will beat good hitting in the playoffs, almost always. You saw it with the Tigers beating the Yankees. You could point the finger to injuries on the Met pitching staff; they were without their #1 and #3 starters. But pitching was not the problem. The replacement starting pitching did pretty well, especially in the crucial 6th and 7th games. It was the bats that were shut down.

And finally, here's why you have to love baseball: At the beginning of the regular season, how many people predicted Cardinals vs. Tigers in the World Series? Probably about 7. At the end of the regular season, how many people predicted Cardinals vs. Tigers in the World Series? Probably like 3. Out of all eight teams going into the playoffs, these were the two worst in the home stretch of the season. The Mets and Yankees clearly had the most talent. But to win a championship, you talent and you have to perform. The Tigers and Cards did that better than the other teams, and it's those teams I will be watching while drinking on Saturday night. Cheers.