MLB to possibly expand playoffs in 2012
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Athletes, MLB, Playoffs,
The next chapter in the never-ending talk about baseball playoff expansion broke headlines on Tuesday. On the eve of the 106th World Series, MLB announced that they are seriously considering adding more wild card teams and making the divisional series’ a best-of-seven affair. These changes won’t take effect until the 2012 playoffs, but it’s interesting to hear that MLB and the Players’ Union are both open to the idea of making another significant change to baseball since the 1994 season.
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The Tampa Bay Rays have proved nothing
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Editorial, MLB,
Yesterday, the Tampa Bay Rays dropped their 11th straight game, one of the longest losing streaks for any team in 2009. These are the same Tampa Bay Rays whose bandwagon everybody jumped on after a successful run to the World Series last year. The Rays took those fans for a ride this year, and many thought that the team would be a force to be reckoned with; that their minuscule payroll would be able to match the Boston Red Sox or the New York Yankees. Boy, were those people wrong.
The Rays of ’09 are just another name in the bunch. Sure, the Rays aren’t going to lose 90 games this year like they had every season prior to 2008, but they’re certainly not the same team that they were a year ago. With neighbors like the Red Sox and Yankees in their division, 90 wins will never be good enough, and the Rays certainly aren’t going to win 90 games this year. If they continue at the pace they’ve had for the past month or so, they’ll be lucky to finish with a second .500 season.
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What’s Bothering Josh Beckett?
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: Athletes, Editorial, MLB,
Josh Beckett is the ace of the Boston Red Sox’ pitching staff. He is a former World Series MVP and American League All-Star; and this season had been posting numbers worth of Cy Young consideration. However, just a few weeks ago, all that began to change for the 29-year old right handed hurler.
Since August 12, Beckett has been the exact opposite of what he is expected to be. His ace pitcher status is definitely in question. Over his last five starts, he’s gone 1-1 in 31.1 innings, giving up 33 hits and 7 walks. What has been among the most un-Beckett-like is the fact that he has given up 26 earned runs over that stretch, but the most shocking number is the home runs he has given up. In those give games, he’s allowed 14 home runs. He’d only given up 10 home runs throughout the season prior to then.
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The So-Called Pennant Races
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: MLB, News, Playoffs,
September is here, and so the home stretch for the 2009 MLB season is upon us. The playoff races will take center stage in sports media, but for the first time in years, the races look as if they might be over before they really get started. Going into Wednesday night’s action, the closest pennant race was the American League Central, where the Detroit Tigers hold a 3.5 game lead over the Minnesota Twins, who, when it comes to playoff races, are a pathetic two games above .500. In the Central’s National League counterpart, the St. Louis Cardinals have already all-but-clinched the division as they hold a 10.5 game lead over the Chicago Cubs. It would take a colossal turn of events for the Cards to miss the playoffs in 2009.
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Pennant or Wild Card; It’s All the Same
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: MLB, Playoffs,
With the Colorado Rockies on a tear in the last two weeks, in direct contrast to the sloppy play from the Los Angeles Dodgers, it looks like we might have a pennant race on our hands over in the National League West. Going into their mid-week three game series against each other, the Dodgers held a three game lead over the Coloradans; and after Tuesday night, the gap shrunk thanks to Troy Tulowitzki’s 10th inning walk-off single.
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A Breath of Fresh Air for the AL Wild Card
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: MLB,
Thank goodness. It’s about time somebody from outside the American League East was holding the AL Wild Card spot. And with a 4-3 win, the Texas Rangers took two out of three from the Boston Red Sox, who went into this weekend with the elusive fourth playoff position, just ahead of Texas and the Tampa Bay Rays. Since 2003, only one team outside of the AL East has won the Wild Card slot, the 2006 Detroit Tigers. The Red Sox themselves have won four of the last six, while the Yankees won one in 2007.
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Can the Detroit Tigers Actually Hold On?
Posted by Adrien Griffin Categories: MLB,
To say the Detroit Tigers have been up and down in recent years is a massive understatement. Playing in the American League Central, they have had to compete in one of the most fluctuating divisions in baseball. The random seasons of events began for the Tigers in 2006. At 95-67, the best Detroit could do was win the Wild Card, one game behind the Minnesota Twins. They ended up going to the World Series, taking down the Yankees and Athletics in four games each, but they lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in five. 2007 was a downgrade for the club, as they only managed 88 wins and finished a distant second to Cleveland.
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