That's my thought. Plus they are facing them, they get to look them right in the eyes and enjoy the moment of being hated spoilers.
Do the Mariners even show up today to play the Rangers? I’m sure they love the fact a Mariner win could help Astros
Very rarely Verlander mentions another relief pitcher like he did with Neris, who is the MVP of the series. No teams will have to see the Mariners dance around the mound anymore. I think Mariners will rest some of the starters, I don't believe July Rodriguez will be playing which will show how serious if they want to win this game.
Professional athletes like to win even when there are no stakes. Outside of maybe J-Rod not liking Nerris there is also not a lot of personal animosity for players against individual teams, definitely not at the level of how fans are. You see plenty of time when players go and play for the “rival” of a the team they have been on. Both teams will probably play a little more conservatively regarding injury risk or resting players, but for the guys playing they will want to win.
I know you think he’s been great for 2 or 3 weeks. His overall season numbers are terrible, especially with the role he’s been given. For most of the season he was one of the the worst rated everyday position players in the league, along with Maldy. He is probably still rated pretty low. Look at his OPS. You will want to point to RBI’s only again but he should have more of those too. I’m all for the turnaround but he has been a problem this year. He admits this himself. Is his OPS even at .700 yet? 19 million for a sub .700 OPS at 1B? Hopefully he puts up real numbers in the playoffs.
Julio not playing might be a good thing for Houston. He came up short in big moments against Houston and even yesterday, think he came up with the bases loaded and 1 out when it was 4-0 and couldn't drive in a run. Off topic, Texas was celebrating last night. How funny would it be if they thought they won the division and today they realized it was not for the division but just the playoffs. And they come to the game hungover and tired.
So, if we win we have a 75% chance of either getting the #5 seed or winning the division. At this point I'll take anything.... the #6 seed doesn't look so bad considering who we play if the Rangers win today.
Julio not playing might be a good thing for Houston. He came up short in big moments against Houston and even yesterday, think he came up with the bases loaded and 1 out when it was 4-0 and couldn't drive in a run. Off topic, Texas was celebrating last night. How funny would it be if they thought they won the division and today they realized it was not for the division but just the playoffs. Then they come to the ballpark hungover and tired.
I assume you are talking about Abreu. Yes/ he was complete and utter trash for the first 2 months. He’s pretty clearly been hurt. He got the needle, got back and he’s been just fine. Flush the first 2 months. He’s an above average offensive player now headed into the playoffs. It’s fine.
