Hope this isn’t the first signs of a complacent team. That was one of my bigger fears entering the season. Staying hungry.
We won the World Series in 2017. If we weren’t complacent last year, and we weren’t, I’m not sure why you’d think that. Also everyone get ready, but 1-3 over a 4 game stretch is going to happen again.
I was 7 then, so, no. But having only 2 playoff teams per league is pretty wild. Still, I don’t see how adding to (or at the very least, editing the layout of) the playoffs is a bad thing. Give the top two teams per league byes, and make two 5 or 7 game series for the rest to move on.
Because I’ve witnessed a lot of dynasties in my life and have seen complacency do them in in the past and wouldn’t even say it’s unusual. Another factor is potential free agents that don’t get paid meshing with others that do. Now sometimes the individual that doesn’t get paid has a monster year before moving on, but at other times they sulk and become a cancer.
We’re not a dynasty yet. But either way, you should be well aware that a 4 game sample size is borderline meaningless.
Can someone explain why the M's are 5-1 ... the point of playing 2 early reg season games? My suggestion - don't watch baseball games in April - too frustrating with no meaning , season starts in May
MLB season tipped off between OAK-SEA in Japan while the end of Spring Training was still playing out. Very weird. But it lead to Ichiro getting a home game to close his career. I’m guessing that’s the only way they could do a series in Japan with the time change and all.
Never said it wasn’t. Just expressing concerns I had entering the season as a student of history. Will be interesting to see how the Springer’s and Correa’s and Cole’s react to Verlander and Bergman getting contract extensions while they did not. Difficult situation for any GM. I’ll say this though, Springer has played big in the playoffs two years in a row and I certainly wouldn’t want to see him walk.
The lengthy regular season is plenty enough to weed out the haves and have nots. Unlike other sports, the best team doesn’t always win in baseball... a game where you do need a healthy sample size for expected outcomes to hold true. Having more teams make the playoffs simply further cheapens the game. Truly successful teams are ones that can survive a grueling regular season AND playoffs.... not merely a borderline .500 team that got hot at the right time.
I think adding the 5th spot was too much, and I don't think the first round should be only 5 games. I don't even like the 6 division format because it leads to undeserving playoff teams basically every year. I would prefer the old 4 division format with 2 WC spots, even if it does lead to slight division imbalance. The regular season is the true test of baseball team quality. Once the teams have gotten through that they should eliminate randomness as best they can. It's the complete opposite of the NBA where the great teams merely tolerate the regular season.
I missed all of these games. Has the team still not remembered how to hit? Gonna be a long season if the bats haven't worked out their demons from last year. I hope it's just an opening series fluke, because I'm not going to watch them hang our starters out to dry again this year like they did so many times last year.
If we have another long season of hanging our pitchers out to dry and we win 103 games, chances are pretty good we will make the playoffs.
Correa could have a Bregman extension today if he wanted it. He’s not mad. Springer is probably the last person I’d worry about being a locker room problem.
Agreed. Baseball is a game in which depth and quality is not tested unless there is a reasonable sample size. The regular season format also deters borderline teams from just waiting for the trading deadline to load up.
