2012 World Series: Tigers vs. Giants

Verlander ought to win a Series sometime in his career; you never know, he might not get another chance. (Cabrera already has one.) On that basis, the Tigers. But I like the Giants a lot, so if they win, great.

No real animus against the Tigers or D-town, and as it's been 28 years I'd probably root for em if I didn't think they luckily snuck into the tourney. If Verlander shuts down the Jints twice I could see the Tigers winning in 5 or 6, but my guess is SF in 6. (Scutaro becomes slightly mortal, Posey MVP)

For what it's worth: as much as I love Back the USA, I don't think the 5 ever had a song as great as Hot Tuna's "Sea Child."

kinda cool that melky is most responsible for sf getting home field

I love SF the city, but I kinda want the Tigers to win this. No predictions as to how it will go, though.

Verlander reminds me of some other famous person and it's been bugging the hell out of me for a couple of weeks who it could be.

No real rooting interest. Feel like the fact that the Giants will have to beat Verlander at least once and win at least one game where Lincecum or Baumgardner starts might be a tough road, but Lee was basically Verlander two years ago and they managed that so.

Generally speaking I root for the team who hasn't won one in a while. Tigers in 5

kinda cool that melky is most responsible for sf getting home field

Don't forget Verlander.

wanted to challenge hitters and put on a show iirc

rooting for 'igers out of bitterness and giants just won the thing

xxp i guess panda too, forgot abt pablo

Verlander reminds me of some other famous person and it's been bugging the hell out of me for a couple of weeks who it could be.

Y'all help me out here, if it's an athlete I think it's either a football player, golfer or baseball player, but it might not be an athlete. This is driving me nuts!

Aaron Rodgers?

That's close, but I don't think that's the one I'm thinking of. For some reason golf or acting (not Jake G) is floating toward the front.

Luke Wilson?

maybe dustin johnson? both tall & have similar sideburns/facial hair often

same beard as Verlander, slightly adenoidal speaking voice... aargh!

No real animus against the Tigers or D-town

Could have fooled me.

http://mlb.sbnation.com/2012/10/23/3526460/tigers-giants-world-series

http://www.mercurynews.com/music/ci_21838661/batter-up-giants-tigers-walk-up-music

HERE YOU GO, MR. ZITO.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVSBgxiYbV4

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

ILB gets behind mediocrity!

What the fuck does that even mean.

watering down of the baseball season a la the other stinky sports

I try to look at a team's relative strength as more than a one-year snapshot (as you would a player). The Tigers were as bad as it gets in 2003, and followed with a couple of mediocre years, but they've been pretty good starting in '06: 95 wins twice, 88 twice, 86, 81-81, and one losing season. Two trips to the Series, almost a third. Their 88 wins this year were fewer than what most people expected. Not exactly a dynasty, but I wouldn't call them a mediocrity.

Or maybe just about anything looks good from Toronto.

also the first title for PelosiLand may have caused backlash in the 2010 midterm elections

ILB gets behind mediocrity!

― crazy uncle in the attic (Dr Morbius), Tuesday, October 23, 2012 8:04 PM (36 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I'm sure the nine of us would have gotten the same exact response for predicting/pulling for the Mets in '73.

yeah, I am aware of that seeming contradiction. Except it's the Mets, y'know.

and damn the A's back then, Reggie made them hateable just by himself.

Would love to see Mays and Kaline simultaneously throw out the first pitch for game 1, but I guess they stick to home parks for that sort of thing.

Thought Willie was all but blind now?

was not able to vote before the poll closed

the whole world is picking the Tigers

so i just found out that Zito is pitching game one. it's the right move, Lincecum is just having a lost season. he has no idea where the ball is going. that playoff game against the Cards almost blew up in the Giants face. he was not pitching well at all and got lucky that he only gave up those two runs in that second inning?

as far as game two starter Madison Bumgarner seems like the right call. the Tigers are only one game over .500 against lefties. so why not throw two of them in game one and two and at home and see what can happen. Madison Bumgarner however is having the worst slump in his major league career. very risky move. i personally would pitch Ryan Vogelsong on three days rest and have him ready for game 6. that way you have Matt Cain in three and seven.

The Giants have won Zito's past 13 starts dating to Aug. 7. if he actually wins against Verlander his $127 million contract will be almost all forgiven.

*almost*

Thought Willie (Mays) was all but blind now?

Today is the 40th anniversary of Jackie Robinson's death, and I remember him speaking and throwing out the first ball at the WS nine days earlier. He was essentially blind from diabetes.

http://www.biography.com/people/jackie-robinson-9460813/videos/jackie-robinson-last-words-2183107128

http://www.imdb.com/video/biography/vi1659569433/

Great clip, thanks. I talk about Robinson for 15-20 minutes twice a year--on his birthday and today. I show the kids one of the Ken Burns segments and a Biography Channel clip; I always mention the '72 Series, so it was great to be able to show them the actual clip this morning.

Steven Goldman looks over post-Cobb Tiger WS teams:

http://mlb.sbnation.com/2012/10/23/3543606/detroit-tigers-world-series-teams-history

http://mlb.sbnation.com/2012/10/24/3547406/detroit-tigers-world-series-teams-history-part-2

I forgot all about Rusty Kuntz.

He's the Royals' first base coach!

do I hear Barbaro Garbey?

Derek Carty in BP w/ anti-Bee OK wisdom:

I’m still not sure why the Tigers are starting Anibal Sanchez in Game Three—lining him up for a second start in Game Seven—and Max Scherzer in Game Four—limiting him to just a single start. Sanchez is a quality pitcher, but Scherzer is an ace; he’s just not widely recognized as one yet.

Perhaps more egregious, however, is Bruce Bochy’s decision to give Vogelsong two starts instead of Cain. While both will have had enough rest to start Game Three (and then would, in turn, have enough rest to pitch Game Seven), Bochy said, “(Vogelsong) is throwing the ball as well as anybody on the staff, so we just kept it in order. If Vogelsong gets (Game Seven), we have no problem with that. I know Matt has worked hard. He's got a lot of innings. I didn't think we needed to flip-flop the two, to be honest, the way Vogey is throwing.” Cain is not only the best pitcher on the Giants, but he is one of the best pitchers in all of baseball. With the Giants at a large pitching disadvantage to begin with, this move could prove fatal if the series goes seven games.

I think it's safe to say that Cain will be brought into Game 7 if Vogey struggles, though?

Bochy and ILB agree: Vogelsong best Giant's pitcher.

Here's to a great series!

Nice Giants quartet, but couldn't they have gotten Marichal up there too?

Zito's first time pitching in a World Series. Posey is the only(?) starter from the 2010 squad (is that right?)

Sandoval

Pretty sure Panda was benched in 2010 for the WS... could be wrong though.

I think that's the Gangnam Style guy sitting right behind home plate.

sandoval was benched, poseys the only one.

not sure who to root for in this one, both seem fairly likeable.

I'm sitting there thinking, "Verlander will breeze through this"--that felt like a bit of a shock.

was panda benched for Juan fuckin Uribe?

I think so.

Love the media fellating zito. Let's pretend the last 6 years never happened.

why the hell is Melky not playing, wtf

The giants don't tolerate steroid use

I bet MLB had some say in this too.

does verlander throw an 88mph change?

FREE MELKY

zito living the charmed life still

Gregor Blanco from the Bronx.

who is the asshole behind home plate wearing a new orange marlins jersey

steal 3rd Pagan #itstacotimebitches

do they make Cool Ranch doritos locos tacos?

scutaro owns

god damn what a fucking lucky RBI

Giant pixie dust unexpired

no foolin

DAMN

Are these all gonna be blowouts?

Holy cow. Need a Spahn/Sain couplet for Marco/Pablo.

that magic double by pagan the difference maker

its like All Star Game Verlander all over agan.

thx to ILXor missionary who gave me a new stream source btw

Pence looks like Woody Harrelson if he traded in cannabis for bennies

Who would have ever guessed that Young and Fielder would make out in a highly unusual double play? (It really was a great play by Posey.)

Sometimes you have to tip your cap to the third baseman.

I would have because the giants have made a deal with the dark lord Cthulu

@joe_sheehan
Oh, he should have run into the baseball. OK...

Assuming this is in response to McCarver saying that Delmon Young "REFUSED to run."

Maybe he was supposed to duck under the ball.

Barry answers AL vs NL thread

Might need to unplug (or just remain here) to avoid insufferable Tiger fans. Good lord.

Taco Grande

wtf

Just want to point out that Delmon Young's throw was once of the worst I have ever seen.

Ruth, Reggie, Pujols...Panda!!!

wow

no fucking way

unreal

Two more AB--god, I'd love to see him hit one more.

Panda is shaped like the actors they usually cast as Babe in movies, so that's fitting :o

i just got home what did i miss?

i'm in shock

fixed my work schedule to only miss the beginning of this game and game 5.

Not much--another WS three-homer game.

lol

so i moved out of San Francisco in 2003, one year after losing to the Anaheim. i so wish i was at one of these games.

Albuquerque hadn't given up a HR this year or last year.

Remember the Anaheim.

xp

‏@joe_sheehan
By James Click's Park-Adjusted Defensive Efficiency, the Tigers are the worst defensive team to reach the World Series since at least 1950.

lol, you know what i mean. i get excited and never read before posting submit, really need to change that however.

xpost

nice catch, loving the momentum

Ghosts of Ron Swoboda and Art Shamsky roaming left field.

noooooooo

I don't usually feel warm and fuzzy for multi-multi-millionaires, but that was nice.

faithless re the Freak, BOK?

let Zito have this inning but i'm sort of over questioning Bochy at this point :-)

no, for an inning of two Timmy is fine. he just can't start. it more because of this moment for Zito.

Has a Cy Young winner ever relieved a Cy Young winner in the WS?

Schilling never won one, right?

nice

I found it really surprising that tonight was only the fourth Cy Young match-up in Series history.

NoTime: Smoltz? Can't check now.

i'm rewinding my DVR and watching from the beginning

i'm out for now

I thought I'd get NoTime's question on a technicality--simpley find a reliever who'd won the Cy--but of the nine who have, I don't think any ever pitched in a Series after winning.

award has only been around since '56, so not that surprising... Stengel used starters in relief sometimes, but Ford didn't win his til '61 (Houk managing).

Right, how often do you even see a team with two former CY winners?

Eck relieved in a game started by Welch (G2 1990) but that was before he won his award (and technically, Welch hadn't won yet either). And Eckersley didn't pitch directly after him.

As I await Panda's next AB...Vida Blue relieved three times in the '72 Series (year after his Cy), but for non-winners Holtzman and Odom.

Gagne did, but Beckett (who he relieved with Timlin in between) did not.

Runner up to CC IIRC.

Schilling was runner up three times and was relieved by Johnson in Game 7 (with some other dude in between again, I think) who won a bunch.

And it looks like none of the Braves dudes pitched relief in the WS.

They just answered it on the broadcast: Palmer for Flanagan in '83.

Sound off obv. :)

I found another that was close: Cone for 3rd-place finisher Neagle in 2000.

what's individual record for total bases in a WS game?

Hello, closer.

Zito, Lincecum, Valverde--don't remember a Series game with so many pitchers in search of redemption.

Didn't Pujols also have a double in his big game last year?

Rollie Fingers relieved Catfish Hunter in '74. Hunter won in '74, but Fingers didn't win until '81.

Oddly enough in the same WS, for the Dodgers, Mike Marshall (winner in '74) relieved both Don Sutton (4th that year) and Andy Messersmith (2nd that year).

I was just searching for combinations where they'd both already won.

Adam Kilgore ‏@AdamKilgoreWP
Imagine you went into a coma in March, woke up today and saw Tim Lincecum warming up to relieve Barry Zito in Game 1 of the World Series.

Watch Valverde K Pablo now.

Or not.

booooo a single

Leyland pulling a Valentine/Aceves.

"what's individual record for total bases in a WS game?"

14, Pujols.

He can't break 92. Dead meat against anyone.

yeah Pujols had two singles with the 3 HR. Looks like Sandoval is alone in 2nd now with 13.

Adam Kilgore ‏@AdamKilgoreWP
Imagine you went into a coma in March, woke up today and saw Tim Lincecum warming up to relieve Barry Zito in Game 1 of the World Series.

I was just thinking, hearing the crowd chant "Zi-to! Zi-to!" was kind of surreal

The Giants' round guy has lain waste to Detroit's round guys.

Valverde's last pitch as a Tiger?

what is Valverde's ERA this postseason, holy shiit

why use Benoit tonight if he might be needed moire than one inning tomorrow? cede at this point.

Irrelevant to everyone but me, but I finally figured out who Verlander reminded me of -- poker pro Phil Gordon.

http://www.poker.it/sites/poker.it/files/phil-gordon-b.jpg

Benoit's almost as much of an issue as Valverde.

burning Lincecum for use tomorrow?

7-run lead, cmon

I know I ought to know this, but who am I listening to on the other broadcast (ESPN, I guess)--former pitcher who once hit a home run against Seaver, on the rebound from cancer?

rick sutcliffe isn't it

tho he's been fairly sensible tonight so it doesn't seem quite like him

Hershiser is doing color on US ESPN radio but I think you have diff team

Sutcliffe checks out, thanks. Been waiting for him to identify himself all night. I don't watch many ESPN broadcasts.

http://www.baseball-reference.com:8080/players/event_hr.cgi?id=sutclri01&t=b

Alex Pavlovic ‏@AlexPavlovic
Tim Lincecum the postseason relief ace: 10 2/3 innings, 3 hits, 1 run, 14 strikeouts. #SFGiants

ahh thanks Andy K, i'm still in the 2010-11 nasty underappreciated Benoit mindset.

Well, Zito vs Verlander was a mismatch, just like we all knew it would be.

Ken Rosenthal just tweeted some amazing Erin Andrews creepshots.

burning Lincecum for use tomorrow?

2 1/3 innings burns him?

for tomorrow? yes

I suppose that's a common perspective on relievers, but he's used to throwing more innings. Plus it's the World Series and managers do unorthodox things.

Major props to the Giants tonight. They looked awesome.

Between Panda, Verlander, Zito, Lincecum, Scutaro, and Blanco, that was probably about as interesting as a blowout can be.

“It was extremely impressive,” Verlander said. “I wish I hadn't contributed.”

http://www.csnbayarea.com/common/medialib/223/923667.jpg

Pretty sure I saw Verlander mouth "Wow" after Sandoval's second. His staredown with the pitching coach was funny.

Commentary guy on my feed pointed out that Valverde flinches every time he throws a pitch (as he well should lol) and therefore doesn't really properly finish his motion. Is this a new thing this year or was he doing the same thing when racking up all those saves?

i thought he always did that

he's always been real twitchy. I don't think it's anything new.

It's nothing new.

okay, thks you guys

The problem is his velocity:

Opponents are hitting .381 against Valverde’s fastball when it’s thrown 92.4 miles-per-hour or slower.

They’re hitting .208 against it when he throws it 92.5 miles-per-hour or faster.

Now that Valverde is basically unusable for the rest of the series, is there any rule stopping the Tigers from saying he's "injured" and replacing him with another player (someone who might actually play)?

isn't there a Charlie Finley Rule?

I remember hearing about that ('72 Series?) but was there an actual rule change? In that case the guy made a couple of errors but obviously wasn't hurt, but Valverde has been legit horrible lately, they could call it "shoulder tightness" and how would there be any way to confirm it one way or the other? Pitching injuries are less obvious anyway.

I thought the rosters were frozen for each "round" (ugh)

I think there's an injury exemption to that freeze, but it would smell like month-old fish if Det tried it.

yeah, i think there has to be bone sticking out.

They don't really have a surplus of awesome relievers, anyway.

They could add someone to the bench, someone who could pinch run. Any player would be better than nothing.

I also thought the rosters were frozen, until last year when Holliday was injured in Game 6 and was replaced for Game 7. Was there a rule change recently?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVl-doNlOsQ

Weather here in the Detroit area has been in the high 70s the last 2 days, with Saturday/Sunday/Monday evenings' forecast being in the upper 30s and "breezy". I'm not sure if that favours anyone apart from the Tigers being at home.

Have the Giants got anyone who can replace Hunter Pence? Seriously has the worst at bats of anyone I've seen this post season and I saw the whole of the Detroit/Yankess series.

Well they have this Melky guy...

where JV went wrong

http://mlb.sbnation.com/2012/10/25/3554668/justin-verlander-game-1-world-series

http://i50.tinypic.com/2ahip12.jpg

ready

loving the fact that Fox is using the Who music this year

yay, whoo, marketing, synergy

Verlander could have used this umpire's interpretation of the strike zone yesterday.

nice start by Bumgarner

Fister is from Merced (2 hours from SF), grew up a Giants fan, still lives in the Central Valley.

SF leads 1-0

something i haven't seen all post season long

hi Shasta long time, actually miss you around these parts...

what a play

High Heat Stats: "Which team will be more discombobulated by their unfamiliar position? The Tigers never trailed in the first two series, while the Giants never led." (xxpost)

Gene Lamont, everyone.

― Andy K, Tuesday, October 16, 2012 10:31 PM (1 week ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

did that hit him in the head?

Yes, it did.

why pitch to Brandon when you have a pitcher coming up?

Zito shellshock?

http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/1628389/fisterhead.gif

both pitchers are looking good

Movement on Fister's pitches is nasty.

wow, going to be a good game

Panda's range factor put to the test.

breathe

the Tigers are really hurting themselves

Kinda wish I could despise the home team but they are hilarious.

the Giants are fun and that place is electric

i had my doubts about Bumgarner but with the play of the defense he has had just good enough stuff tonight.

8 K's so far

but, i will admit, the Tiger's pitcher has looked even better

Jeff Passan ‏@JeffPassan
Bumgarner clearly doesn't have his best stuff -- last fastball was 89 -- but has eight Ks, including seven swinging, so tough to argue.

It's not like the Tigers have an exceptional lineup but that break just might be a factor.

only a single?

the Giants need to hold home court. even though i feel they are playing with house money after beating Verlander.

MadBum

if the Giants win this they'll be up 2-0 without even using Cain or Vogelsong. If they lose they'll be 1-1 and the Tigers will have home court. Kind of important eh

So anxious to hand an out to a jittery pitcher.

magic

Hell of a backswing from Theriot.

did this get posted?

http://i46.tinypic.com/blmpg.jpg

worst case was a double play with a run scoring. they did just that and now have the lead.

oh man is that real

xpost

Wait, Smyly is still in this game?

you really are walking the Panda to get to Posey?

tigers look like my ass

0-2 and Pence still get that insurance run

Pence, loony sasquatch hero

good job good effort

i'm in shock

we are up 2-0 in the World Series

will there be a Monday?

I slept through most of that. Not a comment on the game.

will there be a Monday?

― crazy uncle in the attic (Dr Morbius), Thursday, October 25, 2012 11:17 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Not looking favorable at the moment.

if it's any cold comfort, if the ws was played in a million game simulator i still think Detroit would get to 500,001 first.

also in the case of a sweep we might see an epochal Dombrowski chin dimple pout.

Fuck The Giants

http://i.imgur.com/x59FC.png

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-GDPRQ7bos

That game was super boring. First run on a GIDP, second on a sac fly. Yawnball.

u dont deserve beisbol

reconsidering my endorsement of you as mod, poly

this is what happens when civilians bumrush ILB in October.

reconsidering my endorsement of you as unbanned, Morbs

btw re first-time "classic team" matchup in this WS... There has never been a World Series between expansion teams, meaning the 14 franchises that have entered MLB since 1961. (via Mark Armour of SABR)

Ellis Valentine ‏@EValentine17
Tiger bats are struggling like Detroit's economy!!!

:(

To be fair I was super high and listening to records during the game, so maybe the gidp was actually super thrilling!

what a fan

go bait someone who gives a shit

how do you guys manage to fight about this?!

I thought I Love Baseball posters tended to love baseball!

It's funny to see a Padres fan calling a great pitching matchup boring!

Judging a game by how the runs scored, not optimal.

I have never been high but it seems like a reasonable thing to do during baseball playoffs.

Falling asleep -- which I believe Dr. M has done during more than one game -- seems reasonable, too.

It's a long season. We pace ourselves in different ways. There is no wrong method. No need to fight.

I actually didn't object to either but "How the runs scored = game sux" logic.

Ah, OK.

I love baseball but sometimes you're hanging out with friends and the game is on in the background! Sheeeesh

Record low rating for Game #2:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/baseball/mlb/10/26/world-series-rating-game-2.ap/index.html?sct=mlb_t2_a8

Not really sure why that would be--delayed fatigue from the drama of the division series?

Let me preemptively say that I do not follow TV ratings obsessively, or even at all. They have no bearing on my own level of interest one way or the other. I don't read anything into them. I just happened to notice this. So I posted.

it was up against Vikings/Tampa Bay

and polyphonic was asleep

irl lol

From all accounts, polyphonic was flying on ether and listening to Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus; I was asleep, but I'm blaming work and my comfortable chair, not the game.

nobody wants to watch the giants. if it was tigers-cards again that would be a deece series, much as i hate st louis

that is so untrue but whatever

Yeah, a buncha people at work that are like mild baseball fans said they've been tuning in cos the Giants are a bunch of lovable guys.

I tune in for Brian Wilson's unpredictable dugout antics and coverage thereof.

ready

and that's two

Yeah

only giants fans are in sf and these new fair weather fucks I see in LA

Oof.

Annabelle Sanchez with first-inning jitters during the second inning.

I am a big noob when it comes to baseball, i'm still discovering new rules and such but let me ask: why is it that everybody seems to dislike Hunter Pence yet he looks to be quite effective. Maybe that impression is wrong, but if somebody could help me out, I'd appreciate it.

the Giants fan base i very, very big. probably the biggest now on the West Coast.

Hunter Pence was suppose to be the guy who could carry this team. ever since the Giants got him, however, he really hasn't produced much.

Pence gets clowned because he's a clown but I don't know if anyone dislikes him. He didn't have a good year compared to previous seasons.

xp

the was probably ball four, Posey is just off right now

Pence is just loonylooking in form in all things, and has swung like a blind soldier for most of October

welp, my streams are not working tnite, but lookin like '54 Giants

Vogelsong is pitching like the Giants best. should not be surprised but is very impressive.

what a fucking terrible at bat by berry.

Hitting like a 27-year-old who didn't reach AAA until 26.

Idiot should have just stood there and struck out. Just wasting on base opportunities with gidps

it's also shocking to see a team with no legit lf or rf make it all the way to the goddamn world series

Friend of mine cited Berry's (over)performance this year as an example of Dombrowski's glaring weakness at talent evaluation -- as if this awesome outfielder (picked up during '11 offseason) had been wasting away in the Tigers' system for a decade.

xp

It's like this sport has an imperfect playoff system designed to generate money.

These teams are pretty even talent-wise. Giants are playing much better right now.

DET pitcher dude being interviewed has differently-colored eyes. fyi

beautiful

that ball was hit really hard

i finally got a stream & it suddenly switched to the Weather Channel

is the Brooklyn Library open this late? or do you have the AOL?

shaddap smartyjones

Gotta love overaggressive weak hitters with the bases loaded and Miguel Cabrera on deck.

VogelStrong

how could Bochy even think of pulling their best pitcher in the 5th? :)

Pence is on fire this game

someone on BP said he looks like a lost Busey

Bob Nightengale ‏@BNightengale
And here comes Linceucm!

good move by Bochy, Vogelsong has walked quite a few tonight.

though i think i would have let him pitch to one more batter...

that was fast

good plat by DET

Gee, probably would have been called safe without that dumbass slide.

wait he was actually safe

hah, unhittable strike 3

yeah, bad call, bad slide

*dirtscreen*

And, you know, it wouldn't have been that close if he had remained on his feet.

Timmy is having problems finding the plate

thanks DET for swinging at Timmy's non strikes

Panda!

and now we have who we want in the batters box?

so i bought a new sound bar tonight. it's sounding good, instead of the sound bouncing off the back wall. looking forward to my first movie with this thing.

oh man is Timmy off, doesn't DET see that?

thank you DET

bottom of the ninth

i actually thought it was gone

SF leads 3-0

There's some kind of sorcery going on here, when the Tigers beat the Yankees they caught their stank or something.

and now they have one of the best in all of baseball Matt Cain going tomorrow.

Amy K. Nelson ‏@AmyKNelson
Miguel Cabrera pulled his best Pujols/Cards '11 impression and split before speaking w reporters...

ELLIPSIS OF JOURNALISTIC CONTEMPT.

(xpost) Uncanny symmetry between the two series:

Game 1: Yankees--11 hits/4 runs = Tigers--8 hits/3 runs
Game 2: Yankees--4 hits/0 runs = Tigers--2 hits/0 runs
Game 3: Yankees--5 hits/1 run = Tigers--5 hits/0 runs
Game 4: Yankees--2 hits/1 run = ???

Bill Maher ‏@billmaher
Got invited to World Series game after my standup show tonight in Detroit! First series game ever been to! pic.twitter.com/NHBRlCmw

GO METS

https://twitter.com/billmaher/status/262404510159351809/photo/1

Alex Pavlovic ‏@AlexPavlovic
Lincecum: "The taste for the next ring is just sitting around in your mouth ... Oh, that just sounds terrible."

Game 1: Yankees--11 hits/4 runs = Tigers--8 hits/3 runs
Game 2: Yankees--4 hits/0 runs = Tigers--2 hits/0 runs
Game 3: Yankees--5 hits/1 run = Tigers--5 hits/0 runs
Game 4: Yankees--2 hits/1 run = ???

clearly Miggy needs to be traded to the Dodgers.

One other similarity is the kinds of teams that tend to look especially hapless when not hitting: old (Yankees) = slow, overweight sluggers (Tigers). (Which I know puts special emphasis on parts of each lineup.)

You're right, one-dimensional offenses look especially feeble when they're not mashing. They're not contact hitters who can work deep into counts and give pitchers fits, they can't use their speed to put pressure on the defense on ground balls or take extra bases on hits, etc. If they're not hitting line drives then they have no way of getting anything going.

Three of the AL's top five in OBP and not much after that. They've had some hard-hit outs and have had some great plays made on them.

Kinda funny how there was so much speculation about the break affecting their (average) offense and now all the talk is, "WTF, guys?"

not sure what you expect out of MLB's 12th best team

Illitch's lust for Fielder really hampered Dombrowski's ability to put together a more rounded team. Then again, '06 team had a better lineup and...sputtered during WS after sweeping A's and having a long break.

xp

all things considered this has got to hurt less than 06

1994 through 2005 -- and maybe 2008 -- hurt. I'd trade two of the three recent Yankees CS/DS eliminations for one World Series title, but nah, neither '06 nor this has *hurt*.

Yeah--I used to think '85 hurt a lot in Toronto, and '87 was a nightmare, but this little two-decade detour into the wilderness has been qualitatively different and much worse.

Mind you, for the most of the time I've paid very little attention (just to individual seasons from Delgado, Halladay, etc.), so in that way '85 and '87 were in fact worse.

Bees long wait for another world title is almost over

'87 was the worst.

not sure what you expect out of MLB's 12th best team

Serious question: are people not buying into the notion that the Tigers are "built for the playoffs"? The playoffs are a crapshoot, obv., but being able to rely on two or three of your best starting pitchers and relievers makes even a mediocre team somewhat dangerous in a short series.

Prince and Miggy arent bringing much and the guys around them even less - aside from strikeouts and gidps

The Detroit Turdgers.

I was rooting for Detroit at the start of the series, but I'm ready for this snoozefest to be over. Sweep 'em, Giants.

ready

drinking a Cabernet Sauvignon tonight

it was produced in California in 2010

ok, got the Mexican stream working

nice job by both pitchers

could b e a very low scoring game

why the hell did Cabrera appeal his own checkswing?

He does that almost every time. No idea why.

that was funny, could have went his way otherwise because it didn't look like the ump was going to call that a strike.

i thought he got that one

BELT

damn

gotta score that 2nd run

frightening phantom LaRussa spotted, lanyard dangling from his scrofulous neck

Hershiser says wind cost Pence a HR

AND HERE COME THE DETROIT TIGERS

nice Brandon

oh man

it's still amazing to me that the media will still not give the Giants pitching the credit instead the Tigers are in a slump...

Posey has been a non factor when it comes to his bat this World Series

at least get one out, good play all around

and the elements give Deeetroit their first lead

now the Tigers are getting some love from the baseball gods

Bochy would normally never send Belt in that situation, why now?

Bee OK going to get those dropped 2 games he secretly wants so they can clinch at home.

BALLGAME HERE, folks.

SHOW THE DIAMOND AS LITTLE AS POSSIBLE.

Matt Cain is pitching unbelievable

the Giants should have three runs but only have one, the Tigers get a wind aided home run. interesting game.

i want to win tonight, my work schedule really doesn't work for live baseball again until game 7. it not going there, so tonight is most ideal.

or at least i'm hoping that it's not going there

nice play

Cain was down 3-0 and got the out

ACE

now is the time

MVP

wow, not going to recover from that

Nice hitting. Reached for that one.

Don't worry about it, Max Scherzer; you were really meant to be a German Expressionist film director in the 1920s, anyway.

good game

yeah this fun

Matt Cain gets out of it with only the one, solo home runs are OK

Wind-aided out

of course im barely able to keep my eyes open

now just need a base hit

ya!

not going to happen but the Giants are into that bullpen

eeek!

and Matt Cain gets through seven, can win but can't lose.

double play

Do It Again

good game, just a little bit more and it will b e over

so

that was BIG

now that is how a bullpen is suppose to do its job

Those are some serious hooks.

that was impressive.

that is some good pitching

if this hurricane is still on during the free dorito taco window im braving it i dont give a fuck

otm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRJiP5ku-u0

that wasn't a strike

Two great pitching performances.

I love when they show those little filler items about such-and-such hasn't happened since Goose Goslin. Only in a baseball broadcast.

breathe

that was a shot that came up short

Yes, "let's listen."

ugh pls not hte slomo cam

laird hero mode

lol

extra innings how...

perfect

its all going to come down to Valverde isn't it

he got him

wow. it felt like the end

of course scutaro

this team blows my mind, so much better than 2010

maybe should have tried to catch that

Exactly what I thought--was waiting for a replay to confirm.

and now that is two

Pretty sure Yaz made the last out of the '67 Series.

Damn

unreal. Congrats SF!

Congrats, Bee.

Shit

Hot Tuna

Shitty for Illich especially. Looks like he's winding down.

Glad I didn't go. Probably would've sat behind a giant panda.

ok, have a good winter!

poor tigers :(

sorry andy

The Tigers were not "so loaded offensively," Joe Buck.

i'm so happy

The winning run did not score on an E-1. It's all good.

props to the giants. i was at the last game they lost o_o

these early 10's giants teams should go down in history though; weird assemblage of talent and some really memorable performances

Have fun, Bee OK--but that's enough now, right?

(Yaz made the last out of the '75 Series, and of the '78 playoff game. Carry on.)

now that was an exciting last game.

ryan theriot: back to back ws winner

I actually thought the Tigers had a shot to win the series right until the last out...win tonight, Verlander wins, then anything can happen. To paraphrase the Yankees-Tigers thread, they were closer to winning the Series than any team that's ever been swept.

Nice going Giants!

was kinda thinking the same thing bc I wasn't expecting to see zito beat verlander 2x in this series but then again the giants are arguably better anyway

if this hurricane is still on during the free dorito taco window im braving it i dont give a fuck

― johnny crunch, Sunday, October 28, 2012 11:04 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

this is what the fuck i am talking about in 2012. i have four participating locations within drivable distance for my Del Locos dor Zito's taco. thinking about doubling up to 8x tacos with my halloween Nixon mask.

talking head blaming this on the Tigers' extended layoff. get real.

End of the game at my local bar:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPtxWBmquxc&feature=g-upl

Embedded?
http://www.youtube.com/embed/vPtxWBmquxc

i know that bar, if it's the one on Mission and like 22nd. they didn't have HD tv's back in the dayh.

It's Pissed Off Pete's in Mission Terrace. A bit South of 22nd. Awesome spot to watch the win!

Local news is fun right now

http://instagr.am/p/RWqShWw_Sy/

random thoughts a few hours later:

-- how the hell could Cabrera take that called strike three to end the WS? It was an 89 mph fastball down the middle in a one run game
-- does anyone still think the "Nats were good enough to win without Strasburg" after seeing what the Giants did with Lincecum? So Detweiler wouldn't have been useful as the fifth starter/long relief man for the Nats in a series where all their other starters were awful and they had to burn through their bullpen night after night? Having Lincecum in the bullpen completely transformed how the Giants handled their pitching staff in every round.

It was an 89 mph fastball down the middle in a one run game

My guess is that a two-two cookie was the last thing he expected to see (and now he's going to see it all winter).

Baseball blows, thank god I finally get a reprieve from this sport

http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/1648063/princesalad.gif

-- does anyone still think the "Nats were good enough to win without Strasburg" after seeing what the Giants did with Lincecum?

They coulda! if they didn't blow a 6-0 lead.

Maybe some fun teams that haven't won yet will end up in the fucking tournament finale next year.

I actually thought the Tigers had a shot to win the series right until the last out...win tonight, Verlander wins, then anything can happen. To paraphrase the Yankees-Tigers thread, they were closer to winning the Series than any team that's ever been swept.

I can see this line of thinking especially with Verlander v. Zito again in game 5 but TBH I kind of saw this coming - Giants are so loaded with pitching, when the starter goes out and you have to face Tim freakin' Lincecum for two innings - the only way the Tigers were winning was by grinding out 2-1 games. Their offense is so awful, and when guys like Prince go dead then you wind up getting shut out two games in a row. There's a reason they were only the 12th best team in the league (and that's playing in the AL West! They probably wouldn't even be .500 in the East)

that said though, what were the Giants WS chances after going down to Cincinnati 2-0 and having to win three games there to stay alive?

-- how the hell could Cabrera take that called strike three to end the WS? It was an 89 mph fastball down the middle in
--NoTimeBeforeTime

Fangraphs has a piece on this but basically ROMO is a monster against right handers and Cabrera never in a million years expected to see anything but a slider 2-2.

If you include the ALCS, the Tigers (who are in the AL Central, not the West) went 25-18 against the AL East.

(They split with BAL and BOS, won season series against NYY, TBR, TOR.)

maybe I'm thinking of last year when they were .500 outside of their division? I don't know. The AL <b>Central</b> has been a joke for a while. Look at some of the awful Twins teams that won it recently.

lol @ me

Also, the Tigers and the Giants were both sixth in runs scored in their respective leagues. The Tigers were fifth in runs allowed. The Giants were sixth. These teams were very evenly matched, but the Giants played significantly better during these four games.

yes but i'd argue the NL teams were much stronger this year

Interleague play completed in familiar fashion – with the American League dominating the National League for the ninth consecutive season.

The final tally for 2012: AL 142 wins, NL 110 wins in the 252 interleague games played May 18-20 and June 8-24. As Baseball Prospectus noted, that's a .563 winning percentage and translates to a 91-win pace over a 162-game schedule.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/dailypitch/post/2012/06/interleague-play-american-league-dominance/1#

translates to like $100 mil more payroll too, iirc.

yes but i'd argue the NL teams were much stronger this year

― frogbs

But the 6th, 7th, and 8th teams in the AL (CHW, LAA, TBR) were a lot better than those in the NL (LAD, MIL, PHI) which implies that the bar for making the playoffs in the AL was a lot higher than the NL, i.e. the AL playoff teams were better as a group.

I never really put much stock into the interleague results. Also I don't think Milwaukee or Philly were really weak teams. Certainly I'd say they were both better than the White Sox. The Tigers only had the 12th best record in the league.

the majors

MVP of the entire postseason -- Scutaro or Sandoval?

http://mlb.sbnation.com/2012/10/29/3570094/postseason-mvp-babe-ruth-award-giants-pablo-sandoval

xxpost I have no idea what your criteria are, you're comparing the Tigers W-L record to teams in the AL and NL, but you say that the White Sox were worse than Milwaukee and Philly (even though they won more games than both), and you don't believe any interleague results.

intangibles?

i don't expect you guys to agree with me on this. just saying that the Tigers play in hands down the worst division in baseball and the Giants record seemed more impressive to me.

The Giants pitching staff has so much variety in terms of pitching styles and speeds. When they're in the strike zone, combined with that big park and the defense, it's hard to score on them. Also I'm not sure if they have a weak spot on defense. Sandoval isn't quick but he can turn a drag bunt into an out, or make a throw to first from foul territory. And when Pagan, Scutaro, Panda, Buster, and Pence are right that's five legit mlb starting hitters. Blanco, Crawford, and Belt all make up for being mediocre hitters with very strong defense and good baserunning.

Affeldt striking out Cabrera, Fielder, and Young was pretty awesome. (Phil Coke was also dealing, but maybe they kept him in there a little too long.)

ya... coke tends to not last very long

if Posey was healthy last year I wonder if they threepeat

So glad this season is over. Congrats Giants, wear the champagne in good health, etc etc. Bring on the winter meetings.

as a dodgers fan I hate the fucking giants but cant help but respect this run.. Im just glad they didnt win at home so they could start a fucking 'beat LA' chant like they did after winning last time.

Phil Coke is a delight

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/10/29/phil-coke-the-game-of-baseball-just-kicked-me-in-the-butt

❤ you phil

Phil Coke's Brain ‏@PhilCokesBrain
At least I won't have to check any bags for my flight back to California since I left everything I had on the field.

MVP of the entire postseason -- Scutaro or Sandoval?

For an overall postseason award, I'd want someone who was good-to-great in every series, and on that basis Sandoval easy. So it comes down to Sandoval vs. Vogelsong for me.

Sandoval: .333/.318/.571 (vs. Reds), .310/.355/.586 (vs. Cards), .500/.529/1.125 (vs. Tigers); 6 HR, 15 RBI.

Vogelsong: ERAs of 1.29, 1.80, 0.00; 24.2 IP, 16 H, 10 BB, 21 K; 3-0.

I haven't checked or anything, but Sandoval's must rank with the best sustained postseasons in divisional history. I'd give it to him, though Vogelsong was very good. (Romo's 10.2 IP were pretty awesome too.)

Romo was definitely the most exciting guy to watch, but yeah it has to be Sandoval.

My wife's Facebook posts for the past 3 games has basically consisted of ROMO!!! ROMO! Finish this game! ROMO!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and ROMOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Who can argue with that kind of consistency?

"The World Series MVP is a Venezuelan-born cartoon character who signed as a 16-year-old amateur free agent six months after the most painful Game 6 loss this side of Freese and Buckner. The starting catcher is probably winning the regular-season MVP award. The starting first baseman and shortstop are defensive stalwarts. The no. 1 starter threw a perfect game, started the All-Star game, and started the deciding games of the NLDS, NLCS, and World Series, all in just over four months' time. The no. 2 starter fired seven innings of two-hit scoreless baseball in the World Series. The team's shutdown relief pitcher is a two-time Cy Young winner who was completely unhittable throughout the postseason. The oldest player in that group is 28 years old. All of them have been Giants for life."

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8568323/san-francisco-flipped-script-2010-walked-away-title

I know there's a simple explanation, but how did Panda end up with a higher BA than OBP in the divisional series? No walks plus...what?

hbp?

But that gets credited to your OBP, no? Something to do with reaching via error, or maybe a sacrifice?

Panda's pretty slow--maybe he actually reversed the space-time continuum on one of his hits, and was therefore charged with a negative base?

Sacrifice fly.

It counts as a PA, but not a AB.

For reasons that make no sense since a sacrifice bunt doesn't count as either.

Yes, thanks--and he did indeed have a SF against the Reds.

wow, how can a sac bunt not count as a PA?

I just want to say congratulations to the San Francisco Giants. It was a tough series to watch, but the better team prevailed.

Aloha.

http://www.midwestsportsfans.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/magnum-pi-tigers.jpg

Mr. Baseball, you speak the truth.

wow, how can a sac bunt not count as a PA?
--crazy uncle in the attic (Dr Morbius)

BASEBALL STATS!!

Not following the Giants on a regular basis and their prospects, how much real talent did they give up to bring in Scutaro, Pagan & Pence?

That has to be one of the best "in it to win it" series of moves by a club in a good while.

I kept thinking all playoffs as a Reds fan wondering if they would have had a lead off hitter with Pagan's production playing center all year how many more runs would they have scored instead of Dusty giving nearly 550 plate apperances to Drew Stubbs.

Very little real talent. Those were all good moves.

Tommy Joseph is a very good prospect but they already have a catcher.

I just got out of a North Korean prison, what'd I miss?

http://i.imgur.com/fteet.gif

http://www.sfgate.com/giants/jenkins/article/Giants-GM-relies-on-eyes-not-statistics-3991756.php

To be fair that's the worst scene in both the book and the movie.

Rest of the article is pure hookum. "but feel it, deep inside" haha Stooges ref.

I've seen three or four Giants-won-with-grit-and-intangibles articles, including Posnanski's (which I just skimmed quickly--maybe it's not quite that). Return of the repressed.

I seem to recall the Giants hitting some home runs in this Series

Really good pitching and defense throughout plus power hitting in game one.

WE SAW IT WITH OUR OWN EYES.

Even more than that, the Giants a) won six more games than the Tigers during the season, and b) are two years removed from another championship team. You can argue the Tigers should have been favoured, but to treat the Series as a David-and-Goliath match-up would be silly.

If home runs won ballgames then the Giants would have done enough to win Game 4 in regulation. Ryan Theriot helped manufacture a run in extra innings with his bat and his legs and that's what made the difference. You win championships when scrappy white guys do scrappy white guy things. We've been over this before!

Lemke, Counsell, Eckstein, all of the white guys on the Giants.

And here is my friend getting beaned. No one knows who did it but I'm guessing it was a white guy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdTt2dAXOXE

http://www.sportsnet.ca/baseball/2012/10/30/mendes_hit_with_ball_blog/

I have done radio interviews about the incident and was stopped by multiple strangers in Detroit to talk about it. The MLB International broadcast team mentioned it during Game 2 of the World Series. Somebody even told me that I made it onto CNN -- but in fairness they may have just been looking at an interview with Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mcqdz0GbBr1qcstv7.jpg

Really interesting Posnanski piece on what the Giants two WS wins might, or might not, indicate about a changing game.

http://joeposnanski.blogspot.ca/2012/10/it-all-about-october.html#more

I don't see that the Giants have anything figured out (except that you should put together a decent team and hope for the best). Parts about the decline in WS viewership and expanded post-season chances is interesting, but to be frank no American sport except treats the champion of the regular season as the league champion (it's not like pre-Wild Card baseball did either and you can't convince most peeps that the '87 Twins were a better team than this years Giants.)

Except...except...finish that thought!

I found the regular-season win totals of WS winners over the years, and the 100-win-seasons stuff, really interesting. It's the most obvious point in the world, but actually seeing the math reinforced it.

I was initially going to say no sport that I am aware of except European soccer but then I realized I don't really know that's true so I limited to US and forgot to to excise the except. Winning the Premier League is arguably bigger than winning any of the Cups or even the Champions League, but not sure that holds for any of the other Euro leagues.

And to be honest that really is the model that's needed here to avoid devaluing the season completely a la the NBA. Establish a league champion and award a prize and a trophy and some hefty team bonuses around it.

wow that's some egregious "i'm not saying i'm just sayin" by pos

Schadenfreude aside how many non-Detroit fans really enjoyed watching that series vs. New York? Baseball is just a boring sport when you don't have a rooting interest.

Psh get outta here with that shit

compared to football and basketball?

"schadenfreude aside" sure as hell thins out your nba and nfl audiences.

The problem with Pos' argument is that there usually isn't a big difference in talent between a 95 win team and a 100 win team, so it's not that big of an upset when a 100 win team loses in the playoffs. I don't think it devalues the regular season, it just shows that making the WS is a lot harder (you have to win a lot more playoff games) and the talent level of playoff teams is uniformly high. Plus luck in a short series, of course.

Going from eight to ten playoff teams actually added more importance to the regular season because we won't see teams coasting at the end of the season once they've clinched a playoff spot (like in the AL this year).

Yeah AL September was really the best argument for the new model (although given how bunched it was, it would have been exciting no matter what.)

Baseball is just a boring sport when you don't have a rooting interest.

This is I Love Baseball, frogs -- I Love Bandwagon-Jumping and I Love Trolling are down the road a piece.

hey don't get me wrong - *I* don't think the playoffs are boring! (and what exactly makes me a bandwagon jumper?) Baseball is my favorite sport but I much rather watch Monday Night Football or a regular-season matchup between say, OKC and the Lakers than a Sunday Night NY/Boston game because it gets boring quick. It's not like Kobe is going to shoot 0-25 one night. Whereas even Miggy has his off days. I would imagine a lot of people use the same logic to explain why they don't watch the playoffs.

You said it was a boring sport when you don't have a rooting interest.

I'm not well versed enough in baseball to find regular season games all that compelling, probably because there's 162 of em for each team. That's my shortcoming, not baseballs. But post season baseball FUCKING RULES, and I find it way way more compelling than post-season NFL or NBA.

Good god nothing could convince me to watch a regular season basketball game.

And I really like basketball!

Basketball does a better job at promoting its stars, but it's easier to do that when (like frogbs said) your stars aren't going to shoot 0-25. But regular season baseball kills basketball in terms of quality, even taking the longer season into account. You don't see baseball teams loafing on defense in April. You'll ever see somebody not bother running after a fly ball because it's only the first or second inning.

You'll *never* ...

I've seen Hanley Ramirez play so I'm not sure what you're talking about.

http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/slides/photos/000/291/812/102722680_display_image.jpg?1278688188

having not watched basketball in a long long time - is that seriously the case? how do they get away with phoning it in when they make so much money?!

16 teams make the playoffs (over half the league) and playing "all out" through the first couple months will likely result in injuries. Players who take charges just aren't going to say healthy all season. I've thought for a while that the season should be shortened (last year's 66-game slate was perfect).

http://ww3.hdnux.com/photos/16/00/31/3671634/3/628x471.jpg

Reader letter (shortened) for James about the Giants under his dynasty formula. Overstatement?

After winning the World Series this year (the Giants) are back up to 8 points. If they only win their division next year with 90 or more games, that would give them 2 more points and a running total of 10 points for the period 2010-2013, thus qualifying them as a dynasty. Is this correct?
Asked by: Michael Skarpelos

Answered: 10/30/2012
I believe so. Two World Series titles is a big deal. If they can do anything at all to build on that, they deserve to be listed among the great teams of history.

I always tell people that whoever wins the ws isnt the best team, they're just the team that won the ws..

you cant just assume marco scutaro is going to hit like babe fucking ruth or that hunter pence will hit like shit except with risp or that gregor fucking blanco will capably replace someone who was hitting .350 until the all star break. or that a key at bat in game 3 of the ws will result in the ball hitting the fucking bag and lead to a couple more runs that takes the home team and crowd out of the game..

that being said I love beisbol and would piss my pants if my team won it all

Seems like a modern baseball team would have to dominate across at least four years and retain at least 2/3rds of the first year's roster to qualify for something like that.

LOVE Romo's shirt.

If they can do anything at all to build on that, they deserve to be listed among the great teams of history.

uhhh wait a minute here

basketball is really the only sport where the best team wins the title a good portion of the time

can i get a quick link to James' dynasty scoring mechanism. i like the idea of it, as i kind of doubt we will see another 3x in a row WS winner in our lifetimes.

I think it's behind a firewall, but maybe not: http://www.billjamesonline.com/dynasties/?AuthorId=3.

Paywall...election overload.

all i know is that when the Giants won in 2010, for the first time ever in San Francisco, i said that i would be completely satisfied for five years. now that they won again 2012, which was so much better of a team by the way, i want another ring in two years. this team is young and home grown. the Panda, Brandon Crawford, Brandon Belt and Buster Posey are all brought up through the minors. we also have Timmy, Madison and Matt Cain and could have also had Wheeler as young arms for years to come. side note, we should try and get something for Timmy this off-season. i think this team is right up there and will be a force for years to come.

I hope you wait another 50 years.

lol, hater

but you know that probably won't happen, sorry your team sucks.

Yes well I'll always have '89. And you will always have your cliches.

"Schadenfreude aside how many non-Detroit fans really enjoyed watching that series vs. New York? Baseball is just a boring sport when you don't have a rooting interest."

I think it is more by history baseball is still a very regionalized sport and I think it is quite a bit because of TV.

I said it on a thread long time back, but really until ESPN started carrying national games all the time in the early 90s, I rarely saw much AL baseball. Where i grew up, you had some Reds games on TV (rarely at home- usually the west coast road trip games), Cubs were on WGN, Braves on TBS and some White Sox games were on WGN. You had that, the Saturday afternoon day game on NBC and then ABC during the summer would run some baseball on Monday nights instead of Football. I just rarely saw much AL baseball as it wasn't on TV or the radio to find it.

I think now with the regional sports networks, this kind of breakdown still largely exists and why certain regions just don't care if their club is not in it. Even baseball's odd TV licensing rules won't allow you to buy a package and watch what you want either on cable or on-line if it competes with these mini-fiefdoms and some of the breakdowns of markets in this setup are really weird.

If I can go the rest of my life without hearing such triteness on ILX again, I would gladly forego any future Giants championships.

BTW the Giants are 2 for 2 when I start their threads.

we should try and get something for Timmy this off-season.

seems like this would be pretty much the worst time in Timmy boo boo bear's value, right, coming off an extremely disappointing season and continued reductions in velocity? Unless you think he's going to be even worse next year.

I hope you wait another 50 years.

― One bad call from barely losing to (Alex in SF), Thursday, November 1, 2012 9:59 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark

lol. same except 500 years

we should try and get something for Timmy this off-season.

seems like this would be pretty much the worst time in Timmy boo boo bear's value, right, coming off an extremely disappointing season and continued reductions in velocity? Unless you think he's going to be even worse next year.

― but the boo boyz are getting to (Z S), Friday, November 2, 2012 9:18 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i just came to post "lolwut" @ that, sabean should be retroactively fired a decade ago if he tried to sell lincecum

"hey 29 mlb gms, i've got this unbelievably expensive pitcher at literally the only pt in his career when he has been terrible, what you got"

Z S, the regular season doesn't count anymore! It's like the NBA.

It's not quite that bad yet.

Louisville Slugger will hide 30 commemorative World Series bats Saturday around San Francisco landmarks such as the Palace of Fine Arts, Fisherman’s Wharf and AT&T Park, and fans are invited to track them down in a digital scavenger hunt.

The first bat will be hidden at AT&T Park, and Louisville Slugger will begin posting clues on its Facebook page and Twitter accounts at 9 a.m. Saturday as to the items’ whereabouts. Another clue will be posted every 15-20 minutes. The company’s Twitter handle is @sluggernation.

The bats are full-sized Major League quality. They are inscribed with the World Series trophy and the Giants logo. Only 2012 bats were made and they are individually numbered.

Chances one of these bats will be used in a crime before the day is out. Very high.

this is wacky and interesting at the same time:

http://www.sfgate.com/giants/article/Rule-Full-playoff-share-to-Melky-Cabrera-4006463.php

Yeah the rules for playoff money division are actually really fascinating. We talked about this a bit when the Nationals lost, I think.

So it's true that second place teams that don't make the playoffs get a share of the playoff money? We discussed this a while back and I could never find any confirmation for it.

http://mlb.sbnation.com/2012/11/21/3676102/the-meaning-of-hunter-pence