TauPentaRei

45,000 greater-Wisconsinites get to see another playoff game. I'm sure Mark A is counting un-hatched chickens for a minimum 2, maximum 4 NLCS games at the cash register... but it doesn't hurt to jam the parking lots full of $20 bills knowing Yo will have us in the NLCS anyway.

I like the holding serve analogy. Federer-Djokovic. Djokovic-Nadal. Nadal-Federer... The D-Backs won 95 games. Do you know what that feels like? Of course you do. You expected them to roll over? After all of that "knowing how to win" mumbo jumbo? 2 heavy weights trading groundstrokes. The score of this game will not end 7 - 3, I guarantee it.

Dear Mr. Marcum, I require 3 total post-season wins from you (this year, mind you) to forget that Brett Lawrie ever passed through the Brewers organization (even on his naturally projected 2032 Cooperstown enshrinement day, of course). Today would be a good day to achieve 33% of this requirement. Sincerely, Harvey

and shooting video through 100 yards of photons.

Hudson is the guy whose name was floated around last year as the potential big (only?) chip that would come back in a Fielder trade right? was this rumor exclusive to this site or did were its legs (a source?) legitimate?

I agree jhart. Plus the title of this thread needs to be changed to "Why Greinke Should Start Game 2". let me count the ways (to be prioritized later): 1a) 11-0 at Miller Park 1b) ERA a full run-and-a-half higher on the road this should be NUFF SAID. I am no social scientist or psychologist or tarot card reader. All I know is a semi-documented aspect of this man's life includes a little anxiety (we all have it, some more than others) when's he's in uncomfortable / variable / non-routine oriented environments. I'm happy as hell he comfy at the Keg and would like to see him pitch successfully there. 2) holding him for a game 3 in AZ would put him on 5 days rest. both times he's pitched on 5 days rest this month he's been ineffective: 9/13 v COL a high pictch count (5 innings / 116) cut his outing short and 9/24 the Marlin knocked him around (5 / 108) 3) his pick-up basketball game cracked rib means this is early August for him; he has not been taxed this year CC-style. There's gas in the tank. 4) 74 pitches his last start including 6, 7, and 7 pitch innings amounts to an extended bullpen session. It was the Pirates afterall. [aside] (while on 3 days rest) I don't like the decision to let him pitch the 5th inning Wednesday when he was through 4 at 52 pitches up 5 - 1, and I REALLY don't like letting him pitch the 6 at 67 pitches up 6 - 1. Nevertheless, he finished with an OK 74. 5) We could still get away with a 3 man rotation (if necessary, of course) for the NLDS: Gallardo goes game 4 on 3 days rest and then Greinke back at Miller Park for game 5 on "regular" rest. Marcum would have game 1 of the NLCS and Gallardo back for game 2 on regular rest. Greinke then - AGAIN AT HOME (notice a theme?) - for game 3 (reg rest) if it's, indeed, the Phillies. 6) there's more, but I need to work a little bit before coming back.

if the Mets had lost this would be a much bigger story. so Braun needs a 3-4. if Reyes took another at-bat and got a hit, only 4-4 would have done it for Braun. if Reyes went 1-2, then 2-2 would have gotten Braun the title also, but not 2-3. Reyes @ 1-3 would succumb to a Braun 2-3. Reyes @ 2-3 only gets trumped by a 3-3 or 4-4. splitting hairs here, but I align myself with the Reyes = Punk camp

it's a good thing we spent so much time sweeping crappy teams while the Cards were busy taking only 2 of 3 from the same teams. I am glad RR is making these mistakes in the regular season. i still maintain this is one of the best things that could have happened to the team. yes, i would have enjoyed a 13.5 game lead as much as the next guy, but good for the Cardinals. I was this close to tuning out for the first 2 weeks of September due to sheer lack of suspense.

((really straining for a silver lining)) getting swept is the best thing that could have happened to the Crew a glum clubhouse with some reality-based introspection. going to Houston (where I will be this weekend! up 2 sections from the Brewers's dugout, row 3 on Sunday, what what?) all hot-headed to smack a beat down on the Astros. Doubters creep up out of the woodwork instead of the glossy SI-parade to the playoffs. Can forget about catching the Phillies - focus on rest / rotation stacking over an extra Miller Park NLCS game The haze of August settles & Doug knows the team can, nay - HAS TO - be better. (read: Free T Green) some K-Rod / Axford rest - helluva nice midseason All-Star break 3 days off. Oh to be 7.5 games up in SEPT and not (yet anyway) freaking out...

oh man that's priceless. gold. My favorite part is easily the "don't have the heart of a champion" comment. I want a video stream of this fan watching a nice solid 7 innings from Marcum into Saito into K-Rod, 5 - 1 crisp beatdown style game while he types furiously into his worn keyboard with a furrowed brow. Oh Schadenfreud.

oh this is so fantastic on so many levels; Prince must be proud. I really love this and can't wait to link it to my FBB league's main page. But first... I've been wondering what they are planning next... and I though dominos would be cool. What if all the players ran out and lined up in a queue starting at the third base bag and spaced out equidistantly to home plate (prince is rounding 2nd at this point)... when Prince touches 3rd each player falls over into the next guy and the cascade matches Prince's slo-mo trot pace to the plate. If only to make La Russa launch into an epileptic seizure (of course of course that he came out of 1 hour later no harm done of course of course) would this be worth it.

kicking off my shoes and stretching my legs out in this spacious 9.5 game lead.

well guys, head back to the Four Seasons, order room service and watch movies all weekend. Rest your weary bones pre Pittsburgh double dip. If all 3 games get rained out, we need to make sure that we close the division with a 4 game lead - not the end of the world. There is this road trip and then only 2 more, geez. HOU/STL and CIN/CHC.

uh, yeah... what he said

COMPLETELY for the sake of imagination... Would 19-4 with a 2.80 ERA and 200K do the trick? (yes yes, all very rudimentary, un-sophisticated stats for the grey beards at the Cy polling station) I am not naming any names. I am just counting up the starts* remaining by a certain someone who happens to be pitching ridiculously-gargantuanly, has it ALL put together (finally), rolls into the last quarter (!) of the season with a relatively fresh arm, has all the stats progressing to the mean and, yes, I'm extrapolating at an unfairly optimistic clip... but what if we were in for something truly magical in September? *CHC x2, PIT x2, HOU, PHI, COL (roughly) ((lots of days off on the schedule and a critical setting of ye olde OCT rotation)) Who in the NL would grab the hardware over a 18-5 record and a 3 ERA? Probably Halladay's to lose at this point, huh? Let's cheer for that guy getting roughed up.

i am VERY rarely, if EVER, joining the chorus about lineup complaints. but this one just begged me to jump in... like a guy in the marching band fell over and the director grabbed me from the sideline and shoved a tuba in my mouth to take his place is how reluctant a position in which I find myself. saying you want to load up a righty heavy line-up against Lilly but going with Kottaras instead is definite double speak. you can't have it both ways. should I just shut my trap because Wolf has been so good lately [3.31 ERA (oh please don't slaughter me for mentioning ERA it's all I had time for!) in his last 6] and Georgie makes him so happy? Quantify Lucroy stats vs lefty minus (Kottaras stats vs lefty) multiplied by the potential "hey-I'm-catching-a-great-game" performance premium and compare that to the advantage achieved by Wolf pitching from his happy place instead of the grumpy, dirt kicking mound, cursing into his glove Wolf? get to work on that latter metric Bill James. I suppose I can live with this; oh man I got the fever in a bad way!

this is hilarious people are upset about the "contents" of the lineup, to set aside comments about the order for now. Kotsay for Hart... and? People already miss McGehee that much? Extra strong fix for a Wilson this morning? This place is funny.

buckle up

b/c he's thrown 64 pitches and he's a reliever that's not stretched out?

nights like these really make me miss Cain / A Escobar / Jeffress / Odorizzi

This guy definitely has a good head on his shoulders in writing a mildly complimentary piece on the Crew at the expense of the "grumpy but proper" Cardinals. The level of baseball saturation in the SL Post-Dispatch is pretty impressive. A couple of the best bits: ...irreverent youngsters who dared to mock baseball's most stuffy unwritten rules... They don't need to yank out their shirt tails anymore to get on the nerves of the cantankerous old-school Cards... He rubbed his hand on his scruffy beard and let out a soft chuckle just at the very thought of a three-game sweep.>>> I will be doing this all afternoon, btw

squeeze please

uh oh; hide the gasoline & matches

yep; this was on my mind today. do we stand a better chance against the Phillies in a 5 gamer vs a 7 gamer? I say it's the former.

It's all about the last sentence here. I think the writer was prowling around this site.