Underachiever

I would love to see everyone weigh in now on this before the game so we don't have to hear the inevitable second guessing after the fact. I'll go ahead and make my argument for starting Lauer and holding back Burnes... I back Counsell 100% on this decision. Lauer is the one pitcher on the roster not named Gustave who the Braves haven't gotten a look at already this series. They also have the 2nd fewest hits in the majors against lefties. You can't win this series without winning games 4 AND 5 so why decrease your chances in game 5 by spending Burnes in game 4 on short rest. Especially when Burnes has been deployed on on LONG rest (more than 4 days) for most of the season. The Braves have some damn good pitching themselves. Their decision to go the short rest route and exposing their pitchers to multiple looks by Brewers batters might be the one chance to start tilting the odds back in the Brewers favor. The Brewers are potentially 9 hours away from turning 3% odds into 50%+ odds. Burning Burnes today likely wouldn't make the Brewers the favorite in game 5 as I do not like the Woodruff vs Fried matchup at all with both on 4 days rest. But I definitely like Burnes on 5 days rest vs Fried on 4. How do others want to weigh in before the benefit of hindsight? Let's hear it. 100% on board with Lauer. No second-guessing from me on choice of starting pitcher.

Two 100+ win teams will fail to reach the LCS. And if it's LA, it'll be one with a $267 million dollar payroll. As frustrating as the Brewers cold snap has been, it could always be worse. How LA and Tampa do has nothing to do with how I feel about the team I have cheered for since it came to Milwaukee in 1970. I am not emotionally invested in those franchises. It has been a fun season. I have seen how good this team can be. To see them score two runs in three games has been painful, and at no time have the Dodgers' troubles made it feel better. As a matter of fact, it makes it worse, because haven't we wanted the Dodgers to go down? Don't we want the only 100-game winning team to lose in the AL? If anything, those teams losing will make the lost opportunity seem even bigger if they cannot rebound today and Thursday.

I like that one! Very outside the box! Mine is Yelich goes yard. Mine is Wong. 3 x 4, leadoff homer. 2 run 2B, BB, 3 RBI (the only 3 runs we score) I'm feeling the Brewers have a four-run eighth inning in them to provide the margin of victory. Hard part will be waiting that long for it to happen.

My thoughts exactly. IMO with a loss today, this team is 'fart in the wind' fodder. A less exciting finish than 2008, a team that had the distinction of making us respectable again. We've had 3 good teams in the past 4 years; it's totally natural to feel how we do at this point. It's time to get over the hump. Winning divisions isn't satisfying anymore. I'm too young for '82, I grew up on ONLY losing and I still feel this way. Time to get over the hump? Since their last World Series win the Yankees have been in 9 of 12 postseasons without so much as a WS appearance. Since their last World Series win the Cardinals have made 7 of 10 postseason with a lone WS loss their best result. The stacked Nationals needed five postseason trips in eight years before they got over the hump. The even more stacked Dodgers needed eight postseasons & a pandemic weirdened season to get over the hump. The Brewers are just getting started, expecting them to get over the postseason hump on an accelerated timetable compared to what organizations with more resources & talent did is probably setting one's self up for disappointment. Your what-about-ism regarding other teams is meaningless. I don't care about the Yankees, Cardinals, Nationals, or Dodgers. I am not a fan of those teams. Nor do their post-season struggles matter. If long-suffering is a requirement, I guess until the Indians win a WS I shouldn't have any expectations. I accept and understand that the window doesn't open as far for the Brewers as it does for teams with more resources. For that reason, it DOES accelerate the timetable. And there is no rule that says a team has to suffer for x amount of years before winning.

Keeping Pederson on the bench has led to four out of the 7 runs that ATL has scored in the series.

Excellent! Cmon, Lo!

That would have been nice. Optimal, even.

Game thread, please. Not a "what should the payroll be" thread or a "downstream effect of Yelich contract" thread. Please.

I guess I don’t understand balks. What is that motion by Houston’s pitcher? He keeps rocking and taps his toes.

Goes well with your previous post to get a “star player”… It’s all 888 knows how to do.

Who do you want coming up to bat with the game on the line? If you need a HR? If you need a hit? If you need a sac fly? If you need someone to get on base at the start of an inning? Not trolling, curious. I don't have answers to these questions. It's my biggest concern. While guys have had moments, I don't know who I would count on.

WI21LCS However, unless you are looking to spend $700-$1,050 on a restaurant table you ain't getting anything. Guys, you had to enter the code, click directly on the blue check mark, and the seats appeared after that. I got four for home game three, there was plenty of availability, just very expensive.

Nah, Devin punched him.

Watching a younger guy play so well in the playoffs is cool. Watching him play well, knowing he used to be a Cardinal is even better.

Got to assume STL wanted more than 5 1/3 from Wainwright.

Why wouldn’t you just hit Bader every time. Because, you know, it’s Bader. Same with O’Neill.

Yeah...no matter the outcome I'm just hoping for chaos and at least something to happen that really handcuffs the winning team - tonight I'll be happy because one of those teams loses no matter what. And then I'll put my Giants fanboy hat on in a big way for the NLDS - both because I loathe both wildcard teams and because I think the Giants would be the best matchup for the Brewers to get past and head to the world series. 19-inning game it is, then, with perhaps the Dodgers winning but having Buehler throwing 78 pitches in five innings of relief after using up their bullpen.

I'm not sure it was just a tap, though the video was unclear. I also like that there is a mural in the bar that includes a picture of Meyer and his wife. Agreed that not flying home with the team isn't getting enough attention. They're 0-4 in his first year on the job. Probably not the best time to take time off. Being called out by the team owner and being laughed at by players is the ultimate humiliation in a sport that prides itself on being extra manly. I think whole team had the weekend off after playing on Thursday night, didn't they? Possible they scattered in all directions after that game, Besides, no one outtwerks Urban.

As much as I hate a Cardinals win, I would love to see the Yankees and Dodgers take their half-billion dollars in payroll and go home.

I remember as a kid, opening the newspaper, and under the MLB standings on the Monday after the last game, it would say, “End of regular season.” Always made me sad.

Gerrit Cole has given up SEVEN homers in 18 innings at Fenway? Damn, $320 million doesn’t get you what it used to

Am I supposed to feel bad that there isn't a robust market for resellers?

Undisputable Fact: Walter Johnson didn't get even a single vote for Cy Young award that year.

Dodgers shouldn't have lost the season series to SF. 10-9 series win in favor of the Giants was the exact margin for the division. Flip one game. SF also had a better record against AZ (17-2 to 16-3), and Colorado (15-4 vs 13-6). They would have more cause to complain if they were staying home for the playoffs, as second-place teams did for 100+ years. Brewers would have made the playoffs a few times in the past if the wild card existed. That AL East was tough sledding. Would have loved to see that '92 team get a chance. Eldred would have thrown 500 pitches every game and won the World Series by himself. Okay, maybe Bosio and Wegman could have pitched a few innings. Edit: Dang it, Chorizo, I shouldn't have waited so long to hit "submit".

Do you think they will wait until after the WC games to announce times? I assumed we would have seen game times listed today, for all the reasons spelled out so well in the previous post. Someone offered me four tickets for Saturday, and after extended negotiations with my wife, I can go, as long as I don't miss a wedding ceremony that we are supposed to attend (I can skip the reception).