Game 1: Tigers 4, Mariners 3

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The Mainframe was surprised and very pleased to see a postgame report that aligned with nuance and reality.  The headline of the postgame gave Gonzales credit for solid pitching.  Then, in the story recap for game 2, Kyle Seager referred to the frustration the M's felt at botching a game 1 that they should have won:

The Mariners felt they should have won the opening game Saturday, and came out swinging in the finale.

"When you lose an emotional game and get a little upset about it, it can fuel your fire a little and bring a little more energy," Seager said.

Dr. D won't go too nuts about "should have won" because the WHIP total was 14:9 in favor of Detroit.  But baserunning traffic isn't everything -- just a very important single thing -- and there were two big reasons the M's shoulda won:

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Jays 3 ...

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PLAYOFFS

WC Contender Record GB
[Bos-NYY loser] 26-11 sacre bleu
LAA 23-14
Sea 21-14 -1.0
Toronto Blue Jays 20-18 -3.5

Note that all other clubs are .500 or worse, including Cleveland at 18-18, Minnesota at 15-18, and the Orc Horde.  6 teams have terrible records and several teams have records worse than .333.

Note well that Houston is technically behind LAA.

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M's 2, Jays 5

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ZEN MANTRA

Baseball is not a "game of inches."   Baseball is a "game of luck."  Curse baseball.  Curse it to the depths.

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PRE-GAME SUBPLOT

Dr. D had whined and moaned when JeDi rostered the #407 starting pitcher on Bill James' Fantasy Newsletter, Wade LeBlanc ... who proceeded to idle in dry dock, unused, for the first two weeks of the season.

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Paxton's No-Hitter

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Q.  What did the Mainframe like best about Zeus' lightning storm?

A.  Some very kind amigo on D-O-V referred to the idea that it's fun to see a game through somebody else's eyes.  For some reason that just pinned me to the back of my seat.  At this point, it's not always necessarily the case that we can tell you anything you don't know about this roster.  But it can be info-taining to compare points of reference.

I'll remember that!  :- )  Thanks Gentle Denizen.

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Sizzlers & Fizzlers - Top Half 4.11.18

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M's PLAYOFF CHANCES +

The M's wound up with a 2-month-long road series enough to break weaker men.  It featured staccato day-on, day-off scheduling, along with half of its lineup missing, a ferocious Twins team, and Johnny Cueto / Danny Duffy firehosing Grade A stuff at them.  Oh yeah, and the weather and the injuries (Healy).

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