M's 8, Tigers 1 … at their place
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So the M's take on the Tigers in a playoff atmosphere, their building, and outscore them 17-7.
- Destroyed them in Paxton's start
- Got nipped, under weird circumstances, in Felix' start
- Destroyed them in Chris Young's start
We outhit them 29-23 and, despite only 1 homer in the series, blew past them like they were the Astros.
Granted, Anibal Sanchez might have thrown the ball a little better than did Rob Roy, the tasty Little League drink that quenched the M's thirst for 12-hit, no-homer victories. But hey. The M's now get 9 games against teams that feature pitchers similar to Rob Roy.
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Another thirty victories by Chris Young, and it might be time for a level 102 scan. If only we had Randy Wolf, we'd be unstoppable.
An' that's all I gotta say about that, Forrest. ... You've noticed how Young resents the insinuation that he's a match for Safeco? For a basketball player with an 84 fastball, the guy has a mean streak. Gotta love it. After he lifts the World Series MVP, we'll allow that he's average/solid.
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This postgame recap, from Detroit's point of view, is quite the revelation. It seems we got swept three games straight but it was close "because, to be fair, Seattle has a good pitching staff."
On TV, they had another graphic ... this one said that two teams in the DH era have sported 2+ ERA's. The 1974 Oakland A's, and this M's team. Was this one right, or the one we pegged t' other day?
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Keeping the shtick to a minimum ... the Mariners have, for about a week or so, ALL been walking up to the plate, ready to do something with "pitchers' pitches." Like Greg Maddux complained about the 1996 Yankees* - "if they're willing to take what you give them, there isn't a lot you can do."
Who said that again?!
17 runs on 29 hits and only Cano's home run. Not a lot of balls were close to the track, either. Meanwhile, the defense was celery-crisp on the part of one of the playoff contendahs.
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Bouton had a line, in Ball Four, how the Yankee$ hit the end of their 1921-1963 string, but then won 1 more pennant after their talent was gone. "They were the only team that KNEW HOW to win the pennant." That would be a great subject in itself, wouldn't it?
The Tigers have been playing for the World Series the last three years in a row. 2011, 2012, and 2013 they were the constant in the ALCS, going against Texas, then New York, and then Boston. In this series, it was the Mariners who looked like they knew how to win a pennant.
Well, Lloyd knows how to hit 5 homers in 5 swings. Maybe he knows how to win pennants, too.
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I'll be in the hospital, getting the oil changed, for most of the next week. Maybe I'll be back to blogging by Wednesday, but with any luck at all, you'll get at least until Saturday. You'd better talk Mo' Dawg and Mojician into steppin' in.
Cheers,
Dr D