This is going to be a wild finish for the Wild Card. <pre> Cincinnati 59 56 .513 - - 4-6 L1 8/10 v STL, L 1-6 8/11 @ PHI, 7:05P Arizona 58 56 .509 0.5 48 5-5 W2 8/9 v SF, W 5-3 8/11 v FLA, 9:40P San Diego 58 56 .509 0.5 48 3-7 L3 8/10 @ NYM, L 3-7 8/11 @ HOU, 8:05P Houston 56 58 .491 2.5 46 7-3 W3 8/10 v PIT, W 5-2 8/11 v SD, 8:05P Philadelphia 55 58 .487 3.0 46 6-4 W1 8/9 @ ATL, W 9-3 8/11 v CIN, 7:05P Colorado 55 59 .482 3.5 45 5-5 L1 8/10 @ LAD, L 3-4 8/11 v CHC, 9:05P Milwaukee 54 60 .474 4.5 44 5-5 W2 8/10 v CHC, W 8-6 8/11 @ ATL, 7:35P</pre> I'm hoping that Sids prediction that the Astros staff will be the difference is starting to come around. All of our pitchers have had good outings recently and the bullpen has stepped up, even Lidge has looked like he's starting to turn it around. It's interesting that the turn around seems to coincide with the return of Roger Clemens to the dugout. He's such an intense competitor that I think it rubs off on the other guys, sort of all boats rise with the tide. I think it comes down to Reds, Astros, and whoever finishes 2nd in the West.
I dont think the astros are going to do it, their to inconsistent. One day their winning and looking great and the next day their trash. But they are on a roll, and like last year they could easily make a big push As for whos going to win the wild card..count the marlins in as favorites :wink: Mabye not, but their young kids and it is really something that their still in the race at this time of year.Werent they predicted to lose the most games in league history. My kids go to some of the games, its a hassel though because of the location, and if their opponent is popular like the mets or redsox, they'll be more of their fans than marlins ones. I guess if they get a stadium by the orange bowl or wherever they were thinking of putting one(havent really followed up on that) they might get some decent crowds I was watching the game last night, I have this league pass thing kind of like they do with basketball, so i can watch the games here in gainesville. I must say though, with the exception of Borowski(the closer), whos having a great year, i might argue we have one the worst bullpens in the entire MLB. Between Kensing( Whos given up a homerun in atleast his last 5 outings, and has blown countless games for us), Messanger( Just look at my oponion on kensing), and moehler an awful starting pitcher, whos just as awful in the pen, it looks very bad. Lets just say you cant feel safe handing one of them the ball unless your up 10-1' Its the D-Backs tonight, look for us to get the sweep :lol: and gain even more ground in the wild card standings. Go Marlins Its great to be....A Florida Gator. Come on guys sing it with me( Yeah you too Gonz :wink:
:idea: Looking at that list, I can't imagine Colorado or Milwaukee doing it this year. I also like Houston's chances because of their pitching. These are the dog-days of August and some of the pretenders are beginning to fold. When the pennant races come down to crunch time in September, the winners will be those teams that still have some pitching left and some veterans who've been there before... ................DD
Terry, I watched the game through the 10th inning then went to bed. I did not realize how poor your bullpen is. That's a shame. you have excellent starting pitching, and more often than not, as happened last night, your bullpen is going to blow the close games. I'm afraid that this may not be the year for the Astros. I said earlier that I would not bet against them primarily because of the starting rotation. After watching last night's debacle I must change my mind. :cry:
Did you think that there was going to be a fight after they plunked Roger and then Roger threw at a Cub in the next innning? Astro's annoucers actually said that they thought a good bench clearing brawl would be appropriate at this time! Roger of course hit the first Cub in retaliation for Zambrano hitting Aubrey Huff with a 98mph fastball the previous night. Funny thing is there are Astros pitchers who do not believe in the O'Connor rules of retaliation, but Roger does. Oswalt last year or the year before was indirectly criticized by teammates and the manager for not retaliating in yet another Cubs/Astros situation. Terry
Yes, I thought there was going to be an eruption. A few years ago we had a debate here about plunking batters. I vigorously argued against it. Maybe it's age. Maybe it's the respect I've gained for Clements as a hard-nosed competitor. Whatever the case, I was on his side last night. I predicted that when the Cubs removed their starter so Clemens could not return the favor, Clemens would plunk the pinch hitter. I was right. Frankly, I'm surprised that his teammates did not come to his defense when the Cubs pitcher hit him. I wonder if that is why he was so visibly angry when he left the game.
Could be, he was definitely ticked off....I see we are down 1-0 in the bottom of the 8th, a sweep by the Cubs is a terrible blow to the team. They expected to win the series vs San Diego and the Cubs maybe even sweep and get rolling. I do wonder what the mood will be on the flight out this afternoon after the game.
Andy apparently pitched a great game, made one mistake and lost. Obviously the Cubs guy did the same with no mistakes. But this is particularily hard to take when you have a starter go out and do what Andy did and your hitters forget to show up. Astros need to do a lot of soul searching on this road trip. BTW Lidge was demoted and is no longer the closer. I don't know who'll replace him, but without a reliable closer we won't make it. Terry
Done, Done, and Done...not mathmatically but emotionally...this team is DONE. And in a year that the Cards were vulnerable it's a damn shame. Terry
NL Central vs Twinkies, Sox and Tigers 9-45 ...ugh. But if it ended today the Cards and the Reds would be in along with Dodgers and Mets. I see another AL Series Sweep this year.
8) re: O'Connor rules of retaliation Your illiteration inspires me... The Angels pitchers believe in those rules. They were specifically ordered NOT to throw at Texas batters two nights ago by manager Mike Scioscia and pitching coach Bud Black; but they did it anyway. They threw behind batters; they threw at batters; they hit consecutive batters, and they had consecutive pitchers ejected for drilling consecutive batters in the arse, instigating a bench-clearing brawl when Texas re-retaliated... Somewhere...out there...Don Drysdale is smiling... ...............Jimmy the Barber