October Is Here!

The Playoffs are here. It is October 1^st, and it is now time for the best month of the year (March is pretty good too). But we are lucky! We got to see the start of the playoffs in September!

Last night’s game was a beauty. David Price tossed a gem that might have been the most important game in his career. Though it definitely wasn’t his best, the reigning Cy Young winner pitched a complete game, giving up seven hits and two runs, striking out four and walking one. 

He also picked off two runners, including one against Ian Kinsler, who just hit an RBI single off of him. The last time a pitcher went the distance in a play-in game was, my favorite, Randy Johnson in 1994. Martin Perez, the opponent, gave up three earned runs on four hits and struck out five in 5.1 innings. 

Three things to take out of this game: David Price, Evan Longoria, and Nelson Cruz. Price, as I just mentioned before, had a surprising outing, based on his stats before. In his four previous starts at Rangers Ballpark, Price compiled a 10.26 ERA, going 1-2. Against Texas entering Monday, he was 1-7 with a 6.62 ERA in 11 starts. He looked good though, and he was pumped. From pitch one to pitch 118, he did not give up, even after almost giving up a 2-run blast to Alex Rios. Giving the ball to Price was a great move by Joe Maddon, as he dominated the lefty-lefty battle. 

Evan Longoria is just amazing in the last game. Remember two years ago, when he hit that miraculous walk-off home run that knocked the Red Sox out of the playoffs? It’s just one of those weird stats that he has. He is hitting .579 (11-for-19) in finales, with SEVEN homers and 10 RBI’s. Last night, he had three hits, including a two run shot that broke the game open. If only he could do that for the other 161 games. 

Nelson Cruz returned from his 50-game suspension from steroids, which kind of annoyed me. How can you suspend someone for cheating, but then let them play in the playoffs? Maybe it was just bad timing. I wish that everyone did what Melky Cabrera did last year, and be honest and choose not to play in the playoffs. But Cruz didn’t, and he paid the price for it.

He went 0-for-4 with a strikeout, and ended the game with a groundout. I really wish he struck out to end it, but oh well. 

There was lots of questioning about the calls made last night. The home plate umpire, who has a little larger strike zone than usual, had a few calls that were questionable, but overall he was correct and the Rangers fans were just getting heated. 

The big play, however, was a call made in the seventh. The Rays had runners at first and second with two outs when Delmon Young, who scored the first run of the game, hit a soft fly ball that center fielder Leonys Martin dove to try and catch. The umpires ruled the play a catch and Young out, but replays show that it wasn’t even close, and the ball clearly hopped. 

It kind of reminds you of the game back in April 8^th against these two teams, when Ben Zobrist was called out on a pitch low and outside. Ironically, that game notched Joe Nathan’s 300^th save. Luckily for the Rays, they still got the last laugh. 

MLB does intend to use expanded video review next year. 

The final score was 5-2, and the Rays led the way the entire time. The Rangers had to use six pitchers to get through nine innings. Ron Washington came out saying “I’m disappointed. We didn’t get it done. I’ve got no excuse for that.” The Rays ended the Rangers’ seven game winning streak.

The Rangers have already looked into next year. 

Game one is done, but now comes the wild card games. Tonight, it’s the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Cincinnati Reds. The Pirates are in the playoffs for the first time since 1992, and the Reds won the wild card last year. The game will be played in Pittsburgh. It’ll be Francisco Liriano (16-8, 3.02 ERA) against Johnny Cueto (5-2, 2.82 ERA). This has been Liriano’s best year since his 12-3 year in 2006, and has shown a miraculous comeback in his work. Cueto, who dominated last year with a 19-9 record and a 2.78 ERA, was hurt for most of this season, but has still looked pretty sharp. 

This game is going to be great. I have the Pirates winning, not just because I’ve loved watching them this year, but because I like the lefty matchup with Liriano going against a lefty-dominated team. But the Reds have lots of talent and experience. It should be a game to remember. You can catch it tonight at 7:00 PM CT.

Email me at statsbuddy42@gmail.com for any questions/comments/concerns.

-Evan Boyd