woah, that got ugly with a quickness. Corbin tagged with 6 ER. Dodgers up 8-2 after entering the inning down 2-1.

All with two out, too. Maybe they should have put in an actual reliever or someone who didn't pitch six innings a few days ago. Well, I guess it worked with Strasburg.

When you're panicking in game 2 of a LDS, you aren't long for a tee time.

And for the sake of argument, say this bag of tricks works and you beat the Dodgers in 5 games by having 3 starters make 7 appearances. This after the WC where starter 1 and 2 both pitched.

I'd say make your tee time for the day after game 4 of the LCS.

Playoffs are a marathon, not a sprint, and you get no trophy for winning the LDS and trashing the arms of your best pitchers in the process.

exactly. It's ridiculous. Why have a bullpen if youre not gonna trust 'em and use 'em?

Of course, this is Davey Martinez, who learned this bullshit from Maddon.

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Brewers got their comeuppance last year. It was of a different form than Washington's, but the same strategy of desperation.
They lost. And it was inevitable. If some people want to give Counsell brownie points....that's all it is, brownie points. Brownie points isn't hardware.

Monday STL and ATL13 pitchers into the 8th inning. Going on 4 hours. No way I'm sitting thru matchup theater unless it's Cubs or Sox postseason.

Zimmerman coming through in the playoffs.

Large. Huge even. Fun game to watch even though the Dodgers lost.

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

Verlander just suffered through a 33-pitch inning....down 3-0

Guess that answers the question about Verlander starting on short rest.

57 pitches after two. But the Rays didn't score there. Woulda been helpful to get one in.

Rays going with the bullpen start. Already on their 2nd pitcher. Top end of Rays bullpen hasn't had much work to do so far in this series. Should be gtg.

What a play....throwing the little man out at home....

Perfect relay. That was beautiful.

Looks like Altuve beats the throw but misses the plate on his slide. Costly. Could've had runners on 2nd and 3rd, 1 out with Gurriel coming up.

You are right. That was not a good slide--he wasn't close to the plate at all....gotta get that leg in there.

I still think you send him tho. That ball hung up there for a bit before the centerfielder got a glove on it. Took a perfect relay to make it close enough that Altuve screwed up his slide. And then Rays SS Adames follows up his relay strike with a lead-off HR to prolly knock Verlander out of the game.

Avi Garcia producing in the playoffs is somehow depressing.

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Dan Bernstein is spinning in his grave he is.

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I saw that dude who caught that foul ball the first time they showed him and I thought to myself, that's quite a large dude. Turns out it's OJ Howard. He has MANY white friends.

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Big mistake to start JV on short rest tonight. This is another panic move that managers continue to make. If you got to the playoff you more than likely had 5 solid starters. WHy not use 'em? Why put it on Cole in Game 5? I would rather have JV in Game 5.

Starting guys on short rest NEVER works in the playoffs. Havent people learned? You only pull a Bumgarner in the World Series. Not in the earlier rounds.

Now you've burnt both Cole and JV for the following series. You go with your #4 tonight, you have Cole ready for Game 1 vs the Yankees. Hell, you may even win and you have both JV and Cole ready for the next series.

It's unbelievable this panic bullshit. Starters coming in out of the bullpen, etc. Just stop that shit. Trust your guys. The worst thing u can tell your guys in the playoffs is that they suddenly suck. After they've had a decent year. That depresses the morale of the team.

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so now Snell in in the 9th.

WHo the hell is their stopper? Suddenly he sucks? Gotta bring a starter on short rest? Guaranteed this backfires on Tampa.

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You mean the Rays might lose on the road to one of the best teams in all of baseball?!?

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The 5 game series really screws up your rotation. The Game 1 starter will either pitch on 3 or 5 days rest. The game 2 starter is available on 4 days rest but now you have to chose whether to start #1 early or not use #2 for a 2nd time. I think I would ideally start #3 in game 1 and then go 1, 2, 4 (or pen game) and then back to 1. That should set you up to get 2 starts out of 1 and 2 in the championship series.

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That's my purse! I don't know you!

I've never really understood why the division series are best of 5? A win in that round is far more impactful than a win in a best of 7 series. If the goal is to have the best teams meet in the World Series, why not expand it to a 7 game series?

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That would not be the hardest thing to expand. Since they do the 2-3-2 you are really only extending things by 2 days at most.

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That's my purse! I don't know you!

At least we get 3 game 5's. Yankees enjoying watching the Rays and Astros burn through their pitching trying to get to the next round.

I like the five game series. It gives the less talented teams, like the Rays, a chance to win. Also, there is already too much playoff baseball. Get into the first round, get out as quickly as possible, and get on to the more meaningful games.

everything coming up Yankees

enjoy hate watching the parade

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O judgment! Thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason.

Uh....