ALC-YES:
Went to my first ever playoff baseball game last Wednesday, and boy was it a great time. I got my rally towel (which I waved til my arms hurt) and enjoyed my view from the left field upper-deck near the fair pole:
(Yes, my pictures suck this time since I used my phone)
The crowd's energy and noise and the overall atmosphere was incredible, exactly what I was hoping for based on games I'd seen on TV.
The Tigers strung some walks and big hits into a nice inning against Jake Peavy leading to very little late drama. After the disappointment from most of the previous games in the series, this was a refreshing change of pace. Starter Doug Fister (my third different Tiger starter this year) was very good for the few innings he pitched and a resurgent Austin Jackson was the star of the evening.
As it turned out, this was the last game in the series the Tigers won. Oh well, maybe next year? Anyway, I had a blast and can't wait to make it to another playoff game in-person.
FIRE LEYL--oh, cool, he stepped down:
I'm not particularly sad to see Jim Leyland no longer managing the Tigers. Too often I took issue with his strategies (or lack thereof) and refusal to see when changes needed to be made (i.e. moving Prince Fielder's fat ass down in the order). I do give him credit for a great record, multiple playoff appearances and two Pennants over his eight seasons in Motown, and he comes off as a good guy who was obviously proud to be part of the Detroit tradition. He just always struck me as a guy whose teams just couldn't get over the hump and often disappointed, falling below expectations at times. With a team this talented I just can't believe he couldn't win a ring with the Tigers.
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| The story of Detroit's season in one animated GIF |
Still, I know I should be careful what I wish for. I definitely don't want an awful situation such as the Mattingly-Dodgers feud, an embarrassment like Bobby Valentine, or a hateful idiot like Ozzie Guillen. Time will tell who the Tigers hire as their next manager, and I'm holding out hope for new blood instead of some retread--it's worked out well for a number of teams recently. Good luck to Leyland on his future with the Tigers and outside of baseball, and best wishes to the team as they try to find a leader to get the team its first ring since 1984!
BEAT THE BEARDS!:
When Detroit threatened to bow out of the playoffs (and then did that), leaving Boston as the AL's representative, I pinned my remaining hopes on St. Louis defeating LA because I couldn't stand the idea of a completely unwatchable World Series featuring two villains. I mean Boston has pretty much become the Yankees' barely-less annoying younger brother since winning titles in '04 and '07. Plus they've got those stupid beards and look like idiots. For me they have no redeeming qualities and I will happily root against them, not out of a sense of revenge for beating the Tigers (hell, I could have pulled for Tampa or Oakland in the Series) but because I just can't stand them and what they've become since finally winning in 2004.
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| This right here? This looks stupid. You look stupid doing this. |
I have less of an annoyed attitude towards the Dodgers, really, but the dysfunctional way their front office and manager interacted, plus the attempt to throw a ridiculous pile of money at a title (which the Tigers are guilty of, just not all at once), were really huge turn-offs. I haven't rooted for the Dodgers since Kirk Gibson's limited time with the team, and I really haven't had any reason to pull for them in a long, long time. That's not to say that I don't hope some of their guys win it all at some point in their careers, especially Clayton Kershaw and Matt Kemp.
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| This look familiar, Dodgers fans? |
The Cardinals, meanwhile, are a natural fit for my World Series rooting interest. I can't think of anything I hate about them. St. Louis is a venerated baseball town with great fans and an excellent history. It's become a model for draft strategy and success (see: Wacha, Michael, plus the 2009 haul), and the way they've performed since refusing Albert Pujols' king's ransom is amazing. This is a Midwestern NL team playing NL ball the way it's meant to be played. And of course I'm plenty biased since their second-year manager is a Michigan grad, so I'm wishing Matheny and his team the best of luck. Hopefully this won't be a boring repeat of the very blah 2004 Series; I'd bet against it as this year's games have generally been entertaining. With sincere apologies to all my Dodger-blogging buddies, I've got St. Louis in six.
GO CARDS!
