GDT: 4/7/'15 - Atlanta Braves (Wood) @ Miami Marlins (Latos) 7:35PM EST

[thethe]

So you don't think the Giants were lucky that Madison Bumgardener decided to have the best month of his life? They were just clutch? If the Giants and Royals were so clutch why didn't they have more wins in the regular season? Again, anything can happen in a short series. The best teams generally don't win the world series. That's the nature of the playoffs. You can win 87 games and ride 1 pitcher to the title.

You don't subscribe to the idea that teams could take a few months to get into their groove.

An individual team can look different at the end of the season than they do at the beginning. Thats why I think just looking at average performance is not really indicative of the best team by the end of the season.

 

[gilesfan]

I just don't agree with it. Teams that have clutch hitting and great pitching win in the playoffs. Teams that win championships aren't 'lucky'. That's basically what you are inferring when you say all you have to do is "get hot at the right time"

Why don't the Giants have clutch hitting in the regular season or in odd number years? They just decide to be clutch in the playoffs of even number years?

 

[thethe]

Then what is the purpose of saying if it's coming from thin air and has absolutely no value.

Because this is a message board...

 

[ChapelHillMatt]

I believe the playoffs is a different animal. All games are pressure packed, some players can raise their level of play and some can't. They are different than regular season games.

 

[gilesfan]

Then why even have the playoffs. Just crown the team with the best record the champion. You are really devaluing the playoffs when you say stuff like this. Also why is it the Braves never luck their way to a title? It's always other teams.

Playoffs are something to draw revenue. If the purpose was to give an award to the best team, it would be based on the 162 game season. The English Premier League crowns a champion based on the regular season. Why would you play 162 games when it comes down to possibly 4 games?

Whether or not someone is devaluing the playoffs or not, the best team often doesn't win. That is the case in pretty much every sport. Much of the playoffs is decided on matchups, healthy, and streaks.

 

[gilesfan]

I believe the playoffs is a different animal. All games are pressure packed, some players can raise their level of play and some can't. They are different than regular season games.

Then why isn't this repeatable or predictable?

 

[ChapelHillMatt]

It is for some players. Two examples would be Jeter and Ortiz. They have great postseason numbers. Teams like the Yankees, Cardinals, and Giants seem to do well in the playoffs when they get there. Teams like the Braves tend to struggle. I don't think that's just the roll of the dice. We simply disagree (as usual)

 

[VirginiaBrave]

Most of the time, the guys who hit for big power strike out a lot, too.

We can sit and weep about JUp being gone, but he was an incredibly frustrating hitter for this reason. I loved his power and when he was hot, he was RED hot. But when he went cold, every AB was completely unproductive. Sometimes a ball just needs to be put in play, or contact made in some way, and a lot of times, he couldn't do it - here comes another strikeout. He wasn't great with RISP during his time here. I get that a lot of that is based on luck, but it's also the kind of hitter he was. 171 Ks in 154 games is detrimental. Those Ks can come at crucial times. You're not even giving yourself a chance.

Homers are more good than Ks are bad. But, balance is best. I don't know that power is anymore important than before. Look at the two teams in the WS last year.

Thats the problem with power guys today. They don't mind strikeouts. There are exceptions, but very few are willing to do what Nick did first inning last night. That was masterful.

 

[ChapelHillMatt]

In 1995 when we won the World Series, was your reaction

Cool but we just got lucky. Or did you feel we deserved credit for playing well and winning a championship?

 

[thewupk]

You don't subscribe to the idea that teams could take a few months to get into their groove.

An individual team can look different at the end of the season than they do at the beginning. Thats why I think just looking at average performance is not really indicative of the best team by the end of the season.

Sure teams can have key injuries or whatever for the first part of the year and they are totally different by September. But I mean the Royals were 15-11 which is good while the Giants were just 13-12 so it's not like they were all world at the end of the season. but they surely were in the playoffs.

I just think the 162 game season should mean something. And that's been diluted heavily with 5 teams making the playoffs. In other sports it doesn't matter with the way those sports operate. The better teams will generally win. In baseball an average team can go along way in short series with 1 dominate starter.

 

[sturg33]

It is for some players. Two examples would be Jeter and Ortiz. They have great postseason numbers. Teams like the Yankees, Cardinals, and Giants seem to do well in the playoffs when they get there. Teams like the Braves tend to struggle. I don't think that's just the roll of the dice. We simply disagree (as usual)

Jeter is basically the same player in the post season as regular season. Ortiz is too once you get to the Boston years (he just wasn't as good of player in Minnasota)

 

[thethe]

Sure teams can have key injuries or whatever for the first part of the year and they are totally different by September. But I mean the Royals were 15-11 which is good while the Giants were just 13-12 so it's not like they were all world at the end of the season. but they surely were in the playoffs.

I just think the 162 game season should mean something. And that's been diluted heavily with 5 teams making the playoffs. In other sports it doesn't matter with the way those sports operate. The better teams will generally win. In baseball an average team can go along way in short series with 1 dominate starter.

I agree with the argument that over the long haul you can identify the better teams but baseball is a grind and I don't believe that every player gives their all eveyr game. That changes in the playoffs and we need to acknowledge that and figure out some way to account for it.

 

[gilesfan]

It is for some players. Two examples would be Jeter and Ortiz. They have great postseason numbers. Teams like the Yankees, Cardinals, and Giants seem to do well in the playoffs when they get there. Teams like the Braves tend to struggle. I don't think that's just the roll of the dice. We simply disagree (as usual)

Jeter essentially hit the same in the playoff as he did in the regular season. (virtually identical if you eliminate his last 2 regular seasons in which he sucked and they didn't make the playoffs.)

Ortiz is slightly better in the playoffs due to walking more.

You guys listen to the main stream/ESPN media too much without looking at things objectively.

 

[thethe]

Jeter is basically the same player in the post season as regular season. Ortiz is too once you get to the Boston years (he just wasn't as good of player in Minnasota)

Being the same player in the postseason means you are better because you are typically going against a better quality pitcher on average.

 

[thewupk]

In 1995 when we won the World Series, was your reaction

Cool but we just got lucky. Or did you feel we deserved credit for playing well and winning a championship?

Well the Braves were the best team in baseball before the playoffs started so that's not really fair. And I'm not trying to say that teams that win should be happy about what they accomplished. But it's much more difficult for great teams to win a world series right now then it was 20+ years ago. I think most people would agree with that. And I would prefer that the playoff format go back to that.

 

[gilesfan]

Thats the problem with power guys today. They don't mind strikeouts. There are exceptions, but very few are willing to do what Nick did first inning last night. That was masterful.

holy crap.

 

[gilesfan]

In 1995 when we won the World Series, was your reaction

Cool but we just got lucky. Or did you feel we deserved credit for playing well and winning a championship?

Happy to win the World Series, what was yours?

Whether we were lucky or good, the result doesn't change so why would it affect my emotions?

 

[thewupk]

I agree with the argument that over the long haul you can identify the better teams but baseball is a grind and I don't believe that every player gives their all eveyr game. That changes in the playoffs and we need to acknowledge that and figure out some way to account for it.

There is not a way to account for it. And I just agree with what some of the best baseball minds around think and that it's a crapshoot.

 

[thewupk]

It is for some players. Two examples would be Jeter and Ortiz. They have great postseason numbers. Teams like the Yankees, Cardinals, and Giants seem to do well in the playoffs when they get there. Teams like the Braves tend to struggle. I don't think that's just the roll of the dice. We simply disagree (as usual)

So what happened in that long stretch where the Yankees were constantly getting kicked out early of the playoffs? Did they forget how to be clutch?

 

[sturg33]

In 1995 when we won the World Series, was your reaction

Cool but we just got lucky. Or did you feel we deserved credit for playing well and winning a championship?

Think about in 2012 when we had to play the Cards in a 1 game playoff, after winning I think 8 more games than them in the regular season...

I guess they were just better and more clutch because they won that single game