btownoriole

Except it’s rare for the lowest seed in the NBA playoffs to make it to the Finals. This is now two straight years for MLB. MLB is becoming a worse version of the NHL playoffs.

I’ve thought about this too, along with the fact that they outperformed their Pythagorean by so much and they were pretty healthy. I think the front office is banking on internal improvements in other areas - I think there’s a lot of unrealized upside next year with Holliday, Gunnar, Mullins, and perhaps even Adley.

The 2000 Ravens were 12-4, which was tied for the 2nd best regular season record in the entire league that year.

I’d really like to give him one more shot at starting. But it’s great to know he can handle high-leverage situations if it doesn’t work out.

Exhibit A: The 2021 52-win Orioles swept 3-game series from the 95-win Astros and the 92-win Red Sox in their own ballparks.

Well a lot of people stopped watching because it became excessive.

I think this was the thinking when the NHL created the "President's Cup." Hockey's playoffs are the 2nd-biggest crapshoot behind baseball.

This is all about additional TV money. Instead of two wild card games MLB can sell 8-12. Any “fixes” to make it “more fair” will likely involve expansion to 8 teams in each league. I would imagine that will happen after MLB adds two more teams and goes to eight four-team divisions. The one thing I would like MLB to figure out is more fair seeding. The #2 seed was locked into playing one of the teams with the 5th and 6th best records while the #1 seed was locked into playing one of the teams with the 2nd or 3rd best records in a best-of-five. Seems like everyone wants to try to emulate March Madness with a fixed bracket.

The '91 World Series was also 7-0 for the home teams. That was maybe the best World Series of my lifetime with 5 of 7 games decided by one run and 3 games (include Games 6 AND 7) going extra innings.

2014 Andrew Miller

I’m with Roy. Since they added the wild card the MLB postseason is the biggest crapshoot in North American professional sports. Nothing that happens this week or month can take away what the O’s accomplished over the past 6 months.

It was actually May 26 and it was his last game before being sent down. He's a completely different pitcher. Doesn't mean the Rangers won't get to him, but his approach and mindset is not the same.

I have pretty conflicted feelings about him, but I think a lot of these changes started happening when John Angelos took over. The article in the Sun yesterday hinted at the changes he made on the business side after taking over. And hiring a brilliant GM and staying out of his way has been the best move he’s made.

This is a great summary. It’s been so long since these teams met it’s hard to get a feel for what to expect. Then reading these game summaries it’s easy to see why - a lot of the key pitchers from the season series game outcomes (deGrom, Gray, Bautista, Voth, Akin) won’t be in this series. From the O’s side Rodriguez and Henderson have grown tremendously and on the Rangers side they now have Carter and Chapman. Regardless, this is going to be a tough series.

Building on some of the other posts, the ‘83 Orioles lost 5 of their last 7, giving up 40 runs in those seven. In 9 postseason games they gave up 12 total runs. I have no idea if the O’s bats will wake up or struggle. I have no idea if the bullpen can get tough outs without a weapon like Bautista available. And I have no idea how the starters will perform in the intensity of the postseason. But unlike fans of 22 other teams next Saturday we can find out!

Yes they can be watched later.

A couple of memories from the end of that second 1983 7-game losing streak. The streak was snapped in Chicago in a game started by Bill Swaggerty. I don’t believe he got the win but pitched well-enough to keep the O’s in the game. The game after the streak was snapped the O’s beat the White Sox again, 2-1. Earlier in the game Ron Kittle hit what he thought was a home run. The umpires ruled fan interference (which I believe was the right call). Tony LaRussa completely flipped out, tossing third base, and getting ejected. Kittle was stranded, a key development in a one-run game.

Planned my Saturday around This Week In Baseball. When I got my Apple TV+ trial (to watch the O’s of course) I found they have a library of old episodes. It was fun watching the one from Opening Week in ‘82 with a feature on rookies Cal Ripken, Jr. and Terry Francona, both of whom with full heads of hair!

I look forward to reading Frobby’s updated post(s) after every win. It either brings back great memories or teaches me something new (or both) every time. Thanks!

I agree with this. That said, would like to see Flaherty get some bulk innings one of these next two in Cleveland. Preferably it would be after Means or Gibson gives 6+ and the O’s have a decent lead. I’d really like Hyde to extend Means to 90-100 pitches. He’s the one pitcher not gassed right now and he should be built up. I was a bit worried about how the starters would pitch the first time back on “only” 4 days rest. They needed to do it in prep for the playoffs but Rodriguez and Kremer have not been as sharp the last two days.

Yep, 40 games a year on TV and hardly any of them were home games. That’s what made radio so special.

Prior to this week the O’s had really only had one other semi-slump (losing 6 of 7 in late June/early July). The timing stinks but in the larger context another slump is not surprising. My concern is that this thing could snowball quickly given that Houston is next. BTW, the Rays are really good.

Great topic. IMO favorite season is a combination of on-field success (and perhaps how surprising it is) and how it fits into your life. For me '89 has always ranked highest simply because I was 18 and given Sunday season tickets as a HS graduation gift. It was the first time I went to more than a couple of games in a season and the success of that team came out of nowhere. Even now, 34 years later, there are memories from games I attended that feel as fresh as yesterday.

1978 was my first year as a fan. I remember one thing about attending my first Orioles game at Memorial Stadium - walking out from the concourse and seeing this beautiful field in front of me. My lifelong love of the Orioles and visiting MLB parks (I’ve been to 31 current and former as of today) was born that day.

Or look no further than the opening series at Fenway where the O’s turned a 10-4 8th inning lead into a 10-9 win and a 7-1 lead into…well, let’s not go there. I’m just glad today is the last game there this season. It has been a house of horrors for the bullpen and defense. And yet they can do no worse than go 3-3 there for the season.