Baseball Musings
Baseball Musings
September 30, 2006
Massive Tie Review and Outlook

To wrap up last night's NL action, the Dodgers come back against Mike Stanton in the ninth, scoring two runs to take a 4-3 lead. Stanton didn't get pounded. He gave up two singles and a walk, but a fielder's choice put a runner at third with two out, and Stanton uncorked a wild pitch.

Saito allowed two singles in his half of the ninth, but also struck out two to earn the save. The win puts the Dodgers in a tie for first place in the NL West, both teams two games in front of the Phillies. A win by the Padres or the Dodgers today puts that team in the playoffs, either as the wild card or the division winner.

But all six teams are still in contention for the massive tie. Here's what needs to happen today:

  • Milwaukee defeats St. Louis.
  • Philadelphia defeats Florida.
  • San Francisco defeats Los Angeles.
  • Arizona defeats San Diego.
  • Houston defeats Atlanta.
  • Cincinnati defeats Pittsburgh.

The only game with some leeway is Houston/Atlanta. The Cardinals need to lose all three of their remaining games, and Cincinnati needs to win both of theirs. If that happens, the Astros need to split. St. Louis plays early, however. If they win, that eliminates Cincinnati, and the Astros need to win to keep the chance for a tie alive. A Cardinals win and a Houston loss puts St. Louis in the playoffs and the greatest collapse of all time never happened.


Posted by David Pinto at 08:06 AM | Division Races | TrackBack (0)
Comments

David, question: as something who follows every team, how often do you see stories like this: http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/mets/ny-spmets0930,0,4066853.story?coll=ny-sports-headlines
Met vets seem like a solid bunch, focused on winning. That leads me to believe his behavior is rather unacceptable. And he's been spoken to by Willie, and clubhouse leaders, several times of the course of the season.

Posted by: abe at September 30, 2006 09:23 AM

Not to often. It reminds me of the opposite story. I heard Ken Ryan speak at a local SABR meeting once. Ken was with the Phillies when Scott Rolen debuted. Rolen carried himself on the field like a professional. The way he reacted to something great he accomplished was humble. By the end of the first day, he was an accepted member of the team. Milledge hasn't learned that yet.

Posted by: David Pinto at September 30, 2006 10:01 AM

Thanks for the insight. Wright and Reyes handled it well. Vets like Franco, Delgado and Beltran lead by example. And Cliff Floyd made an effort to take Millidge under his wing. In light of that I wonder if his window in NY is not closing.

Posted by: abe at September 30, 2006 10:20 AM
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