Category: Teams

MLB Final Four: How to Root For One

For the first time since 2021, none of our teams are in the league championship series. It’s not a good feeling for us. While we plan on watching both LCS’s and the World Series, the interest in the rest of the season won’t be as intense without one of our dogs in the mix. Believe it or not, I can make a case to root for any one of the final teams left in these playoffs. However, once I go through my review of the Blue Jays, Brewers, Dodgers and Mariners, it is quite clear that there is only one team that gets my vote (and I venture to say that all of us will be rooting for the same team).

Christian Yelich looks to avenge 2018. Credit: Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel

Seattle Mariners: They are the only team in Major League Baseball to have never made the World Series. It’s a great fanbase that plays in a beautiful ballpark. The Mariners have an outstanding starting rotation including a guy who is local to us, Rye’s George Kirby. They have a catcher who hit 60 home runs, for crying out loud. Who doesn’t love to see the Mariner Moose parade around the top of the dugout? Seattle has been talked about for years as a contender that doesn’t have a good offense. That has changed during this run.

Toronto Blue Jays: Impossible to root for since they eliminated the Yankees? Not so fast. There is an adage that says that if you lose to someone in a playoff round, you’d like it to be against the eventual champion. One of my favorite family vacations was a trip to Niagara Falls two years ago, which is only about an hour from Toronto. The Blue Jays have six players on the roster that came from the Yankees, Mets and Phillies. Their matchup against Seattle represents a meeting between teams that both entered the league in 1977.

Milwaukee Brewers: I actually saw a couple of Brewers’ playoff games in person: Games 3 and 5 of the 1981 divisional series at Yankee Stadium. Milwaukee has made one World series appearance, losing in seven games to the Cardinals in 1982. They were baseball’s best team in 2025, winning an MLB best 97 games. The league’s smallest market has also been one of its most consistent, even if the playoff ledger says otherwise. The Brewers face the Dodgers, hoping to have a different result from 2018 when they lost in seven games in this very round. Christian Yelich was the league MVP that year. He would like to be the NLCS MVP this year.

Los Angeles Dodgers: How can you root for the champs? One word: tradition. It oozes through their 100 plus year history. They are one of the winningest franchises in the sport. Other than the occasional Spanish wearing days, the uniform does not change. Dodger Stadium is still majestic, some 60 years after it was built. Peer pressure from MLB Network will force you to root for Shohei Ohtani so you might as well submit to it. We love winners. Why not cheer for the one going for their third championship in six years?

The verdict: It’s not a debate. The Milwaukee Brewers are the clear favorite in our house. There are a number of reasons why we wouldn’t be pulling for the Blue Jays and Dodgers; the losses by the Yankees and Phillies are the icing on the cake. Seattle is a little trickier, just based on the fact they have never been to a World Series. What tips the balance in favor of the Brewers is that I still remember the Yankees losing to the Mariners in the 1995 playoffs. I could get over it except that is the last time Don Mattingly played baseball. After being a small market team that seemingly has to struggle every season, it’s time for the Brewers to finally claim a championship.

Yankees Autopsy: What Is Next for the Deceased?

There are two things to observe about the debacle we just witnessed. First, the “Aaron Judge can’t perform when it counts narrative” died with every ball smacked into the field of play. Secondly, the New York Yankees were eliminated in a playoff series by an American League East rival for the fourth time in the Aaron Boone era. I don’t want to belabor what we just saw. There will be enough anger over the coming weeks to last us through Spring Training. The goal now is to try to guess what is next for a franchise that is pretty close to matching their longest championship drought.

Does Jason Dominguez fit with the Yankees in 2026? Credit: NY Post

Let’s make one assumption: both Boone and Brian Cashman will be back. That assumption will not please many fans. But rather than wasting time arguing about it (which might come in a future post), let’s figure out what they should do. This is a quick snapshot of what my thoughts are in this moment.

To me, the first order of business is deciding what to do with Jasson Dominguez. Will he get a full time gig or will he be just another Yankee hyped prospect that does nothing with the team? If we assume they are done with Dominguez, then package him to Cleveland for Steven Kwan. I am sick of the strikeouts. Do you know who doesn’t strike out? The Toronto Blue Jays. You know, the team that just sent the Yanks packing. My preference would be to keep Dominguez but trading him for Kwan is a step in the right direction. Kwan is the type of high average, low strikeout player the Yanks desperately need. If that’s the move, then re-signing Cody Bellinger (if he opts out) makes a lot of sense. Trading Jazz Chisholm Jr. and giving second base to Oswaldo Cabrera is something I would entertain. Jazz is good but in keeping with my (which should be their) philosophy, I won’t miss the 148 strikeouts. As for Trent Grisham, I don’t think we will see another season like that from him again. I believe he will want too much money and therefore, will be playing elsewhere in 2026.

The pitching staff is is 90% complete. The rotation is pretty set. Maybe the bullpen gets another arm. Not much more to do.

And so another early offseason begins. Plenty of time to complain about why Aaron Boone and Brian Cashman still have jobs. Don’t waste your time on things you can’t control. The only way moves are made is if we all made an effort to ignore the Yankees next year. That won’t happen.

Yankees Win: How Long Will the Good Vibes Last?

Phase One is complete for the New York Yankees. They eliminated the Boston Red Sox and now face another American League East foe, the Toronto Blue Jays. I made the point that the Yankees HAD to win this Red Sox series or else they might undergo, as what I like to refer to as, “an organizational earthquake”. The celebration is brief as the Yanks are right back at it on Saturday in Toronto. As much as we love beating the Red Sox (Aaron Boone should be exceptionally giddy), the good vibes the team is feeling could come crashing to a halt by this time next week.

Cam Schlittler pitched the Yanks into the next round. Credit: NY Post

If the Yankees get bounced in this round, will we even be satisfied about beating Boston in the previous round? I would say no. In fact, the only thing we would remember would be Cam Schlittler‘s epic performance in Game 3 and that Aaron Judge had an excellent offensive series. Other than that, there will be the same angst, the same level of frustration among the fansbase that gripped us for a good portion of the second half. The whispers about Boone’s job security will grow to a roar and the calls for Brian Cashman to go will mount even more. Yankee fans are not supposed to celebrate making it to a Division Series, even if they knocked off their most hated rival along the way. This is a team right now that appears to be poised for a return to the World Series.

I felt before the Wild Card round that if the Yankees can beat the Red Sox, they can win it all. That hasn’t changed. My confidence is actually a little bit higher now, thanks to Schlittler’s dominant performance. Beating the Red Sox is huge and I am not going to minimize that. However, losing to the Blue Jays will make the Boston victory hollow……until we see them in 2026.

The Yankees Better Win This Series

The headline is quite obvious. Yes, the New York Yankees need to win their Wild Card series against the Boston Red Sox or else they cease playing baseball for the rest of 2025. They not only better win this series in order to continue on a quest for a championship, but they also need to do so because of the potential implications of defeat. For if the Red Sox beat the Yankees, I believe the reverberations will be felt all the way up to the front office. I like to call it an organizational earthquake.

Does Aaron Boone survive another Red Sox playoff defeat? Credt: New York Post

A loss to the Red Sox in this round in this year would be the one scenario where the jobs of Aaron Boone and Brian Cashman would be in jeopardy. To be clear, I am not calling for the dismissal for either man. Plenty of other people will do that for me. However, look at the records of both organizations over the last 20 years, beginning in 2005. Boston has won three World Series under three different managers and three different front offices. The Yankees have won the World Series just once during that time. Cashman has been the team’s chief decision maker during these last two decades. More recently, let’s compare the managers. Boone and Alex Cora each assumed the helm prior to the 2018 season. Cora’s Red Sox beat Boone’s Yankees in the divisional round on their way to winning it all. The two teams also squared off in the 2021 Wild Card game with Boston once again coming out on top. The Red Sox have been flat out better. Why do I believe a loss this year could be almost, if not more catastrophic than the 2004 meltdown?

Not only have the Sox won more recently, but they have also fallen down and gotten back up. Yes, the Yankees have been a model of consistency, with playoff appearance after playoff appearance. Cora was suspended for the 2020 season. Boston has finished last three times since 2018. The front office changed again. The Red Sox were roasted for trading Rafael Devers in May. Yet, here the Red Sox are, threatening to derail another Yankees’ postseason run. It’s bad enough they owned the Yankees during the regular season. Can you imagine Alex Cora and company once again celebrating a playoff series victory on Yankee Stadium soil? How does Yankee ownership not make wholesale changes should they lose this first round? Their arch nemesis, the one that has owned them over the last 20 years, the one that has risen, fallen and then risen again all the while the Yankees go another year without a championship is pretty humiliating.

There has to be repercussions for this specific failure. I’m afraid Boone might be the one who pays the price. If not, expect a cataclysmic meltdown from both fans and the media. If you thought last year’s World Series defeat triggered this group of people, you haven’t seen anything yet.

One Weekend of Fate for the Mets

At this time 90 days ago, if you told me the New York Mets were not guaranteed a playoff spot by now, I would have laughed at you. The Mets were 48-34 on June 26, still in first place, albeit by only a half game. In my mind, the 2024 season proved that these were not the “same old Mets”; that narrative was buried. The momentum built from last year’s magical run was still fresh even as they were enduring their first real rough patch of the season. No way they were going to miss the playoffs, I thought.

In three days, I might be proven wrong.

Hopefully, we get a bigger celebration this weekend. Credit: Rising Apple

As recently as a week ago, I wrote that I was still confident in New York clinching that final Wild Card berth. Now? The confidence is wavering. Though the team is still a game ahead of the Cincinnati Reds, the tiebreaker is not on the Mets’ side. It would behoove the club to sweep the Miami Marlins and not leave anything out of their hands. Easier said than done, considering the Marlins were eliminated from contention last night. There is nothing more the Fish would like to do than shut up the multitude of Mets’ fans that will invade Loan Depot Park this weekend.

So to the players of the New York Mets, what is it going to be? Will you rally and exhibit the sort of heart and guts that exemplified last year’s team? Or, does this weekend with perhaps the most disappointing Mets team of them all? Make no mistake, missing the playoffs will be much more catastrophic than the collapse of 2007. It will be far worse than “The Worst Team Money Can Buy of 1992. The Mets of 2025 would take the worst elements of both of those black marks in franchise history. It combines the collapse of 2007 with the payroll waste of 1992. I don’t think that’s an overstatement. Although I have a more passive rooting interest, I know I would be disgusted if this weekend ends without a champagne celebration. It would have to be the most disappointing Met outcome of my lifetime.

One weekend of fate. One weekend to determine if the New York Mets have buried their narrative of rotten luck once and for all. Win, and it’s sunshine for at least a week. Lose, and go down in infamy. Your choice.

Confident in a Mets’ Playoff Berth

Mets’ fans, I apologize in advance if this prediction goes wrong. I feel very strongly that by this time next week, the Amazins will have clinched the final National League Wild Card spot. Before you get all mad at me, it’s not Sal Lincata declaring the NL East over. Follow me for a minute. There are signs that the Mets are done with the death spiral that dominated most of the last six weeks. Jonah Tong pitched well in his last outing. Francisco Lindor is on an eight game hitting streak. Juan Soto is aiming for 40-30. Pete Alonso keeps hitting home runs. To top it off, six of the last nine games are against the Nationals and Marlins. The other three are against the Cubs, who may be more content to rest before they begin their own Wild Card series.

Expect a bigger celebration than this next weekend. Credit: Yahoo Sports

It’s not just that the Mets are playing like we thought they would. It’s that other teams are blowing opportunities. When the Mets were mauled in a four game sweep in Philadelphia and dropping two in row to the Rangers, no one could leap ahead of them in the standings. Take the Reds. They were literally a game and a half out last week. They were then rewarded by getting swept in Sacramento by the A’s. Or the Giants. They were tied with the Reds, then proceeded to drop four in a row between Saturday and Tuesday. Finally, we have the Diamondbacks. After pulling off their best Monty Hall/Wayne Brady act at the deadline, they suddenly started playing well. In fact, on Wednesday morning, they had a chance to sweep the Giants, and with a Met loss, an opportunity to get within a half game of that last spot. Brandon Pfaadt threw nine (!) shutout innings but Arizona could not take advantage of two runner on third/one out situations late and ended up losing in 11 innings.

The combination of the Mets righting their own house and these other teams taking their best shots and missing is why I am supremely confident in a Mets’ playoff berth. I will get some heat from the Mets’ fans in my life about my bold statement for being a jinx. Too bad. Stop being a bunch of Chicken Littles. For once in your fandom, put it out there and tell me your team is October bound.

Finally, a Good Sunday For the Mets

You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have the facts of life. What could the lyrics from a 1980s television show have to do with the New York Mets? Well, the facts of life and this iconic opening line apply to any Major League Baseball season. You have to take all of the good if you are a team like the Mets and endure some bad times over 162 games. Granted, their bad has been downright awful lately. However, on this Sunday, the Amazins had some good news on their side.

Carlos Mendoza is trying to run the Mets into the playoffs. Credit: Yahoo

Let’s start with their game in the afternoon. Nolan McLean was outstanding once again, tossing six shutout innings, departing with a 2-0 lead. You knew that wouldn’t last, correct? The bullpen gave it up but managed to get the game to extra innings. Pete Alonso then delivered the most important hit of the season, a three run home run to propel New York the 5-2 victory. The win halted the club’s eight game losing streak and it could not come at a more opportune time. It is also the type of game they would have lost earlier this month. The second part of the Mets’ fabulous day was the fact that both the Cincinnati Reds and San Francisco Giants lost their respective finales. They are the two teams chasing New York for the final playoff spot. Cincinnati, who owns the tiebreaker between the teams, is now 2.5 games back and on a three game losing streak. The Giants are now 1.5 games behind, having lost their final two games against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Could the rally by the Mets today along with the good fortune of their competitors lose finally break this second half malaise?

Not so fast. The Arizona Diamondbacks, the team that sold a ton of talent at the deadline, have appeared in the rear view mirror. They have actually leapfrogged the Reds and are only two games out. But here, the Mets get more good news. The D’backs final four series are against the Giants, Phillies, Dodgers and Padres. They can’t possibly jump into the final spot, can they? Take the good, take the bad, take them both and there you have the final Wild Card spot.

Can the Yankees Finally Top the Red Sox?

Wonderful. Well not really. Tonight’s New York Yankees-Boston Red Sox game is on Apple TV. Therefore, with the Yanks winning 2-0 as I write this, I have the displeasure of not viewing it. Instead, I get the non-privilege of watching the New York Mets continue their second half from hell. Yanks-Red Sox in September equals national TV broadcasts: tonight, Apple TV, tomorrow, MLB Network and Sunday, ESPN. The two teams have a storied rivalry, hence the national audiences. However, the 2025 season is anything but a rivalry as the Sox have dominated the Yanks, winning eight games out of ten.

Time for Max Fried to be the big money pitcher the Yankees pay him to be. Credit: NY Post

New York is due.

New York is primed to sweep Boston.

Boy I hope so.

I say that are ready for this because Aaron Judge is peaking at the right time. He has spent most of this last week chasing down and surpassing Yankee legends Yogi Berra and Joe DiMaggio on the career home run list. Hopefully, this momentum carries over into the playoffs and buries the narrative that he can’t perform when it counts. Look at Giancarlo Stanton. The last time his batting average was better than his current .268 this late in the season was four years ago. He has 20 home runs in 63 games. I get this feeling Max Fried will have a dominant start on Saturday like another legendary Yankee , Whitey Ford. His big Yankee moment has to come at Fenway Park. Most of all, this team is too talented to remain Boston’s punching bag for yet another three games. They need to showcase why they are the defending American League champions.

In all likelihood, these two teams will meet in the first round of the playoffs. This series, with the teams separated by a half game, will go a long way in determining who will be the host. A Yankees sweep would stop the Red Sox aura of invincibility surrounding these meetings in 2025. A Yankee series defeat will leave a ton of questions about how equipped this team is to return to the World Series.

Are the Phillies Getting Hot At the Right Time?

I sit here on Wednesday night watching the Philadelphia Phillies beating up on the New York Mets yet again. The Phillies won the first two games of the four game series this week and are trending toward a third straight win. The division race is over and suddenly, they are creeping closer to grabbing the #1 seed in the National League. The Mets have been bad, losers of four straight, heading toward a fifth consecutive loss tonight. However, the broader question is this.

Are the Phillies getting hot at the perfect time?

The Phillies are celebrating their latest good stretch of baseball. Credit: Yahoo

This week did not start out so good. The left side of their infield, Trea Turner and Alec Bohm, were placed on the injured list. Bohm will be back as soon as ten days have concluded while Turner could miss the rest of the regular season. A first round bye would be welcome for the club. Since August 1st, Philadelphia is 24-13 and has won six of eight games to begin September. Bryson Stott has awaken from a season long slump, hitting .333 over his last seven games. Same for Brandon Marsh, who is at .344 over his last 30 contests. Ranger Suarez struck out a career high 12 batters on Tuesday. Jhoan Duran and David Robertson have lifted the entire bullpen. This stretch has come with some significant adversity. Both Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper are hitting under.200 over the last month. Ace Zack Wheeler last pitched August 15 and is done for the year. Bohm and Turner are now going to miss a minimum of ten games. 11 games over .500 with so many issues? It sounds like a squad that is peaking.

Just wait until Harper and Schwarber resume hitting. The injured infielders get a little bit of a break before the hardest part of the season. After a tough trip to Los Angeles and Arizona, the Phillies close out the year at home vs. the Marlins and Twins. Everything is pointing to the continuing torrid stretch exhibited by the team. The next question is, will it carry the Phillies to a Word Series championship?

The Yankees Won Another Big Series, But Hold the Applause

At this time last week, there was a sense that the upcoming four series for the New York Yankees would tell us a lot about their chances in the playoffs. The Yanks sported a combined 7-19 record vs. the Houston Astros, Toronto Blue Jays, Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox heading into this stretch. While comfortably in a playoff spot, the team’s record against the four clubs didn’t inspire confidence as the regular season winds down. Safe to say, after going 4-2 against the Astros and Blue Jays, including today’s 4-3 series-clinching victory over Toronto, we feel a bit better about the Yankees and where they are heading.

Aaron Judge needs to be 1005 by this weekend. Credit: Sports Illustrated

Not 100% better, mind you, so let’s take it easy.

After winning two out of three this weekend, New York finished the season series against Toronto with a record of 5-8. They committed another two errors today, which, amazingly, did not hurt them. The Red Sox head to Sacramento to play the A’s, who own one of the worst home records in baseball. Boston looking to make up for the game and a half difference between them and the Bronx Bombers prior to next weekend’s showdown in Boston. We are fully aware that the Yankees are an unsightly 2-8 vs. the Red Sox, so winning two out three vs. the Tigers is mandatory. There is a chance they have to go through Tarik Skubal in Thursday’s finale as the reigning Cy Young Award winner last pitched Saturday. Given how Aaron Judge threw a ball back to the infield on Friday, their best lineup is still at least a week away. Judge will either have to DH full time or risk being compromised in right field. Either way, a potent bat will be missing this week or the outfield defense will again be a concern. No short walls like there were in Houston.

Perhaps I should take a cue from Ryan when he texted our group chat that the Yankees were only two games behind the Blue Jays. Maybe I should be more happy. After all, he can be a glass half empty guy when it comes to his team. I’m willing to be satisfied on this evening. Let’s see where we are at this time next week. If they flop in Boston again, we will go back to our skepticism that we have been living for most of this second half.