I'm interested in the NLCS matchup. Wish it was going to be on network tv, but I'll be watching online via the Hot Corner. Speaking of which, are those two girls lame or what? IMO, they aren't representing female baseball fans well as far as their knowledge of the game. But I realize that they may provide other, uh, intangibles for the male fans who are watching.

Nobody expected four sweeps. I still don't.

I do find the Arizona-Colorado matchup intriguing on any number of levels, many esoteric. The lack of a Piniella in the dugout, to be sure, will be palpable. Anxious media types, hungry for ratings and readers, are no doubt praying that Bob Melvin takes to batting his pitchers eighth, or Clint Hurdle shows up in the dugout not wearing any pants.

(Yes, that one's very near its sell-by date.)

Nice how NJ and/or the $.35 edition have variously reported on the doings of ex-Nats Carroll, Castilla, and Hernandez. There's also the Rizzo Factor -- how (if at all) does Arizona intend to sustain and grow the organization built for them by, among others, the Nats' assistant GM?

And what return will they get on it this month? That works as a story line for me.

D-Backs vs. Rockies is an interesting NLCS because both are young teams with very talented homegrown players. It will probably be a lot more popular among NJ readers than among the general public, though. Those teams are where we all hope the Nats can be in 2009-12, and we'll be watching to see how they got there and how far away the Nats look to be. But there are virtually no marquee names on either squad, so the network can't be too pleased with this result, particularly in view of the long layoff we now fact.

... the long layoff we now FACE, I meant.

Any matchup featuring Barry's favorite pitch can't be all bad.

I am very interested in the matchup. The Rox's (not sure I like the abbreviation, but trying it out) pitching is young, not just the position players. So is Arizona's, with one lovable exception. Classic Livo yesterday.

Won't get the media buzz, and the long gap after the LDS is a marketing goof. Probably great baseball, low ratings.

A potpourri:

Probably safe to say that no one on this blog is dissuaded by low-national media interest.

"John Madden-esque" quote of the day: "Nature takes away a little something every year."

Anyone else having trouble with the Comcast feed? I'll take as many robots as you want to put in the broadcast, FOX, as long as you can provide a consistent feed.

My Cubs-fan girlfriend was watching last night (at my insistence, I said it was her last chance to send them in the post-season for awhile) and muttering about the Cubs and then declared, in a pout, "I miss the Nats".

No baseball until Thursday? Figures--wife's out of town, I can have all the pepperoni and anchovy pizza I want, no sideways looks at that third beer, no "Netflix Night" or Hi & Lois coming over for dinner, just baseball, beer, and big screen, baby. So OF COURSE they'll all sweep.

What are the chances of four LDS sweeps?

To keep it simple, assume the stronger team is always favored by 3:2. The a priori odds that all four stronger teams will sweep three games are 458 to 1.

Even assuming the stronger team is always favored by 2:1, the odds going in are still 129 to 1 against four sweeps.

That's why they play the games, and why MLB wasn't taking that much of a chance with the October scheduling.

The DBacks and Rockies are both interesting, fun teams to watch, lots of good young players we'll be seeing in the postseason for a long time, I think. Baseball fans will enjoy seeing Colo. hitters vs. Ariz. pitchers. There's the whole Glass Slipper thing, and a fair number of background personality stories on both sides.
If you don't enjoy watching teams you're not already familiar with, then, maybe not. But I got to watch Ariz. a fair bit this summer, and they are worth getting to know. I hear the same about the Rockies.

Is anyone else having technical difficulties with TBS right now? I'm getting "currently unavailable" on FIOS.

I don't have cable tv, but there is TBS Hot Corner audio and video feed via the MLB website. Also, Sheinin has his game thread up now.

So will the Rally Monkey lose his job now that the series is lost?

I think he'll be humanely euthanized.

My husband thought sent to a test lab (sick, but kinda funny).

I can see it now: the Rally Monkey comes into the waiting room at the hiring hall, where Joe Torre, KFed, and the Taco Bell chihuahua are already sitting. The Talking Gekko comes out of the agent's office, obviously having gotten the job, and nods to the "new guys" on his way out. The chihuahua says [something much to rude for this forum] to no one in particular. The monkey looks shocked, Torre looks used to it, Federline looks out of it.

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So will the Rally Monkey lose his job now that the series is lost?
Posted by: natsfan1a | October 7, 2007 06:59 PM