Playoff Thread

[Alan Ehlers]

I figure the playoffs start tonight with the 3 game set between the Calzones and New Orleans so might as well start a thread to talk about the playoffs. I am pulling for the Calzones and hope they get in. The Knights are looking forwrd to next year and hope they can pass Bakersfield for third tonight.

[klewis]

Ahhh this thread need some love! I'll chime in by wishing everyone good luck in the playoffs!

Despite having the best record in IL, I don't feel too comfortable with my match up against New Orleans. It's hard to bet against a team that has both Jeff Cline and Conan McCullough.

Probably my most favorite series to check out is Crystal Lake versus Palm Springs. That's just a heavyweight match up with both teams making it to the Rodriguez Cup in seasons past. Both teams have been playoff veterans. So it will be interesting to see which team comes out on top.

As good as Aurora is, it's interesting to see that Fargo has some decent success in the regular season against them. Could we possibly get an upset?

London versus Charleston should be a fun one as well. Despite winning the Pan-Atlantic Division and having home field advantage in the series, it still feels that London is the underdog just by judging by the win-loss record alone.

Probably my most favorite thing about the playoffs will be checking out the potential storylines involved. Which player will rise to the occasion and cement his name as a household name in the playoffs? (My eyes are on Crystal Lake's Sok-Man Yi). From a personal interest standpoint of view, I would love to see a Florida-Aurora match up for the Cup.... primarily just to see the storyline of Richardson and Kichida trading places. Or what about a London-Fargo Cup series?

[Sandgnats (Bill)]

THE SL
Codgers & Sandgnats:
For whatever reason, this year I am least confident about surviving the first round the playoffs. I am only totally confident in 2 of our 4 horses(starting pitchers) and when I take a look at Palm Springs 3-4-5 in their lineup, all I can say is GULP! The Codgers basically have back to back to back 40 Hr hitters there in a lefty dominated lineup. Our staff has 1 lefty to combat that. I know OOTP doesn't seem to put too much weight on righty/lefty matchups, but the task of eliminating Palm Springs with that lineup(and their ballpark factor) is a little daunting nontheless!
Looking at the series objectively......The Codgers have cooled off considerably the last 2 months after playing mostly through the All-Star break at a .650 to .675 clip. CL's record in August and September was the best in PEBA. Normally, I would give CL the edge here. But, with Manny Lopez out (91 HR's in 2008 and 2009) due to injury and PS devastating offense-I believe the Codgers will take this one.
My prediction=Palm Springs in 5.

Dinosaurs & Borealis:
This series has all the makings of an upset of Fargo beating Aurora. Fargo is coming off a 3 game sweep of Aurora on September 10-12 where it was a definite playoff environment. Fargo won (2) 1-run games and only allowed 4 Borealis runs in 3 games! Considering that Aurora is #1 in virtually every offensive category in the SL, that kind of pitching dominance in that series is no easy feat!
Factor in also, that Aurora is also coming off their worst month of 2010 at .520 and Fargo it's best at .760 winning percentages-things are ripe for an upset. Oh yeah, did I mention that Aurora just lost 2 of their relievers to injury?
Despite these large points weighing heavily on Fargo's side, the Dinos just do not have much offensive fire power at all. Take a look at their home page, I mean they have 2 hitters above a .250 Avg!!!!!! Not 7, not 5, but two! Combine that fact with the Dino's ranking 9th in the SL in Runs scored as a team and their top HR man at only 27(in 160 games). It's hard to see Fargo having a shot here.
My prediction=Aurora in 4.

[Sandgnats (Bill)]

THE IL
London & Charleston
Although SP Anastasio Molina (LON) is a soft tosser and is about as durable as glass, he has been paramount in London's success winning 14 games while sporting an amazing 2.84 ERA! So, his injury in late August couldn't be any more devastating. Although Anthony Cox has performed as a true ace this year, the Underground face a huge drop off in talent going to a 4th playoff starter. On the brighter side of things, Remi "Blackjack" Young just came back from his injury stint and Orlando German is a game changer on offense. Despite those 2 big bats, the Underground's offense overall, is just mediocre.
The Statesmen..........despite having 2 infielders and an excellent reliever on the shelf with injuries, they have played at a .676 clip since the beginning of June!!! When Victor Matos came over from ARL in last May, he took the starting staff to new heights of success. The Statesmen have the best starting pitching in the league now and given their team HR power, I think they will come out on top in this 5 game series. Even if this comes to fruition, an enormous amount of applause goes to London for winning their division in such a small market!
My prediction=Charleston in 4.

New Orleans & Florida
The Trendsetters held off San Antonio for the last wilcard spot and life does not get any easier now that they're in the playoffs. They get rewarded by playing the IL powerhouse-Featherheads. Even though Florida was dealt a huge blow in losing All-Star SP Bill Taylor for 8 months, they have perservered and won an astounding 104 games! Florida's offense will eat you alive and spit out the remains! The Featherheads had a jaw dropping 5 men with 30+ Hr's in 2010! And even if you can manage to limit the long ball, they led the IL in SB with a remarkable 204! SS Naoaki Kichida stole a PEBA record 89 bases and 2 other stole over 35. So, whether it's station to station or majestic HR's, their offense is simply overwhelming! Despite NO having only one month of .600 + ball under their belts in 2010, a horrendous bullpen, their only dominating reliever out with an injury, hope springs eternal in the Trendsetter clubhouse! Why? Conan McCullough, experience of a PEBA championship, and C Jeff Cline-that's why! Oh, did I mention NO blasted 197 HR's in 2010? I think NO would have a chance against any other playoff team other than Aurora, but Florida is just too stacked to be taken down.
My prediction=Florida in 4.

[John]

I just have to say: great posts, Kevin and Bill! You guys are fanning my flames of excitement for tonight's sim. We've got a lot of things going on in Aurora. In addition to the start of the playoffs, several contract extension offers have just been placed, one of them very significant. I'm really looking forward to seeing how the first-timers do; I think London and Fargo have a chance to make some noise, and Florida looks like a force. Considering we're about to have our first human-run LRS playoffs starting shortly, this is probably the most excited I've been for a postseason.

[Ghosts]

...a single tear slowly falls down the bakersfield bear's face.

[Sandgnats (Bill)]

Everybody is still alive.........

WOO HOO!

I won't elaborate due to the spoiler effect, but I am happy there weren't any sweeps!

[Dinosaurs]

wow, my closer Raul Pinto has had such an amazing year, but has given up runs in both of the first two games (and losses), the last guy I'd think would cost me a win. Very competitive games thus far though...

[John]

Very competitive games thus far though...

To say the least! Every single game in our series has been won the last at bat. More of that, please! And I agree with Bill: It's great to see no sweeps. I likes the long series.

A note to playoff teams who have suffered injuries: You may replace your injured player with any player who was on your 40-man roster. DL or DFA list on the morning of Sept. 1 (in other words, they had to be on there just before Sept. 1 arrived; they can't have been put there on Sept. 1 itself). The caveat is that the replaced player must sit out not only the remainder of the current series but the entirety of the next series as well. Gauge whether this is worth it to you or not by the amount of injury time the player has left.

[klewis]

Crystal Lake and Palm Springs look to be an all out war. You got fallen guys all over the place! I saw the Pinto outings. Heh, I did notice Mr. Mark Richardson taking care of business in game 1. Guy is a stud despite enduring a fractured cheekbone!

I also encourage those to watch the replay of the games. There's some great stuff in there that you may miss from reading box scored or game logs. Like I noticed some great defensive catches in the outfield.... it makes me appreciate gifted defenders much more.

While looking over the other games, I'm curious why London's Anthony Cox did not start game 1 of the series nor appeared in a game yet. Was this by design or some strategy involved behind this decision? Just curious to hear Scott's take.

[John]

I also encourage those to watch the replay of the games. There's some great stuff in there that you may miss from reading box scored or game logs. Like I noticed some great defensive catches in the outfield.... it makes me appreciate gifted defenders much more.

This is a suggestion well worth taking. I wonder how many of you regularly check out game replays? Somehow I get the feeling it's not as many as you might think. If you're not checking out replays, you're missing one of the best new features of OOTP 9. Like Kevin said, there's so many details that you'd otherwise never know about unless you go through the replays. And if you use them like I do - hiding the scores until you've finished watching the replay - it really builds the suspense.

[Nigel]

While looking over the other games, I'm curious why London's Anthony Cox did not start game 1 of the series nor appeared in a game yet. Was this by design or some strategy involved behind this decision? Just curious to hear Scott's take.

Anthony had just pitched a few days prior to the playoffs which is why I didn't start him in game 1. Charleston is lefty heavy, so I didn't mind having Tapia and Pena go the first two games. The third game is where i screwed up. I never use the 7 day lineup (I'm thinking of doing it now), but I did set my rotation to use the highest rated rested pitcher. With as many days as he had off I was expecting Cox to start game 3, but it didn't happen. In the end I don't mind Cox pitching game 4, it's a must win and we have our best on the mound.

[klewis]

Thanks for the explanation. I primary used 7-day line ups but I do notice there are some pitfalls there too. Only reason I bring up Cox is because I was I mainly surprised to see Cox not pitched game 1 due to the fact that London had already clinched the division and playoff spot awhile ago... so there was a chance to rearrange the rotation prior to the playoffs. Anyway good luck! You guys will have to do it without Remi Young but I suppose London is used to adversity by the know with the loss of Molina earlier in the season.

Good luck to everyone else. I feel Fargo could have easily advanced already... very surprising to see Pinto give it up a few times. Palm Springs and Charleston appear to be a blood bath of two titans butting heads. Florida is attempting to finish off the series but opposing us will be the golden arm of Conan McCullough. Of course, the aforementioned series between London and Charleston will be interesting. Charleston was my odds on favorite to advance to the Rodriguez Cup and win it all during the preseason polls.

While looking over the other games, I'm curious why London's Anthony Cox did not start game 1 of the series nor appeared in a game yet. Was this by design or some strategy involved behind this decision? Just curious to hear Scott's take.

Anthony had just pitched a few days prior to the playoffs which is why I didn't start him in game 1. Charleston is lefty heavy, so I didn't mind having Tapia and Pena go the first two games. The third game is where i screwed up. I never use the 7 day lineup (I'm thinking of doing it now), but I did set my rotation to use the highest rated rested pitcher. With as many days as he had off I was expecting Cox to start game 3, but it didn't happen. In the end I don't mind Cox pitching game 4, it's a must win and we have our best on the mound.

[Sandgnats (Bill)]

Now that there's been a day to enjoy/fear the playoff results, anybody offer a suggestion for these performances?

Hisashi 'Gigolo' Oike
2010 September = 1.71 ERA - 0.99 WHIP - 6.0 K/BB & 2010 Playoffs = 9.00 ERA - 2.00 WHIP - 1.7 K/BB

Nelson 'Nails' Anderson
2010 September = 0.97 ERA - 0.86 WHIP - 7.9 K/BB & 2010 Playoffs = 15.43 ERA - 2.57 WHIP - 0.8 K/BB

Norberto 'Pickles' Pacheco
2010 September = 1.25 ERA - 0.78 WHIP - 8.8 K/BB & 2010 Playoffs = 13.50 ERA - 2.57 WHIP - 1.50 K/BB

I would like to point out that I did not pick a random month of the 2010 regular season to compare, I picked the most recent month. I could see one of these aces getting tagged, but all 3 of them??!? When did these horrendous playoff performances occur? You guessed it-IN SEPTEMBER!!!

On top of that, Andres 'Genocide' Diaz who enjoyed a strong but not stellar September additionally had a WHIP of over 2.00 and an ERA over 9.00 is his playoff start. You may remember Diaz from such performances as 2.68 ERA in 2010 - 59.5 VORP in 2010 - 208 K's in 2010 - 4th best WHIP in SL - 3rd best K/BB ration in the SL. Yeah, that Andres Diaz. A horrible actor, but terrific starting pitcher!

So, basically 4 aces spanning a array of 2 days getting absolutely destroyed. All 4 of them!
STOP THE INSANITY!
BTW, it's always great to conclude a post with a infomercial reference.

[klewis]

Speaking of those performances... take a look of Dean O'Monahan's outing. It makes those performances above look like world beaters.

In terms to attempting a reasoning for this..... I suppose it goes back to the old adage that everything resets once in the postseason. Regular season records does not matter. Regular season accolades and awards do not matter. Every team has a shot and anyone can emerge or implode.