ALCS/NLCS Takeaways By: Hank Indictor
You know what? I've made up my mind for these takeaways. I'm going to do things a little bit differently. And as has been said many times on Jeopardy, I will make this one a true Daily Double. Daily Double for what? Well, another episode of Top 5 Reasons You Can't Blame, of course! And so, for the first episode, let's go over to the American League side. The Houston Astros had a 3-2 series lead over the Texas Rangers and seemed destined to return to the Fall Classic when Jose Altuve hit a clutch 3-run home run in Game 5. But then, somehow, they blew it. How did this happen? This was their chance to repeat and establish themselves as a dynasty and shut up all the haters once and for all. But is it entirely their fault for failing to repeat? Here are my Top 5 Reasons you can't blame the Houston Astros for failing to make history.
5. Injuries Happen: The Astros had to battle their share of adversity to reach this point again. For a fraction of the regular season, they were without Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez and were in a dogfight to win their division. Even worse, they lost Luis Garcia and Lance McCullers in May and June, respectively, for the season. Could one or both of these pitchers have tamed the Rangers lineup? It's hard to say. But as Nick Morgasen and I have often said, "It was a fallacy of a predetermined outcome."
4. Pitching: The Astros pitching staff wasn't as deep as just one year prior. Even with the return of Justin Verlander, it was still a question mark going into the postseason, as Christian Javier had an ERA over 4, and Hunter Brown had an ERA over 5. And when Houston had a chance to win Game 6, Framber Valdez couldn't win like he had just one year prior. However, we have to give the Texas Rangers credit in this department. After all, even though they didn't get enough production from their significant acquisitions of Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer, their secondary pitching acquisitions helped Texas reach their 3rd World Series appearance in franchise history. If not for Jordan Montgomery and Nathan Eovaldi, there's no way we are having this conversation, as they've been highly effective throughout the postseason. Have to give them credit where credit is due
3. Adolis Garcia and the rest of the Rangers Lineup: This series was simply the Adolis Garcia show. He set an LCS record with 14 RBIs and had many clutch hits in the comeback, including two home runs in Game 7. However, the Rangers damage didn't just come from Garcia. They also got key contributions from guys like Corey Seager, Mitch Garver, Jonah Heim, and even 21-year-old Evan Carter, to name a few. Credit goes where credit is due; they are a team that creates their luck with great situational hitting. Something I wish the Yankees could've done against them in years past, but that's a story for another day. But do you want to know another big reason you must tip your cap to Texas?
2. Bruce Bochy: This isn't to scapegoat Dusty Baker at all; he was a great manager for the Astros who arrived during a time of chaos. I wish him the best in retirement. However, we also have to tip our caps to Bruce Bochy. This man led an excellent turnaround for a team that just a few years ago lost over 100 games, and his experience was helpful for Texas in getting back to the World Series. After all, this is the same Bochy that won 3 rings in 5 years during his time in San Francisco! And there's a reason Giants fans don't take him for granted
1. Dynasties/Repeats aren't easy: There's also a reason we haven't seen a repeat Champion since the late 90's with the Yankees. Only some teams not named the Yankees have repeated (the Big Red Machine, the 70's A's, and the early 90's Blue Jays are some that come to mind). Say what you want about the Astros and their run since 2017, but reaching the ALCS for seven consecutive years is an impressive feat in and of itself. If you look at the history of the Astros before 2017, you'll see that they used to have a legacy of failure. Since then, they've set a standard for building a team correctly. Time will tell what happens next year and beyond, but ask any lifelong Astros fan, and more than likely, they'll tell you that they've been longing for a run like this scandal or not.
As for the Diamondbacks vs Phillies series, this was quite the upset. And this is the biggest Cinderella run we've seen since the arguably 2003 Marlins! Rob Thomson has been getting a ton of criticism from Phillies fans, and understandably so. Why? Well, let's just say using Craig Kimbrel in a high-leverage situation is essentially the equivalent of playing with fire. The pool shot by Alek Thomas was essentially the series changer here. However, is it entirely fair to blame this series on Topper? Here are the Top 5 Reasons you can't blame Rob Thompson for the Phillies' historic collapse!
5. Craig Kimbrel: As much as he struggled in this postseason, he's also had a reputation as one of the better relievers for much of his career. After all, he has amassed 417 saves for his career. So, in fairness, we can't truly fault Thomson here. Still, this game might not have mattered if not for a series of events in the previous game
4. Game 3: Sure, a sweep against the Diamondbacks wasn't realistic. But you'd think the Phillies would've at least done better than getting three hits in this game. And when they had runners in scoring position, they scored 0 for 4. In other words, they gave this game away more than Game 4. Still, you also have to give their starting pitcher credit where credit is due
3. Brandon Pfaadt: He may have been a rookie pitcher, but in his two postseason starts, he seemed cool, calm, and collected, in addition to having the maturity of a Major League veteran. And he was just one key member of this squad that came through.
2. The scrappiness of the Diamondbacks: The Diamondbacks, unlike the Phillies, were a team that didn't rely on the long ball, and they were not a team that would go down without a fight. Ketel Marte was a deserving MVP, hitting .387 with four doubles, a triple, and 3 RBIs. Gabriel Moreno also emerged as a star during this postseason and continued to make a significant impact during the comeback. And, of course, soon-to-be Rookie of the Year Corbin Carroll went 3 for 4 in Game 7 while driving in 2 and showing more glimpses that he's emerging as a star! Were the Diamondbacks a better team than the Phillies? Maybe not on paper, but that's not where the games are played. And guess what? Even with the Alek Thomas home run, the Phillies still had a chance to put them away
1. The Phillies' failure at home in Games 6 and 7: If you have home-field advantage and can't put away your opponent, you deserve to lose the series. Plain and simple! Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, and Nick Castellanos may have been raking during most of the postseason, but they went a combined 1 for 28 in the last two games! This happens when you live or die by the long ball; hmmm, where have I seen that before?! At the end of the day, are we surprised that a team that's been around 141 years with only 16 postseason appearances found a way to lose like this? After all, that Joe Carter guy still haunts them, as many other ghosts of Phillies past!
If you had the Diamondbacks and the Rangers playing each other in the World Series, I would've looked at you as if you had three heads! This will be an exciting series to watch and one that most of us won't have a rooting interest in. I have a funny feeling that this one will go the full seven games, but ultimately, the Texas Rangers will win it. Here's hoping this year's Fall Classic lives up to its nickname!