Top 5 Reasons You Can't Blame the Format for the Braves and Dodgers early exits By: Hank Indictor
It's time to put all of these conspiracies to rest. Say what you want about having more teams in the playoffs and the 5-day layoffs, but this does not at all excuse the Dodgers and the Braves one bit from their playoff failures. There are several reasons why both of these teams will be watching on the couch like most of us, while the Astros, Phillies, Diamondbacks, and Rangers all still have a shot at October glory. So now it's time to present another written episode of Top 5 Reasons You Can't Blame.
5. Excuses, Excuses: For all the crying and complaining we've heard, particularly from Braves fans, not once have you heard the players and managers of each of these teams crying about the format. They know you must beat whoever's in your way to win the World Series. Layoff or not, neither of them did that. If anything, getting a bye should be an advantage because it means you avoid the Wild Card; where is the "punishment"? And guess what? Adding more teams makes you far more likely to see upsets in a playoff series because the more teams enter the dance, the more teams have a chance to win the World Series! But having said that, let's get to the actual factors in play.
4. The Bats Have Gone Cold: That historic Dodgers lineup that was hyped up was on a milk carton once the playoffs began. Or maybe they went on strike, as Nick Morgasen suggested in the previous Hitting for the Cycle episode. Either way, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman only got one hit combined! As for the Braves, the only hitter who had a decent series was Austin Riley; otherwise, as a team, their slash line was .186/.255/.264, not exactly a recipe for success. Especially when you factor in the insane numbers they put up during the regular season; that said, when it comes to the postseason, the pitching always gets better!
3. Pitchers (or lack thereof): It's one thing for the Dodgers and Braves to have hitting problems. But their lack of pitching hurt in the long run. Granted, both teams had injuries in that department that severely limited them in the long run. And when it came down to the available pitchers, they couldn't be counted on when it mattered the most.
2. The Diamondbacks and Phillies won their series fair and square: Both teams had enough hitters to match their respective opponents, and their pitching was more than up to the task of shutting down historic lineups. To blame the format is to disrespect your opponent! Just as the Braves did to the Phillies, or at least Orlando Arcia to Bryce Harper. Arcia will forever have Bryce Harper haunt him in his dreams while crying about the media violating the sanctity of the clubhouse, and he's going to like it!! Do you want to know the team without issues with the playoff format?
1. The Houston Astros: As of this writing, the Astros have not lost a series since the introduction of the 12-team playoff format. A year ago, the Astros not only had the best record in baseball, but they dominated in the playoffs altogether, as they ran the table to get to the World Series, which they eventually won in 6 games against a scrappy Phillies squad. And this year, they also won a Division series despite a layoff. Regardless of what happens, you won't hear about the playoff format hurting Houston. No, if anything, people will be too busy crying about their past accomplishments to care that they "survived" the layoff twice. And I guarantee that had the Astros lost either this year or last year in the ALDS, there wouldn't be any complaints about the system at all!
Again, I'm on record in believing that baseball was better off sticking to what worked when the Wild Card was introduced. However, if you think that the Dodgers and Braves were punished, then not only would the 1981 Cincinnati Reds like to have a word with you about screwy formatting, but I've got a fancy car to sell you in Manhattan.