Thursday, November 02, 2017

Post-World Series Game 7 Thread: Absolute Sadness




This did not go the way we thought.

Astros 5, Dodgers 1

We're used to the Dodgers' season ending poorly. This pain, in general, isn't new. What's new is the added pain of how close they got. One game away. Five runs away. One fewer batter faced by Darvish away. One missed tag-up call away. One Kenley Jansen 0-2 pitch away. One ump's thigh away. One Cody Bellinger flyout away.

So. Damn. Close.

We'll second-guess this one all winter. In the big picture, the stars of this team failed A LOT in this World Series, but they still somehow stretched it to seven games. Your unlikely heroes, your Jocs, your Culbersons, your Woods, your Kikés, picked this team up and damn near carried them over the finish line.

That's the kind of stuff I'll choose to remember. The pure joy on Joc's face as he rounded the bases. The pure joy on OUR faces as the Sons celebrated Game 4's win together. And, lost in all this, is the fact that the Dodgers MADE IT BACK TO THE WORLD SERIES. That drought is over. Like the Royals before them, the Dodgers' championship drought should be the next thing to go.

It's going to be a cold, sad winter full of coulda-shouldas, but we'll be here, doing what we do. And we'll still be here this time next year, too, with a better-than-zero chance of celebrating.

I can't wait.

12 comments:

Hideo Nomo said...

Warm Take: I'd re-sign Darvish. Give him a full Spring and season under the Dodgers' pitching coaches, he could be money. Arrieta is the only other big-ish FA available, and fuck that guy.

Franklin Stubbs said...

So much to unpack about this season…at an undetermined later date. We still stood on top of the mountain for a moment. Can’t imagine what being a Braves fan in the ‘90s or a Brooklyn fan in the ‘40s does to someone.

Franklin Stubbs said...

Agree the Darvish thing is probably a blip. Jansen also shit the bed twice and the pitchforks and torches aren’t out for him, but fans are gonna fan. Interested to see if Honeycutt stays on as pitching coach or moves to the front office. DAMMIT, I was not going to get sucked in yet.

Orel said...

Fine perspective all around, Gnomes. I'm curious to see if the front office makes any corrections of note. As they say (I think), you build a team to win the regular season (check) and everything thereafter is a crapshoot (check).

QuadSevens said...

You make a lot of good points Nomo. Need to focus on the bright side of things. This team showed a lot of fight all year. I've gotta believe that this feeling is going to stick with these guys for a long time and drive them to be better next year.

Franklin Stubbs said...

The only other qualification about post-season roster construction was more offensively-focused teams flame out because hitting is much more variable than pitching, and I think that was borne out. GOD FUCKING DAMN IT, I keep getting tantalized back in.

Pride of Dong said...

I'm going to stop by the stadium on Saturday on my way to Disneyland for some cathartic retrospect. Then I'll rest until winter meetings, I'll get excited by fan fest, and froth at the mouth by opening day.

I do it every year, and like an semi-abusive relationship, I'll keep coming back, because the good days outweigh the bad. Even a game where we lose, the drive home to Fresno is not THAT long.

But this year I can reflect on being there for the 3 homers in a row in the bottom of the 9th, several walk offs, and other crazy events. It'll still feel good.

Orel said...

@Stubbs: Astros' bats were pretty damn non-variable. Of course they quieted for a few games, but overall they were damn consistent.

@PoD: Spoken like a true fan!

Orel said...

Oh damn I said damn twice!

Franklin Stubbs said...

@Orel

Two dams are just as good Aswan.

I thinking there’s more random outcomes with good hitting than good pitching, but I’m not even sure that’s helpful. The team was good enough to win, they just didn’t

Hideo Nomo said...

A whole lot of failure to execute in Game 7. The only decision that was a genuine fuckup was Darvish pitching to Springer. Criminal at that point.

Yeager said...

4 very very very bad pitching performances: Darvish Game4, Darvish Game 7, Kershaw game 5, Morrow Game 5 (6 pitches-4 runs). 1 very bad - Kenlee Game 2. Subtract just 1, and we are champs