Tagged: extra innings
ALCS game 2 – …But they get up again
The old football (soccer!) cliche says that it’s a game of two halves. Judging by game 2, baseball may need to adopt it as well.
The game was almost ridiculous in its pattern. So much so that I don’t really know where to start. I guess the best thing is to start at the beginning, but you have to understand that by the time the game finished, 5 hours and 27 minutes after Scott Kazmir threw the first pitch, I was already struggling to remember back to that first inning. A (sleep-deprived) day and a half later, and I’m still not that much clearer. But start at the beginning I shall.
Top of the First. 2-0 Red Sox.
Scotty K actually got off to an encouraging start. Unfortunately for him, the Red Sox had an at-bat with 2 outs…
You can read the rest of this entry, along with my thoughts on game 1, HERE at RAP’s new home.
The little team that could
How else could the season end?
Its like the team squeezed down the essence of the year and filled it all into game 162, just to show the world, if they didn’t know already, what these Rays are all about.
A come-from-behind, battling, never-give-up, blown save, extra innings, come-back-again, amazing defense, unlikely hero win. A story that has almost become the norm rather than the exception this season. Indeed, I can barely remember a single win out of the 97 (yes, ninety-seven) this year that hasn’t either been come-from-behind, battling, or involved an unlikely hero. Its just the way things happen these days when you’re watching the Rays.
Consider that the Rays, in a final warm-up before the playoffs (how great does that sound?!) used 8 pitchers and 14 position players…
Tigers swept, now questions to answer
There are certainly easier ways to a sweep.
Not letting a (admittedly impressive) rookie one-hit you into the seventh inning for one. Not having your closer blow a save with his first pitch, and then give up the go-ahead run to the first batter in extra-innings for another. And not having your shortstop get hurt in trying to put together a second comeback after the first two have occurred.
But who wants the easy way, right?
2-0 down, and nothing to show apart from an Evan Longoria infield hit is where the Rays found themselves at the seventh-inning stretch yesterday…
Keep on walking off…
At the moment, its really fun to be a Rays fan. Really, really fun. And its not just because of the winning either. I mean sure, thats a very nice bonus after 10 years of losing, but it is just a bonus. Because this team is just flat out great to watch.
Its a very strange combination that we’ve got going at the moment. Its part never-say-die battling, and part super-clutchness. I can’t think of any other way to explain it…
Net lag: Lucky 13
Watching Monday night’s game yesterday, I was struck by just one single thought as the game neared its finish – “please, not another walk-off!” And, after falling to two consecutive walk-off defeats in St Louis, the bullpen was indeed back on form yesterday, denying Oakland 5 opportunities to wrap up the game with a single swing…
Have I mentioned the battling?
Wow, that was quite a game. A proper big-league battle. It went well into the night over here, but was more than worth staying up for – the Rays’ first extra-inning game of the season was also the best contest so far.
It started out in the bottom of the first with Carl Crawford doing what he does best, tripling to centre. There is just no better sight in baseball than CC rounding first, looking up, and turning on the afterburners…
Rays from across the Pond 