As late as July 29, the Royals had slipped to just a game over .500, and the Giants had lost their long-standing lead in the NL West, and both teams looked cooked (it actually got worse for the Giants, bottoming out in mid-August). Projecting those teams as the World Series teams at that time would have been crazy. And it may have been correct.
The Royals, in particular, look like a virtual lock to make the World Series after winning yet another postseason game last night – they haven’t lost yet in the playoffs this year. They are now up 3-0 on the Orioles after a 2-1 win last night. Pitching and defense ruled the day.
Mike Moustakas made an important catch over a railing at one point, which prompted ill-advised tweets like these:
I can understand why folks’ head goes there. It’s an LCS game. It’s a catch to that side of the field. It’s a play into the stands. But it wasn’t quite the same, given that Moustakas had the first crack at the ball by virtue of being several feet higher than the fans below:
Your browser does not support iframes.
Really, really great catch, even if he wasn’t really having to deal with the crowd.
The Giants beat the Cardinals 5-4 in Game 3 of the NLCS, taking a 2-1 lead in the series. After hanging a four spot on the Cards in the first, the Giants’ bats went silent, and the Cardinals came all the way back to tie the thing. That probably only made the eventual loss more frustrating (and more SCardenfreudey for Cubs fans).
Acceptable sac bunt alert! In the bottom of the 10th, with the walk-off-winning run at second base (and a runner at first) and nobody out, with a skilled bunter at the plate and the heart of the lineup to follow, Gregor Blanco laid down a would-be sac bunt that pitcher Randy Choate threw away, allowing the winning run to score. That is, quite literally, the only situation where I would advise a sac bunt. There is a decent chance of success, and, if it does succeed, the Giants are in a better position to win than they were before the bunt.