World Series

[Bulldog Tom]

Well the teams are set. For all you Houston fans good luck. The Houston Asterisks versus the Philadelphia Phillies.

[techman05]

I’m no Astros apologist, but I think they leave little doubt this year that they would have won without the trash cans a few years back.

[HogDawg]

I’m no Astros apologist, but I think they leave little doubt this year that they would have won without the trash cans a few years back.

Absolutely. I can't wait to see what everybody in the league bitches about this time when the Astros win it again. .

[Dwayne From Minden]

They are just really really really good -

[Bulldog Tom]

I’m no Astros apologist, but I think they leave little doubt this year that they would have won without the trash cans a few years back.

First of all what this team is doing has no bearing on that team from five years ago. Second the advantage those batters from five years ago had knowing what pitch was coming is huge. Most knowledgeable baseball people and fans realize the Asterisks do not even make the World Series without cheating. The Asterisks themselves did not believe they were the best team either, if so why cheat?

[techman05]

I humbly disagree. I played baseball. You still have to hit the ball, put it in play, and hit it where they ain’t. Was it cheating? Absolutely! Would they have still won without cheating? I think it’s more than probable.

[techman05]

It’s kind of like the steroid argument in my mind. Did the roids turn Sosa, McGuire, and Bonds from 20 home run guys to 70 home run guys? No. They went from 50 or 55 to 70. Was it wrong? Yes. Is that the one thing that made them good? No.

[Bulldog Tom]

I humbly disagree. I played baseball. You still have to hit the ball, put it in play, and hit it where they ain’t. Was it cheating? Absolutely! Would they have still won without cheating? I think it’s more than probable.

Really? I guess it is my turn to disagree. First you are correct that you must still hit the ball and hit it safely but doing both of those things is much easier to do if you know what pitch is coming. May not be easier for a kid playing for his school team, but for a seasoned MLB player it is much easier. Otherwise, why cheat to begin with? Baseball players have been trying to steal signs since the beginning of time. Why so much effort? It provides a great advantage. For the Asterisks they hit .282 in the World Series winning year, only .247 the year before and dropped to .255 the year after. That’s huge!

Now that I have proven how much knowing the pitch helps a batter, let’s look at the Asterisks play-off run. It was a very exciting post season. Lots of seven game series and lots of one-run games. The ALCS went seven games with the Asterisks winning 4-3. Games 1 and 2 were both one run games won by Houston. The WS also went seven games with the Asterisks winning 4-3. Games 2 and 5 were both one run games won by Houston. In game 5 the score was 13-12 with Houston winning. Imagine one less timely hit in any of those four games and someone else is World Series champions. It is very easy to believe Houston loses game 5 without cheating, scoring so many runs. One less hit in an RBI situation; Houston is not the champion. Not to mention what might happened in any of the other four games Houston won.

So now looking at the facts and using logic, instead of fandom, it does not seem more than probable that Houston wins the World Series. I would argue that it seems very unlikely the Asterisks wins the World Series, if they even make it that far.

[Bulldog Tom]

Absolutely. I can't wait to see what everybody in the league bitches about this time when the Astros win it again. .

Nothing they will be treated as champions, just like last time. But if a few years later it is proven that they cheated again, they will be ridiculed worse than when they "won" their first bogus world championship.

[olddawgfan]

I'm not totally sold on Houston winning. They may have the better team on paper but have lost three in a row to the National League and face the team that eliminated the Padres, who eliminated the Dodgers which was no mean feat.

[Bulldog Tom]

Phillies take 1-0 lead.

[Bulldog Tom]

Asterisks tie it up 1-1 as they head to Philadelphia.

[Bulldog Tom]

Absolutely. I can't wait to see what everybody in the league bitches about this time when the Astros win it again. .

Well now we know. I really think this is just weird circumstances, but once you are a known cheater the conspiracy folks are on the lookout.

https://twitter.com/i/status/1586522097068687366

https://twitter.com/i/status/1586514513666637824

The bat was outlawed as a safety issue. Valdez, the pitcher, was checked out during the game, but nothing found. The lesson is once your credibility is shot it is very hard to get it back.

[arkansasbob]

tom, give it a rest. that 2017 team's away record was better than their home record. doesn't seem like that would be the case if the sign stealing was making a big difference. also, the technique was apparently brought to them by carlos beltran, who got it from the yankees. everyone was doing it, but the astros got targeted in the investigation because they won it all. i also read recently from a disinterested party that there was no evidence they did it in the playoffs.

none of that matters, of course. they were caught, and they're not doing it anymore. and they are really really good this year. lol maldonado's bat...

[Bulldawg81]

tom, give it a rest. that 2017 team's away record was better than their home record. doesn't seem like that would be the case if the sign stealing was making a big difference. also, the technique was apparently brought to them by carlos beltran, who got it from the yankees. everyone was doing it, but the astros got targeted in the investigation because they won it all. i also read recently from a disinterested party that there was no evidence they did it in the playoffs.

none of that matters, of course. they were caught, and they're not doing it anymore. and they are really really good this year. lol maldonado's bat...

Astros regular season home/road record in 2017:
Home: 48-33
Road: 53-28
I guess they thought stealing signs would help them, but it looks like it really didn’t. What they did was wrong, but as Bob said, they sure as hell weren’t the only team doing it.