War Liberal: Game Six, 1985 World Series
I’ll try to write something on the starting rotation — one of the big areas of concern, still — soon. For now, here’s a little piece on what I think is the best parallel to Tuesday night’s events in Chicago.
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Someone posting as Mike A – I presume Mike Adams – on Baseball Primer drew a parallel between NLCS game 6 and the Braves devastating loss in game 4 of the 1996 WS. I think it holds. The ump who got in Jermaine Dye’s way gets replaced by the fan and Alou; the Belliard flub is replaced by the Gonzalez flub. A load-the-bases IBB factored into both. The geenral feel of helpless careening, too.
I am somewhat more intrigued by the parallels between the current fish and the 91 Braves. Young starters, Lowell = Pendleton, Pierre = Nixon, etc. I don’t see a David Justice or Leo Mazzone though… If Loria opens the checkbook a bit, this team could start a hell of a run.
Game 6 of the ’85 series does seem most like this one, doesn’t it? I can see the parallels between 1996 and this game as well.
What about 1993? Dykstra’s homer in the 10th seemed to doom Atlanta, especially since that loss was at home.
New Fish Slogan for 2004…
The Never Say Die Florida Marlins
I don’t like the Cubs, but this was hard to watch. As a Braves Fan…it felt so eerily familiar.
Leyritz, Leyritz, Leyritz, L. Smith, L. Smith, L. Smith, Kirby, Kirby, Kirby
Having met the Cubs fans at several points, I can’t really say I feel that bad for them. The better team won, and the lesser team choked!
I do feel bad for the Marlins. It seems that they staged an amazing comeback, one for the ages, and the media is more obsessed with “boo hoo Cubs.” The story is the comeback from 3-1.
Exactly Zach. The Marlins did everything that I’d hoped the Braves would do. Work the pitchers and get into the bullpen, make the plays defensively, don’t panic and start swinging for the fences when one of your starters digs a hole, etc. They played outstanding baseball and all anyone wants to talk about is the poor Cubs and that idiot fan.
After the Braves lost I was embarrassed to be a Braves fan because of thier obvious lack of effort. Even if the Marlins had lost last night, I would have been proud to be a Marlins fan – you know if I were a Marlins fan.
Does anyone even know any Marlins fans? I don’t know if I’ve ever seen one in person, not even in Fort Lauderdale.
I feel really good for Jack McKeon. I like him a lot and I think he’s an excellent manager, and now he’s finally getting his due.
I feel good for Jack McKeon, and that’s all I feel good for with the Marlins. They’re in the Series for the second time in the last 7 seasons – more than the Braves over that span – may win a second series title – more than the Braves over the last 13 years.
And they have yet to ever win their division, and in those two seasons have finished 9 and 10 games behind Atlanta.
Part of it’s envy, but mostly it just pisses me off – pisses me off that Atlanta plays so poorly, and pisses me off that this second place team doesn’t.
Well, in the second half the Marlins were the best team in baseball. They might not have won the division if they’d fired Torborg sooner, but I don’t think they would have been ten games out.
Well, the second half and ‘what would have been’ are all good and well, but the fact remains that over the full 162 game season – which is supposed to matter as a whole – the Marlins trailed in their division by double digits. That they are in the Series despite that just irks me to no end.
It’s okay Colin. You’re not alone.
I don’t like the wild card at all, but I have to give them credit: this is an excellent team. I think they’ll beat the Yankees, because McKeon isn’t an idiot. Unlike some people.
I think they’re a good team; I wouldn’t label them excellent until they do something new like, I dunno, win a 162-game season.
Okay, so maybe I’m unduly bitter.
I just don’t think I can bring myself to watch this world series. It’s a Sophie’s Choice as to which part of my soul i’m willing to kill in order to watch with any rooting at all.
Well, to me, it’s a no-brainer who to root for. I can not ever bring myself to cheer for the Yankees. As Jim Caple on ESPN.com says “It is good to hate the Yankees”. The one time in my life I can remember actually rooting for them was in the 2000 WS against the Mets.
Well since the Braves were eliminated, I adopted a pro-curse stance for the rest of the playoffs. So last night was my first experience “rooting” for the Yankees. I have to say it wasn’t that bad. Must be nice to win all the time. Now I guess I’ll root for the Fish, but of course I also hate the wildcard.
If Grady Little had a brain, we would be looking at our second straight All-Wild Card World Series. That’s enough to make you sick.
Well, I hate the Yanks as much as anyone, but I may cheer for them simply because I don’t want the Marlins to have more championships than we do.
Years from now, I don’t want historians to look back and say “Wow, the Yankees and the Marlins, the two best teams!” (in that time period.)
For all the blunders of Grady Little, Dusty Baker, Pedro and THE FAN, there’s something to be said for those team s getting five outs away from the World Series before choking.
One of the frustrating things about being a Braves fan this last decade-plus is that Atlanta has never actually gotten that close to winning it all most years. Our team tends to blow it a long time before that. You could argue the Braves choked in the 1996 World Series, but they blew it in Game 4, then never led in Games 5 or 6.
Other than Game 7 in 1991 and when they actually won it all in 1995, the Braves haven’t really stomped our guts out by blowing a lead in a winner-take-all game. It’s been more like a slow death every October. I’m not sure which is worse.
Sure, the Braves deserve credit for winning LCS Game 7s in 1991, 1992 and 1996, but think of all the other times they’ve cruised through the regular season only to get badly outplayed by a lesser team in the postseason. I’ll take a Game 7 meltdown over a five-and-out no-show every time.