Thinkin Blue

Well, we stole one. The Dodgers overcame a 2-0 deficit, a hostile crowd and the team with the NL's best record to get a 7-2 win in game one of the NLDS.

Baseball is a funny game, especially when it comes to the playoffs. In football, the playoffs are a one and done deal. One team can have a good day or a bad day and pull an upset or have their season end prematurely. Its interesting that baseball, the sport with more games than any other by a factor of 2, should have the shortest opening round series of all the non-football sports, series which are best 3 out of 5. What's also interesting is that baseball seems so much more random than Hockey or Basketball playoffs.

Let me explain. In a basketball or hockey series, teams go out and play. Strategies may change over the course of a series, but the basic participants and their roles remain fairly constant. In baseball, on the other hand, you're only as good as your pitching that day (or maybe you're only as good as your hitting that day). In theory, two dominant starting pitchers can carry you all the way through the postseason. In contrast, a team which is otherwise strong but has mediocre pitching may falter and be quickly removed from the playoffs. But those pitchers which a team relies upon are often one shot deals. Kobe may have a bad game during a playoff series but he can turn it around the next game. If CC Sabathia has a bad day it may doom his team. I guess what I'm trying to say is that its odd that a sport with 162 games in in a season should have its playoff field be so small and be decided by such a small sample size of games.

I still don't think the Dodgers should be favored to win this series, but its certainly nice to get a win. All too often during my life as a Dodger fan we've limped into October only to be swept out by superior competition. We're usually lucky to get one pity win after going down 2-0.

I know I've probably jinxed the boys in blue by getting my hopes ever so slightly up. But screw it, we got Manny and a 1-0 series lead. Those jerks from Not Los Angeles better watch out if they dare to challenge us in the World Series.