Is this World Series proof that money doesn’t bring (baseball) happiness?
asserted
money → bring → happiness
Yes - and in fact, evidence that money actively undermines baseball happiness.
asserted
money → undermine → happiness
Whereas for the Rays (who in April were given a 1.1% chance of winning the World Series by FanGraphs) or Brewers (2.1%), the season is already a success, and winning it all would give their fans more pleasure than a Yankees or Dodgers fan could ever experience.
uncertain
Yankees → give → pleasure
It’s does offer proof that October remains gloriously resistant to being bought outright.
asserted
It → offer → proof
But money buys depth and insurance, even if it can’t guarantee that your $300m hitters won’t spend an off week grounding into double plays.
asserted
hitters → buy → plays
Better to enjoy this peach of a matchup – only the second Fall Classic since 1920 where a first-time winner is guaranteed – without letting baseball’s billionaire owner class weaponize it in the coming labor fight, with a salary cap on the table and the sport potentially heading for another protracted lockout.
asserted
sport → enjoy → lockout
High-end talent is nice, but to get to the World Series on a shoestring budget you also need a certain culture.
asserted
you → get → culture
There shall be no tolerating careless mistakes, no getting too comfortable in cushy MLB dugouts, and players must have a clear understanding of their roles and the brand of baseball they’re expected to play.
asserted
they → tolerate → baseball
That’s where Milwaukee and Tampa Bay have truly excelled this season.
asserted
Milwaukee → ’ → ?
What the Brewers need to do to win
Jacob Misiorowski may be the best pitcher in the world, but the cliché that “bullpens win championships” is more true than ever in modern baseball.
uncertain
bullpens → need → baseball
Luckily for Milwaukee, theirs is one of the best in the game – only the Yankees had a better collective regular season earned run average – and the sweep of the Dodgers means everyone will be starting on full rest.
asserted
everyone → have → rest
AE
Make Tampa Bay chase.
asserted
Bay → make → ?
Milwaukee have the pitching to win this series, but asking them to weather seven nights of high-leverage situations with traffic on the basepaths is inviting trouble.
asserted
asking → have → trouble
The fewer opportunities Tampa Bay have to improvise, the better the Brewers’ chances.
asserted
Bay → have → ?
The Brewers bullpen is lights out but don’t ask them to do too much.
asserted
bullpen → ask → much
The Rays will try to pile up reliever innings in a bid to weaken the core.
asserted
Rays → try → core
Also, Game 4 in Tampa will be a bullpen game for Milwaukee, so make sure the unit is kept fresh for that pivotal matchup.
asserted
unit → make → matchup
What the Rays need to do to win
Be inventive.
asserted
need → need → What
Ace Shane McClanahan is injured, but their occasional gambit of using opening pitchers is arguably even more of a power move in a single series at the very end of the season.
asserted
gambit → injure → season
As for batting, if any two of the “big three” of Yandy Díaz, Jonathan Aranda and Junior Caminero find their groove at the same time, they’ll be hard to keep quiet.
asserted
they → find → time
Swipe a bag, take the extra base and make Milwaukee’s fielders execute under pressure.
asserted
fielders → swipe → pressure
But don’t confuse small ball with giving away outs: Díaz, Aranda and Caminero still need to supply damage.
asserted
Díaz → confuse → damage
The best version of the Rays makes opponents defend everything, including the outfield seats.
asserted
opponents → make → seats
Ensure the big three are up and running against the Brewers rotation.
asserted
three → ensure → rotation
When Caminero, Díaz and Aranda struggled in the ALCS, the Guardians took two games and sent Rays fans searching for the nearest cliff.
asserted
Guardians → struggle → cliff
Kevin Cash also must excel in the dugout against healthy competition in Pat Murphy, who won’t make Dave Roberts-like mistakes.
asserted
who → excel → mistakes
DL
One bold prediction
Tampa Bay will clinch the title wearing their Devil Rays throwback jerseys, and within a year will revert to that as the franchise name.
asserted
Bay → clinch → name
They went 12-3 in the regular season wearing them and are now 2-0 in the postseason.
asserted
They → go → postseason
If it happens, fan demand will make it hard for the newish owners to resist.
asserted
owners → happen → ?
AE
Someone will lose a game after pulling a starter who looks untouchable, and the ensuing argument will briefly eclipse the actual World Series.
asserted
argument → lose → Series
The manager will point to the matchups, the broadcast will show the abandoned pitcher staring into space and everyone will pretend the alternative outcome was a matter of certainty.
asserted
outcome → point → certainty
Club Tropicana by Wham! becomes the theme song for the Rays and this World Series as the dumpy dome in St Pete becomes the epicenter of the October sports world.
asserted
dome → become → world
Tampa win in seven tight games and fall in love with the worst venue in all of Major League Baseball.
asserted
Tampa → win → Baseball
They take a 180 turn on the Trop and demand that their new owners drop plans for a new stadium.
asserted
owners → take → stadium
He’s become the talisman of a team increasingly focused on small ball, and is well on his way to becoming a folk hero for his homer-averse approach.
asserted
He → become → approach
Tight games are often decided by small margins such as a stolen base or a timely bunt.
asserted
games → decide → base
If it happens two or three times at key moments, the underdog could finally have his day.
uncertain
underdog → happen → day
There’s a temptation to choose someone whose candidacy explains the Rays’ entire organizational philosophy.
asserted
candidacy → ’ → philosophy
I’ll take the less complicated option: the hitter who can put the ball into the seats with the purist-rankling, time-expanding home-run trot.
asserted
who → take → trot
In a series of infinitesimal margins, one emphatic swing can turn the whole thing.
asserted
swing → turn → thing
…and 11 more, not listed.
The Aporia
