Last year’s MLB postseason was a disaster by design, worthy of the neglectful, money-first Bud Selig/Rob Manfred Era.
Few knew which networks the games would be on, their starting times, the days they’d be played, where they’d be played, the number of wins it took to clinch a series, and who the heck those guys were in the TV booths.
The Rangers-Diamondbacks World Series between transient players — neither team this season good enough to qualify for the 12-team playoffs — became the Fallen Classic, with the fewest folks to ever watch the Series on TV.
And this time MLB, with its glut of follow-the-money qualifiers, seems eager to do it again unless the biggest-market Mets or Dodgers and/or Yankees, survive their managers — who continue to demonstrate their allegiance to reliably unreliable, dream-driven relievers and an adherence to the mythical laws of analytics that so often best serve their opponents — the institutionalized confusion has resumed.
This year’s postseason again is a scavenger hunt — with games on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, Fox, FS1, TBS, TNT and truTV.
But there’s some good news for next season:
Now that the Selig/Manfred Era has ensured that the nation no longer gives a rat’s rhomboid about the All-Star Game, players’ team uniforms will be restored, much too late, in place of the annual on-sale-now! Nike clown costumes.
But you know what they say: The future ain’t what it used to be.
Murphy faith in analytics playbook costs Brewers
Don’t kid yourself: The most important piece of the Mets’ best-of-three win over the Brewers was Milwaukee’s itchy trigger-fingered manager, Pat Murphy.
He brought to instant recall Rays manager Kevin Cash’s gift-wrapped present of the 2020 World Series to the Dodgers by removing unhittable starter Blake Snell with a 1-0 lead in the sixth. Snell had allowed one hit, and struck out nine on 73 pitches! You think that would have forever ended all analytics that night.
Murphy on Thursday yanked starter Tobias Myers after five innings of scoreless, walk-less, two-hit, 66-pitch near perfection. Myers had pitched four innings, all spotless, against the Mets in his previous appearance as an emergency reliever starting in the second inning five days earlier.
Murphy is a lock to be awarded the Key to the City — the city of Flushing.
Imagine what would happen to you if you used your front row seat at a pro basketball game to stand, stalk and harass players from two feet away. You’d be escorted from the arena, likely forever banned.
Well, attention-starved, self-entitled, product-pusher Spike Lee, who invents racism when he runs out of facts — among other nonsense, he seriously claimed that Hurricane Katrina was exploited by U.S. government agents eager to rid New Orleans of blacks — has brought his tired, annoying, where-is-the-nearest-TV-camera Bozo act to WNBA playoff games.
Of course, Lee made every TV highlights package from that game. The hosts on ABC’s ”Good Morning America,” including Women’s Basketball Hall of Famer Robin Roberts, acted delighted, as if they’d gladly suffer such audience conduct during their on-the-job assignments.
Speaking of the WNBA, Jon Wertheim — the CBS “60 Minutes” regular who smilingly indulged two full sessions of Deion Sanders’ “I’m the Lord’s Messenger” nonsense, no tough questions included — last week identified Caitlin Clark as hitching a well-timed ride on the WNBA wave.
That, in fact, Clark caused the wave, and all the TV and other financial benefits suddenly bestowed on WNBA players likely was deemed politically incorrect to even be considered.
But as a staffer on the now-defunct Sports Illustrated — which lost touch with intelligent, well-balanced, know-better readers for pandering to bad acts — Wertheim still plays a transparent game.
Captain Morgan rum “NFL Fan of the Year” TV commercials — another anything-for-a-dime endeavor with Roger Goodell at the wheel — star dressed-for-Halloween adult fans you’d avoid sitting near as they appear to be loaded on Captain Morgan.
No shame, continued: Bill Belichick, suddenly cured miserable wretch who must be short on dough, now appears in sports gambling TV commercials encouraging young suckers to go broke.
Rebels pay well for routs
“College” football, the long-gone sport: Before Saturday’s game at South Carolina, Ole Miss was 4-1. It won its first four by an aggregate of 221-22 — including 76-0 over Furman, 53-13 over Georgia Southern and 40-6 over Middle Tennessee, all home games vs. non-conference opponents.
Those three human sacrifices cost Ole Miss a total of $3.7 million paid to its victims for the pleasure — except for season ticket-holders, who were forced to pay for planned garbage.
Mississippi is the poorest state in the union. Ole Miss is a tax-exempt school, 13 percent funded by the state. Sick, aint it?
None so blind as those who refuse to see: As long as proposition bets on individual players are allowed, fixed bets, both undetected and discovered, will persist in volume. No easier wager to fix than a one-man conspiracy.
But pro sports, blinded by hook or crook money, continue to beckon self-destructive scandal.
Fox telecast-killer John Smoltz last Saturday, on Brewers pitcher Tobias Myers: “He is throwing to the right quadrants to be successful.” Smoltz must’ve been self-satisfied with such analysis, because he soon repeated it.
Later, after the Mets’ Sterling Marte singled, Smoltz said, “Sometimes when it’s a tight game and your team gets down, it’s a wake-up call to the offense …” and on and on, and on.
Seemed a bit mystical, as if the score determines the quality of the pitching, but, naturally, “sometimes” is always a matter of sometimes or even seldom.
That word-spackle was preceded by play-by-play man Wayne Randazzo’s claim that Myers “literally came out of nowhere” which, if true, is frightening.
Imagine: ESPN actually pays to ensure lasting infamy.
If I were the boss, the last thing I’d allow is MLB players to be mic’d up during playoff games. Too much could happen to affect and afflict the outcome, then absorb the deserved condemnation.
But ESPN pays position players 10 grand per regular season game to ask them their favorite color, 15 grand during the postseason.
And, if I were a team owner, it would be out of the question. My most costly employees are paid by outside employers to divide their attention during games?! Fat chance!
Sunday: Jets-Vikings, 9:30 a.m. from England, Ch. 2 and NFL Network. NFLN’s Rich Eisen and Kurt Warner have the call, dynamic kickoffs and all. Third-and-long Giants at Seahawks, 4:25, CBS. Andrew Catalon and Tiki Barber in the boothReader Joe LeGrand figures that the moment Mike Francesa tells us who is going to win the presidential election, the other candidate will win.
No bribe yet from Turkey. Very disappointing. Must be my high regard for human rights and free elections.
