Guardians Shut-Out WhiteSox…Advance to AL Championship Series
Weekend Review
Saturday, October 10th
The Cleveland Guardians’ pitching staff totally dominated the Chicago White Sox in
clinching their Division Series 3 games to 2.
The final score: Guardians 2 – White Sox 0.
Cleveland starting pitcher, Gavin Williams, had a no-hitter going into the top of the sixth
before Kyle Teel managed a single to right field. The White Sox actually loaded the bases in
the inning but were unable to score.
The only score for the Guardians came in the bottom of the fourth as Steven Kwan led off
with a single and came around to score on Jose Ramirez’s two-run home run to right field.
Here’s a couple MLB records set in tonight’s game:
The Cleveland Guardians set a record for a 9-inning game, regular season or playoffs, by
striking out twenty-one White Sox batters. Wow!
Cleveland’s hurlers set a five-game series record by striking out seventy-five Chicago
hitters over forty-five innings. That’s an average of fifteen strike outs per game!
The Guardians’ Gavin Williams tied a franchise postseason record by striking out twelve
batters over five and two-thirds innings.
After Williams’ left the game, three Guardian relievers, Erik Sabrowski, Hunter Gaddis, and
Cade Smith completed the shut-out victory. Chicago managed only three singles for the
night.
The White Sox hurlers had a pretty decent game as well. Cleveland managed just six hits,
but one of those hits was the two-run homer off the bat of Ramirez.
The Guardians now have the daunting task of taking on the Tampa Bay Rays in the
American League Championship Series. First game is Monday in St. Petersburg at 8:00 ET.
Brewers Win a Tense Game One over the Dodgers
Sunday, October 11th
The Milwaukee Brewers hung on for an exciting 2 to 1 victory over the visiting Los Angeles
Dodgers in game one of the National League Championship Series.
Two all-star pitchers started tonight’s first game: Tarik Skubal, who the Dodgers stole from
the Detroit Tigers at the trade deadline; and Jacob Misiorowski, the ace flame-thrower for
the Milwaukee Brewers.
Los Angeles got a run across in the top of the second. Shohei Ohtani walked and advanced
to second base on Teoscar Hernandez’ single to right field. With one out Andy Pages
singled to right field scoring Ohtani. 1-0 LA.
The Brewers tied it in the bottom of the fourth as Brice Turang led off the inning with a home
run to center field.
In the bottom of the fifth, the Brewers took the lead. Garrett Mitchell led off the inning with
a walk. Cooper Pratt laid down a sacrifice bunt, sending Mitchell to second base. Luis Lara
brought Mitchell home with a single to center field. 2-1 Brew Crew.
Skubal went five innings giving up two runs on five hits with seven strike outs.
Misiorowski lasted four and a third innings surrendering one run on five hits while striking
out five Dodgers.
The final three and a half innings were filled with many tense moments but nary a run. I
have a feeling all these games will be nail-biters.
Game two takes place tomorrow at 5:00 ET.
Dave’s Dimes…Potpourri
The Los Angeles Dodgers…
Here’s an amazing bit of truth that might surprise you, and then again, it might not. The Los
Angeles Dodgers’ payroll this year is more than the remaining three teams playing in the
ALCS and NLCS added together.
The Dodgers were second in MLB with a team salary of $339,319,244
The Brewers were nineteenth with a team salary of $146,206,320.
The Rays were twenty-eighth with a team salary of $95,615,469
The Guardians were thirtieth, dead last, with a team salary of $74,459, 014.
Those three franchise salaries totaled $316,280,803.
I know the two-time World Series Champion Los Angeles Dodgers are prohibitive favorites
to three-peat, but wouldn’t it be nice if any of these other contenders took the title this
year?
As far as how many times these teams have won the World Series, the Dodgers are third
all-time with ten World Series titles. The Guardians/Indians have won two. The Brewers
and Rays have yet to win even a single World Series title.
I sure know who I’m rooting for and it ain’t the Dodgers!
College Football…
I know I’ve mentioned before how much I love NCAA football. This past Saturday was one
of the most exciting days of the sport I’ve ever witnessed.
Just look at these matchups:
Number one ranked Texas Longhorns lost 27 to 24 to the unranked Oklahoma Sooners. The
Sooners kicked a last second 47-yard field goal to hand Texas its first loss. After the game
the Sooners ran onto the field and planted their team flag at the 50-yard line. Have I
mentioned how much I dislike the Longhorns?
Number two ranked Georgia Bulldogs defeated the number six ranked Alabama Crimson
Tide 20 to 17 with another late field goal. Alabama’s head coach was going crazy after a
missed pass interference call that would have given his team more than a three-point lead.
But those are the breaks.
Seventh ranked Indiana scored two late touchdowns to defeat an unranked Nebraska
Cornhuskers team. Nebraska was not ranked even though they hadn’t lost a game until
yesterday. Final score Indiana 20 Nebraska 17. I was so upset after the game that I
decided to live dangerously and drink another Diet Pepsi.
The twenty-first ranked UCLA Bruins defeated the thirteenth ranked Oregon Ducks 17 to 15.
Oregon had seven turnovers in the game. I like it when Oregon loses because they have too
many different uniform combinations.
The unranked South Carolina Gamecocks destroyed the sixteenth ranked Florida Gators 38
to 19. I love when that happens…an overconfident team getting their keister handed to
them.
And then my favorite of them all; the unranked Kentucky Wildcats defeated the tenth
ranked LSU Tigers 35 to 34 in overtime. This is one of the best college games I’ve ever seen.
The poor field goal kicker for Kentucky had missed two earlier attempts before finally
kicking one through the uprights and tying the game in the last seconds. In overtime, LSU
took two plays to score from their 25-yard line and kicked the extra point. The Wildcats
took a few more than two plays but still scored a touchdown. Instead of kicking an extra
point and sending the game into double-overtime, the Cats decided to try for a two-point
conversion from their three-yard line. Whoever came up with the next play needs a bonus.
Kentucky’s quarterback dropped back in the shotgun, took the snap, and ran the ball right
through the middle of the line and into the end zone for a 35 to 34 victory. It was fantastic.
The LSU head coach was yelling and jumping up and down like a first-grader who had just
dropped her lollipop in the dirt.
