As hard as it can be to remember now, with the Houston Astros headed for their fourth World Series in six seasons, the franchise was once notable for its capacity for self-inflicted losing. As part of a radical rebuilding plan, Houston from 2011 to 2013 became just the seventh team since 1901 to pile up […]
Among the many side effects of MLB’s full-throated embrace of sabermetrics has been the rise of the bullpen in October. The old way of thinking — riding your headline starters until their arms could take no more — gradually gave way to the new prevailing tactic — shielding your starter from going through the opposing […]
Can a swing be both unprecedented and unsurprising? Last Thursday afternoon in Houston, one of the two best hitters in the world answered in the affirmative. By the bottom of the sixth inning in the second game of the American League Division Series, Seattle Mariners ace Luis Castillo had been staked a 2-1 lead against […]
Remember all those big favorites going into the MLB postseason? The record-tying four 100-plus win teams from the regular season? The 20-win gaps between best and worst seeds in each league? The theoretical advantage of a first-round bye for top teams under MLB’s new playoff system? Turns out only one league got the memo about […]
After an MLB wild card weekend that scrambled the lower tier of the World Series odds, the division series offers four solid favorites — on paper, at least. According to our MLB forecast model, the top-seeded Houston Astros, L.A. Dodgers, New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves each have at least a 2-in-3 chance at moving […]