The playoff series between the Chicago Cubs and the Washington Nationals should provide plenty of offense. With names like Kris Bryant, Bryce Harper, Anthony Rendon, Anthony Rizzo, Daniel Murphy, and Ryan Zimmerman, there will be no shortage of thump in the National League Division Series. But one player who has a chance to be a real […]
Tag: NLDS
Second City October: Late Into Game 4, the Giants Were Winning the NLDS
History tends to forget what almost happened. With baseball, people remember which team wins a postseason series, and even which team may have blown a big lead in a game. But take, for example, the three runs allowed after Clayton Kershaw left Game 4 of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ series with the Washington Nationals, bringing […]
Second City October: NLDS Recap—Cubs Advance to Second Consecutive NLCS
I feel the dread creeping in. It starts around the edges, like a foot slipping out from under a blanket on a cold night, the frigidity not gripping you completely but letting you know it’s there. It’s a familiar feeling, too: the frustrating boringness of the 2007 and 2008 National League Division Series, the resignation […]
Playoff Prospectus: RIP, Even Year Magic
The piece previewed here, written by BP Wrigleyville’s Henry Druschel, forms part of the main site’s comprehensive coverage of the playoffs, “Playoff Prospectus.” Additional Game Four coverage, exclusive to BP Wrigleyville, can be found here, under the name “Second City October”. For eight innings, this was a boring game. It’s playoff baseball, so there’s a pretty high […]
Second City October: Eff Your Magic
Alright, let’s start by going to back to this bit of wisdom from my recap yesterday: “Before I dive deeper into it, here’s a question: has there ever been a postseason game where the Cubs ended up winning? Like, ever?” So before you go any further, know this: you are most likely reading the words […]
Second City October: NLDS Game Four Preview, Cubs (2-1) at Giants (1-2)
Human perception is a funny thing. Most Cubs fans would have been very happy being up 2-1 in the series after facing postseason legend Madison Bumgarner. Today Cubs fans find themselves in that exact position, but lack of sleep is not the only reason why Cubs fans are not happy with this turn of events. […]
Second City October: Mike Montgomery’s Brilliance Not To Be Missed
October makes everything about baseball feel big, and nothing more so than emotions. We live for the big moments—the emotional highs and lows—and so the playoffs can be a time during which quiet, sturdy performances get easily overlooked. They shouldn’t be. And left-handed long relievers and spot starters are not usually the glamour players, but Cubs lefty […]
Playoff Prospectus: Put Away Your Brooms
The piece previewed here, written by BP Wrigleyville’s Clarissa Young, forms part of the main site’s comprehensive coverage of the playoffs, “Playoff Prospectus.” Additional Game Three coverage, exclusive to BP Wrigleyville, can be found here, under the name “Second City October”. It was supposed to be a pitchers’ duel, and at the very beginning, there was a […]
Second City October: Bayside Heartbreak
This piece, written by BP Wrigleyville’s Ken Schultz, forms part of our in-house coverage of the Cubs in the playoffs, “Second City October.” Additional Game Two coverage can be found here. That was definitely a postseason classic. Before I dive deeper into it, here’s a question: has there ever been a classic postseason game where the Cubs ended […]
Second City October: NLDS Game Three Preview, Cubs (2-0) at Giants (0-2)
It has become something of a perverse given to grant the Giants this game. Not because the numbers play out in San Francisco’s favor particularly heavily, but because the playoffs inspire such a concentrated focus on intangibles, so it is assumed that Madison Bumgarner will simply toss another complete game shutout and salvage his team’s season for at […]