Todays matchups are:
#1 Kansas City Season 4 vs #8 Scranton Season 1
#5 Boise Season 12 vs #13 Charlotte Season 10
#3 Rochester Season 5 vs #6 Pawtucket Season 5
#2 Boise Season 11 vs #10 Texas Season 7
Three of the four matchups today feature a World Series runner-up versus a team who didn't make the championship. The other matchup? That pits two World Series Champions against each other.
#1 Kansas City Shuffle Season 4 vs #8 Scranton Dunder-Mifflins Season 1
On paper this one isn't close. Kansas City won 116 regular season games that year. They had the #2 pitching staff in baseball. They had the #1 offense. They had an MVP, a Cy Young, a Gold Glove, 3 Silver Sluggers, and 6 All-Stars.
Through 2 rounds of the playoffs, they were 7-1 overall. This being the 2nd round here, there's no reason to believe this machine would slow down yet.
In reality, that's 100% true.
Scranton had a great run. They had a below average offense, but the #3 pitching staff in the first season is nothing to be ashamed of. Neither is being considered one of the 32 best teams of all-time. I don't think anybody would have thought that possible when this began.
But they don't stand a chance against this Kansas City team, and the results would prove that.
Now the questions start about KC. In a Sweet 16 where everyone will have played in the World Series, are they the best team? Can they be considered the best team to never win the World Series? Can they actually make a run at being the best team of all-time? Or will all the Chris Ramirez's in this bracket ruin them, like he did to them in Season 4?
#5 Boise Bombers Season 12 vs #13 Charlotte Season 10
This is probably the toughest game to decide of all the games in all the brackets in this second round.
Boise won 107 games, and was the #1 seed out of a stacked AL West. They went 11-5 in the playoffs, never really getting tested en route to their first World Championship. They boasted a 3.60 ERA, 3rd best in baseball, which is quite the accomplishment coming from the AL.
They also used the long ball to their advantage, leading the majors in home runs and in runs scored, while finishing 29th in stolen bases. They only had 3 all-stars, all whom were pitchings. And didn't win any individual awards.
Charlotte, meanwhile, won 10 less games. They were the #2 seed out of a much weaker division. They also won the World Series, but it took them one game longer to do so, going 11-6 in the playoffs.
They scored the 10th most runs in all of baseball, but were 2nd in stolen bases, using a different philosophy than Boise. They had a 4.09 team ERA, 9th best in the bigs.
But both teams won the World Series.
Charlotte beat the defending champion Juggernauts, who won 97 games, 3-2 in the ALDS. Then they beat Boise, a 100 game winner, 4-2 in the ALCS, before beating 112-50 Colorado Springs 4-2 in the World Series.
Boise meanwhile, swept a far worse first round opponent, 89-73 Fargo. And then it took 7 games, but they beat a 97 win Charlotte team in the ALCS. Once the World Series rolled around, they beat a 107-55 CSP team (that reached the Sweet 16 yesterday) in 6 games.
So how do you compare? Is it better to face an elimination game in the first round, against a strong opponent, and not again in the LCS or WS? Or does showing your dominance in round 1 help hide the fact that you almost lost the LCS?
And what about the Chris Ramirez factor? That dude carried Charlotte in season 10, going 4-2 with a 1.88 ERA in 48 innings over 6 starts. Or is it more impressive that Boise beat Chris Ramirez in the World Series, proving that if they can do it then, they can do it now?
So while its nearly impossible to choose between these two teams, and Charlotte is definitely the more memorable World Champion, mostly for their pre-season acquisition of rental superstar Chris Ramirez, in one of the closest matches of the tournament, the Boise Bombers advance to the Sweet 16.
Do you agree?
#3 Rochester Raging Rhinos Season 5 vs #6 Pawtucket Polythene Season 5
This Pawtucket team believes they are the squad that deserves the title of best team to never win a World Series. They certainly came close. After winning 105 regular season games, they made it to the 7th game of the World Series before losing.
But it wasn't easy. They were down 2-1 in the NLDS before coming back, and it took them 6 games to beat this same Rochester team in the NLCS. Then they took a 2-0 and 3-1 lead in the World Series, before losing games 5, 6, and 7. Does that show that they were totally capable of being the Champs, coming so close to winning back-to-back titles? Or does it show something else? A crack in the armor, perhaps, proving that this team didn't have what it took to win it all?
Rochester, meanwhile, won a franchise record 110 games this season. They had the 3rd best team ERA in the bigs (compared to Pawtuckets #1), and they had the 4th best offense (compared to Pawtuckets 14th).
Rochester had 5 All Stars, 3 Silver Sluggers, 2 Gold Gloves, and the Fireman of the Year, Jeremi Warden, during his record 53 save campaign (a record that still stands). Pawtucket had 4 All Stars (including reigning NL Cy Young winner Henry Mackowiak, who was injured for the entire playoffs), 0 Silver Sluggers, 0 Gold Gloves, and Cy Young winner Chris Ramirez.
By all accounts Rochester was the better team. This was true that year, and its true now. But the elephant in the room is that Pawtucket beat Rochester in those playoffs, and it didn't even take them 7 games to do so. And they did it without their 2nd best pitcher that season, who has to be counted as part of the roster right now, since he was on the season 5 team.
Pawtucket would win the rematch, and they move on to the Sweet 16.
#2 Boise Bombers Season 11 vs #10 Texas Tittyballs Season 7
One Boise team has already moved on. This team was the precursor to that World Series Champion team. This team won more games (112 to 107) than that team. This team also led the majors in runs scored, but was 2nd in homers, and finished 24th in stolen bases, 5 spots higher than itself the next season.
And like itself the enxt year, this team also was 3rd in the bigs in ERA, albeit with a 3.87 compared to the other Boise's 3.60.
And in another stroke of luck, this team doesn't have to face another World Series Champion in the Round of 32. So it should move on.
Not so fast, my friend.
This Texas team may not have won as many games (100), had as good of an ERA (4.29), or score as many runs (3rd in the bigs), but it did have one of the greatest offenses ever assembled, based on talent alone.
And it was the defending NL Champions.
And oh yeah, while Boise was busy losing to a 90 win team in the NLCS, 4-2, Texas was defending its crown, winning its 2nd straight NL Pennant.
Is Texas better? Statistically, no. But this team did one thing better than Boise, and when it comes down to it, it's the only thing in this world that really matters. Texas won more in the playoffs.
Boise is better than Texas, but if these teams played, it would choke, like it did in the Season 11 playoffs.
CLICK HERE to view the up to date bracket.
Next Tuesday, the Sweet 16 of this bracket will be posted. It features to great rivalries. Boise vs Kansas City and Texas vs Pawtucket. One World Series Champion and 3 World Series losers. Will Boise be able to navigate its way out of this bracket, though. Being a WS Champion is a great advantage, but having to beat the 3 most successful franchises of all-time to reach the Final Four is one tough task.
Tomorrow, the Texas Bracket is posted, featuring 5 World Series Champions and 2 World Series Runner-Ups among the 8 teams in action.
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