Series Thread: ALCS Series Thread Boston vs Houston

[Mike A. S.]

The Red Sox scored 8 runs last night. And out of those 8 I feel like about 12-14 of them were with 2 outs...is that possible?

 

[navamind]

I agree the catch was great. If you're elevating it based on the stakes, I'm not going to argue, but in a vacuum, I'm not sure that was one of the top five catches in 2018.

Agreed. I don't think it was even the best catch by a Sox outfielder this year.

 

[cerealboi]

The Red Sox scored 8 runs last night. And out of those 8 I feel like about 12-14 of them were with 2 outs...is that possible?

No. Because math.

 

[Mike A. S.]

No. Because math.

Ah, dang math.

 

[Darrell Green Fan]

I've watched that play 20 times and I still can't determine where the interference occurred.

That's just so weird to me, it is as clear as day to me. Said it at the time. Way more obvious than Bartman in Chicago and it wasn't called on that one.

 

[Darrell Green Fan]

I was pretty stoned, I guess it was obvious LOL. But I stand by it, that catch was awesome considering the stakes.

It wasn't even the best catch of the game. But as far as impact it was one of the biggest catches I can ever remember.

 

[Darrell Green Fan]

Manny would have either been taking a leak up against the wall when the ball was hit or would have tripped so powerfully trying to dive for the ball that he would have flung himself into the net behind home plate.

Manny also would have managed to cut off Betts' throw to nail Kemp at 2b.

I played a lot of softball. One night before the start of the game I see the outfielder next to me taking a piss, he likes beer. I said WTF, I may be diving in that area. To this day he denies he did it but I know better.

 

[navamind]

hey remember when people wanted Jackie DFA'd

 

[flyerhawk]

That's just so weird to me, it is as clear as day to me. Said it at the time. Way more obvious than Bartman in Chicago and it wasn't called on that one.

Well to each their own I guess.

 

[Darrell Green Fan]

Well to each their own I guess.

I suggest you focus on the fan, not Betts. To me it's really clear that he was not even close to extending his hands beyond the wall and into the field of play. Betts came to him, not the other way around.

 

[Darrell Green Fan]

hey remember when people wanted Jackie DFA'd

Guilty as charged. I also wanted to kill Matt Barnes. I was also convinced Kimbrell was a shut down closer and JD and Mookie would have 4 bombs collectively by now in the ALCS.

 

[flyerhawk]

I suggest you focus on the fan, not Betts. To me it's really clear that he was not even close to extending his hands beyond the wall and into the field of play. Betts came to him, not the other way around.

How in the world can you say that? Betts shoulder is CLEARLY well within the boundary. In this photo, the fan has already interfered with Betts.

 

[Hook'Em0608]

Oh yeah?

So, who was your team prior to October, 2017?

The same team it's been since I grew up right outside Houston and still live 90 minutes away. The Astros have been pretty damn good my entire life except a few stretches. Same with the Rockets. The Oilers/Texans on the other hand, that puts me in Cleveland territory...

 

[Indrid Cold]

I played a lot of softball. One night before the start of the game I see the outfielder next to me taking a piss, he likes beer. I said WTF, I may be diving in that area. To this day he denies he did it but I know better.

Guy I played with got hammered for every game and once pissed on the side of the dugout in full view of my wife and nine year old daughter...and I mean full view of his junk. Hard to complain too hard because he was sponsoring the team at the time.

 

[Hook'Em0608]

How in the world can you say that? Betts shoulder is CLEARLY well within the boundary. In this photo, the fan has already interfered with Betts.

The guy in the blue shirt is the one who hit his glove. How is he leaning over the fence? The ball clearly has the trajectory of a home run that clears the wall into the stands.

I've sat in those exact seats. There is a fucking ledge behind that yellow line that's a good 6-8 inches long to set your drinks and food on. If they were in the field of play, it would be really obvious how far they were leaning over. These photos are very misleading. I'll try to find a photo to show you guys.

 

[Hook'Em0608]

This is the best I can find with a quick search. It shows it decently though.

 

[flyerhawk]

The guy in the blue shirt is the one who hit his glove. How is he leaning over the fence? The ball clearly has the trajectory of a home run that clears the wall into the stands.

Altuve out on fan interference | 10/18/2018

The guy in blue is literally pressed against the wall. Are you really suggesting that his arms are not stretched out more than 6 inches from his body?

I've sat in those exact seats. There is a fucking ledge behind that yellow line that's a good 6-8 inches long to set your drinks and food on. If they were in the field of play, it would be really obvious how far they were leaning over. These photos are very misleading. I'll try to find a photo to show you guys.

Look at the kids on the right. You can see clear space between them and the wall. And they barely have their arms extended and they are comfortably holding onto the wall.

The guy in blue hits Betts mitt and IMMEDIATELY withdraws his hands back. He did that for a reason.

 

[flyerhawk]

This is the best I can find with a quick search. It shows it decently though.

I loved the one fan who said that Betts' glove hit the wall and not a fan's hand.

 

[Hook'Em0608]

Altuve out on fan interference | 10/18/2018

The guy in blue is literally pressed against the wall. Are you really suggesting that his arms are not stretched out more than 6 inches from his body?

Look at the kids on the right. You can see clear space between them and the wall. And they barely have their arms extended and they are comfortably holding onto the wall.

The guy in blue hits Betts mitt and IMMEDIATELY withdraws his hands back. He did that for a reason.

So I researched it, the ledge is a foot wide, not 6 to 8 inches.

Anyway, it's pointless to keep arguing this. All these views are completely inconclusive. The Astros didn't lose because of this call, and I'm not claiming otherwise. I'm simply stating there is nothing done by those fans that was improper. If they don't want fans to protect themselves and try and catch a ball, don't put them in position to be able to have to or want to. Calling a possible home run an out because a fan stood up and tried to catch a ball coming straight at them at 100 mph is a terrible outcome. Joe West could have awarded whatever base Altuve was on when he made the call, called it an out, or called it a home run. He decided that there is no doubt Betts would have completed this catch in real time. That's an outrageous leap of faith. I don't care how good Betts is. Half the time, running at that speed and crashing into the wall the player drops the ball anyway. Even Betts said "I think I would have made the catch". I think, but Joe West knows...

 

[Hook'Em0608]

I just want to be clear, I'm trying to argue this as what's best for baseball, not as what would have potentially been a tied game. The play Betts made on Kemp, the play Benitendi made on Bregman, the way Boston has roughed up our bullpen, etc etc etc does not lead me to believe had this call gone our way, we were winning that game. You guys were making plays, we weren't. The hit batters, the walks, the passed balls, the wild pitches, Correa missing the bag, that's losing baseball. From what I've seen this series, Boston is the better team currently.

So it's not sour grapes at all.