Wire Brushed

Dave Paisley

What seemed like a tame end to the season has suddenly come alive with the minor collapses of the Angels and Diamondbacks and mini resurgences by the Cardinals and Mariners, things aren’t quite so cut and dried as they once seemed.

Not only is Arizona in danger of losing home field to the Cardinals, they’re in danger of losing the division title to the Giants, who are now only two games back. With only the slightest of chances, the Dodgers hang in with pipe dreams of the wild card.

And speaking of pipe dreams, as of Saturday morning, the Mariners faced a final week and a bit where twelve games all had to go exactly right for them. So far six have, with sic more to play. Seattle must beat Oakland one more time (easy if you get to the bullpen, apparently), have Texas beat Anaheim one more time (looking easier every day) and then sweep the Angels in three games at Anaheim and finally win a one game playoff for the wild card.

Fun stuff. Meanwhile, the Yankees and Braves look on with haughty disdain as the riff-raff battle it out for the right to get steamrollered in the Division Series. Well, maybe.

As we’ll be all abuzz next week with the first playoff games, I thought I’d take a quick retrospective of the season records to date while we await the post-season matchups.

Here I’ve included my own season win predictions, team win total up to Tuesday 9/24, winning percentages and the Magic 8 ball answers for each team. Some of those turned out to be remarkably accurate.

Here’s the NL East:

Team	Wp	W	W%	W%act	Key Question	Answer
ATL	91	97	.560	.626	Is everybody still sick of the Braves?	Yes Definitely
PHI	82	79	.504	.503	Can Scott Rolen ever find true happiness in the town that booed Santa Claus (tm)?	Concentrate and Ask Again
MON	69	79	.425	.503	Should Jeff Loria be hung in effigy in Montreal?	You May Rely On It
FLA	84	76	.517	.484	Should Jeff Loria be hung in effigy in Montreal?	Yeah, right.
NYM	84	74	.521	.474	Is Steve Phillips a genius?	Very Doubtful

Apart from underestimating the Expos (who didn’t?) and maybe the Braves, this division worked out pretty well, prediction-wise. And I think we can all agree that Jeff Loria and Bud Selig could both be hung in effigy just about anywhere without causing much of a problem. And the magic 8 ball totally nailed Steve Phillips.

In the Central...

Team	Wp	W	W%	W%act	Key Question	Answer
STL	91	93	.561	.592	Will the Cardinals make the playoffs?	Yes!
HOU	91	83	.561	.525	Will the Astros make the playoffs?	It Is Certain
CIN	74	76	.457	.484	Will the Reds ever put the emotional hurt behind them?	Outlook Good
PIT	65	70	.401	.446	Will the Pirates break 70 wins?	Outlook Not So Good
CHN	95	65	.586	.414	Are the Cubs for real this year?	Possibly
MIL	66	55	.407	.350	Does Bud Selig look like a muppet?	Better Not Tell You Now

Well, the Astros making the playoffs was a no-go for the 8 ball, and my prediction the Cubs would be good appears to have been just a smidge off, but overall not too bad. The Pirates have broken 70 wins, though, but it did take that hot start to do it.

In the West, a much muddier picture emerged:

Team	Wp	W	W%	W%act	Key Question	Answer
AZ	91	94	.560	.599	Who will be better in 2002, Johnson or Schilling?	Yes!
SF	94	91	.579	.580	Will Barry Bonds best last year's performance?	Yes!
LA	82	88	.505	.561	Will the Dodgers ever figure out that offense isn't a dirty word?	Concentrate and Ask Again
COL	85	73	.527	.465	Will the air get any thicker in Denver this summer?	My Sources Say No
SD	84	65	.516	.414	Will the Padres finish ahead of the Dodgers?	Most Likely

I was right about the Giants and D’backs battling it out, but too optimistic on Colorado and San Diego. I really should learn.

Amazingly enough, the 8 ball predicted Barry Bonds amazing season, although he isn’t surpassing his home run total of last year, just all the other stuff. It also correctly predicted the answer to which of the D’backs aces will be better. The answer of "Yes!" is as amazing for its simplicity as its accuracy.

In the AL, the East was easy to fathom:

Team	Wp	W	W%	W%act	Key Question	Answer
NYY	91	99	.562	.631	Will the Yankees finish ahead of the Red Sox?	As I See It, Yes
BOS	96	91	.591	.580	Will the Red Sox finish ahead of the Yankees?	Outlook Not So Good
TOR	72	73	.444	.465	Will the Jays finish above .500?	Without a Doubt
BAL	71	67	.435	.427	Are the Orioles getting any younger?	It Is Decidedly So
TAM	61	54	.376	.344	Should Tampa Bay be contracted?	Without a Doubt

I predicted the Red Sox would overcome the Yankees. I was wrong, the 8 ball was right. As for the rest, well, it was easy to predict mediocrity or worse.

In the Central, I figured the Twins would in it with a record of .500. Well, they came close. At least the rest of the division rolled over early for them.

Team	Wp	W	W%	W%act	Key Question	Answer
MIN	81	90	.501	.577	Will the Twins win the AL central?	Most Likely
CHA	81	79	.498	.503	Will the White Sox be competitive?	Maybe
CLE	75	70	.461	.446	Are the Indians screwed this year?	My Sources Say No
KC	60	61	.371	.389	Will the Royals ever be any good?	Possibly
DET	79	54	.487	.346	Will Detroit do anything this year?	Yes!

 

The West was tougher, with the Angels burst from mediocrity tough to fathom.

Team	Wp	W	W%	W%act	Key Question	Answer
OAK	91	99	.561	.631	Will the A's win the AL West?	No!
ANA	74	96	.458	.611	Should Disney remake Angels in the Outfield again?	You May Rely On It
SEA	93	91	.576	.580	Will Seattle win 100 games?	What are you on? (and where can I get some?)
TEX	78	71	.484	.452	Did the Rangers waste a lot of money?	Yes Definitely

Still, this looked to be a good division with no bad teams, and so it has proved. Even the Rangers have battled back to respectability, giving them hope once more that just a couple of pitchers can put them over the top. Well, we’ve heard that one before, so you’ll pardon me if I don’t hold my breath.

about the author

Despite the ups and downs and labor disputes and such, Dave Paisley thinks this was a darn good season. if you have a favorite memory, why not send it along to:drdjp@strikethree.com and maybe we'll do a post-seaosn retrospective.