This World Series has been a real letdown so far, and I don't have much hope for that changing.

The Giants' rotund slugger has completely outplayed the Tigers' rotund slugger, that is for sure.

This World Series has been a real letdown so far

Disagree. It's been pretty great, actually.

And the Giants take Game One of the Japan Series. We could have the MLB and NPB champions with the same nicknames...

The Giants' rotund slugger has completely outplayed the Tigers' rotund slugger, that is for sure.

I'm not sure that the same adjective should be used to describe their relative size. Having seen so much Fielder in this series, I'm downgrading Pablo like so much Pluto.

This World Series has been a real letdown so far

Disagree. It's been pretty great, actually.

If you're a Giants fan or hate runs being scored, sure. Everyone else sees it for what it is: a pathetic sham. What a way to end a baseball season. Sad.

If you're a Giants fan or hate runs being scored, sure. Everyone else sees it for what it is: a pathetic sham. What a way to end a baseball season. Sad.

Shouldn't have invited 88 win teams in the first place.

In the spirit of the intro...

I just saw Knuckleball last week. It was a pretty interesting movie. It got me thinking, that I'd definitely watch a feature length documentary on the 2012 season. Someone should make that for me.

I think its been a great series...some great defense, a 3 hr game, Zito, Bumgarner and Vogelsong coming up huge. Today's game was great, that Blanco catch was amazing and Crawford had a great game.

If you're a Giants fan or hate runs being scored, sure.

I do hate runs being scored and, yes, I find it awesome. Though, all seriousness, I prefer great pitching to great hitting, and this postseason's had a whole lot of the former.

And the Giants take Game One of the Japan Series. We could have the MLB and NPB champions with the same nicknames...

And the NFL Champions. I'm betting we've never had that before.

I doubt too many SF Giants fans are pleased that's the case.

This made the rounds today:

Vogelsong joins Christy Mathewson as only pitchers to start their postseason careers four consecutive starts of five or more innings giving up one run or less.

Yeah, except per BBREF...

Vogelsong 24.2 IP, 3-0, 0.823 WPA
Matthewson 36 IP [4CG, 3SHO], 4-0, 1.962 WPA

There's really good and then there's no freaking way it ever happens again good.

Anagram fun: San Francisco Dynasty = Nosy Cynics Stand Afar

Well If Detroit can win today, I think there will be a game 6, and things will start to get really tense. Unfortunately I will not really have time to watch baseball come Monday, so I have to hope for a Giants win today.

Shouldn't have invited 88 win teams in the first place.

Are we agreed that the 2012 Tigers are the worst World Series team ever, both in regular-season record and actual WS performance? I mean, there's the '73 Mets, the team everyone loves to hate, but at least they took the A's to a Game 7. There's the dreadful 2006 Cardinals, but they actually WON the damn Series (against who, I can't quite recall).

But the '12 Tigers? They manage to win the worst division in MLB, and only because the White Sox collapsed. They squeak by Oakland, in five games, and only after doing their level best to blow it. Then they beat the Yankees, who only did the most horrific face-plant in baseball history. (Or maybe all of sports history: only the 1940 Redskins come close.) The Tigers win the pennant? How could they not?

And now this? 2-0? 2-0 again?! Who gets shutout in consecutive World Series games? That hasn't happened since 19-freakin'-66, when pitchers reigned supreme, and the only way to score runs was to swing your caveman club, run twenty miles around the bases, then somehow get past the brontosaurus standing in front of home plate. People, it's bad.

As a kid, I used wonder when we would send the first man to Mars. Now, I realize that it's not going to happen in my lifetime. Hell, we haven't even sent anyone to the moon in 40 years, and that's not happening again anytime soon, either. This country, this colossus, used to go places and do things. Now we go nowhere and do nothing, and blame each other for it. Great.

I remember celebrating a Tigers World Championship 28 years ago. It was great. What I didn't realize is that it was a once-in-a-lifetime thing.

Great.

Imagine how they feel in Cleveland.

I'm a Cubs fan. Cry me a river.

Imagine how they feel in Cleveland.

I'm a Cubs fan. Cry me a river.

The eternal conundrum: is it worse to totally suck, or make it to the near-pinnacle and then suck? (My cousin, the Buffalo Bills fan, no doubt has a few words to say on the subject.)

Everyone else Grumpy drama queen Tigers fan sees it for what it is: a pathetic sham.

It's worse to totally suck. As an A's fan this has been a much better season than the past 5 of total suck.

It isn't a conundrum. It's worse to totally suck. If you weren't such a damned pessimist, you'd have had the warmth of enjoying winning a pennant in a sweep of the Yankees. Instead, you chose to immediately start kvetching about how you were going to lose the Series.

Lighten up, dude.

Grumpy drama queen Tigers fan

Oh, please. I'm a model of restraint compared to what I'm seeing on the Tigers boards this morning. (And I live in New York: wanna know what people are saying on the sports-talk stations? Yow.)

If you're having to reach to Yankee fandom to defend yourself, you're doing something wrong.

Grumpy drama queen Tigers fan

I'mn hereby launching a petition drive to insist RMc make this his handle.

Has RMC always been this delightful or did I just start noticing it after Valverde's blown save in the DS?

I had totally forgotten that the season started in Japan with Seattle and Oakland. Seems like years ago.

(And I live in New York: wanna know what people are saying on the sports-talk stations? Yow.)

I honestly don't know for sure. Football talk? Please tell me.

Well, if it were another teams collapse (Yankees, red sox, mets, cards, giants), there would be 5-10 people posting the same type of thing. It's not his fault there are not as many tiger fans here.

Are we agreed that the 2012 Tigers are the worst World Series team ever, both in regular-season record and actual WS performance?

This team has Miguel Cabrera, Prince Fielder, and Justin Verlander. Surely there has been a worse club.

Has RMC always been this delightful

Indeed!

(And I live in New York: wanna know what people are saying on the sports-talk stations? Yow.)

I honestly don't know for sure.

They're still b!tching about the Yankees. Still. The main topic du jour: should Girardi be merely fired, or ritualistically disemboweled at home plate? (I'd watch.)

Well, if it were another teams collapse (Yankees, red sox, mets, cards, giants), there would be 5-10 people posting the same type of thing. It's not his fault there are not as many tiger fans here.

Well, there's me, there's Vaux, there's Sugar Bear, and, um...

The eternal conundrum: is it worse to totally suck, or make it to the near-pinnacle and then suck? (My cousin, the Buffalo Bills fan, no doubt has a few words to say on the subject.)

As a fan of the Buffalo Bills, it was much more enjoyable when they were getting to the Super Bowl. Yes, it hurt to lose when you got there, but you had 16 regular season games and a couple playoff ones to enjoy along the way.

As a fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs, I cling to 4 seasons in the past 32 where the team made the semi-finals. Not the finals, the semi-finals. That's all I've got to look at, and it hurts. It really sucks because they haven't even been competitive for the past 7 years. And an extra layer of pain is the knowledge that this used to be a great franchise.

SBB is a Tigers fan? His utter disdain and borderline obsession with Theo Epstein had me thinking he was a Red Sox fan.

In my years of being a Rockies fan, the 2007 season was easily the most fun I've had, followed by the 2009 season, even though both ended in ignominious postseason losses. I'm sure Lisa would say the same thing about the 2005 Astros, or BDC about the 2010-11 Rangers.

No fan in their right mind would trade getting swept in the World Series for a nice, peaceful 79-83 season.

No fan in their right mind would trade getting swept in the World Series for a nice, peaceful 79-83 season.

Agreed.
I was disappointed the A's didn't win it all - I'm absolutely certain they were the best team to reach the LDS in either league - but they came out of nowhere, were exciting, and I had some of the best baseball-watching experiences of my life watching them this season (the late-season win against the Orioles, a well-played late-game one-run game on Star Wars Fireworks Night in front of a packed house, was absolutely the best thing ever). I just can't find all that much to complain about. Even when they were still in it, somewhere in the back of my mind I knew no matter what happened, November 2 I still have to get up and go to work. Nothing really changes; might as well be happy with the season I had - and I am.

the 2010-11 Rangers

Indeed I would, Tom. Following the Rangers back in the years when they had "never played a meaningful game in September" was patience-trying.

As one of the folks giving the As a standing ovation while Detroit was celebrating I agree completely.

Also, I grew up in Atlanta and there was a Parade downtown after they LOST to the Twins in 1991. Over 2 million people showed for the parade. It shut down the transit system. That being said, 6-10 years into the run they cannot sell out a playoff game. Fandom is fickle, and expectations change. Happiness is rarely gauged on any sort of absolute scale. I just wish the fickleness had started earlier in Atlanta so I could have gone to a playoff game there.

In my years of being a Rockies fan, the 2007 season was easily the most fun I've had, followed by the 2009 season, even though both ended in ignominious postseason losses. I'm sure Lisa would say the same thing about the 2005 Astros, or BDC about the 2010-11 Rangers.

Same for me with the 1984 Padres.

RMc, 15: why would use only the regular season record and WS performance to judge the "worst world series team ever"? The other 2 playoff rounds don't count? You give the Tigers zero credit for getting past Oakland and NY (as opposed to, say, a team before '69 that jumped right in to the WS)? Is regular season W-L more impt than regular season runs scored and allowed? The Tigers are a much better team than the 73 Mets were, better than the 87 Twins who lucked and homerdomed their way to a win. Oh, and by the way, the Series does not seem to be over yet, so no, I don't think we can all agree.

They certainly have played poorly for 3 games, tho, if that's what you mean. Kind of like the other recent Tigger WS entry.

oh, and they really didn't play that poorly in game 3. The pitching was awesome; 12 KOs and 1 walk. The hitters drew 5 walks and KOed 8 times. So a few more Giants' balls in play found holes and scored 2 runs, while the Tigers hit a few at'ems that were DPs. SF scored 2 more runs, but really Detroit may have 'played' better.

CHECKLIST (taking suggestions):
Conradian play [ ] (COLLECTIVE CONRADIAN CATASTROPHE [ ] )
Web Gem [ ]
1-2-3-4-5-6 inning [ ]
Strike out of side [ ] (1-2-3 SO of side [ ])
Baserunning blunder [ ]
Bases loaded, nobody scores in the inning [ ]
It rains [ ] (rain delay [])
Dramatic late-inning homer [ ]
Ad for a movie that hasn't been advertised yet this postseason [ ]
Starter warms up in bullpen [ ] (Postseason starter warms up [ ])
Talk about the bet between the Mayors [ ]
Person dressed up in Halloween costume early [ ]
Inning-ending DP [ ]
Hurricane Sandy referenced [ ] (BBTF people worry about it disrupting their WS-watching plans [ ])
Stolen base [ ] (Mention of free tacos promotion after SB [ ])
Caught stealing [ ]
Play at the plate [ ]
Bunt [ ]
Replay review [ ]
Blown call [ ] (Blown call costs game [ ]) (Blown call eliminates team [ ])
NFL reference beyond NFL on FOX [ ]
FOX celebrity shows up [ ]
Reference to Presidential Campaign [ ]
Idiot runs on field [ ]
Triple [ ]
McCarver's singing career [ ]
Sandoval called "Panda" [ ]
Sandoval goes deep [ ]
SF Giants HOF legend mentions: Mays [ ] McCovey (other than Cove) [ ] Marichal [ ] Cepeda [ ] Perry [ ]
Tigers HOF legend mentions: Cobb [ ] Greenberg [ ] Kaline [ ] Harwell [ ] Crawford [ ] Cochrane [ ] Kell [ ] Newhouser [ ] Jennings [ ] Manush [ ] Gehringer [ ] Heilman [ ]
Cabrera MVP talk [ ]
Posey MVP talk [ ]
Miguel Cabrera does something awesome [ ]
Buster Posey does something awesome [ ]
Prince Fielder goes deep [ ]
Ty Cobb Statue shown [ ]
Giants have most wins for a franchise in sports history [ ]
Valverde shows up [ ] (Valverde blows it [ ])
WILD BRIAN WILSON APPEARS [ ]
Reference to Jack Buck [ ]
Shot of Giants fans in a bar [ ]
Marco Scutaro cannot be stopped [ ]
1984 Tigers flashback [ ]
Cain Perfecto flashback [ ]
2010 Giants flashback [ ]
Bochy was last guy to get a hit in 1984 WS [ ]
Barry Bonds referenced [ ]
Melky Cabrera referenced []
The Ferris Wheel they have at Comerica [ ]
Reference to old Tiger Stadium [ ]
"The Giants have home field because of the ASG" [ ]
Pence's speeches [ ]
Verlander in dugout [ ]
Zito in dugout [ ]
Kate Upton [ ]
Barry Manilow [ ]
Super-Duper Slo-Mo used gratuitously [ ]
"It's over" [X] (guaranteed to happen)
"X outs away" [ ]
Bochy HOF talk [ ]
FOX is photobombed [ ]
JOE WEST is JOE WEST [ ]
Columnists around the country type up "BASEBALL IS DOOMED" columns that they have used every year since time immortal [X] (guaranteed)

The year the Phillies were swept by the Rocktoberfest in the NLDS may have been their first playoff appearance in 14 years but I did not find it much more exciting than the previous season. Their fifth straight winning season with nothing to show for it, big deal.

If it had been the Braves that collapsed down the stretch, it would have been awesome, but I felt bad for the Mets. It was almost like the Braves were having the last laugh thanks to Special Agent Tom Glavine's sabotage campaign.

RMC, since you gave up on your team a couple weeks ago, I cannot see why you still even care what's going on.

Speaking as someone whose team has NEVER made the World Series, I would LOVE to see them getting down 3-0, and would find it tremendously exciting.

I've been a Giants fan since 1987, but it's not 2012, 2010 or even 2002 or 1989 that made me a fan for life. It was 1993. Personally, I think it's the gut-wrenching, tear out your heart losses that *really* make you a fan for life. So, in that way, I'd agree that it's far better to be a great (or even good) team and lose than it is to just be blah.

The year the Phillies were swept by the Rocktoberfest in the NLDS may have been their first playoff appearance in 14 years but I did not find it much more exciting than the previous season.

Certainly that September comeback against the Mets was exciting for a Phillies fan.

I can't imagine not being thrilled with a playoff season. God knows as the games are going on its stressful and frustrating but even years where my team was blown out of th post season like 2009 or 1995 are years I look back on quite fondly. To each his own though.

Gamingboy, how about:

Talk that Lincecum may be a reliever in 2013 [ ]
Talk that Tigers *need* to resign Delmon Young in 2013 [ ]
Shot the statues of former Tiger greats [ ]
Second-guess decision to start Sherzer over Verlander [ ]
Replay of Brian Wilson saving 2010 Game Five [ ]

What a way to end a baseball season.

The other team I follow is the Nationals, and I would rather my season ended this way than what befell my Natitude.

SBB is a Tigers fan? His utter disdain and borderline obsession with Theo Epstein had me thinking he was a Red Sox fan

Don't forget his justification of Jack Morris' HoF case based on his salary. A classic.

Speaking as someone whose team has NEVER made the World Series,

Nats, or M's?

Personally, I think it's the gut-wrenching, tear out your heart losses that *really* make you a fan for life.

This.

Very well stated, and so true.

The Riot will DH for the Giants.