Why Playoffs are a Crap Shoot

Just won a championship in 10 playoff games. You'd think it would mean Mike Trout, my stud, got hot and carried us. But no: he hit 2 Hrs, OBP .319, OPS .714.

The star was Travis Snider, who put the team on his back. He hit 8 HRs in 41 abs, .381 OBP, 1.308 OPS, 16 BI, and also led the team in runs and hits. A great deal for 3.78.

It's why I care more about getting to the playoffs than winning there. Too small a sample and one guy can run wild.

I care more about making the playoffs as well, and--outside of winning the Finals--it is the most significant achievement in SOM. That being said, the playoffs still aren't a "crapshoot," despite the significant effect of the small sample size. The talent of a team and its manager still well factor into the equation. As to Snider and Trout, the same dynamic occurs in the MLB playoffs. it's why the Mark Lemkes can become heroes way beyond their usual performance levels, and the Barry Bondes and Alex Rodriguezes can become goats very quickly.

I agree.

Just won a championship in 10 playoff games. You'd think it would mean Mike Trout, my stud, got hot and carried us. But no: he hit 2 Hrs, OBP .319, OPS .714.

The star was Travis Snider, who put the team on his back. He hit 8 HRs in 41 abs, .381 OBP, 1.308 OPS, 16 BI, and also led the team in runs and hits. A great deal for 3.78.

It's why I care more about getting to the playoffs than winning there. Too small a sample and one guy can run wild.

Agreed. You can prepare for the playoffs by manipulating your starters or keep players from being injured, but in the end it is a crap shoot. Too may of us have experienced it.

This is pretty much the same in real life...

I think baseball seems to have the joy of the Walter Mitty hero more than any other major sport. My "first" was Gene Tenace and the 1972 World Series, leading the A's to beat the Big Red Machine after a mediocre season as a part-time catcher and a putrid ALCS (had to look the ALCS stats up).

The plus about MLB, for me, is that getting to the playoffs has been difficult, a real achievement, so the World Series winner has always been credible.

Way too many teams in the playoffs since 1995 for my taste. I miss "the old days"

But as far as online Strat, yes, I consider my team a success if I make the playoffs. Actually, the semis are more important to me than the finals because at least you get one credit as opposed to walking away with nothing.

Agreed. You can prepare for the playoffs by manipulating your starters or keep players from being injured, but in the end it is a crap shoot. Too may of us have experienced it.

If you thought the playoffs were purely a crapshoot, Scumby, you wouldn't bother to even manage your teams during the playoffs. Since I'm sure you do do so, I'm sure you don't actually believe the playoffs are just a crapshoot.

And here we go (and this is without even being able to SEE the post)

I'm allowed to address Scumby's post; this is a forum. It is, however, lovely for Steve to make a snide comment without even reading my post.