2015 World Series Game Two Live Blog

5:04	Jeff Sullivan: Hello friends

5:05	Comment From Jenstrom Hi Sex Caldera!

5:05	Jeff Sullivan: I’ll take it

5:05	Sean Dolinar: Hey everyone!

5:05	Jeff Sullivan: Welcome to live blog. Tonight your hosts will be myself! And Sean Dolinar!

5:06	Jeff Sullivan: With luck last night’s live blog will stand as having been literally twice as long as this one

5:06	Jeff Sullivan: I don’t say that because the viewing experience was bad; I say that because after a while this chat-window experience gets bad

5:08	Comment From Joseph Do you not love talking to us? 🙁

5:08	Jeff Sullivan: It’s a Cover It Live problem 🙁

5:08	Jeff Sullivan: We’re going to try to use the reply feature. I always forget about it but it’s neat

5:09	Comment From tz Do you guys switch off between looking at the game and the chat, or do you keep one eye on each?

5:09	Sean Dolinar: Yes and I’m also baking a pizza.

5:09	Sean Dolinar: Mets

5:09	Sean Dolinar: Mets

5:10	Sean Dolinar: 0

5:10	Jeff Sullivan: Salvador Perez setting up lower than I’ve ever seen

5:11	Comment From Aussie Mariner Do you have a rooting interest? Personally I’m going rooting for baseball, so come on game seven.

5:11	Sean Dolinar: Mets. I feel like the Royals losing will limit the Royals-model talk.

5:12	Jeff Sullivan: Hey, Perez got a low strike called. It’s working!

5:12	Jeff Sullivan: Quick pitch. Cueto is so complicated

5:13	Jeff Sullivan: Funny thing about the Perez low target is Cueto is not a low-in-the-zone kind of pitcher, no matter what he says

5:14	Jeff Sullivan: That was not a strike but Perez just got called up and down in the same at-bat. Top half over!

5:14	Comment From Los Is it weird that I think familia is being a little bit overrated right now? I see him as a top 5-10 reliever next year but people are talking like he is the best rp since Mariano.

5:14	Jeff Sullivan: Seems unlikely in a series with Wade Davis in it

5:15	Comment From Jacob L What do you think of the report that the Red Sox are very interested in signing Alex Gordon this offseason?

5:15	Jeff Sullivan: A lot of teams would be. I increasingly believe he’s going to stick around

5:15	Comment From Brody Yay, Jeff is blogging! Can you not publish all of the whining about Harold Reynolds that was in last night’s blog. Only because it isnt relevant

5:15	Jeff Sullivan: Well it’s sort of relevant, isn’t it?

5:16

Comment From Brian
I was teaching a geology lesson the other day and had a student ask me “What is the most powerful volcano?” I was taken back because “powerful” is a vague term (greatest eruptive volume vs rate of eruption) which made me thing that this is quite analogous to how powerful is used in baseball (most total HR vs Highest batted ball velocity). Which definition do you most attribute to powerful intuitively?

5:16	Jeff Sullivan: I mostly think of peak power (Stanton, Sano, Gallo, etc). I don’t consider someone like, I don’t know, Brian Dozier “powerful” on account of all the wall-scrapers

5:17	Comment From Troke That last pitch did not look like a strike, but the pitch tracker on the GameGraphs page shows it well within the zone.

5:17	Sean Dolinar: I hate the off-center camera angle.

5:17	Jeff Sullivan: First-pitch fastball to Escobar in the same place Harvey threw one yesterday. Pretty obvious the Mets don’t care if he swings and makes contact

5:18	Comment From Tom The man just did say baseball is boring. During the world series.

5:18	Jeff Sullivan: He said it can be. He’s not wrong!

5:18	Comment From Duh Why does anyone ever throw Escobar a hittable fastball on the first pitch?Can they not rad the sign on his neck?

5:18	Jeff Sullivan: I think part of it is that Escobar is not good

5:19	Comment From Nick Today the comment window is on the bottom of the chat after being on the top last night.. Way to keep us on our toes..

5:19	Sean Dolinar: I want to say that a Dave vs Jeff thing. But that’s just conjecture.

5:19	Comment From K-Man I think the replies don’t show up in the transcript, do they?

5:19	Jeff Sullivan: Is this true? Sean, is this true?!??!?!

5:21	Comment From Joseph Well I guess it will be a really weird transcript for those who try to read it tomorrow then.

5:21	Jeff Sullivan: I’m not convinced of it being true but we’ll sure as shit find out!

5:21	Comment From Well Beered Englishman You are forced to adopt either de Grom hair or Cueto hair, which do you choose?

5:21	Sean Dolinar: deGrom…I came close to that in college.

5:21	Jeff Sullivan: So, oh, by the way, quick and uneventful first inning. I forgot we’re live blogging a baseball game. One of the most important of the year!

5:22	Jeff Sullivan: 73% of the people in here are rooting for the Mets tonight. 62% think the Mets are going to win

5:22	Jeff Sullivan: Haha, I’m backwards like an idiot

5:23	Jeff Sullivan: 62% rooting for the Mets! 73% think they’ll win!

5:23	Comment From Minty Jeff have you seen how Cervelli will occasionally sit on his butt with his right leg kicked out like a split when he sets up?

5:23	Jeff Sullivan: A few catchers do that. Basically gets you as low as is humanly possible while still being partially upright

5:24	Jeff Sullivan: Perez not setting up so low anymore

5:24	Jeff Sullivan: Gotta watch this. I wonder if he’s setting up higher because it’s Cespedes at the plate?

5:25	Comment From Aaron It might be safer to say a good chunk of those people are simply rooting against the Royals

5:25	Sean Dolinar: They lost me when they threw at the A’s and the Blue Jays this year. Otherwise, I’d probably be rooting for them.

5:25	Jeff Sullivan: Sweet pointless tumbling act from Moustakas there

5:26	Jeff Sullivan: Pretty lame way to end a no-hitter

5:26	Comment From Dr. Mike Any idea why Cespedes’ steamer projection is so bad next year? 2.8 WAR

5:26	Sean Dolinar: This year has been the outlier from his 2.4-3.3 WAR seasons.

5:27	Jeff Sullivan: Easy double play ends the top of the second. Cueto with three straight pitches — all different — in the same basic place around the outer edge.

5:28	Jeff Sullivan: Breakfast is not the most important meal of the day. That’s just a bunch of marketing nonsense from Big Pancake

5:28	Comment From Matt Why do you think there’s a disconnect between the fangraphs odds and the crowd-sourced odds tonight? The scoreboard had kc at 52% or so

5:28	Sean Dolinar: I’d trust the FG odds more. There’s no way that if this game is played 1,000 times the Mets win 73% of those games.

5:29	Jeff Sullivan: Bud Light NFL cans, for fans who love to throw their favorite team logo in the trash

5:30	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina Do you think the Royals go a bit easier on Perez next year?

5:30	Jeff Sullivan: down about 50 innings this year from last, but I don’t think he’s about to be used gently. This is just what they and he do

5:31	Jeff Sullivan: Like him!

5:33	Jeff Sullivan: Looking like a low zone today

5:33	Jeff Sullivan: Lots of early heads shaking

5:33	Jeff Sullivan: That is a heck of a reaction play by deGrom

5:33	Jeff Sullivan: To the third!

5:34

Comment From Nick
Jeff, we saw defensive replacements play a big offensive role last night. What are your thoughts on the true value of a defensive replacement early (7th inning) in a tie ballgame? It seems odd to put a player in the field for the chance he gets a play when you are sacrificing offense in a guaranteed at bat.

5:34	Jeff Sullivan: In most cases I don’t really get it in a tie game

5:34	Comment From Matt Yeah, I know the fans are wrong. I am curious why they are so wrong tonight? Does everyone really hate the Royals so much?

5:34	Sean Dolinar: Cueto’s last game. It probably makes sense that series is evens up.

5:35	Comment From Ben Joe Buck annoys me even with the sound off.

5:35	Sean Dolinar: It was amazing when they had to switch over to the international broadcast.

5:36	Comment From tz Over/under on Harold’s comments dissing the shift tonight?

5:36	Jeff Sullivan: With the chat window active, I’m going to notice fewer of them, so, points to me

5:37	Comment From Evan Live odds (i.e. those with skin in the game) currently have it at 54% Mets. http://www.gambletron2000.c…

5:37	Comment From Aaron Why has there been less hot takes on whether Hosmer should have pimped his sac fly than the Bautista flip? Racism? I’m maybe going with racism.

5:37	Jeff Sullivan: Hosmer won the game, and he didn’t stand there and throw the bat away while glancing at the pitcher. Also, he’s white

5:38	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina Someone is going to really regret spending 120 mil on Cespedes

5:38	Jeff Sullivan: His contract probably won’t look all that different from the Upton contract

5:38	Comment From Phil Do we see Harvey start another game (assuming this goes more than 4 games)? A lot of talk about his worrying signs, but it’s the World Series.

5:38	Jeff Sullivan: Sounds like he’s a go in G5, although he’d probably be on a short leash again

5:39	Jeff Sullivan: Perez back to setting up low

5:39	Jeff Sullivan: This game still hasn’t seen a swinging strike

5:39	Jeff Sullivan: There’s the first!

5:40	Sean Dolinar: I wish broadcasts focused on the grips in replays more. That replay was pretty awesome.

5:40	Jeff Sullivan: Set Conforto up very well for that changeup down and away

5:41	Jeff Sullivan: Cueto mirrors the deGrom play on the comebacker. This one is humming along

5:42	Jeff Sullivan: That was a really cool look at Cueto giving his own signs

5:42	Jeff Sullivan: Definitely seems like it was stupid!

5:43	Jeff Sullivan: Joe Buck poll results: 48% tolerate him, 37% don’t like him, 15% do like him

5:43	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina Is there any benefit to sitting right behknd homeplate other than being on tv? Sight lines arent nearly as good as down the lines.

5:43	Jeff Sullivan: You get to feel super close to the action and the players, and you get to overhear some dialogue, but yeah, for actual viewing purposes, it’s not that awesome I don’t think

5:45	Comment From Miller Hey so the individual player pages have playoff stats; why can’t we do a leaderboard for the playoffs for teams/players? Not sure if that’s hard or easy to do, but would be nice to have since the info is there

5:45	Jeff Sullivan: Yeah, we’ve talked about it. We’d all like to see more playoff data available here

5:45	Comment From Aussie Mariner Given the extras last night, do you think the teams will be a little more likely to give the starters a longer hook tonight?

5:45	Jeff Sullivan: Probably not meaningfully — day off tomorrow, and it’s the World freakin Series. I’m guessing this is why Davis only threw one inning last night

5:46	Comment From Whirled Series Which announcers do baseball geeks like? I ask this because I don’t watch baseball (But i read FG!)

5:46	Sean Dolinar: I really like Vin Scully.

5:47	Comment From Shirtless Bartolo Colon I really like Vin Scully. And bacon bowls.

5:47	Comment From Ryan Re: Baseball announcers: Chris Welsh does great work on the Reds’ broadcasts. (He helps make up for Thom Brennaman)

5:48	Comment From Elbo Are we not supposed to notice Kim Jung-un taking in the game incognito in the first row toward the left?

5:48	Jeff Sullivan: Just got something of a close-up!

5:48	Comment From Jimbo Watch the game with the sound off, you will notice more nuances without the distracting chatter.

5:48	Sean Dolinar: Until that Chase Utley slide when I was confused as all hell.

5:48	Comment From Dr. Mike Mets broadcast team is excellent

5:49	Comment From Duh How many pitches do you need to see before you know if a pitcher “has it” or not in a particular start?

5:49	Jeff Sullivan: I’m not a huge believer in “having it”. So unless there are particularly good or bad signs I just assume a pitcher will be around his normal level of ability

5:50	Comment From Phil I just prefer someone who is an engaging speaker, a la Scully. Most of these former players are just preachy old schoolers with anecdotal tidbits that change day to day. I don’t need the announcer to have the same opinions as me, but be a good game caller.

5:50	Comment From zmiko We’ll be done in less than 2 hours at this pace

5:50	Jeff Sullivan: gotta have a run

5:52	Sean Dolinar: I feel like every time they try a stats-centric broadcast, it’s just a round table discussion, which isn’t what it should be.

5:52	Comment From Roger No runs tonight. Game ends in a tie after 12 innings. Bud Selig declares that next year’s World Series determines home field in the All Star game.

5:52	Comment From Phil Tom Verducci is actually quite good too.

5:52	Comment From Jimbo I would prefer an ambient crowd noise-only audio option.

5:52	Sean Dolinar: That’s how I play all my sports video games.

5:53	Comment From Brody The best baseball broadcasters are/were heavy smokers

5:53	Comment From Fletch Dodger fan but I love the Cubs broadcast team

5:53	Comment From DeGroms hair Who is more at a disadvantage third time through the order – DeGrom or Cueto? I’m guessing Cueto

5:53	Jeff Sullivan: Based on player history, it looks like deGrom is at the greater disadvantage — Cueto’s been pretty consistent. But you are free to question how much individual player history matters here

5:55	Comment From Ryan Jeff “I repeatedly say I tune announcers out yet bitch about Joe Buck” Sullivan; not saying you’re wrong about Buck, but come on man pick a side.

5:55	Jeff Sullivan: I don’t bitch about Joe Buck. I like Joe Buck

5:56	Comment From Brody Is the quick pitch being thrown more frequently this post-season?

5:56	Jeff Sullivan: Certainly seems like it’s everywhere. I don’t know why. Obviously, Cueto is a part of it

5:57	Jeff Sullivan: Granderson is on. Will we have our first and only run of the game?

5:59	Comment From Pablo Sandovals Negative WAR Zone tonight looks terrible. Way too tight.

5:59	Jeff Sullivan: So far, looks a little generous up and down, and limited to the sides http://www.brooksbaseball.n…

5:59	Comment From Ben Cueto quick pitch thing is kinda illegal right? Pretty sure there’s a rule against it

5:59	Sean Dolinar: You have to come set before pitching from the stretch.

5:59	Jeff Sullivan: I like infield pop-ups because they make me feel like major leaguers make plays I can make

6:00	Jeff Sullivan: Verducci breakdown on Daniel Murphy. I love this stuff

6:01	Jeff Sullivan: “Murphy bed” joke. Verducci is smart but I wish he wouldn’t try for humor

6:02	Comment From Minty How long have they been saving the Murphy bed comment?

6:02	Comment From Dodski85 Obligatory expansion of Murphy’s newer position in the box. That will carry over into next year for sure

6:02	Jeff Sullivan: Another walk. Now we get the real test of Cueto’s mettle

6:04	Comment From Roger Does the colder post-season weather affect some pitchers more so than others?

6:04	Jeff Sullivan: Yeah, there’s no way it’s the same for everybody.

6:04

Comment From Duh
When I hear about Wright’s back, I think of Lenny Dykstra and Garrett Anderson, who just weren’t good after they started hitting the DL w back problems. Anderson still had a few productive years, but he was just a shadow of his former self. I mean, Wright has to twist his back for a living.

6:05	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina Does “making a batter uncomfortable” actually work?

6:05	Jeff Sullivan: I doubt it. But it is important to throw inside from time to time so that you don’t end up predictable

6:06	Jeff Sullivan: Wow, near-double-play ball on a 3-and-1 fastball right in the Cespedes sweet spot

6:06	Comment From Duh In general, how closely is pull percentage correlated w power?

6:06	Sean Dolinar: I actually don’t know off hand. Anyone have links? We need to do some basic exploratory data analysis on some of this basic stuff.

6:07	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina How do the royals not challenge that?

6:07	Sean Dolinar: especially with two challenges in the postseason.

6:07	Jeff Sullivan: And the Mets are on the board! Which makes it look extra weird that the Royals didn’t challenge that double play attempt.

6:08	Jeff Sullivan: It does certainly look like Hosmer was off the base

6:08	Jeff Sullivan: So, probably, that challenge just would’ve gone to the Mets anyway

6:08	Jeff Sullivan: To the bottom of the fourth. 1-0 Mets, which means the Royals are going to win

6:09	Jeff Sullivan: Seems like he was pretty clearly off, imo…

6:10	Comment From Bat Yes, some of Verducci’s jokes yesterday were also awful.

6:10	Jeff Sullivan: Stephen King joke so bad, yet attempted twice

6:10	Comment From Minty Say he implodes, how much $ has Cueto lost since the trade?

6:10	Jeff Sullivan: $10 – 15 million

6:11	Comment From Zubroski Coming late, any comment on Lagares playing center today?

6:11	Jeff Sullivan: I think it’s the right thing

6:11	Comment From Nobody Important It kinda looks like that seat was added there just for Marlins Man

6:12	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina Royals will win with lorenzo cain scoring from 2nd on an infield pop up

6:13	Comment From TWB the live chats during the WS are just about my favorite thing of the year, I’m always sad when the WS is over and there’s no more, thanks for the time and effort you guys put into these

6:13	Jeff Sullivan: And Duda with a bobble so the Royals get a baserunner. Defense opening doors this inning

6:13	Comment From Jimbo Hosmer may have stretched too soon and could not reset his feet. I would like to see the stretch effieciency on Stat-Cast, if there was such a thing.

6:14	Jeff Sullivan: I wonder at what point we’ll stop saying that infielders are unaccustomed to playing in a shift

6:14	Comment From Phil I imagine most sportswriters would be equally awkward on live TV.

6:14	Jeff Sullivan: Yeah, he’s really quite good overall. Impressive!

6:15	Jeff Sullivan: Mets seem to have a plan to test Lorenzo Cain with high fastballs

6:15	Comment From tz ARod not bad as a guest color analyst….

6:15	Comment From Raging Randle Thoughts on Arod giving commentary?

6:15	Comment From Nick Has shifting caught on at lower levels of play (e.g., college or Triple A)? That would seem to make infielders more accustomed to it, if it has

6:15	Sean Dolinar: Organizations are getting better at implementing it earlier.

6:16	Jeff Sullivan: I’m liking A-Rod as an occasional color guy. He’s smart! And he sounds smart!

6:16	Comment From Miller Chances A-Rod gets into the HoF as a player AND a broadcaster?

6:17	Jeff Sullivan: Verducci saying deGrom gets a foot more extension than Cueto does

6:17	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina And they paired him with pete rose

6:17	Sean Dolinar: Pete Rose is awful and should go away.

6:18	Comment From TWB oof, defense again

6:18	Jeff Sullivan: And Lagares can’t come up with a low liner in center. Really really difficult play, but ultimately it’s out of the glove

6:18	Comment From Neilest Cespedes would have made the play

6:19	Comment From Kevin It would be nice if someone would like, ban Pete Rose from the game or something

6:19	Comment From Bronn A-Rod is a better commentator that professional commentator Harold Reynolds.

6:20	Comment From Christian No offense Jeff but I think you’d be fired by the 6th inning if you were ever on a broadcast. Maybe even cause riots in the streets.

6:20	Jeff Sullivan: Thankfully I don’t want to broadcast. It is ridiculously hard

6:20	Comment From Jon Dowd The A-Rod Bot is performing better than expected in his commentary beta testing

6:21	Jeff Sullivan: Seemed like deGrom basically wanted to get around Moustakas to face Perez here

6:22	Jeff Sullivan: if deGrom’s body language is so good why did the Mets just call for a mound conference?

6:22	Comment From Dodski85 This is way better than last night. Dave Cameron thought it was necessary to say “that’s so nasty” after every pitch

6:22	Sean Dolinar: Maybe he needed to be rebooted???

6:23	Jeff Sullivan: And Perez goes way out of the zone to ground out meekly

6:23	Jeff Sullivan: Dont’ see that very much on low-away fastballs. Bad hitting; Mets survive

6:23	Comment From Bronn Great reflexes by DeGrom to NOT try to field that. Hard to resist that instinct which might deflect the ball away from the shortstop.

6:23	Comment From Optimetstic good job by deGrom not fielding that ball

6:24	Comment From Minty And Harold is convinced that he’s talking with Al Rodriguez

6:24	Sean Dolinar: https://www.youtube.com/wat…

6:24	Comment From The Hamburglar Cue Salvador Perez blooping a ball he has no business even swinging at.

6:24	Jeff Sullivan: Maybe later! (Probably later)

6:24	Comment From mikeS I was very impressed with C.Archer commenting on a game Keuchel was pitching not long ago.

6:25	Comment From Brody A meek groundout. You mean weak? I like meek though. Lets anthromorphize the baseball!

6:25	Jeff Sullivan: It was a quiet and gentle groundout. I’ll stick with it!

6:25	Jeff Sullivan: Sort of amazing stat so far: each pitcher has only one swinging strike

6:26	Jeff Sullivan: What was Perez even going to do with this pitch…

6:26	Comment From Bronn The meek groundballs shall inherit the fourth.

6:28	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina Remember 15 yrs ago when everyteam incorporayed black into their color scheme?

6:28	Sean Dolinar: College sports did that about 5 years ago, too. It’s a weird fad. Lakers just debuted a black jersey in 2013.

6:28	Comment From Nick Don’t know why, but this seems like a fun time to watch this: http://screengrabber.deadsp…

6:28	Comment From Brody What is everyone drinking? PBR for me!

6:28	Sean Dolinar: Pepsi. I drank too much champagne last night.

6:29	Comment From Jimbo One advantage A Rod and Archer have over Harold is that they had to come up meaningful points for only one half inning, whereas Harold has to for every half inning and anyone would run out of smart things to say. All the more reason to tune them out.

6:29	Comment From Jon Dowd dugout interviews or celeb appearances in the booth? Which is worse?

6:29	Jeff Sullivan: Let’s try to find the stars of the newest FOX blockbuster hit in the audience!

6:29	Jeff Sullivan: And somehow the top of the fifth just ended and I didn’t realize it began

6:30	Comment From Dodski85 Isn’t his 43+% Oswing% the main reason there’s an air of disappointment surrounding his offensive game? With all due respect to Sal Perez of course

6:30	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina Flying Fish Abbey Dubbel

6:30	Comment From Phil Contact scores through the roof. Royals being Royals and Mets trying to let Cueto make a mistake.

6:30	Comment From Phillies113 Water…

6:32	Jeff Sullivan: Mets win expectancy currently at 60%. Or, if you believe in Royals magic, 0%

6:33	Comment From Dr Evil Perez had more HR’s than walks this year. How (un)common is that?

6:33	Jeff Sullivan: Four qualified players did it this year: Perez, Cespedes, A Jones, Arenado

6:34	Jeff Sullivan: Leadoff walk for Gordon despite three very close balls

6:34	Comment From Zubroski Zubrowka bison grass vodka

6:34	Comment From TomBruno Stone enjoy by 10.31.15

6:34

Comment From Bronn
I was watching a game from the 1995 world series lately (I’m a Braves fan). They had Bob Ueker in the booth and he was delightful and entertaining (alongside Joe Morgan and Bob Costas). There was one “celebrity” interview of former pres. Jimmy Carter that lasted 1 pitch. Somehow they’ve forgotten how to broadcast baseball.

6:35

Comment From Phil
Seeing a lot of chatter about the weather and about the World Series being played in bad weather. What’s the alternative? 100 game season? February baseball to start the season in snow? I guess having all teams build retractable roofs and baseball stadiums all being fugly. Or better yet, let’s stop denouncing one particular year.

6:35	Sean Dolinar: Overall, a shorter regular season and more playoff games would probably make the game more enjoyable to more people.

6:35	Comment From The Hamburglar Here come the Royals

6:35	Sean Dolinar: Contact!

6:36	Jeff Sullivan: Rios singles. here come the Royals!

6:36	Comment From Christian Dogfish Head Punkin Ale

6:36	Sean Dolinar: That can be dangerous if not used properly.

6:37	Comment From Joseph Not relevant but ESPN says Nationals are hiring Bud Black

6:37	Jeff Sullivan: Not the kind of news the Nationals thought they’d be making at the end of October

6:37	Jeff Sullivan: That was not a very good Escobar bunt attempt

6:37	Comment From The Hamburglar Is Kansas City a fun city? I bet it is

6:37	Sean Dolinar: Depends on what you want from a city. Driving is required and there are a lot of strip malls.

6:37	Comment From Phil Lagunitas Lil Sumpin’ Sumpin’

6:37	Comment From Neilest From KY: Have you guys heard of KY Bourbon Barrel Ale? It’s huge here but I don’t know it’s made it beyond

6:37	Comment From Jaack It seems that the Royals have acquired the Cardinals magic playoffs BS, except it has a large Madison Bumgarner shaped hole in it.

6:38	Comment From Ben Dogfish Head 120.

6:38	Sean Dolinar: Even more potent.

6:38	Jeff Sullivan: Interesting to see Escobar trying to bunt since his contact is basically bunt equivalent anyway

6:38	Jeff Sullivan: And Escobar singles home the tying run! After two failed attempts to move the runners up

6:39	Jeff Sullivan: Maybe that’s why hitters can’t bunt anymore, Harold

6:39	Comment From Tucker Founders Curmudgeon

6:39	Comment From Nick Isn’t this series more evidence towards how hard bunting is? Two prototypical speed guys in escobar and cain can’t get bunts down.

6:40	Comment From The Hamburglar I understand contact can lead to more hits, but surely the Royals would start hitting balls at someone at a certain point?

6:40	Jeff Sullivan: There you go

6:40	Comment From The Hamburglar People preach how fun the Royals are to watch, how does watching subpar hitters blooping hits in left and right scream fun?

6:40	Sean Dolinar: It’s a fresh style. Something different.

6:41	Comment From Bob So as a Mets fan, I hate the Royals right now. As an objective fan, they are awesome.

6:41	Comment From The Hamburglar Oh Alcidies Escobar, a not very good hitter, blooped a not very well hit ball. And Royals preach how much skill they have

6:41	Jeff Sullivan: Contact is a skill. What becomes of that, it varies

6:42	Comment From Phil Why can I hear batter reactions so audibly tonight? Did they mic up home plate?

6:42	Jeff Sullivan: Sounds like it. Just clearly heard the umpire

6:43	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina So much for the idea that pitching to contact reduces the pitch count

6:44	Jeff Sullivan: Not the best Lagares throw of all time, but it was good enough

6:44	Comment From Christian Sean I visited Dogfish Head and about half their beer they wouldn’t fill growlers for because of “safety reasons”. The cutoff was 9% abv

6:44	Sean Dolinar: I wish they had a limit the one night I had 90 minute on draft at the Philly Barcade.

6:44	Jeff Sullivan: That was perfectly set up for Lagares to hold the runner at third

6:44	Comment From Nobody Important i wish we could put a GoPro on the home plate umpire’s helmet and see some game footage from that angle

6:44	Sean Dolinar: one day.

6:44	Comment From Lawdog Has there ever been a study on “stressful” pitches vs. “easy” pitches and how more of the former shortens an overall outing for a starter?

6:45	Comment From Phil Swinging strike!

6:45	Jeff Sullivan: Royals best contact of the inning –> out to center field

6:46	Jeff Sullivan: Hosmer! 3-1!

6:46	Jeff Sullivan: That Warthen slider was right in the middle of the plate, so Hosmer sent it right back to the middle of the field

6:46	Comment From The Hamburglar deGrom doesnt look like he has his best stuff

6:46	Comment From Bob Mets should learn that swinging at pitches down the middle is a good idea.

6:46	Comment From Puckryan DeGrom gotta be pulled.

6:46	Comment From Nick deGrom is losing it

6:47	Comment From Phil HELL YEAH! I SEEING EYED THAT HIT RIGHT UP THE MIDDLE!

6:47	Jeff Sullivan: Now the big problem for the Mets — deGrom isn’t giving them length. Hello, middle of bullpen

6:47	Comment From Who is Zorbist? This team is unreal.

6:47	Comment From Phillies113 ROYALS

6:48	Comment From Nobody Important I assume the Royals are the result of trying to create a lineup of 9 Ichiro s

6:48	Comment From Puckryan Mouse could put this one out of reach right here…

6:48	Jeff Sullivan: With the Royals bullpen just about ready to come in…

6:49	Comment From Puckryan The Royals are the anti-Cubs. Polar opposites and thats why theyre tough to beat.

6:49	Jeff Sullivan: The Cubs are also tough to beat. Just not last week

6:50	Sean Dolinar: Yeah…deGrom should probably not continue to pitch.

6:50	Comment From L. Ron Would be cool if the Royals took a game off deGrom without an extra base hit

6:50	Jeff Sullivan: Holy moly was that ever close

6:51	Comment From Phillies113 deGrom is deGassed. Pull him

6:52	Jeff Sullivan: This is unbelievable

6:52	Jeff Sullivan: They can’t strike out. It just doesn’t happen

6:52	Jeff Sullivan: How did the Royals literally have any double-digit strikeout games this year

6:52	Comment From Jamie As a Mets fan this is rough. Singled to death is not fun

6:52	Comment From Jamie As a Mets fan this is rough. Singled to death is not fun

6:53	Comment From Nick I painfully watched the ALCS last year, this is exactly what they did to Baltimore.

6:53	Comment From TWB BABIPing him to death

6:53	Jeff Sullivan: “Make it stop. It’s annoying!” — Tom Verducci

6:54	Comment From The Hamburglar I’m glad to see people are taking that Dave Cameron article about not making any assumptions based off a short sample size to heart

6:54	Jeff Sullivan: Are these games not happening?

6:55	Jeff Sullivan: Inning’s over now. Another easy out by Perez. But the Royals just lifted their win expectancy from about 40% to about 90%

6:55	Comment From Jon As a mets fan these are not cheap singles: they are on top of everything! Can’t say babip to death when it’s all line drives

6:55	Sean Dolinar: There were a few grounders in there.

6:56	Comment From Dakota McKee the announcers keep gushing about their contact ability, but is degrom’s stuff just flat tonight?

6:56	Jeff Sullivan: Could be both. deGrom’s fastball has been in the mid-90s but the Royals keep fouling it away

6:57	Comment From Dakota McKee pete rose promised the Mets would be up 2-0 by the end of tonight. HE PROMISED.

6:58	Comment From The Hamburglar deGrom looked like shit. Kudos to the Royals for jumping all over him, but its not as if he wasnt hanging pitches

6:58	Comment From .Toronto Fan Reminder that Bumgarner killed these guys almost single-handedly.

6:58	Jeff Sullivan: Might be time to award him another trophy

6:59	Jeff Sullivan: Good job by Zobrist adjusting to that funny bounce

6:59	Comment From Norrin Radd I’m getting Royals fatigue

6:59	Comment From Puckryan Another breaking ball left up. I see a lot of bad location pitches not just good hitting.

6:59	Jeff Sullivan: all the fouls force more pitches, allowing for more mistakes. but yeah, it can go both ways

7:00	Comment From Bronn I’m rooting for the Mets, but I’m glad that Zobrist made that play so we didn’t have to listen to Harold Reynolds complaining about how the shift messes players up.

7:02	Comment From Postseason Did I mention the Mets suck and have benefited tremendously from luck for the last three months?

7:02	Sean Dolinar: And the Nationals never pulling it together.

7:03	Comment From Jon We% is bullpen context neutral right?

7:03	Jeff Sullivan: correct

7:03	Comment From Roger Really starting to think the Royals do know what’s coming, between the Jays series and this. Tipping, sign-stealing, something. This is just way too many comfy swings on off-speed stuff to be mere chance

7:03	Comment From Phillies113 Where does Marlins Man go during the regular season? Does he come out of hibernation for the postseason?

7:03	Jeff Sullivan: Maybe he does his actual job

7:04	Comment From The Hamburglar Or theyre fouling it off because his fastball has no movement and his offspeed stuff is so recognizable when left over the plate, as it has been

7:04	Jeff Sullivan: why don’t we just settle on the Royals are beating the Mets and deserve to be doing so tonight

7:05	Comment From Elbo No Marlins Man appears regularly during the season. Always at the Sunday Night game for example.

7:05	Sean Dolinar: He does other sports.

7:05	Jeff Sullivan: Three swinging strikes for deGrom. Verducci says it ties a career low

7:05	Comment From BG Baseball makes me happy, fangraphs makes me happy and I’m happy to be sharing this moment with all you randos.

7:05	Sean Dolinar: have you been drinking?

7:06	Comment From Elbo If Carlos Correa had turned that double play, we wouldn’t have Royals fatigue.

7:06	Jeff Sullivan: That’s the funniest part!

7:07	Comment From Duh What’s more tiring for fans of rival fanbases — the Royals’ relentlessness or the relentless discussion of the Royals’ relentlessness by everyone in the broadcast booth?

7:07	Comment From Phillies113 Fun fact: every baseball team in the history of baseball has stolen signs or similar to gain an advantage. The good teams are the ones who can actually do something with that knowledge

7:07	Jeff Sullivan: Holy crap!

7:07	Jeff Sullivan: Cespedes steals a probable homer

7:08	Jeff Sullivan: Or, double, I guess

7:08	Jeff Sullivan: Can Rios hit a ball harder than that? How did Rios ever have a 25-homer season?

7:09	Comment From The Hamburglar I think fans are tired of the Royals having nothing break against them for 2 straight years now

7:09	Jeff Sullivan: well they did lose the World Series

7:09	Jeff Sullivan: Oh god, rain. Please no delays

7:10	Jeff Sullivan: You know what’s amazing is this year the Royals didn’t even rank in baseball’s top 10 in BABIP

7:11	Comment From JSH I know that the human body only experiences fatigue from regular season games, but… is it just possible that all of the innings have caught up to the Mets staff?

7:11	Jeff Sullivan: Absolutely, it’s a consideration

7:12	Jeff Sullivan: Royals win expectancy, bullpen-neutral: 91%

7:12	Comment From Well Beered Englishman Marlins Man also goes to NCAAF and NBA games. He is missing all the Saturday playoff games for college football.

7:12	Comment From L. Ron “Royals magic” is more sequencing than BABIP, no?

7:12	Jeff Sullivan: Sequencing or clutch, whichever you prefer

7:12	Comment From Phillies113 Jeez, people are fickle. The Royals were terrible for figuratively hundreds of years. Now they’re good for 2 years in a row, and people are tired of them??

7:13	Comment From Bronn People are more tired of the “Royals narrative” than the Royals.

7:14	Comment From The Hamburglar Overall, the Mets offense has looked pretty atrocious the last 13 or so innings

7:14	Jeff Sullivan: gotta wonder about Cespedes’ shoulder a bit

7:15	Comment From Pontoons It’s annoying to see not good players get good results for no particular reason.

7:15	Jeff Sullivan: They’re a pretty good team as constructed. They’re playing a bit better at the right time. It’s not like they suck

7:15	Jeff Sullivan: Going to pretend that didn’t happen

7:15	Comment From Steve Tired of he broadcast gushing over their “intangibles”

7:15	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina All baseball narratives are tired

7:16	Comment From jared If the Royals win the Series is it going to begin a firestorm of field-a-team-that-doesn’t-strikeout-if-you-want-to-win discussion?

7:16	Sean Dolinar: This is my third biggest fear.

7:17	Comment From larryv i’m definitely tired of the Royals narrative, but this is making me want to apologize profusely for the 1996–2001 Yankees

7:18	Comment From Christian I don’t know why it’s assumed they were stealing signs or seeing tipped pitches. The pitches they got hits off of weren’t exactly filthy…

7:18	Comment From The Hamburglar Werent the 96-01 Yankees really good teams though? Not that the Royals arent, but those Yankee teams won games and were loved by analytical stats

7:19	Jeff Sullivan: Big outfield tonight. Mets not hitting for any power. To the stretch…

7:19	Sean Dolinar: I could do with out this.

7:20	Jeff Sullivan: Cueto couldn’t have grooved that last pitch anymore. d’Arnaud didn’t do anything with it

7:20	Comment From Neilest I think my favorite thing about the Cardinal’s is that despite the annoying “Cardinal’s Way” narrative they actually get lucky in ridiculously different ways from season to season

7:20	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina Baseball would be boring if every team had the same approach. You can argue the Royals just found a new market efficiency and also buikt their team to thrive in their park. They are pretty much the poster children for speed and defense too.

7:20	Sean Dolinar: Exactly.

7:21	Comment From Miller So broadcast just showed Mets with a tablet in dugout. Is that allowed?

7:21	Jeff Sullivan: http://bigstory.ap.org/arti…

7:22	Comment From Park Chan hos Beard they don’t sing take me out to the ballgame anymore?

7:22	Sean Dolinar: it’s sponsored.

7:22	Comment From Dr Evil Crazy random thought (based on pre-determined outcomes!); if Escobar gets the bunt down sucessfully is this basically a 1-1 game right now? (as the next 2 players made outs)

7:22	Comment From The Hamburglar Didn’t d’Arnaud hit that really hard?

7:22	Jeff Sullivan: routine fly, 95mph off the bat. nothing special

7:23	Comment From Mr. Big Swingin It will be hilarious if the Royals lose this series after all the swooning the announcers are doing these first 1.5 games.

7:23	Comment From Vaughn Jeff, can I get live batted ball velo too, or is this a fun thing you FanGraphs folks have?

7:23	Sean Dolinar: MLB GameDay. It’s in the Feed section.

7:25	Comment From The Hamburglar Well as bad as the Mets have looked, they get to go back home with Thor on the mound then face Medlen in Game 4. Definitely an opportunity to get back into it

7:25	Jeff Sullivan: That’s the neat thing about having a good starter every game. You never really feel out of it

7:26	Comment From Steve “He struggles with the ball at him.” Seconds later “the knock on him has been his range” ..:: when you’re on tv can you literally make up anything you want?

7:26	Jeff Sullivan: This is how you’d describe a Wilmer Flores in a wheelchair

7:27	Jeff Sullivan: Still just six swinging strikes in this game — three a side. Cueto hasn’t been missing bats either

7:27	Comment From Bronn Glad Harold Reynolds hedged before comparing Yoenis Cespedes to Willie Mayes….

7:27	Jeff Sullivan: Did Harold Reynolds just do a Willie Mays impression

7:28	Jeff Sullivan: That’s twice

7:28	Comment From Bronn Many lessons to take from the Royals are actually worthwhile (if not new): Good Bullpens get more play in the postseason, Defensive contributions are valuable, and small sample sizes can yield weird results. But those aren’t the lessons being described by the broadcast team.

7:28	Sean Dolinar: Good relievers can be cheap.

7:29	Comment From Park Chan hos Beard you guys remember that awesome inning with the MLB international feed guys? good times, good times

7:29	Jeff Sullivan: We’re going to the eighth, with the Royals attempting to make the rest of this a formality

7:30	Comment From Ben Is Chris Young going to get more than a 1-year deal now? I mean, M’s and Royals have now seen that his comeback is probably legit. Not really sure what else there is to prove..

7:30	Jeff Sullivan: The injury history is going to make every team squeamish but he might go to the first team that offers two years

7:30	Comment From Christian Hey Jeff, I missed it, where did you say you were getting that live ball exit velo from?

7:30	Jeff Sullivan: Gameday, Feed tab

7:32	Comment From larryv odds that Yost lets Cueto go all the way?

7:32	Jeff Sullivan: Already at 100 pitches. That would be weird

7:33	Jeff Sullivan: Another towering fly out for the Mets. This outfield is unrelenting in terms of its dimensions

7:33	Comment From The Hamburglar As dumb as Ned Yost is, his team saves his ass too much for him to have his infamous “Grady Little moment”

7:33	Jeff Sullivan: the Madson moment could’ve blossomed into that moment, but alas it was not to be

7:34	Comment From Brody BAbi’D

7:34	Comment From Puckryan Has it been a mistake to play Conforto this much? He’s been a complete hole in the lineup.

7:34	Jeff Sullivan: He’s a good player. Gotta play him

7:35	Jeff Sullivan: Good god, great play by Alcides Escobar

7:35	Comment From Siegmeyer of Catarina Babip gods smile upon the royals again

7:35	Comment From Phillies113 How the HELL did Escobar make that play

7:35	Comment From Christian That was impressive.

7:35	Comment From Steve I thought that was definitely a hit

7:36	Jeff Sullivan: Didn’t even realize Cueto is working on a two-hitter

7:36	Comment From Dakota+McKee Why is it wrong to be like arts and craftsy tony romo?

7:36	Jeff Sullivan: That’s what I don’t get. He seems fine

7:39	Comment From bcpkid I’d eat a crownie.

7:39	Comment From Vic Romano The international feed is SOOOOOO much better than the primary Fox feed. I recommend everyone seek it out by whatever means necessary.

7:39	Sean Dolinar: Like by yanking the power?

7:40	Comment From The Hamburglar Jeff, I am growing sick of football and want to get into hockey. Who should I pick to start watching as a team once the WS ends? I live in Carolina, but that seems a rough choice

7:40	Jeff Sullivan: You should start with the local team, but mostly, you should just watch games and see how you feel. Your gut will eventually lead you to a team that you’re fond of

7:40	Jeff Sullivan: Davis throwing in the KC pen

7:40	Comment From Pablo Sandovals Negative WAR This has honestly been a BABIP-influenced snoozefest of a game. Pretty much the exact opposite of last night.

7:41	Jeff Sullivan: Perez goes out of the zone and the Royals are back in business

7:42	Comment From Vic Romano Every Royals game is a BABIP-influenced game, because they don’t strike out.

7:42	Comment From Christian If you think this game is a snoozefest you obviously don’t watch many Mariners games.

7:42	Comment From FM Mood 3 run deficit against davis, feeling…..bad

7:42	Comment From Lank Can someone explain BABIP’d to me? Is that just when the team you want to win starts losing?

7:43	Jeff Sullivan: That is being BABIP’d.

7:43	Comment From Pablo Sandovals Negative WAR See that last play? It’s that.

7:43	Comment From Postseason Lulz Mets

7:44	Comment From Phillies113 Hockey-related aside: 3-on-3 overtime is probably the most fun innovation any sport has had in a long time. It’s heart pounding.

7:44	Comment From Justin And you probably already know this, Hamburglar, but you should go watch live hockey whenever you can.

7:44	Comment From Vic Romano And the Moosetacos hit just an inch away from Duda’s glove earlier in the inning too….

7:45	Comment From Ben Is someone keeping track of all the plays that the Mets don’t make and the Royals would have made?

7:45	Jeff Sullivan: they don’t make pieces of paper that big

7:46	Comment From The Hamburglar BABIP is everything the Royals hit finding a hole, and people preaching that because they make contact its completely sustainable

7:46	Jeff Sullivan: Well of course it’s not totally sustainable, but when you reduce strikeouts, you increase batting average. This isn’t something people made up

7:46	Comment From larryv getting sick of these NFL Sunday Ticket ads. they’re pretty offensive to anyone who isn’t a manly-man football jock

7:47	Jeff Sullivan: It doesn’t matter but that was a phenomenal catch by Cespedes

7:48	Comment From Postseason More of an indictment on how bad of a fielder dyda is

7:48	Sean Dolinar: BABIP isn’t pure randomness. Just mostly. The other components are the defense, weak contact, etc.

7:48	Comment From Phillies113 Does anything REALLY matter, Jeff

7:49	Jeff Sullivan: Here’s the quality Royals contact

7:49	Jeff Sullivan: From Orlando and Escobar, of course

7:50	Jeff Sullivan: This is a necessary pitching change

7:51	Jeff Sullivan: Cover It Live window starting to get unwieldy so give me a second here

7:51	Comment From Puckryan Jeff, what can the Mets do back in NY to turn this series around? Maybe they can’t but I think the first thing is to pitch smarter and maybe do some defensive shifting.

7:51	Jeff Sullivan: Seven innings of one-run ball from Syndergaard puts Game 3 in a really good position

7:52	Comment From Dakota+McKee These Mets clearly don’t have Direct TV. Don’t be like these Mets.

7:52	Comment From Christian Are the Mets contractually obligated to pitch Escobar down the middle?

7:54	Comment From Bronn Have we mentioned Draft Kings yet? With Draft Kings you can win money daily, but TRUST ME, it’s not gambling in any way whatsoever.

7:54	Comment From Steve This is so brutal… Die hard mets fan

7:55	Comment From Roger This is really painful, yeah. Any tiny break in the coin toss of Game 1 and this series would feel very different, but now it seems like a loss before it even gets to NY

7:55	Comment From Vic Romano Mets fans now know precisely how Cubs fans felt after the first two games of that series….

7:57	Comment From Miller Game 1 wasn’t a coin toss. The Mets were like 65/45% favorites before the game

7:57	Sean Dolinar: It was once it got to extras.

7:58	Comment From Joe D. Last team to come back from 2-0 in World Series: Yankees in 1996. Before that, Mets in 1986. Before that: Royals in ’85. Coincidence? I think not.

7:58	Comment From Phillies113 I’m just hoping the Mets win one of the next two games. I have plans this weekend and can’t watch games 3 or 4. Don’t tell anyone I said that though.

7:58	Sean Dolinar: I want to see 7 games.

8:00	Jeff Sullivan: Well Cover it Live crashed me out for about five or six minutes

8:00	Comment From Christian I want to see 4 games and have it over with!

8:00	Comment From .Toronto Fan We all want 7 games duh

8:00	Jeff Sullivan: So now I’m back to discuss the final two outs!

8:00	Jeff Sullivan: Final one out!

8:01	Comment From Phillies113 There are (were) 3 outs to go and the FanGraphs game odds have the Royals at 100% chance to win.

8:01	Sean Dolinar: I never question the odds.

8:01	Comment From Christian Don’t listen to the other Christian I want 7 games!

8:01	Jeff Sullivan: You should always want seven games

8:01	Comment From Neilest Oh I meant to ask this yesterday, does WE basically treat every inning after the 9th like another 9th inning? Since the end of inning determines the game?

8:01	Jeff Sullivan: Correct

8:02	Comment From .Toronto Fan Cueto with the complete game. No narrative is safe.

8:02	Comment From Puckryan The Mets are one of the few teams to get worse WITH a DH!!

8:02	Comment From Bronn It’s always good to compare any 7-1 World Series game to game seven of the 1991 world series-said by some to be one of the best MLB games in the era of television….

8:02	Jeff Sullivan: Why walk a batter up six in the ninth with two outs

8:02	Jeff Sullivan: That’s just annoying

8:02	Comment From Christian I want the home team to win every game. Nothing quite like watching a completely amped crowd

8:03	Jeff Sullivan: 120 pitches for Cueto. This is interesting

8:03	Comment From Christian No, I only want the Royals to win a home game!

8:03	Comment From larryv but which one is the real Christian?

8:04	Jeff Sullivan: And it’s over!

8:04	Jeff Sullivan: Cueto, from good to bad to good again! Royals ahead 2-0 in the series, going to New York. Could end it all Saturday

8:04	Sean Dolinar: We got the easy game!

8:04	Comment From Phillies113 Woo! AND the game finished at a reasonable hour!

8:04	Comment From JD there’s also nothing quite like an amped home crowd getting punched in the gut

8:05	Comment From Sigurd Who wins the pool for “Cueto throws a 2 hitter CG”?

8:05	Comment From Jimbo Less than 3 hours.

8:05	Jeff Sullivan: Thank you everybody for hanging out with us. Sorry that game wasn’t more interesting. I’ll place some calls

8:05	Sean Dolinar: I’m going to go be productive.

8:05	Jeff Sullivan: Thanks Sean! Way to go everybody!

8:06	Jeff Sullivan: Take care everyone. There’ll be a Friday night chat for Game 3

BAL	CHW	LAA
BOS	CLE	OAK
NYY	DET	SEA
TBR	KCR	TEX
TOR	MIN	HOU

ATL	CHC*	ARI
MIA	CIN	COL
WSN	MIL	LAD
NYM*	PIT	SDP*
PHI	STL	SFG