World Series Game 7 Chat

8:05	David Laurila: Hello fellow baseball fans. Let’s get this thing started.

8:05	Dan Szymborski: Greetings chatters and chatees.

8:06	Dan Szymborski: The end. The end of baseball.

8:06	Magic Kingdome: Let’s pretend the Mariners make the World Series in the next few years [hearty chuckle]. Who throws out the first pitch?

8:06	David Laurila: Don’t know what we’re going to see tonight, but I’m rooting for a nail-biter with no ump-show controversies.

8:07	Dan Szymborski: Unless he’s signed with a team, no way King Felix doesn’t get to throw out a first pitch in this case.

8:08	Dan Szymborski: be back in a minute, I need to go murder a cat.

8:08

David Laurila: Fifteen World Series Game 7s have been decided by one run, five of which went extra innings. There have also been blowouts: In 1909, the Pirates pounded the Tigers 8-0. In 1934, the Cardinals crushed the Tigers 11-0. In 1956, the Yankees dominated the Dodgers 9-0. In 1985, the Royals routed the Cardinals 11-0.

8:09	Scratched Correa: Is there anything better than game 7?

8:09	David Laurila: The Red Sox won Game 8 of the 1912 World Series in 10 innings. (Game 2 ended in a tie.) That’s maybe better?

8:10

@PsyMar: Just got the cable hooked up. Phew. The outlet is not near the TV, I had to jerry-rig together 3 cables with a splitter and some other doodad with coax in/out… and that was just to get to the box, which has a fourth cable going to the HDMI switcher that then has a cable going to the TV. If this works I’ll be amazed

8:12	David Laurila: Chirinos has made an outstanding play to retire Eaton each of the last two evenings.

8:12	Dan Szymborski: Back, there was some kitchen havoc. I didn’t know which kitten to murder so they survive for now.

8:13	Dan Szymborski: And naturally, when I step away, an inning goes fast.

8:13	Jayce WHO ?!: I know weather makes it difficult, but it would be so good for there to always be a 4 day layoff between game 6 and 7

8:13	Dan Szymborski: Feels weird. Part of baseball is the grind.

8:13	Jayce WHO ?!: All I really want is Rodney to close this one out and shoot that arrow into the air – the single least probable ending I can realistically imagine

8:13	THE Chili Master: Game 7 deserves something special. Hormel Turkey Chili with Beans! Mmmmm🏆☢️

8:14	Dan Szymborski: 🤮

8:14	Anthony S: So it looks like the consensus has the likelihood of the Astros winning at somewhere between 52-60%. What say ye?

8:14	Dan Szymborski: ZiPS had it fairly even, but who knows what Scherzer’s “true” ability is at this particular moment.

8:14	Cesar Cedeno: On pregame Big Hurt claimed MadBum was never the same after going 5 in relief in G7 2014. Um, Bumgarner had his two highest WAR seasons in 2015-16. C’mon Frank!

8:14	David Laurila: MadBum fact: Not only hasn’t he not allowed a run in seven postseason innings as a reliever, he hasn’t allowed allowed a run in four-and-two-thirds regular-season innings as a reliever.

8:14	Hire Joe Morgan?: Dear Dan, Where is the Chat that was Promised? Thank you, kindly.

8:15	Dan Szymborski: The true chat is the people you blocked on Twitter on the way.

8:15	Scratched Correa: Hopefully I get to make a celebrating kate upton joke tonight because Dan is here. He’s the best!

8:15	LFC Mike: Game 7 and a Game 7 SzymChat! Does it get any better than this for high drama mixed with irreverent commentary? 😁👍

8:15	Dan Szymborski: What are you guys buttering me up for? I’m not helping move any couches this weekend.

8:16	David Laurila: Sad to hear that Ron Fairly died today. He played for the 1969 Expos, the first team in Washington Nationals franchise history. Can’t help but wonder if he’d have been watching tonight.

8:16	Dan Szymborski: Yeah, I saw that. 🙁

8:16	Hire Joe Morgan?: It is the Chat that was Promised!

8:17	Train Noises: Am I the only one bothered by Greinke’s photo in MPB At Bat is one where he still has a mullet?

8:17	Dan Szymborski: Once you have a mullet, you always have a mullet.

8:17	druidiful: This is going to be a 1-0 2 hour game.

8:17	Mrow?: Kittens? Please explain?

8:17	HJ: Scherzer is heavily drugged up, right? Chances this causes long-term damage to his pitching career?

8:18	David Laurila: This is a reasonable question.

8:18	Dan Szymborski: I made the possibly foolish decision to adopt two bonded kittens so that they could stay together.

8:18	Dan Szymborski: And now all my stuff is broken.

8:18	Dan Szymborski: I doubt there’s any long-term damage unless there’s an actual injury

8:18	Dbo: Is it fair that the nationals got away field advantage despite the Astros having a better record?

8:19	Fire Ken Tremendous: Dan will you use your ability to speed up the game to favor one team over the other?

8:19

David Laurila: Max Scherzer said the following when I interviewed him way back in 2010: “I’m a very mathematical guy. I can really handle numbers, so for me the advanced metrics that are coming out throughout the game… have helped me to understand and simplify the game. So if a duck fart gets over the second baseman, I don’t worry about it anymore. I just try to go out and pitch and execute.”

8:19	Dan Szymborski: If I had such an ability, I would have used it earlier this year when I had a gamer to write after a 4:30 game!

8:19	Dan Szymborski: It’s a good attitude. Accepting that some thing are out of your control is hard.

8:20	Hire Joe Morgan?: I want twelve perfect innings from Scherzer.

8:20	Geebs: I’m hoping for a 91 type game 7

8:20	Death: Regretfully, we shall all pass from this life we live at some point

8:20	David Laurila: Scherzer also said the following in our 2010 interview: “Hitting is the hardest thing to do in baseball, and pitching is the most complicated.”

8:21	Dan Szymborski: I’d like to at least get my first Hall of Fame vote before I shuffle into the void.

8:21	The Hamburglar: I’m mainly excited for this game because in a few hours I dont have to hear about the road team winning every game, as if it’s some obscure piece of trivia

8:21	Dan Szymborski: Unless the road team wins

8:21	Bi-Polar Bear: The pictures of the umps look like the same guy testing out different hairstyles.

8:21	Dan Szymborski: The year is 2051: All umpires are just palette-swapped Joe West robots.

8:22	Dystopian Future: NFL players take ridiculous amounts of Toradol and they tend to play fine. They’re pro athletes, and I hate using this argument, but they play at stupidly high levels and through quite a bit of pain sometimes. He’ll be fine, I think.

8:22	Maggie25: Can people in the states watch the game on mlb.tv? Just curious.

8:22	stever20: heard someone say that if Max wins this game tonight he may go down as this generations top pitcher. What do you say?

8:22	Dan Szymborski: He either is or he isn’t and tonight isn’t changing my opinion!

8:23	David Laurila: Just checked and the answer is no for MLB TV. You can listen to the radio broadcast, but not watch.

8:23	Dan Szymborski: He’s got a good argument for the decade, but I think I’d still take Kershaw

8:23	808snake: You’ll still have those cats in 2051. Those things never go away, you know

8:24	Dan Szymborski: Uggh, I’ll be 73.

8:24	Adam2: Where was Eaton running??? Looked inside the basepath

8:24	David Laurila: Apples and oranges, but last night’s interference call wasn’t unlike the infamous Tom Brady tuck-rule debacle. While technically correct, it pretty much defied logic and was thus, in a word, bullshit.

8:24	Dystopian Future: You can watch the games on mlb dot tv if you have a tv provider that qualifies for it! I watch on MLB dot tv in the states.

8:24	Dystopian Future: You have to enter your pay tv provider, however.

8:24	Sam Holbrook: How can I inject myself into Game 7

8:24	Dan Szymborski: Glider?

8:24	Kiermaier’s Piercing Green Eyes: MLB.TV is supported for those with cable logins. Or whose parents have cable logins.

8:24	Jacob DeSpaniel: Say Soto torches the Asttros tonight, bashing his way to world series MVP. Any other 21 year old one have that on there resume?

8:24	Dan Szymborski: I think Fred Lynn was the youngest

8:25	Dan Szymborski: Oops, google says I’m not even close

8:25	Dan Szymborski: Wait, Lynn wasn’t one

8:25	Dan Szymborski: who am I thinking of?

8:26	Mad Joe-Don: Lynn Fred?

8:26	tz: Dan have you seen that video where that old feral cat with terminal kidney disease “adopts” two feral tiny kittens that were brought into the rescue shelter.

8:26	Dan Szymborski: I did!

8:26	Carl Jr: Professional hitter!

8:26	Scratched Correa: Soto is good at baseball

8:27	Dan Szymborski: Youngest is Bret Saberhagen.

8:28	Dan Szymborski: OK, I apparently was thinking of Lynn’s ALCS MVP. So I’m only 80% dumb.

8:28	Woad Raider: Miguel Cabrera had a great WS as a 20 year old Marlin in 2003. Hit a huge HR off of Clemens.

8:28	Hire Joe Morgan?: I like watching Greinke because he does nothing wrong. He seems to open the possibility of a real person playing baseball.

8:28	Quilted Northern: I always confuse Fred Lynn and Brett Saberhagen.

8:29	David Laurila: If I were in a press box, commenting that this game is being played at a faster-than-usual pace would earn me more than a few evil eyes. Not sure if that applies here in a chat room.

8:31	stever20: yeah Lynn would have been on the losing team in ’75 vs the Reds right????

8:31	David Laurila: As someone who lived and died with the Red Sox in 1975, I can begrudgingly confirm the accuracy of said presumption.

8:32	Scratched Correa: Good news is you can’t be smart in a press box

8:32	David Laurila: Nor can I most anywhere else, unfortunately.

8:33	Fire Ken Tremendous: Last night they were talking about Verlander wanting to be a power pitcher like Nolan Ryan into his 40s. Do we know how much velocity Nolan had lost by the time he was finished?

8:33	David Laurila: Lefty Gomez and Justin Verlander each have seven World Series starts. Gomez is 6-0 with a 2.86 ERA. Verlander is 0-6 with a 5.68 ERA.

8:34	5 Run Homer: Gurriel is one good fielding 1B

8:35	David Laurila: And one good homer-hitting one, to boot.

8:35	David Laurila: That was pun-intended, of course.

8:36	Comfortably Dumb: Which ALCS was your F. Lynn reference

8:36	Dan Szymborski: 82

8:36	Basic Biotch: Grrr i hate <insert literally any commentator> so much

8:36	Dan Szymborski: I’m telling Petriello!

8:36	Guest: Dayum Yuli

8:36	This is Lude-i-cris: Quadrangle

8:37	Geebs: Well that wasn’t 91 like at all

8:37	Josh: they should’ve had gurriel’s suspension from the 2017 WS apply to Houston’s next WS, not the string of inconsequential games at the start of the 2018 season

8:38	Dan Szymborski: He deserved a suspension, but I don’t think the fact supported a severe one.

8:38	Scrubladder: 2019 != 1991

8:39	kevinthecomic: Is Alvarez not a good runner? Looked like he was taking baby steps there…………

8:39	Joey Gladstone : Alvarez is slow as Christmas

8:39	Dan Szymborski: It coems the same time every year

8:39	Dan Szymborski: dafuq

8:39	David Laurila: Might want to warm the pen, just in case. This isn’t a normal game with a normal Scherzer.

8:40	Adam2: It was nice of Hinch to help out a struggling pitcher

8:40	Dan Szymborski: Scherzer’s locations are spotty. I’m not giving him a free out here.

8:41	Fire Ken Tremendous: Max Scherzer? More like Min Scherzer. Who’s with me?

8:41	Byron Buxton : That grounder should be ruled out for being out of the baseline

8:41	Dan Szymborski: He seems to be grunting louder than normal. If this wasn’t live, I’d go back to some game tap.

8:42	Joey Gladstone : More Min Scherzless. Oh. Cut. it. out. Come on.

8:42	Scrubladder: Who is Ken Tremendous and why I wanna fire him??

8:42	Dan Szymborski: It’s a play on Fire Joe Morgan, which was done by Ken Tremendous aka Mike Schur

8:42	Sharp: I want an article on how “ace” pitcher egos and their insistance on playing while hurt and tired costs teams playoff games

8:42	Hire Joe Morgan?: My tofu and kidney bean chili-seasoned stew has just come off the stove.

8:42	Dan Szymborski: ewww. I can ban you for that

8:43	Scrubladder: Oh, ok. I wanna fire Joe Morgan. Grrr

8:43	Hey yo: wow

8:43	Lightning Rodney: WOW

8:43	Dan Szymborski: Man, if only they had, like, one more out to work with!

8:43	Deja Vu: Was that Juan Soto or Andrew Benintendi?

8:44	David Laurila: For between-innings entertainment, one of my favorite World Series trivia tidbits: Clay “Dimples” Dalrymple, a backup catcher with a .233 lifetime batting average, went 2 for 2 in the 1969 World Series. His hits came off Nolan Ryan and Tom Seaver.

8:45	Lee Rumbah: As an NL purist, I’m actually really glad this game 7 has the DH

8:45	Dan Szymborski:

8:46	Ball on the Tracks: Max ‘s grunts are at seles level.

8:46	Scratched Correa: Just opened up my pappy van winkle 20 for the first time all year. Special night

8:46	LFC Mike: But no ban for the Hormel Turkey Chili with Beans?

8:46	Dan Szymborski: Too busy expelling my insides.

8:46	Woody: First autograph I ever got was Clay Dalrymple. Connie Mack Stadium, 1966. Passed up the chance to get one from some nobody on the Reds, Pete Rose, to get it.

8:46	TLITF: Oh man is there a way to make this chat not be 30 sec ahead of my stream?

8:46	David Laurila: Love it.

8:46	Dbo: I found out that skyline chili actually has zero chili peppers in it which solidified my belief that it is not chili but beef stew

8:46	Hire Joe Morgan?: Is that your cat, Dan?

8:46	Dan Szymborski: yes

8:47	Frustration: Michael A. Taylor has a career 5.000 ops in the world series

8:48	Nate: Skyline chili is chili in the way that a sofa is a football player.

8:48	Wire Fan: When do we start hearing about on-EEE-ball being available?

8:48	Not Jeff Luhnow: Astros have hit 5 balls over 100 mph, Nats have 1. Seems to be a good sign for the home team right?

8:49	Jacob DeSpaniel: I said it earlier, and I will say it again, this zone is TIGHT

8:49	Ball on the Tracks: If Pedigree dog food brings out the good in your dog, does iams bring out the evil?

8:49	Dan Szymborski: I swear, Greinke’s gotten 9 outs in about 4 minutes.

8:49	Andrew: I keep hearing things about young people not liking baseball broadcasts, and I’ve heard ratings for this WS are not great. Is baseball really in a bad place going forward?

8:50	Dan Szymborski: All the old people are dying. Nursing homes have a similar problem; where are they going to find more old people?

8:50	Maggie25: If you made $500 million in your career why do you agree to be in commercials?

8:50	Dan Szymborski: More goods and services.

8:50	Joey Gladstone : Dog food is not a zero sum game.

8:50	tz: If you put beans and chilis into Pedigree dog food, does that qualify as chili?

8:50	David Laurila: Dog Food is an Iggy Pop song.

8:50	Dan Szymborski: No

8:50	Train Noises: You want to make $600 million?

8:50	Scrubladder: I don’t own “dog”. Are those still a thing ? Thought the cat army would have eliminated them all, =\

8:50	Dan Szymborski: Lots of good dogs!

8:51	Dan Szymborski: They’re way better behaved than cats.

8:51	Wire Fan: More annoying phone commercials or car commercials?

8:51	Dan Szymborski: Phone commercials

8:51	David Laurila: More between-innings trivia: The first team in Nationals franchise history, the 1969 Expos, won their first ever game, beating the Mets 11-10. Reliever Dan McGinn hit the franchise’s first home run — off of Tom Seaver, no less.

8:52	Dan Szymborski: OK, the cat who I think caused the kitchen havoc is settling in.

8:52	Dan Szymborski:

8:52	kevinthecomic: This is what I see right before I get jumped!

8:52	Dan Szymborski: Way too many icons!

8:53	David Laurila: Wonder what the TV ratings will be in Quebec tonight.

8:53	Howie in KS: icons are where the humor is

8:53	Tha baby cakez : Clean up that desktop

8:54	Doug: I love how the 2 chat people are pretty much having separate chats, its like 2 for the price of one….if free counts as a price

8:54	David Laurila: Dan does dogs and cats, I do trivia with the occasional punk rock reference.

8:54	Gunther Centralperk: If Mike Trout retired after opening day next year to become a weatherman (i.e., at age 28 with ~73 WAR), what percentage of the HOF vote do you think he would get in 2025?

8:55	David Laurila: 85%

8:55	Scratched Correa: How many chatters do we have tonight?

8:55	David Laurila: 340-350 in last few minutes.

8:56	5 Run Homer: I’m wearing my Expos hat in support of the Nats tonight

8:56	Dan Szymborski: If he’s wearing a hat, Reddick can arrest you

8:56	Dan Szymborski: I like uncluttered desktops.

8:56	Dan Szymborski:

8:56	Joey Gladstone : why am i not surprised dan has a cluttered ass desktop

8:56	Dan Szymborski: That’s not mine!

8:56	The Hamburglar: I love baseball more than most things….But I cant help but feel a tiny bit of relief that we get a break for a while after tonight. At least through December, and then I’ll have the itch again

8:56	SignedEpsteinsMother : My Dad is 88 years young, saw the Cubs in ‘45, lived to see a Cubs WS and makes the best worst chili in my world, so fU chili purists, Dan (but don’t ever change).

8:56	Tha baby cakez : Punk musicians who were MLB players: go

8:57	David Laurila: Rad is the most notable

8:57	Kiermaier’s Piercing Green Eyes: Dan do you just not use Steam?

8:57	Dan Szymborski: I use steam, but I keep all the shortcuts.

8:57	Sharp: If this was a world series of punk DC would annihilate Houston.

8:57	David Laurila: Bad Brains!

8:58	Dan Szymborski: I already need to live to 120 to play all the games.

8:58	Dan Szymborski:

8:58	Nate: Tim Lincecum SHOULD have been a punk rocker

8:59	Tyler: he is over throwing again

8:59	Ace: Late joiner – has Scherzer looked as bad as his pitch count would suggest?

8:59	Dan Szymborski: HIs locations aren’t great

8:59	Lunar verLander: …so…his pick off throw…

8:59	Lunar verLander: o, nvm

8:59	Scrubladder: Fox 26 in Houston is reporting that Alex Bregman’s grandfather died just a few hours ago tonight

8:59

someone: For the person who wanted to know how to delay this chat, if you are technically inclined, right click in the chat itself, “Inspect Element”. Click on “Console” and then paste this in:
timeoutSeconds = 10; x = addMessageToChatArea; addMessageToChatArea = function(a,b){ console.log(“RECEIVED: “+a.message.substr(0,10)+”…”); setTimeout(function(){ console.log(“POSTED: “+a.message.substr(0,10)+”…”);; x(a,b); }, timeoutSeconds*1000); }

9:00	Andrew: Smoltz saying “pushed to the tilt” which I don’t think is a thing

9:00	David Laurila: Talking for three-four hours without an occasional stumble, if not a faux pas, is really hard.

9:00	Speaking of Marijuanos: Lincecum was my favorite

9:00	Amoanipupas: So has anyone watched Dominican ball online? They have an app that seems to be their version of MLB.TV

9:00	LFC Mike: Scherzer has run half a marathon while Grienke has been out on a quiet morning walk

9:00	tz: Bad Brains….yes that clinches it for DC right there.

9:01	Tha baby cakez : Fugazi too

9:02	Scherzer’s Piercing Blue Eye: Ten Foot Pole and Pulley had Scott Radinsky as vocalists.

9:02	David Laurila: With Pulley and Rad, it’s HAS, had not. They still do shows.

9:02	Wire Fan: Got to think about getting someone warming here , no?

9:02	Dan Szymborski: I can’t see it. They’re going to ride Max as long as they can

9:02	Adam2: Rodney!

9:02	Tha baby cakez : Scott Radinsky is the only one I know of

9:03	Sassy : Wife just boiled noodles, broth, and carrots in a pot. Chili?

9:03	NathanLazarus: 3-1 is a “running count” because Bregman will “protect the zone, but not expand it.” Bregman: takes a fastball for a strike.

9:03	Amoanipupas:

9:03	Amoanipupas: They actually do a better job than MLB explaining how to watch in an easy to understand way.

9:05	Adam2: That was a great yell!

9:05	Scherzer’s Piercing Blue Eye: Interesting. I wasn’t a huge Pulley fan, but there was a song on Punk-o-rama vol 4 that I loved. Then I thought it was both amazing and awesome a professional baseball player was on a band on the same record as Pennywise (my super fav at the time).

9:05	Tvetter: Amoanipupas I’m an Escojido fanatico. I have streamed their games off their website in past years. Helps if you understand some Spanish

9:06	David Laurila: Scherzer has thrown almost twice as many pitches as Greinke through three innings.

9:06	Dan Szymborski: “He’s won Cy Youngs, he’s thrown innings, he’s pitched games.”

9:06	Hire Joe Morgan?: I thought that ball was going farther than that.

9:06	ViewerfromHolland: OOOOOF I can breath again

9:06	tz: DEAD BALL ALERT!!

9:06	Byron Buxton : Wait so Scherzer is the face of the Nationals? I’ve heard that about like 5 guys this week

9:06	Dan Szymborski: The Face of the Nationals is whoever is up when they have some dead moments to fill.

9:08	Dan Szymborski: You guys would REALLY hate me as a broadcaster though.

9:08	Zekeydude: Yep

9:08	Scrubladder: Dan, have younamed your kittens yet?

9:08	Dan Szymborski: Constantine and Justinian. Got them around Labor Day.

9:08	@PsyMar: I wouldn’t hate you as a broadcaster, as long as you drank like Harry Caray

9:08	Scratched Correa: I love broadcasters that talk about their cats most of the time and make baseball the sideshow

9:09	LFC Mike: You can announce for Get off my lawn TV Dan.

9:09	Maggie25: I also had that Punkorama vol. 4. Which I am now listening to on Spotify.

9:09	David Laurila: A few years ago I was having dinner with Rad in Tempe during spring training and someone came up to the table to meet him. Rad said when that happens it’s almost never a baseball fan, but rather a punk/hardcore fan who recognized him.

9:09	Maggie25: If I was a major league player every song I wrote would be like “I pitch in the major league la la la”

9:09	Pat: Just bought seven kittens and named each after a character from Tim Allen movies.

9:09	Part-Time Porch Pirate: Nats are super lucky to be only down 1

9:09	Adam2: Keeping It Szymborski

9:09	Eric Matthews: From BBRef twitter, this is the 666th WS game

9:10	Dan Szymborski: He shoudl name his super slow curve the Zack Attack.

9:10	Tha baby cakez : Name the Tim Allen characters

9:10	Scratched Correa: Greinke is freaking surgical right now.

9:11	jonnyzuck: They say athletes want to be musicians and musicians want to be athletes so what does Scott Radinsky want to be?

9:11	Hire Joe Morgan?: Greinke is putting on a fielding clinic.

9:11	Lunar verLander: Greinke is really good at inducing ground balls to…Greinke

9:11	kevinthecomic: more weak contact from Greinke

9:11	Dan Szymborski: SELFISH PLAYER TRYING TO JOLT HIS GOLD GLOVE CHANCES

9:11	Adam: is there such a thing as exit velo on foul balls?

9:11	Dan Szymborski: I was really disappointed when Petriello told me they didn’t do any statcast for the celebrity softball game.

9:12	Jason: The chat pace tonight is so much faster than last night.

9:12	Pat: Tim Allen Cats: Scott Calvin, Santa, Baboon, Mimisiku, Al, Bernard, Tim Allen.

9:12	Tha baby cakez : I bet Radinsky wants to be a scientist

9:12	Jeff: The beauty of Punk O Rama 4 – Tom Waits.

9:12	Adam2: wow Greinke

9:13	Joe: Maybe you guys can’t/don’t want to, but any comment on the deadspin fiasco?

9:13	David Laurila: I’m just happy that FanGraphs treats us well.

9:13	112358: does he normally get so many fielding chances?

9:14	Dan Szymborski: He gets about the average.

9:14	Hire Joe Morgan?: I’m sorry – what’s going on at Deadspin? Is there something new?

9:14	Dan Szymborski: The company wants them to stick to sports or things that have at least some connection with sports.

9:15	Dan Szymborski: So everyone’s quitting.

9:15	Scrubladder: What is the “deadspin fiasco” ?

9:15	Joe: Everyone quit

9:15	John: Heard on the Astros radio broadcast that Grienke had the most double plays involving a pitcher this season with 12.

9:15	can someone explain: this theory that because Greinke gives quirky answers at press conferences he cares less or will be less anxious about Game 7

9:15	Kiermaier’s Piercing Green Eyes: Greinke might never have to pay for guac at a Houston-area Chipotle ever again.

9:15	Dan Szymborski: I’m sure he has better places to get guac.

9:15	Mad Joe-Don: I wonder if Smoltz just cannot comprehend how someone like Greinke thinks.

9:16	Dominik: Nats only have hit one ball hard all game while astros hit rockets left and riggy3

9:16	David Laurila: This is one of those games that feels like it’s 5-0, but it’s one bases-empty swing from being a tie game. Maybe not a good omen for the home team.

9:17	Dan Szymborski: Honestly, I don’t think just asking things be connected to sports in some theoretical way is an unreasonable request of writers on a sports site. It’s not like it was a blanket ban of politics, just that they had to be sports-related.

9:17	Scrubladder: So you walk eternally through the shadow realms, standing against evil where all others falter. May your thirst for retribution never quench, may the blood on your sword never dry, and may we never need you again.

9:17	David Laurila: Is that you, Cistulli?

9:17	Dan Szymborski: I’m not going to quit because David and Meg won’t let me liveblog my colonoscopy.

9:17	Byron Buxton : I bet the Astros really want an even number lead

9:17	Sharp: Minute Maid Park calls Torchy’s a Houston area fave when all true Houstonians know it is just a hipster Austin import

9:17	This is Lude-i-cris: Uneven leads though

9:17	Where’s the rest of your pot: Everything is going the Astros way but a one run lead is perilous at best

9:18	Wire Fan: Are live sports pretty much the only thing keeping broadcast TV alive these days?

9:18	Dan Szymborski: To an extent.

9:18	Scherzer’s Piercing Blue Eye: Interestingly enough (maybe), I didn’t totally get Tom Waits because the first I ever heard him was on Punk-o-rama 4. Then I saw Down By Law with a friend … and then I got it.

9:18	David Laurila: Tom Waits live is like a vaudeville act. Amazing performer.

9:18	Sean: I think if I ever see a hometown hero/professional athlete at a bar, I’m gonna ask them to buy me a beer. Greinke has made hundreds of times more than I will in my lifetime. I ain’t paying for his drink.

9:18	Maggie25: I have to assume that the mass resignations are the culmination of something.

9:19	Dan Szymborski: The editor was fired for loading the front page of non-sports things in protest.

9:19	Tom: I work in sports and legitimately didn’t know Deadspin was a sports website. Just thought it was a regular website that sometimes wrote about sports

9:19	Dan Szymborski: Media companies can take stick to sports too far; there are places where sports and politics necessarily collide.

9:19	Joe: Dan with the really bad take re Deadspin. What did they think it was when they bought it? The non-sports stuff is the most trafficked.

9:20	Dan Szymborski: If I buy the McDonald’s that sells spaghetti and blankets, I dont’ think it’s unreasonable if I want to focus it on Big Macs and fries.

9:20	The Spin is Dead: Even if people are buying lots of spaghetti and blankets?

9:20	Dan Szymborski: It’s my choice as the McDonald’s franchise owner.

9:21	Maggie25: But then it’s not a shock when all the blanket salespeople want to quit

9:21	Dan Szymborski: Nope, never said it was a shock.

9:21	The Spin is Dead: Yay capitalism!

9:21	Dan Szymborski: Yes. Yay capitalism.

9:22	Joe: It would be like FG getting new owners and then telling you to stop writing about baseball analytics.

9:22	Dan Szymborski: No, it would be like FG getting new owners and telling me to start writing about baseball analytics.

9:22	TLITF: But it wasn’t a McDonald’s, Dan. It’s more like if you bought the sports site that differentiated itself by being about so much more, and trying to make it not be about so much more

9:23	5 Run Homer: I live in Canada, and I just saw a Donald Trump ad. What the hell?

9:23	David Laurila: Reminds me of something I once said to my wife while watching a game. Can’t remember the city in question, but let’s say it was Cleveland. My offhand comment was, “Somewhere in Cleveland, a beer bottle just got thrown into a TV.”

9:23	Adam2: Does Tom Waits ever perform anymore?

9:24	Dan Szymborski: Moving on.

9:25	Scherzer’s Piercing Blue Eye: Just not even close most of the time, it seems.

9:25	Lee Rumbah: This game needs a Yordan inside the parker

9:26	jonnyzuck: the home plate ump looks like the ed hochulli of umps with those arms

9:26	I’ll make you famous: With all these baserunners Max is flirting with making dome Astro the World Series MVP

9:26	Actual Astros Fan: How long they gonna leave in Scherzer? Nats having a terrible pen is biting them

9:27	Dan Szymborski: I can’t imagine he’s back for another inning.

9:27	Appa Yip Yip: Strasburg with the 5 inning save

9:27	David Laurila: This is a somewhat odd game. I can imagine it ending 1-0, 8-0, or 5-4.

9:27	Scherzer’s Piercing Blue Eye: David, you talk to a lot of pitchers … do you have any idea what a cortisone shot would do to mechanics?

9:27	abgb123: Sanchez available?

9:27	Dan Szymborski: He has to be.

9:28	Adam2: How honored do you think Beethoven would be traveling to the future and hearing/being told that 3 seconds of one his pieces is used to taunt opposing players in sports?

9:28	Dan Szymborski: I had to draw a conclusion from what we’ve seen, but I really think it’s clear that Scherzer wasn’t near 100% coming into the game.

9:29	Dan Szymborski: The BABIP gods seem kind to him though.

9:29	David Laurila: Good question on the cortisone shot. I’ll ask a few guys come spring training, but I’m guessing there’s little impact? Only one I’ve had was the knee, and everything felt “normal” afterwards, but I wasn’t a mound, so…

9:29	Ball on the Tracks: The dog or the composer?

9:29	Tvetter: I just finished cleaning up the beer off my television

9:29	Scrubladder: 7 stranded thru 4 innings

9:30

David Laurila: Another trivia thing that has nothing to do with this game: The 1927 Yankees hit 158 home runs — no other AL team hit more than 56 — and they also the led the league in walks. On the pitching side, NYY hurlers gave up the fewest walks, and the second fewest home runs. They finished 110-44, then swept the Pirates in the World Series.

9:31	Bat: Scherzer’s ability to wiggle out of trouble has been impressive…still only 1-0.

9:31	Cole’s Law: Dan – Smoltz said that Scherzer is better tonight thsn game 1!!

9:31	Dan Szymborski: General Zod says a lot of things.

9:32	Cole’s Law: Dan to be fair to Smoltz 1 is better than 2. And that’s as deep as the analysis went!!

9:32	Scratched Correa : Over under on pitchers Greinke throws this inning 11.5

9:32	Dan Szymborski: 3 outs on 2 pitches somehow

9:32

Guy Smiley: Just now settling in and catching up on the chat and have a comment on David’s Tuck-rule analogy with last night’s nonsense. The main difference is that in the Tuck Rule game, the Raiders basically stopped playing after the bad call and invited the Patriots to win the game, while the Nats strapped a pair on and made the bad call a footnote.

9:32	NathanLazarus: Doesn’t Max Scherzer usually strike out batters? Today he has only struck out a singular batter.

9:32	Scrubladder: Scherzer — 76 pitches 33 balls/43 strikes (it seems much worse)

9:32	David Laurila: Still five to go, but Greinke is on pace for a “Maddux.”

9:33	Dan Szymborski: There’s something ballsy about throwing Juan Soto a pitch as fast as probably 25% of the crowd could throw

9:33	Byron Buxton : I think Scherzer gets the 5th

9:33	Kiermaier’s Piercing Green Eyes: When prepping for Greinke, do the Nats get someone to go out there and throw 68 MPH eephuses? (Eephi?)

9:33	Dan Szymborski: They could hire me to throw some fastballs

9:33	Jacob DeSpaniel: Scherzer is mostly struggling with his changeup. The rest of his stuff is around the zone.

9:34	tz: On a ballsy-ballsy matchup, the pitcher has the edge

9:34	Lynn: Has this game felt more exciting than the others because we’ve had only 3 Ks? Loud outs with runners on base are fun.

9:34	David Laurila: Not sure that was a swing. I’m generally of the opinion that check swings go in favor of the pitcher too often.

9:34	Dan Szymborski: It helps that things have been moving along.

9:34	Tommy L: Ump at third has a plane to catch

9:35	jonnyzuck: dan i think you are wildly overestimating how easy it is to throw a pitch 65 MPH

9:35	Dan Szymborski: I threw 68 when I was a teenager and I still hit 58 goofing around at a minor league game a couple years ago

9:35	Dan Szymborski: I imagine most adults could throw that fast

9:36	Thom: ugh thanks a lot for reminding me of the 2016 series Joe, sad cleveland fan here needs another beverage

9:36	Jason: What’s the actual check swing rule? I’ve heard it quoted many ways

9:36	David Laurila: I was at all seven games in 2016, and it was the thrill of a lifetime from a work perspective. Those ballparks were alive.

9:36	Dan Szymborski: It’s tricky – the MLB rule is actually an attempt to swing at the ball.

9:36	David Laurila: Check swing rule is “intent.” simple as that.

9:36	Dan Szymborski: And it leaves a lot of judgemtn

9:36	lukewarmtakes: I’m too lazy to consult the actual rulebook but I’ve been told it doesn’t actually define a swing vs check swing. Is this true?

9:36	Dan Szymborski: Yup

9:37	You Decide: Best world series of the 2010’s

9:37	Dan Szymborski: That sounds like a poll question!

9:37	Dan Szymborski: I wouldn’t pick this one.

9:37	David Laurila: Because of the way the check swing rule is worded, I’ve always been perplexed when a hitter is ruled to have swung when he’s 99% trying to get out of the way of a pitch

9:39	Tvetter: Another trivia fact that has nothing to do with this game: The Seattle Mariners is the only team to have never lost a World Series game

9:39

Dan Szymborski:

Best World Series of the 2010s?

2010 (SF vs. TEX) (0.7% | 2 votes)

2011 (STL vs. TEX) (17.7% | 45 votes)

2012 (SF vs. DET) (0.7% | 2 votes)

2013 (STL vs. BOS) (0.3% | 1 vote)

2014 (SF vs. KC) (9.0% | 23 votes)

2015 (NYM vs. KC) (2.7% | 7 votes)

2016 (CHC vs. CLE) (42.9% | 109 votes)

2017 (LAD vs. HOU) (20.4% | 52 votes)

2018 (LAD vs. BOS) (1.9% | 5 votes)

2019 (WAS vs. HOU) (3.1% | 8 votes)

Total Votes: 254

9:39	Chaim Bloom’s Underpants: In my judgment, 2018 was by far the best

9:39	Cole’s Law: KC San Fran is the only right answer.

9:40	Dan Szymborski: Man, 2013 World Series is de Blasio

9:40	Nate: Speaking of 2014 WS, Alex Gordon was going to be out if he went home…

9:41	Dennis: so we dont talk aout how stupid sac bunts are anymore right?

9:41	Dan Szymborski: We still do. But we got most of our jokes out for the Chirinos joke.

9:42	Byron Buxton : Dan how embarrassing is it for you that KC made two world series this decade?

9:42	Dan Szymborski: Why would it be embarrassing?

9:42	Dan Szymborski: Creed has 11 Platinum albums. Not everything that’s successful is awesome.

9:42	Actual Astros Fan: Greinke is making Bumgarner look like Edinson Volquez

9:42	Trent: Will it be the most awkward World Series celebration if Osuna closes out this 1-0 win for the Astros?

9:43	Dan Szymborski: For the watchers at least!

9:43	Appa Yip Yip: They only made one. The 2015 world series was cancelled after the ALCS

9:43	Lee Rumbah: I did not need to to know that Creed tidbit

9:43	Eel Ffilc: Creed- finally we’re talking about real music.

9:43	Dan Szymborski: 😫

9:44	Lightning Rodney: which do you think was the best WS, Dan?

9:44	Dan Szymborski: I’m on the popular choice here: 2016 was great.

9:44	Pat: Holy hell Im eating the BEST chili right now. It’s (1) finely ground beef, (2) tomato sauce, (3) served over spaghetti.

9:44	Scherzer the 5th: Once more into the breech

9:44	NickG: Any chance of Greinke approaching some kind of WS record for assists by a pitcher?

9:44	Scrubladder: Gerrit Cole throwing in BP along with Pat Corbin for WASH

9:45	Ace: Ok, this is truly insane right? Is Davey going to throw Max out there until he gives up 5 runs?

9:45	Dan Szymborski: Still trusts ’em better than the pen

9:45	MJ: Would this be Cole’s first relief outing ever? With plenty of good relief options, why? This isn’t like SF’s bullpen in 2014

9:45	lukewarmtakes: I don’t feel like Houston’s bullpen is so bad that they need Cole for this game.

9:45	Dan Szymborski: I feel that Cole in the game is one charge of trying to be too cute

9:45	David Laurila: Good question. Pretty sure the regular season record for assists by a pitcher in a game is 12, but no idea about World Series.

9:45	Cole’s Law: Yes. By decre and law Cole will be pitching tonight. We will call it Cole’s Law.

9:45	Guest: Nats just needed Carlos Quentin on the bench for the ultimate anti Greinke’s collarbone plate appearance

9:46	Dan Szymborski: This game could very easily be 5-0 right now.

9:46	Hire Joe Morgan?: They just said the record is six by Maddux, and Greinke tied it.

9:46	Dan Szymborski: Oh man, when Bregman turned on that

9:47	Davey Martinez: How do I muster the courage to take Max out?

9:47	Dan Szymborski: Swat team

9:47	Chaim Bloom’s Underpants: Let’s see what Namgerb can do

9:47	Guy Smiley: Catching up on the chat, learning that Tom Seaver was a bum.

9:47	Wire Fan: All the cool kids are using their starters out of the pen. Hinch should get Verkander loose too.

9:47	David Laurila: Nick Altrock is one of the pitchers with 12 assists in a game, and he fits this chat nicely.

9:47	Dan Szymborski: heh

9:47	Logan: WS trivia: Which three teams have won a WS despite losing three games in a row?

9:48	Actual Astros Fan: Cole is the best pitcher in the bigs right now, but as long as the Nats are only hitting weak groundouts and popups, Greinke needs to be pitching

9:49	Byron Buxton : Smoltz talking pitching mechanics is actually great

9:49	Dan Szymborski: He’s in his wheelhouse

9:49	Lee Rumbah: Maybe Cole blows the game and he only gets $249 million dollars next year

9:49	NickG: Maybe my favorite thing about baseball this year is that thing where they overlay pitches in one clip. I’m sure it’s been done for a while, but I just noticed it this year.

9:50	Ben3: Fox hired dshep for the overlays

9:50	tz: I hope Gurriel lets that hair grow till it doesn’t fit under his helmet, like Oscar Gamble.

9:50	Hire Joe Morgan?: I liked how they froze that so you could see his fingers at release. How is anyone supposed to see that in real time, though?

9:51	SignedEpsteinsMother : The night is dark and full of terrors…but the fire burns them all away.

9:51	John Smoltz Hater: I’ve never heard a color commentator say more insightful things about pitching mechanics than John Smoltz. The only problem is he seems to not understand high level baseball strategy c. 2019

9:51	Kiley McDaniel: HEY EVERYONE KILEY IS HERE

9:51	Dan Szymborski: Hey Kiley!

9:52	Dan Szymborski:

9:52	lukewarmtakes: Kiley coming in for the 4 inning save.

9:52	Kiley McDaniel: Big day here at the house, got countertops installed so I’m walking on sunshine and whatnot

9:52	E5: Kiley! (In my best Norm voice)

9:52	Pat: Timallen just pawed at Baboon.

9:52	Appa Yip Yip: A wild Kiley appears!

9:52	Hire Joe Morgan?: Wait, Dan, is that a reaction to Kiley, or general feelings about the game?

9:52	Dan Szymborski: The eyes of teh beholder.

9:52	Kiley McDaniel: Hey that’s the imposter Kiley

9:52	Chaim Bloom’s Underpants: Kiley scared the entire infield into shifting severely

9:53	Ball on the Tracks: You hear MVP chants but never ROY chants

9:53	Dan Szymborski: R-O-Y doesn’t roll off the tongue. And just chanting Roy sounds like you’re chanting for a dude named Roy

9:53	Dan Szymborski: Which is OK if it’s halladay

9:53	Byron Buxton : My boss also got countertops installed today. Big day for countertop installation

9:54	Kiley McDaniel: yes big ups to the counter gods out there despite the week delay

9:54	Kiley McDonald : I’m the real one

9:54	Kiley McDaniel: wait a minute

9:54	The Hamburglar: I personally love the “Comeback Player of the Year” chants

9:54	Jason: Do you guys read the chats you aren’t involved in so that you know all the weird inside jokes that come up?

9:54	Kiley McDaniel: I generally do not

9:54	Dan Szymborski: I try to go in blind! That way every chat has its own unique contour.

9:54	Kiley McDaniel: pick my spots, try to keep my brand clean

9:54	Matt Damon: Why do they keep calling the AL ROY, Yore-dawn instead of Jordan as in Michael.

9:55	Kiley McDonaldiel: Misspelled my name srry

9:55	LFC Mike: If the Roman ad stays on your TV for four hours call your cable company

9:56	Kiley McDaniel: I’ve always been confused when they say it’s discrete packaging but the ads show the box says ROMAN and they have ads all over TV about how it’s for boners sooooo

9:55	Justin: Logan: 87 Twins, 91 Twins, 01 DBacks

9:55	Dan Szymborski: Commissioner’s-Historic-Achievement-Award!-clap-clap-clapclapclap

9:55	David Laurila: The 1987 World Series champion Twins went 29-52 on the road during the regular season and won one road game in the postseason.

9:56	Dan Szymborski: There are actually a LOT of good Roys in history

9:57	Dan Szymborski: Halladay, Campy, Owalt, Sievers, White, Face, McMillan, Smalley, Cullenbine

9:57	Joba Torre: Or Roy Hobbs?

9:57	Guy Smiley: Dan, I have a Roman coin with the emperor Justinian’s face stamped on it. I use it as a golf ball marker (when I’m lucky enough to golf).

9:57	David Laurila: Don’t forget Roy White.

9:58	lukewarmtakes: In dropping minor words to form acronyms, shouldn’t ROY actually be RTY?

9:58	Dan Szymborski: Roty

9:58	Guest: Lot of bad Roys too-guy from The Office, Moore

9:58	Kiley McDaniel: I always admired the Dodgers ROY run 1992-1996: Karros, Piazza, Mondesi, Nomo, Hollandsworth (!)

9:59	Kiley McDaniel: only one of them got an 8 year bid for corruption

9:58	Dan Szymborski: Roy got his life together.

9:58	Dan Szymborski: The Office, not Moore

9:58	Scrubladder: Roy Orbison

9:58	tz: And in the NHL, you have Patrick Roy.

9:58	Yordan Alvarez: What is TOOT BLANK in Spanish

9:59	Dan Szymborski: I think you review this play.

9:59	Dan Szymborski: BUt I don’t think there’s enough to overturn it.

9:59	Dan Szymborski: safe there or out is a BIG deal.

9:59	KJ: G. Biv

9:59	Jeremy: Roy Rogers

9:59	Kiley McDaniel: don’t really like the frame by frame when did he come off the bag stuff. really hard to do at full speed that was never called without replay