In the 1970s, prominent psychologist Paul Ekman recognized six standard emotions experienced in all human cultures. Im not sure if he studied sports fans, however Im guessing you had among the following six reactions to the Houston Astros beating the Oakland Athletics on Thursday and moving on to the American League Championship Series:
Youre an Astros fan. Youve gone on StubHub looking to see if any of those 11,000 World Series tickets are readily available. You have a huge smile on your face, youre texting upbeat messages to your buddies, you lastly dug out that “2017 World Series Champions” T-shirt to wear with pride and you will clear your schedule to see the upcoming games.
2. Surprise. Maybe youre an Astros fan, but most likely not. Youre simply a baseball fan. You dont truly care all that much about the unfaithful scandal from the offseason. Youre just stunned the Astros in fact beat the Twins and now the As– without a hurt Justin Verlander, mind you– after going 29-31 in the routine season. You have neither a positive nor a negative sentiment about a sub -.500 group perhaps reaching the World Series, and you type of like this NCAA tournament-style bracket. You will keep enjoying the playoffs due to the fact that you like baseball.
Youre a baseball fan and you do not like what the Astros did and feel their 2017 title is forever polluted and you certainly didnt desire them to advance. You dont feel great about it, however youll keep viewing. Plus, it will be fun to have a team to root against in the ALCS.
Everything about the Astros already makes you sick. The Astros advancing makes you sweaty, you dont desire to talk to anyone, and you vow to consume White Claw and see “Seinfeld” reruns until spring training starts. You certainly arent going to view the ALCS.
5. Worry. You cant think a sub -.500 group will reach the World Series. Possibly its time to simply give up sports entirely and finally read “Heart of Darkness,” which you skipped in high school English class and just skimmed the CliffsNotes version.
6. Unhappiness. You cant think Brad Pitt isnt going to reach the World Series … once again.
3 reasons to root versus the Astros in the ALCS:
1. They were cheaters.
” I understand a lot of individuals are mad,” Carlos Correa said after the Astros swept the Twins in the very first round. Were a solid group. We won a series, on the road, in Minnesota.
Correa was a little more diplomatic after Thursdays 11-6 win over the As, stating the Astros did not utilize the concept of fans not desiring them here as motivation. “Absolutely not,” he said. “Were motivated since we desire to win. We desire to be able to bring another champion to the city of Houston. We know what it seems like so we desire to be able to have that sensation once again. 2017 was such an unique year commemorating with the fans in Houston so the important things that inspires us is to get to feel that again.”
2. They ended up 29-31 in the regular season, outscoring their challengers by simply 4 runs.
A mediocre or even sub -.500 group can get hot at the best time, and if 2 of them get hot, all of a sudden the World Series does not feel that crucial. The more groups that do make the postseason, the less crucial the regular season ends up being.
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Its possible– and possibly even most likely– that the true talent of the Astros is much greater than that of a. 500 team. Consider the Astros worst 60-game stretches over the previous three seasons– seasons in which they won 100-plus video games each year:
13, minus-5 run differential) 2018: 33-27 (June 20-Aug. 31, plus-54 run differential) 2019: 35-25 (June 7-Aug.
They didnt have any 60-game stretch like 2020 in 2018 or 19, but they did have a comparable stretch in 2017, which they rebounded from to win the World Series (with the help of Verlander, acquired via trade on Aug. 31, and a few trash cans).
Now, its pretty clear the 2020 Astros arent as good as the 2019 Astros. Gerrit Cole is gone. Verlander and Yordan Alvarez were injured. At one point, the Astros had a bullpen with nine rookie pitchers. In 2015, the Astros went 50-17 in video games Cole and Verlander started in the regular season, however they still went 57-38 in games started by everybody else– which is still a 97-win pace over a full season.
The Astros went 2-7 in extra-inning games, however a primary perpetrator to their struggles in the routine season was the offense. Yes, it was minus the prodigious talent of Alvarez, but all the regulars declined in wOBA from 2019, when the Astros had one of the very best lineups in MLB history, a number of significantly so:.
Gamer 2019 2020George Springer.401.373 Jose Altuve.374.274 Michael Brantley.367.356 Alex Bregman.418.339 Carlos Correa.380.303 Yuli Gurriel.364.276 Josh Reddick.308.299.
What occurred? Bregman has stated he never felt best all season other than for a video game or 2, but is that a description or just something you say? Altuve, for sure, looked horrible all season, constantly pulling off the ball. The haters will suggest the Astros were just unfaithful in 2019. It might be that the gamers did feel pressure to perform in wake of the cheating scandal. It might be that the Astros lollygagged through the routine season, understanding that in a weak department they were basically assured of a playoff area.
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Anyhow, as the offense appeared in the AL Division Series win over the As– punching 12 home runs in four video games and balancing 8.3 runs versus an extremely good Oakland pitching personnel– were reminded that, yes, there is a lot of skill in this lineup, no matter the regular-season numbers. To put it simply, perhaps the 60 games were simply an aberration and the Astros are back.
” You know, we never ever quit because we had a down year offensively,” Correa stated. “We didnt stop going to the cage, we didnt stop remaining motivated out there and I believe that assisted us in this series. We kept going to the cage every day, we kept putting in the work and it displayed in this series and we were able to succeed.”.
3. Youre a Dodgers fan and the idea of losing another World Series to the Astros is excruciating.
Factors to root for the Astros:.
The legendary supervisor probably requires a World Series win to get chosen to Cooperstown, a fitting ending to a terrific profession as a player and skipper. Plus, hes 71 years old and uses wristbands with his image on them.
” Its been a long, difficult road however were midway there. Im grateful and delighted. I still have some joy left to get,” Baker stated.
2. Altuve and Bregman are still the small magnificent mites who are so fun to view.
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3. Did you see Correa jump on that hanging slider from Frankie Montas?
4. Framber Valdezs curveball.
5. Springers yearly October luster.
6. All those rookies. 8 of their 13 pitchers on the roster versus the As were novices.
7. Michael Brantley, professional player.
8. Zack Greinke beginning another Game 7 of the World Series.
9. You rooted for the Stormtroopers.
OK, youre not going to root for the Astros. In this strangest of seasons, its maybe apropos that we have a losing team simply 4 wins from the World Series. Its a familiar face, a group with a current history of excellent success.
Youre just shocked the Astros really beat the Twins and now the As– without a hurt Justin Verlander, mind you– after going 29-31 in the routine season. Think about the Astros worst 60-game stretches over the past 3 seasons– seasons in which they won 100-plus games each year:
Now, its quite clear the 2020 Astros arent as good as the 2019 Astros. Last year, the Astros went 50-17 in games Cole and Verlander started in the regular season, however they still went 57-38 in games begun by everyone else– which is still a 97-win rate over a full season.
It might be that the Astros lollygagged through the routine season, knowing that in a weak division they were pretty much assured of a playoff area.
