Now I can't wait to see what else this series might bring. Embarrassing blowouts? I'd love to see Cliff Lee or Andy Pettitte go up in flames. Horribly blown calls at critical moments? Even better. An anticlimactic Game 7? I'll take it. Whatever happens, that knife's got to twist. That's the only way my satisfaction at watching one team burn can overcome my disgust at watching the other team advance. From now on, I'm not cheering for anything but catastrophe.
Yankees 6, Rangers 5 (New York leads series 1-0)
I mentioned that the distinction between "aggressive" and "stupid" baserunning, in the language of Ron Darling, depends on whether it worked on not. Strange how the Rangers' baserunning turned from "aggressive" into "stupid" in just a few days. Ron and Buck credited baserunning for their ALDS-clinching win, but when the breaks didn't go their way (Nelson Cruz bailing a wild pitcher out of a bases-loaded jam, Ian Kinsler getting picked off as the tying run with nobody out in the ninth), Darling and Smoltz were all over those "bad decisions." Without context, which they never bother to consider, it's a total ex post facto judgment. But Angels fans wouldn't know anything about bad baserunning.
On the other hand, OMG!! BRETTGARDNER SLIDEINTO1B PLAYER-OF-THE-GAME!!1! Craig Sager grabbed the little rodent just to applaud him for his dirty jersey in the postgame interview. Sure, congratulate the guy on grounding out weakly to the left side and benefiting from the pitcher being late to cover the bag. He improved the Yankees' chances by 3% on that play. The things this broadcast crew choose to admire just seem random to me. They were applauding A-Rod for nearly committing an error earlier in the game, as if he were somehow responsible for the ball landing within reach after missing it with his glove. At least their dismay when CC purged the contents of his second stomach on the mound was enjoyable. John and Ron might be puzzling over that one for awhile, if puzzling didn't require thought, that is.