Check it, boys and girls:
Some people out there (read: Georgetown’s “newspaper” of record) were hating on the playoffs because, well, they’re supposedly boring without any “stars.” We’re here to prove to you that these playoffs, sans Yankees they may be, are actually pretty damn instense. While the final four has already been reduced to just two, the last week has hardly been a yawner.
Benito “I’m 37 years old” Santiago blew up this year, and he was a stud in the NLCS, hardly “the worst contributer to a pennant-contending team in the last 15 years.” Chalk their league title up to him and Kenny Lofton, who has resurrected his career out by the bay. (Note: We saw Lofton this summer on the White Sox, and yeah, it was bad.) Oh yeah, there’s Bonds, too. He’s alright.
The Cards, despite having the best day-to-day lineup in baseball, failed to cash in on the hyperbole surrounding Darryl Kile, leaving melodramatic sportswriters to loathe themselves for the second year in a row. Remember when the Yanks were going to win the Series because of Sept. 11? Yeah, we do too. But still, the Cardinals possess one of the most formidable rosters in baseball, postion by postion.
Oh yeah. We also heard the Angels didn’t have one player on their roster worth drafting on your fantasy baseball team. Nope, not Garrett Anderson, who had an MVP season with a .306 average, 195 hits, 123 RBIs and an OPS of .871. Yep, stay away from him, owners. He’s a hack.
And who said the Twins had no pitching? Certainly no one from Minnesota, because they would know that the team’s ERA was sixth best in the AL and their bullpen was third best, going by ERA. That’s not to mention Steady Eddie Guardado, who’s better than your favorite reliever, unless you’re a Dodgers or Braves fan.
So what have we learned? Well children, we now know that the playoffs can be exciting without big-market, bandwagon fan, East Coast media jock sniffing superstar-laden teams.
You disagree? Then you probably also like the Lakers and don’t really know what “West Coast Offense” really means. Translation: You’re not a fan.
Remember that Maddux, Johnson, Bonds and Zito were once marginal no-names, too, just like Hunter, Anderson, Pujols and uh, Jeff Cirillo are now. So if you’re not watching the playoffs because there are no stars involved, then go back to the great pasture of Limp Bizkit CDs and Derek Jeter jerseys with the other bandwagon sheep.
In conclusion, we have only one question for those of you from Georgia: “How ‘bout them Dawgs?“
Indeed, how about them.
