ALDS Update: I Give Up Edition

With a winnable Game 4 on the line, and Justin Verlander on the mound... Rays 4, Astros 1.

I mean...this should have been simple. It's Verlander, the guy who's gonna win the Cy Young, albeit on shorter rest than usual, but still...against the Rays' opener and some spare relievers like Nick Anderson and Ryan Yarbrough. On paper, this shouldn't have worked for the Rays. And yet it did, thanks to Tommy Pham, Willy Adames and Travis D'Arnaud making quick work of Verlander's slider. It also helps that...Nick Anderson is frigging amazing. Like, he's probably one of the best relievers of 2019.

The only Astros run came from Robinson Chirinos, off Colin Poche. Going into Game 5 on Thursday, you've gotta be expecting more from this mighty, intimidating team than just a solo homer from the catcher. Look, for Game 5, Gerrit Cole will be on the mound, IN Houston, against probably someone like Tyler Glasnow. In theory, this could be easy. I just hope that the Astros actually show up to this one.

Today, though, we are gonna get some outcomes. Will the Nats upset the Dodgers and finally make it to the NLCS, or...will the hysterical option happen? Will the Cardinals anger me and take down the Braves in Atlanta, or will...yes, the hysterical option happen here as well? Hopefully we will find out.

AUUUUGHHHH, or Ode to the 2019 Marlins

I don't even know what there's left to say at this point about the Marlins. You cover a crap team every few weeks, and there's not much more to say, other than 'hey, they're crap!'. And the Marlins, once again, seem to be heading towards a last-place finish, possibly worse than last year's.

So...let's examine whether or not there's anything that's actually good about this team. Not just 'good for Miami'. Like, 'good for baseball'. Think Machado in Baltimore last year, or Jason Bay in Pittsburgh in 2008.

The closest thing to a 'good for baseball' player this team has is starter Caleb Smith, whose prowess was glimpsed last year in a few early starts before an injury sidelined him. Smith, over the course of 6 starts, has 3 wins, 45 strikeouts and a 2 ERA. For a guy playing for the worst team in baseball, that is pretty impressive.

Outside of Smith, nobody is wholly impressive- there are good...CONCEPTS of players, but they're not great at everything. For instance, Pablo Lopez and Trevor Richards throw pretty hard, but they're not winning games and they're giving up a few too many runs. Jorge Alfaro can hit hella well, just like he did in Philly, but he already has a -2 Fielding Runs stat, which adds to his track record of catching woes. Brian Anderson is a solid contact hitter, but his average is too low. And too many veterans like Starlin Castro, Neil Walker and Curtis Granderson (all ex-Yankees!) are striking out too much.

The Marlins are a kind of team that, at the same time, can be too old AND too inexperienced. Meanwhile, two ex-Marlins are ruling the NL Central, one is ruling the Phils, and another is the primary bench bat in Cincinnati.

So...not a great time to be a Marlins fan, as per usual.

Coming Tonight: One of four members of a last-place team with over 1 WAR. Matter of fact, this guy has 2 already. And you've probably never heard of him.