The Cubs and Nationals were rained out on Tuesday after all, so they’ll play Game 4 of their National League Division Series on Wednesday at 4 p.m. ET. Following that game, at 8 p.m. ET, we’ll also get Game 5 of the American League Division Series featuring the Yankees and Indians in a win-or-go-home scenario. No matter what happens today, there are going to be disappointed fan bases.
MLB’s Division Series could wrap up Wednesday
Wednesday’s Say Hey, Baseball looks at the two Division Series elimination games on tap.
Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images
The Yankees were down 0-2 to Cleveland, but Masahiro Tanaka and Greg Bird combined powers to avoid elimination in Game 3, and then Game 4 was all about New York being in control. Corey Kluber, who struggled in Game 2, will take the mound in this crucial Game 5, and chances are good the favorite for the 2017 AL Cy Young is going to be back on his game. He’ll face CC Sabathia, the former Indians’ ace who was cruising in Game 2 until Joe Girardi lifted him after 77 pitches in order to play platoon matchups.
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The Cubs are in the same situation they were in on Tuesday when we wrote about Game 4: If they win, the series is over, and they’re in their third NLCS in a row. If they lose, the series returns to Washington, and the Nats have a chance to win their first-ever postseason series. Yes, yes, the Expos won a series back in the early ’80s, but find me the fan in D.C. or the player on the Nats who cares even a tiny bit about that and then we can talk about it.
One of the Indians or Yankees will see their season end Wednesday. The Nationals could see their season end Wednesday. The Cubs could lose, pushing the conclusion of the NLDS to Thursday, setting themselves up to potentially drop a series they were ahead in. It’s going to be a tense evening of postseason baseball on Wednesday, and we are here for it. Literally, we are here for it, as we’ll be liveblogging both games.
- The Dodgers are in the NLCS for the fifth time since 2009, and Grant Brisbee thinks this time is going to be different. The way they handled the D-Backs in the NLDS sets them up perfectly for the next round, and that hasn’t been the case in their past.
- Stephen Strasburg won’t be pitching Game 4, as he’s feeling sick. According to Thomas Boswell, Strasburg said he’d pitch if he had to, but the Nats decided immediately to go with the original Game 4 starter, Tanner Roark, leaving Stras for a possible Game 5.
- Now, you might want to jump on Strasburg for not pitching because he makes a ton of money or whatever, but if he pitched poorly while sick and cost the Nats yet another NLDS, he’d just get yelled at for that instead. Healthy Roark might be a better option than ill Strasburg, and if the Nats win and Strasburg feels better for Game 5, Washington fans will be glad this all happened.
- And since Strasburg couldn’t make it through his bullpen session or a run earlier this week, chances are good he would have had nothing in a Game 4 start, too. The one real oddity is that the decision was made immediately instead of waiting to see how Strasburg felt on Wednesday morning, but maybe the Nats wanted Roark to know for sure and their ace to not have to stress about immediately healing up.
- Don’t worry, the rest of these bullets will have links to stories! The video game Backyard Baseball is 20 years old this week, and here’s The Ringer on how it became a cult classic.
- Nationals’ manager Dusty Baker says mold is to blame for Strasburg (and other Nats) feeling under the weather.
- lol
- This Red Sox fan watching his team lose while in class is an incredible short film, writes James Dator.
- Pinstripe Alley wonders if Joe Girardi is making the right choice with CC Sabathia in Game 5.
- The Red Sox might need to find some more rest for their starters during the regular season.
- The Orioles are going to have some actual money to spend on free agents this offseason.
- Edwin Encarnacion left Game 2 of the ALDS with an ankle sprain, but appears to be ready to go for Game 5. That could be huge for the Indians, who have received absolutely nothing from the DH slot this series.
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