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October 3, 2016 What You Need to KnowSwan SongThe Weekend Takeaway What was billed as the quintessential #TeamEntropy weekend fizzled out during the last day of the 2016 season, when the remaining three Wild Card berths were clinched and home-field advantage decided without so much as a three-way tie-breaker. In the quieter moments of five chaotic playoff races, five teams said goodbye to five outstanding franchise contributors. Vin Scully vacated his spot in the Dodgers’ broadcast booth after 67 years, David Ortiz stepped away from a 14-year career with the Red Sox after a dominant year, Mark Teixeira capped eight years with the Yankees, and both Ryan Howard and Matt Holliday bid emotional farewells to the Phillies and Cardinals (though neither have ruled out a return to the majors in 2017). Four of the five farewells commemorated their last regular season games in similar fashion. Ortiz, in an uncharacteristically muted performance after his monster 4.0 WARP season, went 0-for-4 at the plate with a pair of strikeouts against the Blue Jays’ Aaron Sanchez. His encore, it can be assumed, will be reserved for the postseason when the Red Sox face off against the Indians during the ALDS later this week. Teixeira’s final moments in pinstripes were equally unremarkable. The 36-year-old went 0-for-3 against Kevin Gausman’s splitter, leaving his mark on the field with a pair of slick defensive plays instead--one on a line drive just off the first base line, the other a groundout that ricocheted away from the bag. As if psychically connected to his American League rivals, Howard too went 0-for-4 in the Phillies’ 71st win of the season, striking out against Mets right-hander Gabriel Ynoa in his first at-bat. Although Howard hasn’t explicitly confirmed his retirement from the majors, the Phillies have officially closed the door on his 13-year career in Philadelphia. Like Howard, Matt Holliday isn’t quite ready to put the kibosh on his major-league career. After suffering a fractured thumb earlier this season, the Cardinals’ outfielder was reinstated from the disabled list for a few pinch-hit at-bats to close out his career in St. Louis. On Friday, Holliday’s first at-bat as a pinch-hitter returned a Zach Phillips slider for a storybook ending: Were that the final stroke of the veteran’s career, it would have been one fit for a Hollywood blockbuster. Instead, the Cardinals scribbled over their poetic moment with another pinch-hit at-bat on Saturday, during which the left fielder came through again with an RBI single. Finally, on Sunday, Holliday took the field in what was definitely his last appearance as a Cardinal after the club was eliminated from a Wild Card spot by the Giants. Off the field, Vin Scully’s swan song was celebrated with greater fanfare. The 88-year-old broadcast legend waxed poetic about the Giants’ radio crew, his childhood hero, Mel Ott, the Giants-Dodgers storied rivalry, Russ Hodges’ iconic call during the New York Giants’ 1951 pennant win, the genesis of his baseball fandom, and, at last, the final out of San Francisco’s postseason-clinching win over Los Angeles: It’s difficult to imagine a more fitting send-off for a spectacular season. Quick Hits from the Weekend If the Giants have one man to thank for their Wild Card finish this weekend, it’s rookie Ty Blach. The left-hander made his second career start on Saturday afternoon, besting the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw on the mound and at the plate. Blach spun eight shutout innings, landing six strikeouts and holding the Dodgers to three hits and a walk before handing the final frame of the game over to Sergio Romo He leaned heavily on a fastball that topped out at 93.2 mph (just a mph below his fastest pitch at the major-league level, via Brooks Baseball) and located the strike zone with extraordinary consistency, mixing in just enough breaking balls to keep the Dodgers on their toes.
While the Giants racked up a three-run lead, Blach got in a few knocks of his own against Kershaw, lining a pair of base hits into right field in the sixth and seventh innings. If manager Bruce Bochy has found yet another pitcher who can rake, the Dodgers might be in trouble when the postseason kicks into high gear. *** Even in a historically homer-prone season--and even among the likes of Gary Sanchez and Trevor Story--Trea Turner is a force to be reckoned with. The rookie hammered his 13th home run of the season on Saturday, taking a Wei-Yin Chen heater deep in the fifth inning of the Nationals’ 2-1 win against the Marlins.
Sample-sized statistics notwithstanding, Turner raked .342/.367/.569 over 319 plate appearances in the second half, good for a .340 TAv and a whopping 4.0 WARP on the year. He’s expected to face stiff competition from fellow National League slugger Corey Seager for NL Rookie of the Year distinctions, but his place on the Nationals’ starting lineup is indisputable. *** What could you do in 14.05 seconds? Sprint up a few flights of stairs? Catch a 1200 CP Charizard? Watch 2.3 loops of a baby panda bear Vine? This is what Byron Buxton can do in 14.05 seconds: According to Statcast, Buxton topped out at 21 mph around the horn, approximately six mph slower than Usain Bolt’s fastest recorded speed. Defensive Play of the Weekend Archie Bradley won’t let anything stand in the way of getting an out, not even himself. What to Watch on Monday We’re not in the habit of recommending non-baseball activities here, so I can’t in good conscience suggest that you tune into Monday Night Football, when the Yankees (Giants) take on the Twins (Vikings). I can’t endorse viewing parties for Dancing with the Stars, featuring a fearsome face-off between Manny Machado (Babyface) and Ichiro Suzuki (Jake T. Austin), or The Voice, where talented contestants vie for the attention of a post-Disney Channel, uh, John Farrell (Miley Cyrus). Alternatively, you could give the BP staff grief for our botched preseason predictions, figure out which team to bandwagon in the postseason, or read a fraction of the outstanding work found elsewhere on this site. It’s your Monday night. I won’t tell you how to spend it--this time. Just remember to tune back into baseball on Tuesday, when the Wild Card matchups begin.
Ashley Varela is an author of Baseball Prospectus. Follow @wcoastfangirl
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