Baseball Post-Season 2010

[Mister Tee]

As a teen I instinctively disliked Tommy Lasorda*

Hey, something a Yankee fan and a Yankee hater can agree on. I absolutely loathed LaSorda; I didn't think he had an authentic bone in his body. (The best moment in Fletch is when Chevy Chase punches a picture of him, saying,"I hate Tom LaSorda") I heard the same story, about his son, and it just confirmed his utter fraudulence for me.

Damien, you're right that we have a good race going for the AL East, but it's a lightweight one since the only real stake is home field advantage. The Wild Card giveth and the Wild Card taketh away.

[danfrank]

I grew up in Southern California and, because my Dad was a Dodger fan, so was I. As a teen I instinctively disliked Tommy Lasorda*, and so when I moved to San Francisco in 1981 I switched allegiances to the Giants. As a kid I idolized Mays and McCovey, even as a Dodgers fan, so the switch was pretty easy, especially since it also served as an act of rebellion against my Dad. I sat through a lot of miserable games in the early to mid-eighties, collected lots of "Croix de Candlestick" pins (something fans were awarded if they had the tenacity to stay for all of an extra-innings night game at cold wet windy Candlestick), and earned my stripes as a fan. I haven't wavered since.

*I learned to feel even more contemptuous of Tommy Lasorda when I briefly knew his son, Tommy Junior, who was gay and later died of AIDS. Tommy senior denied his son's sexuality to the end and was clearly ashamed that his son had AIDS. Giants fans like to boo him for fun, but I really have no respect for the guy. He's known for his diehard loyalty to his ballclub, but how respectable is it to "bleed Dodger blue" when you betray your own family?

[Damien]

Tee, I didn't mention the Giants not so much because I'm superstitious, but because I try not to gloat when one of my teams is doing well -- especially when things are in as much flux as they are in the NL West. But this is the kind of September we baseball fans live for. Nice race with your guys, too -- but it's a bit anti-climactic because even though the Yanks and Rays both want to win the division they know that they'll both be in post-season (a shame a team from another division isn't in the Wild Card race).

Dan, I didn't know you were a Giants fan. I've been one since 1962 when I saw them beat the Mets 6-1 at the Polo Grounds. Love Kuip's "torture!" kine -- how true!

I listen to Kruk and Kuip (and the great Jon Miller) on KNBR through MLB.com How I wish my Dad was still alive for the Internet -- he'd be amazed that he could hear Giants broadcasts at home in Connecticut.

[danfrank]

I'm hugely excited about the prospect of the Giants going into the postseason. It looks like it's going to go down to the wire, which is a fit for the way the Giants have played all season. Duane Kuiper, the Giants' TV play-by-play guy, initiated a slogan earlier this season that's taken hold: "Giants baseball...torture!" What fun torture it's been, though. Go Giants!

[Mister Tee]

And to have a real shot at the league's best record, as the AL East teams tear one another apart. I'm really interested to see how the Twins perform in the post-season this year. I have this sense it might be like Kansas City in 1980 -- when, after years of being ousted in the LCS, they finally took command and got to the Series. The Twins seem like a different team this year, at least based on their scorching second half.

Damien, you must have had to bite your tongue to initiate this thread without even mentioning the Giants. Superstitious? That NL West/Wild Card race is going to be might entertaining over the next week (at least, for those of us without an emotional stake in it).

[Eric]

It's certainly nice not to have to wait for the results of a bake-off-style game to see where we stand, for a change.

[Damien]

Congratulations, Eric -- and any other Minnesota fans -- on the Twins becoming the first team to clinch a division title!