Scouts: There was some discussion yesterday following the rumor that they are investigating a Princess Bride remake, a project that can only end in failure, as once you perfect a thing, you leave it the hell alone. And the Princess Bride is about as perfect a movie as has ever been created. By in large, remakes don’t work, and only end up causing damage to the original work. There are as always some exceptions to the rule. In doing some research I came up with the following list of successful remakes. The Departed, Casino Royale, and a whole bunch of Westerns. There’s also an occasional action film like Assault on Precinct 13, and Invasion of the Bodysnatchers. It’s a shockingly short list. So, Hollywood, please, please, please leave this movie alone. I mean aren’t you already proving to us that you have run incredibly low on original ideas? (Go on click that link. I dare you to be saddened and nostalgic all at once.)
Angels 3, Yankees 2 – Prof: The Angels won because of a bloop on Adam Ottavino’s part. That’s a bit simplistic, but it’s true. The two teams were tied up in the sixth inning, and Albert Pujols stepped up to the plate. A fielder’s choice turned into a run due to Ottavino’s throwing error.
Mariners 4, Pirates 1 – Prof: Not much to write home about; two Seattle players went back to back jacks in the fourth inning and the Pirates are still one of the saddest organizations in baseball.
Blue Jays 11, Orioles 10 – Scouts: This game is a perfect encapsulation of the Orioles’ season. They put up 10 runs, but still managed to allow 6 in the 9th to lose the game. If their pitching wasn’t such hot garbage, they would actually be a pretty decent team.
Tigers 1, Spiders 2 F/10 – Scouts: Aaron Civale held the Tigers to 1 run over 7.2 innings, and Yasiel Puig knocked in the winning run on a fly to right in the 10th.
Giants 11, Red Sox 3 – Prof: This season is the last go-’round for Bruce Bochy, and his guys are doing their best to make sure he goes out on top. This victory for San Francisco marked Bochy’s 2000th career win as a manager. It’s only a matter of time before we see Bochy on the wall in Cooperstown, I think. It would be well deserved, in my opinion. Stephen Vogt hit a two run homer that dinged off the Pesky Pole, while Baby Yaz hit an RBI single. A shame that it was the Giants calling up the ghosts of the Green Monster instead of Boston.
Phillies 4, Braves 1 – Prof: We all know how I feel about Julio Teheran by now. I love the guy, but there’s never a time when I am confident in his abilities. Jules let me down again last night. Bryce Harper went yard for the 32nd time this season, a two run homer that pretty much sealed Teheran’s fate. The Braves were as anemic at the plate as Julio was on the bump. Just uninspired, sad baseball all the way around.
Padres 2, Brewers 1 – Scouts: The Brew Crew loses another pretty important game, and they are running out of games they can lose before they are officially done. Dinelson Lamet struck out 14 Brewers in 6 innings, which is insanely impressive, allowing just a solo homer to Keston Hiura in the 6th. Seth Mejias-Brean did all the damage for the Padres with a two run shot in the third.
White Sox 3, Twins 1 – Scouts: Chicago made it a bullpen day, throwing out 8 pitchers, with only one lasting longer than 2 innings. Minnesota couldn’t get anything started and dropped another one.
Reds 3, Cubs 2 – Scouts: Eugenio Suarez picked up his 48th homer, which broke the record by most in a single season by a player who hails from Venezuela. He also tied the record for most homers by a NL Third baseman. With the record setting homer, Suarez passed Andres Galarraga, a name I haven’t heard in way too long.
Rays 8, Dodgers 7 F/11 – Scouts: With their backs against the wall, Tampa fought back and proved the Dodgers can lose a game. It did take quite the effort to do so however. It took a rally in the 9th to tie things up, then in the 11th, Austin Meadows homered to give Tampa the lead while Ji-Man Choi knocked in an insurance run that proved to be quite valuable. LA nearly pulled of a comeback, picking up one in the 11th, but Peter Fairbanks was able to get Russell Martin to strike out swinging with a man on second to end the LA threat.
Rangers 2, Astros 3 – Prof: Hey, remember when I said that Verlander is probably going to get the AL CY? Gerrit Cole must’ve heard about it and got ticked off. The Houston hurler struck out ten in eight innings, and is now over 300 strikeouts for this season. Oh, and Yuli Gurriel and Jose Altuve both homered.
Nationals 1, Cardinals 5 – Prof: It’s always a good time when two extraordinarily talented pitchers match up against each other. Mad Max versus Waino! What a treat. Especially when the Cardinals and the Nationals are both trying their hardest to get into the playoffs. Every single win and loss matters right now. I would have loved to have watched this game (alas, I could not). Anyway, while Scherzer struck out eleven Redbirds, Waino went seven innings and didn’t allow a single run. In the end, that’s all that matters. Tommy Edman and Matt Wieters both homered for St. Louis.
Mets 7, Rockies 4 – Prof: Super Rookie Pete Alonso is at it again, folks. He’s hit his 49th homer, tying the rookie record, and the way he’s been mashing I don’t think he’s anywhere near finished. At least the Mets probably hope not. Alonso also drew a bases-loaded walk in the ninth inning, which helped New York defeat Colorado. Oh, and Jeff McNeil homered, too. I’m telling y’all, if the Mets didn’t have a manager whose default setting wasn’t “failure” they would be right in the mix for the NL East. This is a team that’s way better than where they are at.
Royals 0, Athletics 1 F/11 – Scouts: I’m pretty sure it’s a rule that if it’s your bobblehead or t-shirt day you are legally obligated to play the hero. Well, Mark Canha is nothing if not a rule follower, and he ended the 11 inning shutout with a two out double that brought in Jurickson Profar to walk it off.
Marlins 4, Diamondbacks 5 – Prof: The Gritty Snakes jumped ahead right away with an Abraham Almonte solo dinger in the first inning. They didn’t really look back, either. The dagger was a Christian Walker homer in the fifth.
Fan Interference 
Back on the morning of September 9th, I wrote in the comments that I thought that going 10-10 from there on out would be enough for the Nats to make the post-season. Since then, they’ve gone 4-5, and with yesterday’s loss coupled with losses by the Cubs and Brewers, they still maintain a 1 1/2 game lead for a wild card spot, and are right in line to test my powers of prognostication.
This stretch of less than overwhelming baseball (7-10 in September) hasn’t been as bad as the ugly 50 games that started the season, and it really hasn’t been the bullpen’s fault; truthfully, it’s been the inconsistency of the offense that has been the main culprit. To illustrate the point, Bob and F.P. were marveling the other night that the bullpen had only one save since August 16, but the main reason behind that was the fact that there have only been a couple of save opportunities in that stretch, with most games being either blowout wins or losses in which the Nats never had a late-inning lead (or any lead in many cases).
Despite their having gone 3-4 and being competitive against the Dodgers this year, right now I see a team that won’t put up much of a fight in the NLDS if they manage to make it to and win the wildcard game. There are still eleven games left to get the bats going again, but it’s really getting late for this team.
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Dave Dombrowski didn’t come out on the short end of many trades when he ran the Tiggers, but Eugenio Saurez for Alfredo Simon is one I wish didn’t happen.
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No Feesh game tonight. They’re taking a deep breath before plunging to their centennial loss against the Gnats tomorrow.
Going to Area 51 on Sunday? This is going to be a fiasco. Anyone crossing into the restricted area is going to wind up getting bitten, stung, dehydrated and arrested – if they’re lucky. That desert is no joke, folks. Better idea: go visit the gift shop at the Roswell, New Mexico UFO museum and buy yourself a dancing alien Kokopelli necklace.
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