The Fall Classic is set to begin on Tuesday, with the Astros and Braves meeting in Game 1 of the World Series. This is the first time these two clubs have met in the World Series, though they were pretty frequent postseason opponents back when the Astros were in the National League. Between 1997 and 2005, Atlanta and Houston met five times in NLDS play, with the Braves coming out on top in three of those matchups.
The Braves are heading to the World Series for the tenth time in their history, and in search of their fourth championship. While nothing will ever top the 1914 Miracle Braves as the franchise’s signature comeback story, the 2021 team isn’t that far off, considering how this year’s Braves were only 52-55 heading into action on August 3. By this point, Atlanta had already lost Ronald Acuna Jr. and Mike Soroka to season-ending injuries, and Marcell Ozuna was away from the team (and soon to be put on administrative leave by the league) due to domestic violence charges.
However, the Braves were far from done. An aggressive trade strategy saw outfielders Joc Pederson, Adam Duvall, Jorge Soler, and future NLCS MVP Eddie Rosario all added prior to the trade deadline, and Atlanta went 36-18 the rest of the way. A lackluster NL East undoubtedly helped, but the Braves kept it going into October, defeating the Brewers in the NLDS and then ousting the defending champion Dodgers in the NLCS. That last win was particularly sweet for Atlanta, considering the blown 3-1 lead against Los Angeles in the 2020 League Championship Series.
The Astros had a bit of an easier time of it in the regular season, battling with the A’s and Mariners for the AL West lead for much of the year but eventually pulling ahead in comfortable fashion. Even without such familiar names as George Springer or Justin Verlander, Houston could still rely on several core members (i.e. Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman, Yuli Gurriel) of its last two pennant winners, plus a pitching staff that has been almost entirely overhauled since the Astros were last in the World Series in 2019.
This will be the fourth time the Astros have reached the Fall Classic, with Houston’s lone championship coming back in 2017. As you might have heard, there was more than a little controversy attached to the Astros’ success in 2017, so it’s safe to say that another championship won’t erase the “buzzers and garbage cans” cloud that may hang over the franchise for some time to come. Yet, that hardly matters to a group that has turned over a great number of its personnel since that 2017 season. Dusty Baker, for instance, has been manager for just the last two years, and it’s hard to not feel some sentiment for the veteran skipper trying to win the first World Series of his long managerial career.
Who is your pick to win it all? And, as an added bonus, how many games will be required? (poll link for app users)
Ron Darling and Dodgers writers still believe Dodgers will win in 8 against Braves. As somebody who respected the guy before, he was very impartial all series. I think he forgot to mention how great the Dodgers are and how they are not at full strength for the 1000x time.
I have Braves in 6. With everything that has transpired so far, it is only fitting for the Braves to win it all. I’m surprised nobody is drawing comparisons with the Nationals 2019 run. They beat the Dodgers, then Astros.
Jackson and Martin need to be used in low leverage situations.
Duvall should sit on the bench with his strikeouts. Start Soler the rest of the way.
Of course, move Albies down. How many more terrible at-bats do people need to see from Albies before they finally see he is not working out on top?
Oh mr negative brave fan is now picking the braves after realizing the playoffs are a crapshoot.
I chose Braves over Dodgers but nice try. However, yes, I’m negative.
It would be fitting for the Braves to win this year. After MLB forcefully removed the AS game from Atlanta it’ll serve them right to hand the WS trophy to the city in the end.
While the rest of the nation roots for the Braves, MLB’s office is quietly rooting for the Astros
I had a different more descripitive name for you.
@MJ Completely agreed but I voted for Astros because I believe they will win
Being an overly positive fan is much better than a negative one. Treat him like a puppy. Give him positive encouragement for his good behavior. Good boy!
I agree with the Ron Darling comment. He really disappointed me this series. He was the guy talking about how “great of a throw” the Dodgers outfielder made from shallow right field when the ball bounced off the ground multiple times and he still didn’t get Albies out at home. Again… The throw was from SHALLOW right. Darling was spending so much time talking about how great that terrible throw was he never had time to mention the guy that got the hit or Albies scoring or the fact that Braves were pitching a bullpen game on the road but still bashing the Dodgers brains out by a score of 9-2. Definite big market team bias. The national broadcasters do that a lot. I wish they would just let the regular season broadcasters do the same job if their teams make the playoffs. They are the ones that did it all season. Why do these lame national broadcasters get to come in and vulture the big games away from the guys that did it all season? Especially when they aren’t even good at their jobs? Some of these guys (like Joe Buck) even announce football or basketball games. Give me a guy that only focuses on baseball and actually knows the team very well because he announced for them all season. I’m already anticipating Darling talking about how great all of the Astros highest paid players are even if they are going 0 for 4 at the plate and their team is getting whipped. No matter what the smaller market/payroll team does Ron Darling will always make it obvious he is rooting against them.
Great idea to being the team’s own broadcasters for the playoff games! And it would honor them as they should be honored. Just don’t let David Price on thenwplanenwith them
Typo queen. Sorry!
The Mets broadcast team is one of the best in baseball, but their knowledge is really limited to the Mets. Which makes sense because they spend so much time perfecting their craft in Queens. I really don’t think Ron is great on the national broadcast, but on SNY, he’s fantastic.
Totally disagree & anecdotally, most Braves fans I know like listening to Ron Darling. He’s not without biases like any other color commentator. The Braves literally had their own commentator & former player on the broadcast (Frenchy). Let’s stop with the martyr syndrome, this season has been a fantasy thus far & as fans we should be able to let such tiny perceived slights pass by unnoticed.
You can always count on finding the darnedest things in comments sections
David “snowflake” Price? LOL
Personally i can do without francouer. The guy thinks you cant hit a curve or a slider unless it hangs. Repeatedly calls a curve a slider. Really explains why his career was done when most are at their peak.
Ron Darling is terrible. So there’s that.
The Braves are missing key stars, where as the Nationals had all of theirs healthy in 2019. That could actually hurt them in the series.
Frankly speaking, the Astros pitching does not scare me at all. Not one guy in the rotation worries me. Likewise for their bullpen.
The Astros have a far far superior offense though. If they win, then they will win because of their offense.
I’m still waiting for the Chris Burke revenge series from ’05.
Obviously I want the Astros to win, but losing to the Braves is better than losing the Dodgers.
Good pitching stops good hitting. Just keep the garbage cans away
It’s whistling now. Duh.
If the Astros pitching does not scare you at all, then you didn’t watch any of the ALCS, and the Red Sox lineup that just couldn’t possibly be stopped.
How do you put Astros with far superior offense when the Braves have something only done once before: starting infield all with 25 or more home runs. 3 of the 4 have 30 or more home runs and the other has 27.
Braves have 3 of the top 5 runs batted in leaders. Ozzie Albies did something no other major league did this year; drive in a 100 runs; hit 30 home runs and scored 100 runs.
Throw all the Braves stats before August out and the Braves were the past team in baseball from August on at 44 and 22.
Don’t sleep on the Braves or think some offense is fair superior without reading the numbers
You clearly have not seen Swanson, Albies, Duvall, TD, and their entire bench hit this postseason.
Now Astros don’t have as good of pitching as the Brewers and Dodgers, but I want these guys to prove it when it matters.
Start soler;
Guess it wasn’t Duvall who homered the other night and had a 3 hit game. Guess it wasn’t Albies on game 2 that drove Rosario in late in the game. Guess last night Albies double and first run scored of the game by Albies wasn’t good enough.
Not everybody is going have hot nights every night. You realize a good hitter is going make a out about 7 out of 10 times??
Hard to believe that insane 18 inning game was 16 years ago now. Last time these two teams faced each other in the postseason…
The Framburgler should scare you a little as far as the Astros rotation.
False. Good hitters make outs 6 out of 10 times. If you have a .300 OBP, you are definitely not a good hitter, pal.
@Benjamin101677
Not sure which stats you are looking at but Albies was not the only guy in the majors to hit 100/30/100…Matt Olson, Shohei Ohtani, Jose Ramirez, Vlad Guerrero Jr., Marcus Semien and Mitch Haniger all did as well, and most of them well exceeded the 30 homer mark that Albies just got to…just thought I’d chime in after reading your last line about not reading the numbers…
Tennreed;
I made a mistake Albies was only national leaguer to do that. Still speaks highly off being only one on the league not all of baseball the league to do it.
Yet the Astros have only lost 3 games this playoffs.
Braves batting has not been that good in the postseason. Its been their pitching carrying them. SO it will be an interesting matchup since Astros are probably the best batting team in baseball
The Braves also have only lost three.
Framber is the only starter that scares me
The guy owned Rosario and the Twins in post season
If you look at the team stats from the last 60 days of the regular season, the Astros have had one of the 10 worst pitching staffs in baseball & their hitting has been about the same or slightly better than the Braves.
Remember, season stats for the Braves can only tell you so much. Their whole outfield came from other teams. Almost all of their best pitchers (Fried, Morton, Matzek, Smith, even Minter) all were practically different pitchers as the season went on.
It’s pretty evenly matched, overall. Could go either way.
LMAO! There were a lot more guys get those numbers than that bum from Atlanta! You obviously can’t read simple stats!
By most metrics, the Astros offense comes out on top.
wRC+: Astros 1st in MLB vs Braves 13th in MLB
wOBA: .2nd vs .9th
Runs: 1st vs 8th
OBP: .1st vs .12th
SLG: 3rd vs 5th
RBI: 1st vs 7th
The Astros offense is superior. This doesn’t mean the Astros win the World Series or that the Braves offense is bad.
Simple comp.
Runs Scored: Astros 863 vs Braves 790
Runs Allowed: Astros 658 vs Braves 656
One has a larger discrepancy than the other.
Ask the Red Sox how good they are. RS offense>>Braves.
I’m wondering if the Braves might gave a letdown after beating the Dodgers or just be happy to be in the World Series. The Astros have a lot of experience. So, I went with them. However, people are making a lot of good points about the Braves.
@all in the suit that you wear
I hate to tell you this, but there’ll be no “letdown”, this is what players strive their whole lives/baseball careers for, many players in bigs never get this opportunity at all.
Braves had a better record without Acuna and Ozuna….so might not hurt them as much as you think
It was only days ago that you were on here saying that you hope Freddie Freeman leaves the Braves because you want him to get an opportunity to win a World Series. Suddenly you’ve believed in them the whole time.
I guess Rosario really wants Freeman to stay in ATL. Thank you, Rosario!
@start soler
I completely agree with you. Albies should bat 6th imo. You think that’s a fair spot for someone like him? Also I will verify that you did pick the braves to win while I picked the Dodgers. It was me who was the negative one on that one. What in the world is happening??
My lineup configuration really depends on Rosario honestly. He has been so good that you want him leading off but considering nobody other than Freeman/Riley are driving in runs, maybe putting him in the fifth spot will be good.
Personally,
Rosario
Freeman
Soler
Riley
Albies
Pederson
TD
Swanson
Pitcher
I was the first and only person to suggest Soler in the leadoff spot before Snit did that exact move days later. So if they stick with Soler there again, then so be it. I just don’t want Duvall in the lineup. I don’t know if the Astros are reading this, but I have a great scouting report for Duvall. Don’t know strikes. Throw sliders away and low. Easy out!
But thx for affirming my pick of the Braves. People love putting words in my mouth.
Soler can be the Braves Alvarez.
Albies is batting third so that a team with a 3 batter per pitcher rule can’t bring a left handed in to face Freeman without dealing with Albies who is so much better from the right side.
The same effect could be accomplished with Soler or Riley hitting 3.
Start soler
With your line up a left handed pitcher gets deal with back to back left handed batters no issue. With Stinker line up if you bring lefty in they have to face Albies from right side and that changes the game
Pragmatic*
Unless they throw Soler breaking balls lmao
Oldmansteve;
The way the line up is set up it is working; you start moving people around and it may not work. Riley likes the clean up spot where as some players don’t like it. I remember Chiller Jones never liked clean up.
Albies is more dangerous right handed and if he gets on base with two outs he has the speed to steal a base which is a plus. The other night when Albies scored on Riley’s double one the close play not sure if that was Riley running if he would have scored.
It’s truly amazing how Dodger fans claim Darling was biased for the Braves and Brave fans claim he was biased for the Dodgers. Sport fans really need to take off the tin foil hats. Brodcasters don’t hate your team.
did you not watch the clip of him screaming Yes Yes when Bellinger hit the HR?
Then he groaned when Freeman hit the homerun.
He said Jeez when Rosario got leadoff hit game 6.
To play devil’s advocate, he probably said “Yes” because he wanted an exciting finish, but he defin seemed partial towards Dodgers.
@amk…
That said … I think all of the Mets broadcasters are anti-Braves for whatever reason. I’ve watched a lot of Braves-Mets games and have been exposed to the Mets broadcasting since I’m in the NY area. It’s pretty clear they all don’t like the Braves.
Normally I wouldn’t say any national broadcaster is biased but in this case it probably is.
Although strangely Ron Darling did a decent job this series against the Dodgers. Didn’t see much bias (or out right hatred LOL) against the Braves.
@baseballfanforever Do you think Braves broadcasting is anti-Mets?
Here is my two cents:
Darling was more biased to LA
Anderson and Francouer were more biased to ATL
There aren’t many low leverage situations in the postseason.
I am having trouble deciding whom to pull for in the WS. I hate that the Astros cheated and got away with it. But I hate that Atlanta tomahawk chop just as much.
The Astros cheating should have cost them their title, but the chop is remarkably racist to me.
Yuck I might just skip it.
Any chance of just enjoying some baseball? Or nah? Personally, I take zero of my morality cues from sports. By doing that, I am able to just – ya know – watch them.
Per usual I’m with you @Ducky, baseball is to be enjoyed!!! What difference does it make if you “think” that one announcer favored one team over another. Believe me the feelings or the perceived prejudice of the announcers has no impact on the actual results of any sporting event.
Ducky you took the Yankees and the Braves to square of in the Series and I took the Dodgers and the Astros to meet. We were both half right! Despite my pick of the Astros, I’m rooting for your Braves. I know you and I will enjoy the games!!!
I haven’t watched much of the postseason, @Mick. I just wanted everyone in the AL to lose. & I don’t follow the NL all that close to begin with. But I am actually looking forward to the series. It could be a good one.
We are going to have to work out our predictions next year to ensure we get our Yanks in.
Ducky, I have Astros in 6. They will probably win one in ATL, and with home field cheating…I mean advantage, they will win their fourth.
I sincerely hope the Braves embarrass them. Like, Altuve goes 0-25 embarrassed. Go Braves!
@Weasel: You do that.
What a loss that would be for MLB Weasel.
Just STFU and stay the hell away Corky.
Virtue signaling Weasel lmao
Do you hate it that the Red Sox cheated and got away with it in 2018 when they won their title? Or the Yankees cheated with steroids in the late 90s and won multiple titles? Yankees were also, by way of Beltran, doing exactly what the Astros were doing. He brought to Houston and Cora brought it to Boston. Beltran would have had the Mets doing it if the story hadn’t broke and he had not been fired because of it.
That chop has been around for decades and hope it never goes away. Braves should have never given in to lefty pressure and removed the Chief and his tee-pee years ago. That was such a long standing tradition and his smoke signals after a brave HR.
One positive is in Georgia, which will insulate them some from the name changing nonsense which has taken over last few years, especially for teams above mason-Dixon line.
How many others liking the fact it’s a Texas-Georgia series? 2 states with laws on the books putting a stake into mlb’s ever encroaching wokeism.
Manfred has got to be hating every moment of this.. It’s glorious and shame can’t be a 30g series on that count alone.
Braves in 6. Just because the dodgers were mostly injured, the opposing team still has to beat them. Trea Turner, buhler, urias and Taylor weren’t injured. For the Duvall strikeouts, not all players are going to bat like they did in the regular season. Rosario stepped up after the dodgers focuses on freeman and the hr hitters. Fail on the dodgers part. Great for snitker to stagtegize this way.
@StartSolerMoveAlbiesDown
Did you miss the part where Albies crushed it and just missed a home run by a few feet. You need Albies up the top because he is a good contact hitter and he can also steal a bag now and then, although that will be very difficult with Maldonado and his cannon arm.
Called it!
I cannot believe it!
Lot of people think they can will it to happen through voting apparently…
I’m a 1%’er. Astros in 4.
I was thinking the Astros in 5 or 6, but people are making a good case for the Braves. It will be interesting.
Lol! Going with the old “fake news” on an Internet poll on some obscure baseball site.
Smacky, there is nothing “obscure” about MLB Trade Rumors.
@jaxwithanx
Astros are the favourites in a big way with their hitting lineup, I want everyone to write the Braves off. Go the underdog Braves from the “lackluster” NL East.
Wonder what it would be if people voted on who will win, not who they want to lose.
I remember how we used to clown that organization back in 2013. I guess…that’s how you do if folks
This series definitely has a good vs evil (Astros) feel. Clearly I’m bias for the Braves, but it won’t be good for baseball if the Astros win after their cheating bs lack of punishment for it. It would be very bad for baseball. Astros should have had punishments that hurt them for at least a decade, yet got away with murder… Braves have to win … got to keep the great sport of baseball great.
I guess you missed the part where the Braves are a villain too.
First, it was the Georgia laws they had no control over.
Now they are crying about some anti-vax singer.
Don’t forget the continuous cry about the Braves racist name and chant.
I sincerely hope the Braves wrap this up in 4 or 5 games so Clownfred has to face the wrath of Atlanta’s fans as he hands the Commissioner’s trophy to Snitker. That man doesn’t deserve to be within 5 miles of any ballfield
Absolutely! The irony of it all will make this win the best in history for the organization.
It is only fitting to celebrate Hank Aaron’s life in this fashion.
He can take away their AS game, but he can’t take away their title.
I mean people who say the Braves name and tomahawk chop is racist are morons. Brave and Chief are titles in Native American culture and those teams are just celebrating that. Indian and especially Redskin…yeah I feel those are more along the lines of racist names. Also I just make fun of anti-vax people….let the virus eliminate them…called natural selection
If that’s how you feel, go read up on the history of baseball. It was never great. The sport’s integrity was chewed up and spit out a long time ago.
The Braves has an executive banned for life and lost 13 international prospects. I’d hardly call the franchise “good”.
David v Goliath might work better.
Because he (Coppy) got caught doing something all teams do. Something for which the Red Sox got a slap in the hand just a year earlier.
@mro940:
The Braves were severely punished for their cheating, and the people who did it are gone. The Astros (especially the players) were let off. The team got a slap on the wrist.
That’s what’s sooooooo ironic about all this. Braves got the hammer and are suffering to this date because of what was honestly somewhat that isn’t a big deal. Yet the Astros literally admitted to cheating their way to a World Series win and cheating for multiple years and NOTHING? It’s ridiculous honestly… what coppy did, really should even be against the rules. What the Astros did, is a crime against the sport. Yea, this is definitely a good vs evil feel. The good got screwed, it’s time to right the ship.
I too am a Braves fan, but the Astros cheating ship has sailed. I have no problem with Dodgers fans still holding onto it but it doesn’t really matter to anyone else.
As a dodger fan, I’ve accepted that it happened, gotten my anger out, felt redeemed in 2020 (fake WS is BS) and now am ready to watch the winning teams battle it out in what I am sure will be an offensive gluttony.
Uh, that was four seasons ago, bravesfan. There is no evidence of cheating this year so if the Astros win, good for them.
It’s not that they cheated this year, but because they had cheated before and the organization faced zero consequences. Only the GM and manager paid the price.
When the Braves cheated, MLB voided contracts and placed penalties on international signings.
MLB should have vacated their title, forced the Astros to DFA the players involved and have them forfeit their 1st and 2nd picks for 2 years.
SoCalBrave is 100% right. Braves got the hammer when they fudge the rules on little things that are debatable if they should really be against the rules to begin with. Astros literally committed a crime against the sport and admitted to it for many years, including a WS win. The entire organization should have been crippled from the financial fines, forfeited draft picks, DFA of guilty players, for at least 5 to 10 years. I mean, let’s take a step back for a min…. Aside from literally throwing games, is there anything worse to the sport than what the Astros did??? The answer…. No …
Players involved would’ve been all orioles then cause of the waiver wire.
No, because if a team claims a player then they’re responsible for the full price of the contract. All the Astro’s players would have cleared waivers and then could have resigned elsewhere for the league minimum while the Astros pick up the reminder of their contracts
Nobody outside of baseball enthusiasts care or even remember that the Astros cheated.
The media’s job is to get ratings by creating interest through storylines (real or fake). You create storylines based on facts, so like it or not, Astros are going to be considered the villains until they’re not, especially when they’re pitted against a World Series opponent with one of the lowest regular-season winning percentages ever (aka underdogs) led by America’s Sweetheart: Freeman.
A lot of non Braves fans want Freddie Freeman to win a World Series. Some non Astros fans want Dusty Baker to win a World Series. Not everyone gets their wish. As a Braves fan I definitely want my team to win. Sorry Dusty.
If the Braves win the story will be less of Braves beat the Astros but rather the Astros lose to the Braves.
I wonder how many people will for vote the Braves because that’s who they want to win and not who they think will win. I got the Astros winning overall: Braves are resilient, but it still took them 6 games to get past an injured Dodgers team. Meanwhile, the Astros won a close game, got blown out twice by a red hot Red Sox offense, and then shut down said offense in games 4, 5, and 6. The Braves are also missing key hitters.
Man.
So, I voted Braves because my preseason prediction was Yanks vs Braves. I can’t rightly back off now, uh? Full speed ahead: Bravos in 6.
However: Braves do have a couple starters that can win a game all by themselves. They also have power up & down their lineup & bench.
Small ball, bunts, steals, etc, etc, aside, the story of this postseason has been home runs. Hit more in a game & you win it. Braves can do that.
Freeman, Rosario, and Riley can definitely provide clutch hits while their pitching holds down the fort.
didn’t it take the astros 6 games to take down the no pitching red sox?
braves have soroka and acuna jr out.
dodgers just about got swept , if not for that one pitch to bellinger.
it’s fine for you to think the stro’s will win, but don’t sit there and try to downplay the Braves, especially based on the playoffs.
Red Sox got no pitching? Since when? Ozuna is out too. I didn’t downplay the Braves at all.
No the Sox have no pitching.
Then neither do the Braves.
Whatever, you say. GL the rest of the way.
Ditto.
Congratulations to the Braves fans!!! The Braves have a formidable team.
“No the Sox have no pitching”. Rather broad statement with no facts to support it. Down the stretch, the Red Sox were second in MLB in ERA. Their bullpen was a dominant force the last month and a half.
Getting key pieces of their staff, like LHP Chris Sale, back from injury, catapulted them into the playoffs.
Braves should appreciate a team that puts together a solid stretch run for the playoffs.
I’m not taking anything for granted. The Braves are tough – they are in the World Series for a reason.
Both the Astros and Braves deserve to be here. I’m optimistic given the Astros hitters carved up the White Sox pitching – they had the highest average velocity of any pitching staff in MLB my a mile. Astros hitters fought off multiple 100+ mph daggers and wicked 90+ breaking balls to get hits in key situations.
That being said, there is no pitcher on any playoff staff as tough as LHP Chris Sale of the Red Sox. Neither the Astros or Braves have a pitcher as good as he is.
Anything can happen in the World Series. If the Braves play against the Astros like they did the Dodgers, they will probably win.
But like the Braves, the Astros beat the odds to get this point. I don’t expect them to go down with a tough fight.
Hope it’s the braves. It would be nice for AA to get a championship
I remember reading sooooo many comments slamming AA this season, braves fans calling for his head.
Some of it was pure luck, but his moves at the deadline, with hindsight, have been unreal. I always liked AA, fortune favours the bold and their isn’t many GMs bolder than him
I want the Braves, but the Astros will win in 5.
I hope for a great series a true baseball fan can enjoy. Please add to my memories of great moments through the 48 years I have been a fan. That’s all i ask.
You got my respect, lefty.
Same here, Lefty. Either way I’m happy somebody gets their first, whether that be AA and Snit or Dusty. Just hoping for good games!
Unfortunately for baseball, I think the Astros will win.
what sort of awful travesty will befall the game if the Astros win?
lot of people voting with their hearts it looks like…
While my heart is with Atlanta, I think the smart money is on the Asterisks. Probably in 6
Astros won’t have the DH for 3 games and their best hitter is a DH. Be interesting to see where Alvarez plays. The ball seems to find defensively challenged guys in the postseason. Ask Lux. I’m a Braves fan and I thought they’d lose the last two series so I’m sticking with picking against them. But the Astros pitching doesn’t scare me a bit tbh. Stros in 7 I guess.
I think people saying that people are just voting with their heart are overlooking the fact that the ‘stros won’t have the DH for games 3-5. If Atlanta can split games 1 & 2- and I believe they can with Morton on the bump- they’ll be in a good position to win.
Go Braves!
They’ll have their DH for 4 games. Braves must win in Houston, while the Astros don’t have to win in Atlanta.
Charlie can beat Houston in Houston.
And if Framber and Garcia pitch they like did vs Boston, Houston can win in Atlanta. Should be a fun series.
It should. I went Braves in 6 because I believe in this team, but I’m not writing Houston off. Houston is good.
Alvarez plays LF in ATL.
Alvarez may play LF in Atlanta, but I’m curious if you think they sit Tucker or Brantley? Tucker has had a strong postseason.
They’ve gone with an Alvarez Tucker and Brantley outfield before, so probably that depending on their health
Butte
In 41 games in LF, Alvarez was about an average defensive player.
Not a huge sample but equal to 1/4 of a season
I mean, it’s not like they’d be putting Nelson Cruz or Albert Pujols out there.
Alvarez can play LF. He is no longer just a DH. His knees kept him from playing OF last two seasons. He can also play 1B. Braves will see him every game.
I want the Astros to walk out to the NWO theme song in game 1, playing air guitar on their bats. That would be funny.
If they want heel heat just walk out to Duke The Dumpster Drose’s old theme. Trust me.
They don’t have to try to be any more unlikable though. They have the title belt there.
That’s a funny idea. I like that. Would people catch the reference if they did that?
I doubt anyone remembers Duke, so I guess probably not. Lol
AO with the DEEP Dumpster dive…! Noice
I picked the pale hose to beat Houston, cause you know good pitching beats good hitting, swing and a miss. Then picked the Bosox, cause of their late season run, and hot bats, swing and a miss. I’m down 0-2, just hoping for a base on balls now.
Get a hit and you’re .333 and hearing All Star whispers…
Might have to just go ahead & lean into one here, @electraglide.
The media and people will be invested heavily on Dusty Baker trying to get a ring than cheaterstros… My favorite 2nd team, the braves will take down the stros’ that starting rotation and bullpen doesnt scare anyone.
Dusty is just another reason to hate the Trashstros.
Mets in 4.
Don’t think they can get past the Orioles bullpen.
The Astros are clearly the more talented team. I don’t see this close. Astros in 5 or 6 at most.
How are they more talented?
Most talented means little in playoffs, only least talented which has to get every break and force opponent into mistakes to win. example would be TB probably most talented AL team, yet won just 1 game before getting the boot. least talented PO teams (my opinion) were the Chisox and brewers, who played like it and were early exits.
Yup I have Astros in 4
M’man TPlouffe called it Braves in 6
How much pot was he smoking at the time
Plouffe knows baseball even worse than he played it.
The 2021 Braves are the 2019 nats. They beat the brewers in their first series. Then they beat the dodgers in the NLCS. They are going to face the astros in the World Series. That is how
That’s not how history works.
Braves in 7.
I see the Astros as the far-superior team, but I think we may be seeing a historic performance from Morton this WS. Something of Bumgarner-ian proportions. I see him getting 3 appearances and dominating in all three. (Not to mention the entire Braves team being great right now)
Mind you, I think the Astros match up VERY well against the Braves, and if this was a 162 game series then I see the Astros winning it, but the Braves have that 2019 Nationals feeling that will undoubtedly play in this series. Long, tough series, but I have the Braves winning in 7.
Charlie hasn’t exactly looked like Walter Johnson in this postseason…not sure where your hunch is coming from. He could just as well get shelled by his former team
Charlie and (Brian) McCann know all the angles at Enron — err, Minute Maid — I’d expect a conference call with BMac before G1.
Interesting. Morton/Fried have been decent so far, but we haven’t seen their best stuff yet. ATL offense will be even more potent with all 4 OF playing in HOU via DH (Soler, Rosario, Pederson, Duvall). That will make the bottom third of the line-up more productive and fluid. They should adapt better to HOU than HOU adapts to ATL — ATL is the better road team — which I think is a difference-maker in a tight series. I don’t see how HOU’s starters match up against ATL’s, and I don’t see their bullpen any better than how ATL is playing right now (and definitely not better than LAD’s).
Astros are the best team in the league at avoiding strikeouts and making contact. This will be the difference.
DMC
In reality all four of those Atl OF are pretty pedestrian, pitchable career hitters and despite ten or so hot games their career platoon splits aren’t great. I’d be much more concerned about what their INF is capable of.
I hear ya re: OF – but this is the playoffs where legends are made. Mark Lemke can still get free drinks anywhere in the southeast. Talent isn’t paramount in a 7-game series. Wasn’t ATL’s IF only the 2nd ever to have all IF (Riley, Swanson, Albies, Freeman) hit 30+ HR? They all haven’t been hot at the same time, but they just need a few and smarter ABs, which some of them are doing.
Dusty Baker say no more. I feel he’s a fantastic manager but will only know a World Series title as a player.
ask the genius Cashman !
I have zero interest in this World Series
Thanks for letting us know
I don’t really care who wins, just happy it won’t be the Dodgers. They can be content with their fake championship from last year.
Stupid comment.
An asterisk will forever be next to the Dodgers name for 2020. Sham of a “season.”
Ignorant comment.
Preach
Braves sweep.
Stros in 6 then the sign stealing nonsense can be put to bed.
“Nonsense”…..will you get a load of this guy Mack…..
I think the Astros are better on paper, but the Braves will rise to the occasion. Braves in 6.
Will the MLB let the Braves play in Atlanta? They moved the all star game to Colorado because of some racist law makers. Or are they ok with racist lawmakers now?
Manfred moved the AS game because he let himself get played by the Democratic Party. Georgia’s law is very similar to Colorado’s and to NY’s.
According to the Athletic the game was moved because of Dave Roberts, actually. He was slated to manage the NL team. Told Manfred he would boycott the game if it was going to be held in Atlanta.
Manfred then feared more participants would follow suit. The rest is history.
So, the Braves just kicked the dude who screwed their community over out of the playoffs. Make of all that what you will. Lots going on. & again, that is from the Athletic.
How dare you state inconvenient facts
politics and MLBTR don’t go well together boys
@Brewer88 I AGREE 100%
LOL
I’m a Homer, Braves in 6.
I’m rooting for a braves sweep
Indians!
Love reading how the Braves are the underdog and should be grateful for just being in the WS. Read a couple posts about Dodger injuries and 106 Wins should be home field and on and on. Almost all the teams had injuries and something else going on. The Privilege of some fan bases is a complete joke. If your payroll is 250M and full of stars and you don’t compete every year than your entire management should resign.
Come on down to Braves Country where we show 4,5,6 hours before 1st pitch and don’t leave till it’s over. No we don’t have Magic Johnson, Keanu Reeves, or a bunch of A listers. But don’t be surprised if you see Quavo, Big Boi, or Future. We like our sweet tea, moonshine and peach bottoms down here. Go Braves!!!
I said Braves in 7. I feel like my Braves will battle through the world series and it will be a great series as well I feel like it will be another classic. It will be a straight up battle with the Astros but I feel like they can pull it off. All the negative BS about the Braves still continues but they still continue to prove everyone wrong this year. And every single damn person that keeps talking about the BS with the racist chant, most people are too ignorant to know that the Braves have a partnership with the Eastern band of Cherokee Indians. It’s sad that we live in a world that wants to label every single thing and try to change things that are not as bad as they seem.
I’d like to see a great Giant and Sacramento area resident win the WS. Dusty Baker.
I hear ya Braves Fan 70. Oh for those people out there that don’t like the chop and are offended. Go to the Braves website and scroll down a little and there is a button that that details the partnership they have with the Eastern band of Cherokee. Braves org has made it a point to consult with them and even have a office position for their representatives in which the Braves consult with on matters that pertain to the dignity and respect of their culture. Last note, Inside Truist along the exhibits of Braves history is a exhibit an marker honoring the connection and tradition of the Eastern Band and Braves organization. Stop the political narrative that’s all over social and truly educate yourself people to facts.
Chop on!
The 2005 eighteen-inning classic was closer in time to the 1991 worst-to-first team than it is to today. Oof.
Not only do these two franchises represent two states that are anti-mask and anti-vaxx but by the close-up of the lards jumping up and down in the stands anti-Jenny Craig too.
Well, At least 1 person thinks you’re funny. Jealous much? For the record, it is so sweet to live in a state that doesn’t mandate face diapers. Enjoy your masks and tyrants!
don’t wear your seatbelt either, that is a tyrant mandate too.
When you do a header through your windshield, remember me.
Let people make their own choices. That’s what freedom is. I will wear my seatbelt all the time. But if you don’t want to, knock your socks off. All of this has exposed how little a certain party actually has American values
@Yankeesniper
A false equivalence and a straw man, but expected.
the only straw is in your head.
They are all macho about wearing a mask until they are crying like babies in ICU “gimme oxygen, gimme oxygen”
I pay three times the insurance premium up here to cover the cost of these inbred southerners clogging the hospitals when they get covid
I’m taking the Braves in 5. I think they’re going to surprise everyone and take the first two in Houston then win two of three at home to end it. The Astros pitching has been too hot and cold this postseason and the Braves lineup is ready to pounce on them if they’re not on their game
Depends: will there will be trash cans involved?
Not gonna live my life in fear inside a 400 sq ft studio apartment with my mask on waiting 2 hours for the Door Dasher to deliver my Olive Garden order. No wonder so many millionaires are leaving NY.
Luke Jackson should not be on the World Series roster. But then i guess Snitker would have no one to go to to raise everyone’s blood pressure
Luke is such a complicated issue. His career has been the epitome of a volatile reliever. He was atrocious last year; but very good this year, and in these playoffs up until LA got him twice.
The Dodgers are tough on RHP. He may be good moving forward. I am more than slightly concerned his confidence is shook now, though. That was understandably one stressed out dude on the bench in game 6 when Tyler was working on bailing him out.
New series. New team. He will be fine.
I’m amazed so many people feel the braves could win in 6. The sports books, the people whose livelihoods depend on being right; have the Astros at -150. That is a bigger advantage than I would give them but I think a lot of people are speaking emotionally.
Surprised coward Manfred isn’t making the Braves play their WS home games in another city just like he stole the 2021 All Star game from Atlanta.
Astros in 5.
Framber Valdez and Luis Garcia turned the ship around and we’re fantastic. Bullpen sans Yimi Garcia is solid. Team pitched to a 1.00 ERA in Game’s 4 through 6.
Team scored 5 runs or more in all 6 games.
Of course I’m biased, being an Astros fan and all, but that’s just how I am.
Cheapgm4hire speaking that truth. Love when people bend to the will of the popular narrative. Oh for those wondering, I’m a African American and Latin retired USMC Veteran with 21 yrs of honorable service. So many minority owned small businesses were crushed from the lost revenue the AllStar game would have generated. Knee Jerk reactions and decisions have lasting effects.
Astros in 6 mostly because I have tickets to the game. I think Zach Greinke is going to have a decent start and be the last pitcher to get a knock before the DH rule is in place next year. Not going to be easy for either team whoever wins. Ultimately the Braves starters need to get deep to Matzek/Smith or that will be a big issue all series. Javier is a great weapon out of Houston’s pen and they can bring in multiple arms to shut down rallies when needed.
From the World Series to the Worst Series
Reading YankeeSnipers’s comments, my first thought is: So this is what it’s like to watch a bad comedian drown on stage, figuratively speaking. Interesting.
@A_O They dont care about Baseball, Their just trolls looking for a political website.
The main reason I’ll be watching the series this year is to hate on the Asterisks. Go Braves!
My question is will MLB move the World Series out of Atlanta like they did with the All Star game? What has changed since the summer? I suggest that Cleveland host the Braves! Long livery “Chief”, go Tribe.
Please keep writing the Braves off, no one on these boards gave the Braves a chance against the Dodgers either, not any on these boards nor any of the writers.
Exactly. I’ll take the Brave’s starting staff over the Astro’s – even if McCullers was going which he isn’t.
Astros should cheer for manfred if they clinch at home, since he bailed them out of cheating. Really want Atlanta to win it at home so they can boo him out if Atlanta. What a total gong show either way. Manfred is the biggest clown out there.
2012orioles;
Many more teams were cheating too the Astros were made the example to stop it all. When you have this much money; and pride on the line always going be people that cheat.
They were cheating (who knows how many teams) but not to the extent the Astros were. There are a lot of stories of teams warning the nationals about live stealing, which is significantly worse than watching video to get the sequence of signs, and then steal it when a runner is on second. Stealing a sign with a runner on is totally legal, getting the sequence through electronics isn’t, but what the Astros did is way way worse than what anyone else did.
I think what happens is everyone looked at the total season totals and the win totals and thought underdog / overachiever. Buster Olney was the only to post August through end of Season the new look Braves had the best record in all of baseball. That is directly off his tweets.
The Braves have a American league line up for the first two games with Jorge Soler getting the designated hitter start. Games 1 and 2 will determine if Pederson or Soler sit when series back in Atlanta.
The pressure is off Atlanta now it’s a good year by knocking the dodgers out I think the Braves will be relaxed and pick up good pitching and timely hitting
I love how the NL East is termed “A lackluster NL East “. What absolute rubbish. As far as I am concerned the NL East didn’t have an Arizona DBacks in its division, nor a Colorado Rockies-who were pretty good at home but awful on the road. Go and look at how many times the Dodgers and the Giants beat up on these two teams. The difference between the NL West and NL East is that there was no easy beat team, unless you want to tell me the Marlins & the Nationals were the Diamondbacks or the Rockies of the NL East, and that is why all the teams in the NL East were more competitive. Don’t forget that Scherzer & Turner were with the Nationals for most of the season, and so was De Grom with the Mets. The Marlins have a decent pitching staff as well, and so do the Mets. I’d suggest you go and look at the Braves run differential as opposed to Giants, Dodgers, and take into consideration the runs totalled against DBacks and Rockies by Giants and Dodgers. The Braves scored 790 runs, Giants 804, Dodgers 830, it’s not a significant difference. “Lackluster” indeed.
You mention the Nationals were competitive for part of the season but remember before the Padres completely collapsed the NL West was a 3 team dog fight. Also the fact that both the Giants and Dodgers had a 200+ run differential while in the same division is impressive regardless.
So was the NL East the lackluster division? Well let’s look at the total run differential of each division which should show us how strong the division was against others.
AL East: +214
AL Central: -116
AL West: -61
NL East: -83
NL Central: – 183
NL West: +229
So a good argument could be made the NL East wasn’t the worst division in baseball or even the worst in the NL. But I still make the argument that the NL West was a tougher division simply because the Dodgers and Giants seem to dominate. As for the NL East, I’d say the better question would be are “they were a better division than the AL West.”
Agreed, but some context is that it’s really difficult to compare 2021 season stats/records to justify placement/credibility in the playoffs. 2021 Braves is the latest a team has been under .500 (into August) and made the World Series. The adjustments they made throughout the year, including adding at the Deadline breathed new life into a team with wind taken out of sales by losing a MVP favorite from the first half in Acuna and not having 2020 Best DH hitter: Ozuna. We may be seeing a team that just started hitting its stride in September.
Braves in 5 in Atlanta. Great media angles with Dusty&Snitker, dad vs son Snitker, Freddie & Charlie Freeman…. Should be fun
If the wretched assbros win then it will be a sad day for baseball.
Both fan bases are generally awful so this one was tough. I voted Astros in 6 despite liking the Braves players better.
Insulting an entire fan base is the same kind of thinking as racism. Think that’s an overreaction? Try replacing the phrase “fan base” with Chinese, Italian or African-American.
What a horrific analogy. I’m embarrassed for you.
Your comment is racist considering the Astros popularity in Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Venezuela.
@SalaryCapMyth Maybe he will go away without insulting any more people!
As you might have heard, there was more than a little controversy attached to the Astros’ success in 2017,
LOL! I love the understated humor. Mark must have wrote that with all of us in mind fighting and being nasty to each other over the subject.
Not sure who wins, but Manfred loses. Lib TaR Dia loses. And that makes me smile with glee.
This has been so hard to follow….the blue jays were better then both the braves and astros….gotta see playoff structure reformed.
Go braves.
Who win’s – not the Dodgers. Maybe we’ll get lucky and not have to listen to Ron Darling. There was a day when he was just calling the wildcard round. During the NLDS had to turn off the sound on the TV and listen to the radio call.
what? Do you mean you don’t want to hear from Darling how great the Dodgers offense is in the 4th inning of the game and how the game is not over yet when the Braves are ahead?
Best part of the whole Braves / Dodgers series was after Rosario hit the 3 run shot. Dodger’s were done. Darling’s comment that Buehler only made 1 mistake during game 6 was laughable. Albies double. Riley’s double, Adrianza’s double, Rosario’s home run. That’ 4 right there. And then having to listen to Costas after the game is equally painful.
The best part is the Braves finally beat the Dodgers. That is a WS win right there in my book.
The best part is reading the excuses from their writers. They are said the series will easily go to the Dodgers. Some Dodger writer named Dylan Hernandez apparently hates the Braves guts for some reason. I think he is one of those people who screams “racist” and is sensitive about everything.
Hopefully, this is the end of their reign.
He literally wrote an article post-elimination about how the Braves won a trip to get beat by the Astros. I don’t know how they employ such unprofessional people to write for a well-respected sport.
In my mind, if the Braves can beat the Dodgers, who are better than the Astros, in 6 games, they can beat the Astros in 5 games.
Straight from a Yankees fan. Hahaha
I’m an A’s fan so I’m rooting for Braves but I expect Astros to win in 6 games.
It’d be nice to see Ron Washington, Jesse Chavez, and Stephen Vogt to get a ring though.
I said it yesterday, people are ticked off that the glitz and glamor of LA will not be present in the 2021 WS. I’ve seen every excuse of why the Dodgers didn’t win the series and blah blah blah. Injuries one dude said and I fell to the floor. We lost Ronald and Travis and Ozuna sent Pache back down and played less than 500 ball until August. Give me a break people. Give the Braves credit for what they overcome this season.
For all those haters, I will buy you a jug of Chippers sweet tea on Friday at Truist. Stuff is amazing!
Both the Dodgers and the Red Sox used their Aces in relief and it blew up on them.
When Alex Cora used Nathan Eovaldi in relief in game 4, that was the deciding moment of the series.
Worse for the Dodgers, it seems Dave Roberts over-manages the big games. Roberts used both Max Scherzer and Jose Urias in relief in game 7 against the Giants series and it messed up the pitching for following series. Furthermore, I felt Roberts unnecessarily used an opener and spent the pen in game 1 against the Braves.
Notwithstanding, I like both teams this year. I’m partial to the AL and I’m rooting for Dusty but I have watched the Braves since rebuilding and how they acquired key pieces without breaking the bank.