Odds of taking extra base on hit; updated table for Statis-Pro

After pulling together additional data on how rarely runners are thrown out trying to take an extra base on a hit, the following are the best rules to play.

1. If playing with a Statis-Pro Fast Action Deck then a runner should only be thrown out by an outfielder with a T2 (the weakest throwing arm) on an 88, by a T3 on an 87-88, by a T4 on an 86-88 and by a T5 on an 85-88. That means even a T5 will throw out a runner 6.4% of the time, and this is consistent with our earlier piece on only 1.3% of runners on first base being thrown out at 3rd base on a single, and we just reviewed additional data showing that runners going second to home are out only slightly more at 2.9% of the time. Sometimes the decision will be made not to take any chances and send the runners, but this is it. Still, use the charts on whether or not the runner takes the extra base, but if the number is too high to take the extra base but not one of these 85-88 numbers, the simply have the runner stop after taking as many bases as the batter.

2. If playing with dice, the following is the updated chart we are adding to the game.

Die Roll	Roll for extra base on hit	2nd roll if 6 on 1st roll
1	OBR A,B,C extra base, others hold	Tagged out
2	OBR A,B extra base, others hold	Out if T3, 4 or 5, if not safe
3	OBR A extra base, others hold	Out if T4 or 5, if not safe
4	Second to home score, but 1st to 3rd hold	Out if T5, if not safe
5	Safe if 2 outs, others hold	Safe
6	Roll again for close play	Safe

Note that runners have a much better chance of going from second to home than from 1st to 3rd on a single. The study actually shows that a runner goes 2nd to home 58% of the time, almost twice as much as the 30% chance of going from 1st to third base. The actual average from 1st to home on a double is slightly closer to the 1st to 3rd on a single - on which the runner makes it a little over 40% of the time according to this study. 

In the dice version of the game, a fast OBR: B runner trying to advance on a mediocre T3 throwing arm will go from 1st to 3rd (or 1st to home on a double) with less than two outs 44% of the time in the game, but from second to home with two outs 78% of the time.

An earlier post covered how we set up the odds of advancing an extra base on a hit in Statis-Pro based on the fact that runners were only thrown out going from 1st to 3rd a total of 1.3% of the time. The following is our new simple chart for attempting to take an extra base on a hit:

Note that the runner can only be thrown out if the first roll is a 6 and then a second roll is lower than the outfielders throwing arm, so rolling for the extra base in the game is almost always worth the shot.

Early NY Times Live Polls Indicate Almost 50-50 House; 3 Other Indicators Suggest Strong Democratic Takeover

Three of four indicators I review suggest a blue wave taking the House - and the Senate is not impossible. However, first I will cover the one indicators that suggest the Republicans could hold the House:

1) Scoreboard - Live NY Times polling of House seats rated as a TOSS-UP by Larry Sabato's Crystal Ball shows Republicans going 8-5-1 in races in which they would need to go 19-10 keep the House if there were no upsets in Sabato's other rankings. The average margin is just a 0.5 GOP win and this includes 4 races where the GOP is winning by 1 and two races in which the Democrats are winning by 1, and on balance this indicates it could go down to just a few races for the 218-217 lead:

District	GOP - Democrat	Status
California 25	-2	incomplete
California 48	0
Colorado 6	-11
Illinois 12	1
Illinois 6	1
Kansas 2	-1
Kentucky 6	1
Maine 2	5
Minnesota 3	-9
Minnesota 8	-1
New Jersey 7	Early	GOP leading early polling but too early to count yet
Texas 23	8
Texas 7	3	incomplete
Virginia 7	4
West Virginia 3	8
Average	0.5	GOP average lead in Sabato toss-ups

The other three indicators point to a strong win for the Democrats:

2. History: Larry Sabato points out that the average number of House seats lost two years after a party wins the White House is 33 seats - 10 more than the Democrats need to take over the House.

3. Enthusiasm Indicated by Primary Turnout: Many more Democrats are turning out than Republicans in primaries. For example, many Trump supporters noted Minnesota was another primary victory over a Trump opponent with Jeff Johnson's win with 168,495 votes, however, that's only enough votes to finish third in the Democratic primary the same day where 81% more Democrats voted than Republicans (582,811 to 320,252). The silver lining Republican hopes offset this gap is that Trump rallies do have a strong turnout, and while 38% more Democrats voted in the primary in Minnesota 8, Stauber did receive 44,865 in the GOP primary while Radinovich received 30,440 in the Democratic primary.

4. Nate Silver's generic ballot shows Democrats with a 9.1 percent advantage. If that ballot ends up between 6 and 10 points it would point toward Democrats winning the House and Republicans holding the Senate, so as of September 16 at 8 p.m. eastern that would indicate Democrats taking the House fairly easily and even having a shot at the Senate.

Further background written before we started to tally above

The New York Times takes election analytics to another level again. Their election night percent chance of winning is unbelievably great and exciting as you can see the percent chance for each

candidate adjust slightly as new results come in during the night.

(Note: Before anyone who told me Trump was going to "Win by 5 points or more because

no one is telling the pollsters the truth" dismisses the polls - I will remind you that statement

was 7 points off and the Real Clear average of head-to-head polling was just over a point

off and MY September 9, 2016 mass emailed prediction was almost exactly right - Clinton

by 3 in the popular vote, Trump over 290 in Electoral College to win.)

Here are the only two steps you need to follow to have an incredible understanding on which

way Congress is moving:

1. Look at Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball. As of 10:30 p.m. Eastern on September 11, He

has 29 Congressional races as toss-ups and when you add up the ones he has leading

Democrat or Republican - the Democrats would need to win 12 of 29 toss-ups to take

the House 218-217.

2. Go to the toss-up races the New York Times is incredibly LIVE polling - meaning they

show you the results every time they call a voter and when a voter answers their poll and

based on the voter's geography, age, gender, race etc. they update where the race should

end up. Right now they are polling three races Sabato rate’s as toss-ups, SO since the

Democrats need to win almost half of those races if the three races were even overall it

would mean the Democrats are likely to win the House (because even would tend toward

them getting 14 or 15 of the 29 races) whereas if the GOP averages even a slight lead of

a point or two, then it is likely they could get the 19 of 29 toss-up seats they need.

1. 
   

This is only three races, and the polls are not complete, BUT the first data points to the

GOP holding the House (which is not the same conclusion I’d reach looking only at the

generic ballot where the Democrats have a bigger edge than the +6 the Republicans

could probably withstand to still hold the House.

(original note before adding other three)The Republicans are winning all three toss-up races - by 3, 8 and 8 points, and they

are three different kinds of districts (suburban and rural mix in Richmond VA, Majority

Hispanic district in Texas and strong Trump in West Virginia). An average 6+ point win

for the GOP in three districts that look like toss-ups is good news for Republicans -

but these are early returns and if you keep clicking on these links they will keep updating

whenever they are calling.

UPDATING THE FIGURES THAT WERE HERE AT THE TOP OF THE BLOG REGULARL

If I were just looking at Nate Silver's generic ballot, I would draw the opposite conclusion out of the belief that the Democrats +8.6 is about two points better than they need to take the House, so the two tests lend to opposite conclusions and we should keep watching each of those New York Times polls continue to play out as well as new swing district polls they will add.

Indians Await World Series Opponent: DBacks Corbin No-HItter 1st of 3 Straight Wins to Bring Cubs to Brink of Elimination (3-1)

This blog is the home for the 2018 Statis-Pro Championship featuring the 2017 player cards and 2018 rosters. Click here for accounts of the season and playoffs that resulted in the Indians winning the AL title in a thrilling 7-game ALCS and the Arizona Diamondbacks and 3-time defending champion Cubs making it to the NLCS. This link includes a complete free version of the game along with 2018 pitcher and player "cards" in sheet format for all 30 major league teams, with an account of a "sneak preview" single game elimination using those card/sheets.

More than 8,000 baseball fans clicked on this blog with copies of the 2017 traditional cards for the Indians and Yankees appear here with further instructions for first-timers for how to play the game.

The result of the most recent NCLS game or subsequent World Series game will appear first below, and the accounts of the other game in preceding order.

NLCS Game 5 - Dynasty Not Dead Yet! Cubs Pound 14 Hits to beat Dbacks 9-5

The bats finally awakened as the Cubs pounded 14-hits and jumped on Arizona early.  Anthony Rizzo broke out of his post-season slump going 2-4, with 4 RBI's.  A decent start from Jon Lester gets the job done and gets the Cubs back to Chicago.  Now can Patrick Corbin duplicate his effort from game 2 and get the Diamondbacks to their first ever Statis-Pro World Series?

Chicago    9

Arizona     5

(Diamondbacks lead series 3-2)

NLCS Game 4 - Cubs Must Win 3 Straight to Keep NL Dynasty Alive

The same formula established in Game 3 below plays out in Game 4.  A pair of 2-run HR's in the first from unlikely sources carry the Diamondbacks.  Ketel Marte and Nick Ahmed each went deep.  As for pitching, Robbie Ray has underachieved in the regular season (2-4) and the playoffs (0-2), but finally gives a quality start. (6 IP, 2 ER). Meanwhile, Cole Hamels continues the bad NLCS trend of providing his worst post-season start during this series.

Chicago  2

Arizona   5

(Diamondbacks lead series 3-1)

NLCS Game 3 - Goldsmith Powers Dback to 2-1 Series Lead over Cubs

It is a simple combination of quality pitching and timely hitting and Arizona has it at just the right time.  Zach Godley continues his solid post-season with another quality start (7 IP, 2 ER).  He is now 3-0 in 4 playoff starts this year.  For Chicago, it was bad timing for Jose Quintana to turn in his worst start of the playoffs.  Paul Goldschmidt added another 2 RBI's as the Diamondbacks take the series lead.

Chicago   3

Arizona    5

(Diamondbacks lead series 2-1)

NLCS Game 2 - Corbin's no-hitter ties Diamondbacks and Cubs at 1-1

The Arizona Diamondbacks Patrick Corbin throws a no-hitter in Game 2 of the NLCS.
Once again Statis-Pro illustrates the somewhat random nature of these with Corbin's less-than-overpowering card, but it was his day (several numbers breaking his way).  Arizona got all the offense they would need with a huge third inning when 10 batters went to the plate and four scored.

Patrick Corbin final stats:
He allowed 2-baserunners.
4th: Walk to Kris Bryant. (DP erased this, so he faced one over the minimum)
9th: Error allowed Willson Contreras to reach.

9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 11 K

Arizona    4
Chicago   0
(Series tied 1-1)

NLCS Game 1 - Former Nat Murphy caps Cubs rally to take 1-0 Lead over DBacks

The Diamondbacks are kicking themselves since they could be looking at a big early series lead.  After Chicago erupted for a 4-run first, Arizona comes all the way back and Jon Jay's 2-out, 2-run pinch-hit single gave them the 5-4 lead after 6-innings.  Bottom of 9th, two outs, runner on first, the Diamondbacks are ready to clinch the opener as Archie Bradley prepares for his 5th straight playoff save.  But Anthony Rizzo's fly ball is misplayed by David Peralta, the run scores and it is extra innings.  In the 10th, Ketel Marte throws one away and puts a runner on 2nd, Daniel Murphy follows with the walk-off hit and the Cubs rally for the win.

Arizona   5
Chicago  6  (10 innings)
(Cubs lead series 1-0)

Breaking ... Dbacks Corbin no-hits Cubs in battle to face Indians in World Series

The Diamondback's Pat Corbin no-hit the Statis-pro NL dynasty Cubs to even the NL championship series. The winner will face the Indians in the World Series. Details to follow ...

Free Statis-Pro Baseball Cards for all 30 Teams AND the Complete Game - Just Add Dice and Play

Click here for the free version of Statis-Pro plus the pitcher and batter cards for all 30 teams.

In addition to the main Statis-Pro playoffs, we wanted to try a simple single-elimination tournament using only the pictured dice and sheet to record results and what bases people are on, and the google sheet above with tabs using numbers based on this season for all batters and pitchers and additional tabs with instructions.

From the pitchers' tab I wrote down the pitcher's card numbers from the 2nd tab. For the Braves' starter, Foltynewicz allows hits up to a roll of 18, strikeouts up to 38, walks up to 48, the 51 on passed ball and 54 for wild pitches (passed ball and wild pitches are outs with no one on base). Most important, the first PB 2-7 means the two 6-sided dice keep it on his card. However, I recreated the roll from the first inning on which the 8 put the action on Yelich's line (see the bottom line on the sheet) and the 35 rolls on those dice fall within his 34-42 range for his 1st inning homer.

On outs the 4th tab and 20-sided die yield results.

The 3rd tab has instructions for new players, but also has options for trying to steal bases, bunt, or take extra bases on hits.

I played this Brewers-Braves games as a 1st test game using the Google sheet only. I seeded 12 teams for a single elimination to test if out and the Braves and Brewers batters were right by each other on the Google sheet which made it easier. Here is the quick tournamament bracket, where I seeded teams based on their actual mlb records right now.

Not that the Google sheet is set up with the top rows frozen, so anytime a pitchers comes up to hit those results are right at the top. When the pitcher is batting, you skip the PB and always get the results off his card.

Sneak preview single elimination for the first look at 2018 player cards in simple dice version showed some interesting updates for players who will be better or worse next year. For example, the Yankees Stanton won the MVP in the big season based on his 2017 card and the Mariners' Cano was not far behind - however using the 2018 cards neither of them even starterd for their team.

Final Four. The Braves will meet the A's in the championship of the mini-sneak peak. In the first semifinal, The A's incredible bullpen came through for the second straight game - standing six Red Sox in the final three innings to hold onto a 2-1 win. Betts had two more hits, stole a base and scored, but the A's strung together three singles and two RBI sac flies in the fourth for the final margin. In the second semifinal, the Albies again led off with a double to spark a 3-run first inning and Jackson threw a 5-0 shutout to eliminate the Indians. In the battle of the two best bullpens in baseball, Freeman gave the Braves a 2-0 lead with a 1st inning homer, but Canha pulled the A's within 2-1 with a 3rd inning homer and Olson added a 2-run homer in the 5th to make it 3-1. The A's extended the eventual championship final to 6-2 by outhitting the Braves 11-5 and the top 2018 closer in the game, Trienen (PB2-9, hits only 11-16) wrapped it up for the win. Tournament champion Oakland A's.

6-seed Indians blow out 11-seed Rockies 7-0. With Bauer just as good as Kluber on the new cards, he threw the shutout and Kluber is saved for 3-seed Yankees in next game. Indians outslugged them 11 hits to 4. Lindor has 2 of teams 3 doubles and Ramirez and Kipnis homered. While Kluber (PB-2-8) is not quite as dominant as his PB2-9 2017 card and the Yankees rookies are even better than our early season projection cards - Kluber had just enough to pull off a 7-3 win behind homers from Lindor and Ramirez The pen realy is weaker with Miller (PB2-7) and Allen (PB2-6), but for Padre Hand came in after Kluber gave up a leadoff homer in the 7th. Final Four from these 3 teams - Indians.

Kershaw delivered a big win for 12-seed Dodgers over 5-seed Cubs, but then Wood loses 3-1 to 4-seed A's. Lowrie had 2 of A's 6 doubles to chase Wood in the 5th and get to the amazing bullpen of Kelly and the closer Treinen. Final Four from these three teams -A's. 

#8 Cardinals biggest home advantage as #9 Mariners slugger Cruz could only pinch hit in 4-0 loss. Carpenters 2-run homer in the second put Cards on the road to a matchup with 1-seed Red Sox. However the Cardinals may have run into the best pitcher and best batter card from the 2018 stats in the next game. Chris Sale looks like the best pitcher card in the majors from this year's stats (PB2-9, hits only on 11-15) and he threw a 1-run, 1-hit game, while Mookie Betts (HR34-43, On Base Running and Stealing/Speed A, top defensive outfielder) doubled in Benintendi in the first then scored on back-to-back outs, then homered his next at bat to provide the 3-1 win. Final Four from these 3 teams - Boston Red Sox.

10-seed Atlanta jumped up 2-0 after Acuna singled to start the game, stole second and went to third on a wild pitch before Camargos RBI single. Yelich's homer made it 2-1, but Suzuki's RBI double made it 3-1 and closer Vizcaino survived a 9th inning double and run scored by Moustakas to get a showdown with 2-seed Astros. Atlanta then became the only NL team to make the Final Four in this single game elimination when they jumped on both Verlander (PB2-8) and closer Rondon (PB2-9) for homers by thier two top of hte line-up sluggers Albies and Acuna. Meanwhile Sanchez (strong PB2-7) and closer Vizcaino (PB2-9) scattered 8 Astros hits with the help of one run-saving diving stop by shortstop Swanson off line-drive off the bat of Sprinter for a 6-0 win. Final 4 from these 3 teams: Braves.

Free: 800 New Player Cards and Statis-Pro game: Features 25-man rosters to pit Encarnacion's Indians vs. Sanchez' Yankees

Vote here for the top Dominican stars of all time, including Gary Sanchez and Edwin Encarnacion featured below on the final 25-man rosters we used once our AL Statis-Pro season went from 15 teams down to the final two - the Cleveland Indians and New York Yankees. See updates on all Statis-Pro playoffs by clicking here, (Note: Game highlights appear at the bottom, including the Dominican Republic's Edwin Encarnacion's Series MVP for leading the series in homers and runs scored to lead the Cleveland Indians to the World Series with a Game 7 win over the Yankees.). 

To Play Any Team Yourself; 1) Click here for more than 800 Statis-Pro player cards for the 2018 season and how to play the game; 2, then get the five dice pictured in these instructions and; 3; follow the results on this free Statis-Pro game. On the player's on the link the number shows the highest number roll that equals that result, with the red number being the highest number on which the player homers.

Batter Cards: The average Statis-Pro batter card has a home run range of 27-32 (actually 4 out of 64 numbers since it is a base-8 system from 11-88), and has just ONE walk number. The Indians and Yankees powered their way through the season with much better cards. For example, Aaron not only has over twice as many home run numbers as typical (25-35 is NINE home run numbers), but the fact that he gets hits all the way up to 35 instead of 32 shows a high batting average, and he has 10 extra walks on his cards. Put it all together, and if a pitcher leaves the action on Judge's card he actually gets on base on a hit, walk, or hit by pitch mroe than half of the time (33 of 64 numbers).

We use the player cards calculated based on their 2017 stats, but the 2018 rosters. You will notice that the 5th hitter Andrew McCutcheon says "2017 Pittsburgh Pirates," while the 10th hitter (only starts against left-handed pitchers) Luke Voit was a 2017 St. Louis Cardinal I copied.

The new cards I made for rookie of the year candidates Andujar and Torres by entering the 2018 projected stats at mlb.com into this google sheet that anyone can use to make cards for new players.

You can follow the line-up reading from left to right and notice I write the number of their spot in the line-up, so the first batter with a "1" in the upper left is Brett Gardner, then "2" Aaron Judge is the second batter, and the second row starts with the "6" hitter Did Gregorius through the "9" hitter Bird. You may notice Bird has a "9/B" which I use to indicate he is the 9th hitter normally (against a right-handed pitcher, but the "/B" means he is on the bench against left-handed batters. Luke Voit has the reverse "B/9," meaning he is on the bench against right-handed pitching but starts as the 9th hitter against left-handed pitchers since left-handed hitters like Bird are automatically out on numbers of 11-15 against left-handed pitchers - so all his doubles would be turned to outs. The bottom row is all reserves for me, even though right now recent acquisition Hechavarria is actually starting at shortstop since Gregorius is out injured.

Half of the Cleveland Indians line-up is left-handed (four lefties and one switch-hitter). For this reason, I change their line-up a lot more when they face a lefty. As you can see Michael Brantley leads off but drops to 9th in the order against lefties (1/9), then Lindor bats 2nd against righties but moves up to leadoff against lefties, etc. Lonnie Chisenhall and Bradley Zimmer both start against righties (we do keep players in Statis-Pro action even when they are injured as long as they played some of the seasons), but Rajai Davis and Melky Cabrera start against lefties.

Perhaps the most important bench strength the Indians have over other teams is two speedsters off the bench that can pinch run or steal and take an extra base on a hit or fly ball. Davis has an OBR (on baserunning) and SP (base-stealing speed) of A, which led to the Game 5 win in the ACLS Statis-Pro series. Calculating the rookie card for Greg Allen - who is actually starting in centerfield due to Zimmer and Chisenhall are on the disabled list - is an even better A / AA. The SP: AA is the same as SP: A on most base-stealing efforts, but there are two exceptions. If Allen gets a single or double on his card, the automatically steals a base. In the dice version, he steals second base on a 1-4 instead of just a 1-3 like an SP: A.

Like Judge, recent acquisition Josh Donaldson also has NINE home run numbers and with even more walks he reaches on just one fewer number than Judge - 32 out of 64. Judge is a little better because he has three more hits whereas Donaldson has two more walks - which don't score runners in scoring position, but Donaldson's card from last year is almost as good as Judge's from last year, so in the game they are virtually even.

Pitcher Cards: The average pitcher in baseball starts with a PB: 2-6, however, so typically a PB: 2-7 is a good starting pitcher and a PB: 2-8 is a strong relief pitcher who might close games or be a strong set-up man. However, the Yankees and Indians pack PB: 2-9 (the best, keeps action off batters' card 83% of the time).

Below we list the four starters in order with S1, S2, S3, S4 and then R1 for the top reliever or closer in the top row. Then the second row starts with the second best reliever (R2) etc. all the way to the 6th best reliever. Notice that I do use pitcher's in roles based on how good their card is, while others would use Cody Allen and Chapman as the closer even though their cards are not quite as good as some of the loaded middle relievers.

Here are the loaded Yankees, and Chad Green actually has the best card and David Robertson the second best, even though in real action Aroldis Chapman would be the closer once back off the DL. I accidentally put Happ before Severino in the photo, but as you see from the S1 Severino is actually the ace and first in the rotation.

And here is the Indians incredible pen as they only team I ever remember with six relievers that are all either PB 2-9s and PB 2-8s.

Andrew Miller's PB2-9 with only 5 hits and three walks allowed, and the other 56 of 64 numbers resulting in outs, is the second best pitcher card in the AL behind only Boston's Craig Kimbrel (5 hits and 1 walk). That means that if Miller faces a left-handed batter and it is on the pitcher's card, the hits are all erased and the batters only three chances to reach are a walk on 48-52. However, the most impressive card in the league is Corey Kluber, because while he allows two more hits, he still only allows a baserunner to reach on eight of 64 numbers (one walk) and as a starting pitcher he can keep doing that for a complete game rather than just a couple of innings.

With both teams bringing in key players right up to the waiver line August 31, we did need to go back through and cut both rosters down to the 25-player legal limit. This did entail dropping some lesser players that are on both rosters because we allow players on DL to play and in some cases had to choose the better card between a current roster player and player on DL or suspension but who did play at least some this season.

Statis-Pro Playoffs: Encarnacion's Indians To Face Cubs-Diamondbacks Winner in World Series

As I played out the Statis-Pro season I received astonished responses after writing the clearest AL path to the World Series belonged to the Cleveland Indians (see photo below and story), and it did play out that way in the Statis-Pro game at least the Dominican Republic's Edwin Encarnacion's Series MVP for leading the series in homers and runs scored to lead the Cleveland Indians to the World Series with a Game 7 win over the Yankees.) The explanation of the game that appeared at the top of this blog originally, is now at the bottom.

To Play Any Teams Yourself; 1) Click here for more than 800 Statis-Pro player cards from the 2018 season and the entire Statis Pro game for free. All you need to play the game is the four dice pictured in these instructions and add a 20-sided die to play advanced rules with fielding.

Series Finales

The clinching game of each series will be detailed here, regardless of which game of the series wraps up the series. The game-by-game reviews of the other games appear below the photo.

Game 1 of the NLCS features Arizona (Greinke 5-1, 2.80 ERA) at Chicago (Lester 3-2, 4.66) with the eventual winner of the series facing Cleveland in the World Series.

Cubs Eliminate Dodgers in Game 7 (NLCS1)

Game 7: It only seemed appropriate with 4-games decided in the 9th inning and another going extra innings that Game 7 would be no exception in this series.  Both starting pitchers gave quality starts and Rich Hill even drove in the Dodgers only run as the game entered the 9th tied 1-1.  But in a series where the Cubs' bullpen was just a little better than the Dodgers, it happened again.  A walk, a hit, and an error loaded the bases.  Pinch-hitter Kyle Schwarber then drew the bases loaded walk to win the series.  The 2-time defending champs of the Statis-Pro NL stay alive with a chance to 3-peat.

Los Angeles  1

Chicago        2

(Cubs win series 4-3)

Diamondbacks Eliminate Brewers in Game 6 (NLCS2)

The Brewers also tried to force a game 7, but Gio Gonzalez couldn't duplicate his game 2 shutout. The Diamondbacks most outstanding player for the series, Paul Goldschmidt drove in 2 more runs (8 RBI's for the series) and their most outstanding pitcher Archie Bradley picked up the save (3 saves in series). 

Arizona      5

Milwaukee  3

(Diamondbacks win series 4-2)

Indians vs. Yankees (ALCS)

Game 7: Brett Gardner and Aaron Judge both singled off Statis-Pro NL Cy Young winner Corey Kluber in the bottom of the 9th inning of Game 7 to cap incredible series in which they had by far the two best OPS averages (0.921 and 0.970 respectively). Those hits ignited a rally that scored two runs and loaded the bases to put the potential Championship Series-winning run on base, but Kluber induced Andujar and Hicks to pop out to give the Indians a 4-2 win and trip to the Statis-Pro World Series.

Indians 4

Yankees 2
(Indians win series 4-3, advance to World Series)

For the second straight game the Indians final inning included a home run by newcomber Josh Donaldson, who started his Indians season with an error and 0 for 11 start at the plate before hitting the game-winning homer in Game 6 and then a 2-run insurance home in Game 7 that made the score 4-0 and proved to be the difference.

While Yankees ace Severino started Game 3 with nine no-hit innings, Michael Brantley led off Game 6 with a home run. Jose Ramirez then doubled, and after the Yankees sixth error of the series, Series Most Valuable Offensive Player Edwin Encarnacion singled him home to make it 2-0. Encarnacion tied Judge for the most homers in the series (3), tied Gardner in runs scored (6) and led the Indians with an OPS of .856 in a pitcher dominated series during which both teams batted below .200 and the Indians held a .599 to .513 edge in team OPS (.700 is slightly below average).

The most valuable defensive player for the series went to Francisco Lindor, who led the series with four defensive gems, including a diving catch and double play that saved Game 6. The top pitching choice was easy, with Kluber allowing two runs, one of them earned, in 21 innings pitched. The Yankees Sanchez threw out 6 of 11 would-be base stealers and picked off another - but his passed ball and two errors gave the award to Lindor.

We do not usually compile detailed stats, but did tally the seven-game series stats below listed in order of OPS. We also listed typical batting stats, plus the number of errors and defensive gems at the end of the column.

7-game series totals	Tm	OPS	AB	R	H	RBI	2b	3b	HR	BB	SB	CS	Err	Gems
Team Totals	Cle	0.599	302	27	59	22	16	0	9	27	5	7	2	7
Team Totals	NYY	0.513	307	18	58	17	13	2	5	12	2	0	6	8
Aaron Judge	NYY	0.970	33	5	9	7	3	1	3	0	0	0	0	0
Brett Gardner	NYY	0.921	35	6	12	2	2	1	1	2	1	0	0	0
Gleyber Torres	NYY	0.865	18	1	7	1	1	0	0	1	1	0	2	0
Edwin Encarnacion	Cle	0.856	34	6	8	5	2	0	3	3	0	0	0	0
Bradley Zimmer	Cle	0.813	18	2	6	2	2	0	0	1	1	2	0	1
Michael Brantley	Cle	0.719	28	3	6	2	0	0	2	3	0	1	0	0
Jose Ramirez	Cle	0.639	34	3	8	0	3	0	0	4	0	0	0	1
Lonnie Chisenhall	Cle	0.632	19	2	5	1	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Josh Donaldson	Cle	0.622	25	3	4	3	0	0	2	2	0	0	1	0
Francisco Lindor	Cle	0.602	34	1	7	1	0	0	1	5	0	0	0	4
Rajai Davis	Cle	0.583	15	1	3	1	2	0	0	1	3	3	0	1
Yonder Alonso	Cle	0.553	28	2	5	2	2	0	0	5	0	0	0	0
Didi Gregorius	NYY	0.508	35	2	7	1	3	0	0	1	0	0	1	1
Gary Sanchez	NYY	0.487	34	1	6	3	0	0	1	2	0	0	2	2
Aaron Hicks	NYY	0.485	16	0	3	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	2
Yan Gomes	Cle	0.423	30	3	3	5	2	0	1	2	0	0	1	0
Neil Walker	NYY	0.421	19	0	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Jason Kipnis	Cle	0.400	5	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Giancarlo Stanton	NYY	0.378	32	2	4	2	1	0	0	4	0	0	0	0
Greg Allen	Cle	0.333	6	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	0
Melky Cabrera	Cle	0.325	18	1	2	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
Andrew McCutchen	NYY	0.261	23	0	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2
Miguel Andujar	NYY	0.235	34	0	3	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	1
Greg Bird	NYY	0.045	21	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
Adeiny Hechavarria	NYY	0.000	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Luke Voit	NYY	0.000	7	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Jace Peterson	NYY	0.000	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Erik Gonzalez	Cle	0.000	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Roberto Perez	Cle	0.000	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Game 6s

See Diamondbacks vs. Brewers Game 6 summary above under Series Finales. The other two Game 6s below led to a Game 7 Above.

Cubs vs. Dodgers (NLCS1)

With the season on the line, the Dodgers needed a big outing from their dominant left-hander.  However his name isn't Kershaw, it is Alex Wood.  He ran his playoff streak to 22 consecutive scoreless innings (another 7 IP in game 6) and the Dodgers youngster Max Muncy hit another HR for 7 RBI's in just three games played.  It all comes down to Game Seven and a battle of left-handers, Jose Quintana vs. Rich Hill.

Los Angeles  5

Chicago        0

(Series tied 3-3)

Indians vs. Yankees (ALCS)

As more than 1,000 people clicked on the Statis-Pro cards for the Indians and Yankees today, new Indian Josh Donaldson hit Chad Green's only mistake of the game out of the park to complete a 6-5, 14 inning rally and force a Game 7 with the Yankees. The Yankees jumped all over Indians Trevor Bauer in the first inning, as Statis-Pro League MVP Gary Sanchez stroked a 3-run homer after doubles by Gardner and Judge and a hit batter to make it 4-0 before a single Indian was retired. Stanton appears on his way to a potential MVP as he added two more hits and threw out another baserunner, but the Yankees opened the door with two of their three errors in the third inning.

Cleveland Indians   6
New York Yankees  5   14 innings
(Series tied 3-3)

After Edwin Encarnacion continued his hot hitting in the playoffs with a 2-out double, Lynn appeared to end the threat when he induced a grounder back to himself, but it went through his legs for an error to put men on the corners. Gomes then delivered a clutch 2-run double to center, Zimmer singled to put men back on the corners, and rookie third baseman threw the ball away. Due to Zimmer's great speed (OBR On Base Running A) and the fact there were two outs, he raced all the way home from first to tie the game 4-4. 

After two walks in the fourth, Encarnacion and Chisenhall singled to give the Indians a 5-4 lead, but a double by Gregorius and single by Torres tied it in the bottom of the inning 5-5. Both teams had chances to win as Ramirez led of the 6th with a single and Alonso then doubled, and later in the 11th Rajan Davis walked and stole second and third with one out - but in every cases the Yankees pen shut them down. Gregorius doubled again and then Andujar doubled in the 11th, but the Indians pen was too good.

When the 10th inning ended, the Yankees had a decided advantage because both teams had only one rested pitcher left. The Yankees Green was not only even better than the Indians Otero (PB 2-9 to PB 2-8) but more importantly, his endurance is an RR7 and Otero is an RR4. This is the number of baserunners + runs allowed a pitcher can give up before he loses his effectiveness, but we also play that if you go to the inning that matches that number, your PB drops by 1. This meant that Green could have pitched the 11th through the 16th inning at full effectiveness if he could last that long, while Otero could only pitch the 11th through 13th before starting to drop PB numbers.

Green only allowed two runners in the four innings he did pitch, and one of only two mistakes (PB 10-12 to end up on the batter's card) was to the Indians newly acquired slugger Josh Donaldson who put it just over the left field fence for the 5-4 lead. Otero still had to hold the lead in the bottom of the 14th pitching as a PB2-7, and Hicks (who came in as a pinch-runner after an Andujar double) hit his own double with one out to put a fast runner in scoring position. However, Otero struck out Torres and Voit hit a nubber in front of the plate that Gomes threw to first to end the game.

The third long extra-inning game of the series left each team with only two rested relievers. As powerful as the Yankees line-up is, they are more right-handed heavy which is a disadvantage against the best Statis-Pro pitching card in the AL, Corey Kluber (right-handed PB2-9). He also has two PB2-9s for relief, while the Yankees ace Severino is great but a PB2-7 that could give Indians batters' several more chances and one of his relief options is a PB2-8. If either team has all three players run out of endurance then they need to use a tired pitcher or the next starter in the rotation with a lowered PB.

Game 5s

Dodgers vs. Cubs (NLCS1)

For the 3rd time in 5 games, this one is decided in the 9th inning.  The mystique of the Statis-Pro cards continues as Clayton Kershaw turns in another sub-par playoff start.  The Cubs built a 5-2 lead, but the Dodgers rally in the 7th capped by Max Muncy's pinch-hit 2-run double to tie it 5-5.  Just like in the ALCS, fatigue becoming a factor in these bullpens.  A tired Ryan Madson couldn't get the game to extra innings.  Anthony Rizzo in a 2-22 slump (too much Dodger left-handed pitching) comes through with a clutch 2-out RBI single against the righty (88) and the Cubs now return to Chicago to try and clinch the series.

Chicago       7

Los Angeles 5

(Cubs lead series 3-2)

Brewers vs. Diamondbacks (NLCS2)

Yet another playoff game decided in the 9th inning.  Both teams got a quality start from their respective pitchers (Godley & Chacin)  The Brewers facing elimination tied the game in the 7th inning 2-2.  In the 9th, the Diamondbacks will be second-guessed as their lefty reliever Andrew Chafin retired both left-handed batters with a runner on 2nd, but they decide to leave him in to face right-hander Lorenzo Cain and he makes them pay with an RBI single for the game winner.

Milwaukee  3

Arizona      2

(Diamondbacks lead series 3-2)

http://www.pudnersports.com/2018/09/25-man-rosters-to-play-entire-indians.html

Indians vs. Yankees (ALCS)

After winning two of the first three games despite scoring only four runs in 45 innings, the Yankees erupted for a 1st inning cycle including Aaron Judge's third home run in five at bats. Gardner tripled to open the game, and Judge followed with a 2-run homer to greet Carrasco. Stanton then doubled, and after Sanchez struck out McCutcheon singed him home to make it 3-0 Yankes with a complete cycle (one single, double, triple and homer) in just five batters. Gardner led off the fifth inning with a single and Judge tripled him home to make it 4-1 and chase Carrasco, but Stanton greeted Brad Hand with a single to make it 5-1 Yankees.

Normally a 4-run lead for the Yankees bullpen means the game is over, but the Indians homered in both the sixth (Encarnacion again) and seventh (Brantley) to make it 5-3 and the Yankees two PB2-9 stoppers were needed for 2 1/3 innings. Lindor greeted Robertson with his second bunt single in consecutive games. In the eighth, Ramirez drew a walk and then Alonso hit a one-out grounder to short that Gregorius threw away to put runners on the corners but they could not get anyone home. In the ninth Green gave up rare back-to-back singles - to Brantley and Lindor, and then hung a pitch to Donaldson that gave him a shot to win the game but he flew out to right field for the second out. Brantley went to third on the fly ball, and then one of the best base stealers in baseball, Greg Allen, pinch ran and stole second base to put the tying run in cscoring position for the red hot Encarnacion - but he flied out to left to let the Yankees cling onto the 5-3 win after the 4-3 loss in Game 4.

The Yankees now desperately want to wrap up the series in Game 6, because if they fail to the would need to defeat Cy Young winner Corey Kluber in Game 7.

Yankees   5

Indians   3
(Yankees lead three games to two)

Game 4s

Cubs vs. Dodgers (NLDS1)

It looked like the Cubs were destined to take control of the series.  They gave starting catcher Willson Contreras the day off and back-up catcher Victor Caratini slugged a 3-run HR for the early lead.  But it was Chicago's turn to have the bullpen falter. LA tied it in the 7th and then new Dodger Brian Dozier with the walk-off HR with 1-out in bottom 9th off Brian Duensing.

Chicago        3

Los Angeles  4

(Series tied 2-2)

Diamondbacks vs. Brewers (NLDS2)

If pitching and defense wins pennants then it will be why the Brewers come up short.  A nightmare 6th inning leads to their loss.  With 2-outs, Jonathan Schoop with another throwing error allows the run to score 2-2.  It is followed by two HBP, two bases-loaded walks to force in runs and then a single to cap it.  The Brewers never recover and are now in a big hole for the series.

Milwaukee   3

Arizona       6

(Diamondbacks lead series 3-1)

Indians vs. Yankees (ALCS)

Aaron Judge's second home run of the game tied the score 3-3 and threatened to have make the Indians rely on the last pitcher in their pen (Josh Tomlin, 4.98 ERA, 11-26 hits on his weak PB2-6 card) that was depleted during the longest game in our Statis-Pro history (a 21-inning win by the Yankees).

With two outs in the ninth, Rajan Davis drew a walk. AL Statis-Pro MVP Stanton had thrown out four a five Indians attempting to steal - including Davis both times he had tried - but with a 63% chance to steal and only a 16% chance of being thrown out (see chart below) Davis had to try to get into scoring position with the light hitting No. 9 hitter Gonzalez at the plate. The attempt went better than Indians' fans could have hoped, as Davis not only stole but raced to third after Stanton's throw went into center field. Former Orioles closer Zach Britton then unleashed a wild pitch, Davis raced home, and the Indians won 4-3 and tied the best-of-seven series two games apiece.

Yankees   3

Indians   4
(Series tied 2-2)

Stolen base chances - better than 3.0-to-1 ratio needed to make it worthwhile

Stolen base strategy. Since we first started playing Statis-Pro in the 1980s, the stolen base, bunt and hit and run have become less and less a part of the game due to the better strategy being not to risk an out for one extra-base since so many home runs are hit. Bill James' said a stolen base or extra base on the basepaths should only be tried if the stealer were at least three times more likely to be safe than out because an out hurts ou three times as much as an extra base is worth.

Playing Statis-Pro solitaire, the general rule of thumb should be if the would-be base stealers Speed Rating (SP of A, B, C or D, as an E cannot attempt to steal) is better than the catcher's throwing arm rating (T of A, B or C). If a team is desperate for one run (e.g. a game-tying or -winning run near the end of a game, or two outs and a singles hitter who rarely hits home runs at the plate) then a team may want to steal if the SP and T are equal.

In this case, Davis was a SP: A and Stanton as a TB, so stealing certainly made sense regardless - despite the unbelievable bad run for the Indians of being only 1-5 on the bases so far in the series.

We were actually playing Statis-Pro with the Fast Action Deck of cards, but let's start by looking at Davis' chance if we were using the simple dice game - which just entails rolling a single 6-sided die with these results:

A runner with a SP: A rating steals on a 1-3, a SP: B on a 1-2, and a SP: C on a 1, but otherwise the runner cannot get a jump unless the roll is a "6," in which the catchers throwing arm (TA, TB or TC) comes into play. If a "6" is rolled, the die is rolled again and there is a tag at the base, and a TA throws him out, a TB throws him out on a 1-4 but the base stealer is safe on a 5-6, and if the catcher is a TC, then the base steaer is out on a 1-2 but safe on a 3-6 he is safe.

The bolded items below shows Davis' SP: B against Stanton's TA, in which Davis would have had a 56% chance to be safe and 11% to be out, or a 5.0 to 1 ratio and worth the shot. After this chart, see the second chart showing the actual percentages using the fast action deck.

	SP: A	SP: B	SP: C	SP: D
TA allows steal	50%	33%	17%	0%
TA holds runner	33%	50%	67%	83%
TA throws out	17%	17%	17%	17%
Ratio	3.0	2.0	1.0	-
TB allows steal	56%	39%	22%	6%
TB holds runner	33%	50%	67%	83%
TB throws out	11%	11%	11%	11%
Ratio	5.0	3.5	2.0	0.5
TC allows steal	61%	45%	28%	11%
TC holds runner	33%	50%	67%	83%
TC throws out	6%	6%	6%	6%
Ratio	11.1	8.1	5.1	2.0

And below are the actual ratios based on the Statis-Pro Board and chances based on the Fast Action Card results of 11-88 on the base-8 system. As you can see, Davis chances of being safe were 63 percent, and Stanton chances of throwing him out was 16%, a 4.0 to 1 ratio that made it worthwhile - but the chances of a wild throw letting him get all the way to third was actually only one in 16.

	SP: A	SP: B	SP: C	SP: D
TA allows steal	58%	38%	27%	19%
TA holds runner	22%	42%	53%	61%
TA throws out	20%	20%	20%	20%
Ratio	2.8	1.8	1.3	0.9
TB allows steal	63%	42%	31%	23%
TB holds runner	22%	42%	53%	61%
TB throws out	16%	16%	16%	16%
Ratio	4.0	2.7	2.0	1.5
TC allows steal	69%	48%	38%	30%
TC holds runner	22%	42%	53%	61%
TC throws out	9%	9%	9%	9%
Ratio	7.3	5.2	4.0	3.2

Game 3s

The Game 3s of all three series played Saturday night lasted 44 innings, an average of almost 15 innings per game. Both Cy Young Winners came up empty, but you can hardly blame either one.

Cubs vs. Dodgers (NLDS1)

Another bullpen battle and once again the Cubs prevailed.  Chicago used nine pitchers in a 14-inning game we would usually call a "marathon" except that the Indians and Yankees were still at it when this one ended.

Kris Bryant tripled to drive in the go-ahead run in the top of the 14th. Bryant also homered earlier in the game. He has two homers in the last two games.  He had one HR in the previous 31-games.

Chicago        6

Los Angeles  4  (14)

(Cubs lead series 2-1)

Diamondbacks vs. Brewers (NLDS2)

The defense let the Brewers down in game three.  A Jonathon Schoop throwing error in the bottom of 8th set up the winning run for Arizona.  Jon Jay hit the clutch 2-out single to drive in the game winner.  A tough loss since the Brewers wasted a good start from the NL Statis-Pro Cy Young winner Chase Anderson.

Milwaukee   2

Arizona       3

(Diamondbacks lead series 2-1)

Indians vs. Yankees (ALCS)

With both aces on the hill and two of the deepest and most dominant bullpens ever, we knew runs would be hard to come by - but what transpired was unprecedented going back to the Statis-Pro games in the 1980s. AL Cy Young winner Kluber pitched 12 scoreless innings, and was outdueled by the Yankees Severino, who would have made history with a no-hitter if not for extra innings. In the 10th Lindor laid down a bunt single (we only allow OBRA or Bs to try that if they are at least a Sac CC, and count any Random Number above a 28 as on the Sac chart). In the 11th, Zimmer registered an infield hit on a single, but Sanchez's throw to nail pinch runner Davis trying to steal saved the game because Brantley gave the Indians their first outfield hit of the game which likely would have scored Davis to win the game if he were safe stealing. While new Indians acquisition and clean-up hitter Donaldson had an error and not hits, two Yankees acquisitions were key to the win.

In the 18th inning, pinch hitter Cabrera hit a 2-out double that might have been the game winner, except that newly acquired Yankee McCutchen's PERFECT throw nailed Alonso at home. The Yankees' Andujar doubled to lead off the 21st and newly acquired Hechavarria came in as a pinchrunner and raced home on a one out single by Gardner to provide the 1-0 lead and win after the Indians Guyer pinch hit, singled, and stole second, but was stranded by former Orioles ace Britton to end the game.

Yankees   1

Indians   0      (21 innings)

(Yankees lead 2-1)

Game 2s

All three series were tied one game apiece.

Cubs vs. Dodgers (NLDS1)

The Dodgers' Alex Wood ran his post-season streak to 15-scoreless innings as he pitched 7-shutout innings over the Cubs to help LA even their series.  Four different players drove in a run off Kyle Hendricks who turned in a second straight poor start in the playoffs.

Los Angeles   4

Chicago         1

(Series tied 1-1)

Diamondbacks vs. Brewers (NLDS2)

The Brewers continue to have the best deadline deals for Statis-Pro.  Just minutes before the game, they acquire Gio Gonzalez to solve their number four starter problem.  He was inserted immediately and proceeded to toss a 5-hit complete game shutout.  Of course, the offense came from another deadline-deal player as Mike Moustakas hit a grand slam.  For those counting, he now has 6 HR's, 13 RBI's in 7 postseason games this year.

Milwaukee  7

Arizona      0

(series tied 1-1)

Indians vs. Yankees (ALCS)

Dominican Republic star and MVP candidate Edwin Encarnacion hit his second home run of the game to start the fourth inning it was the Indians eighth extra-base hit in the game and give the Indians a 10-1 win. The Indians scored five first-inning runs off former Cardinal and Twin Lance Lynn, and greeted Tanaka with three straight doubles followed by two singles to make it 9-1 before Encarnacion's home run. The Indians now have the edge with Statis-Pro Cy Young winner Corey Kluber scheduled to pitch Game 3 and then Game 7 if needed.

Cleveland 10
NY Yankees 1
(series tied 1-1)

Game 1s

Cubs vs. Dodgers (NLDS1)

A marquee matchup between Kershaw & Lester.  The Dodgers bullpen commits the unforgiveable sin and wastes a Kershaw start.

They give up a 3-1 lead and let the Cubs tie it in the 7th.  Ian Happ provides the walk-off hit in the bottom of the 9th, Cubs take it 4-3.

Los Angeles   3

Chicago         4

Diamondbacks vs. Brewers (NLDS2)

No drama here. Arizona came in last in the Statis-Pro NL in runs scored.  Paul Goldschmidt did not drive in a run in the opening round (4 games), but you can’t keep him down for long.  Goldschmidt with a HR & 5 RBI’s as Arizona blasts the Brewers 12-2.

Arizona         12

Milwaukee     2

Indians vs. Yankees (ALCS)

The heralded match-up of relief corps played out in the first 15th inning game of almost 200 played this Statis-Pro season. Nine relievers from the two teams pitched a scoreless inning or two after Lindor and Gardner traded homers off the starters to send the game to extra innings tied 1-1. In the top of the 15th the lightning fast Davis singled and went to third on a pickoff attempt, but two popups left him there. In the bottom of the 15th Olson came in and walked Stanton, who raced home ahead of a tag on a one-out double by Gregorius's double for the 2-1 Yankees win.

Cleveland 1                                          

NY Yankees 2           15 Innings

Playoff Preview: Top 7 Teams in 2017-18 also Made Statis-Pro Elite 8

The Statis-Pro season offers insights but is really a combination of the 2017 and 2018 teams because we use 2017 player cards but keep up with 2018 rosters. When you average the winning percentages from both seasons, the top seven teams in baseball were all in the final 8 to make it through the Statis-Pro season and opening rounds of the playoffs. The only difference as of today is that the 9th best Milwaukee Brewers (0.545 average winning percentage) are alive and the 8th place Washington Nationals (just 3 points better at .548) as the other "Elite 8" team - a percentage so close that the Brewers would pass the Nationals with a win or Nats loss:

Top 10 Last 2 Years	Current	2018	Average	Statis-Pro Elite 8?
Boston Red Sox	0.684	0.574	0.629	Yes
Houston Astros	0.607	0.623	0.615	Yes
Cleveland Indians	0.575	0.630	0.603	Yes
New York Yankees	0.630	0.564	0.597	Yes
Los Angeles Dodgers	0.541	0.642	0.592	Yes
Chicago Cubs	0.590	0.568	0.579	Yes
Arizona Diamondbacks	0.548	0.574	0.561	Yes
Washington Nationals	0.496	0.599	0.548	No
Milwaukee Brewers	0.559	0.531	0.545	Yes
St. Louis Cardinals	0.563	0.512	0.538	No

Once in the playoffs, anyone can win in baseball, and that was our point. While the Astros were throwing everyone to try to stay ahead of the Mariners and A's for the Division and the Red Sox and Yankees were battling to the end, the Indians were lined up and beat the Astros and in real baseball they have not had to rush back injured players and can let them recover for the playoffs. The Red Sox won the regular season head-to-head to the Yankees but lost out in the regular season finale, and having to throw ace Chris Sale in the wild card game and combined with Andrew McCutchen going to the Yankees they had the edge and won that series. With the Elite 8 now down to six, scroll below the picture for the results of the current three series as we head toward the playoffs.

Statis-Pro ALCS: McCutchen to Yankees in Battle of the Super Bullpens with Indians

Just as we set the Statis-Pro ALCS Series, we had to add the card below for Andrew McCutchen to the New York Yankees. Here is the excellent card right-handed card added to what is already a fantastic line-up - particularly against the Cleveland Indians incredible left-handed relief pitching.

The average Home Run range is 27-32, meaning that McCutchen hits homers on all those numbers but also hits homers on a 33 or 34 - numbers that are strikeouts for the average player. In addition, he gets to base on a walk or hit by pitch on eight additional numbers (51-58) meaning he reaches on 26 of 64 random numbers on the base-8 system from 11-88. The one thing McCutchen no longer brings is elite defense like Gardner in leftfield and Judge in right field around him - who both have the ultimate CD (Clutch Defense) 4 defense for having been nominated for a gold glove in at least one of the last three seasons (see all recent gold glove nominees).

The final account of the first two playoff series and Red Sox win in the wild-card game are here.

In this series, this helps give the Yankees incredible line-up a bit of an edge over an also outstanding Indians line-up. However, batters will need to get big hits against the starting pitchers because the relief corps for both teams are unbelievable and can put outstanding pitchers on the mound for almost an entire game if the starter is knocked out.

To that end, the Yankees have a very steady rotation with all four pitchers as PB2-7 (good) starters. That means the Indians will have the edge in Games 3 and if necessary Game 7, with PB2-9 (the best) and Cy Young winner Kluber starting those games. However, the Yankees will have the edge in Games 2 and 6 when they can hit off Bauer - who is excellent this year in real play but is only a PB2-6 for mediocre pitching last year.

In-depth on 2 bullpens (most likely more than most of you care to read)

The following is a more in-depth explanation of the dynamics of the Statis-Pro system which groups pitchers from PB2-9 (the very few who keep the action away from the batters' cards 83% of the time) and the terrible PB2-5 (which do so only 28% of the time).

In the end, the two AL teams with six dominant Statis-Pro reliever cards emerged from the season and playoffs - and will now face off in a seven-game series. The key difference between Statis-Pro and all other baseball board games was the ability of the pitcher to first determine which card was in control during a plate appearance, and then the results are determined. The average starting pitcher was a PB2-6, meaning the pitcher would be in control 42% of the time and the batter 58% (combined total of two dice or fast action cards of 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 for the pitcher) and the average reliever is a PB2-7 - with the one extra die roll of 7 giving a PB2-7 control 58% of the time.

The Indians and Yankees bullpens were the two loaded with PB 2-9s and PB2-8s.

In Statis-Pro the top pitchers have a PB of 2-9, which means they keep the action on their card in 30 of 36 combinations. So if they face six great batters in a row, on average only one will have a chance to for an extra-base hit.  In the case of the Indians Andrew Miller or the Yankees Chad Green, that means five in six times there are only 5 numbers that are hits out of 64, and a couple of other numbers are walks.

Our basic rules are the best reliever for each team (Miller and Green based on these cards) can only be used once at least two batters have batted in the 8th (the last inning and a half basically).

Most teams hope to have a single PB2-9 reliever, however, the Indians have three and the Yankees have two.

The second best reliever can come into the game from the beginning of the 7th inning on, meaning both teams can go to a PB2-9 pitcher when the 7th inning starts.

The Indians third PB 2-9 means they can go to one after two batters have hit in the 5th, both teams can go to their 4th best pitcher (a PB2-8 for either team while most teams would need a PB2-6 that early.

Then the fifth best pitcher after two batters have hit in the 2nd, and the 6th best pitcher if a starter is being shelled right away.

While that is the earliest permissible, pitchers who pitch to at least five batters must skip the next game, and any that pitch to 12 need to skip two games. Also, many pitchers must leave the game they are in after allowing a few hits or walks, so you do not want to go to pitchers as early as outlined above because a combination of pitchers resting and pitchers leaving before the next better one is ready can create a domino where worse relievers must be used.

That being said, these two teams have incredible options while a typical team might have one PB2-8, then a couple of PB2-7 pitchers, and then start to need to use PB2-6 or even PB2-5 pitchers.

While a PB: 2-9 30 of 36 times, (83%, 17% on the batter's card)
a PB: 2-8 controls the action 26 of 36 times, (72%)
a PB2-7 21 of 36 times, (58%)
a PB2-6 15 of 36 times, (42%)
and a PB2-5 10 of 36 times (28%).
Note that later versions of Statis-Pro have cards from PB2-10 to PB2-4, and also have a PB4-7 which would keep the action on their card exactly half of the time, but we are keeping it simple here.

Because there are a lot more PB: 2-6 pitchers than any others in the league, a batter will get the action on his card about half of the season, but in a playoff series, the pitcher will control a lot more of the action.

Corey Kluber is even more valuable than the best of this pen because he is the best starting pitcher in the league with a PB2-9 as a starter who can pitch a complete game rather than just an inning or two. The average starter is a PB2-6, while the average reliever is a PB2-7.