Haven't posted on this thread since August 11th, and it's been tough. I wanted to take a few weeks off due to some of the negative stuff that was getting thrown around, and then we got Verlander and had a pretty good September, so I stayed away because I'm superstitious like that. Even posted about the LLWS a time or two and got banned for posting something harmless on the other thread, but I stayed away from this one. I wasn't about to mess up whatever we had going.
Then we clinched on Verlander's home debut. And knocked out the Red Sox when Reddick could still hit and Bregman made Sale his ***** (twice). Clung to home field advantage and fought off the Yankees. Got my first good cry under my belt when Lance got Bird to fly out to end it. Still no posting. Hell, I didn't even read the thread for a while because I knew I'd be tempted to post.
Then Marwin hit that 9th inning jack in Game 2, and it seemed like everyone else hit one in extras. We can do this. Attending the WS in Houston and seeing what that crowd is truly capable of in person was incredible. I still kick myself for waiting around in 2005 to go to a Game 5 that never happened, and I wasn't gonna let that slip away again. MMP was absolutely amazing. You guys - so many of you were there - were amazing. A weird comfort came over me after we lost Game 6 in LA, like a Game 7 victory was all but certain even with everyone at the office reminding me that our two horses were used up. Did they not know what we all knew? We've got more than two studs out there. The Dodgers can't beat us twice in a row. No sir.
I counted the outs remaining last night and didn't say a word while Morton continued to deal. I guess I always count them anyway, but I remember starting with 15 outs to go in Game 7. I thought about growing up in the Astrodome, from my first game against the Padres in the early 80s to when I finally got my drivers license and sat in the $6 upper deck seats with my friends for most of the summer. I'm thinking of the first time I saw Enron Field and thought it was Heaven <insert Field of Dreams quote here>.
12 outs to go now. I'm thinking of all the guys from the past who we love so much but have nothing to show for it. The Killer B's. Mike Scott. Nolan. Cheo. Roy O. Just too many to list them all. Short-term rentals like The Big Unit and guys like Pettitte and Clemens who came home to try to bring us a title but just couldn't get us over the hump. I hope they're smiling now.
9 outs left. I'm thinking of Fernando. And Jesse Orosco. Kevin Brown. Maddux, Glavine, Smoltz. And now Kershaw's done for the night. Jansen is gassed, we're not afraid of him, and everyone in the stadium knows that 5 runs is enough anyway. There's no more big scary arm out there to fear. This is finally happening.
6 outs. I'm thinking of Milo Hamilton on the drive home from so many games I had to leave early to make curfew. Ken Caminiti and the howitzer that was strapped to his right arm. Darryl Kile's no hitter. My goodness his curve would have made LMJ's jaw drop. If I've said it once on this thread I've said it a thousand times - there's only one DK, and it ain't Dallas Keuchel. And all the others who have gone before us. They're watching this unfold from the best seats in the house.
3 outs to go. I'm thinking back to this thread, and how after I posted the pep talk that I'll repost below, Nuke(?) mentioned that good pitching beats good hitting. I responded by posting pictures of Dallas, Lance, Giles, Devo, etc. All I can think is shame on me for not including a picture of Charlie Morton. Damn this guy has good stuff.
2 more outs. I'm sweating. My wife is in tears beside me. I think she's missed a total of five games since the start of 2015. I'm a lucky guy. She wants this WS title as badly as any of us. Make this happen, please God. I'm thinking of all my old friends and teammates, now spread out all over the country but surely glued to their TVs. I wish I could watch this game with them. A raised glass for all the fans, especially those who have waited 40+ years for this. (Dilly, Dilly!)
1 more out. I see Altuve smiling and realize this is actually happening. But I also realize that I've been sitting on the floor with our new puppy for the past 7 innings, and I start to wonder if I should watch every game from this exact spot next season. I don't want to spend six months on the floor, but I'll do it. I've had to piss since the third inning, but I refuse to get up until...
IT'S OVER! Hugs, handshakes, and high fives to all of you *******s. And now I can finally post on this thread again. I missed you guys.
We just knocked out the three highest payrolls in baseball. Took out the heaviest of heavyweights from baseball's long history. And we're not done, fellas. This team has a few more runs left before we have to make some difficult payroll decisions. Fill in the gaps a little here and there, and watch out in 2018.
And of course I can't go this far without reminding you folks that a certain someone predicted this way back on July 31st. The power of positive thinking is real. Here's a little piece of that Trade Deadline Pep Talk. See you at the parade, nancies!
Quote:
Some of you will find it necessary to poke holes in my post, our lineup, our management, and any shred of a positive outlook. That's fine - go right ahead. Just don't expect to stand next to me at the parade when we win the whole damn thing.
Entire Rant/Pep Talk can be found here:
https://texags.com/forums/53/topics/2845407/replies/49498189Sorry for the long post - I had to try to make up for nearly three months of staying away. Enjoy this one, boys! You've all earned it!! 
