bobinator said:

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I'm here for any and all ball conspiracies.

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I think it's just the fact that no two baseballs can be produced the same, you keep a ball with seemingly higher seems, and toss ones that feel too smooth

I'm pumped for Game 5. I like our shot with a rested Cole, and a lineup who feels like they have to prove something now. We were against the fence in 2017 numerous times. The Astros have this.

astros4545 said:

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bobinator said:

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I'm here for any and all ball conspiracies.

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I think it's just the fact that no two baseballs can be produced the same, you keep a ball with seemingly higher seems, and toss ones that feel too smooth

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It seems no different than a tennis player tossing a ball he doesn't like back to the ball boy when he's about to serve

rgt99 said:

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I think the Astros will be a different team tomorrow night, due to the fact that it is a "lose or go home" game. I think this team likes the pressure, and performs better when there is a do or die situation. This team is not intimidated by anyone. Game 5 at home, with our best pitcher, i like those odds.

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They sure were intimidated by the crowd in Florida the last two days.

bearkatag15 said:

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I just read an article on The Athletic by Jayson Stark and JV was quoted at the end. The quote kind of got me fired up.

Quote:

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"Hopefully, this isn't the defining moment of our journey," Verlander said. "You hope not There are so many defining moments in a championship run that need to happen, where you need to prove whatever. From the second you start the playoffs, every pitch, every out is a defining moment. It's just the whole world's eyes and attention are on you in a win-or-go-home game.

"So like I said, it's one of those atmospheres and one of those moments where you show up and hey, this is where we test ourselves. They're testing us. So we need to show up, and we need to show who we are. And if we don't, we won't win. But I like our chances. This is a hell of a freaking ballclub. And I'd go to war with these guys against anybody. So we'll see what happens."

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astros4545 said:

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Verlander has thrown out new balls a lot this season, and 99% of the time he's gotten a 2nd new ball he's thrown a slider next pitch.

Seems like an odd time for Rob Friedman to notice JV and Cole throwing back baseballs. Wonder who's feeding him info.

Jimbos Cow said:

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I'll say this, in 2017 the Astros were up against 2 must wins against the Yankees, and 2 must wins against the Dodgers, and came through. Let's hope they pull out all the stops tomorrow

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When did we face two must wins against the Dodgers?

Keep in mind someone said something on the broadcast about spin rate and the difference there. It was even bothering CFM. That could have played into all our pitchers being a little flat.

agdaddy04 said:

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Jimbos Cow said:

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I'll say this, in 2017 the Astros were up against 2 must wins against the Yankees, and 2 must wins against the Dodgers, and came through. Let's hope they pull out all the stops tomorrow

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When did we face two must wins against the Dodgers?

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game 2 was pretty much a must win in my mind. Going down 2-0 at the time was almost insurmountable because our offense hadn't shown up for the first 17 innings of that series.

ClickClack said:

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We could really use Joe Biagini right now

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Yeah...For comic relief.

That's about all he brings to table and even that's a stretch.

If the bats don't wake up, Cole or no Cole, we're one hanging slider from being out of the playoffs.

That's pretty much the size of things tomorrow night.

I've been trying to wear my "long term perspective" cap over the past few days, as it seemed clear even after game 2 that the Rays were not going down without a fight. There was something about the way Cash talked about the team after G1 and G2 that almost indicated he knew something that we all didn't. Kudos to them for fighting hard and playing some good ball the last two nights.

But from a long term perspective, I suspect this Astros era will go down similarly to the Cardinals Luhnow era. There were a few great Cardinals teams in that era that lost in the playoffs. Then there was the 2006 team that barely backed into the playoffs with 83 wins and won the World Series. Like a previous poster said, just get into the tournament and see what happens. Kinda like a lottery ticket.

The most difficult playoff runs for fans tend to be like the one we're having right now. When you know in your gut that the Astros may never have a better team on paper than this one, but some pretty damn good teams are going to embrace the underdog role and give their best punchers shot. The truly elite teams from a long term perspective are the ones that can consistently withstand that (see: Yankees 1996-2000).

Will this era of Astros baseball be considered elite when viewed from the long term perspective? We'll see. But one thing I know for sure is I'm damn happy we have the 2017 title in our back pocket. Gives us a little bit of house money to play with because "it just wasn't our year... we'll get em next year" gets a little old when your team is in a title drought (see: Texas A&M football fandom). It was only two years ago that alot of things fell into place for us to win two seven game showdowns against two very good teams and lift the crown. Hopefully it happens again (and again, and again, etc) but no guarantees in baseball.

I think we're going to win tomorrow, but even if we lose, it was a hell of a season. We gave ourselves the best chance we could. Sometimes it's just not in the cards. But I think we will have plenty more chances in the next 5-7 years. Will I be surprised if we don't win it all this year? Not really. Will I be surprised if we don't win 1-2 more in the next 5-7 years? Yes.

So I had to watch the first 2.5 hrs on my phone last night and therefore wasnt on here.....I just finished skimming ......and watching for quality TOFA, and I just have to say... THANK GOD I DIDNT HAVE TO READ THROUGH ALL THAT IN REAL TIME!

As for now, time for put up of shut up....Take It Back!

The second guessing on Charlie needs to stop too. First of all, we have no idea how he will pitch in years 2 and 3 of that contract and a LOT can change.

If he continues to pitch like he did this year you have to tip your cap to Tampa for taking the risk that we weren't prepared to take. We have an analytics driven approach and we need to stop the emotional arguments but as fans that's easier said than done.

bearkatag15 said:

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If that were the case there is no reason to not offer a long term contract and lock him up for probably less than that firs 5-6 years...no way we pay him 21 mil for a single year