05/08/2026 7:40p Detroit Tigers at Kansas City Royals

[casimir]

[Tigermojo]

Win dummies.

[CaliforniaDreaming]

Today is a new start...Win this game...

I'm glad we have our current ACE pitching today.

[chasfh]

1 hour ago, CaliforniaDreaming said:

Today is a new start...Win this game...

I'm glad we have our current ACE pitching today.

Indeed it is!

I saw an article in which Ernie Harrell was asked how he as a broadcaster can stay engaged while calling games when not only a team’s chances to win the division was loooooong gone, but they were mired firmly in last place, and he replied that you simply have to look at each game as a discrete event, one that’s the most important thing in the world right now, and you treat it as that in the moment. That makes so much sense to me, and remembering that helps keep me engaged with the team when things are going rough overall.

[Tiger337]

13 minutes ago, chasfh said:

Indeed it is!

I saw an article in which Ernie Harrell was asked how he as a broadcaster can stay engaged while calling games when not only a team’s chances to win the division was loooooong gone, but they were mired firmly in last place, and he replied that you simply have to look at each game as a discrete event, one that’s the most important thing in the world right now, and you treat it as that in the moment. That makes so much sense to me, and remembering that helps keep me engaged with the team when things are going rough overall.

That's a great attitude which I used to share.  I find it more difficult to do now since I have too many competing activities.  

[gehringer_2]

10 minutes ago, chasfh said:

Indeed it is!

I saw an article in which Ernie Harrell was asked how he as a broadcaster can stay engaged while calling games when not only a team’s chances to win the division was loooooong gone, but they were mired firmly in last place, and he replied that you simply have to look at each game as a discrete event, one that’s the most important thing in the world right now, and you treat it as that in the moment. That makes so much sense to me, and remembering that helps keep me engaged with the team when things are going rough overall.

the key is you have to enjoy watching a baseball game in an of itself, not only as a piece of a standings race or WS quest. Ernie did.  This also goes to the root of why some people say they don’t care if the team is bad for 10 yrs if they can win 1 WS per decade and others don’t care so much about championships but don’t want to watch a bad baseball team yr to yr. Baseball is both a team competition and a pastime. 

[theroundsquare]

3 hours ago, casimir said:

i never understood the reasoning for cutting this guy loose as nonchalantly as they did.  he seemed like a great fit for tiger stadium and early comerica park.  'randy smith' is all i can say

[oblong]

54 minutes ago, gehringer_2 said:

the key is you have to enjoy watching a baseball game in an of itself, not only as a piece of a standings race or WS quest. Ernie did.  This also goes to the root of why some people say they don’t care if the team is bad for 10 yrs if they can win 1 WS per decade and others don’t care so much about championships but don’t want to watch a bad baseball team yr to yr. Baseball is both a team competition and a pastime. 

Maybe this is wrong but the comfort I take in the team not playing great is that most of my baseball fan experience is at the games themselves.  I don't like empty stadiums but packed stadiums annoy me. I enjoy being at the ballpark.  My seats are easy to get to.  The bathroom is 30 feet away. I can see the entire field.  I'm outside.  It's great.  When the team is in contention the stress level goes up because I actually care if they win or lose.  

 

[chasfh]

1 hour ago, Tiger337 said:

That's a great attitude which I used to share.  I find it more difficult to do now since I have too many competing activities.  

It's not necessarily required that you follow in that way every game of a bad team's season, but only that, when you do commit to watching a game, treat it as an important discrete event in that moment, versus ruing that it means nothing in the big picture. Keeping that in mind helps me enjoy the game in those circumstances.

[chasfh]

1 hour ago, oblong said:

Maybe this is wrong but the comfort I take in the team not playing great is that most of my baseball fan experience is at the games themselves.  I don't like empty stadiums but packed stadiums annoy me. I enjoy being at the ballpark.  My seats are easy to get to.  The bathroom is 30 feet away. I can see the entire field.  I'm outside.  It's great.  When the team is in contention the stress level goes up because I actually care if they win or lose.  

 

I think this makes following the game as a sort of athletic ballet more enjoyable, since every play is a move that makes up the entire dance, and whether your team or the other team is making that great play, you can appreciate and enjoy it either way as part of the greater performance. That doesn't mean you can't be disappointed if your team loses—after all, you do have an established preference—but it's better if it's just a momentary bummer you're over as soon as you leave the ballpark than if you're stewing on the injustice of it all for the whole next day or even longer.

[oblong]

12 minutes ago, chasfh said:

I think this makes following the game as a sort of athletic ballet more enjoyable, since every play is a move that makes up the entire dance, and whether your team or the other team is making that great play, you can appreciate and enjoy it either way as part of the greater performance. That doesn't mean you can't be disappointed if your team loses—after all, you do have an established preference—but it's better if it's just a momentary bummer you're over as soon as you leave the ballpark than if you're stewing on the injustice of it all for the whole next day or even longer.

I think for me it's also part of growing older...  I don't know.  I just don't get worked up anymore. The 2013 ALCS might have burned me out.  Last year's ALDS and the year before was fun, but when they lost that game, I went right to bed.  It'll be what it'll be is what I told myself.  Maybe its because I figured they couldn't win it all anyway so just get it over with?

 

[chasfh]

23 minutes ago, oblong said:

I think for me it's also part of growing older...  I don't know.  I just don't get worked up anymore. The 2013 ALCS might have burned me out.  Last year's ALDS and the year before was fun, but when they lost that game, I went right to bed.  It'll be what it'll be is what I told myself.  Maybe its because I figured they couldn't win it all anyway so just get it over with?

 

I agree that getting older has a lot to do with it. The closer you get to the 18th hole, the less stupid **** matters.

[Tiger337]

38 minutes ago, oblong said:

I think for me it's also part of growing older...  I don't know.  I just don't get worked up anymore. The 2013 ALCS might have burned me out.  Last year's ALDS and the year before was fun, but when they lost that game, I went right to bed.  It'll be what it'll be is what I told myself.  Maybe its because I figured they couldn't win it all anyway so just get it over with?

 

I think they could have won it all.  The went 15 innings in the deciding game.  The team that beat them went 7-games in the next series losing the final game by one-run.  The team that beat that team went 7 games in the WS losing the final game in 11 innings. 

But I do agree that most of us don't get as worked up about about games as we get older.  We realize that these games are just entertainment and that the experience of enjoying the games is more important than the result.  

Edited 39 minutes ago by Tiger337

[Edman85]

Similar optimism on Skubal in Will Carroll's paywalled newsletter this morning. Still a lot to know going forward, and he gives a lot more detail why, but his conclusion was similar to Boras's. Could start throwing soon...

And yes, if it is paywalled, I don't copy and paste. Just giving the highlights.

Edited 5 minutes ago by Edman85