*** Official Chicago White Sox @ Kansas City Royals Game Thread (9/15) ***

[alnorth]

Final	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
CWS (68-82)	1	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	13	1
KC (82-67)	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	2	4	9	0

That's what speed do.



John Danks 6IP 0R 0ER 4BB 6K
Hold, (7) Javy Guerra 1IP 1R 1ER 1BB 0K
Hold, (16) Zach Putnam ⅔IP 1R 0ER 1BB 1K
Blown Save, (4); Loss, (1-5) Jake Petricka 1IP 2R 2ER 0BB 0K

VS.



"Big Game" James Shields 7IP 3R 3ER 0BB 6K
Kelvin Herrera 1IP 0R 0ER 0BB 1K
Win, (9-2) Wade Davis 1IP 0R 0ER 0BB 0K

Home Runs

none

Other Relevant Games

Final: DET 8, MIN 6
Final: SEA 1, LAA 8

Starting Lineups

CWS

1. Adam Eaton, CF
2. Alexei Ramirez, SS
3. Jose Abreu, 1B
4. Conor Gillaspie, 3B
5. Avisail Garcia, RF
6. Jordan Danks, LF
7. Dayan Viciedo, DH
8. Tyler Flowers, C
9. Marcus Semien, 2B

KC

1. Alcides Escobar, SS
2. Norichika Aoki, RF
2. Terrance Gore, pr
3. Lorenzo Cain, CF
4. Alex Gordon, LF
5. Salvador Perez, C
6. Eric Hosmer, 1B
7. Billy Butler, DH
8. Omar Infante, 2B
9. Jayson Nix, 3B
9. Raul Ibanez, ph
9. Lane Adams, pr
9. Mike Moustakas, 3B
9. Jarrod Dyson, pr

[Three7s]

Originally Posted by alnorth

yep. Unless your home field is just utterly absurd, and your team was put together to take advantage of that absurdity, then its all just baseball.

I deleted your other 2 paragraphs because I don't believe in any of that experience nonsense. I really do think that its all just baseball. Clutch does not exist.

Clutch does exist. Clutch is the ability of a player to handle a stressful situation and succeed with that pressure.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by Great Expectations

Clutch exists, but the level of it is worth arguing. Some people handle the extra adrenaline better than others. It has an effect on both pitchers and hitters so the overall stats might wash, but there are lifetime splits on guys who consistently out perform their normal numbers in high leverage situations.

I'd agree with this, but I would say it's not that "clutch" exists... it's that "choke" exists.

[Three7s]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

I'd agree with this, but I would say it's not that "clutch" exists... it's that "choke" exists.

Apples and oranges.

[suzzer99]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

I'd agree with this, but I would say it's not that "clutch" exists... it's that "choke" exists.

I think in rare occasions a few players actually get better under pressure. Montana and Elway come to mind. As do Brett and Reggie Jackson.

[Archie F. Swin]

I missed the game. Did Ned actually pinch hit Moustakas?

[WilliamTheIrish]

Originally Posted by Archie F. Swin

I missed the game. Did Ned actually pinch hit Moustakas?

Yes he did. Mouse slapped a 2B down the LF line.

[Fairplay]

Originally Posted by Hootie 2.0

I just think it's baseball. I am not necessarily convinced that a home field advantage even exists unless you play at a stadium like Yankee Stadium and load your lineup with a bench of lefties so they can blast 280 foot home runs.

My guess is that there are stats showing that playing in your home field does give an advantage. A simple chart showing a teams wins with how many percent are won at home verses away would suffice.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by suzzer99

I think in rare occasions a few players actually get better under pressure. Montana and Elway come to mind. As do Brett and Reggie Jackson.

If you look at Brett and Jackson's career splits, you'll see that their performance in "Clutch" situations is very close to their career numbers. A little higher maybe in one measure, a little lower in another. But basically "flat."

And those are two of the "most clutch" players in recent baseball history.

Derek Jeter also falls into this category.

It's not that some players are "clutch" and able to raise their batting performance in key spots. It's that some players can avoid CHOKING in those spots better than others.

[Great Expectations]

I always thought of Mattingly and Andre Dawson as clutch players. In other sports you can look at Montana, Jordan, and Bird. They certainly have failed in clutch situations, but their success rate is much higher in those situations than normal situations.

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by WilliamTheIrish

Yes he did. Mouse slapped a 2B down the LF line.

If Moose can figure out how to do that, he might be able to hit for an average. 2nd half of the season he's probably had more base hits the other way than he did the prior 1.5 years combined. If they shift on you like that, make them pay, then they'll have to play you more straight up and you can get comfortable again. And by that time, you may have developed some bat control and ability to hit for a better avg.

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Excellent.

[duncan_idaho]

Originally Posted by Great Expectations

I always thought of Mattingly and Andre Dawson as clutch players. In other sports you can look at Montana, Jordan, and Bird. They certainly have failed in clutch situations, but their success rate is much higher in those situations than normal situations.

I won't argue that "clutch" exists in NFL or NBA. Just in baseball that I think it's a myth.

Neither Dawson nor Mattingly was noticeably better in clutch spots than normally. Both were very flat/similar to their regular career numbers.

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

I won't argue that "clutch" exists in NFL or NBA. Just in baseball that I think it's a myth.

Neither Dawson nor Mattingly was noticeably better in clutch spots than normally. Both were very flat/similar to their regular career numbers.

I think it matters even less in the NBA, actually. There have been studies that have showed that Kobe (who is for some reason known as clutch) and many other stars are actually WORSE in the last two minutes of games as far as their shooting percentage and efficiency are concerned. They are just known as being clutch because they get to play hero ball, run no offense, and chuck up a shot routinely to win the game, more so than any other player on the team. But guys like Lebron gets mocked because they take what the defense gives them, and have no problems kicking it to an open guy to nail a corner 3 pointer (one of the most successful and efficient shots in the game of basketball)

[suzzer99]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

If you look at Brett and Jackson's career splits, you'll see that their performance in "Clutch" situations is very close to their career numbers. A little higher maybe in one measure, a little lower in another. But basically "flat."

And those are two of the "most clutch" players in recent baseball history.

Derek Jeter also falls into this category.

It's not that some players are "clutch" and able to raise their batting performance in key spots. It's that some players can avoid CHOKING in those spots better than others.

Well when you consider the generally much better pitchers you're going to face in the playoffs – I'd say just maintaining your career numbers is pretty impressive.

But Brett was 337/397/627 in the playoffs vs. 305/369/487 lifetime.

[Bearcat]

That was crazy.