*** FINAL FOUR PREVIEW ***
Three No. 1 seeds reached the Bracket Finals/Elite Eight. All three of them fell. So, who will be the boss now that all the “final bosses” have been eliminated?
Will it be the 1944 St. Louis Cardinals, who turned out the lights on the Pinstripe Empire with a six-game victory over the 1998 Yankees? The Cards came in with a No. 2 seed and have barely been pushed while reaching this Final Four. Then again, they caught a huge break in their bracket when the 2023 Rangers upset the No. 2 seeded 1986 Mets. Those Rangers shouldn’t have been any match for those Mets, and they *weren’t* a match for these Cardinals, who swept them in four games. Now a traditional rival stands blocking the Cardinals’ path to the mountaintop.
Could it be the 2016 Chicago Cubs? The No. 3 seed in Bracket C outlasted a determined 2011 Texas Rangers squad in a seven gripping games during the quarterfinals, then went a combined 8-2 against the second-seeded 1970 Orioles and top-seeded 2019 Astros. Despite inconsistent hitting and a disconcerting walks-to-strikeouts ratio (4.7 to 5.1 per game) by their staff, the Cubs appear to be playing at their highest level. They bounced back from getting no-hit by the 1970 Orioles to handily win the next three games. They overcame Justin Verlander and the 2019 Astros in just five games, including a 1-0 Game Three triumph in 14 innings.
The 1929 Athletics would be considered the remaining favorite by most baseball historians. A 1996 issue of Sports Illustrated called them “The Team That Time Forgot” but ... who forgot them? Join any online discussion about the “Best Baseball Teams of All Time” and Connie Mack’s late-1920s powerhouse always gets mentioned early. They were built specifically to take down the mighty “Murderer’s Row” Yankees. Though these A’s supplanted that Yankee dynasty for a few years, it would be a stretch to say they specifically took them down. They could have had their chance against the 1927 Yankees in this tournament, if another team hadn’t gotten them first.
That team, of course, is the 1953 Dodgers, a No. 5 seed that has hit this tournament like a torpedo. The ‘Bums’ lineup has punished tournament foes to the tune of 11 hits per game, including 84 extra-base hits (4 per game) and 6.6 runs per game. The Dodgers’ offensive production isn’t a surprise, but their pitching? It’s been astounding. Through 21 games against the likes of the 1995 Indians, 1927 Yankees, and 2018 Red Sox, Brooklyn has posted a 2.90 team ERA, including 11 quality starts by their three-man rotation. Since they had to start in the wild-card round, the 1953 Dodgers are the only team in the Final Four that has played four series and more than 20 games.
We started with 48 teams. We’re down to four. There are only three series left to play in this little exercise. Which will be the Last Team Standing?
PHOTOS:
No. 1 —
Stan Musial of the 1944 St. Louis Cardinals
No. 2 — Manager
Connie Mack of the 1929 Philadelphia Athletics. His tall, magisterial presence could be uniquely intimidating to opposing clubs.
No. 3 — The
2016 Chicago Cubs celebrate yet another clutch win.
No. 4 —
Roy Campanella of the 1953 Dodgers has terrorized pitchers all through this tournament.