The OOTP AI Still Cheats!!!---MLB & The NY METS 2018

[rjl518]

The SD Padres have clinched the 2nd NL Wild Card.
Who would have thought that the Padres would make the playoffs with all the talent everywhere else in the league?
With the Padres taking the other NLWC and with the CHI Cubs the only other team that should clinch this week, the NL Postseason is pretty much set.
What remains to be known is WHERE the Padres and the Diamondbacks will play the best of three NLWCS?

[rjl518]

Series Preview: WAS Nationals @ Nationals Park (4-Games)

We have a long weekend series with the Nationals coming up.
The last time we face this team this year and i still think they are very bitter about how the Mets gutted this team at the start of the season.
Adam Eaton, Anthony Rendon and Michael Conforto will do their best to spoil our chances to get to 130 wins.
Kershaw, Strasburg, Sale and probably Max Scherzer (Corey Kluber is DTD) are the starters for this pretty interesting four game set.

[rjl518]

9/20

NY METS 5
WAS Nationals 2
Nationals Park

The Mets come away with a win over WAS tonight.
Well pitched game by Clayton Kershaw who went 6 and gave up no earned runs on 4 hits.
A bad error by Josh Donaldson in the 1st allowed the Nats an extra out and they scored two runs on it. (AI CHEATS!)
Aroldis Chapman gets his 22nd save as the bullpen gets the game closed out.
The Golden Bat goes to Josh Donaldson, who went 2-3, scored a run, 2 RBIs and a walk for the game.
Giancarlo Stanton did hit his 36th HR as well.
Gary Sanchez was suspended for 4 games after arguing balls and strikes.
Wonderful!
I will need a catcher from the Minors now if Buster Posey gets tired in this 4 game sit down by Gary.

[rjl518]

9/21

NY METS 1
WAS Nationals 2
Nationals Park

We lost twice @ WAS.
First the game, second Stephen Strasburg will miss the rest of the regular season.
He is DTD for 1-2 weeks, but i will shut him down till the NLDS.
We left 14 men on base in this game. (AI CHEATS!)
Nationals pitching though did their job when they got into jams.
With our 32nd loss, we cannot lose one more game in our attempt to get to 130 wins.

[rjl518]

The CHI Cubs win the NL Central once again.
There was pretty much no doubt at the start of the season.
They were still the best team in that division and i really didn't take anyone from there.
They will be tough in the Postseason, but they will playing the LA Dodgers in the NLDS.

[rjl518]

9/22

NY METS 6
WAS Nationals 4
Nationals Park

The Mets get back into the win column.
Chris Sale goes 6.2 and gives up 3 runs on 7 hits with 7 Ks for the game.
Aroldis Chapman gets his 23rd save of the year.
The Mets lineup did pretty well tonight with Corey Seager getting the Golden Bat.
He went 3-5 with 2 runs scored.
Max Scherzer gets the start tomorrow with Corey Kluber still DTD for 1 more day.

[rjl518]

MLB Injuries:

The CHI Cubs just lost Shae Simmons for the playoffs.
You still need all the good relief pitching you can get for the Postseason.

[rjl518]

The LA Angels have clinched at least the AL Wild Card today.
The AL West is still not decided, but they are heading to the Postseason!

[rjl518]

9/23

NY METS 8
WAS Nationals 5
Nationals Park
(13 Innings)

The Nationals brought us to the brink but we came away with the win.
Max Scherzer gave up 5 runs on 6 hits, but gets the no-decision in his 1st start of the year for the DTD Corey Kluber.
Robert Gsellman gets his 2nd win on the season and Aroldis Chapman got his 24th save.
The Mets left 11 men on base and at times i really thought we were not going to win this game.
But a tired WAS bullpen finally gave way in the 13th inning.
Giancarlo Stanton hit his 38th HR of the year and Jose Altuve hit his 23rd.
The Golden Bat goes to Altuve.
He was 3-7 with 2 runs scored and 3 RBIs.
We win the series over WAS and now head back to Citi Field where we will be for a while.
We finish the season at home and will not be going on the road until Game 3 of the NLDS!

[rjl518]

We are 17-5 for September and 7 wins away from 130!
Can we do it?
One more loss takes that milestone away from us, so we will try our best.
I WILL shut down our players for the Postseason if we get that next loss and let some scrubs and bench players play this last week.

[rjl518]

American League:

The Pennant Chase is coming to the finish line and there is STILL division championships and wild card seedings on the line.
ALE: A 6-14 September has taken the BOS Red Sox out of the race, so it looks like the Blue Jays will clinch in a day or two.
ALC: The MIN Twins are the division champions!
ALW: The HOU Astros are not letting the Rangers win this division easily and the Angels still have hopes to win it also. This division could come down to the last day!
ALWC: The LA Angels have clinched the 2nd AL Wild Card today, but who they will be playing in the ALWCS is still a mystery!

[rjl518]

National League:

The NL is a different story as all playoff teams have been decided. There is one thing remaining though:
NLE: The Mets are division champions!
NLC: The Cubs are division champions!
NLW: The Dodgers are division champions!
NLWC: The ARZ Diamondbacks and the SD Padres are this year's Wild Card winners. The funny thing is that they play each other at the end of the year. So one three game series will decide where the NLWCS will take place and then the two teams will play in the NLWCS at that location. Baseball is strange like that sometimes, I guess.

[rjl518]

1997 Topps Players of the Week:

[rjl518]

September 24-27:

[rjl518]

September 27-30:

[rjl518]

Series Preview: ATL Braves @ Citi Field (4-games)

We begin the last week of the regular season with a 4-game set at home versus ATL.
The game tomorrow is a make-up game from a previous rainout and that is why the Mets have been playing 24 straight games without a break!
The Braves I'm sure would like to spoil our chances of 130!
Ozzie Albies, Ender Inciarte and Dansby Swanson are going to take their swings against us.
If we can just get through their pitching we should be ok.
Syndergaard, Kluber, Kershaw and Severino(?) will get the starts for this series.

[rjl518]

9/24

ATL Braves 2
NY METS 1
Citi Field

With the loss, our chances at 130 are gone.
Noah Syndergaard was pretty darn good, only giving up 2 runs on 3 hits.
But the Mets lineup went to sleep tonight. (AI CHEATS!)
We left 9 men on base! (AI CHEATS!!)

[rjl518]

I guess it was just meant to be.
The BOS Red Sox have a horrible month of September and the Blue Jays took the division right from under them.
I don't know how far into the Playoffs they will go, but they are not to be taken for granted that's for sure.

[rjl518]

9/25

ATL Braves 6
NY METS 1
Citi Field

Now in this game, we get dominated by ATL Julio Teheran, who sports a 4.75 ERA and we can only manage 3 lousy hits and we commit two errors. (AI CHEATS!)
Corey Kluber gives up 6 runs on 8 hits in his 1st game back from DTD injury.
My entire lineup was shut down by a pitcher that has 7 wins and 18 losses. (AI CHEATS!!)
Does anyone believe me now that the OOTP AI does cheat?

[rjl518]

9/26

ATL Braves 6
NY METS 7
Citi Field

Thanks to a walk-off single by Buster Posey in the 9th, the Mets once again avoid their first 3-game losing streak.
Clayton Kershaw was pretty good tonight going 7.1 and giving up 3 runs on 6 hits.
But the bullpen blew the save so the win went to Andrew Miller, his 5th.
The lineup did not want to lose three in a row and went hard against ATL tonight.
The Golden Bat goes to Posey, who was 2-4, a run scored, a walk and 4 big RBIs.
When the Braves scored 3 runs in the top of the 9th, i thought here we go again. (AI CHEATS!)
But we endured and took the win and now Luis Severino will make a start to split this series with the Braves.