baseball
Sabermetric analysis of all things baseball - on-and-off the field. Barry Bonds fan club.
Three Games. One Final Chance.
The Texas Rangers concluded their final home game of the season with a 3-1 win over the New York Mets Thursday afternoon, ending up in a tie yet again with their division rivals, the Houston Astros for the American League West lead. Just to remind everyone that both teams have a record of 79-80, but the Astros hold the tiebreaker, just in case they end up with the same record as the Rangers on Sunday. In other words, the Astros would win the division. The latter team began a four-game series against the Athletics in Sacramento Thursday night, where they won the first game 7-5. Meanwhile, Jacob deGrom will take the mound in the first game of the final series of the year against the Minnesota Twins on the road Friday night. There's a lot of pressure put on both the Rangers and Astros as they battle it out for the chance to win the division and punch their ticket to the Postseason.
By Mark Wesley Pritchard about 3 hours ago in Unbalanced
China Won 11 Golds on Day 1 in Nagoya. Japan Won 6. The Gap Wasn’t Just the Medal Count.
China took 11 golds on Day 1 in Nagoya. Japan took 6. The gap went deeper than the medal table. Beijing time, September 20. The 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games wrapped up the first full day of competition. All 31 gold medals were decided. China took 11 gold, 6 silver and 3 bronze to top both the gold medal table and the overall medal table. Host Japan was second with 6 gold, 7 silver and 7 bronze. South Korea was third with 4 gold, 3 silver and 7 bronze.
By Jinabout 7 hours ago in Unbalanced
MLB Pennant Race 2026: 168 Hours
A lot can happen in one week, and regarding the 2026 Major League Baseball season, that's all that's left. The final week of any season always brings the thrills, and baseball is no different. For a team, a week is the last two series of the season, and that week is always mega-important for any teams looking to get in. And since I've been giving little tidbits in each of these, here's one last one: this is the fifth year without tiebreaker games.
By Clyde E. Dawkins4 days ago in Unbalanced
It's All Comes Down to This: The Race for the AL West Title
It's the final week of the 2026 Major League Baseball regular season. Some teams have already either clinched playoff berths or their divisions. One division that I've been updating everyone on since May is the American League West. In the 25 years I've been a Rangers fan, I've never seen a division race this tight before. So, here's where it all stands at the moment, as of September 20.
By Mark Wesley Pritchard 5 days ago in Unbalanced
Mercy Victory Versus 10-4 George Doesn’t Divide the Good Feelings All Around
On Thursday July 9, CMDR took on 10-4 George at Onatru Farm Park. Last year's champs had the upper hand in the standings, and the home team didn’t take long to mark their territory. Taking a 3-0 first inning lead, the second place team still didn’t let a scoreless second slow their train.
By Rich Monetti6 days ago in Unbalanced
Japan’s Trash Talk Is Loud. The Scoreboard Is Louder.
Pre-Match Words, Points on the Table At the mixed zone of the Nagoya training hall, Sora Matsushima stood in front of the microphones. A reporter asked for his thoughts on the Chinese team. He paused, then said: "The Japanese team is very strong right now. I think even if we only play at 50 to 60 percent, we still have a chance to beat China."
By Jin6 days ago in Unbalanced
A Korean Athlete Took One Photo of a Bus Driver. It Exposed the Nagoya Asian Games.
The bus stopped on the side of the road. The driver did not hold the wheel. He looked down, both hands spreading a paper map across his lap. The map covered part of the steering wheel. The navigation screen was on. The route on it was empty.
By Jin6 days ago in Unbalanced
1970s Baseball Card Market Trends
The vintage baseball card market continues to captivate collectors, with cornerstone cards from the 1970s experiencing dynamic shifts over the past year. To capture these movements, we tracked pricing data across four quarterly checkpoints—from September 2025 to September 2026 —for ten of the most iconic rookie cards and early career cards of the decade.
By Rookie Card Prices7 days ago in Unbalanced
The American League West Has Been Disappointing in 2026
As the Postseason draws closer, many teams are fighting for playoff berths and/or division titles. In this case, the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers are in a battle for the American League West crown. It's now a two-team show in this division, and we await to see which one will be the last team standing. I've been hyper fixated on the AL West since May, because it's usually a competitive division. Four of the five teams were engaged in a game of American League West musical chairs, with each becoming division leaders for a period of time. The other reason is because my team, the Rangers, are in that same division as the Astros. Let's learn a bit more about the American League West and I'll share my thoughts about each team.
By Mark Wesley Pritchard 9 days ago in Unbalanced
MLB Pennant Race 2026: Oh, Ho, Ho, It's Magic Numbers!
While the NFL celebrated the very first Sunday of the season, MLB's action brought the season down to the final two weeks. Now, it gets serious. Time starts to really run out for teams. For some, it's already over. For others, it's close to being over. On the positive side, teams are closing in on officially becoming October bound, whether it's as a Wild Card or as Division Champions.
By Clyde E. Dawkins11 days ago in Unbalanced
MLB Pennant Race 2026: Something New Has Been Added
Well, folks, here we are in the month of September, which means time is really running out. Three weeks, 21 measly days are left in the regular season. Plenty of time for some, not enough for others, and out of time for so many. One team in particular: the Colorado Rockies. On September 7, the Rockies (again) became the first team to be eliminated from postseason contention, and we should see the now-Stan Kroenke owned Los Angeles Angels ousted in a matter of days.
By Clyde E. Dawkins18 days ago in Unbalanced
