"Scoreboard Watching" Is Not Helpful...

[BigAlBarampGrill]

I've been a Brewers fan since the Robin Yount days. I use to post on the old brewers.com board. The one thing I can never understand is those who watch what other teams do. It seems almost like an obsession for some fans here to watch the Cubs and Cardinals games. We are still in a great position where that it not necessary. We still control our own destiny. I now see everyone commenting on the Cubs pick up a aging, can't play defense 2nd baseman, Daniel Murphy. Just something to think about, I guess.

Big Al

[coolhandluke121]

I don't think anyone believes they're actually helping the Brewers by watching scores. We are spectators. It is okay.

[tmwiese55]

I pretty much follow all of baseball, so obviously the games most relevant to me as a Brewers fan are going to be these teams we're competing against. And while yes they still basically control their own destiny, every move/win/loss for the other team affects our chances.

[istanbultaye]

For fans, I think it makes plenty of sense to discuss the moves that the near competition makes and how it might relate to improving those teams compared to ours. In a completely different mindset, I'm sure every team is watching the moves that other teams make, to see if that might be making any sort of opening for them to make a move as well.

 

When it comes to watching the standings, again, for fans, there's nothing wrong with scoreboard watching. It just doesn't pay to get too hung up on the day to day of it until the season is coming down to single digits on the magic numbers/games remaining. For the players/coaches, of course there's not really nothing to be gained from scoreboard watching, but it is a human thing to do.

[BigAlBarampGrill]

If we can get back to winning series 2-1 or 3-1, we would not need to "scoreboard watch". They taught me in Little League and Pony League not to focus on other teams and what they do when we weren't playing them. My old Coach Cooper believed that it was bad luck to hope other teams lose.

Big Al

[istanbultaye]

For the players, you are absolutely right. A player needs to focus on their own games. For fans, nothing wrong with watching all the games/scores come in, and have a rooting interest in the games for the best benefit for our hometown team to take place.

[BigAlBarampGrill]

Another issue I see is crying about being a small market team. Just a few years ago the Kansas City Royals won it all on a shoestring budget. Throwing endless amounts of money isn't a proven winner. And the Cubs are not as flush with cash as the Yankees or, maybe, the Dodgers. I guess it makes a good excuse though. Big Al

[FVBrewerFan]

Can we still check out the box scores from the minors?

[BigAlBarampGrill]

Can we still check out the box scores from the minors?

 

Yes, as long as it's the Brewers farm system. I see some people like to bash and poke fun at every move Cubs, Theo Esptein, makes. I have to ask those people though, who cares what the big city Cubs do? We can make up 3.5 games in a heart beat. Big Al

[adambr2]

As long as it's just the fans doing it and not the players, I really don't see the harm. I don't think anyone really thinks its helpful, but it also isn't harmful.

 

Sure, we control our own destiny, but its just the reality of it that any loss by a team you're chasing is valuable just like your wins are. So yes, it does matter. And it's just part of the fun of it. Gives you some baseball you're invested in to follow when the Brewers aren't playing.

[tmwiese55]

Who cares? We care because it's our direct competition, it's really that simple. If they win and/or improve their team it directly affects the Brewer's chances.

[BigAlBarampGrill]

Sure, we control our own destiny, but its just the reality of it that any loss by a team you're chasing is valuable just like your wins are. So yes, it does matter. And it's just part of the fun of it. Gives you some baseball you're invested in to follow when the Brewers aren't playing.

 

Wouldn't it be better to win the NL Central proper and not "back into" by having the Cubs go on a huge losing streak?? Would that really give us the post season confidence that this team has not had?

Big Al

[BigAlBarampGrill]

Who cares? We care because it's our direct competition, it's really that simple. If they win and/or improve their team it directly affects the Brewer's chances.

 

It's not the way Championship teams think though.

[tmwiese55]

Who cares? We care because it's our direct competition, it's really that simple. If they win and/or improve their team it directly affects the Brewer's chances.

 

It's not the way Championship teams think though.

 

We're not on the team. And yes, Cubs/Yanks/Sox fans do worry about what their rivals are doing. It's pretty much the epitome of the Sawx/Yanks and they're championship teams. And frankly as much they say they don't scoreboard watch, every player on every team in the race does it. You're fooling yourself if you think otherwise.

[adambr2]

Sure, we control our own destiny, but its just the reality of it that any loss by a team you're chasing is valuable just like your wins are. So yes, it does matter. And it's just part of the fun of it. Gives you some baseball you're invested in to follow when the Brewers aren't playing.

 

Wouldn't it be better to win the NL Central proper and not "back into" by having the Cubs go on a huge losing streak?? Would that really give us the post season confidence that this team has not had?

Big Al

 

Of course it would be, but

#1), If we win the division, I don't really care how it happens. If the Cubs and Cardinals tank in September and we win the Central with 85 wins, I'm certainly not going to be bothered.

 

#2), Our scoreboard watching has absolutely no bearing on what happens on the field for any team.

[OnaBadger58]

There are at least four teams that control their own destiny for two spots. Considering the Brewers have played anywhere from 1 to 3 more games than the teams below us, it could be argued that those teams have more control of their destiny. Scoreboard watching, albeit stressful at times, is what makes playoff races fun.

[BigAlBarampGrill]

We're not on the team. And yes, Cubs/Yanks/Sox fans do worry about what their rivals are doing. It's pretty much the epitome of the Sawx/Yanks and they're championship teams. And frankly as much they say they don't scoreboard watch, every player on every team in the race does it. You're fooling yourself if you think otherwise.

 

The Red Sox put themselves in a position where they don't need to scoreboard watch. They're just that good and that ahead in the standings. I don't think the Cubs players really care who won the most recent Brewers/Cardinals series. They have the confidence to know they can beat us or the Cards.

[BigAlBarampGrill]

There are at least four teams that control their own destiny for two spots. Considering the Brewers have played anywhere from 1 to 3 more games than the teams below us, it could be argued that those teams have more control of their destiny. Scoreboard watching, albeit stressful at times, is what makes playoff races fun.

 

It's fun to root against a team or even wish injury on players?? I saw that from a poster here a few weeks ago that they were hoping Byrant's injury is "serious".

[tmwiese55]

We're not on the team. And yes, Cubs/Yanks/Sox fans do worry about what their rivals are doing. It's pretty much the epitome of the Sawx/Yanks and they're championship teams. And frankly as much they say they don't scoreboard watch, every player on every team in the race does it. You're fooling yourself if you think otherwise.

 

The Red Sox put themselves in a position where they don't need to scoreboard watch. They're just that good and that ahead in the standings. I don't think the Cubs players really care who won the most recent Brewers/Cardinals series. They have the confidence to know they can beat us or the Cards.

 

Sawx this year yes they're that far ahead. think those title teams in years past that were in down to the end battles with Yanks weren't watching? And yes, the Cubs players absolutely pay attention to what MKE and STL do every day. Every player knows and it doesn't affect how they play the game in anyway. Do you think Houston isn't watching what Oakland is doing or were they surprised when they faced up last week to realize they were only a game ahead? And Hous won it last year.

 

There was just a feature or an article a couple weeks ago involving one of these teams, had to be around the deadline, where the team was sitting around the clubhouse watching the end of their rivals game. The player in the article said some comment like "X just won again so we just have to keep focused and do all we can blah blah to win as many games as we can". If you truly believe teams don't pay attention to their competition then this is a pointless discuss. Heck, it is anyway.

[OnaBadger58]

There are at least four teams that control their own destiny for two spots. Considering the Brewers have played anywhere from 1 to 3 more games than the teams below us, it could be argued that those teams have more control of their destiny. Scoreboard watching, albeit stressful at times, is what makes playoff races fun.

 

It's fun to root against a team or even wish injury on players?? I saw that from a poster here a few weeks ago that they were hoping Byrant's injury is "serious".

 

Well, yeah. I don't want the Cubs, Cardinals, Dodgers, Diamondbacks, Braves, or Phillies to win another game. I'm happy to check scores and see other contending teams lose, so if that means I have fun rooting against a team/teams; I'm guilty.

 

As far as rooting for injury, I would never and will never do that. That's about as low as it gets in sports.

[82brewcrew82]

Except we don't control our own destiny. The Brewers trail five teams in the loss column right now. That is one for every playoff spot. We need at least one of those teams to help us and lose more games than we do.

[Oxy]

I keep telling this to my local loan officer at the community bank in the small town where I live, as well as my old college buddy who picks stocks for a big firm out East. They still like to keep score/tabs on what the other team is doing though. Oxy

[sveumrules]

Another issue I see is crying about being a small market team. Just a few years ago the Kansas City Royals won it all on a shoestring budget. Throwing endless amounts of money isn't a proven winner. And the Cubs are not as flush with cash as the Yankees or, maybe, the Dodgers. I guess it makes a good excuse though. Big Al

 

The Brewers are currently running a payroll of $105,550,209 against a league average of $137,460,367. The Royals won the World Series in 2015 with a payroll of $126,529,835. against a league average of $126,949,017. If the Royals were on a shoestring budget, the Brewers are stealing from Goodwill.

 

Payroll may not guarantee success or be an insurmountable factor, but it definitely helps & plays a huge roll in the sustainability of a team's success & how many mistakes they can absorb.

 

Here how the playoff teams have ranked the last three years in payroll...

 

2015: LAD (1), NYY (2), TEX (7), TOR (10), CHC (11), STL (12), KCR (13), NYM (17), PIT (23), HOU (25).

2016: LAD (1), BOS (3), CHC (5), SFG (6), TEX (8), TOR (9), BAL (10), NYM (12), WAS (15), CLE (18).

2017: LAD (1), BOS (2), NYY (3), WAS (7), CHC (9), COL (16), HOU (17), CLE (18), MIN (19), ARI (23).

 

Out 30 playoff spots the last three years there have been 16 that went to top 10 payroll teams, 11 that went to middle 10 payroll teams and 3 that went to bottom 10 payroll teams.

[BigAlBarampGrill]

We play the Cubs a 3 game series beginning of next month. Sweep them and that would nearly make up our deficit.

[tmwiese55]

If the Cubs lose 3 other games before that to allow us to tie them then we only have to win 2/3 to take the lead and if we sweep them we have a 3 game lead instead of just being tied. Therefore, how they do in other games matters.