It’s The Season For Magic Numbers
Yesterday with the first day of Fall. Have you ever wondered who they decide when Fall starts? It’s all about the tilt of the earth.
Seriously. When the sun is directly over the equator is called the equinox. When the sun is headed North, it’s the Spring or vernal equinox. When the sun crosses the equator on it’s way South it’s called the autumnal equinox.
Stated another way, today the sun was directly overhead at the equator.
Fall means colder weather, football, leaves changing colors and holidays. Halloween is the next one.
But, the magic numbers aren’t connected to any witches brew style magic. Fall also means the end of the baseball season and the playoffs. There are ten games left in the season. The Mariners are 82 – 69. They are eight games out of first place in their division. They magic number is 4.
A magic number of 4 means that any combination of Mariners losses and Houston Astro wins greater than 4 will eliminate. The odds the Mariners are not going to win the division title. The Astros only have to go 4-6 over the rest of the month.
But, all hope is not lost. There are two wildcard spots available. The Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays hold those two spots. The M’s are 3 games back. And more importantly their magic number for a wildcard spot is 9. Even better, the Red Sox, the Blue Jays and the Yankees (who sit in front of the Mariners at only a half game out of a wildcard spot) have to play each other, a lot. The hope is that those three will do enough damage to each other that the Mariners can get into the playoffs. The Oakland A’s have the same record as Seattle, so they have a chance as well.
The Mariners are already assured of having a winning record. There are 162 games in a regular baseball season. Not counting the playoffs, of course.
As a fan, I’m anxious for the Mariners (MY team) to make the playoffs. But, what adds weight to these final couple of weeks is that Seattle holds a dubious record. They last went to the playoffs in 2001. Twenty years.
Twenty years is the longest playoff drought for any Major League Baseball team. In fact, it’s the longest playoff drought for any team in the NFL either. And the NBA? Yeah, everyone in basketball has made the playoffs at least once in the last twenty years.
So, I’ll be watching each game. I’ll be scrutinizing the schedule and running possible projections.
And I’ll be counting the magic numbers.
Stay safe
Rodney M Bliss is an author, columnist and IT Consultant. His blog updates every weekday. He lives in Pleasant Grove, UT with his lovely wife, thirteen children and grandchildren.
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from the title, I knew it was about baseball 😉
and as per the definition of Operative magic being the art and science of causing change in consciousness in accordance with will
where the magic of those numbers have cast their spell on you, drawing you in to an addiction to that particular sport.
That particular magic hasn’t hooked me in that particular way, so I say this just from where I live now and for a friendly jab, Go Jays, Go!
The AL West and the AL East have 7 of their 10 teams in the playoff hunt. The Central has 1. And most of the playoff teams would be winning the Central if they were in that division.
As a Mariners fan I’m just happy to finally have meaningful games in September. If Seattle gets in it will be because the three East teams completely pummel each other.
I think we’ll be watching Boston and NYY playing a one game playoff. But, with 10 games left in the season “The Mariners don’t suck” and that’s a good thing.