Rodney M Bliss

Major League Baseball And Minor Victories

There are 162 games in a Major League Baseball season. Every team’s goal is to win the World Series at the end of the season. But, before you can get to the World Series, you have to make it to the playoffs. In fact, most of the season is spent tracking how close your team is to going to the playoffs “If the season ended today.”

The season is a little more than half over. The Mariners played 84 games so far. They won today. And after three months they have won 42 games and lost 42 games. In baseball parlance they are at .500.

They are 13 games out of first place in their division. The Houston Astros are 54-28. The Mariners are in second place, but unlikely to catch Houston before the end of the season.

But, they are only 3 games out of the wildcard slot. There are two teams in front of them for the last playoff slot. Will they make the playoffs? Not if the season ended today. But, there’s still 78 games left in the season. In that time teams will win and lose. The Mariners still have a losing record against teams that have a winning record.

It’s said that every team except one ends the season with a loss. That’s not actually true. A team that doesn’t make the playoffs, for example, could win their last game of the season. Once teams make it into the playoffs, only one will win their last game of the season.

Did you know you can place a bet today on who will win the World Series in October? The odds are 350:1 that the Mariners will win the World Series. The best odds are on the New York Yankees at 7:2.

And yet, even at long odds, even 13 games out of first and 3 games out of the wildcard, I’ll be watching nearly every game. And if they don’t make up that 3 game difference and make the playoffs, I’ll be following the Mariners.

The season is only half over, but it’s really half way to the end. Because, as a fan it’s not about what record the Mariners have at the end of the season. It’s really about getting to tune in every game and watch grown men play a boys game.

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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. Order Miscellany II, an anthology including his latest short story, “The Mercy System” here

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