Houston Astros: Five things Dodgers fans have to come to grips with

The Best of the Rest

Even though we’re revealing the top five reasons, there are other explanations to consider. These missed the cut to be on the list, but they are just as important as some. We call these the best of the rest.

Best of the Rest Reason #1 – The Layoff

The Dodgers went 7-1 in the NLDS and NLCS combined. That meant they swept the Diamondbacks and defeated the Chicago Cubs in five games. Because of the scheduling, the Dodgers won the NLDS on October 9th. They had to wait until the Cubs won the NLCS two days later plus another three days before the NLCS started. At the end of the NLCS, the Dodgers had to wait two days for the Houston Astros before another three prior to the World Series.

Add all those days of waiting and you get ten days of rest, which is more than a week. You would think that with five days rest from the NLCS to the World Series, the Dodgers would be fully healthy and ready for Game one considering the ALCS went the full seven three days before. Yes, that is the case. But, there is a negative here.

A long layoff can be just as bad because you’re not playing in that stretch and you might lose a step or two. Meanwhile, the Houston Astros are still in a mode of playing. They didn’t get enough rest as the Dodgers. But they were more battle-tested than the Dodgers. They didn’t cruise through the playoffs. Houston had to beat two elite franchises in four and seven games. So they were experienced in that category while the Dodgers weren’t.

Cry Time!

Here’s a sad stat for Dodger fans that should’ve been taken into account. Since 2005, 11 of the last 12 champions, including the Houston Astros, clinched their World Series spot later than their opponent. Only the 2008 Phillies are the exception.

While the Dodgers did not come out flat in game one, it’s safe to say being first here is a bad thing.

Best of the Rest Reason #2 – Minute Maid Park

Our other best of the rest is the ballpark. It’s loud, scary, and intimidating to play in Minute Maid Park, especially with the roof closed. A stadium that seats 43,000 feels like a stadium that seats 2 million (sarcasm) screaming Houstonians ready to fight back. But for the Houston Astros, who ironically we’re the better road team in 2017, it was the place to be. In the final two months of the baseball season, the Houston Astros went 21-3 at home, which included an 8-1 stint during the postseason.

So while the Dodgers could counter by saying they were undefeated at home before the Houston Astros won Game two and the Dodgers did steal Game four, the fact was Minute Maid Park was a better home-field advantage to play in than Dodger Stadium because you felt at home. It can lead to lack of concentration and sometimes, lack of communication.

Case in point, in the top of the eighth with runners in scoring position and one out, Chris Taylor could’ve and should’ve scored on a sacrifice fly that would’ve made the game 11-10 and possibly alter history. The reason he didn’t score was that he thought his third base coach told him to not go when it was vice versa.

That mistake would lead to the role of the Dodgers losing Game five. But perhaps the crowd was too loud that you couldn’t hear what someone said. Taylor heard it alright. But he heard wrong.

While MMP is not Dodger Stadium, Yankee Stadium, or Fenway Park, it is a reason why from September through October, teams struggled to win in Houston.

Best of the Rest Reason #3 – Game 7

When the series went to Game seven, it looked as if the Dodgers were in control and destiny was on their side. Kenley Jensen stated that if the Houston Astros had to play a game seven, they had no chance of winning.

But while the Dodgers and their fans made brash statements and showed confidence to cockiness, they couldn’t have known that fate was against them. There had been 37 Game 7’s played in the history of the fall classic. Overall, the home team was 18-19 overall. This included the last two Game 7’s, which were won by the road team (2014 Giants, 2016 Cubs). So clearly, it’s a tossup for whether the home team won or lost.

Another factor in this was that the Astros were already battle-tested. They had played in a Game seven before in the ALCS while the Dodgers had not. In that game, Houston had a meeting called by Carlos Beltran, who suspected the team was stressed out. It worked and Houston won. So come Game seven of the World Series, the Astros were loose and relaxed. If the Dodgers made a mistake, it was forgetting that the Astros had a mental edge against them.

Coming up, the countdown begins.