And notice that it's been true. Hitters haven't generally gotten better in the postseason - some have, others haven't. It's all statistical randomness. At the end of the day, the postseason looks a lot like the regular season. I use data. Here's a list of "momentum games" in the MLB playoffs thus far: ALDS: Astros destroy Red Sox to go up 2-0... Result? Astros LOSE game 3. Indians beat Yankees to go up 2-0 (including epic comeback). Indians LOSE game 3. Yankees win 2 over Indians to get back to 2-2. Yankees WIN game 5. NLDS: Dodgers beat up on D-Backs to go up 2-0. Dodgers WIN game 3. ALCS: Astros take 2-0 lead on Yankees. Astros LOSE game 3. Yankees come back and tie series 2-. Yankees WIN game 5. NLCS: Dodgers take 2-0 lead on Cubs. Dodgers WIN game 3. Dodgers take 3-0 lead on Cubs. Dodgers LOSE game 4. What does all this tell us? That the results in the game after a team gained momentum has NOTHING TO DO with said momentum. It's completely meaningless and has no predictive value in baseball. Years of data tells us this.
it's impossible to prove either way. can't prove it exists or doesn't exist either way I'm of the mindset that it can be a different word for trust and confidence. If our batters trust themselves and feel confident again than our offense will carry over to game 7
Nonsense - if it existed, you could find statistical evidence of it - winning should beget more winning and vice-versa. If there's no statistical evidence of it, then it really doesn't exist - at least not in any meaningful sense where it would have predictive value.
once again it comes down to how you are defining what momentum is. You can define it as an inner trust and belief in yourself if you'd like. Right now it seems like the astros got the proverbial piano off their back and are more confident in themselves. If they are confident and feeling good for game 7, that could be huge dividends for the offense. I can choose to call that them regaining momentum. "momentum" or "confidence and trust" could be why hitting seems to be contagious. yes, it doesn't have any predictive value. That is fact. Nobody can guess when momentum comes and goes.
look I'm with you about needing absolute hard evidence for things. I'm the one always calling people here 3rd world countries mofos when they talk about curses, jinxes, and superstition. I get your approach. I was a philosophy major who took tons of logic classes and know exactly what you are saying. But as a philosophy major I also know that language is temporal and contingent on each persons perspective. That is why my argument towards you is about how you define the word momentum
I wont get too excited but the crypt keeper has raised our dead bats from the earth and said go win the goddam series. Bordellos blood for everyone.
It's not randomness when a pitcher despite having the most dominant statistics in baseball over the last several months fails to receive the confidence of an entire fan base and then as the playoffs begin struggles like he hasn't in months. Peacock is another example of this to some extent. He was fabulous all year long and yet in this series he's looked like he was hyperventilating. It tells me that you are picking and choosing once again. You're ascribing momentum as the only factor in winning and losing games while there are many subjective factors that play roles in how players and teams perform. As I said, players are self-aware. They don't perform how you think they should perform just because they did x in June. Anyway, hope we have the "momentum" now and hope Giles can rebound if we need him.
If u want to go deep into the rabbit hole, and you think of Christopher Nolans film, where Love and Gravity both have physical properties, and then u think of his other movie memento, that may more accurately describe the Astros current situation, where the force that stops momentum, is either lack of memory, or memory itself, you may have something analytical to consider. In his movie memento memory changes the momentum of the characters story arc. And I would think in most psychological dysfunction it's memory that assists in stopping/changing the momentum of the disorder or mental hurdle. Apply that here. And it might be the Astros calling on their memory or experiences from past playoff performances, like Verlander, like Altuves failure in 2015, like Springers non catch in Boston, like Reddicks non catch. And their ability to recall what went wrong, fix it, and apply that change or force to alter the momentum against them or for the Yankees. In summary, the experiment would be to test players memory, and see if those with long term or short term recall talent do better in the playoffs than those who have less of it. Then apply that data set to momentum data and see if that has any impact on momentum patterns in the playoffs. Then you recruit, draft, and train players accordingly. You could drop wonderlic out of the equation and consider memory testing. If the research leads to any conclusions. Adapt your lineup or rotation accordingly based on the current of momentum if needed. Take moneyball to the next level and blow Billy Beanes mind.
