Remembering the Almost-Were's

Usually, the long MLB playoffs reveal that most teams just aren't good enough to win the World Series.  But this year, we had an unusually high number of teams that played well -- but just not quite well enough.  Before we get to the Blue Jays and the Dodgers, let's remember these three teams:

The Phillies:  The Phillies won the National League in 2022, and dominated the NL East all year.  They had a strong veteran team, with guys like Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and Trey Turner who had been there before.  Against the Dodgers, they suffered two heart-breaking losses at home -- 5-3 and 4-3, with the second loss featuring some incredible defensive play by the Dodgers.  In L.A., the Phillies won Game Three in an 8-2 laugher, and then took Game Four to extra innings.  If the Phillies could have won Game Four -- and it was a nail-biter -- they would have forced the Dodgers to fly across the country to play Game Five in Philly.  In the bottom of the 11th, with two out and the bases loaded, the Dodgers sent up Andy Pages -- their worst hitter.  He hit a chopper back to the pitcher, Orion Kerkering, that should have ended the inning.  But Kerkering -- apparently thinking that he had to beat the runner at home (instead of throwing to first for an easy out) hurled the ball past the catcher, allowing the winning run to score and ending Philadelphia's season.  If 2025 turns out to be the last year for this iteration of the Phillies, that is a really heartbreaking way for their run to end.

The Tigers:  For most of the season, the Tigers had the best record in the American League -- then they collapsed.  They were 84-62 on September 10, and then went 3-13 the rest of the way.  They blew a 9 1/2 game lead in the AL Central and just barely secured a Wild Card spot.  Then they rebooted themselves.  They went to Cleveland and eliminated the Guardians in the Wild Card playoffs, and then played an epic Divisional Series with Seattle.  It went the full five games, and the last game was a 15-inning saga won by the Mariners 3 to 2.  Tiger fans will spend the off-season thinking about all the chances they had to win that game.

The Mariners:  After surviving the Tigers, Seattle went to Toronto for the A.L.C.S. -- and promptly took a 2-0 lead, beating the Blue Jays 3-1 and 10-3.  Up two games to zero, and with the next three games in Seattle, the Mariners had to like their chances.  But as we would all learn before the season was over, the Blue Jays are not easy to eliminate.  They struck back, beating the Mariners 13-4 and 8-2 to tie the series.  But Seattle rode an 8th-inning grand slam for a 6-2 victory in Game Five, putting the Mariners back in charge of the series.  The dauntless Blue Jays hammered Seattle 6-2 to tie the Series again, and the Mariners had to play a second winner-take-all game.  It was a classic.  Going into the bottom of the 7th, Seattle was sitting on a 3-1 lead, and was only nine outs from winning the pennant.  But the Jays rallied one more time, and Springer's three-run homer gave Toronto a 4-3 lead.  The Mariners ended up facing the exact same scenario that the Dodgers would face in Game Seven of the World Series:  down 4-3 in the top of the ninth, with Jeff Hoffman on the mound for the Blue Jays and the Toronto fans baying for victory.  Unlike the Dodgers, Seattle went down 1-2-3, and their fans were left to reflect that Seattle remains the only franchise in MLB that has never gone to the World Series.

And remember, all this drama took place before the World Series even began.