The Magical Mystery Tour Continues- 11 In A Row For KC

((HT: MLB.com))

The HQ has cone to appreciate what Ned Yost is doing- and all the crazy, borderline genius that goes with it...

And we're saying 11 in a row because they won the last three in the 1985 baseball championship, then have won the play-in game, the Division Series, and now the ALCS...

You know that this will be shown early on in the discussions of the roll the Kansas City Royals are on...


Ned Yost's genius has worked on multiple levels that include speed, stealing bases, and moving from station to station

It includes your number three hitter BUNTING OVER RUNNERS IN THE FIRST INNING!!!


And a pitching staff that, if you get to the seventh inning, has three relievers lock it down from there...

Enter Greg Holland...


Welcome to the last series of the year, Royals...

Royals, Extras, No Problem...

((HT: MLB.com))

The HQ thinks that if the Kansas City Royals are allowed to hang around long enough, they'll come back and get you when you least expect it.

It happened for the second game in a row, but this time it was in the first game of the American League Division Series in Anaheim against the Angels in Anaheim.

Mike Moustakas did the damage in the 11th inning last night.


But to say it was just the Moustakas homer is a bit of a short sell to the defense of Lorenzo Cain and Nori Aoki
Four times in the game they saved Jason Vargas and Mark Davis


Four games on Friday getting in all their efforts before college football goes center stage- and the Angels have to be concerned about the possibility of having more than one game stolen from them.

Royals Back In Post-Season For First Time Since '85

((HT: MLB.com))

The HQ just thought this was a cool happening last night...

The Kansas City Royals, with their win Friday night, clinched their first post-season bid in almost three decades.

Closer Greg Holland has been solid at the back all year long and, with a lot of blue in the crowd at Comiskey, the visotors got the win over the White Sox and made it to play one more game.


Here's Jeremy Guthrie firing up the other Royals once they clinched a spot in the post-season and got to bathe each other in the clubhouse.


MLB.com had some cool comparisons about the current roster with the last time the team was in:

In 1985, more than half of the Royals' current active roster had not yet been born. Yordano Ventura, DOB June 3, 1991, wasn't even a thought in his parents' minds. Lorde, the New Zealand songstress behind the team's somewhat unofficial anthem, wasn't born until 1996.

Wade Davis and Greg Holland were born in September and October of the Royals' last postseason year.

The wreck of the Titanic was discovered. The first Nintendo system was released in America, on which you played Super Mario for the first time. You bought "We Are the World" because you liked Michael Jackson and Lionel Ritchie. You read the inaugural strip of Calvin and Hobbes.

And that is just a small sample of it...

Congrats to y'all and whaddya want to bet the Braves might make the token play for their old assistant GM in the process...???

Jays McGowan's Results Affected By Diabetes

((HT: Sportsnet))

The Toronto Blue Jays Dustin McGowan is a Type 1 diabetic...

To date, he's not going as deep into his starts for the team as he would like. But, in analyzing it, McGowan thinks he needs to improve his conditioning in between starts. In addition, he thinks that (maybe) he'll start wearing an insulin pump in games to keep his levels from getting out of control to see if that will help...

Here's the catching-up on McGowan's season to date...

Recovery for McGowan has always been an issue as well- going from injury to treatment to having to balance the diabetes with all of it. But, he thinks that all of these steps will help out over time...

BREAKING NEWS: Jim Leyland To Step Down As Tigers Manager

[HT: Fox Sports]

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports is reporting that Jim Leyland is stepping down as manager of the Detroit Tigers.

The Detroit Tigers have called a 11:30am news conference Monday.

According to Rosenthal, Leyland told his team after the American League Championship Series and informed the Tigers is was time for someone younger to manage the team.

In 22 years as a manager Leyland has won 1,769 games.  Leyland managed the Pirates, Marlins, Rockies and Tigers.

Leyland won a World Series as manager of the Florida Marlins in 1997.  He led the Tigers to the World Series in 2006 but lost in five games to the St. Louis Cardinals and again in 2012 but lost to the San Francisco Giants.

More on this story to come.

Tom Hamilton Comes Out Of His Shoes Again...

((HT: FS Indians/MLB))

Thanks, again, to Jason Giambi...

Another pinch-hit homer...another game-winning pinch-hit homer...


And the Indians are still in the American League Wild Card hunt...

Buck Showalter Wants None Of Joe Girardi's Shenanigans

((HT: MLB/YES/MASN))

The Yankees, in order to win 90 games and maybe make the playoffs, have to go 14-4 the rest of the way...

And, as a manager, you're going to do anything to throw anyone off their game...
Like this...


Orioles Manager Buck Showalter didn't want Girardi to chirp at the third base coach, Bobby Dickerson. He wanted any discussion or disagreement to go through him.

And you saw the hotness of Showalter... he's taking no crap from nobody...

Could Montreal Rejoin The Ranks Of MLB...???

((HT: NESN))

Here's one for you...

Could Le Provence Quebec get a baseball franchise back if they get a new barn...???

Maybe...

There are some obvious "ifs" here...

If Tampa doesn't get a new stadium...
If Montreal gets a new one that bears no resemblance to l'Olympique with a retractable roof...

Then, the Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo says "maybe..."

Here's the discussion...