Why don't the Jays want home field advantage against KC?

[Sherlock]

First off, yes, the entire playoffs as whole is a crapshoot, every team has a chance to win. The 2 teams which played for the world series last season were wild card teams. If that doesn't indicate crapshoot I don't know what does.

If the Jays end up facing the wild card team they will be going up against a better team, both the Astros and the Yankees are better than Texas. In the case the Jays face the Astros they face their ace (Dallas keuchel), who are not using their best pitcher in the wild card game.

Yankees and Astros better than the Rangers? Based on what? Both Yankees and Astros have limped through September while the Rangers have been sizzling. Much rather play either one of those than Texas. We've owned the Yankees this year when it counted and we got swept by the Astros at the lowest point of the season. Hardly a barometer.

Based on actual statistics.


Offense

Yankees 102 wRC+
Astros 105 wRC+
Rangers 96 wRC+

Pitching

Yankees 3.96 FIP
Astros 3.66 FIP
Rangers 4.35 FIP

What do these stats look like post Allstar break? Or post trade-deadline?

The eye-test and recent records suggest that Texas is playing better baseball than either of New York or Houston right now. I realize this is all a moot point now, but still, it hardly feels like a fair statement to say the Blue Jays ended up in a better position by not finishing atop the AL.

[Randle McMurphy]

Yankees and Astros better than the Rangers? Based on what? Both Yankees and Astros have limped through September while the Rangers have been sizzling. Much rather play either one of those than Texas. We've owned the Yankees this year when it counted and we got swept by the Astros at the lowest point of the season. Hardly a barometer.

Based on actual statistics.


Offense

Yankees 102 wRC+
Astros 105 wRC+
Rangers 96 wRC+

Pitching

Yankees 3.96 FIP
Astros 3.66 FIP
Rangers 4.35 FIP

What do these stats look like post Allstar break? Or post trade-deadline?

The eye-test and recent records suggest that Texas is playing better baseball than either of New York or Houston right now. I realize this is all a moot point now, but still, it hardly feels like a fair statement to say the Blue Jays ended up in a better position by not finishing atop the AL.

105 wRC+ and 4.25 FIP in the 2nd half. That's better than the Yankees in both categories over that same period, but far worse than the Astros in both.

There's really no question that Texas is by far the worst team statistically of the three. It's not particularly close either. But because this is baseball and a short 5 game series, it really doesn't matter much anyway.

[Skin Blues]

I mentioned this a few days ago, but the team with "Home Field Advantage" for the ALCS has played two fewer home games than their opponents ever since it went to a 7 game series in 1985. The series is more likely to end after Game 5 than go to the full 7 games. It's far more important who we play in the ALDS, then it is to have HFA for the ALCS.

[Basketball_Jones]

Please stop with Raptor references. Maybe someday when they are one of the top 10 teams in the entire league like the Jays are you can talk that crap comparison.

[bluerap23]

They basically through 3 games the last week of the season. I didn't see KC resting their whole team so they must have wanted it bad enough.

I love the argument that they may not play KC so it doesn't matter.
If the jays make it to the Alcs there is at least a 50% chance they will face KC.

It is also important to note that it isn't just about game 7. Having the first two games at home is valuable for momentum as well.

If your players need rest you should rotate the older players through the DH. They also have two days off now.

If they lose to KC it will look real bad.

[Jays4WS]

They basically through 3 games the last week of the season. I didn't see KC resting their whole team so they must have wanted it bad enough.

I love the argument that they may not play KC so it doesn't matter.
If the jays make it to the Alcs there is at least a 50% chance they will face KC.

It is also important to note that it isn't just about game 7. Having the first two games at home is valuable for momentum as well.

If your players need rest you should rotate the older players through the DH. They also have two days off now.

If they lose to KC it will look real bad.

[Randle McMurphy]

They basically through 3 games the last week of the season. I didn't see KC resting their whole team so they must have wanted it bad enough.

I love the argument that they may not play KC so it doesn't matter.
If the jays make it to the Alcs there is at least a 50% chance they will face KC.

It is also important to note that it isn't just about game 7. Having the first two games at home is valuable for momentum as well.

If your players need rest you should rotate the older players through the DH. They also have two days off now.

If they lose to KC it will look real bad.

The Royals were resting players and mailing games in for weeks. It's part of the reason the Jays even caught them. So yeah...no.

[The_Hater]

I've never seen so much crying over a hypothetical game 7 vs the Royals which will almost certainly never take place.

[HeatedEnd]

Last year's playoffs is a testament to the value of home field advantage. They would have liked to have home field throughout the playoffs but not at the expense of resting their regulars. Giving guys an extra few days to rest and hopefully heal their bumps and bruises they were playing through will go much further. Plus, at the end of the day its just 1 game you are talking about.

[HeatedEnd]

Also, based on an AA interview on McCowan, they sent in their b-squad for the last 2 games of the orioles series mostly cause they wanted to get the regulars for the 2nd double header and the next game was basically an afternoon game and most of the guys were too sloshed celebrating the night before.

[Skin Blues]

Last year's playoffs is a testament to the value of home field advantage.

Of the 7 playoff series last year, only one of the winning teams had Home Field Advantage in the series. The Cardinals had HFA for the NLCS but they ended up playing 3 games in AT&T park in San Fran compared to only 2 at home. Their season ended after game 5, on the road. Not that the results of a single season would really mean anything, anyway. HFA for each individual game definitely matters, but HFA for the ALCS/NLCS series is meaningless because it doesn't mean you get to play more games at home.