We were 6-9 in extra innings this season. Did even worse the season prior. And we were only 16-15 in one run games. Seems we either blew teams out or were average. The playoffs we play better teams, so most games are going to be close.
Padres were 12-5 in extra innings and 30-17 in one run games (I believe they had the best record in the league in one run games)
On the other hand, the Phillies were stupendously average in extras (8-6) and one run games (22-25). They obviously got super hot at the right time.
Jayson Stark did a whole article on the “clutch” question two days ago ([need a subscription](https://theathletic.com/3734469/2022/10/27/bryce-harper-home-run-phillies-clutch/)) and the likes of [Bill James has acknowledged there is a clutch factor](https://www.si.com/mlb/2007/11/30/james-clutch), but hard to quantify.
Just wonder if there is a connection to our shittiness in bringing the Manfred runner home in a “clutch” situation and what happened in the playoffs.
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“The clutch factor” should be in huge print on the white board of the scouting department office.
We’re definitely missing those Clutch players. Give me David Freese back!
We won 111 games so must have done *something* right…
I am so sick of hearing this “Dodgers choked in the playoffs” narrative. Especially from Dodger fans. The offense was already struggling a month before the playoffs started.
Best team in baseball with RISP in the regular season
I think its definitely correlated, but I’m not sure what causes both? Are they doing something with their approach in extras and the playoffs, is it mental? Idk, but that’s something for Friedman to have his nerds look into
Clutch factor does not actually exist, at least not in a way you can use to accurately evaluate players in your system or in others. Prove me wrong.
They are missing the clutch gene but not because of the Manfred runner. That shit is not real baseball
they were clutch all season and led the league in most offensive categories with risp. they played poorly in the nlds. i don’t think they choked. they just happened to play poorly in those games. terrible timing, yes, but guys like Mookie, Freddie, Will, JT and Muncy have been there and done that before in past postseasons. I don’t think the moment was too big for them.
Neither a team’s record in extra innings or in one-run games correlates to its overall winning percentage. It is a fairly random thing. Look up past seasons and you’ll see weirdness everywhere with these. A 90-loss team will have a good one-run record and a 100-win team won’t.
It’s very tempting to give in to that pundit mentality of claiming that some teams “know how to win” or “come through in the clutch.” But in reality, such close games are more often the result of random ground ball bounces, minute differences in launch angle, a bang-bang play at first base, etc. There are many ways to win or lose a close game, but baseball has so much randomness and chance in it that most of those games don’t come down to a clutch performance by one player, much less a whole team.
The answer to doing well in the playoffs is simple… There is no answer. All the data has shown there is NO correlation to why some teams do well in the playoffs and some don’t.
If there is ONE thing I trust the Dodger front staff about (especially when Farhan) was here was they are bunch of eggheads. If there was some piece of data out there to manipulate to give us that answer of “clutchness” we would have it.
The team was flat from outside of that first inning of that first game. Never looked right and more important looked like they kept waiting for something to just click which never happened. Well it didn’t and they were embarrassed. Maybe they will learn from it for next year.
Bad performances happen but thinking we are missing the some mythical “clutch” gene is ridiculous. They just played like shit
When will fans understand it’s just about our players who performed all season, having to perform in the post season. It’s really as simple as that