Little Bill Daggett (Gene Hackman): "I don't deserve this! To die like this!"
Will Munny (Clint Eastwood): "Deserve's got nothing to do with it!"
-- Unforgiven, 1992, directed by Eastwood
As I occasionally (but not annually) do, I am ranking Playoff teams by how much they, and their fanbases, deserve to win a World Championship. And I am casting baseball bias aside, so the Yankees won't be 1st, and the Mets won't be 12th.
12. Boston Red Sox, American League Wild-Card Berth
May Deserve Because: Boston is a liberal city. Massachusetts is a liberal State. New England is a liberal region. Fenway Park is historic. And Lucas Giolito is a decent guy.
Don't Deserve At All Because: They're the Boston Red Sox. They cheat. Even before they started cheating, they were scum. And now, they have Aroldis Chapman. Fuck 'em!
11. Los Angeles Dodgers, National League Western Division Champions
May Deserve Because: Los Angeles is a liberal city in a Blue State. It deserves a break for what it's gone through in this calendar year, from the awful wildfires to Trump sending troops in to intimidate and agents in to illegally arrest. Dodger Stadium is a nice ballpark with a lot of history. Their players seem to be good guys. Magic Johnson is the main owner.
Don't Deserve At All Because: They won it all just last year, and also just 5 seasons ago. Their manager, Dave Roberts, was a 2004 Red Sock. I'm sick of hearing about Shohei Ohtani. He's not better than Babe Ruth. And while current management had nothing to do with it, the Treason of '57 must never be forgotten or forgiven.
10. New York Yankees, American League Wild-Card Berth
May Deserve Because: It would make a lot of people I know happy, since I only live only 47 miles away. They have Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Gerrit Cole (injured, so he wouldn't earn a ring, but he would get one), and many other deserving players. Contrary to what a lot of people believe, the new Yankee Stadium is a fantastic ballpark, and there are easier ones to hit home runs in. And it's New York, the greatest city in the world.
May Not Deserve Because: A drought of 16 seasons might seem like an eternity to Yankee fans, but to most others, it's not so bad. And many Yankee fans, including yours truly, can become insufferable when our team is defending World Champions. The players deserve it a lot more than many of the fans do.
9. Cincinnati Reds, National League Wild-Card Berth
May Deserve Because: Great American Ball Park, while named for an insurance company, is a pretty good American ballpark. They haven't won a World Series, or even a Pennant, in 30 years. Elly De La Cruz is only in his 3rd season, but he's one of the most exciting players in the game, and deserves to win a ring. And they beat the Mets out for the last NL Playoff berth. I thank them for that.
May Not Deserve Because: Cincinnati is one of the most conservative cities in the country, and Ohio is a Red State. It's not just that: The Reds draw a lot of fans from across the River, in Kentucky, which has often been called a "Border State," and did not secede from the Union during the Civil War, but, culturally, is Southern through and through. And a lot of fans of University of Kentucky basketball, a storied program, are also Reds fans, and bring that arrogance to their baseball team, leading them to regard the 1970s "Big Red Machine" as the greatest team ever, Johnny Bench as the greatest catcher ever, and Pete Rose as an unfairly persecuted figure -- none of which is true. So, the heck with these fans for thinking any of that.
8. San Diego Padres, National League Wild-Card Berth
May Deserve Because: They have never won a World Series in 57 years of trying. The city's last baseball team that went as far as the Pennant was in the Pacific Coast League, the 1967 Padres. They have deserving players in Yu Darvish, and the much-admired Juan Soto. Petco Park is a nice ballpark. And their fans deserve it after the tease of last season. It would also make Emma Stone happy.
May Not Deserve Because: San Diego is one of the most conservative cities in the country. The Padres still insist upon foisting the occasional horrible uniform on us. Fernando Tatís Jr. is a known cheater, Manny Machado is a rotten guy, and Xander Bogaerts doesn't need another ring. And their fans are acting like Met Fans West: Talking a lot of trash, especially to the nearby more successful team (the Dodgers), without the sufficient results.
7. Chicago Cubs, National League Wild-Card Berth
May Deserve Because: Chicago is a great liberal city, practically making Illinois a Blue State all by itself. Wrigley Field is a great and legendary ballpark. And for all their suffering, Cub fans deserve more than 1 World Championship in a century.
May Not Deserve Because: They won just 9 years ago. That's not a drought, unless you're a Yankee Fan. And there's no obvious player on the team that hasn't won a title and really deserves to. They're a good team, but they're not an especially interesting one. If they won another Pennant, and even another World Series, it would be nice, but it wouldn't be the wonderful story that it was in 2016.
6. Philadelphia Phillies, National League Eastern Division Champions
May Deserve Because: Philadelphia is a great city. It's a liberal city. Pennsylvania is a Blue State. Citizens Bank Park is a great ballpark. It's been 17 years since they last won it all, with a complete turnover of players. It would make a few people I know happy, since I only live only 64 miles away.
May Not Deserve Because: Their fans have been known to be a bit rough. A 17-year drought isn't that bad: And Bryce Harper is generally considered to not be a good guy.
5. Toronto Blue Jays, American League Eastern Division Champions
May Deserve Because: They haven't won a World Series in 32 years. Canada is a liberal country. The idea that Canada does not deserve to win the title in America's national pastime has long since been discredited. (Whether the Jays do deserve it is, as I'm suggesting, a separate debate.) They have several good players who also appear to be good guys, including 2nd-generation major league stars Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Cavan Biggio and Bo Bichette.
May Not Deserve Because: The Rogers Centre is a stupid stadium with artificial turf. The only other real mark against the Jays is that, on my previous visits to Toronto, I found their fans to be a bit nasty. Not "nasty" as in "gross," but as in "mean beyond any arrogance they might have earned."
4. Cleveland Guardians, American League Wild-Card Berth
May Deserve Because: They haven't won a World Series in 77 years. Progressive Field is a really good ballpark. They willingly got rid of a bigoted team name. Cleveland is a liberal city. It would make Drew Carey happy.
May Not Deserve Because: They held that bigoted team name for 107 years. They have no obvious individual player to root for. Ohio is a Red State.
3. Detroit Tigers, American League Central Division Champions
May Deserve Because: They haven't won a World Series in 41 years. Detroit is a liberal city that needs help, and a postseason run does help a city.
May Not Deserve Because: Michigan outside Detroit, including Dearborn with their love of Gaza, screwed America over by not voting for Kamala Harris. I know, that has nothing to do with the team's worthiness. But they had a 14-game lead on July 8, and a 9 1/2-game lead on September 10, and blew it. They managed to recover, and win the Division, anyway. But they sure didn't act like worthy champions. And their most rootable player, Tarik Skubal, is only in his 6th season. It's too early in his career for him to be a sentimental favorite.
2. Milwaukee Brewers, National League Central Division Champions
May Deserve Because: Milwaukee is a liberal city. The Brewers have never won a World Series, and the city hasn't won one in 68 years, since the 1957 Braves. Christian Yelich is a terrific player in his 13th season, and deserves a ring. And they'd be doing it in memory of Bob Uecker.
May Not Deserve Because: American Family Field is more of an airplane hangar than a ballpark. Other than that, there's not much reason. It's not as if Bud Selig still owns the team.
1. Seattle Mariners, American League Western Division Champions
May Deserve Because: They have never won a World Series, or even a Pennant, in 49 years of trying -- the last remaining MLB team for which this is true, since the Washington Nationals won in 2019. The city's last Pennant was in the Pacific Coast League, the 1966 Seattle Angels. Seattle is a liberal city. Washington is a blue State. T-Mobile Park is a nice ballpark. The fans' arrogance after a 116-win 2001 regular season followed by a postseason failure has been punished enough. It would make Mina Kimes happy.
May Not Deserve Because: No obvious reason. And while Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodríguez are great players who have captured non-Mariner fans' imagination, they don't have an obvious "player to root for because he's waited so long for this chance." (Raleigh is 28 and in his 5th season; Rodríguez, 24 and in his 4th.)
There you have it: The team in the 2022 Major League Baseball Playoffs most deserving of winning the World Series is the Seattle Mariners.
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