September 30, 2006

Pirates-Cubs Division Tie-Breaker Coin Toss Held

Major League Baseball held a coin toss today to determine the site of a potential National League Central tie-breaking game. In the event of a tie between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Chicago Cubs for last place, a one-game playoff would be held at Chicago's Wrigley Field on Tuesday, October 3. The loser of the game would be the winner of the distinction of being the worst team in the NLC.

The Cubs and Pirates are currently tied with a record of 65-95, and with only two games left, have already missed the opportunity to end the season with 100 losses.

“Losing a lot of games is great if you can do something with those losses,” Cubs manager Dusty Baker said. “Clogging up the bottom of the division isn't that great to me. The problem we have to address more than anything is falling short of our 100 loss goal.”

The Cubs face the Colorado Rockies in the final two games of the season, who are also vying for last place in the National League West, where they hold a one-game lead on the Arizona Diamondbacks and a one and a half game lead on the San Fransisco Giants. The Pirates face the Cincinnati Reds, who have already been mathematically eliminated from achieving last place.

“Clearly we've got the advantage going into these last two games, but you can't underestimate the Cubs' ability to lose,” said Pirates' general manager Dave Littlefield. “We've got a solid core of veterans past their prime to block our young talent, so I think we have a chance.”

WGN would provide live national coverage of the tie-breaker game because they'll follow the Cubs, no matter how much they suck. You can also bet that a bunch of Chicagoans would travel to Pittsburgh for the game, probably wearing matching shirts.

1 comment to “Pirates-Cubs Division Tie-Breaker Coin Toss Held”

  1. Zeldink says:

    Very funny!

    I’ve missed your fake news during this last month as the Reds freefalled their way out of the playoffs. At least they’re not eliminated yet, right?