So this morning I woke up thinking, hey, today’s Dodgers vs Rockies matchup sounds juicy. Let’s see who actually showed up to play. Figured a “Top 5 Performers” breakdown would be killer for the fans. Simple, right? Famous last words.
Starting Off Simple… Too Simple
Alright, coffee in hand, laptop fired up. Goal number one: just find the dang final score first. Easy peasy. I remembered seeing the game flash by on MLB Network yesterday – thought it was like 8-5 or something wild. Turns out my memory’s as reliable as a broken bat. Needed actual stats, not my half-asleep recollections. Time to dig deeper.
Opened my usual go-to spot, *. Started scrolling through the box score. Names, numbers, lines everywhere. Needed to separate the standouts from the strikeout kings. My plan was basic: just grab the top guys for each key stat – hits, strikeouts, RBIs, you name it.
Hit a Snag… Of Course
Right away, headache number one: pitchers and hitters are different beasts. Comparing a guy who went 2-for-4 to a pitcher who threw 6 Ks felt like comparing apples to, well, screwdrivers. My dumb idea of “Top 5” suddenly looked like fitting a square peg into a round hole.
Scratched my head. Needed categories. Decided on three for hitters:
- Who smashed the ball? (Most Hits)
- Who brought guys home? (Most RBIs)
- Who had the killer swings? (Top SLG/OPS)
And two for pitchers:
- Who shut ’em down? (Most Strikeouts)
- Who kept the damage low? (Lowest ERA / Best Relief)
This felt way better. Less messy. Focused. Okay, back to the box score.
The Nitty Gritty Number Crunch
Started plugging away on *. Copied the Dodgers stats into a spreadsheet tab, Rockies into another. Then it was time to sort. * lets you sort columns right on the page, thank goodness. Slick.
Hitters first:
Sorted Hits… boom, Dodgers: Heyward and Freemand had multi-hit games. Surprised? Maybe. Rockies: Blackmon, solid as always.
Sorted RBIs… this was the game-decider stuff. Freeman popped again for the Dodgers, driving in runs like the champ he is. Rockies: Diaz was carrying some weight.
Slugging/OPS? Had to calculate OPS myself (OBP plus SLG). Annoying? Yeah. Needed? Totally. Freeman was cleaning up again. Heyward’s double showed up loud and clear.
Pitchers next:
Sorted Ks… Sheehan for the Dodgers? Kid had a sneaky good day, punching guys out. Rockies: Lambert racked them up out of the ‘pen.
Low ERA… This was trickier. Main guys who pitched significant innings. Looked at the innings pitched and the runs allowed. Grinded through it. Sheehan looked decent again innings-wise. The Rockies starter? Gave up runs early. Their bullpen had guys with clean sheets – Lambert stood out pitching scoreless ball.
My fingers were flying now. Copy, paste, sort, compare. Paused a minute… needed pics. Pulled mugshots from Getty. Easy enough.
Putting It All Together… Finally
Alright, list time. Based on the numbers:
- Hitters: Freeman (Hits, RBIs, OPS monster), Heyward, Blackmon, Diaz.
- Pitchers: Sheehan (Ks, decent line), Lambert (Ks, clean relief).
Jammed it all into my CMS. Added those photos. Glanced over it. Stats checked out? Felt good. Looked legit. Went with “Dodgers vs Rockies Player Stats: Top 5 Performers You Need To See Today.” Hit publish. Deep breath. Done.
The Unexpected Turn
Figured that was it. Coffee mug was long empty. Then ping! Ding! My phone goes nuts. Not notifications. Worse. Texts.
The nursery. My kid. Running a fever. Outta nowhere. Partner’s slammed at work.
Total gear shift. Baseball stats? Meaningless dust. My laptop? Lid slammed shut mid-auto-save warning. Didn’t care.
Whole afternoon spent with a sick little one. Sniffles, damp cloth on the forehead, holding the bucket just in case. You know the drill. Exhausted doesn’t cover it.
Hours later, finally got the little one sleeping peacefully. Dead silent. That’s when I saw it.
My damn laptop. Lid still closed. Sitting there. Taunting me.
Shoved it deeper into my bag. That WordPress draft? The post about pitchers and sluggers? Feels like something I dreamt a week ago. Real life just dropkicked it into the cheap seats. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe never. Right now? Stats can wait. Sleep cannot.
