K's and Jacks

In yesterday’s divisional-round games, the teams that struck out less vs. their opponents all won; two of the teams using fewer pitchers won (one winning team used more and one used the same number as its opponent); and seven of the eight teams hit homeruns. Those seven teams accounted for sixteen long-balls. The winning team outmuscled its opponent in three out of four games, but that’s not what matters here. What does is baseball’s addiction to jacks, with strikeouts a tolerated byproduct. In three out of the four games, the team with the fewer strikeouts also hit more homers. So, yes, I think the analytics’ crowd will say that a better launch-angle approach means victory 75-percent of the time. The hit-and-run be damned. Baseball—it was fun while it lasted.