Playoff race

File this under the too good not to share:

If you clicked on the link after the Quad Cities score in today's Midwest League Report, you are already one up on everyone else.

But, here ya go:

Tempers flare as Bandits again fail to clinch berth

What? I thought they clinched when the Rattlers beat Clinton on Wednesday...Didn't they???

Well. hold on...

With three games remaining in the half, Quad-Cities (39-27) holds a three-game edge on both Peoria and Clinton for the second of two available first-half postseason spots.

The Chiefs, who host the River Bandits the next three days, and LumberKings are 36-30 entering the final weekend of the opening half but both have losing records to Quad-Cities.

While the Midwest League rulebook dictates head-to-head records as the first criteria to settle a two-way tie, the rulebook reads that ties involving more than two teams are decided by the "best winning percentage in games involving tied teams for the full season."

Seems pretty clear cut. If Peoria sweeps Quad Cities and Clinton wins all three of their games in Beloit. That's a three way tie. As of now, in games between the three teams:

Quad Cities is 4-2 v. Clinton and 6-1 v. Peoria
Clinton is 6-4 v. Peoria

That means in games played between the three teams:

QC..10-3
CLN..8-8
PEO..5-12

Pretend that Clinton sweeps Beloit and Peoria sweeps Quad Cities. Then, the records would be

QC..10-6
CLN..8-8
PEO..8-12

Again. Pretty clear cut.

Except for the phrase: for the full season. Does that mean we may not know the first half wild card until the end of the 140 game season?

That's what the always level headed Cardinals organization would like to know.

The way the rule is written caught the eye of River Bandits manager Johnny Rodriguez, who was unsuccessful Thursday in attempts to gain clarification from the league office.

"I believe we have done everything we need to do, In a two-way situation, there is no question, but until they tell me we have won it, I am not comfortable," Rodriguez said. "I don't like surprises. The way I was raised, I am always on the lookout for the sniper. I want to know for sure."

River Bandits general manager Kirk Goodman and Cardinals minor-league officials were unsuccessful in obtaining a resolution in talks with Midwest League president George Spelius, who said differing interpretations of the tiebreaker have prompted the delay.

"I'm going to take things day-by-day and we'll go from there," Spelius said. "Rain can be a factor, and there are games to be played. We'll sort it out."

Easy way to sort it out is to win. But, it's never that easy. Also, there is this.

Rodriguez said the delay impacts his lineup card.

"If I knew for certain we were in, the lineup would be different," Rodriguez said. "I have guys playing with nagging injuries. Do I use a pitcher an extra inning above his pitch limit? Those things matter."

Then, to top it all off:

On the field, things were equally frustrating for Rodriguez, ejected along with pitcher Deryk Hooker after two Kane County batters were hit by pitches in the top of the sixth inning.

Both benches were warned after Hooker plunked Rashun Dixon with one out in the sixth, two innings after Dixon plowed into River Bandits catcher Robert Stock at the plate to score the third run in an inning that decided the game.

Hooker recorded the second out of the sixth before clipping the Cougars' Leonardo Gil with an inside fastball, drawing an automatic ejection.

As Hooker exited, Rodriguez took the field and drew a quick hook from home-plate umpire Will Thornewell. Rodriguez got his money's worth before leaving, drawing cheers from the crowd following a vocal, arm-waving display that followed his second ejection of the season.

This more than two team tie-breaker thing has happened before. If you go back to the end of the 2007 season there was the possibility of a three way tie for the two playoff spots in the second half. Oddly, Quad Cities and Peoria were involved in that one, too. Here were the final standings:

#CR..40 30
QC...40 30
PEO..40 30
KC...39 31

Now, Cedar Rapids was already in the playoffs due to qualifying in the first half.

If the Cougars had won one more game against the Timber Rattlers in the three day, five-game series with a couple of doubleheader there would have been a 3-way tie. I remember just as much confusion at that time, too.

That did not happen and Quad Cities were declared division champs and Peoria picked up the wild card. But, it did go down to the last day.

I don't think that it will go down to Sunday this year.