Bulls Playoff Troubles Continue (Joe Tatka)

Editors Note: This article was submitted on July 15th.  It was posted late by the league office.

It felt like deja-vu for the Bulls on the 13^th of July.  After only a half inning of play they were already trailing the Raptors 8-0.  Not a great start for a team that was 9-4-1 and 2-0 against the Raptors during the season.  As the wind blew and the clouds shifted overhead, I couldn’t help but think back to the Fall ‘07 season.  The final week of the season the short-handed Bulls (7-5)  defeated the Titan Stairs (5-6) 26-11.  It was the most offensive power the Bulls provided the entire season, and with only 8 players there.  The game appeared to serve as a stepping stone for the Bulls, like they were ready to go into the playoffs and finally be able to go toe to toe with the Assassins and win.  And then it happened, a break between the end of the regular season and the playoffs seemed to take the wind out of the Bulls sails.  Their first playoff game was against the Titan Stairs.  The Bulls had already defeated the Titan Stairs twice during the regular season, and the belief was that this would be number three.  8 long innings later, the Bulls fell to the Titan Stairs 11-2, and their playoffs were over.

Fast forward 7 months, and the Bulls were back in the playoffs.  This time they were a better team all around, and were looking at making a championship run.  But once again something just didn’t go right.  In the final week of the regular season, the Bulls went up against the Raptors and took it to them winning 17-4 in the process.  Once again, that final game showed the Bulls putting up unbelievable numbers, and that 17 runs was the most they recorded in a single game all year.  Maybe this would be the season the Bulls make it past the opening round of the playoffs.  Flash back to the late afternoon on the 13^th, and the Bulls go down in order in that first inning.  Once again the wind comes out of the sails, and the team is flat.  There wasn’t much the Bulls could do but try to fight through the embarrassment and hope for a brighter end.  That ray of light never came, and the game ended in an embarrassing 23-6 loss for the Bulls.

Maybe it was the two week break, maybe it was that they had to play the Raptors so quickly after just beating them.  Whatever the reason was, the Raptors showed that they were the better team on that day and just wanted the win more.  Maybe the summer will have the Bulls getting their first playoff win, maybe it will be in the fall.  All I know for sure is that the team is young and hungry for a taste of playoff victory.  The only thing left to do now is sit and waits.  Overcoming losses like the Bulls just suffered is the true test for teams.