American League Wild Card Series
3. Houston Astros vs. 6. Detroit Tigers
Continue readingFor the 94th year of the Midsummer Classic, baseball goes to Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. The last time the mid-summer classic was played in Arlington was in 1995. Now every year there is always a lot of discussion and some of it a little dated about how the teams are put together. No system will ever be perfect. Fans don’t always get it right and managers won’t either, nor the commissioner’s office. The fact that the players are able to vote for participants was a great choice and they know who is deserving. Regardless of who should or shouldn’t be in the game lets just accept that the best players will always be involved one way or another. Here are my all-stars keeping with the rules that every team be represented and a total of 32 players for each league.
AVG – Batting Average
ERA – Earned Run Average
HR – Home Runs
RBI – Runs Batted In
SV – Saves
BAA – Batting Average Against
WHIP – Walks/Hits Per Innings Pitched
K – Strikeouts
Stats are accurate as of July 13th
* – asterisk indicates starter
Continue readingMLB Awards
NL MVP – OF Ronald Acuna Jr. – Atlanta Braves
AL MVP – C Adley Rutschman – Baltimore Orioles
NL Cy Young – Tyler Glasnow – Los Angeles Dodgers
AL Cy Young – Kevin Gausman – Toronto Blue Jays
NL Rookie of the Year – OF Jackson Chourio – Milwaukee Brewers
AL Rookie of the Year – INF Jackson Holliday – Baltimore Orioles
NL Manager of the Year – David Bell – Cincinnati Reds
AL Manager of the Year – Brandon Hyde – Baltimore Orioles
Postseason Projections
NL Division Winners – Braves, Dodgers, Cubs
NL Wild Card Winners – Diamondbacks, Phillies, Reds
AL Division Winners – Orioles, Astros, Twins
AL Wild Card Winners – Rangers, Blue Jays, Mariners
NLCS – Braves over Dodgers
ALCS – Orioles over Astros
World Series – Braves over Orioles
* – indicates new to team
+ – indicates injury
1. Houston Astros
They still have a stacked lineup, a solid rotation and a strong bullpen got even better with the addition of Josh Hader as their closer.
2. Texas Rangers
As the defending champions, they proved last year that they were the best team and still have the resources to keep this going should the need arise again to go all-in for another title.
3. Seattle Mariners
With the best rotation in the division, they have a leg up on the rest. The lineup though cannot get off to a sluggish start like they did last year if they want a Postseason berth.
4. Los Angeles Angels
For their sake they are lucky to be playing in the same division as the Oakland Athletics. They would finish dead last in every other division in baseball.
5. Oakland Athletics
Folks care more about where this franchise will play than what has become of the city of Oakland.
Player to Watch: OF Mike Trout – Los Angeles Angels
Best Acquisition: P Josh Hader – Houston Astros
New Kid on the Block: OF Wyatt Langford – Texas Rangers
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