As with past deadline deals these will be highly scrutinized for many years. Instantly we see and decide who got the better end of the deal, but we really won’t know until at least two or three seasons down the road. The only way to know in real time is if the team getting the established major leaguer goes on to win a World Series. Time will tell if that happens this year with the flurry of names (a few marquee ones) being dealt this July.
For the 86th year of the Midsummer Classic, baseball turns its sights to Petco Park in San Diego, California. This will be the first time the MLB All-Star game will be played at the San Diego Padres new ballpark. It was first opened back in 2004. 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. 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 34 players for each league.
MLB Awards
NL MVP – OF Bryce Harper Washington Nationals
AL MVP – OF Mike Trout Los Angeles Angels
NL Cy Young – Clayton Kershaw Los Angeles Dodgers
AL Cy Young – Chris Archer Tampa Bay Rays
NL Rookie of the Year – SS Corey Seager Los Angeles Dodgers
AL Rookie of the Year – OF Byron Buxton Minnesota Twins
NL Manager of the Year – Bruce Bochy San Francisco Giants
AL Manager of the Year – A.J. Hinch Houston Astros
Postseason Projections
NL Division Winners – Cubs, Giants, Mets
NL Wild Card Winners – Cardinals, Pirates
AL Division Winners – Royals, Blue Jays, Astros
AL Wild Card Winners – Rangers, Red Sox
NLCS – Giants over Cubs
ALCS – Royals over Astros
World Series – Royals over Giants
* – indicates new to team
1. New York Mets
Their patience paid off and the benefits should continue for the foreseeable future.
2. Washington Nationals
Hiring Dusty Baker should light a fire, but they need some more re-tooling on the roster.
3. Miami Marlins
The same question remains; Will owner Jeffrey Loria get out of the way of his new manager?
4. Philadelphia Phillies
There are a lot of pieces in place to bring the Phillies back from the cellar.
5. Atlanta Braves
They probably have another two years of ‘planning’ left before they start contending.
Halloween came and went. We stuffed our faces during Thanksgiving and celebrated the season at Christmas. We rang in the New Year and let Valentines go to the wayside. Pretty soon the unofficial holiday of Opening Day will be upon us and there are always a ton of questions as to what the new baseball season will bring us. I only have ten, but they are the ten most important and burning questions going into Spring Training. Continue reading
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