American League East

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* – indicates new to team

+ – indicates injury

1. New York Yankees

A stacked lineup with a legitimate ace in Gerrit Cole and a deep bullpen has them atop the contender list in the American League.

2. Tampa Bay Rays

Their pitching depth is almost unmatched in baseball. They’ll need to score plenty of runs though in a stacked league.

3. Toronto Blue Jays

The youth movement could surprise a lot of folks in a 60-game sprint to the finish.

4. Boston Red Sox

Fortunately for them they have the Baltimore Orioles to keep them out of the cellar this year.

5. Baltimore Orioles

A 60-game season could work to their advantage, but that won’t make them contenders with more playoff spots available.

Player to Watch: SS Gleyber Torres – New York Yankees

Best Acquisition: P Gerrit Cole – New York Yankees

New Kids on the Block: Toronto Trio; SS Bo Bichette, 2B Cavan Biggio, 1B Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Continue reading

It’s Time To Play Ball!

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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred (left) MLBPA Executive Director Tony Clark (right)

I’m frankly embarrassed to be a baseball fan. I never thought I would ever say that. 

Both MLB and the MLBPA have been on the precipice of being a uniting force for getting the United States out from the shadow of the Wuhan Virus.  Continue reading

2019 World Series Champions

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The Washington Nationals celebrate after Game 7 of the baseball World Series against the Houston Astros Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2019, in Houston. The Nationals won 6-2 to win the series. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

They were 19-31 on May 24th. Exactly 10 games back in the National League East. I didn’t have them making the Postseason before the season started, but I figured they were good enough to finish 2nd in a tough division. Continue reading

2019 World Series Preview

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The last time a team from Washington D.C. played in the Fall Classic was in 1933. The Washington Senators lost in 5 games to the New York Giants. The only time the Senators won the World Series was in 1924 defeating the New York Giants in 7 games. That team eventually became the Minnesota Twins in 1961. The Senators still played in D.C. until 1971 when they became the Texas Rangers. Currently the Washington Nationals were once the Montreal Expos who had a storied history as well. The Montreal franchise never played in a World Series, but came close in 1981 and would have contended in 1994 if not for the strike. They will go up against the Houston Astros who will play in their third Fall Classic and their second in the last three seasons. This matchup promises to be very competitive in terms of the starting pitching each team boasts and the depth of their lineups. It will most likely come down to whose bullpen pitches better and which manager outwits the other. Continue reading