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.
Rays
2016 MLB World Series & Awards Predictions
StandardMLB 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
American League East
Standard* – indicates new to team
1. Toronto Blue Jays
Some question marks in the pitching staff will be overlooked thanks to their scary good lineup.
2. Boston Red Sox
Getting a legitimate closer and an ace in the rotation puts them back into the contender category.
3. New York Yankees
They’re one injury in the lineup and/or rotation away from struggling mightily.
4. Baltimore Orioles
They also have a good lineup, but their pitching staff has far too many question marks.
5. Tampa Bay Rays
Pitching is something they have plenty of, but their lineup has always struggled to keep pace within the division.
10 Questions Heading Into Spring Training
StandardHalloween 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
2015 MLB Mid-Season Report
StandardAwards
AL MVP – OF Mike Trout Los Angeles Angels
NL MVP – OF Bryce Harper Washington Nationals
AL Cy Young – Chris Sale Chicago White Sox
NL Cy Young – Zack Greinke Los Angeles Dodgers
AL Rookie of the Year – SS Carlos Correa Houston Astros
NL Rookie of the Year – 3B Kris Bryant Chicago Cubs
AL Manager of the Year – Ned Yost Kansas City Royals
NL Manager of the Year – Clint Hurdle Pittsburgh Pirates
Report Cards Continue reading


