Behold Ladies and Gentlemen, the most wide open world of baseball we’ve seen since the early 90s. There is no true favorite in each league, and chaos will be all over the place. Even if the big market teams have responded to last year’s disasters in a big way, it’s not as predictable as you’d think, in theory. Who are the 12 teams entering the ring of survival!
New York Yankees (John Sterling’s Last Stand): The insufferable onslaught known as the Bleacher Creatures have come out of hibernation to consume the airwaves of the AL. It may sound that way especially with Aaron Judge having another MVP type season, and Juan Soto living up to the preseason hype, but there are a ton of questions surrounding the pinstripes. What’s strange this time is that starting pitching isn’t their biggest Achilles heel even if Luis Gil has slowed down since his hot start. (Gerrit Cole being healthy and kicking ass, WOOF!) It’s the backend of the bullpen, and hitting depth. Just when Clay Holmes was about to have his bounceback season, he completely developed caveman habits and forgot how to throw a baseball away from bats. Anthony Volpe and Jasson Dominguez are still a work in progress despite having lots of talent. And Aaron Boone getting in his own damn way time and again. Getting Jazz Chisholm and Giancarlo Stanton back to full strength should help out Judge and Soto in crunch time. If there’s any year for the Yanks to win Title #28 despite the lack of World Series experience, it’s this year. John Sterling’s retirement at season’s end looms large, and Yankee fans want to send him out the same way that the Phillies sent out Harry Kalas in 2008. If not, prepare yourselves for the angry riots on the streets of the Bronx.
Cleveland Guardians (The Curse Of Chief Wahoo At Stake): This year has seen Cleveland overcome nearly every single doubter that was thrown in their face. “They can’t win without Francona!” “They can’t win without Shane Beiber!” “Their offense doesn’t have enough power to compete with the big boys!” Well the Guardians have done just that. They’ve gone from a pitching rich team to a power hitting squad in less than a year. (And that’s despite how good their bullpen especially Emmanuel Clase has been this year) We all know how good Jose Ramirez and Steven Kwan have been this year, but the Naylor Brothers and Andres Gimenez can’t be ignored either. However the issue Cleveland has this year involves starting pitching. With how battered their rotation has been this year thanks to the Arms Race, they’re going to have to rely on their bats to take them far this year. However I won’t go for the narrative that they feasted on a cakewalk division because the AL Central other than the White Sox has balled out this year. (121 losses from South Side, GOOD GOD THAT’S BRUTAL!) The question is that can the Guardians be the last one standing out of that division? I think there’s a good chance of that happening even if they get mauled by the Yankees or a certain team that I’m about to mention…
Houston Astros (The Plan The Plan!): I knew it when I saw them in person last month when I went down to Texas. The Astros are once again a machine that stops for nothing. Don’t let that slow start deceive you from the fact that they’ve caught fire and have regained their arms and legs. For the most part. A 10 game deficit to Seattle, who cares, Houston smoked the Mariners and the Rangers after the All Star Break. Kyle Tucker, and Alex Bregman may have been injured at midseason, and the Jose Abreu experiment was a disaster but hey it helps when Altuve, Yordan, and Yainer Diaz have carried the load on offense. The same can be said about the pitching, just when Jose Urquidy and Ronel Blanco get injured, they’ll chuck out a fresh ace in Hunter Brown, as well as a strong newcomer in Yusei Kikuchi to mow down hitters. (So the price they paid to Toronto was worth it I guess) The biggest question I have for Houston is simple. Which bullpen will we see? The one that has Josh Hader and Ryan Pressly closing down the 8th and 9th innings, or the mystery box of said two firemen putting endless runners on base. The Astros may be underdogs on paper for the first time in a decade, but if there’s anything we’ve learned over the years it’s that you can never say they’re out of the picture. I know one fanbase that wants them dead on arrival. (Yankee fans want these guys crushed like a grape at first sight)
Baltimore Orioles (Who The Hell Are You?): I don’t know how to judge this team. One moment they look like they’re heading towards one of the most spectacular collapses in recent history, the next they wake up and unleash their full potential. The fact that the Orioles have made it this far despite how destroyed their starting rotation has been is incredible. (Not to mention most of the moves at the deadline backfired big time) Grayson Rodriguez is done for the year, Trevor Rogers was so bad that he got demoted to Triple A, and their bullpen is still one of the worst in baseball despite Seranthony Dominguez’s revival. (Hopefully Corbin Burnes’ slump in late August was a fluke, because they need him badly!) The good news for the O’s is that they’re getting healthy. Jordan Westburg, Ramon Urias, and Ryan Mountcastle are now healthy, as is Danny Coulombe. Even if Santander, Rutschman, and Henderson have cooled off, getting more talent back in the lineup for the postseason is huge. Baltimore is either getting blown out in the Wild Card Series or going deep, I have literally no other way to put this. So who are they up against in said Wild Card Series? (DRAMATIC MUSIC) oh god, Oh God, Oh God! OOOOOOOH GODDDDDDDDDDDD! (For the love of all things crabcakes Charm City cannot relive the Summer of 69 against Kansas City like they did New York)
Kansas City Royals (Mahomes Mountain): In one year, the Royals have gone from one of the biggest tanks in baseball, to an up and coming power with high upside. A lot of it is on the shoulders of Bobby Witt Jr becoming a superstar and a pitching staff that has been efficient all year. Cole Ragans, and Seth Lugo have been the leaders of the pack but how can you explain the revival of Michael Wacha (WACHA WACHA!) We thought this man had seen better days and now he’s back to what he was as a Cardinal. Even Vinnie Pasquentino has come back from the injured list. They may lack experience but Kansas City makes up for that in terms of hunger. Although the bullpen could hold them back if they aren’t careful. The last thing most of America needs is that town going on another deep playoff run. “Patrick Mahomes can’t have everything go his way!” they say. Well if we’re going to suffer through KC becoming the center of the sports world, at least we can say it’s not New York or LA. (I don’t think I can stomach them upsetting the Orioles in the Wild Card Series)
Detroit Tigers (Shades of Rocktober): When I said that the Tigers had a young core ready to make an impact, I didn’t think it would take them until mid-August to finally play up to their potential. Well now you see why. Not only has Detroit gotten its act together, they went on a historic tear throughout the AL Central to make the playoffs for the first time in a decade. When they decided not to trade Tarik Skubal at the deadline, we all thought they were crazy. The Tigers thought otherwise, Skubal in my opinion locked up a Cy Young Award with how he’s pitched down the stretch. (Shout out to Reece Olsen and Brant Hurter for turning in some clutch outings on the mound) The lineup has done the same. Riley Greene, a now healthy Kerry Carpenter, and a young buck in Colt Keith have led the turnaround both in terms of contact hitting, but also power hitting. I see a lot of the 06 Tigers in this current Detroit squad. A young aggressive bunch led by a World Series winning manager on a quest to prove their doubters wrong. Not to mention AJ Hinch gets the chance to face the empire he helped build right away in the Wild Card Series. If they knock off Houston, the memes will be borderline ridiculous.
Los Angeles Dodgers (A Unicorn Getting His Chance): The LA Machine is up and running again. Offensively it’s the typical feats like leading the National League in batting average and home runs. Shohei Ohtani in his first season in Dodger Blue put up a season for the ages. The first player to ever go 50/50. Hell he might be slotted into the closers role too if they are able to make a run to the World Series. The rest of their lineup led by Teoscar Hernandez, Freddie Freeman, and Mookie Betts are still raking as usual. But what about the rotation? No Gavin Stone, no Tyler Glasnow, no Clayton Kershaw. At least Yamamoto is back from the IL as well as Jack Flaherty. Walker Buehler this is the part where you overcome all of your setbacks and return to being the ace that you were in 2020. The same can be said about Evan Phillips and Michael Kopech. The Dodgers fate doesn’t rest on the shoulders of Dave Roberts’ managerial decisions, it rests on the pitching staff. If they don’t get rocked like the last two years, they will go far. If they do get rocked by let’s say San Diego, no one is going to feel bad for them.
Philadelphia Phillies (Operation Crack The Bell): For the first few months the Phillies were on pace to challenge the 2001 Mariners for the most regular season wins in history, but since the All Star Break its been trying times for Philly. Taijuan Walker has regressed big time, Cristopher Sanchez was sentenced back to reality after his hot start, and the offense especially Bryce Harper and Trea Turner have been very inconsistent. Even though this is the first time they’ve won the NL East in 13 years, the Phillies have much more uncertainty than the last two years in the grand scheme of things. From how I see it their biggest issue is themselves. Philly has the potential to run away with the National League Pennant, but that’s if they don’t play down to their competition. Well this time there could be rust due to not playing the Wild Card Series. Although if there is any indication, if their bats heat up like last year, Citizens Bank Park will be in a frenzy. As long as their new look bullpen isn’t a mess, they should make another run at a title. If they fall apart like the Eagles have recently, the Philly Media will be all over Thompson and Dombrowski.
Milwaukee Brewers (Never Say Die): When you consider that the Brewers have gone through so much change over the past year to the point where everyone questioned Mark Attanasio’s long term plan for the franchise, the fact that they won the division is incredible. This team lost both of their aces from last year, their closer was on IR for most of the year, the most successful manager in team history left for their older brother next door, and they lost the face of the franchise at midseason to a long term injury. Most teams would fold with all of that. Not Milwaukee. Rhys Hoskins and William Contreras are performing as advertised, as is Willy Adames, and oh yeah Jackson Chourio looks like a future cornerstone. Plus their pitching staff is still one of the best in the NL led by Freddy Peralta who now gets his chance to become the staff ace for the long run. On paper this is a weaker squad than in recent years, but the mental toughness has grown significantly. Even if they do end up getting sent home early, this will still be a solid year for the Brew Crew. Although they’d like to break a certain curse that’s held them back for a half a century wouldn’t they?
San Diego Padres (Expectations Extreme… AGAIN): Last year the Padres missed the playoffs due to the lack of clutch hitting and pitching. This year Slam Diego has turned that tide and used it to their advantage. Manny being Manny, and now with Tatis at full strength that 1-2 punch is back to what it was in 2020. Did I mention that Luis Arraez is doing his best Tony Gwynn impersonation in the batter’s box, 125 contact in MLB the Show for days. Even with their high powered offense featuring a revived Jurickson Profar, the pitching staff remains the headliners for the Friars. Dylan Cease and Michael King lead a rotation that is full of young and old hurlers who are both creative and effective. Josh Hader? Who needs him, especially when Robert Suarez has taken the mantle and ran with it despite a mediocre 2nd Half. On paper, this team has a great shot to make it to the Fall Classic, especially now that they are basically at full strength. However this is San Diego, and the gods haven’t been kind to them especially against LA other than 2022. If they can overcome that, oh boy will that be something.
Atlanta Braves (On Their Last Breath): Even if their championship window is far from over, the Braves right now have a squad that’s literally on its last pairs of arms and legs. Especially considering how many injuries they’ve had to endure. Acuna tore his ACL, AGAIN. Austin Riley is done for the year, Spencer Strider has been done since Day 1, and the same can be said about Albies and Fried as well. Matt Olsen, and Marcell Ozuna are dragging this team kicking and screaming on offense, and the same can be said about Chris Sale and Raisel Iglesias for the rotation and bullpen. (YoYo Sound) And now Sale is injured, just great. This won’t be like last year where the expectations were sky high, but more unrealistic. Especially since they are going up against a machine in the Wild Card Series. Do you seriously think the MLB is going to let you spoil Dodgers vs Padres? WELL THAT’S CUTE!
New York Mets (Grimace = Baby Shark and Rally Monkey): LOLMETS can be described this season in two ways. One, their awful April and May where nothing seemed to go right, and there were rumors of them shipping off Pete Alonso, and Starling Marte. Second, Grimace throws out the first pitch, Jose Iglesias puts out a top hit in a postgame concert, and they rip through most of their remaining schedule thanks to Francisco Lindor finally living up to the incredible hype given by the New York Media. Did I mention that the Polar Bear, Francisco Alvarez, and Mark Vientos have been key to this offensive revival? There’s that too. The biggest issue I see with the Mets is not themselves but pitching. Kodai Senga being possibly done for the year stings, but with the renaissance of Luis Severino, and Sean Manaea, it’s not that big of a concern, or so we think. Regardless of what they do this postseason, Mets fans will be pleased. In their minds, “if we shock the world, OMG, if not, we’ll be massive buyers in free agency in order to get us back to glory!” That sounds about right, especially with Daddy Steve in charge. PAUSE.
Considering that both World Series teams are not in the playoffs, I can safely say that everything is up for grabs, and I mean up for grabs. Who will I bless or curse this time?
Prediction: Ever since the alignment changed from 10 to 12 teams, I’ve noticed that the 6th seed in the NL has made the World Series both times, and if a certain 6th seed does that this year, it could be the end of the world as we know it for a lot of baseball fans. Luckily I’m not one of those people who believe in such delusions. However my prediction is going to be a matchup that everyone outside of those two fanbases will hate. Yankees vs Dodgers. I never thought I’d say this but we may very well be due for the return of the Classic World Series matchup. With how both teams have been playing in September other than the final week and considering that the MLB is likely to rig it for both of them. I could definitely see it. Although please don’t let this Fall Classic be Mets vs Royals like it was in 2015!
Bragging Rights Sports 