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Re: MLB Season 2016

CA Dreamin — Tue, 4 Apr 2017 14:41:05 GMT

Author: CA Dreamin

Posted: 04/04/2017 18:41

^^^You could've started an MLB 2017 thread, CGD. It isn't too late to cut and paste this (if you do, cut and paste my reply too.)

Anyway, the Cubs are still the team to beat in the NL despite losing Fowler and Chapman. Barring injury, they should get a full season from Kyle Schwarber who missed all of last year. So I think it'll even out. They'll have the best record in NL again.

However, my home city's team, the Dodgers, could be a more formidable opponent thanks to an even better pitching staff. Behind The Claw, they'll get plenty of quality starts behind Maeda, Hill, and Kazmir. And their bullpen is even stronger now by acquiring Sergio Romo (take that Giants). However, Dodgers hitting is a question mark. We'll see if their young hitters improve. If so, they're a legit World Series contender. If not, they may get shut down in the playoffs as they have the previous two years. Either way, go Dodgers!

The other two big-time contenders in the NL are the Nats and the Mets. It's an odd numbered year, so this is a year the Nats will choke and miss the playoffs, right? It's tough to predict that given how talented their team is. Even if they lose the NL East to the Mets, they should still be a wild card. I have to mention my team; the Phillies will be bad again. Their rotation is improved but they scored the fewest runs in baseball last year, and are mostly relying on young players and prospects to score for them. They could surprise but I think 75 wins seems about right.

The dark horse of the NL will be the Rockies. It's a make-or-break year for them. They got a young inexperienced rotation. But if they can put it together and pitch half as good as their lineup can score runs, watch out.

Yes CGD, the Mariners are ready to take the next step. The Rangers relied on clutch hitting and taking advantage of a weak division last year. That's not gonna work two years in a row. Rangers will drop to 3rd place, and the AL West will be a showdown between Seattle and Houston. I'm predicting whoever loses will be a wild card.

But the two best teams in the AL are Boston and Cleveland. The Tribe picked up Edwin Encarnacion, and their pitchers are back to strength after all the injuries. Mid to high 90s win total for them. Same with the Red Sox, who have one of the best three offenses in baseball. David Price? He won 16 games last year with an ERA of 4. That's how good their lineup is. They can provide enough run support for anybody, including newly acquired Chris Sale, who is as good if not better than Price. Even if Price's injury keeps him out the entire season, I still don't see them losing this division. If Price comes back healthy at some point this season, the Sox will be even better.

The dark horse of the AL is Detriot.

Re: MLB Season 2016

cestuneblague — Tue, 4 Apr 2017 10:37:07 GMT

Author: cestuneblague

Posted: 04/04/2017 14:37

WOOOOHOOOOO! Four-square rawhide is back again! I donno it should be a crazy year, see if the Cubs are a true new dynasty, the Giants of the late 2010s or act like a fifteen year old who just got out of their first kegger and just stumble around awkwardly. Anyways for predictions:

AL West

Mariners (wishful thinking times a thousnad, but they have a legitimate shot this year despite some spring training hiccups, with a brutal middle of the order and solid-enough pitching, and it's just time to get King Felix pitching in the playoffs and end baseball's greatest masochism tango that is being a mariners fan)
Rangers (seem like the Rangers of the 00s- strong lineup up-and-down but suspect pitching after Hamels, Darvis and the backend of the order. On paper they seem volaitle, but they've upended expectations before and while the season is likely to be a bit of a see-saw they're a legimitate contender for a pennant)
Astros (young, so much talent, again it could go either way. Depends a lot on how their pitching (especially the starting rotation) holds up, which is a likely achilees heel on any given night)
Angels (wasting the prime of Mike Trout for another mediocre season. Lackluster pitching and just not enough power around Trout to really be a contender, so they really have to either go the win-now route or seriously considering trading Trout if they don't want to ruin both theirs and his next few seasons).
Athletics (the terrible moves of the past few years are coming back to bite them in the ass, and not in the fun way. Weak order and barely passable pitching probalby signifies another last place finish)

AL Central

Cleveland (not if they clinch the pennant, but when. Possible before the all-star break. Really all they need is their pitching to stay healthy and it's pretty much a cake-walk to october, and possibly another world series berth.)
Detroit (pretty much second place by default. Aging roster that still has a lot of power, but pitching beyond Verlander (especially the bullpen) and statue-esque defense might make it tough to make a consistent run to the playoffs)
Kansas City (Yeah they're just not quite as good as they were during their world series runs, but they've been able to do a lot with a little in the last few seasons so they're still a distant dark-horse candidate for a wild card spot, but I wouldn't bet on it)
Minnesotta (they got some good young talent but just not enough arms to get people out. They'll be better than last year (you can't get much worse) but not remotely a playoff contender even in this weak division)
Chicago White Sox (they went all in the rebuilding, which was very wise in the long run, but it's not going to be fun to watch in 2017).

AL East

Toronto (the lineup isn't quite the murderer's row it's been the past two years but it's still quite potent, and now all of a sudden they have one of the best top-to-bottom starting rotations in the league. The favorites again, though they still have plenty of competition in the always brutal AL East).
Boston (the Price injury put a bit of a sting in what was expected to be an all-in year for another world series run, but if he does come back they def have a legitimate shot at a pennant, with a dynamite rotation and one of the strongest, most complete lineups they've had in a long time- though without Ortiz they don't really have a true clean-up guy anymore.)
Baltimore (they're a tough team to pin-down, and they seem very streaky and voliatle. They seem to have a lot of 1-2 and 12-10 games. But they always seem to be able to contend even when they look suspect on paper, so they have a good shot at making the playoffs again, especially if their young pitchers show some noticeable improvement)
New York (a year to get their youngsters experience, not really a legitimiate contending team, but knowing this is NYC they'll have to find a way to a winning record somehow)
Tampa Bay (weak-noodle lineup but potentially strong pitching, if their young arms bounce back from last year's regressions. Still a likely last-place team in a brutal division)

National League

NL West
Los Angeles (yep they have all the talent in the world with a lineup that's pretty much unchanged from last year's pennant team, but they just never seem toe be able to get over that NLCS hump. Can Kershaw just pitch every 2 games from now on?)
San Francisco (not an even year but I guess that streak was broke in 2016. Same story with the Giants- great pitching but little power in their lineup. Still should be contenders and win a lot of nerve-shattering one-run games)
Colorado (they seem to be getting there, with a lot of young talent finally emerging as reliable everyday players, so who knows it could be their year. As usual all depends if they can prevent fewer runs than the many they are sure to score)
Arizona (pretty much everything went wrong last year so some things have to go right in 2017... right? if their pitching bounces back they could see a greatly improved win-total, but it's never best to rely on pitching in the Arizona desert)
San Diego (could be 2003 Tigers bad. They got some talented prospects who might see some time this year, but with a rotation ace that's at best a fifth-starter on a good rotation and the rest of the pitching staff being only AAA- caliber, it's not going to be a fun year.)

NL Central
Chicago (complacency could be the only problem here. It's a loaded lineup and should be for awhile now. Early favorites for a repeat World Series berth but their brash-youth could end up humbling them in the end)
St Louis (they're always contender seemingly with any roster, but luck wasn't kind to them in the offseason and they are still dealing with the hacking fallout)
Pittsburgh (strong pitching and solid lineup, should be a fine contender for another wild card spot but aren't quite as strong as they were during their 2013-2015 playoff run)
Milwaulkee (they finally have talented young re-inforcements to an aging, struggling roster, so they'll likely have a decent record this year but contending is a long, long shot)
Cincinatti (re-building, but without much top-tier prospects. Gonna be like the late 90s-00s' reds for awhile.)

NL East
Washington (Again all the talent in the world and one of the best managers in the game... but they always seem to trip over their own shoelaces when they get to the big-time. If they can stop being their own worst enemy and Bryce Harper bounces back from a down year they are the Cubs most feared competition for the NL crown)
New York (Pitching, pitching, pitching. If their arms don't break down they have the only legimitate rotation that's capable of knocking down the brutal National and Cub's lineup. Im biased but my favorite for a NLCS upset)
Philedalphia (yeah it's a pretty big dropoff after those two. Philedalphia does seem to be on a rather fast re-buidling track and showed flashes of brilliance last year, so they could at least make things interesting but unlikely to hold a winning record this year, but they're getting there.)
Miami (For all the franchise has been through, this seems to be a stop-and-take-a-breather year for the Marlins)
Atlanta (Although the rotation looks a bit AARP-ish, they def have the best young talent in the game, though not all will see time this year in what is likely to be another season filled with honest losses)

And for World Series predictions, if Im making an educated guess Id go with pitching and put Indians-Mets in the world series, though if Im going with my heart obv Mariners-Mets. Cmon it can happen, maybe around the time of the next Wrens album.

Re: MLB Season 2016

jepstein — Fri, 18 Nov 2016 04:16:50 GMT

Author: jepstein

Posted: 11/18/2016 09:16

jepstein wrote:

I'm pretty sure I'm going to be as upset tomorrow when Mookie Betts wins AL MVP over Mike Trout as Kate Upton was today, but I'm not 100% sure

Somehow sportswriters have learned that you don't need to be on a playoff team to be valuable!

Re: MLB Season 2016

jepstein — Thu, 17 Nov 2016 00:43:17 GMT

Author: jepstein

Posted: 11/17/2016 05:43

I'm pretty sure I'm going to be as upset tomorrow when Mookie Betts wins AL MVP over Mike Trout as Kate Upton was today, but I'm not 100% sure

Re: MLB Season 2016

benpaco — Sat, 5 Nov 2016 18:12:24 GMT

Author: benpaco

Posted: 11/05/2016 22:12

Anti wrote:

I don't know why, but I have a strong feeling Cleveland is going to fuck up.

I can feel the irony already.

I didn't see the date on this at first and was impressed that you called it.

Yeah I'm sad the even year thing was broken for the Giants but it was never our year and Indians vs Cubs was about as classic of a series as possible.

Re: MLB Season 2016

Anti — Thu, 3 Nov 2016 11:25:30 GMT

Author: Anti

Posted: 11/03/2016 15:25

If I had to choose one team to lose the World Series to, it'd be the Cubs. Over a century without a championship, makes me feel a bit humble about ours. Can't say I'm that upset over our loss.

Re: MLB Season 2016

CA Dreamin — Thu, 3 Nov 2016 01:29:19 GMT

Author: CA Dreamin

Posted: 11/03/2016 05:29

And the Cubs have won it!

Re: MLB Season 2016

Anti — Wed, 19 Oct 2016 21:58:44 GMT

Author: Anti

Posted: 10/20/2016 01:58

Thank God I was wrong...

WORLD SERIES BOUND!!!! BELIEVELAND IS THE PLACE TO BE!!!!!

Re: MLB Season 2016

Anti — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 22:50:18 GMT

Author: Anti

Posted: 10/19/2016 02:50

I don't know why, but I have a strong feeling Cleveland is going to fuck up.

I can feel the irony already.

Re: MLB Season 2016

jepstein — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 20:41:41 GMT

Author: jepstein

Posted: 10/19/2016 00:41

We didn't get swept!

Re: MLB Season 2016

CA Dreamin — Fri, 7 Oct 2016 13:26:43 GMT

Author: CA Dreamin

Posted: 10/07/2016 17:26

I didn't realize this thread existed until now. It's time for Dodger Baseball!

Re: MLB Season 2016

cestuneblague — Fri, 7 Oct 2016 13:01:04 GMT

Author: cestuneblague

Posted: 10/07/2016 17:01

and apparently the Mariners just refuse to read how to properly close a deal... tsk tsk

Maybe next year. Mets are gone too after getting Bumgarner'd so pretty much whoever wins is fine with me.

Re: MLB Season 2016

junodog4 — Fri, 7 Oct 2016 11:40:52 GMT

Author: junodog4

Posted: 10/07/2016 15:40

Uh oh... Jays' bats have woken up. 😁

Re: MLB Season 2016

benpaco — Wed, 5 Oct 2016 23:45:05 GMT

Author: benpaco

Posted: 10/06/2016 03:45

IT JUST STARTED TO FEEL LIKE AN EVEN YEAR

Re: MLB Season 2016

cestuneblague — Tue, 31 May 2016 19:27:25 GMT

Author: cestuneblague

Posted: 05/31/2016 23:27

Being a Mariners fan is always akin to medieval torture. We're in first place, then we get swept by the Twins and now it seems like we're completley broken and the season is loss for good, then we win a couple of games and score 16 freakin' runs. At Safeco Field. And still only a half-game out of first. It's probably the most thankless job in sports but being a Mariners fan is never dull.

But I guess beyond how mediocre Houston and Arizona have been, how freaking awful (except against Seattle) the Twins have been and Baltimore and Philedalphia (at least to this point) overachieving, this season all the expected contenders have seemed to come out on top. Wonder what might change in the next few months.

Re: MLB Season 2016

benpaco — Tue, 31 May 2016 17:33:04 GMT

Author: benpaco

Posted: 05/31/2016 21:33

I know it's a bit early but with the first wave of all star votes getting released, would be curious to see everyone's picks.

Here's my ballot (with pitcher guessses but obv those don't really count)

AL
1B Cabrera
2B Altuve
SS Bogaerts
3B Machado (though honestly Valencia and Castellanos have been having insane seasons as well)
C Perez
DH Ortiz
OF Bradley
OF Trout
OF Trumbo (Reddick and Desmond deserve honorable mentions but I feel like NL is way more stacked, and for as good as Cain and Bautista have been I feel like they'd mostly just get it cuz name recognition)
SP Sale
SP Quintana
SP Hill
SP Zimmerman
SP Salazar
RP Davis
RP Britton
RP Kimbrel

NL
1B Belt
2B Murphy
SS Cozart
3B Arenado
C Posey
OF Braun
OF Ozuna
OF Pence (this is a super stacked one though, Marte, Piscotty, Herrera, Fowler, Polanco, CarGon, Cespedes, Duvall, Harper, just insane year for outfielders)
SP Kershaw
SP Arrieta
SP Syndergaard
SP Bumgarner
SP Tehran (though again, REALLY stacked, Nola, Lackey, Hendricks, Cueto, Hammel, Lester, Pomeranz, Cole, Fernandez, Samardzija, Scherzer, Velasquez, Hellickson, and Chatwood all at least deserve mentions here)
RP Jansen
RP Familia
RP Rodney (obviosuly the least tested here, but the 19 innings of shutout ball with 10 saves on a 20 win team is pretty impressive)

Re: MLB Season 2016

Anonymous — Sat, 7 May 2016 12:30:24 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 05/07/2016 16:30

LoneStarRebel wrote:

So there is this fund for a bench in Central Park in honor of David Ortiz:
http://www.centralparknyc.org/about/about-cpc/womens-committee/benchmark.html?teamID=1621
Crazy that people are actually giving money for that.

Update - Bench goal reached. There will be a bench in Central Park bearing a plaque with the name of David Ortiz.

Re: MLB Season 2016

Romanelli — Fri, 6 May 2016 19:00:11 GMT

Author: Romanelli

Posted: 05/06/2016 23:00

The only one of the players mentioned who belongs in the same converastion as Arenado defensively is Machado. I say Arenado is better simply because I've seen more of him, which I know is not at all scientific reasoning. I do know a lot of Machado, and he is a very fine defensive player.

Arenado, btw, hit more HR on the road last year than at home, so going the way of lumping him as one of the "products of Coors" (I hate that phrase) isn't quite accurate. Machado hit more at home...like most players do. And before we get into the whole "Coors Field" thing...again...(yes. It's a hitters park. But there are many of them in baseball) The Rockies hit 18 more HR at home than on the road in 2015. The Orioles hit 39 more at home than on the road.

And yeah...the Rockies do have one of the best home field advantages in sports. Kind of. Every team has the advantage of playing almost all of their games at basically the same altitude, except for the 2-11 games they go to Denver for. It's a quick adjustment, and they get to go back to normal play quickly. The Rockies have it different than any other team. Yes, they play 81 games at altitude, but they also have to play 81 games at sea level, so Rockies hitters (and pitchers) have to be always adjusting for altitude. So you are going to see more dramatic splits from Colorado players. But I believe that those splits should not take away from how good those players are perceived to be.

Re: MLB Season 2016

benpaco — Fri, 6 May 2016 15:50:56 GMT

Author: benpaco

Posted: 05/06/2016 19:50

Romanelli wrote:

RockyRaccoon wrote:

Romanelli wrote:

Arenado is, by far, the best third baseman I have ever seen. Better than Brooks Robinson.

whoa there that's some blasphemy you're spouting

Nope. Arenado is that good. He's better than Machado, and he's better than Brooks. I know I have a soft spot for him, and I watch him play every day...but he really is that good. I grew up idolizing Brooks Robinson. This guy is better.

But hey...here's a video of just his 2015 highlights. Not included are his 42 HR and 130 RBI.

Link

Wright at his height was about this good I feel like, and for as much as I'm not fans of them as people Jones and ARod definitely ay the least had more years of incredible.

Re: MLB Season 2016

RockyRaccoon — Fri, 6 May 2016 10:04:24 GMT

Author: RockyRaccoon

Posted: 05/06/2016 14:04

meccalecca wrote:

RockyRaccoon wrote:

Don't get me wrong, Arenado is awesome, but I'd put Manny ahead of him personally.

As an outsider without the home team favoritism, I think the two are pretty interchangeable. I'd put both in the top 10 position players in baseball, and most likely top 5. I think both are totally elite defenders. Two of the best the game has seen. Trying to pick who's better is like splitting hairs

I'd agree with that, it's definitely close