Ty's Preview of the 2017 MLB Season

In response to RD's MLB preview, I have my own that I will do today. Now, as I say a lot, RD is the resident MLB expert here at SeedSing. I know enough, but my interest and expertise lies more so in football and basketball, both college and pros. RD knows his baseball. I loved playing baseball, but watching it, no way. I do not get involved until the playoffs, and unless the Cardinals are in, I could care less. I watched last year because it was historic, but for the most part, baseball season comes and goes with a very soft whimper for me. My NBA playoff preview coming in about 10 days will be way more in depth than my MLB preview, but I still enjoy doing these preseason looks ahead. I will say, I was right all year long about the Cubs last year too. I know that I'm not alone in that fact, but still, I picked them all year long, and they won it all. So, maybe I know more than I think I actually do. Anyway, lets get to it.

I'll start with the American League first. In the AL East pretty much everyone is picking Boston, and so am I. They added Chris Sale to an already loaded pitching staff. They have a great lineup as well that is also very young and has many good years ahead of them. They will miss David Ortiz, but not as much as some think. I know RD picked the Yankees, but their starting rotation is trash and I'm not as high on their lineup. The Orioles are who they will always be under Buck Showalter. They will compete and blow it in big games. Manny Macahdo is awesome though. Toronto is fine, but they have very average starting pitching and their lineup gets older every year. Tampa is back to being a bottom feeder. Boston all the way in the East.

The AL Central will be absolutely dominated by the Indians. They are the best team by a mile in the division, and I look for them to win a lot of games this year. I do not think 100 is out of the question. They have a great pitching staff, the best bullpen in baseball and a very awesome small ball lineup. The rest of the Central is average. Detroit still has Justin Verlander and Miguel Cabrera, but they aren't the horses they were 3 and 4 years ago. Minnesota and the White Sox are so young and inexperienced, but they both could be fun to watch. They are like the Timberwolves of MLB. The Royals are kind of confounding to me. They have some good pitching, they lost Ventura to a tragic death this offseason though. Maybe that will add to how they play this year. They also have a good lineup and are only one year removed from being in the World Series, and winning it. I think they will play better this year, but they aren't as good as the Indians.

The AL West is a 2 team race. I know RD called the Mariners always overrated, but I am fully on their bandwagon. They have a great pitching staff and an awesome lineup led by Robinson Cano. I think this is the year they can finally push through and live up to very high expectations. The team that may have something to say about that is the Astros. They took a little slide back last year, but that team is still young, and those young guys now have a full year under their belts and I think that will greatly benefit them. I have seen some websites claim the Angels are back, I don't think so. Mike Trout is a once in a generation talent, but when he's surrounded by guys well past their prime it doesn't matter. They'll be lucky to reach .500. Texas is the definition of an overachiever, but this year it won't matter because the Astros and Mariners are much better than them. All that needs to be said about the A's is that they stink. I'm picking the Mariners to finally win this division.

So, we have Boston, Cleveland and Seattle as my division winners in the AL. My 2 Wild Card teams will be Houston and Detroit.

Now, the National League.

The NL East is Washington, then everyone else. The Nationals are loaded. Bryce Harper is going to have a monster year. They are a lot like the Mariners, but with better, younger players. The Mets have a great rotation, but they lack any type of threat in their lineup and I just don't believe in them. I know RD said the Braves will be a surprise team, but I think that his love for Brandon Phillips (ed note: Dat Dude BP for life) has clouded how bad this team truly is. The Braves are rebuilding and I do not think they are ready to threaten any team in their division. The Phillies are worse off than the Braves. They are just as bad as the A's. Miami has talent, they too lost a pitcher due to a horrific accident. They have a monster hitter in Stanton, and Ichiro is still plugging away, but this team is a few players away from truly competing. They will be at least .500, but no threat to the Nationals. The Nationals are the clear cut favorites in the East.

The NL Central is much like the East. The Cubs are the best team by a whole lot. They did lose a few players this offseason, but they still have the best starting rotation in baseball and a killer lineup. They also get Kyle Schwarber back for a full year too. And the signing of Wade Davis was tremendous for their bullpen. The Cardinals will always be around an 85 win team, but they aren't ready to compete with the Cubs yet. I love the Dexter Fowler signing. He is my immediate favorite baseball player. He adds much needed speed to this lineup. Other than Fowler and Molina, this lineup is filled with young guys and guys past their prime. Their rotation is average as well. I love Carlos Martinez, but Wainwright is old, Wacha has never found his form from a few years ago and Lance Lynn is unreliable and oft injured. The Pirates stumbled last year, and who knows what will happen with Andrew McCutcheon. I think the Pirates would be best suited trading him to a contender, and if they do that, they will stink. If they keep McCutcheon, they will be a .500 team. The Brewers are better than last year, but not by much. They have no real pitching and when Ryan Braun is your offense, ouch. The Reds, sorry RD, are really, really bad. They will be lucky to win 60 games this year. The Cubs will walk with this division.

The NL West has the next 2 best teams in baseball behind the Cubs and Indians in the Giants and Dodgers. The Dodgers have a great rotation, led by Clayton Kershaw, who finally looked good in the playoffs last year, and they have an awesome lineup. They also have money coming out of their ears to spend on whoever they choose to go after. The Giants play baseball the way it is meant to be played. They small ball you to death and out pitch you all the time. They are a really, really good baseball team. Bruce Bochy is an incredibly underrated coach, especially for a guy that is a multiple World Series champ. San Diego and Colorado stink. The Padres are a mess and the front office looks like it has no clue how to run a team. The Rockies have some decent guys, and I have heard about some stud pitcher they have, but they are still a ways away from competing. They will play in a lot of 13-10 games that they will get beat in. The Diamondbacks, and more importantly, Zack Greinke, look lost. They have a good lineup on paper, and Greinke should be an ace, but they looked dreadful last year. I wonder if they just don't have what it takes to compete. We will have to see. With all that being said, I'll take the Giants to win a close race with the Dodgers in the West.

So that leaves us with the Nationals, Cubs and Giants as my division winners. My 2 Wild Cards are Saint Louis and Los Angeles.

Here is how the playoffs will shake out. The ALCS will feature Cleveland taking on Boston, and once again, I see Terry Francona sticking it to his old team and sweeping them out of the playoffs on his way to a second straight World Series appearance. They remind so much of a better version of the Royals a few years back that went to 2 straight World Series. In the NLCS, the Nationals, despite Dusty Baker, will take down the Cubs. It is just too hard to repeat these days. Look at the Warriors last year in the NBA Finals. But, this is where the comparison for the Indians and Royals stops for me. Whereas the Royals won in their second attempt, I think the Nationals win beat the Indians in a very hard fought 7 game series. It won't top last year, there is nothing that literally could top last year, but it will still be very well played. The Nationals will be your 2017 World champs.

As far as MVP and things of that nature go, I will pick Mike Trout in the AL because no one is a better baseball player than him anywhere, and Bryce Harper, who will have a humongous bounce back year, in the NL. They are the 2 best players, Mike Trout is better, and they will continue to win MVP awards. My coaches of the year will be Terry Francona in the AL and Dusty Baker in the NL. The Cy Young awards will go to Clayton Kershaw in the NL and Chris Sale in the AL. When it's this easy to pick award winners, these certain people must be doing something right, right?

So there you have it, my 2017 MLB preview. Let's see if I'm as right this year as I was last year. And I ask RD one more time, the Atlanta Braves? Really (ed note: just watch)?

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is like every other spoiled Cardinals fan and thinks 85 wins is a disappointing season. Cincinnati would be dancing in the street if the Reds won 85 games.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

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The SeedSing 2017 Major League Baseball Preview

Baseball season is once again upon us. No more football or college basketball to distract us. Hockey and the NBA are getting ready for their postseasons. Baseball's half year hold on us begins this week. We are talking baseball, competitive baseball. What will the season hold? Will the Chicago Cubs break their zero years curse and finally win it all again? Can the Indians get back to the Fall Classic and get that last damn out to end their own title misery? How will the 2017 Major League Baseball season play out? Here at SeedSing we have all the answers to your specific questions, and a few predictions. Get your bets ready.

Who is going to replace Boston as the AL East champs?

The Eastern division of the American League is going to feature the best races of the entire season. Most of the other divisions have a clear leader, not the AL East. Four of the five teams, if not all five, have the potential to end 2017 with 81 or more wins. It is going to be tough to come out on top in the AL East.

The Boston Red Sox, last year's division winners, added the best available veteran pitcher of the off season when they signed Chris Sale. Last year the Red Sox brought in David Price, the best available veteran pitcher of 2015. The Boston pitching staff will be one of the best in the MLB, and their lineup is still one of the deepest in all of baseball.

Unfortunately, superstar David Ortiz retired and will not be there to provide some dramatic 9th inning wins for the Red Sox this year. Ace pitcher Price is also battling injury, and has not been that great in the playoffs. The Red Sox will make the playoffs, they depth will carry them, but they will not be champions.

The AL East will return to the New York Yankees. The Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays will put up a fight, but the Yankees will turn them all away. The Bronx Bombers overachieved last year, and they will make the next step in 2017. Their starting pitching is not that good, but the bullpen and lineup are some of the best in the majors. The Yankees will fix the pitching and win the AL east with about 90 wins.

Will there be any other competitive divisions in baseball this year?

Only the NL West, and that is just a two team race.

The AL Central will easily be won by the Cleveland Indians again.

The AL West is going to be a runaway for the Houston Astros. They will get back to what them great in 2014, and no one will catch them. Not even the perennially overrated Seattle Mariners and the perennially overachieving Texas Rangers.

The NL East is going to be won by the Washington Nationals, with the New York Mets 20 games behind.

The NL Central will be dominated by the Chicago Cubs, more on them in a bit.

The NL West will have an interesting race between the San Francisco Giants and LA Dodgers. The Dodgers have all the money in the world, and still the best pitcher in baseball with Clayton Kershaw. The Giants have a battle tested veteran team, the best manager in baseball, and the second best pitcher in the game with Madison Bumgarner. The Giants will win a very close AL West division race.

With only one, or two, great division races this year, what is there to look forward to?

The wildcard races are going to be crazy, and one or more will need an extra game to determine the winners.

The NL is loaded with great teams. The Mets, Cardinals, Pirates, Marlins, Braves, and Diamondbacks all have a chance to win over 85 games and take one of the two wildcard spots. With the right trade, and a bit of luck, any of these squads could be a spoiler to the big dogs in the senior circuit.

The AL is not as competitive, but the teams in AL East along with the Royals (one year removed from winning the World Series), the Tigers, and the Rangers have chance to play October baseball. Once you get in the playoffs, who knows what will happen. The Wild Card races will make the regualr season worth watching all the way to the last game.

What teams have absolutely no hope in 2017?

The NL may have the best teams, but it also has the worst.

The Cincinnati Reds need to rebuild. Joey Votto is still great, and Billy Hamilton is fast, but the Reds have nothing else. Their best players not named Votto, who are not great to begin with, are injured. The Reds are going to provide easy wins for the NL Central, and the rest of their opponents, in 2017.

The San Diego Padres may be even worse than the Reds. There is not a Joey Votto to keep the Padres in the national conversation. San Diego doesn't even have interesting assets to trade. They, along with the Reds, will lose over 100 games. 

Speaking of bad teams, will Joey Votto and Mike Trout be able to escape their terrible situations?

No

The Angles will not be as bad as the Reds, but Mike Trout will be as stuck as Joey Votto will be. These players are incredible talents, and it would require something ridiculous for their respective teams to give these great players away. Plus, Joey Votto makes a whole lot of money. It seems like Votto, the Ted Williams of our generation, and Trout, the Mickey Mantle, will be stuck with sub .500 teams in 2017.

What will be the biggest surprises of 2017?

The Atlanta Braves will be a lot better than most people expect. The team ended 2016 with a bunch of momentum. The rebuilding effort seems to be ready for the next step. The Braves also added some veteran leadership by acquiring second baseman Brandon Phillips from the Reds. Do not be surprised if the Braves are in Wild Card contention in late September.

The Royals and the Pirates are going to be sneaky good in 2017. Both teams suffered through big injuries in 2016. With healthy squads, Kansas City and Pittsburgh will return to the playoffs.

The St. Louis Cardinals will win close to 100 games, but the Cubs will win over 110 games in 2017. The Cubs may even break the MLB record for wins. They are really good.

So, What will the 2017 MLB Playoffs look like?

After 162, or 163, games, the division winners and wild cards will look like this.

                  AL East -           New York Yankees      NL East -           Washington Nationals

                  AL Central -      Cleveland Indians        NL Central -      Chicago Cubs

                  AL West -          Houston Astros           NL West -          San Francisco Giants

                  AL Wild Cards - Kansas City Royals     NL Wild Cards - St. Louis Cardinals

                                              Boston Red Sox                                    Pittsburgh Pirates 

The ALCS will come down to a Cleveland Indians team looking for redemption, and a New York Yankee squad looking to return to dominance. Unfortunately for the Baby Bombers, Terry Francona and the Tribe are just way too loaded. Cleveland will win the ALCS in 5 games.

The NL playoffs will see an epic upset when the St. Louis Cardinals take down their hated rivals the Chicago Cubs in an incredible Divisional Playoff 5 game series. This will pit the Cards against the Washington Nationals, and resurgent NL MVP Bryce Harper, in the NLCS. In an anticlimactic battle, Dusty Baker's Nationals will win the NL Pennant in a four game sweep.

In a world where the Cubs win a championship, Clemson beats Alabama, the Cavaliers beat the Warriors, Mississippi State beats UConn, and the Atlanta Falcons give up a 25 point lead to the New England Patriots, Dusty Baker will win a few playoff series and get the Washington Nationals to the World Series. The fairy tale will end when Dusty's boys face the better manager in Terry Francona, and the better team in the Cleveland Indians. The Tribe will have their redemption and win the World Series in 5 games. Another curse broken.

Enjoy the 2017 Major League Baseball season.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He copied and pasted his playoff teams from last year and only changed two names. Is MLB becoming as predictable as the NBA?  Come tell us. 

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

The SeedSing 2016 Year in Pop Culture: The Best, and Worst, in Sports

Continuing my best of lists of 2016 today, I'm going to count down the top 5 sports moments of the year. This has been a year of some big, monumental sports moments. Lots of stuff has happened in 2016 in major professional sports. Many "curses" were broke, some big names traded teams, there was some incredible displays of athleticism and so much more. Enough chat, lets get to it.

At number 5, I have the 2016 NBA dunk contest during All Star weekend. The dunk contest had been in the toilet for over a decade plus, until this year. The last great dunk contest I remember was when Vince Carter was with the Raptors and did some of the most impressive dunks I had ever seen live. I'm a little too young to remember when Jordan dunked from the foul line, or when Dominique Wilkins should have beaten Jordan in a great dunk contest. I was not alive when Dr. J was showing the world how athletic basketball players can be at the professional level. I barely remember Spud Webb winning, but I have seen the highlight tape a thousand times. But, after the Vince Carter show, I tuned in to every dunk contest from there on out, and they were all terrible. There were too many missed dunks. It is supposed to be a "side show" of sorts, but some contests took that concept way too far. The best players, and dunkers for that matter, were not participating. I did not, and still don't, think that Blake Griffin's dunk over the front of a car was all that impressive. It was just flat out bad, and boring. Then, last year, both Zach Lavine and Aaron Gordon showed up. The contest wasn't great in 2015, but Lavine and Gordon were. Then, this year, they went to a whole new level. It was a total, anything you can do, I can do better, contest. Gordon would jump over a mascot, put the ball under his legs and do a reverse jam. To top that, Lavine took off from the foul line, put the ball between his legs and jammed it with ease. It was a thing of beauty to watch in real time. I wrote about this dunk contest earlier this year, claiming that it was back, and I cannot stop thinking about how truly awesome, and athletic it was. I know that this is a total niche thing for a rabid NBA fan like myself, but there is no doubt in my mind that the 2016 dunk contest is easily one of the top 5 sports moments of the year.

At number 4, I have the epic ass whoopings that both, Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps put on their opponents in the Rio Olympics. They were astounding to watch. Look, I do not care about swimming, unless Michael Phelps and the Olympics are involved. When Phelps is competing, I want to watch. I even named him my top athlete of the 21st century. He is undeniably the greatest champion in pro sports. He competes at the highest level sport, and dominates. When he wins, because he pretty much always does, it is a shock if he doesn't blow out his competition, and we are talking about Olympians here. These are the best of the best in the whole world, and Phelps dominates them all. The same can be said for Usain Bolt. He is the greatest sprinter ever. What he has/is doing in sprinting, at his age, is beyond incredible. This guy doesn't only win, but he blows away his competition, and he does it in style. This year, when he looked back at his opponents in one of his final races, with a smile on his face, shows you how truly dominant he is. He does wonders on a track. If he is not on your relay team, forget about winning gold, you are going for silver. Same thing if it is a solo race, and Bolt is there. He is going to win, and he is going to beat your ass while doing it. These are easily the 2 best Olympians of my lifetime, and maybe of all time, and they showed that ten fold in Rio this year.

At number 3, I have Kevin Durant signing with the Golden State Warriors this offseason. When he did that, it shifted the entire balance of the NBA. Before, when he was still in OKC, there were 4, possibly 5 teams, that had a realistic chance at winning the title. But, when KD decided on July 4th that he was going to Golden State, that trimmed an already small list from 5 to 2. But, honestly, if the Warriors do not win the title this year, it will be a failed season. When KD signed, the Warriors immediately had the greatest spacing ever. They can put him, Curry and Thompson on the floor, and good luck guarding that. People said, well they lost all their rebounders and rim protectors to get him. So what, they got Kevin freaking Durant! And, they still have Draymond Green, who can rebound and defend 4 and 5's with relative ease, even though he is maybe 6'8. Big deal that they lost Andrew Bogut, Harrison Barnes and Mareese Speights, they got KD. They also got Zaza Pachulia and David West, so they did not really lose all that much. Look, as I write this, the Warriors are far and away the best team in the NBA, and they haven't completely figured out how to play together. Some may say, well the Cavs just beat them on Christmas, but the Cavs gave that game their best effort, still needed help from the refs, have Steph go ice cold, and they still needed a last second shot from Irving to win. This Warriors team is the greatest collection of shooters that I have ever seen. It is cute when people say that the Clippers, Spurs and Cavs can beat this team, but if they play to their full potential, the Warriors should breeze to a title this year, and that all happened when KD signed that contract.

At number 2, I have the aforementioned Cavs coming back, down 3-1 to the Warriors, to win the NBA title. LeBron brought a championship back to Cleveland after a 60 plus year drought. Sure, they needed help from the refs, and for Curry and Thompson to play very average basketball, but what that team, and more importantly, what LeBron and Kyrie Irving did in games 5, 6 and 7, was incredible. They both played perfect basketball. Even guys like JR Smith and Kevin Love showed up in big moments. Smith hit some humongous, crucial threes. Kevin Love turned into a rebounding machine, and played some great help defense on a very important possession in a pivotal moment of game 7 against Curry. This comeback was amazing. Kyrie Irving was unconscious and unstoppable on offense and LeBron proved, that when he turns it on, he is unstoppable and the best player by a mile in the NBA. This was a big, big deal, and it only took LeBron 2 years to accomplish this lifelong goal. What a moment for the Cavs and the city of Cleveland.

But, all this stuff pales in comparison to what happened in the MLB this year. There is no sports moment, no matter what people may say, bigger than the Cubs winning the 2016 World Series. They ended a 108 year drought. It took them extra innings, a coach trying to blow the game, but a team of young guys that would not let this team lose. There was even a rain delay in that epic game 7, adding more historical meaning to one of the greatest baseball games ever played. I am not the biggest baseball fan in the world, but even I tuned in, after the 6th inning, to watch this game. But, the Cubs, much like the Cavs, had to come back from a 3-1 deficit. This was so much bigger than the Cavs deficit though for the Cubs. The Cubs were the best team, bar none, in the MLB. The Cavs were expected to lose, but the Cubs, they were the odds-on favorites all year to win the World Series. They had to have an epic comeback to fulfill their potential, and they did it. And, even though I'm a lifelong Cardinals fan, it was not that hard to root for the Cubs this year. They have a likeable team. This will change in a year or two, because this Cubs team is going to be great for a long time, but this year, they were kind of hard to root against. The Cubs ending a 108 year drought is, far and away, the biggest sports moments this year, and will be for quite some time. It was epic and it was, as much as it pains me to write this, kind of cool to see them win. Good for you Cubs.

As far as the worst moments in sports this year, all the abuse and violence that pro athletes are being accused, and convicted of, is just dreadful. These guys, and girls, are deplorable human beings that think it is okay to bully and put hands on people that are weaker and smaller than them. Be it Adrian Peterson, Richie Incognito, the Giants douchebag kicker, Hope Solo, anyone that has done it before and continues to do it now, makes me hate watching sports news because this domestic abuse is happening way too much, and it is getting scary. These people need help. They need to be suspended, or even better, kicked out of their pro leagues to teach them some kind of lesson. It is even happening at the college level. Look no further than what happened at Baylor this year. All this stuff is gross, disturbing and upsetting. It is becoming way too common, and it needs to stop now. It makes me upset, and makes me dislike people like Roger Goodell and Mark Emmert, the head of the NCAA, that let these things happen all the time with little to no punishment, more than I already do. Stop the hate and the violence.

That's it for today, come back for my final best of 2016 list tomorrow.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. His number one sports moment for 2017 will be when Urban Meyer leaves Ohio State because he has a health issue named Jim Harbaugh. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

The MLB Awards Give the Cubs No Respect

Maybe that World Series trophy will make up for the lack of any other awards.

With the MLB handing out their yearly awards, I have to say that I am shocked by the minuscule amount the Cubs players have won. Now, that is not to say that the people who won certain awards were not deserving, but the fact that Kris Bryant, who did win the NL MVP, is the only big winner is an absolute shock to me. So, I decided that I wanted to look deeper into this, and put my feelings on the page today.

Let's first look at the manager of the year awards. Terry Francona, in the AL, was a home run pick. He led a very undermanned Indians team to one win away from being the champs. They had a great pitching staff, but casual baseball fans, such as myself, can you name more than one positional player? I know Coco Crisp, because he has a kick ass name, and Rajai Davis, but that is it, and with Davis, I only knew him after he blasted that home run in game 7. Francona did an incredible job. That was a much deserved win for him.

But, the fact that Joe Maddon did not win NL manager of the year is ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, Dave Roberts did an incredible job in LA, especially when Kershaw went down for a long stretch of time, but Maddon was the manager of the best team in baseball all year long. The Cubs won 103 regular season games, by far the most in the majors. The Cubs were virtually unstoppable all season long. They never really had any dips throughout a very long regular season. They were consistently dominant. I know people will say that he made some weird choices in the playoffs and world series, but the manager of the year is a regular season award, and no one was better than Maddon. He did an exceptional job. I was floored when I saw that he did not win the award. I'm sure he doesn't care, he helped break a 108 year curse and won a ring, but he was the best manager, by a wide margin, all season long in all of the major leagues.

Then, when the Cy Young was awarded, I did not agree with either choices. First off, the only reason Rick Porcello won was because he plays for the Red Sox. Yeah, he had a decent record, but so did Justin Verlander, and Verlander does not have the offense that Porcello has. Porcello could give up 4, 5 or 6 runs sometimes, but his offense would score 5, 6 or 7 runs in those games for him. The Red Sox offense is light years better than Detroit's. Verlander would be lucky if he got 2 or 3 runs in support. The only real threat the Tigers have on offense is Miguel Cabrera, who is a future hall of famer, but that is it. Verlander, especially after the all star break, was lights out. Sure, he didn't have the wins, but he was a much, much better pitcher all season long than Porcello. The media bias for east coast teams was on full display here. Go read Kate Upton's tweet about this, not only because it is hilarious, but because it is true (NSFW).

Then, in the NL, I would have given the Cy Young to either Kyle Hendricks or Jon Lester before I even considered Max Scherzer. Yeah, Scherzer gets a lot of strike outs, and threw a no hitter this year I think, but come on, both Lester and Hendricks had much better seasons, in my opinion. Lester was completely locked in this year and pitched great. I picked him to win the Cy Young in my postseason preview. I thought he had the best season of any left hander in all of baseball. Then, we have Kyle Hendricks. This guy was virtually unhittable all season long. He is the NL's version of Corey Kluber. He is an unknown, but he is great. He is so quiet in his dominance. He is like the new age Greg Maddux, except Hendricks can bring some heat. The more I think about it, I think Hendricks should be the Cy Young. But, since they did not have the stats that Scherzer had, i.e., strike outs, wins, etc., the people who vote on this award deemed Scherzer the winner.

I feel like the voters decided that since the Cubs won the world series, they didn't need any award winners. I couldn't disagree more. Award these guys for their accomplishments. The only award I feel like the voters got right was the MVP, in both leagues.

Mike Trout is the best player in all of baseball. It is not his fault that the Angels stink. He goes out and competes everyday, and puts up big numbers and is the unequivocal leader of that team. I hope the Angels get better, or trade him away, so he gets to play some meaningful baseball before his prime is over. Then in the NL, I think the right guy won, in Kris Bryant. I could argue cases for guys like Andrew McCutcheon, who I think is one of the best players in all of baseball, or even Bryant's teammate, Dexter Fowler, but Bryant is as deserving as either of these guys. He had a great year, followed by a great rookie year. Honestly, you could pick almost anyone from the Cubs as MVP, and I wouldn't have batted an eye. But, the fact that Bryant is the only Cub bringing home a major award, I know that Jason Heyward won a Gold Glove, and I'm sure some other guys won Gold Gloves, but the big awards are manager of the year, coach of the year and MVP, and only one Cubs player brought home one of those awards is baffling to me.

Oh well, I guess this is why I'm not a voter, yet,  but I would have had the Cubs sweeping all of these major awards, and it is widely known that I am not a Cubs fan. But, I cannot deny the greatness that was the Cubs this season, and they deserved more than just the MVP. I know they won the World Series, but they also should have the MVP, which they do, and the Cy Young and Manager of the Year award as well. That is just my opinion.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He once tweeted about being screwed over. The damn pizza place gave him sausage, not Italian sausage. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

It has Now Been One Day Since the Chicago Cubs Last Won the World Series

The last one standing, finally.

What an epic, epic game last night. Even I, an admitted outsider baseball fan, was swept up in the final 4 innings of that game last night. I waited out that short rain delay, even though I was very sleepy, just so I could finish that game. This has been the year of teams breaking long droughts, I won't say curse because curses aren't real. Also, good for me, because one of my predictions actually came to fruition. I know it wasn't all that far fetched to pick the best team in the MLB to win the title, but after the Warriors, Panthers and Oklahoma Sooners made me look like an idiot, at least I picked the Cubs correctly.

I'm not going to try and demean or make this title seem less worthy than it is because I'm a Cardinals fan. The Cubs earned this championship, even though Aroldis Chapman and Joe Maddon did everything in their powers to blow it for this team. Chapman should have been pulled much earlier when he wasn't hitting the strike zone, and Maddon shouldn't have put him in for 8 outs remaining in a game that the Cubs lead by 7 runs in game 6. But, Ben Zobrist came through in the clutch when this team needed him most. Zobrist proved to be the best of any addition the Cubs have made in the past 2 years. He won a World Series last year, with the Royals, so who better than a guy that was just there to come through for them. Some may say, what about what Jon Lester did in relief? He was great, but he did not provide the hit that clinched the win for a team that hadn't won a title in 108 years. Zobrist was the main acquisition, on a team filled with players that played elsewhere in the past 2 years, that truly lived up to the moment. As I said, Lester was fine, but he looked shaky in his starts early in the World Series. Jason Heyward was non existent throughout the playoffs. Dexter Fowler was great, but not really until last night. John Lackey got beat up in his lone start. This was all on farm talent, think Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Kyle Schwarber and Javy Baez, and Ben Zobrist. He was the undoubted MVP of this World Series. Yeah he was 0 for 4 going into that at bat in the 10th, but he came through, as he is expected to do.

Lets step away from the Cubs for a second and bask in the glory that was this game 7. The Cubs came out on fire, with Fowler hitting a leadoff homerun. I thought that would be enough, but they piled on 4 more runs to up their lead in the 5th inning to 5-1. But, the Indians would not die. They kept chipping away, cutting the lead to 5-3 near the end of the 6th inning. The Cubs added another run, so I figured, with a 3 run lead and all the great relief work Lester did and David Ross hitting a solo homerun in his final game, the Cubs would cruise in the final 2 innings and close it out.

But, the Indians, with their never give up attitude, kept plugging away. Maddon decided, against his better judgement, to put Chapman in, and he looked shaky from the start. He couldn't get the ball over the plate, and the Indians hitters were making him throw a lot of pitches, just waiting for the mistake. They got an RBI double, then Rajaie Davis came up, worked to a full count, and smoked a fastball over the left field wall to tie the game in the 8th.

All the momentum shifted, I thought the Indians would seize the game from there, the Cubs fans they showed on TV looked defeated. The Indians then came out, gave up a leadoff hit, let Heyward get all the way to third on a throwing error during a stolen base, but the Indians got out of the jam.

Then, they did nothing in the bottom of the ninth.

Then, as we were getting ready for extra innings, they had a rain delay.

A RAIN DELAY IN GAME 7 OF THE WORLD SERIES!

It was crazy! Luckily it was short, and the Cubs took back that momentum, with Schwarber getting a leadoff single in the tenth, The Indians tried to work around the front half of the Cubs loaded lineup. They got Bryant to fly out, but the guy that was pinch running for Schwarber excellently read the ball and tagged up to second. They walked Rizzo to face Zobrist. Zobrist looked outmatched, but took a 2-2 outside fastball to left field, and at that moment, I knew the Cubs would close it out. They added another run, then gave up one run in the bottom of the 10th, just to make it interesting, but they finally closed it out on a weak grounder and ended the longest championship drought in professional sports history.

Good for you Cubs, and Cubs fans. You finally know what it feels like to be a champion in baseball, even though the White Sox won the World Series 10 years ago, but the White Sox are not the Cubs. The Cubs are way more important to that city than the White Sox, that is a fact.

This was an epic game 7, and a part of me is happy for the Cubs fans. It is a really cool thing to see your team win a title. Especially when it has been this long since the last one. And, sorry Indians fans, but your team choked. They had everything in front of them for 3 games, controlled their own destiny, and they couldn't close it out. Classic Cleveland baseball.

This has definitely been the year of breaking droughts and trends. The Cavs won the NBA title, the Cubs are now World Series champs, so I guess that means a team like the Arizona Cardinals (now the holders of the longest championship drought in American sports), since the Browns have no shot at even having a winning record, as the Super Bowl favorites, even though they are far from making the playoffs. This should also mean that some college teams that haven't won a title in decades, like former dominant teams; Navy, Michigan, Florida, Washington, Indiana or even Georgia, may win a title in either football or basketball this year. And with pro hockey, I think the Saint Louis Blues have never won a Stanley Cup, so they should probably be the favorites to win it this season, but I know nothing about the NHL. Nothing. But hey, droughts are ending, apparently that is the trend, so if the Cavs and Cubs can win, so can all the other teams I mentioned, they just need a shot.

Anyway, congrats Cubs. You guys were the best team in baseball, and you proved it by winning the first of what will be many titles, if this team stays mostly intact. The Cubs have the best roster, and for the most part, they are young, so baseball fans, get used to seeing this team in contention for a long time. Congrats, and keep celebrating.

But, to end on a sour note, because that is what I do, ESPN will not be watched that much in my house for, at least, the next 6 months, because this Cubs title will be all they talk about for months on end. Even when the NFL shifts to playoff mode, the college football playoff comes along and the NBA gets deeper and deeper into its season, ESPN will still bring up the fact that the Cubs won the World Series. It will be insufferable.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He also forgot to mention the greatest sports person of the 21st century, Theo Epstein. The man is some kind of god. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

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The Drought Will End Tonight for Chicago or Cleveland

One last time

Tonight there will be a game 7 in the World Series. This is a great thing for baseball. To be honest, I have not watched much, if any, postseason baseball. As I stated in other posts, since the Cardinals aren't in the playoffs, college football is in full swing and the NBA has started, I have totally checked out of this particular World Series. I am not a fan of either the Cubs or the Indians. Honestly, I could not care less who wins. But, game 7's are always exciting. I will probably watch little to none of the game, but I will be following it on my phone, checking the score every 30 minutes or so. One beleaguered franchise, that fans have been waiting a long, long time to bring home a title, will win it all tonight.

That intro is my long winded way to get to what I really want to talk about for this particular post. Both of these MLB franchises, for the past 60 plus years, have always found a way to lose games that they should win. The Cubs, back in the Mark Prior/Kerry Wood days could not close out any NLCS. Blame Steve Bartman all you want, but they blew that game 6. They had many chances to win, but they choose to blame Bartman, while dozens of other people were trying to catch that ball that Alou had no chance to catch anyway. The Cubs also had decent teams in the 80's and 90's, with players like Ryne Sandberg, Andre Dawson, Sammy Sosa, and so on and so forth, that never made it to the promise land.

The Indians are another team that have never been able to close it out. In the 90's, with Albert Belle leading this team, they couldn't get past the Marlins. Try as he might, Omar Vizquel could not bring a title to Cleveland. The Indians are another team that has had all time great players that can not finish it off when it matters most.

That all changes tonight. But, I ask, which team will continue to be the team that cannot close the deal? Will it be the Indians? They had a 3-1 lead just a few days ago. They were shutting down this excellent Cubs lineup. They were stealing bases and small balling the hell out of the Cubs. Everything was going their way. Sure, the game 5 loss seemed preordained, but last night's throttling was surprising. I know the Cubs have a better lineup and had last years Cy Young winner on the mound, but to get beat 9-3, in a possible clinching game, that should scare Indians fans. The Indians got dismantled last night. They were beat from the start. But, was this their way of reverting to what is the norm, or is it an aberration? I guess we will find out tonight.

Then, there are the Cubs. They came out of the block slow. Corey Kluber absolutely shut them down in game 1. The Cubs could not do anything. Kluber outdueled Jon Lester as well. Lester is probably the Cy Young winner in the NL this year, but Kluber won it in the AL last year. Then, game 2, the Cubs bats woke up and they won handily. I thought this was when they would take over and win the next 3 and end there 108 year drought. Well, the opposite happened. The Cubs, returning to Wrigley Field, got completely shut down for the next 2 games. They had Kyle Hendricks on the mound during one of the those games, he pitched an absolute gem, but the Indians got one run and that turned out to be all that they needed. The Indians controlled the first 2 games at Wrigley. I turned from thinking that the Cubs would roll to thinking that the Indians would roll. 

Then, game 5, with the Indians having a chance to clinch, happened. Like I said, it was a predictable outcome. The Cubs came to play. So did the Indians, but the Cubs roster is better, and in a tight game, they pulled out the win like they should. So, maybe the Cubs were turning it around, but I thought that it would come to a close last night, even with Arrieta on the mound. As I have already said, that was not the case. The Cubs bats woke up and they crushed the Indians last night. So, the Cubs turned on what they normally do, choke, and now the pressure is on both teams.

This all leads to my final thoughts. Which team will exercise the demons tonight, and which team will continue to be the underachievers in big games? The pitching matchup will be great. The Cubs bats seem to have woken up, but will they do the same against a 3 day rest Corey Kluber? I wish I could answer that Cubs fans. Will the Indians wake up and continue to steal bases, play small ball and shut down the Cubs like in games 3 and 4? Again, I wish I could answer that Indians fans. This has been a great ending to the baseball season, again, I have barely watched any baseball all year. But, this should be exactly what the baseball apologists and purists should have wanted. We have 2 teams that have not been this far in a long time, and one of them will come away as champions tonight and themselves and their fan base will breath a huge sigh of relief and party the night away.

I know that the game is in Cleveland, but I have picked the Cubs in every prediction post and podcast on this site, so I have to pick them tonight. I think the Indians will revert to their choking ways, blow their 3-1 lead, and the Cubs will be celebrating on their field around midnight tonight. The game will be a lot closer than last night's game. Maddon putting in Chapman, who is a domestic abuser, for an 8 out save last night might have killed his arm, but I do not think that will matter. This is the last game of the MLB season, so all will be left on the field tonight and the Cubs will exercise their 108 year drought. That is my outsider view of what will happen tonight.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is so very wrong on picking the Cubs. Cleveland is a city of champions, Indians all the way. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Get All of Your Winners in Ty's Second Annual MLB Playoff Preview

Check out Ty's MLB season preview and judge for yourself how well he did.

In what I'm sure will become a yearly tradition with SeedSing, I will do my own MLB playoff prediction to go up against RD's playoff picks. Last year I was way off, I think I had the Blue Jays winning it all, and David Price being the MVP. So hopefully this year, I do better. Now, right off the bat, I do not know as much about baseball as RD does. I know a whole lot, but RD puts more time and effort than anyone I know that watches baseball. I'd much rather be playing baseball than watching it. The games are too long and boring. The playoffs up the ante, but I don't find myself that excited until the World Series. This is also the first time the Cardinals have not been in the postseason since 2010, so I may be even more checked out. But, I want to make my picks anyway.

Lets get started.

First off, we have the 2 wild card games. In the NL, we have the San Francisco Giants going up against the New York Mets. I did not think that these would be the 2 wild card teams from the NL. It's an even year, so I figured the Giants would coast to a division and World Series title, but they have struggled mightily since the All Star break. The Mets were in the World Series last year, and they had everyone back. They looked prime to be, at the very least, a near lock for the NLCS. But, injuries and players not playing up to the task put them in the position they sit in now. I think this game will be a great pitchers duel. That is the main thing that both of these teams have going for them. I'm sure San Francisco will throw Madison Bumgarner and the Mets will put Noah Syndergaard on the mound. This will be a very good match up, and whichever pitcher makes one mistake, I say Syndergaard, the other team will capitalize. I have the Giants winning the NL wild card game in a very close and low scoring affair.

In the AL wild card game we have the Toronto Blue Jays and the Baltimore Orioles. I was very big on the Blue Jays this year. I thought they had the best lineup in baseball, and they'd cruise to a division title. But, they proved that pitching is important, and that you can't just outscore everyone. The Orioles kind of surprised me. I thought that they would be, at best, a .500 team, but they put together a pretty good year. They have a pretty good lineup, and decent pitching. They have one of the best closers in the game as well. This match up is a total toss up for me. I could see either team winning. I do know that it will be higher scoring than the NL wild card game, and I'm going to go with the Orioles. I think that guys like Manny Machado and Chris Davis will carry this team to a victory, with the score being something very high like 8-6 or 9-7.

With the Giants and Orioles advancing, now we get to the real playoffs. I will do the AL first and finish off with the NL. After Baltimore beats Toronto, that means they will face the number one team in the AL in the Texas Rangers. Now, if you go back and listen to the midseason mini X Millennial Man podcast that RD and I did, I said I loved all the moves the Rangers made at the trade deadline, and thought that Prince Fielder going down was a blessing in disguise. I legitimately think that they are the team to beat in the AL. They already have guys like Adrian Beltre and Nelson Cruz. Then, they added Carlos Beltran and Johnathan Lucroy to that lineup. They also have Cole Hamels and Yu Darvish in their starting rotation. I love the Rangers, and Baltimore won't be able to hang with them. I see the Rangers sweeping them out in 3 non competitive games.

In the other matchup we have Cleveland and Boston. Oh, how I love the fact that Terry Francona gets to face the Red Sox. I also think the Red Sox, and their fans, are a little too cocky going into this series. I have loved what David Ortiz has done in his final season, and they have a very good lineup, but Cleveland is no slouch. They play excellent small ball baseball, and they have a very good rotation. Boston is good at scoring a lot of runs, but keep them in close games, and they aren't so great. I think that will doom them in this series against Cleveland. Cleveland is very comfortable with close games and Boston is not. I also love the fact that Terry Francona will have a chance to beat Boston, the team that cast him off. I have Cleveland winning in 5.

That means we will have a Cleveland-Texas ALCS. Strength against strength. Great pitching versus great hitting. This series will be good, but Texas is so loaded. They have a lethal lineup, and their pitching staff is just as good, if not better, than Cleveland's. As I said, I really like the Rangers right now, and I think they will beat the Indians in 6 games to advance to the World Series.

In the NL, the Giants "prize" for beating the Mets will be a showdown with the Cubs. The Cubs are far and away the best team in baseball. They are loaded absolutely everywhere. I know that some people have gotten on me for being hard on the Cubs, but you can go back and read anything I have written about baseball this year and see that I have picked the Cubs to be the champs. The same can be said for listening to any baseball related podcast. I may despise the Cubs, but they are so very talented. The Giants may make this series closer than it should be, but the Cubs should win it in 4 games. They have great, dependable and reliable hitters 1 through 8, and their pitching staff is amazing. This is the year where the Giants winning the World Series in even numbered years will end.

The other NL matchup pits the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Washington Nationals. The Dodgers have a good, but very old lineup. They also have a good pitching staff, led by Clayton Kershaw, but he does not show up in the playoffs. The Nationals, on the other hand, they have a loaded lineup, third only to the Cubs and the Rangers, and a great pitching staff. The Nationals may blow a game or 2, but not even Dusty Baker will blow this first round matchup. I have the Nationals winning in 4, and I think this is where Bryce Harper will bust out of his slump, in a big way.

That leaves us with the Cubs and Nationals in the NLCS. This is a great matchup, but I just don't see how the Cubs don't win, and win convincingly. Their lineup is better. Their coach is better. Their pitching staff 1-5 is better. They have a better home field advantage. Everything is in the Cubs favor. I don't even think this series will go 6 games, even though it should be a 7 game series easily. Dusty Baker chokes in the playoffs, and the Cubs are just too good this year. I have the Cubs winning in 5, because Max Scherzer will get one win for the Nationals.

So, that means the 2016 World Series, in my opinion, will be Texas and Chicago. This is the best matchup that we could have. They were both the top seed in their league. They both had the best record in their league. They both have good coaches that know what they are doing. They both have home run hitters and on base guys. They both have very good pitching staffs. It's a great matchup. This series should, and probably will, go 7 games. The one advantage the Cubs have over the Rangers is the depth with their pitching staff, and that will be the difference. I, and this is very hard to write, see the Cubs breaking the curse and winning the World Series in 7 games. They are just too good, and they should be the odds on favorites. They were the best team in the regular season, and I don't see that stopping now. Cubs fans cannot use the "we're cursed, so I don't want to get my hopes up", or the "just wait and see, I don't to get my hopes up" excuses anymore. This team was bought to win right now. Not next year, or the year after, but right now. The Chicago Cubs are out of excuses. They have the best team, far and away, in baseball, and I think they finally break through and win this year. And, as much as I'd like to see someone like Jason Heyward or  Dexter Fowler or Ben Zobrist win the World Series MVP, it will inevitably be either Kris Bryant or Anthony Rizzo because the MLB likes lily white rich boys to be the face of their game.

But anyway, as much as it stinks to say, the Cubs will win, and I will not watch "Sportscenter", if they begin to talk about the Cubs, for the next year. It will be so insane and fanboyish, I will have to turn it off.

It is going to be terrible.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He needs to take a rest because the last two paragraphs were the hardest things he has ever written. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

The SeedSing 2016 MLB Playoff Preview

The briskness of October is upon us, time for some Major League Baseball playoffs.

Full disclosure here. We were way wrong about the Boston Red Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Pittsburgh Pirates. The Red Sox were solid all year and pulled away in September from Baltimore and Toronto to win the AL East. We did not think Boston had the offense to compete, and boy were we wrong. Led by retiring David Ortiz, the Red Sox were an offensive juggernaut and a scary force entering the playoffs. The Diamondbacks and Pirates were both big underachievers this year, especially Arizona. Both teams could never get going and both were sellers at the trade deadline. Arizona and Pittsburgh are too talented to be sub .500 teams and should be competitive next year. 

Now onto the actual playoffs. In the AL "Play in Game" the Toronto Blue Jays will host the Baltimore Orioles. Both of these teams have the talent to win this game and make it all the way to the World Series. Each team is a good balance of pitching and offense. Toronto seemed to underachieve a bit this year, but Orioles Manager Buck Showalter does what he always does, he got the most out of his players. In a go anyway game, Toronto will use their better talent, and home field advantage, to win the one game playoff.

The NL game will have every other year champion the San Francisco Giants visiting last year's NL pennant winner the New York Mets. The Giants have great pitching, and in one game that is all you need. The Mets are hot, and did add some much needed offense at the trade deadline, but San Francisco has the advantage with their pitchers. Plus, it is an even numbered year and that works for the Giants.

With the one game playoff out of the way, the Division series will kick off with the Red Sox visiting the Cleveland Indians. As stated before, the Red Sox have an incredible offense led by MVP candidate David Ortiz. The Indians have been one of the most consistent teams in the MLB, and they have the best manager in all of baseball with Terry Francona. Boston will steal a game, but Cleveland will advance to the League Championship series in four.

The other American League series will feature the Blue Jays facing off against the loaded Texas Rangers. Texas made some big acquisitions at the trade deadline this year, and they are in World Series or bust mode. The Blue Jays will have their one game playoff win, but Texas may very well sweep them in the division series.

The National League division series will kick off with LA Dodgers going across country to meet up with the Washington Nationals. The Nationals were great during the season, even with reigning MVP Bryce Harper having a sub par (for him) season. The issue once again is manager Dusty Baker. He is incredible during the regular season, but tends to get out managed in the playoffs. The Dodgers have their stars healthy. Clayton Kershaw will exorcise some playoff demons, and the retired Vin Scully will be able to enjoy a few more games when LA beats Washington in a great five game series.

The Cubs will continue their magically season when the Giants come to town. Chicago has been as good as everyone thought they would be. The Cubs have it all, and added more at the trade deadline. It may be an even year, but the Cubs are way to good to not beat the Giants in four games.

The American League Championship Series will pit the Ranger's talent against the genius of Terry Francona. The Indians are another long suffering franchise, but Cleveland is on the up when it comes to sports championships. When things get tight, LeBron James will come into the Indians locker room and remind the players that Cleveland is a city of champions. It may be irrational, but it seems destiny to put the Cleveland Indians down as American League Pennant winners. It will take seven glorious games, but the tribe will return to the series for the first time in over twenty years.

Scully's Dodgers will roll into the northside of Chicago to take on the Cubs in the National League Championship. Kershaw, off of a great Division series, will steal a game at Wrigley. Unfortunately that will be the last Dodger win of the 2016 season. The Cubs are just way to good. It will only take five games for the 2016 Cubs to rightfully claim the  NL Pennant.

The 2016 World Series will pit the long suffering Cleveland Indians against the longer suffering Chicago Cubs. One fan base will be able to erase generations worth of heartbreak. It will be the Redemption World Series. The two best managers in all of baseball will challenge each other in a one for the ages seven game clash. Joe Maddon and Terry Francona will have their respective teams tasting the title. Late in game seven, lets say top of the 13th inning, LeBron James will appear in the center field bleachers, and Cleveland will remember that they are the city of champions. Home run, and three straight strikeouts in the bottom of the inning. The Cleveland Indians will be the 2016 Major League Baseball World Series Champions.

Better luck next year Cubbies.

RD 

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He just cannot put the Cubs down as champions, not now, not ever. Tell RD why he is so misguided by writing for SeedSing.

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The Chicago Cubs, Aroldis Chapman, and Our Shame in Forgetting about Domestic Violence

How much more of their lovable identity will Cubs sell out?

There was a pretty big trade that just happened a few days ago in baseball. The Cubs, who have the best record in baseball, just acquired Aroldis Chapman from the Yankees for 4 minor leaguers. On the surface, this is a slam dunk trade for the Cubs. They did not have to give up any current major league players, and they got one of the hardest throwing closers in baseball history. Sure, he has control issues, RD can attest to this (ed note: he does), but he throws 105 mph. I don't care about control, that will scare even the best of hitters.

While it's all peachy in Chicago right now, and if they do not win the World Series now, they may never, I have a few problems with this deal. Let's get the minor problem out of the way first. The Cubs, and Theo Epstein, have always talked about building from the farm system and developing players. They did that last year to the tune of getting swept in the NLCS, but the team was mostly made up of players from the Cubs minor league system. Then, this offseason, the Cubs, and Theo Epstein, decided to eschew the whole build from within motto, and they went out and signed most of the top free agents. They got Ben Zobrist, Jason Heyward, they traded away Starlin Castro for some young assets, they signed John Lackey, they basically changed 50 percent of their lineup with top of the line free agents. I don't mind teams doing this, in fact, more power to you if you can, but don't tell me that you are building from within. That is not the case when the middle of your infield is made up of free agents, your new right fielder is a free agent signing, your third starter is a free agent, you cannot use the build from within motto if you sign a whole new team. Sure, they have Kris Bryant and Kyle Schwarber from the farm, but even Dexter Fowler was a trade, or free agent signing. They cannot say that this team was built from within, that is patently false. They went out and got big name free agents and that put this Cubs team over the top. This is not a team built from within, this is a team built on free agents and trades for big names.

The Cubs have become the Yankees of the NL by the amount of money they have spent the past 2 years on free agency. Even last year, they went out and spent a ton of money to sign Jon Lester, and made a very shady move in how they hired one of the best managers in baseball, Joe Maddon. Like I said, this is not a team built from the farm system, save for Bryant and Schwarber, and I'm sure there is one or two more guys that are contributors, but nothing like the free agents they've picked up the last two years. No more "we are built from our minor league" retort from the Cubs, I don't want to hear it.

Then, a few days ago, they traded away three of their top minor leaguers to acquire Chapman. Once again, they dipped into the farm system and traded some of their top prospects away for a much coveted, well established reliever. They did not draft and bring up Chapman from the minors, they traded for him and he has been a pro reliever for 4 or 5 years now. He is the hardest thrower in all of baseball. He's established. The Cubs are not a team built from their minor leaguers, they are a team built with star free agents.

The second, and more important problem that this Chapman trade brings, is the fact that Chapman had his first trade this offseason to the Dodgers called off because he was accused of domestic violence. He was still a Cincinnati Red until the Yankees decided to take a chance on him. After he signed with the Yankees, he was suspended by the MLB for 30 games for his domestic violence accusation. So, after getting one trade rescinded, then getting suspended, Chapman looked like a bad decision. He was all but forgotten about because he was accused of domestic violence. People who read my stuff know that I do not tolerate domestic violence. It's a disgusting and disturbing act done by disgusting and disturbing people. Anyone that puts hands on someone smaller than them, or a loved one, is a monster. That is one of the worst things that a grown person to do to someone else. Domestic assaulters are garbage people.

The real sad thing is that after Chapman's 30 game suspension, he came back, was throwing his incredible heat, saving games for the sorry Yankees and it seemed all was forgiven. Channels like ESPN were praising Chapman's heat. They seemed to have forgotten that he was accused of domestic violence. This as just like the Adrian Peterson, Ray Rice, Richie Incognito and Hope Solo stuff. These monsters were all accused of domestic assault, but since they are good at sports, ESPN never talked about it. They only showed the highlights and talked about how they "overcame adversity". What a crock. When Chapman was doing his first press conference with the Cubs, a reporter asked him about the domestic assault charge, and he said, in not so many words, he didn't know what they were talking about. I'm sure a lot got lost in translation, but still, he should have had his interpreter fully explain the question to him, and he could have given a very cliché answer. But, he did not do that. He chose to say that he didn't understand or that he didn't want to answer the question. To me, that is an admission of guilt. That means he definitely did something. When I was watching "PTI" yesterday they had a story involving Chapman. They touched on the whole domestic assault issue, but they barely spoke on it. Being the fan boy that he is, Mike Wilbon blamed everything on the translator and said that this would not affect him cheering for Chapman. He is so blinded by his love for the Cubs that he is willing to look past the fact that Chapman is an abuser because he can throw a very fast fast ball. I guarantee that if any other team acquired Chapman, Wilbon would have chastised them for taking this guy. But since it's the Cubs, he is willing to look past any indiscretions. Co-host Tony Kornheiser also gave him a pass saying that, once he goes out there and hits 103 or 104 on the gun, the fans will forget and cheer for him.

Therein lies the problem with sports, fandom and journalists nowadays. They are willing to give these abusers 5, 6 or even 7 chances because they are very good at their sport. These people need to be banished from playing sports the moment they put their hands on a loved one. That is disturbing and gross and it shouldn't matter if you can throw a ball hard. Abusers need to be punished, not given multiple chances. It's a problem at all levels, even college athletics now. If someone is good at a sport, they are given a pass, and that is wrong. I don't care that Chapman can throw over 100 mph, I don't care the Adrian Peterson can rush for 1,500 yards a season, I don't care that Hope Solo is a good goaltender, they are all abusers. Don't forget that when you cheer on these people. Just remember when you watch and clap for them, they have a loved one, or ones, that are terrified that they will hit them when they get upset. This is a major problem in sports, giving abusers multiple chances, and it needs to stop now. It's disturbing and gross. The ESPN's of the world need to stop idolizing these abusers. They need to be condemned, not loved.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. If you are a victim of domestic violence, get help today. Follow him on twitter @tykulik.

Ty's MLB Season Preview

Here comes Ty to the plate

RD did the heavy lifting for me this week, previewing the already started MLB season. This is his territory when it comes to sports. He knows and he loves baseball more than anyone that I know. Me, I know and love baseball too, but I don't particularly care to start really paying attention until the playoffs. The season is way, way too long for one. Each team plays 162 regular season games. That's insane. I feel like the NBA has way too many regular season games and they only play 82. Almost half of what MLB plays. The season lasts almost 7 months. Ridiculous. So yeah, this early, I don't watch too closely. NBA playoffs are right around the corner and the summer time is when I catch up on some TV and movies I may have missed during the fall and winter. But, I still know enough about baseball to give my take as to how I see the season and the playoffs playing out. My preview won't be as in depth, but I wanted to let you all know how I thought the season would play out and who will win the World Series.

Let's go.

Instead of going division by division, I just want to pick who I think will win and why. First off, I'll do the American League. Before I get this all started, I think the AL is in a slight decline right now. Yeah, the Royals won last year, but they played the Mets and the Mets played out of their minds down the stretch. The AL reminds me a lot of the Eastern Conference in the NBA. So, I think the Toronto Blue Jays will win the AL East. They are one of, if not the, best teams in baseball. Yeah, they lost David Price, but he was not good in the playoffs and I don't think him not being on the team will matter all that much. They still have a good staff and a great lineup. They will hit a lot of home runs and they will shut a lot of teams down on defense. I love the Blue Jays and I love the way they play. Kansas City will win the AL Central, but it will be close. I think Cleveland, not Detroit, will be the biggest threat. This division is pretty good when you look at it. The Royals are the defending champs, the Tigers have Miguel Cabrera and a decent pitching staff, Cleveland has a great small ball lineup and Corey Kluber, who may be the best pitcher in baseball that no one knows and Minnesota and the White Sox both have decent, young players. The Royals will win the division because they have the experience and they have the best pitching staff and the best lineup. They are becoming great again and I enjoy when small market teams beat up on the big market teams. The AL West, on the other hand, is pretty terrible with 2 exceptions, the Astros and the Rangers. The Rangers have the lineup, but the Astros also have a good lineup and they have a much better pitching staff, led by reigning Cy Young winner, Dallas Kuechel. The Angels are getting older and not better. I feel bad for Mike Trout, because he is great, but that team has overpaid for aging stars for much too long and it's crippled the future of the team. The A's are just bad. And every year the Mariners are supposed to turn it around, but they never do. I do like the Rangers in this division. I know the Astros have a better pitching staff, but the Rangers will hit a lot of home runs and it is dreadful to play there in the summer time. They may be the only team in pro baseball with a true home field advantage and that will help them win the division title. So, that leaves me with two wild cards. I'm going to pick Cleveland and Houston. I really like both those teams. For the ALCS, I think it will be Houston and Toronto, and I think Toronto will go to the AL pennant, with relative ease. This, RD and I agree on.

One different thing I want to do is pick a team that will be a "bust" in each league. My "bust" for the AL is the Boston Red Sox. Sure, they got David Price, but what else do they have anywhere on the field or in the pitching staff? Not too much. Hanley Ramirez is a mess. Pablo Sandoval got beat out by some random dude, and then there is really nothing else to brag about. The Red Sox are not as good as some will lead you to believe. Don't let the Price signing fool you.

In the National League, we will start with the East. The NL East is about as bad as the AL West. There is only two decent teams and they are the Washington Nationals and the New York Mets. Sure, the Mets are the reigning NLCS champs, but they got very hot and very lucky at the exact right time last year. That won't happen again. They have a great staff and they will finish above .500, but the Nationals are going to walk with this division. They are constant underachievers, but Bryce Harper will not let this team take a tumble again. They also have a great pitching staff and a pretty decent lineup around Harper. They finally, and mercifully, fired Matt Williams and made a great hire with Dusty Baker. They will win the division and may win 100 plus games. There is no need to even mention the 3 other teams in this division because they are terrible. The NL Central will be highly competitive once again. It's a three team race with the Cubs, the Pirates and the Cardinals. The Reds and the Brewers are both going through rebuilds and they won't be a factor. What has been a division owned by the Cardinals lately, will change this year. The Cardinals lost a lot from last years team and they didn't so much in free agency. Oh, they got older too. This will most likely be a step back year for them. By step back year, I think they will only win 86 or 87 games. But, the Pirates and the Cubs will be legit. The Pirates have a very good pitching staff and a great lineup, led by one of my favorite and one of the best, and most underrated superstars in Andrew McCutcheon. He's awesome and the Pirates are really good. But, the Cubs are definitely on the rise. I hate to admit this, because I'm a lifelong Cardinals fan, but the Cubs crushed us in the playoffs last year, and they only got much, much better this offseason. They locked up Rizzo and Bryant. They signed Jon Lester last year. They lured Jason Heyward away from the Cardinals to only boost their already potent outfield. And they signed a bunch of other great role players. This could be the year that the Cubs finally break the curse. They are, on paper, the best team in baseball right now, and it's not really that close. They will win the Central and they will win more than 100 games doing it. I don't want to hear whiny Cubs fans trying to tamper expectations either. You guys are the best team and you better damn well prove that. No more excuses for them. It's an even year, so the San Francisco Giants should easily win the NL West, right? Well, I think they will win, but the Diamondbacks and the Dodgers, and maybe even the Padres, will give them a run for their money. Yes, the Giants signed two big time free agent pitchers, but the Diamondbacks got Zack Greinke and they still have Paul Goldschimdt. The Dodgers did lose Greinke, but they still have Clayton Kershaw, and he's a great regular season pitcher. The Dodgers also have a very good lineup, but they are starting to become the NL's version of the Angels. Lots of big names, but nothing to show for it. The Padres have a very decent lineup, but their pitching leaves a lot to be desired. I still think they will be, at least, a .500 team. The Diamondbacks will be the Giants main competition, but they are still a pitcher and an offensive weapon away from truly competing. I really love their signing of Greinke though. The Giants will win the West, but look out for the Diamondbacks in a year or two. So, that leaves us with the NL wildcards. This time around, the Central will only send two teams to the playoffs because I think the Pirates and the Mets will win the two remaining spots. That's right, no St. Louis and no Dodgers. They're both old, but they will both reload and be back on top soon enough. I think the NLCS will be the Cubs and the Nationals. I think this is a very interesting matchup because the Cubs are, right now, where the Nationals were two years ago. The Cubs are the new darlings and almost everyone is picking them. I'm no exception and I think the Cubs will pull it out in seven games and play the Blue Jays in the World Series.

Now, if the Cubs don't win the World Series this year, when will they? They have the best team in baseball, I cannot stress that enough. They should easily beat the Blue Jays in the World Series. As much as I hate to write it, the Cubs should, and will, win the World Series this year. They will break the curse and they will make me not watch "Sportscenter" and fast forward through a ton of "PTI" segments for the next couple of years. The Cubs will win and the sports media will be insufferable in their non stop coverage. It will be so much worse than when the Red Sox won in 2004.

My "bust" from the NL is the Cardinals. They are always good, but they will take a step back. They do have a very good pitching staff, but it's older and Adam Wainwright is coming off a torn ACL. Their lineup will not strike fear in any opponent either. They have no heavy hitters and they have players that get behind in the count way too often, I'm looking at you Matt Carpenter. Stop taking so many pitches and getting behind so early in the count. It's frustrating to watch. The Cardinals will step back and not be as good as they have been the past decade plus. It's due.

As I do with all my other previews, I will also give award predictions. The AL Cy Young will, once again, go to Kuechel. He is a beast. The MVP will be someone from the Royals, probably either Mike Moustakas or Lorenzo Cain. The manager of the year will be Terry Francona. In the NL, the Cy Young will go to Zack Greinke, the MVP, in a surprise to some, Paul Goldschmidt and the manager of the year has to be Joe Maddon.

So, there's my take on the baseball season. Sit back, because there is still a long time to go and I know RD will have something to say about my pick to win the World Series.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. The head editor is not currently speaking to Ty. The Cubs? Really? Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

The SeedSing 2016 Major League Baseball Preview

We will see you back at home in October. (or is it November now?)

Baseball season has finally begun. Our long cold winter has given way to the start of a still cold baseball season. We are talking baseball, competitive baseball. What will the season hold? Will the Kansas City Royals repeat as World Series Champions (no)? Can the Mets get back to the Fall Classic and close the deal this time (not likely)? How will the 2016 Major League Baseball season play out? Here at SeedSing we have all the answers to your specific questions, and a few predictions. Get your bets ready.

Are the Yankees and Red Sox ready to return to dominance in the AL East?

Short answer, no. Longer answer, hell no.

Let's start with the Bronx Bombers. In the off season the Yankees acquired 100+ mile per hour throwing Aroldis Chapman from the Cincinnati Reds. Chapman is the real deal and near unhittable. He is added to a bullpen that was already very good. Any team playing the Yankees can expect to score zero runs after the seventh inning.

The problem is the first six innings. The Yankees have subpar starting pitching, and that will be problematic. Most teams will be able to easily hitting the New York starters, and the defense behind the starters is old and not very good. The Yankees lineup is filled with old aging stars and is a few years away from reloading with the young talent of other teams. The only bright spot in New York, outside of a killer bullpen, is going to be watching sullen cheater Alex Rodriguez chasing down Barry Bonds (75 homers away). Enjoy that New Yorkers.

Up the coast is the Yankees hated rival the Boston Red Sox. 2015 was a disaster for Boston, nothing seemed to work. The Red Sox addressed some of those issues by getting the biggest free agent prize of the off season, starting pitcher David Price. That acquisition made a big splash, and many of the sports media (almost all east coast based) are high on the Red Sox, but Price will not be enough. There is just not enough pitching or hitting depth in Boston. This team is at least one more year away from being in the World Series conversation. The Red Sox will make some noise, but their record will hover around .500 all season.

The ESPN love for the Yankees and the Red Sox will be no match for the Tampa Bay Rays, Baltimore Orioles, and Toronto Blue Jays. Tampa always defies the odds with great young talent. Baltimore has one of the best managers in baseball in Buck Showalter and a seasoned team. Toronto has built a dominant roster coming off a very disappointing loss in last years ALCS. The Blue Jays will dominant the AL East and leave the Yankees and Red Sox scrambling for next year.

It is an even number year so the San Francisco Giants will win the NL West and the World Series?

Not this year.

The Giants, like the Yankees and Red Sox, added a big time pitcher this off season with the free agent signing of Johnny Cueto. With a team mostly intact from their 2014 World Series Championship, Cueto is a big addition. The former Cy Young runner up comes after superstar Madison Bumgarner in the rotation. The problem is that after Cueto and Bumgarner the quality of pitching goes from great to mediocre. Jeff Samardzidja has shown flashes of brilliance, but has not proven to be consistently great. After the top three the Giants have an old Jake Peavy and Matt Cain. The Giants just do not have the pitching to make another even year World Series run.

The other problem for the Giants in the NL West is that the competition has gotten a lot better. The LA Dodgers have the money, star power, and Clayton Kershaw. The Arizona Diamondbacks have made some big moves, like acquiring superstar pitcher Zack Greinke, and have one of the best hitters in baseball in Paul Goldschmidt. Both of these teams will be a challenge for the Giants, and we will see the Arizona Diamondbacks beat back the others for the NL West Crown.

Is the AL West the most worthless, and over hyped, division in all of Major League Baseball?

Yes

Every year we hear about how the LA Angels, of wherever in southern California they want to be from, will once again claim the championship. If it is not the Angels, we hear about Billy Beane and the up and coming Oakland A's. The last few years we also keep hearing about the rise of the Seattle Mariners. In the last few years these three teams have faltered to the likes of the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros. The Angels, A's, and Mariners get the headlines, but the two Texas teams are producing winners. 

The Rangers and Astros will once again battle for the AL West crown. The Rangers are old but tested and the Astros are young and uber talented. The Astros will edge out the team from Arlington and make a return trip to the MLB playoffs.

Does the NL East have the worst teams in baseball?

Close, but not quite.

The NL East is going to be ugly. The Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies, and Florida Marlins are not very good. The Mets are coming off a World Series appearance, but they are not quite a championship caliber team. The Washington Nationals are loaded, but have been perennial underachievers. The NL East is filled with teams that are rebuilding or are in "one year away" mode. The quality of play out east will be barely above AAA caliber baseball. Almost everyone of these teams will struggle all year.

All should struggle except for the Nationals. The team in DC is loaded, and has the best player in baseball in reigning NL MVP Bryce Harper. The Mets heavily benefited from a dysfunctional DC team last year. That will not happen again. With Dusty Baker at the helm in our nations capitol, the Nationals will easily win the NL east.

Is the best baseball being played in the central part of the country?

Absolutely. The NL central and AL central are the deepest divisions in baseball. Both wild card teams from each league will come from the central division.

In the NL central you have the defending champs, and 100 game winners, St. Louis Cardinals. The birds on the bat have the best front office, a great farm system, and a culture of winning. Catching up to the Cardinals is another well built team in the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Bucs have been climbing the ladder every year and are looking to make the playoffs for a third consecutive year. Coming off of an NLCS appearance in 2015, the Chicago Cubs are as loaded with talent as any team in MLB. The NL central will be a showcase for awesome baseball.

The AL central is as equally loaded as their NL brothers. First there is the defending World Series Champion Kansas City Royals. Even with a few off season losses, the Royals still have a solid championship core in place. The Detroit Tigers are rich with talent and experience. Cleveland has maybe the best manager in baseball with Terry Francona and a mix of veterans and younger players ready to emerge. The Minnesota Twins and Chicago White Sox are teams on the rise, and will not be pushovers for anyone else. 

With all the talent in both the NL and AL central divisions, someone has to win. The NL central is for the Cubs to lose with the Pirates and Cardinals taking the wild cards. The AL Central will be close with the Indians beating the Royals and Tigers for the division with the runners up going to the playoffs.

We answered your questions, now for a few predictions.

Once again, here are your 2016 MLB Playoff teams.

Division winners: AL East - Toronto Blue Jays                 NL East - Washington Nationals

                             AL Central - Cleveland Indians             NL Central - Chicago Cubs

                             AL West - Houston Astros                    NL West - Arizona Diamondbacks

                             AL Wild Cards - Kansas City Royals     NL Wild Cards - Pittsburgh Pirates

                                                        Detroit Tigers                                        St. Louis Cardinals

The Chicago Cubs and the Washington Nationals will win over 100 games each.

The Cubs and Nationals have the talent and the management to have very special seasons. Forget about what you have read, but Joe Maddon is one of the greatest MLB managers. In addition to Maddon, Theo Epstein has built a powerhouse on the northside of the windy city. Players like reigning Cy Young winner Jake Arrieta, reigning rookie of the year Kris Bryant, off season pickup Jason Heyward, and superstar Anthony Rizzo the Cubs are a dream team. Although they have to compete with St. Louis and Pittsburgh, the Cubs also have the dreadful Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers (the two worst teams in MLB) in their division. Getting to 100 wins will not be that difficult for this dream team.

The Washington Nationals are in a similar situation as the Cubs. Their lineup, led by Bryce Harper, is formidable. Their pitching is filled with potential. New manager Dusty Baker is a wizard at getting players to achieve their potential. In addition to their manager and roster, the Nationals will benefit from a weak division. The NL east will have some of the worst teams in baseball, and the Nationals will feast on this inferior competition. The nations capitol may see a team with over 110 wins in 2016.

The Pittsburgh Pirates will win the 2016 World Series. 

The Cubs and the Nationals will win tons of games, but they will not even play in the 2016 World Series. Each of these power teams have one huge weakness that will keep them away from the top of the baseball mountain.

In the case of the Washington Nationals their Achilles heel is manager Dusty Baker. Baker has taken many teams to the playoffs (Giants, Cubs, and Reds), but has never won a championship. The issue is that Baker is great at getting players to play above their ability, but cannot game manage well. Talent will win a lot of three game series, but when the playoff starts and series are five to seven games, Dusty Baker's lack of game strategy becomes a problem. It will be a problem for Washington in 2016.

The reason the Cubs will not make the World Series is mainly about experience. Players like Arrita, Rizzo, and Bryant are insanely talented and extremely young. There is not a strong veteran presence in Chicago that can guide these phenoms. It will be wait till next year for the Cubbies once again. Plus we have to take into account the goat and a variety of curses. Sorry Cubs.

So how are the Pirates going to get through these super teams and win the World Series? Pittsburgh is built a lot like the Kansas City Royals. Homegrown talent and nice off season veteran acquisitions. Outfielder Andrew McCutchen is one of the top five players in the MLB and a certified clubhouse leader. Francisco Liriano has found a second life in the Steel City. Manager Clint Hurdle has been guiding this team out of the darkness and has them believing in themselves. When the MLB season is getting to the trade deadline, a second place team like the Pirates will be more willing to trade for veteran talent than a young team like the Cubs or the Nationals. The mixture of a great manager, a superstar player who is also a leader, and a front office willing to take a chance, will lead to the Pittsburgh Pirates beating the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2016 World Series.

Let's say the series goes 7 games. That would be exciting.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head editor for SeedSing and one of the other hosts on the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is sentimentally picking the Pirates in remembrance of a hat he once briefly owned. Do you love baseball, come write for us. 

Get all your Postseason Winners with Ty's First Annual Baseball Playoff Preview

Is this the next year Cubs fans have been waiting for?

Today marks the weekend when regular season baseball ends, AKA when I start to pay attention to major league baseball.

All the playoff spots are filled with the exception of the second wild card in the AL. The Angels and the Astros will take that down to the wire. Other than those two teams, in the AL, we have the division winners, the Blue Jays, the Rangers and the Royals. The Yankees have claimed the first wild card spot. In the NL, all the playoff spots are filled. The division winners are the Cardinals, the Dodgers and the Mets. The two wild card spots are filled by the Cubs and the Pirates. I know people love baseball, but let's be serious, it doesn't really get exciting until now (ed note: Wrong, it is great all year). This is the playoffs.

Up until now, we've had 162 regular season games. That's a ton of games. During the summer I'll occasionally watch Cardinals games because it's my team. I don't watch any other teams play regular season games unless they're playing the Cardinals. Now that Fall is here, football is back and baseball definitely takes the back burner, until now. Football is and always will be my number one, I'll watch every Michigan and Green Bay game, but I will watch playoff baseball, and I'll watch every team in the playoffs. Baseball is finally exciting because it's down to only 10 teams, and two of those teams are out after one game. That's exciting. So, today I'm going to give a playoff preview and predictions. This will become a yearly thing. The one time each year that I watch baseball, I'll write a blog the weekend prior to the playoffs starting with predictions.

So begins my first annual "Baseball Playoff Preview". Since I'm a Cardinals fan and have watched NL baseball most of my life, I'm going to start with the AL and save the NL for last. So on with my AL preview and predictions. I'll start with the "play in" wild card game. The Yankees claimed the first wild card spot last night, and I'm going to say that the Astros complete the meltdown, lose the second wild card spot, and the Angels will end up playing the Yankees. I think the Yankees will win the game, but both of these teams are underachievers. They both have huge stars and huge payrolls, but they barely make the playoffs, if they even do. Tanaka will outpitch Weaver and the Yankees will advance to face the Royals. That means that I think the Royals will finish with the best record in the AL. I think they will do just enough this weekend to surpass the Blue Jays for the top spot. So the division series in the AL will be Yankees-Royals and Blue Jays-Rangers. These are best of five series. In the Yankees-Royals series, I have the Royals winning in five games, but they will all be close. The Royals have better pitching and hitting and even though their closer is out for the rest of the season, their bullpen is the best in the AL. The Royals are better coached as well. Royals advance to the ALCS. In the other division series, I'm taking the Blue Jays in four. The Rangers will get one game, but the Blue Jays are the hottest team in baseball right now, they have the AL MVP in Josh Donaldson, and the Cy Young winner in David Price. I know awards aren't handed out until after the playoffs, but those two are winning those awards. The Blue Jays also have Jose Bautista to crush homers and two great starters to compliment Price in Mark Buerhle and RA Dickey. The Rangers had a nice run at the end of the season, but their run is over. The Blue Jays are a buzz saw and they will crush the Rangers. Blue Jays advance to face the Royals in the ALCS. The ALCS is best of seven, but for all the reasons I just mentioned above for the Blue Jays is why this will be a short series. The Blue Jays win in 5 games. Once again, the Royals will get one at home, but the Blue Jays are playing way too well for anyone in the AL to stop them right now. They're just way too good. They made the best move at the deadline to acquire Price and Troy Tulowitzki, and that will pay off with a trip to the World Series. Blue Jays will represent the AL in the 2015 World Series.

Now, the NL. In the "play in" wild card game we get Cubs-Pirates. This one game may be better than any series in the AL. The NL Central boasts the three best teams in baseball(the Cardinals, Cubs and Pirates). If anyone of these teams were in any other division, they'd easily be champs and avoid this "play in" wild card game. I'm going to pick the Cubs strictly because they will have Jake Arrieta on the mound, and he may be the best pitcher in all of baseball right now. The game will be close and very low scoring, but the Cubs will manage 2 runs and walk away with a 2-0 win. This makes the division series, Cardinals-Cubs and Mets-Dodgers. In the Mets-Dodgers series, we will get to see some great pitching matchups. Most pro teams have one ace and then four decent starters. The Mets and Dodgers have two aces each, and great pitchers to fill out the rotation. The Dodgers will throw Greinke and Kershaw in the first two games, but the Mets will counter with De Grom and Harvey. This will be a close, low scoring series and due to their choking in the playoffs as of the past couple of seasons, I'm picking the Mets to beat the Dodgers in five. Kershaw always seems to have a meltdown in the playoffs and the Dodgers can't recover. That will happen once again, and people will start to question if Kershaw can ever win a ring. Mets advance to the NLCS. In what will probably be the most competitive series in all the playoffs, we get Cubs-Cardinals. The Cubs have big time pitchers in Arrieta and Jon Lester and boast a pretty talented, very young lineup. The Cardinals are the Cardinals, plus they get Adam Wainwright back as a relief pitcher just in time for the playoffs. They've had injury after injury, but they still have the best record in all of baseball, winning 100 plus games. This will be close as well, but I have the Cardinals winning in five games. The Cubs are about one or two years away and the Cardinals are stacked with veterans and they have the best bullpen in all of baseball. Their pitching staff is pretty great. Cardinals advance to face the Mets in the NLCS. So we have Mets-Cardinals playing to go to the World Series, what is this, the 80's? Both teams are good, but I have the Cardinals, I know, I'm a homer advancing to the World Series, beating the Mets in seven. I wanted to pick the Mets, but the decision to almost shut down Harvey because of an innings limit, ask the Nationals how that worked for them and Strasburg, will bite them in the ass in the NLCS. It will still go the full seven, but the Cardinals will find a way to advance, it's what they do.

So the 2015 World Series will be the Blue Jays and Cardinals. This one will only go five games, and the Blue Jays will be the 2015 World Series Champions. They're the best team in baseball now, with the best player in the AL and one of the best pitchers in all of baseball. The Cardinals injuries will catch up to them, and as I said before, the Blue Jays are a buzz saw. They're the most talented team that's playing the best baseball since the franchise's peak in the 90's. The moves made at the deadline will once again pay off, this time with baseball's largest prize. David Price will win two games in the World Series for the Blue Jays and he will be the best player in all of the 2015 playoffs and take home World Series MVP.

So, there you have it, the Blue Jays will be your 2015 World Series Champs.

(ed picks: ALCS will be Blue Jays over the Yankees in 5. NLCS will have a magical run by the Cubs and they will beat the Cardinals in 7. In the bottom of the ninth of Game 7 of the World Series, the Toronto Blue Jays will be the first team since the 93 Blue Jays team to win the World Series on a walkoff home run. Maybe next year Cubs fans.)

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man podcast. Ty is way too young to remember the seething hatred all 80's Cardinals fans had for the Mets. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Why is Joe Maddon so Bush League?

Birth place of the modern Cardinal Way

Who in the world does Joe Maddon think he is?

Sure, he's a good baseball coach. Good, not yet great. If he can take the Cubs to the World Series and win, then he becomes great. But where does this air of superiority come from? Does he think he's the greatest manager of all time? Does he feel like he can write the rules of baseball and everyone has to do as he says?

I bring all this up because, in the recent series with the Cardinals, not only did he call out the "Cardinal Way", but he repeatedly had his pitchers throw at Cardinal batters. I understand the first time because the Cardinals hit one of the young Cub stars, Anthony Rizzo. In baseball the unwritten rule is, you hit one of our guys, we are going to hit one of your guys. This rule has been around forever and it's not going anywhere. But, to complain about the "Cardinal Way" after that particular game, and then to go out in the next game and hit three Cardinal batters, that's down right douchey. That's like a frat boy not getting the girl he wants because she already has a boyfriend and he gets his lame frat "brothers" and they outnumber the boyfriend and beat him up.

I'm trying to say that you sound like an upset frat boy Joe Maddon.

Also, why are you so against the "Cardinal Way"? This is a term I don't particularly care for, but all the Cardinals do is win, so the "Cardinal Way" must be working. Wouldn't you want to model your team after a successful team? Every other league is a copycat league, but you Mr. Maddon, like to "think outside the box". Sure, your way has gotten you to one World Series, which you lost, and won you a couple of division titles, but you've never truly won anything of importance as a manager. You act like you're the king of baseball though.

Why is that?

The only reason I can come up with is, the horrible people at ESPN love you, so they constantly do stories on you. I feel like this makes you think that your more important to the game than you truly are. No one outside of Chicago cares about you and your way of coaching. Sure, you have a good, young team that is on the verge of greatness, but you are just an okay manager. To attack the Cardinals the way you did was bush league. Spoiler alert for you Joe Maddon, the Cardinals aren't fazed by trash talk. They could care less that you called them out on ESPN. The Cardinals are an organization that goes about their business with class and style. They don't feel the need to attack other teams or players via the media unlike you Joe Maddon. It's also absurd that after you got your eye for an eye in the first game, the very next night you felt it was okay to hit three more players. What kind of amateur shit is that?! Do actions like this make you feel like you're a tough guy? It makes you look like an asshole, not a tough guy. To people outside Chicago, you're bush league. That's what a little league coach who has way too much invested in his little league team does. You're a manager of a professional sports team. Act like it for god's sakes. Don't act like a frat boy or a little brother. I thought that your schtick was okay when you were in Tampa, but now that you're in a big city, I see the true person that you are and it's an ugly, mean person.

It's funny to me that you chose the Cardinals to attack too. I guess the little fish want to attack the shark. The shark always wins Joe Maddon. The Cubs are riding their hottest streak since the early 2000's, and you're still 6 games back in the division. You guys are actually third in the division behind the Cardinals and the Pirates. But, the way you talk and the way the media talks about the Cubs, you'd think that they were in the first place. That's not the case. And how arrogant are you going to be if, the way it looks now the Cubs and the Pirates will be playing in the one game playoff, you guys lose the play in game to the Pirates? You already had your second baseman break the leg of the Pirates starting shortstop with a dirty, illegal slide, and you guys still may lose that game. If the Pirates win, are you going to call them out and say you don't care for the way they run their organization?

Well, let's look at the organization that hired you last offseason. The way the Cubs got you to be their manager is some of the shadiest shit I've ever seen or heard in my life. How many back alley deals were made? How many people in Tampa did you screw over so you could take this Cubs job? You are about as low class as they come Joe Maddon.

I hope you guys do beat the Pirates in the play in game and have to face the Cardinals in the division series. It will be that much sweeter when they kick your guys asses in the playoffs. I don't know why you think you're the greatest thing since sliced bread in baseball, and I hope you get crushing defeats in the playoffs with the Cubs, just like you did when you were with Tampa. You, Joe Maddon, are a scumbag and you deserve the worst of sports outcomes.

You're an arrogant asshole.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the co-host of the X Millennial Man podcast. The only thing he will defend more than his teams are his children, and a good steak. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.