Ty Predicts the 2023 MLB Postseason

The MLB playoffs are upon us. I'm still not as into baseball as I was when I was a kid, but it is more fun with some cool players I enjoy watching now. I'm going to give it my best shot today and do a postseason preview. Again, take this with a tremendous grain of salt. Here goes nothing.

I'll start with the AL. The Orioles are the number 1 seed, which totally shocked me. I didn't realize they were good again. Good for them regardless. The number 2 seed is the cheating ass Houston Astros. I know that was awhile back, but come on, that is hard to forget. From there the 3-6 match up features the the Twins facing the Blue Jays. I'd love to pick the Twins here. I have family that lives in Minnesota and they are Twins fans. But the Twins always facepalm in the playoffs, and they have the worst record of the division winners. The Blue Jays also have a very good and fun team. They hit a lot and have some solid pitching. They have enough to beat the Twins in round one. The 4-5 features Tampa Bay and Texas. I don't know much about these teams. I know the Rays lost a key player because he is a monster. I know the Rangers traded for Max Scherzer, but he is hurt. I know Texas hits a lot of home runs. I know the Rays play old school manufacturing baseball. I'm going to go with the Rays as they have been pretty consistent all season long. The Rangers had too many ups and downs all year. So that would give us the Blue Jays facing the Astros and the Rays facing the Orioles. This is where it gets tough for me. I'd love to see the Blue Jays beat the Astros. I like the Blue Jays. I am a fan of Vlad Guerrero Jr. I like the way they play the game. But the Astros are a better team. They have better pitching and more overall talent. They are also way more experienced. As much as it stinks, I have the Astros winning this series. I do believe we will get some kind of redemption in the other series. It is not like the Orioles are underdogs, but they still have that feel about them. But they are a very good baseball team. They have the skills to go all the way. They could do some real damage. They are better than the Rays. I think they could sweep. That gives me Orioles-Astros in the ALCS. This feels very much like the previous round for me. I'd love to see the Orioles win and go to the World Series. It would be way more fun. But the Astros are better and the experience is going to be critical here. They will have no fear and I think the Orioles will play tight. I have the Astros returning to the World Series.

Now to the NL. The Braves are the best team in baseball and they are the 1 seed. The Dodgers are right behind them at the 2. In the 3-6 we have The Brewers facing the Diamondbacks. I didn't know the D'Backs were good again. They were World Series winning good when I was in college. But they haven't been relevant in awhile. Good for them for getting back to the postseason. The Brewers I saw a lot of this season. And they look very solid. They don't wow you when you watch them play, but this team wins a ton of games. They also happen to be my dad's favorite team, so I will stick up for them here. I do believe they will beat the D'Backs in round 1. The 4-5 is going to be the most fun match up in the playoffs. We have the Marlins and Phillies. The Phillies were in the World Series last season. The Marlins are young, fun and playing with house money. Both teams can hit and both teams have pretty solid number 1 starters. This is going to be a fun series to check in on. Do to the fact that the Marlins are playing with house money, and because when they get in the playoffs they seem to do something crazy, I have them winning this series. The Marlins reward will be facing the Braves. The Braves will roll them. They are about as complete a team can be in MLB. They literally have it all. They will coast. The Brewers will face the Dodgers, and while I think the Brewers will be able to hang around, the Dodgers are too loaded and too deep. They are almost as good as the Braves. The Dodgers should be able to dispose of the Brewers in five, maybe six games. That gives me the Dodgers and Braves in the NLCS. The Braves will win this series in rather resounding fashion. They are a better team with better players and Ronald Acuna Jr is so damn good at this game. I think the Braves are good enough to sweep the Dodgers, which will makes the Dodgers fans incredibly upset.

That means I have the Astros and Braves facing off in the World Series. This is going to feel like some kind of excellent karma for the cheating ass Astros. The Braves are going to throttle their punk asses. I'd not only love to see the Braves sweep them, but to win every game by seven or eight runs. I want them to utterly embarass the Astros. I want the Braves to show no mercy. While they won't do that, I do think the Braves will win it all this season and they will only need five games, maybe six to do it. The Braves will win the 2023 World Series and Ronald Acuna Jr is going to win the MVP. They are legit. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty's MLB Playoff Preview

Much to my surprise, and I think a few other people, I was made aware that the MLB playoffs start today. I was looking at a sports story on my phone, and I saw an ad that exclaimed, "WE HAVE PLAYOFF BASEBALL ON ALL DAY!".

I was taken aback. I was, as I said, surprised. I was even more surprised that the Cardinals made it in this postseason. I see they have 16 teams total playing,  but I didn't even think the Cardinals would be able to play the whole 60 games, and here they are, in the playoffs again. After doing some research, I see this playoff is totally different, and they are going about it different, but it starts today, and I just feel like I should do a prediction style blog. I always say that RD is the baseball guy on this site, so take my picks with a grain of salt. I didn't know that Tampa is the best AL team. I cannot name one player on their team. I also see that the NL Central not only has the Cardinals in, but the Cubs, Reds and Brewers are in as well. That is every team except Pittsburgh. This is wild, but I will do my best. I will go bracket style, and I will start with the AL. The first round is a best of three, then they go five, then seven. This is crazy, but I do have to admit, it is kind of neat too.

In the AL the 1-8 matchup features the Rays and Blue Jays. Again, I know no one on the Rays, and I only know of Vlad Guerrero Jr on the Blue Jays. And if the Rays are good enough to leapfrog the Yankees for the top spot in their league and division, I believe they will beat the Blue Jays in two games. The 2-7 matchup is the A's and White Sox. Again, two teams where I cannot name a single guy off the top of my head. I will go with the White Sox to pull off the "upset", based only on the fact that the A's always, always choke in the playoffs. That is their 21st century calling card. The 3-6 features the Twins and Astros. I know that I spoke highly of the Twins in my season preview, and I despise what the Astros did, and I feel like they need to be stripped of any title they have won. With that being said, the Twins will win this round because they are better in every phase of the game, and they don't have to cheat to be better. The 4-5 gives us the Indians and Yankees. I have put my faith in the Indians far too many times to be burned by them again. The Yankees will outhit them and out score them. That is that.

This would put us in the next round with matchups of Tampa and the Yankees and the Twins and White Sox. I think the Yankees will beat the Rays because they have the bats. They can win games 10-7, and not worry about it. Maybe the Rays have some solid pitchers, but I am going with a classic here. I think the Twins will destroy the White Sox. They seem to be stacked everywhere, and they can hit, even better than the Yankees. Which means I am also going with the Twins to win the AL. They are a better all around team, they are healthy and, in this weird season, why not the Twins. This is what I would rather see too, if I watched MLB.

Now to the NL. The 1-8 is Milwaukee and the Dodgers. Milwaukee used to be a threat to teams like the Dodgers, but the Dodgers are stacked and they are angry. They have been screwed out of a few titles, and they will be out for blood. The Dodgers are going to smoke the Brewers. The 2-7 features the Braves and Reds. RD said the Reds would be a decent team, and he was right. They were right around .500, and now they got a spot in the playoffs. Unfortunately for them they have to face a very good, and very talented Braves team. RD was right about them too. He was on their bandwagon before anyone else. And because they have playoff experience, I believe they will beat the Reds with relative ease. The 3-6 gives us Cubs and the Marlins. How on Earth are the Marlins here? Are they good? Is it because of the shortened season? A bit of both? I'm serious. Did the Marlins just become good all of the sudden like they seem to do every decade since their existence? Anyway, the Cubs are a better team, and they should win. They won the division, and they seem to be like the team back when they made, and won, the World Series. The Cubs will win this round. And the 4-5 is the Cardinals and Padres. Sorry to all my STL friends and fans, and myself, but I want, hope and think the Padres will win this round. They are young and fun and they are one of the very few teams that I will actually watch play a game. They have a good time out there, they hit dingers and they just play a fun brand of baseball. I'm going Padres here. The Cardinals are too old, had to deal with a COVID outbreak and are probably tired from all of the double headers they had to play to catch up.

That leaves us, in the second round, with the Dodgers and Padres, and the Cubs and Braves. Again, I love what the Padres are doing, but they are going up against a juggernaut. The Dodgers want nothing more than to steamroll teams on their way to a World Series, and I just do not think the Padres have enough to keep up. They will make it fun, maybe even a tiny bit interesting, but the Dodgers will win with relative ease. The Cubs and Braves should be a solid series. These two teams, at least on paper, seem kind of similar. They both have solid pitching, they have big hitters and guys who hit for average, and they are both well coached. From what I have gathered though, the Braves bullpen is far superior, and that always makes a difference in playoff baseball. That gives the edge to the Braves. So that leaves us with the Braves and Dodgers. How many more times do I have to say that the Dodgers are legit, they are mad and they want revenge? They are going to cruise here too. They are too loaded not to.

That means that I have the Twins and Dodgers playing in this weird and wild World Series, and I believe the Dodgers will sweep their way to a title, and they deserve it. I shouldn't even like a team like the Dodgers. They have every advantage, they are stacked, they can pay gobs of money to the best players and lure them away in their prime, but they have been cheated the past couple years, and I feel like they will finally get the title they should have gotten a few years back. This is their year to win, and I wouldn't be shocked if they cruise, possibly undefeated, throughout the playoffs.

The Dodgers will be your 2020 World Series champs. 

RD’s Prediction

The LA Dodgers will win the World Series. That is all.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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The SeedSing 2019 MLB Playoff Preview

I think since SeedSing became a website I write 2 baseball pieces a year, give or take, and today, I have one of my usual baseball pieces.

The playoffs start soon, I think tomorrow, so I am going to give my predictions, and pick a World Series winner, and MVP. I'm going to start with the AL, and I am pretty sure that I picked Cleveland to be in the World Series, and they aren't even in the playoffs. (editor’s note: Ty picked the Yankees) Shockingly, especially to me because I just found out yesterday when preparing for this blog, the Rays and Athletics made the playoffs, and I cannot name single player on each team. But, if history has taught us anything about the A's in the playoffs, it is that they always blow it. Also, I think the Rays have solid pitching, so I am going to go with them to win the AL wild card game, and advance to getting their brains beat out by the Astros.

The Rays "gift" for beating the A's will be a sweep at the hands of Astros. The Astros, who have been quietly amazing for the past three years, including a World Series win, are a house of fire. They are so good at every position, on their pitching staff and their coaches. They may be the best team in baseball, and it may not be as close as some think. Yet no one really talks them up that much. That is because in the other division series in the AL we have the Yankees facing the Twins. The Twins aren't usually a team a lot of people talk about lately, but they lead the league in homeruns this year, and they won a shit ton of games. They are really good, and they are very well coached. But, they have a history like the A's in the playoffs, and usually, that history is against the Yankees. I so want to pick the Twins to win this series, and they can score with this Yankees team, but I just don't see it happening. Especially with the injury bug that hit the Yankees this year, and yet they still won over 100 games. They have mashers all over their lineup, and while their staff is questionable, if their starters can give them 5 or 6 quality innings, their bullpen can take over. I will be rooting, not watching though, for the Twins, but I think the Yankees will win the series in the end.

That gives us the Yankees and Astros in the ALCS. The separation is not much between these 2 teams, but the Astros pitching staff is light years ahead of the Yankees. The Yankees may not find it so easy to mash homers when they have to face 4 really, really good starting pitchers. And for that one reason, I am going with the Astros to win in 7 games. They are so good, and I think the Yankees lack of starting pitching will come to bite them in this series. so, I have the Astros representing the AL in the World Series.

The NL was a bit harder for me to figure out. The wild card game might be the best game of the whole MLB playoffs. The Brewers are currently on fire, all without Christian Yelich, but they have to go up against Max Scherzer, and a Nationals team that is putting Strasburg and their other starter in the bullpen for this game. It may be hard for them to come by hits. The Nationals starting pitching is really good. Their bullpen though, is really bad. I think that is why they have their other starters going to the bullpen for this game. Milwaukee's best shot, and I picked them to win the World Series before the year started by the way, is to find a way to get runs early. I feel like they have the lineup to do it, but it will be tough against Scherzer. I think this will be low scoring, but I think the Brewers can find a way to score 2 or 3 runs in the first 3 or 4 innings, and that will be enough. The Brewers will win, and they will then get to face the Dodgers.

The Dodgers have kind of quietly been a great team all year. They won over 100 games, they can pitch and they can hit. They have it all. But, they also seem to blow it in big time games, especially Clayton Kershaw. He has exercised some past playoff demons, but he isn't the dominate playoff pitcher that he is in the regular season. And, the Brewers are on fire, as I said earlier. I just think they have that "it" factor right now, and they can beat the Dodgers, in a hard fought 7 games, and advance to the NLCS.

The other divisional matchup features a super young, yet super talented Braves team facing off against my Cardinals. The Cardinals have been pretty good since the All Star break, but I don't like the fact that they needed until the last day to clinch the division. I'm also not a huge fan of their pitching staff. But, they have a good lineup, they have experience, and I look at the Braves like I do the Thunder when they have KD. Russ and Harden. They are good, and will be great, but not ready yet. But watch out for this Acuna kid. He is awesome. But I think the Cardinals will win the series, probably in 6 games, and advance to the NLCS.

That gives us a divisional matchup in the championship series. And while I have been doting on how hot the Brewers have been lately, there is one stat that I saw that has just stayed in my mind. When the Brewers were super duper hot, standing at 12-2 since the Yelich injury, the person who released the stat mentioned that the 2 were both against the Cardinals. And, my dad, who is the biggest Brewers fan I know, says that all the Cardinals need to do to get on a run is to play the Brewers. I think for these 2 reasons, the Cardinals will beat the Brewers, in 6 games, and advance to the World Series. They will represent the NL.

The 2019 World Series will be a blood bath like when the Red Sox destroyed the Cardinals in a 4 game sweep way back in the early 2000's. The Astros are better in every area of the game. They have a better lineup, better pitching staff and better coaching staff. They are a far better team where we sit today. I have the Astros winning the World Series in a clean and easy sweep. As for the MVP, I think it will be a pitcher because it always seems to be one, and I will go with Justin Verlander. He is the best pitcher on their team, and one of the best in the majors.

There you have it, my 2019 MLB playoff preview. Take this with a humongous grain of salt, but this is how I see it all playing out.

RD’s thoughts

First off, what was I wrong about in my 2019 season preview?

The Red Sox were not as great as last year.

Cleveland did not win the AL Central. It was never even close. Minnesota was ready this year.

The A’s proved me wrong again.

The Nationals were better without Bryce Harper.

The Reds were below average once again.

The Dodgers were way better than I gave them credit for and the Rockies were way worse.

Now, where was I right?

Tampa did make the playoffs, along with New York and Houston (three out of six right)

I did get five of the six NL playoff teams correct. Only miss was picking Colorado.

So, what does it all mean, who is going to win the 2019 World Series? I actually completely agree with Ty on all the series. Milwaukee will get hot, the Astros and Yankees are on a collision course, the Dodgers will choke, and St. Louis will emerge to take on Houston in the World Series.

And it will be a four game Astro’s sweep. Just like I predicted at the beginning of the season.

Ty & RD

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

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The SeedSing 2018 MLB Playoff Preview

The MLB playoffs start tonight, and while I have admitted many, many times that I do not know much about the MLB, I'm going to go ahead and give my post season predictions. I will first start with the AL because I have a little more certainty about this side.

The A's and the Yankees face off in the Wild Card game. As much as I want to pick the A's, and as shocked as I am that they made it in the playoffs, I cannot pick against the Yankees. They have a great, home run hitting lineup, and they can get a pitcher to win one game if needed. The A's are a nice story, but their season ends in one game. I don't want it to, but the Yankees will win.

This will make the matchups Boston-New York and Cleveland-Houston. Boston has the best record in baseball by a wide margin. They have a great lineup and a great pitching staff. I know people are up in arms abut Chris Sale lately, and David Price hasn't been good in the post season, but they are a better team than the Yankees. These might be the 2 teams I despise most in baseball, but Boston is too good to screw this up. The games might be all very high scoring, but Boston will outscore the Yankees to death. Boston wins in 4. Cleveland faces the defending world champs, and a team that won 100 plus games this year. I still think the Astros are the overall best team in baseball, they have a tremendous lineup and a great, great pitching staff. But, and I don't know why I do this to myself, but I am going to go with Cleveland. It's going to be a 5 games series. The games will be close. The drama, for those that watch, will be intense. This could quite possibly be the best first round matchup. But, for as good as the Astros pitching staff is I think the Indians match it. And, the Indians can play small ball with the Astros. This is like 2 old NL teams facing each other. As I said though, in the end, I think the Indians will win in a tight, hard fought 5 games.

So, the ALCS will pit Boston against Cleveland. Terry Francona versus the team that let him go. And, just as he proved 2 years ago, I feel like he will outcoach, and his team will outplay, the team with the best record in baseball. Maybe this is my was of picking the A's, without picking them. I feel like Boston should win, and win handily, but there is just something about Francona going up against his old team. And in the playoffs, better pitching beats better hitting, and the Indians have a way better pitching staff. So, the Indians will be the ALCS champ and represent the AL in the World Series.

The NL is not so easy to pick. There are new, young teams and I cannot really get a hold of who will win. But, I'm going to try to pick anyway. In the Wild Card game, which is tonight actually, we have the Cubs and the Rockies. I look at this game the same as the AL Wild Card game. I want to pick the Rockies, but the Cubs are just a better, more seasoned playoff team. They have a better lineup, a better pitching staff, and I feel like, in a one game series, the team with better talent will win out. The Cubs are also getting healthy at the right time. While I will be rooting for the Rockies, the Cubs will win. That will set up the Cubs and Brewers and the Braves and Dodgers. The Cubs and Brewers are no strangers to each other. They are in the same division, they played an extra regular season game to get a division winner and the Brewers beat them. The Brewers are also peaking at the exact right time. But, as I said, the Cubs are getting back to full health, and they are the team that has been here before. It should go 5 games, and I want to pick the Brewers because that is the team of my father's youth, but I do not see the Brewers being able to pull it off. They remind me a lot of the Mariners team that won 114 games and got beat in the first round almost 20 years ago. Again, I will be rooting for the Brewers, but I have the Cubs winning in 5 games. The Braves and Dodgers is a whole different story. The Dodgers are the Yankees of the NL. They have all the glitz and glamour. They are the Hollywood team. They have the stars. They have the names. The Braves, well they remind me of the NL's version of the Indians, except younger. They are way ahead of schedule. They should still be rebuilding, but here they are. And you know what, with the way the Dodgers squeaked in, I'm going to go with the Braves. Something crazy always happens in the MLB playoffs, and I'm going to make that crazy thing be the Braves winning the first round match up against the Dodgers. And not only do I have them winning, I have them sweeping the Dodgers.

So, that gives us Chicago-Atlanta in the NLCS. And you know what, I'm going to continue to ride with the Braves. Maybe they will be the team I root for since the Cardinals are out. No one expected them to be here, they have no big names, no one like me can name one player on their team, but I think they will find a way to win. This series will go 7 games, but I feel like people will start to get behind the Braves, root for them, and they will be the NL representative in the World Series.

In the World Series is where it will all come crashing down for the Braves. I know, I always seem to pick the Indians, and I am going to pick them again. They are going to win it one of these years, and if my predictions are right, I feel like they will sweep the Braves. The Indians are the superior team in every phase. They will crush the Braves. Terry Francona will exercise the loss 2 years ago, and win another Series as manager. This will be the year. The Indians will finally prove me right. Now, people who watch baseball, enjoy the playoffs, hopefully they are fun.

Ty

Editor’s picks

The American League Playoffs.

The wild card game will produce a true wild card when the “how in the hell did they do this” Oakland A’s shock the world and beat the Yankees. Everyone on ESPN will demand a more than one game playoff because their favorite team is out.

The A’s will not win again because the Boston Red Sox will sweep Oakland. The dream season will be over.

The Houston Astros and Cleveland Indians divisional series will be awesome. It will go five games. In the end the Astros will emerge because they are like the Indians, but just a little bit better. Oh, they are also the defending champs.

The Red Sox spotty pitching will hurt them against the Astros. The ALCS will look a lot like last years World Series where the flashy star studded Dodgers could not beat the consistent Astros. The same thing that happened to the Dodgers will happen to the Red Sox. The Astros win the American League Pennant in seven games.

The National League Playoffs.

Ty is right, any of these teams could win the pennant. With that being said the Rockies will make the ESPN people upset when they beat the Cubs. Because the Yankees and Cubs will get knocked out early, MLB will look at making the wild card round a best of three.

The Rockies against the Milwaukee Brewers will be a close series. The Brew Crew will pull it out in four or five really close games.

The LA Dodgers against the Atlanta Braves is a changing of the guard type series. The Dodgers are experienced and near the end of their championship window. They were one game away from a title last year, and most of that team is returning to the playoffs. The Braves are young, talented, and inexperienced in October baseball. The Dodgers will emerge victorious, but the Braves will get that much needed playoff experience and this team will be a force for years to come.

The Brewers and Dodgers are two teams that look almost exactly alike. The Brewers have Christian Yelich, and that will be the difference. After six games, the Milwaukee Brewers will go to the World Series.

The World Series

The Brewers are the newcomers with a lot of balance and a superstar on the roster, the Astros have balance, a few superstars, and a World Series title. With that being said, the Brewers remind me of the Kansas City Royal teams from a few years back that went to back to back series and winning one. That is why I am picking the Milwaukee Brewers to win the 2018 World Series in seven games over the Houston Astros.

Enjoy the playoffs.

RD

Get Ready for Ty's 3rd Annual MLB Playoff Preview

Check out Ty's preseason preview here.

Two quick things before I get to my MLB playoff preview. First, "Curb Your Enthusiasm" came back last night and it is as wonderful as it has always been. The show is pure genius, and it was like they never left. Larry David is a god damn genius and everyone needs to watch the show. It is glorious.

Second, what happened in Las Vegas last night is pure tragedy. We are in very dark times as a country right now, and just when you do not think it can get any worse, something like last night happens. This is scary and just awful, awful news. America is not the safe place I knew as a child. I should never be scared to go to a concert, but last night will forever have me looking over my shoulder at any live event. What a horrible tragedy.

Now, to lighten things up a bit, I am going to do my MLB playoff preview. First off, I have only been to one Cardinals game this year, and other than that, I have watched next to no baseball this year. Football is back. The NBA preseason is going on, so why on Earth would I watch baseball. But, I do enjoy the playoffs, even though I will enjoy them a bit less this year since the Cards didn't make it. Also, I have not read RD's preview yet, but that is on purpose. I want to write mine, then see how close we get to each other's picks. Anyway, lets get to it.

I'm going to focus on the American League first. In the Wild Card game we have the New York Yankees and the Minnesota Twins. Man do I want to pick the Twins. That would be amazing. What holds me back from picking them is the fact that they lost 100 games a year ago, and they barely squeaked into the playoffs this year. The Yankees were pretty decent all year. Their pitching is subpar, but they can hit. In a one game matchup I just see the Yankees being able to score 6 or 7 runs and win a high scoring game. Something like 7-5 or 6-3. I'll be pulling for Minnesota, but I think the Yankees will win this first game.

A Yankees win would make the divisional matchups Yankees-Indians and Red Sox-Astros. The Red Sox may have think they dodged a bullet because you know Terry Francona probably would have swept them out of the first round again, but the Astros have been one of the best teams in baseball all year. They can hit, play defense, and since acquiring Justin Verlander, they have some solid pitching. The Red Sox have a great lineup capable of putting up numbers. What should scare Red Sox fans is their pitching. On paper they look dominate. But, David Price has been either hurt or inconsistent, David Pomeranz cannot go more than 5 innings and Chris Sale, who is supposed to be the surest thing in the AL, has been getting shelled lately. I like the Astros to win this series in 5 games. I think the fact that they can throw Dallas Kuechel and Justin Verlander out there for at least three games gives them the edge. They also have some great hitters, Jose Altuve to be more specific, and I just think they are a better team.

In the Yankees-Indians matchup, I do not see how the Indians don't sweep them. They are better in every phase of the game. They have better pitching, more timely hitting, better fielders and much better coaching. They may have peaked too soon some will say, but they will be sweeping the Yankees out in this round.

So, the ALCS will be Houston and Cleveland. Houston matches up better than the Yankees do, but I still like the Indians. Again, they are playing excellent baseball right now, they have a great lineup, great pitching and the best coach in the AL. This series will go a bit longer, I'm thinking 6 games, but I like the Indians to return to the World Series.

On to the National League. The Wild Card game again has me wanting to pick one team, but thinking the other will win. I'd love to see the Rockies make a long playoff run, but the Diamondbacks have better pitching and Paul Goldschimdt and one of the Upton brothers. That is more than enough for them to win. The game will be fun, but I see the Diamondbacks pulling away late in the game.

So, that gives us the divisional matchups of Dodgers-Diamondbacks and Cubs-Nationals. The Dodgers-Diamondbacks is going to be a hard fought, five game series. These teams matchup very well against one another. I know that the Dodgers have over 100 wins, but unlike the Indians, they have been in the tank for a couple months now. And, they have not been the best playoff team in the past few years. They still have Clayotn Kershaw and a great lineup and Yu Darvish, but they always seem to choke in critical moments. I expected this Diamondbacks team last year, but they are good this year. Their problem, they really only have Zack Greinke as a top notch starting pitcher. He can go, max, 2 games as a starter. They need more than that. Again, this will be a rough 5 game series, but I think the Dodgers, despite their recent playoff stumbles, move to the NLCS.

The Cubs-Nationals matchup may be the best of the entire playoffs. I love this matchup. These are 2 of the best young teams in baseball. The Cubs are also peaking at the exact right time, and they are the defending champs. When I watched them clinch the other night I kept saying to anyone around me, don't sleep on this team returning to the World Series. But, the Nationals may be the only team they did not want to face in the NLDS. They can match their pitching, and for me personally, especially with a fully healthy Bryce Harper, they have a much better lineup. I know the Nationals are a team that has never really won anything, but I feel like the time is now. This series is going to be amazing, and I think the Nationals will win it in walk off fashion in game 5.

So, that gives us the Dodgers and Nationals for the NLCS. This is so much easier for me to pick than the other series. The Nationals should cruise by the Dodgers. The Dodgers are swooning, the Nationals have their best player back, and they are a better team. They should, and will, win this series in no less than 5 games.

That means we have a Nationals-Indians World Series. I believe this was my preseason pick. And just like my preseason pick, I'm going with the Indians (ed note: Ty actually picked the Nationals. We'll let him slide). They are on fire right now. They were there, and should have won, last year. They are a better overall team. They will frustrate and small ball the hell out of the Nationals. The World Series is right there for them to snatch up. It will go either 5 or 6, but it will not be the epic that last year's World Series was. The Indians are so good, and just like the Cubs ended their title drought last year, the Indians will do the same this year. I like Cleveland in 6 games.

There you have it, my 2017 MLB preview. I have to go see what RD picked now, and for all my NBA fans out there, my NBA countdown starts tomorrow. I just wanted to get a little baseball in right before the playoffs start. Lets get ready to see how this all shakes out.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He had convinced the head editor that the Nationals were going to win it all. Then Ty pulls the rug out and switches to the Indians. Damn you Ty. Damn you to hell.

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

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The SeedSing 2017 MLB Playoff Preview

Time for October baseball. 162 games in the books, and we have a playoff field. I want to start by saying I think this group of teams could make for a great October. Any of these squads could win it all, and I would not be surprised at all.

Having said all that, it is time to look back at our predictions for the season. Yes, the Reds and Padres were terrible, but the worst team was the San Francisco Giants. Both Ty and I put them in our playoff predictions. I was also way wrong, and Ty was way right, on the Atlanta Braves. They were terrible this year. The St. Louis Cardinals got old, and had a questionable man at the helm, and they will miss the playoffs. The Royals and Pirates hung around for a big chunk of the season, but they will both finish below .500. The Yankees will return to the playoffs, but the Red Sox were the better team, and Boston took the toughest division in baseball. Oh, and the Cubs, they did not come close to 110 wins.

I was right on a few things, or at least I was close to being right. Houston and Washington DC coasted in their divisions. The wild card races did have some drama with a surprising Milwaukee Brewers team battling another surprise in the Colorado Rockies for the last wild card spot. The Brew Crew just came up short. Joey Votto and Mike Trout also put up MVP numbers on teams going nowhere. I was right on that, but it still makes me sad.

With that out of the way, let’s look at what the SeedSing brain thinks the 2017 MLB playoffs will look like.

The Wildcard

Minnesota Twins at New York Yankees

First up, great job Twins. I never even mentioned them in the season preview. Joe Mauer is still a stud, and the rest of team played good ball all year. It is awesome to see a team like Minnesota make it into the playoffs.

Unfortunately, the party will be short lived. The New York Yankees are back, and they will not lose this game. The Yankees made some of the best moves around the trade deadline, and their lineup is going to be way too much for the Twins. Great year Minnesota, hope to see you again next year.

Colorado Rockies at Arizona Diamondbacks

This game could go either way. Arizona finally started to unlock it’s potential. Colorado came out of nowhere and had a great year. The problem with these one game playoffs is that one player can make a world of difference. In this game, that one player is Diamondback’s ace Zack Greinke. Arizona has the playoff tested ace that every team desires in that one game. Greinke will take the Diamondbacks to the divisional round.

The Divisional Round

Cleveland Indians vs New York Yankees

Are the Yankees back? Not against this Cleveland team. The Yankees lack of any real starting pitching, and their young lineup, will be swept out of the playoffs by Terry Francona’s club.

Houston Astros vs Boston Red Sox

First off, sorry Boston. I was way wrong. I knew you were good, but I did not think you were this good. Chris Sale has been a beast, Mookie Betts is one of the best players to watch. The Red Sox were slept on by a lot of people. That was wrong.

The Houston Astros are the most forgotten team of the 2017 MLB season. This team was awesome. They nearly matched Cleveland’s win total, and the Indians needed a 22-game winning streak to get where they are. Houston has been consistent, and they have been great. This consistency will serve them well in a hard fought 5 game series win over Boston.

Arizona Diamondbacks vs Los Angeles Dodgers

LA had the money, they got the talent, and they are back at the top of baseball. New superstars replaced aging ones, great prospects became great players, the Dodgers have a system that always works.

Except that system has not produced any meaningful postseason success. Clayton Kershaw has not been the multiple Cy-Young winner of the regular season in the playoffs. The Dodger bats seem to fall asleep every October. Will this be the year they finally make all that money spent worth something?

The Arizona Diamondbacks are not the team the Dodger’s want in a short series. Greinke could go, and win, two games. Paul Goldschmidt had another MVP like season. Arizona has also been red hot in the second half of the season, the Dodgers have not. Arizona will continue the postseason misery for LA and win in four games.

Chicago Cubs vs Washington Nationals

I will be shocked if the Nationals do not sweep the Cubs. Washington has great pitching, an unreal lineup, and fixed their bullpen through trades. Chicago has had an underachieving season for a team with that much talent. Maybe the Cubs can break their one-year curse next season. Washington skates to the LCS.

The League Championship Series

Cleveland Indians vs Houston Astros

This is going to be a great series. Houston and Cleveland are like mirror images of each other. Both have pitching and hitting riches. Both have a mixture of youth and experience. The one difference is the manager. Terry Francona has proven he is one of, if not the best, skipper in all of baseball. That will be the difference in an incredible seven game series.

Washington Nationals vs Arizona Diamondbacks

The National League has had some truly great baseball this year. Milwaukee, Colorado, and Arizona all made the experts look like idiots. The Cubs struggled, and still took the division. The Marlins showed some life early on. It has been a great year for the senior circuit.

This will be a bad NLCS. Again, Washington will win in a sweep, maybe five games. The Nationals are far and away better than any team in the NL. The Dodgers have all those wins, and Washington would have swept them. The Cubs have last year’s title, and the Nationals would have swept them. Dusty Baker could get his DC squad to the World Series without dropping one game. They are that good.

The World Series

Washington Nationals vs Cleveland Indians

Back in April both Ty and I picked a Washington / Cleveland World Series. Ty picked the Nationals to win, I picked the Indians. Am I sticking with my pick?

No, I am not.

The Washington Nationals are the most loaded team in all of baseball. They had a problem with the bullpen early in the year. They fixed it. Their starting pitching cannot be matched. Their lineup is incredible. They have Bryce Harper. The only negative thing I can say about the Nationals is that Dusty Baker is their manager. I saw Dusty blow a few big games when he was here in Cincinnati. I do not think the same will happen this time. Francona is a better manager, and that will get Cleveland two games in the series. It will not be enough.

The Washington Nationals will be the 2017 World Series Champs.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is only picking the Nationals because he saw them live in DC. Maybe next year he will go to Cleveland and check out a game. It is a way faster drive. Have a thought on the playoffs?  Come tell us. 

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.

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

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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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.