Post by Dodgers GM on Aug 22, 2022 21:40:28 GMT -5
Playoff preview back again, and for the first time in a long while I'm not in it - but I hope to be back! Went 7/7 last year, let's see if I can do that again.
Quarterfinals
1. Cubs vs 8. Orioles
A perfect 18-0 season by the Cubs as he goes for....how many championships in a row now? The Orioles are no pushover though - and with all the prospects that they've graduated this year going into next there's a ton of good, young, cheap talent to build for years to come. For this year though, I think the Cubs will continue the perfect record, although I think it'll be a fairly close matchup overall.
Pick: Cubs
2. Tigers vs 7. A's
The A's sold at the deadline, dealing Freeman, Betts, and Wheeler and getting back Dustin May as he returns from the IL. I think the A's had a really good team this year and were actually 4th overall in points but bets on some of the young pitching paid off (how about Shane McClanahan?), and others didn't (Ian Anderson's in AAA). Speaking of a high scoring team - it's actually the Tigers (not the Cubs) who finished tops in scoring. There seems to be a bit of Rodney Dangerfield happening here as the Tigers don't get no respect, no respect at all - but not from me.
Pick: Tigers
3. Twins vs. 6. Expos
A rematch of a matchup from the last week of the season - and I think things will be the same as last week. Expos have always had good teams, but also sold a little - and ironically, might wind up having to face Bryce Harper after they've dealt them. Hats off to the Twins nearly going from worst to first and riding on the backs of some of the best pitching in the league like Nasty Nestor and Sandy Alcantara and the ageless Justin Verlander.
Pick: Twins
4. Giants vs. 5. Braves
Giants and Braves both won to go to 12-6 last week and avoided a 6 way 11-7 tie, which I was personally rooting for! I think here might be the one upset, but it's a 4/5 matchup so it's always going to be close. Both good teams from the Giants and Braves back in the playoffs again for another year. My pick boils down to one person: Jacob DeGrom. I really think DeGrom will push the Braves over the top here - and it would be interesting to see what would have happened if DeGrom was with the O's vs the Cubs...
Pick: Braves
Semifinals
1. Cubs vs. 5. Braves
I don't see the Cubs losing in the semis either, unless DeGrom really goes off on some insane run over the next month or so. Unfortunately, DeGrom is about as fragile as Kershaw is for the Cubs so they might cancel each other out with injuries. Even without Kershaw, I think the Cubs still have enough pitching and stud hitters in Soto to make the finals again.
Pick: Cubs
2. Tigers vs. 3. Twins
This might the the hardest pick of the preview - until I get to the finals pick of course. The Twins bought big at the deadline and have great pitching, while the Tigers get Trout back at the deadline and have had great pitching this year as well. This will be a battle of the pitching staffs - Scherzer, Fried, Rodon, and a resurgent Detmers vs Alcantara, Verlander, Urias, and Manoah - and NL All-Star 1Bs (Goldschmidt vs Freeman). There's very, very little separating these two teams and the Cubs and I expect any of the three to win it all. I put the best odds on the Cubs only because the Cubs don't have to face either of these teams until the finals. In the end, I think the Tigers just do enough to get the win here.
Pick: Tigers
Finals
1. Cubs vs. 2. Tigers
As a Patriots fan, unfortunately I'm familiar with 18-0. Now, if the Cubs make it back to the finals it'll be more than that - 20-0. And there's no doubt that picking the top two teams to make the finals is a bit of a cop out here. However, taking the safe pick doesn't necessarily mean it's the wrong one.
While this might be the first (or one of the first) perfect teams at 18-0, the Cubs also had the least amount of points against by a huge margin (431 points). That's not to say that the Cubs were lucky - far from it, since they're also 2nd in points scored - but they are actually facing the top scorer for the year in the Tigers. There is some weird magic in the year though where people come up against the Cubs they way underperform, and we'll see if that magic runs out.
Call me crazy...but I think this may be the year.
Pick: Tigers
Past Predictions:
2021: 7/7! Wish I had picked myself to win the finals and gotten that right too
2020: 4/4 for the quarters, 2/2 in the semis, but got the finals wrong - Cubs 3 peat! 6/7
2019: 3/4 for the quarters, picked myself and lost in the semis, but got the finals right! 5/7
2018: Not so good this year...got all quarterfinals right but wrong on the rest. 4/7
2017: Got all picks right! 7/7
2016: Got all quarterfinal and semifinal picks right, got the final wrong. 6/7 in predictions
Quarterfinals
1. Cubs vs 8. Orioles
A perfect 18-0 season by the Cubs as he goes for....how many championships in a row now? The Orioles are no pushover though - and with all the prospects that they've graduated this year going into next there's a ton of good, young, cheap talent to build for years to come. For this year though, I think the Cubs will continue the perfect record, although I think it'll be a fairly close matchup overall.
Pick: Cubs
2. Tigers vs 7. A's
The A's sold at the deadline, dealing Freeman, Betts, and Wheeler and getting back Dustin May as he returns from the IL. I think the A's had a really good team this year and were actually 4th overall in points but bets on some of the young pitching paid off (how about Shane McClanahan?), and others didn't (Ian Anderson's in AAA). Speaking of a high scoring team - it's actually the Tigers (not the Cubs) who finished tops in scoring. There seems to be a bit of Rodney Dangerfield happening here as the Tigers don't get no respect, no respect at all - but not from me.
Pick: Tigers
3. Twins vs. 6. Expos
A rematch of a matchup from the last week of the season - and I think things will be the same as last week. Expos have always had good teams, but also sold a little - and ironically, might wind up having to face Bryce Harper after they've dealt them. Hats off to the Twins nearly going from worst to first and riding on the backs of some of the best pitching in the league like Nasty Nestor and Sandy Alcantara and the ageless Justin Verlander.
Pick: Twins
4. Giants vs. 5. Braves
Giants and Braves both won to go to 12-6 last week and avoided a 6 way 11-7 tie, which I was personally rooting for! I think here might be the one upset, but it's a 4/5 matchup so it's always going to be close. Both good teams from the Giants and Braves back in the playoffs again for another year. My pick boils down to one person: Jacob DeGrom. I really think DeGrom will push the Braves over the top here - and it would be interesting to see what would have happened if DeGrom was with the O's vs the Cubs...
Pick: Braves
Semifinals
1. Cubs vs. 5. Braves
I don't see the Cubs losing in the semis either, unless DeGrom really goes off on some insane run over the next month or so. Unfortunately, DeGrom is about as fragile as Kershaw is for the Cubs so they might cancel each other out with injuries. Even without Kershaw, I think the Cubs still have enough pitching and stud hitters in Soto to make the finals again.
Pick: Cubs
2. Tigers vs. 3. Twins
This might the the hardest pick of the preview - until I get to the finals pick of course. The Twins bought big at the deadline and have great pitching, while the Tigers get Trout back at the deadline and have had great pitching this year as well. This will be a battle of the pitching staffs - Scherzer, Fried, Rodon, and a resurgent Detmers vs Alcantara, Verlander, Urias, and Manoah - and NL All-Star 1Bs (Goldschmidt vs Freeman). There's very, very little separating these two teams and the Cubs and I expect any of the three to win it all. I put the best odds on the Cubs only because the Cubs don't have to face either of these teams until the finals. In the end, I think the Tigers just do enough to get the win here.
Pick: Tigers
Finals
1. Cubs vs. 2. Tigers
As a Patriots fan, unfortunately I'm familiar with 18-0. Now, if the Cubs make it back to the finals it'll be more than that - 20-0. And there's no doubt that picking the top two teams to make the finals is a bit of a cop out here. However, taking the safe pick doesn't necessarily mean it's the wrong one.
While this might be the first (or one of the first) perfect teams at 18-0, the Cubs also had the least amount of points against by a huge margin (431 points). That's not to say that the Cubs were lucky - far from it, since they're also 2nd in points scored - but they are actually facing the top scorer for the year in the Tigers. There is some weird magic in the year though where people come up against the Cubs they way underperform, and we'll see if that magic runs out.
Call me crazy...but I think this may be the year.
Pick: Tigers
Past Predictions:
2021: 7/7! Wish I had picked myself to win the finals and gotten that right too
2020: 4/4 for the quarters, 2/2 in the semis, but got the finals wrong - Cubs 3 peat! 6/7
2019: 3/4 for the quarters, picked myself and lost in the semis, but got the finals right! 5/7
2018: Not so good this year...got all quarterfinals right but wrong on the rest. 4/7
2017: Got all picks right! 7/7
2016: Got all quarterfinal and semifinal picks right, got the final wrong. 6/7 in predictions