MLB Roundup

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Jeff-

Well, the All Star Break has come and gone which means a few things. It is time for people to complain about how the first half went, make MVP predictions, and try to justify bad starts by their favorite players/teams.

I’ll try to keep my Dodgers homerism away for this article, but I do have to make some observations.

Dodgers have the 3rd best record in the NL right now, and although they have struggled in the head to head match-ups with division rival San Francisco, they have built a decent lead over them after being in a battle for first with them just a month or so ago. Not to mention they have the best home record in all of baseball.

At this point in the season there doesn’t seem to be a clear cut favorite in either league to make it to the Fall Classic. If I had to make a predictions right now I would say Dodgers vs Royals (although I don’t see them having a strong handle of that spot)

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By the way, how great of a first half has Zack Greinke had? I texted Clayton the other day asking if Greinke seems to be the Cy Young favorite at this point and we both kind of agreed that it seems to be that way. He has been on fire in his last few starts (with a scoreless streak of over 43 innings!) giving him an even stronger hold on the title.

I had an argument at the beginning of the season with a friend who told me Matt Harvey was 10x better than Zack Greinke and he even said he would take him over Kershaw as well. At this point I feel pretty confident in throwing that conversation back in his face now.

A few specific stats that stand out to me at this point are Dee Gordon leading the MLB in hits (that one hurts me), the resurgence of Albert Pujols (27 Home Runs), Joc Pederson showing the world that the Dodgers were right to ship out Matt Kemp, and Bryce Harper finally putting up the numbers everybody expected of him.

I want to comment on Alex Fraudriguez and his comeback season, but I will leave that to Clayton because I know he has more a vested interest in him.

I personally don’t have much of an issue with the All Star Game starters, there are a few I might consider changing but nothing that has me up in arms. Not sure if Clayton has any major issues with the rosters but I guess we'll find out later (top notch tease right there).

Clayton -

Admittedly, I have been lacking in my attention of my usual favorite sport of baseball with an obsession with basketball lately.

So let me throw some quick things out there, and not get over my head in this.

Let me make this quick. I do not care about All-Star games or their activities. I did not really have any real snubs or surprises other than Kershaw not getting voted on in the first place. He is the best pitcher in baseball the past 5 years and I do not see how he had to back his way into it.

Not to mention, having the All-Star break decide home field advantage for the World Series is a stain on an already terrible reign for former Commissioner Bud Selig. Maybe new Commissioner Manfred will fix it… hopefully.

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Before I get into any other comments, I do find it funny the A-Rod bit.

Why do we have this stupid standard in baseball about steroids, but when it comes to football it gets overlooked. In recent years NFL stars hat have been suspended form PEDs include, Robert Mathis, LaRon Landry, Haloti Ngata, Brandon Browner (TWICE!!), Bruce Irvin, Trent Williams, Fred Davis, Phillip Buchanon, and Brian Cushing. Yet people believe them when they say they over train.... Those are just some of them. Then we have guys like Richard Sherman who beat a PED test on a technicality... If you believe that, then I can't help you.

Also, in fighting, whether it is boxing or some form of MMA I have a hard time seeing those guys not taking some form of illegal supplements. But that does not sell pay per views....

And this is not just about A-Rod. Studies have proved that steroids actually do not give as big effect as most think. It does not turn Juan Pierre into Barry Bonds. Speaking of which, I would say Bonds is the best hitter in history and yes, Bonds is the true home run king.

Shoot, Hank Aaron was taking greenies, also known as amphetamines, which in studies actually do have an effect. BUT people do not want to hear that, and refuse to listen to that. In psychology we call that belief perserverance.

So most of you that want to talk crap about steroids in baseball, you probably overlook it elsewhere... hypocrites...

A-Rod has had a good season, but even if he hits over 35 bombs he does not deserve MVP votes. As a DH, he needs to be the league's best hitter by a mile. Which he is not.

By the way, I do not think the Yankees make the playoffs. They do not have anything but the bullpen for the playoffs. They are filled with old, injured or old and injured players. I will likely discuss the Yankees in a later post, but that is not the topic for this article.

Now that I got that out of the way…

With baseball back into swing after the All-Star break, I think the best team in baseball is St. Louis, but the team that would scare me most in the playoffs would be the Nationals.

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I think the breakout stud is the Nationals Bryce Harper. Everyone has wanted to say the kid is overrated, but he has finally broke out into MVP form… at the age of 22. At this point in the season, Harper has a WAR (wins above replacement) of 6.5 (leads all of baseball by 0.4 over the savior trout), which puts him in the top 50 seasons for a player his age.

Harper not only leads baseball in WAR, but is tied for first in home runs, is 4th in the useless stat known as RBI’s (but voters and stupid fans love them) and has a slash line of .337/.465/.697/1.162. Those are freak numbers. Those rank as 4th, 1st, 1st and 1st. The last three by a wide margin too.

The talent has always been there, but he has not quite lived up to the hype surrounding him since he was 17, but he has been the youngest or one of the youngest players in baseball since he came into the league at 19. The guy is a going to be a perennial MVP candidate for the rest of his career if he can stay healthy.

Harper and new addition Max Scherzer seem to be carrying the Nationals. If it all breaks right for them and their players rebound and get healthy, they could be scary.

Oh, and go Trout. How many MVP’s will he win now that people realize that he deserved them over Miguel Cabrera, or least they should have? With Trout and Pujols, maybe thee Angels can hold onto their division lead and make a run in the playoffs.

Early World Series Prediction: Missouri Series! St. Louis Cardinals vs. Kansas City Royals.


Follow Jeff on twitter at @Jeffkay1989
Follow Clayton on Twitter at @19Yanks23