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Reactions: Second-half predictions Users tell what's in their crystal ball...Posted: Tuesday July 11, 2000 03:35 PM As the baseball season reaches the midpoint, fans have pulled out their crystal baseballs to see what the second half has in store. Many CNNSI.com users came up with some very interesting scenarios. Some of those predictions follows: You can't always win, that is true. Maybe we'll find that out next year, but this October will be irritatingly familiar. New York rejoices, Atlanta curses, and the rest of the country watches football. Yankees over Braves in six.
It strikes me that this year, more than most years, the playoff teams and eventual World Series winner will be determined by moves made prior to the trade deadline. This is probably a function of the impending quality free agent class and the closeness of races. This is further enhanced by a lack of a truly dominant team. Many teams perceive an opportunity to compete for a "ring" and will seek the final pieces via trades.
Expos all the way. Loria will gain 100% ownership of the club before the season ends and because he doesn't have to answer to any Canadian partners, he will trade for the talent the Expos need to make a run. In addition to all of their pitchers, with the exception of Urbina and Lloyde, coming back off the DL in the second half expect them to keep the wild card situation in the NL exciting.
My team has the most feared hitter in baseball. My team has the most reliable staff ace in the AL. My team has the only true legitimate 40-40 candidate in either league. My team has the most productive third baseman in the AL. My team leads the league in home runs, yet also is second in stolen bases and defense. My closer throws 100 MPH and has more saves than Mariano Riveria. Heck, we may have the best lead off hitter in the AL as well. Geez, if we could just some pitching! C'mon folks, don't forget about the Toronto Blue Jays.
I think the Braves will win the World Series. I expect to see them trade Chipper Jones to the AL for a top-line starter and a middle reliever shortly after the All-Star break. The Mets will be in the race the whole way and take the wildcard position in the playoffs.
Cardinals! Cardinals! Cardinals! The Cardinals will win it all. The Astros will be 47 games out of first. Way to go Astros. Piazza will win the MVP because he is from New York, sorry Mr. Kent. Big Mac will hit another 30 or so homeruns, and beat Sosa by at least 15. Sosa will decline farther, while Griffey will find his place and start getting the Reds to perform on his level, but they will end the season 10+ behind the Cards. Other than that it will be the Giants, Braves, and the Mets. Cardinals defeat the Red Sox in six!
The first series following the All Star break will provide a preview glimpse of the 2000 World Series when the St Louis Cardinals travel to Chicago to take on the White Sox. The magical season of the Chisox will end following a six game (World) Series loss to the Redbirds, who will prove to be too strong and too deep. Mark McGwire will re-define "Mr. October" in his MVP performance.
First in the AL, I feel that the Yankees are going to come out real strong in the second half. Despite subpar pitching from the three big starters in the first half look for a resurgence in pitching from Pettite and Clemens. I also think Williams and Jeter are going to put out the leadership that they need to capture the division. Justice is going to come through big for them. In the NL I see the surprise coming from the Reds. I think too many people are already ruling them out. They have potentially one of the most dangerous lineups in baseball, offensively and defensively. Realistically they are not out of the race and they haven't even started to gel yet. Griffey will get hot and the pitching will get better. Look for Williamson to give the reds a big boost possibly in the starting rotation. And once those bats get hot look out Cards.
The Red Sox behind Pedro, Garciaparra and Everett will overcome a shaky rotation to win the AL East. Toronto will fade with a reduction in homers and Wells returning to Earth. The Yankees pitching problems (no No. 1 starter) and Spencer's injury will drop them into a wildcard race with the Oakland A's. The White Sox run away with the Al Central while Cleveland falls to a .500 win-loss percentage. The Mariners ride A-Rod and Edgar's bats to the second best record in the AL and the Yankees nip the A's by a couple games for the wildcard. The Red Sox beat the Mariners in five behind two strong starts by Pedro and some late inning heroics from Garciaparra. The White Sox fall to the Yankees in four games as Cone and Clemens regain old form. The Red sox beat the Yankees for the pennant in seven behind three Pedro wins and clutch hitting by Trot Nixon and a stellar pitching performance by rookie Paxton Crawford.
Call me a fan, but I think the Mariners stand the best chance of winning the AL. They have not lost a series since May, and they have achieved that success with pitching and defense, the formula AL managers dream of. The return of Freddy Garcia gives them an even more formidable rotation, and barring any significant injury to the heart of the order, the offense should prove more than adequate to propel them into the series.
Okay, let the ripping begin. The Anaheim Angels should have a solid shot at the AL west title and even a greater chance at Wildcard. In what is shaping up to be the best division in the American League, Anaheim has showed that they can compete with both Oakland and Seattle. They split series with both these clubs and then went on to sweep a slumping Colorado team before the All-Star break. They are (47-41) five games behind division leading Seattle. True their starting pitching staff is suspect (with half not remembering where they placed there arthritis pills and the other kids e.g., Seth Etherton, Brian Cooper, still waiting for the dust to settle on their diplomas from USC). But are they really any worse off than say Oakland.
First of all, I'd like to say that even though I live just outside of Atlanta, I don't believe that the Braves are going to pull it out this season. They will falter of late and the Mets will win the NL East. I also believe that though St. Louis looks unstoppable, they have had injury problems, and because of that the Reds will come up and beat them out for the NL Central title. With that said, the Diamondbacks will take the NL West, but only by a half a game over the streaking Dodgers. No one will catch the White Sox and Texas will come up and win the AL West like they almost always do. World Series Prediction: Toronto beats the Mets in a seven.
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