BLS Roundtable: Which teams will we see in the World Series?
Making predictions before the season begins is a tough task. That’s not a copout, it’s just a fact. If you saw Bryce Harper turning into a complete monster, or Dallas Keuchel posting Cy Young numbers before the season, more power to you. We don’t believe you, though.
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Here at The Stew, we’re forgiving. We made some bad predictions, sure, but at least we tried hard. You can’t fault us for that.
With that in mind, we’re giving our experts another shot. The trade deadline has passed, and that means most teams are set for the rest of the season. August trades can happen, sure, but they are typically minor deals.
Now that we have a better look at how every teams stacks up, we asked our experts to give us their new World Series prediction.
HOUSTON ASTROS VS. LOS ANGELES DODGERS
It may not be the most exciting of the possible matchups, but at least it would have a good tagline: The Process vs. The Payroll.
After several of years rebuilding, the Astros are not only contending, they’re ready to go all in with the additions of Scott Kazmir and Carlos Gomez. The emergence of Dallas Keuchel atop the rotation gives them a true ace for the first time in years. Do not underestimate the impact he, along with Kazmir and Lance McCullers, can have in a short series. With Carlos Correa stealing headlines everyday and George Springer set to return down the stretch, this team is ready right now.
As for the Dodgers, it’s much simpler. Despite the absurd payroll, it really comes down to Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke. Forgot past postseason performances, if they’re healthy down the stretch and into October, this is the year for them. They’re on a mission. (Mark Townsend)
KANSAS CITY ROYALS VS. PITTSBURGH PIRATESWhat world are we living in? The Kansas City Royals are primed to win back-to-back American League pennants. After being a wild-card team in 2014, they’ve got the best record in the AL this year, the best bullpen in baseball, and are only going to be harder to beat with Johnny Cueto now on their side.
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It’ll be a bit more of a surprise in the National League. Even though they’ll have to play in the wild-card game, the Pirates will break through in the NL behind a breakout postseason performance from Gerrit Cole and beat out the Cardinals and Dodgers for a spot in the World Series. Great uniforms, beautiful ballparks. It’ll be a terrific Fall Classic for baseball fans even if it lacks mainstream appeal because it doesn’t have a major-market team. (Israel Fehr)
Houston has gone from an early-season feel-good story to a bonafide American League powerhouse. They are well balanced team that can beat you with offense or pitching. They have the second-best run differential in the AL, and hit homers more than any other team in the majors – and that was all before they added Carlos Gomez at the trade deadline. Their young pitchers, including Cy Young candidate Dallas Keuchel, boasts the seventh-best team ERA in the majors. The only concern would be their complete lack of postseason experience, but the Royals proved last year that’s no-longer a prerequisite to postseason success.
My initial prediction featured the Cleveland Indians in the World Series, so I’m used to dealing with failure. That said, I’m not willing to pick a safe option for my World Series matchup. The Blue Jays are much improved after the deadline, but still have a lot of work to do. If they can’t make up 5.5 games on the Yankees, they are going to be stuck trying to win a wild card game. That’s a lot more appealing with David Price around, but still is worrisome if I’m picking them to make the World Series. After the World Series, Toronto is, I think, the second best team in the AL.
KANSAS CITY ROYALS VS. LOS ANGELES DODGERS
I picked the Los Angeles Dodgers to go to the World Series before the season started and I’m sticking with that. While they haven’t been world-beaters thus far, they’ve showed us they’re a good team and have stayed in or around first place in the NL West despite injuries, slumps and a few months of non-peak Clayton Kershaw. After their stinging postseason losses the past two seasons, I feel like these current Dodgers are better built to win in October. There’s more of a veteran presence in the lineup to go along with the exciting young players and, perhaps most importantly, they have a lot to prove.
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On the other side, I’m going with the Kansas City Royals, who I didn’t even pick as a playoff team at the start of the season. I’ve apologized and worn that before, but here it is again: Yes, I was wrong about the Royals. They made the right moves at the trade deadline, adding the exact players they needed to make their team better in ace Johnny Cueto and play-everwhere dude Ben Zobrist. The Royals have been playing with a chip on their shoulder all season, the type that comes from being so close to winning it all, and that can carry them into late October. (Mike Oz)
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