By Brady Kas

The time has finally arrived. After six months and 162 games of regular season baseball, the playoffs are finally here! To begin with, I want to recap a little bit on how we got to this point in the season, so if you haven’t watched a single game all year, don’t worry, I got you covered.

In the beginning, teams across the country were still dealing with the COVID-19 Pandemic, and not all ballparks were given 100% capacity by the local governments. Heck, one team, the Toronto Blue Jays, weren’t even allowed to play in their own country as Canada still had very strict travel bans for entry and exit into and out of their country. But soon things would change. By July 20, every team in the US had been given clearance for 100% capacity, a great sign for baseball, sports, and the world. Soon on July 30 after two years away from the city of Toronto, the Jays were able to move back into their stadium, with limited capacity, as well. I myself went to multiple games this year, and to hear the crowd, and be in the crowd was special. You forget the meaning of actually going to a sporting event, and I was glad I could do that again this summer with my family.

For individual performances this year, in the American League some guy from the Angles is going to win the MVP award. However, it’s not Mike Trout, who sadly suffered a season-ending injury in May, but rather Shohei Ohtani. The 27-year-old pitcher and hitter (yes you read that right) has dominated baseball this year. He finished this year with 46 home runs, 100 RBIs, and 26 stolen bases. On the mound, he finished with a 3.18 ERA, to go along with 10.77 K/9, and a 9-2 record on the year in 130.1 IP. Many have called this the greatest single season performance in history, and it’s hard to argue it. I feel bad for guys like Vladimir Guerrero Jr. who put up monster numbers all year, but never really had a shot at winning this award.

In the National League, Jacob DeGrom looked like the front-runner for not only the Cy Young, but the MVP award early on. However, injuries cut his season short, and we haven’t seen him pitch since July 7^th. Next up, Fernando Tatis Jr. seemed to have it wrapped up, but then shoulder injuries and inconsistent play by the Padres led to him dropping in the race. Tatis still put-up monster numbers this year, but the Padres fell too far behind in the standings, and he missed too many games due to lingering injuries. So really, it left us with two candidates. Juan Soto had arguably the greatest second-half of any hitter in baseball history, but nobody seemed to notice or talk about it. The reason being, the Nationals finished 30 games below .500. His games simply did not have the same impact as the next guy on the list, and therefore will probably cost him the award.

The person most likely to win this award is former National Bryce Harper. Harper, while he wasn’t voted an all-star this year (big mistake by everyone involved), had his best season since he won this award back in 2015. Harper was destroying the baseball all year, but really picked it up in the second half and had his team battling for a playoff spot late in the year. He slashed an impressive .308/.427/.612, and had 35 homers, 84 RBIs, and 100 runs on the year. Simply put, he was a stud all year, and earned every penny of his massive salary for this year.

For team performances this year, we definitely got some surprises. There were some teams who were out of contention before the season started, like the Orioles, Pirates, and Diamondbacks. There were other teams who we thought were going to be good but struggled all year. The Twins are prime example of a team like this. Then there were teams who were just good enough to get your hopes up as a fan but faltered down the stretch. For Padres and Mets fans, they know what I’m talking about. Both teams looked primed for a playoff push, but injuries and inconsistency plagued their season. Look for some major changes, either in the front office, coaching staff, and/or with personnel for both teams this offseason.

However, I think two teams and their fanbases may have had the hardest year out of anyone. The Cubs and Nationals tore down their roster at the trade deadline, shipping off all-stars, World Series champions, and future hall-of-famers left and right. As a Cubs fan myself, I can tell you that July 30^th was not a good day for me. Both teams came into the year expecting to battle for a playoff spot, but once that never happened, it was time for the stars to go. In the end, both teams really struggled down the stretch, and began the process of rebuilding their farm systems in hopes of competing here in a few years.

On the flip side, most of the teams in the playoffs this year, got at least one player from either the Cubs or Nationals at the deadline. Of the teams in the playoffs this year, only the Rays, Brewers, and Astros did not acquire at least one player from either of the two teams. The other seven, all acquired players from either team, and every one of the new guys really had an impact on their new ball club. Kris Bryant really added a ton of versatility and depth to that Giants lineup, Kyle Schwarber provides that left-handed power the Red Sox needed so badly, and Joc Pederson provides the Braves with more outfield depth, which is something they needed after losing Ronald Acuna Jr. for the season early this year. I could go on-and-on, but these moves are the reasons why these teams made the playoffs. So, without any further delay, let’s talk about each playoff matchup.

American League:

Wild Card:

New York Yankees (92-70) vs. Boston Red Sox (92-70)

The greatest rivalry in sports is back for one more game this season. The Red Sox host the Yankees on Tuesday night, and boy should it be exciting. For the Yankees if there is one word to describe their season it would be inconsistent. At times, they have looked like a serious contender, but other times, they’ve looked like one of the worst teams in baseball. Just take a look below at the table to see how inconsistent they have been this year.

However, there’s no denying that if this team is hot, they can beat anybody. Giancarlo Stanton may be the hottest hitter in baseball and has been absolutely destroying the baseball the last two months of the season. Since August 1, he’s hit 19 bombs, and knocked in 51 RBIs for the Bronx Bombers. Stanton, who had been playing mostly DH since being acquired by the Yankees a couple of years back, is now playing more outfield with the addition of Joey Gallo to the lineup, and he has seemed to embrace this change.

As for the Red Sox, they got off to such a strong start, but have cooled off as of late. The Red Sox have surprised a lot of people this year after having a down year last year, and the reason for that has to be pitching. Not to take anything away from the season that Rafel Devers and Xander Bogarts are having, but I think we knew this offense was going to score runs, so that was never really a concern. As for the pitching, the starters last year was not very good, and we thought this might hold them back again this year too. Take a look at some of the numbers below.

While these are just a few stats I decided to highlight, the Sox have virtually had this type of improvement with all of their stats this year. I understand that last year was a weird year with COVID, their manager being fired right before the season started because of the Astros cheating scandal, and injuries, but the turn around this year has to be a happy sight for Boston fans this year.

For this matchup, it looks like we’ll get to see the two aces go against each other in Gerrit Cole and Nathan Eovaldi. Cole went 2-2 this year against the Red Sox, and Boston seems to have him figured out. Boston has garnered the highest batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging of any team Cole faced more than once this year. For Eovaldi, a lot of the same can be said for him. The Yankees have hit him hard all year, and after starting 2-0 against them this year, he’s lost his last four starts to them. Because of this, give me the Yankees in a 4-2 win over the Red Sox.

ALDS:

(1) Tampa Bay Rays (100-62) vs. (4) Boston Red Sox/New York Yankees

The Tampa Bay Rays were definitely the most consistent team this year in the division, and they were rewarded for their efforts by cruising to a 100-win season, and their second consecutive division title. While Boston got off to the hot start, and New York was up-and-down all year, take a look at the consistency the Rays had. Look at how consistent the team was each month compared to the other teams. This was a huge factor in them winning their division.

The key to the Rays success is, and always has been their bullpen. This year, Tampa Bay led the league with a 7.9 WAR from relievers, and had the lowest ERA by a bullpen in the AL. The offense and starters have done just enough to give them a lead late in games, and in October good bullpens win championships.

For season matchups, the Rays went 11-8 against both teams, but the pitching staff had way more success facing the Yankees than the Red Sox. In 19 games, the Yankees scored 50 runs, while the Boston scored 104 runs in their matchups this year. I think the Rays are better than either team here, but this will be a close series regardless of who wins. Tampa wins this hard-fought series in five games.

(2) Houston Astros (95-67) vs. (3) Chicago White Sox (93-69)

The Astros just keep winning. With the loss of George Springer in free agency, and Justin Verlander who missed the entire year due to injury, the Astros success may have come as a surprise to some. I myself expected them to battle for a Wild Card spot but did not see them winning the division. I was wrong about that. When comparing this team to the Rays, they really are opposites of each other. The Astros stack good at-bats together every game, and manufacturer a lot of runs by just putting the ball in play. Houston scored the most runs this year in baseball with 863 but hit the ninth most home runs in baseball with 221. Yes, this still puts them in the top third in the entire league in terms of home runs, but just for comparison, the Twins, who finished 15 games below .500, had the fifth most home runs in baseball with 228, but scored only 729 runs on the year as their offense relied largely on the deep ball. That’s the difference between the two teams and it shows that Astros are good enough to score without hitting a home run.

The White Sox have been an interesting team all year for me. They clearly have a lot of talent on their team, and the addition of Craig Kimbrel only bolstered their already good bullpen. But for me, I can’t tell how good this team really is. It sounds weird saying that about a team who finished 24 games above .500, and won their division by 13 games, but that’s just it. Nobody else in their division this year had a winning record. Since 2000, this exact scenario where only one team in a division finishes above .500 has now happened eight times. Of the previous seven times, five of the teams lost in the divisional series, one lost in the championship series, and the Astros won it all in 2017. Generally speaking, these teams just haven’t fared well in October. Give me the Astros in four games.

National League:

Wild Card:

St. Louis Cardinals (90-72) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (106-56)

Just imagine being the Dodgers and Dodger fans for a second. You have the second-best record in baseball, and have consistently been listed as a top two team by experts all year. The only problem is the best team plays in your division, and now you’re stuck in a one game, win-or-go home scenario. It gets worse for Dodgers fans too, as the Cardinals are the hottest team in baseball winning 21 of 25 games to close out the year.

Overall, in the second half the Redbirds are 20 games above .500, and of course, this was in large part due to their 17-game win streak. The veterans Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina have been really good for them this year, and Tyler O’Neil has provided some new, young energy to the lineup. They have a good team, and seem to be peaking at the right time, which can make them a tricky opponent for anybody in the playoffs.

However, the Dodgers have one man that I’m not sure any team can beat in a one game series. I mentioned this in my previous blog post, but Max Scherzer has been the best acquisition by any team at the trade deadline. Since coming over to LA, Scherzer has lowered every statistic possible, and has put himself in the conversation for the NL Cy Young Award. He has a record of 7-0 in his 11 starts with the Dodgers, but Los Angeles is 11-0 overall in games he has started for them. He has literally been unbeatable in Dodger Blue. Give me the Dodgers in a 6-1 victory.

(1). San Francisco Giants (107-55) vs. (4) Los Angeles Dodgers/St. Louis Cardinals

This will be my favorite matchup of the postseason if it happens. Dodgers and Giants. West coast baseball at its finest. Now, this may not happen as the Cardinals are very capable of winning their game against the Dodgers, but I’m hoping LA can pull out a “W” on Wednesday night. As for the Giants, they have easily been the most surprising team in baseball this year. In preseason predictions, experts across the country had them finishing in fourth place in their division, and a losing record was predicted by many. Instead, the Giants are the best team in baseball, and have won 100 games for the first time since 2003. I recently saw a crazy stat where the Dodgers went 50-21 in the second half of the season. This number should easily lead a team to a division title, but the Dodgers were able to gain just a game on the Giants in the standings as San Francisco went 50-23 in the second half. What a season both teams had, and it’s a shame at least one will go home before the NLCS.

Since 2012 when the new Wild Card was inputted into both leagues, there have been six matchups where the Division champ faces another opponent from the same division. With both teams coming from the NL West, this is now the seventh occurrence. Of the previous six meetings, the Division champ won the series 5/6 times, with the only exception being in 2015 when the Cubs beat the Pirates in the Wild Card game and would go on to beat the Cardinals in the NLDS.

San Francisco went just 2-4 against St. Louis this year and went 10-9 against the Dodgers. But if you were to ask them, they would probably rather face the Cardinals, even with a losing record against them this year. I don’t see this happening though. I expect a big series from former Cub Kris Bryant and Brandon Crawford, and the Giants eliminate the Dodgers in five games.

Milwaukee Brewers (95-67) vs. (3.) Atlanta Braves (88-73)

This is another interesting series between the Brewers and Braves. For the Braves, prior to the injury to superstar Ronald Acuna Jr., they sat at just 44-44 on the year and seemed to be stuck in neutral. They could not get anything going consistently and were never really able to get in a groove. Since the injury, the lineup and pitching staff has come together, and really been solid. The Braves are 44-29 since the injury, and eventually overtook the Mets for the division lead. The real key to success for the Braves this year has been the infield. This is one of the most consistent, and best infields we’ve seen in recent memory. Together, the Braves infield of Freddie Freeman, Ozzie Albies, Austin Riley, and Dansby Swanson started 148 of the 162 games this year which is absurd to think about. The foursome has been vital to the success of not only the offense as all four of those guys have put up big numbers this year, but also to the pitching staff. This type of stability gains trusts from pitchers and creates a comfort level that is needed to be successful. It’s going to be hard without Acuna, but this team is deep, and has the talent to beat the Brewers.

Finally, last but not least, let’s talk about the Brewers. Similarly, to the Rays in their division, the Brew Crew has been the best team in the division all year, even early on when they weren’t leading you always knew they would make a run. Here’s another graph below that highlights the steady rise the Brewers had to take the division crown, and how they’ve been able to hold onto it here down the stretch.

As far as individual players, this team might have the best starting rotation in all baseball. Corbin Burnes is clearly in the Cy Young race and would shock nobody if he actually won the award. Brandon Woodruff and Freddy Peralta are both studs and will make it hard for any team to beat them in a series with these three horses leading the way. However, things are not all perfect for the Brewers. Devin Williams, one of the best relievers in baseball, broke his hand punching a wall last week, and will likely miss the rest of postseason. This is a good bullpen the Brewers have, but this loss hurts them.

One solution the Brewers might have is putting Peralta into the bullpen. There is no doubt he’s been special this year starting games and has earned the right to start in big playoff games, but with Williams out, they need someone else to get those outs. MLB Network analyst Dan Plesac was the first person I heard mention this possibility, and it’s something I could totally get behind. In October, the bullpen and the nine-plus outs they are asked to get every night are the most important outs of the game. Take a look at Peralta’s career splits as a starter and a reliever.

Clearly Peralta is able to do this, and I would love to see this happen this postseason. While this could certainly be an issue for the Brewers, I still have the Brewers winning the series. I’ll give the Braves a game, but Brewers win in four.

This concludes my blog for the MLB Playoffs! My next blog post will probably come out after the postseason detailing the offseason for each team, but until then, kick back, relax, and hopefully your favorite team will be hoisting the World Series Trophy in the end!

By Aydan Koyles

We are now three weeks into the NFL season and several trends have begun to take shape. Teams are beginning to establish themselves as contenders while some are already starting to look ahead to next year. It may still be early, and teams can still turn it around, but the start to a season often sets the tone for the rest of the year. While teams like the Rams and Buccaneers have looked as good as advertised, a couple of teams have greatly outperformed expectations early in the season. If you had told me three weeks ago that the Chiefs would be last in the AFC West, while the Broncos and Raiders were both in first place and undefeated, I wouldn’t have believed it. And no one predicted the Carolina Panthers to be ahead of the Buccaneers in the NFC South, even this early in the season. So, how can we explain these phenomena? Is this just a mirage or are these teams showing us what we can expect for the rest of the season? Let’s dive into more detail for each of the Panthers, Broncos, and Raiders to see what has sparked this early success and whether they will be able to maintain it throughout the year. The teams are sorted by their current playoff odds, gathered from FiveThirtyEight.

Denver Broncos

Preseason Playoff Odds: 43%, 9–8 record

Current Playoff Odds: 70%, 11–6 record

Last season the Broncos were 5–11 and finished a putrid 29th in DVOA according to Football Outsiders. This season, they have a DVOA of 34.1%, good for fifth in the league. This turnaround has been sparked largely by a drastic change in offensive performance. With a new QB (Teddy Bridgewater) running the offense and several players back from injury (at least for a little while) the Broncos have surged from a 30th place finish in offensive DVOA to seventh place at this point. Perhaps at the root of this is the upgrade at QB. After using a combination of Joe Flacco(53.3 QBR avg.) and Drew Lock(48.7 QBR avg.) for the last two seasons, they added Teddy Bridgewater in the offseason, and it has paid immediate dividends. Bridgewater has posted a QBR of 77.8, good for fourth in the league. Bridgewater’s counting stats haven’t been overly impressive (just 780 yards and 4 TDs) but he has yet to turn the ball over and has completed 76.8% of his passes. In addition to the early offensive success, the defense has lived up to preseason expectations as one of the best units in the NFL (currently fifth by DVOA).

So, can they keep this up? Coming into the season, Denver had decent expectations behind a good defense and a known upgrade at QB, but this level of success has certainly exceeded those expectations thus far. However, it is worth noting that they have faced the easiest schedule in the NFL so far (based on DVOA). Their three opponents (Jets, Jaguars, Giants) are a combined 0–9 thus far. And those may be the three worst teams in the league, none of whom have looked very good on either side of the ball. And while Bridgewater has been effective, he hasn’t been asked to do much and has mostly been a game manager. In a division with three good to great teams (Raiders, Chargers, Chiefs), it is fair to wonder if Bridgewater can keep this offense in the game when the defense struggles against more efficient offenses. In addition, they have now lost two of their top receivers (KJ Hamler and Jerry Jeudy) and one of their best defensive players (Bradley Chubb). And on top of that, the special teams unit has been less than stellar, ranking just 26th in DVOA.

However, while the schedule has been easy, it doesn’t appear to be getting too difficult any time soon. Moving forward, Denver faces a schedule in the bottom half of the league in terms of difficulty. And while they are dealing with injuries, they have proven that they can be effective on both sides of the ball. And while the special teams have not been great, its worth pointing out that last year’s Super Bowl champion, the Buccaneers, had a special teams unit that also finished ranked for 26th in DVOA. So while there are some signs that this isn’t completely sustainable, it is totally possible this team could make some noise in the playoffs.

Las Vegas Raiders

Preseason Playoff Odds: 24%, 7–10 record

Current Playoff Odds: 62%, 10–7 record

Last season the Raiders finished at 8–8 and had a DVOA that ranked 19th. While this wasn’t horrible, it came on the heels of a 6–2 start. A late-season collapse pushed them down the rankings and they came into this season with fairly low expectations.

And while they have certainly exceeded those expectations, their DVOA is only 14th in the league at 5.5% (barely above average). While they have not perhaps been as good as their record, they have enjoyed one of Derek Carr’s best seasons thus far. Carr has posted a QBR of 60.3, good for 11th in the league. This actually continues a trend of decent seasons from Carr following a subpar start to his career. But perhaps the main reason for this early success can be found in some late game heroics and luck. Take the season opener against Baltimore. After falling behind by two touchdowns, the Raiders rallied to force overtime against the Ravens. In overtime, the Raiders drove the length of the field before Carr threw an interception on third and goal. However, their defense forced a fumble of Lamar Jackson on the ensuing drive, allowing them to still win the game. And in week 3 against a banged up Dolphins team, they blew a two-score lead before hanging on in overtime. In fact, they have faced a fairly easy schedule, particularly the offenses they have gone up against. Their only clean win came in week 2 against the Steelers, who have posted an offensive DVOA of -9.8% (24th in the league).

So while this 3–0 start is impressive and certainly bodes well for their playoff prospects, there aren’t a lot of encouraging signs. Their late game luck and overtime heroics, while incredible, are probably unsustainable. And their schedule thus far has been easier than most (at 22nd in the league), but more difficult times are ahead, as the face the eighth toughest schedule moving forward. While this team has been a lot of fun, no one part of their team has been better than about average and a lot of their success seems unsustainable. Playing in a tough division doesn’t make things any better and it should be interesting to see if they can maintain their success. Still, it is always good to be undefeated at this stage and makes it much more likely for them to push for a playoff spots.

Carolina Panthers

Preseason Playoff Odds: 26%, 7–10 record

Current Playoff Odds: 53%, 10–7 record

Last season, the Panthers finished 5–11 and were ranked just 21st in DVOA (per Football Outsiders). Through their first 3 games this season, however, they have a DVOA of 40.1%, good for best in the NFL. This is largely due to a stifling defense that also ranks first in DVOA and have held opponents to just 10 points per game. Led by the impressive tandem of Brian Burns and Haason Reddick, the Panthers are leading the league in sacks and yards allowed. And while the offense hasn’t been quite as spectacular, a solid season from Sam Darnold has boosted the offense enough to win games. In fact, Darnold has played the best football of his career. In his first three seasons with New York, he posted an average QBR of 43.4, never finishing above 27th in the league. But in his first season with Carolina, he has a QBR of 66.5, good for seventh best among qualified QBs.

So, is this hot start sustainable? While the defense has been excellent, the quality of the offenses they have faced are fairly low. In fact, none of them rank above 21st in offensive DVOA. Though the defense has done what it should, it may not be able to sustain this level of play. And on the other side of the ball, the offense has been solid but not spectacular, and we have yet to see a sustained run of success out of Sam Darnold. And though it has not impacted them yet, the Panthers’ special teams unit is the second worst in the league by DVOA. To make matters worse, they lost Christian McCaffrey to an injury in their last game and they share a division with the reigning Super Bowl champion Buccaneers.

Luckily for Panthers fans, though, the schedule doesn’t get too difficult this year, ranking just 21st in the league moving forward, per Football Outsiders. And while the poor offenses they have faced may explain some of the defensive greatness, they have still performed above expectations and should continue to be a plus on that side of the ball. So, while there are some indicators of regression, the playoffs are not nearly as much of a reach as they seemed to be three weeks ago.

By:Aydan Koyles

I know, I know, nobody wants to hear more about Tom Brady being good at football. But every year it seems we discuss the possibility of him reaching that proverbial QB ‘cliff’. Every QB before him has fallen prey to Father Time, but will Brady ever reach that point?

Brady has now reached his age 44 season and continues to defy the odds as a quarterback. Just last season, Brady led the Buccaneers to a Super Bowl victory in his first season away from New England. This just doesn’t happen in the NFL. In the history of the NFL, only 11 QBs have played into their 40s (minimum 100 pass attempts). Using data collected from Football Outsiders NFL DVOA database, we can see Brady has been by far the most accomplished and successful beyond turning 40:

Despite all of this, Brady haters may have found some fuel in his 2019 season (age 42). The following player comparison helps to prove this:

2019 Player A: 61.4% Completion/24 TD/8 INT/53.7 QBR/2.4 DVOA

2019 Player B: 61.5% Completion/18 TD/4 INT/50.1 QBR/2.6 DVOA

Those players are generally comparable across those categories, and it would essentially be a coin flip as to who you would want starting a game for your team (although neither option is great). So here’s the crazy part: Player A is Tom Brady, and Player B is … Jacoby Brissett. It may just be me, but I generally put Brissett and Brady in very separate tiers. However, in 2019, Brady posted career lows in DVOA and QBR, and his lowest DYAR value since 2001, his first year spending time as a starter.

In the moment, it was easy to overlook these metrics as the Patriots still won their division, but it appeared Brady had finally reached that point in his career where he would begin to fall off the ‘cliff’.

And then Brady moved to Tampa Bay. It turns out warm weather and a talented receiving core gave Brady just what he needed to stop himself from sliding. In his first season in Tampa Bay he raised his QBR, DVOA, DYAR, and completion percentage significantly, resulting in a much more efficient season and a Super Bowl victory. He also became the only QB 40 or older to throw for 40 TDs in a single season. Looking at a couple of graphics helps to visualize the immediate change in production for Brady as a member of the Buccaneers.

In essence, Brady has revitalized his career (albeit after a very brief down period) at an older age than most quarterbacks can sustain any level of success. He continues to prove the doubters wrong and put up numbers we would expect from players 10, 15 or even 20 years younger than him. Who knows, perhaps the question isn’t when Brady will finally fall off the cliff, but if he ever will.

By: Anshuman Dixit

In this article, we will discuss the transfers which had an ugly angle to it, whether it is financial, personal, or statistical.

1. Lionel Messi:

Unarguably, the biggest name in this transfer window was one of the Greatest Of All Times (G.O.A.T), Lionel Messi. After spending 21 years of his life in Barcelona, he finally bid adieu in one of the most shocking transfers in the history of club football.

Last year, Messi wanted to leave the club as he was promised by the president, Josep Maria Bartomeu, that he can leave the club whenever he wants to. When Messi requested to leave in August, the Barcelona Board discarded the request. Messi didn’t take Barcelona to court because of his love and respect for the Blaugranas.

This year, Messi didn’t want to leave but Messi’s contract was going to end this year, and due to financial debt which the club is in, Barcelona was not able to renew his contract which meant he became a free agent. He gave an emotional speech at his farewell on 8^th August 2021.

Messi won his last trophy with Barcelona after defeating Atletic Bilbao 4 – 0 in the Copa Del Rey final this year. During the international break, he finally managed to win an international trophy after defeating Brazil in the final of Copa America. He was also the top scorer last season with 30 goals in the league with an outstanding xG of 25.64.

He scored a total of 38 goals and assisted 12 goals in the previous season. At the age of 34, he is a top contender for winning the Ballon D’or to be held later this year. PSG took advantage of the situation and signed Messi for free to increase the strength of their midfield and are the bookie’s favorite for winning the Champions League this year.

2. Gianluigi Donnarumma:

The 6’5”, 22 year old, Gianluigi Donnarumma left AC Milan after serving 6 years in his home country of Italy. He is called the next Buffon for Italy. He made his debut with Milan at the age of 16 and showed promising talent. Within a year, he became the first goalkeeper of the team and had a great span in Milan but never won a piece of hardware during his tenure.

Donnarumma’s Save% has been consistently over 70% most of the time. During his second season, at the age of 17, he made 144 saves in the 36 league matches he played.

In 2019, during his U-19 game, fans threw fake money at Donnarumma to show their anger towards the goalkeeper’s decision of leaving Italy for the big clubs who were approaching the prospect. But Donnarumma didn’t leave that season and continued to play for Milan till 2021 when he moved to PSG for free. The veteran, Keylor Navas will have to make way for Donnarumma. He won his first international trophy at Euro 2021 in July.

3. Sergio Ramos:

5x Laliga winner, 4x Champions League winner, 2010 World Cup winner, 11x FIFAPro World XI and 8x UEFA Team of the year, Sergio Ramos has left Spain for the very first time in his career since 2003 to complete a surprising move to PSG. Ramos is considered as the most aggressive center back in the world. His style is more fluid, involving counter attack runs, scoring goals, and even taking penalty kicks and free kicks. El capitan of Real Madrid, left Los Blancos after winning 4 Champions League with them, the most recent in 2018.

His stats show his percentile among all the center backs(CBs) in the world for the last 365 days.

He is a CB who likes to create chances, take deadly headers on corners, and score winners. His long pass % percentile is 98, which makes him a crucial player at PSG,  who also have pacers like Mbappe, Neymar, and Hakimi. He doesn’t like to play the ball back or give the keeper possession like other CBs around the world. He likes to participate in the attack and then tracks back quickly for defence. His tackle percentile is highest when his team is attacking. This shows his unique tactical play compared to other CBs. At the age of 36, he can end his career at a high point in PSG, as they have created a fantasy team this year.

4. Antoine Griezmann:

The EURO-2016 sensation, Antoine Griezmann is back at Atletico Madrid after spending just 2 seasons with Barcelona. He was the most talked about soccer player in 2019, when he made a move from Atletico to Barcelona for €120m. The expectations were really high from him, as he was the highest goalscorer for Atletico every year since 2015. But the tactical gameplay of Barcelona never suited Griezzman, as it was centered on Lionel Messi. He was getting less chances and his goal scoring form got worse each year.

His performance clearly declined after his switch to Barcelona in 2019. He was averaging over 0.8 goals+assists per 90 minutes he played. He was crucial in Atletico’s performance in UCL when they qualified for the finals for the 2014-15 and 2016-17 seasons. They were beaten by their rivals Real Madrid on both of the occasions.

He was unimpressive in his first season at Barcelona, giving his worst performance in quite a few years. During his 2 seasons with Barca, he never won the domestic cup, as the last season was won by his former club Atletico.

Barcelona was facing a huge financial problem this year, so they wanted to get rid of some players who have a large salary. So they decided to offer Griezmann back to Atletico on loan for €40m + buy option. It was a great business for Atletico, as they made a profit of €80m from Griezmann in just 2 years. Although Suarez and Joa Felix are in great form for Atletico,  an addition of Griezmann makes their bench a lot stronger than ever before.  The answer for why his performance declined at Barca can only be answered after this season. Is it because of the tactical gameplay change or his form? We will find out soon!

5. Miralem Pjanic:

After spending almost 10 years and performing at a very high level, Pjanic was involved in a swap deal last year from Juventus to Barcelona. Nobody knows why Barcelona gave Athur Melo, a 24 year old, to take Pjanic, a 30 year old, to increase the strength of their midfield. Nobody can understand the decision’s of Barcelona Management.

He spent a year at Barcelona playing just 19 matches compared to 30+ matches he was playing at Juventus for many years. He didn’t score a goal in the Blaugrana shirt and didn’t even give an assist in the 627 minutes he played last season.

This data compares Pjanic’s stats for creating chances of shot creation in the last season with other top midfielders around the world. We can see that he is not even close when it comes to making an impact in a match for Barcelona. That is the reason why Pjanic wanted a move this summer and was even ready to accept pay cuts for it. Finally, after the window when nobody bought Pjanic after studying his nightmare at Barca, the club decided to give him on loan to the Turkish league winners, Besiktas.

In his debut at Besiktas, he gave an assist ending his drought after a year. So we can officially say that Barcelona is involved in bad/ugly transfers for a few years now.

By: Michael Black

The Bad

1. Dayot Upamecano (Center Back – RB Leipzig) and Marcel Sabitzer (Center Midfielder – RB Leipzig) sign with Bayern Munich.

So why is this a bad transfer? Bayern nabs one of the best young center backs in Europe as well as an experienced midfield player from rivals RB Leipzig for a reasonable $63.25m.  In a vacuum, and without an understanding of Bundesliga history, these seem like sensible and respectable signings from the defending champs.

The reason we have classified the signings as bad is because Bayern’s business model can basically be summed up as such: “Using our excessive wealth and stature to continuously buy all of the best players from all of the best teams in the Bundesliga, so that there is no real threat of any team ever beating us.”

Has this strategy translated to domestic success for Bayern?  Take a look at the chart below:

Leipzig was a great story in the 2020-2021 Bundesliga season: the club finished second in the league, qualified for the Champions League, and made a statement that they were ready to challenge the 9-time defending champions this year.

Instead, history repeats itself, the rich get richer, and we will surely be crowning Bayern Munich for a 10^th successive campaign this May.

2. Jack Grealish – Midfielder from Aston Villa signs with Manchester City

Manchester City lands top young English talent, Jack Grealish for a whopping fee of $139m.  Grealish becomes the most expensive English player in football history and joins the already-loaded attack of the English champions and European runners-up.

So why have we categorized this deal as bad?

To start, that is an incredible amount of money.  Now, it is true that the pockets of Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan have no real bottom, but $139m is still $139m at the end of the day.

Secondly, we have to wonder if Jack Grealish is even that good.  Look below and compare Jack Grealish’s production (Goals + Assists) and his new salary of £15.6m with other high paid stars in the EPL:

On the left we see Riyad Mahrez and Gabriel Jesus, two players who spend a lot of time on Manchester City’s own bench, who produced almost the same number of goals + assists as Grealish, for a fraction of the cost.  Instead of breaking transfer fees, City could have looked to their own underutilized players, who themselves are considered among the world’s best players, and continued to improve from within.

Up top we see Harry Kane; this is the final straw for what makes this a poor signing.  Manchester City’s priority was never to sign Jack Grealish.  I know that, you know that, and both Harry Kane and Jack Grealish themselves know that.  City’s offseason priority was always the striker from Tottenham.

Instead, City whiffed on their top signing and settled on paying a player with less than half of Kane’s goals + assists, double Kane’s salary.

3. Willian (Midfielder – Arsenal) signs with Brazil’s Sport Club Corinthians Paulista

While we claimed the last two transfers were bad for team reasons, (too much money, lack of competitive balance, overpaying for a player, etc.), this one is more about the player themself.

Willian, who has been a top Premier League attacker since 2013-14, signed with Brazilian side Corinthians on a free contract after just one season with Arsenal. After spending seven with Chelsea, and even donning their iconic #10 shirt for the 2019-20 campaign, the winger’s Premier League career has come to an abrupt halt after just one season with the Gunners.

Look below to see Willian’s steep and sudden fall from grace since the 2019-2020 season with Chelsea:

It was an unexpected and surprising move from Willian.  At only 33 years of age, it is hard to imagine there was no other Premier League or top-European club who could have used his services.

In the span of a year, Willian went from 20 goals + assists in the EPL to a free transfer in Brazil.  Life comes at you fast in the highest levels of European football.

4. Sergio Aguero (striker – Manchester City) signs with Barcelona on a free transfer

One of the most prolific players in the history of the English Premier League, Sergio Aguero departed for Spain after 10 historically successful seasons with Manchester City.  The Argentinian national scored 184 league goals and added 48 assists, while helping City win 5 league titles and reach new heights in European football.

Of course, what Aguero will long be remembered for is scoring maybe the most dramatic goal in the history of English top-flight football.

The break-up made sense for both parties.  As shown below, Aguero’s production has dipped rather dramatically over the past two seasons and as City continues to spend record fees on younger talents, it made less and less sense for them to keep the 33-year-old striker around for much longer.

So then, why is this bad?

It’s bad for Aguero because he went to FC Barcelona specifically to play with his compatriot and friend, Lionel Messi, and then Messi abruptly departed to play in Paris!  Now, Aguero is stuck on an uncharacteristically weak Barcelona side, with no real European aspirations, and his best mate isn’t even there to play with him.

Hopefully this isn’t the end for one of the great strikers of our generation.

By: Brady Kas

Welcome back to part two of my end of the season review for teams battling it out for a spot in the playoffs. In my previous article, I talked about the National League, and in this piece, I’ll focus on the American League. To begin, let me remind everyone of the setup for this article. I’ll break down the teams in each division who have a shot at the playoffs, and list the lead they have in their division, or the number of games back they are of the division and/or Wild Card. Beneath each team, I’ll list either a single player or a group of guys who have made a significant impact on the team this year.

Without any further delay, let’s kick it off with the American League Eastern Division.

*Note that all stats are updated as of 9/10/21.

East:

Tampa Bay Rays (88-52): 9 game lead on division

Key Players: Wander Franco and Andrew Kittredge

No matter the circumstances, it seems like the Rays never lose. This offseason, they continued their cycle of trading away established Major League players who were up for an increase in arbitration, for cheaper prospects and players. When you trade a former Cy Young award-winner and somebody who you trusted to start in Game 6 of the World Series, the fans, and really everyone around the league, expects some sort of a decline. Just look at this graph below of where the Rays (26^th) rank in terms of payroll compared to everyone else.

The Rays keep chugging along. Franco, the consensus number one prospect in all of baseball, has been as advertised, if not better, since being called up in June. Franco is in the middle of a stretch right now where he has reached base safely in 38 consecutive games. This is the second longest streak ever by someone under the age 21, and the third longest ever in franchise history. After hearing about him the last couple of years in the minors, and seeing highlights every now and then from him, it’s amazing to actually watch him play every night, and his ability for a 20-year-old is unreal.

To wrap up on the Rays, let’s talk about this bullpen. Tampa has been a dominant force late in games, and they’ve done a great job of shortening the games. They’ve become very efficient in getting five innings out of their starters before handing it off to big guys in the bullpen. Leading the way for this intimidating force is Andrew Kittredge. They might not have the biggest names in the pen, but man do they perform. In 46 appearances this year, Kittredge has pithed a strong 58.2 innings, and leads baseball among qualified pitchers (at least 30 IP in bullpen) with an ERA of 1.07. Overall, Tampa Bay as a team has accumulated the most WAR among relievers with an astonishing value of 7.3. This pen is dirty.

Boston Red Sox (80-62): 9 GB for division, 0.5 game lead for 1^st Wild Card Spot

Key Player: Nathan Eovaldi

The Red Sox have a number of high impact bats in their lineup, with Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers, and J.D. Martinez, and that’s what most people probably think of when they think of Boston. I, however, want to focus on Eovaldi here for one reason: To put it in simple terms, after signing a 4-year $68 million contract for his efforts that helped lead the Red Sox to win the 2018 World Series, he was not very good in 2019. In fact, he was one of the worst pitchers in baseball. In 12 games as a starter that year, he gave up 15 HRs, 37 ERs, and walked 31 batters in 54.1 IP. With no success starting, the Red Sox tried moving him to the bullpen, but Eovaldi struggled just as badly in the pen. But fast forward to today, Eovaldi is back in the starting rotation, and man has he changed. The one big thing I’ve noticed is his pitch selection. Look at this table below.

For some reason, the cutter just wasn’t working for him. Since this change in strategy and selection, Eovaldi earned his first trip to the All-Star Game this past summer and has really been the ace of the staff as Chris Sale has been recovering from Tommy John surgery. That contract of $17 million annually looks a lot more reasonable now after the season he has put together.

New York Yankees (78-62): 10 GB for division, 0.5 game lead for 2^nd Wild Card spot

Key Players: Gerrit Cole and Aaron Judge

Remember back when the whole sticky situation was going on and everyone was questioning how Cole would fare without whatever substance he was using? Well, in his first three starts after June 21^st, he went 0-3, giving up 11 ERs and five home runs in just 15.1 IP. That’s not good. In his last nine starts, however, Cole has been back to his usual self. Cole’s gone 6-3 while giving up just 15 earned runs in 53.2 IP. During this stretch, Cole has a ridiculous 13.87 K/9 ratio. He’s back.

For the offense, Judge has carried the team for a lot of the season. He’s easily been the most consistent and best hitter on the team. Everybody from D.J. LeMahieu, to Giancarlo Stanton, to Gleyber Torres have struggled at different points this year. Judge has smacked 30 dingers for the Bronx Bombers, but most importantly, he’s stayed pretty healthy this year, playing in 126 games. He’s been steady and reliable, and for a team has struck out the 4^th most times in the AL, it’s good to see Judge striking out at the lowest clip of his career.

Toronto Blue Jays (77-62): 10.5 GB of division, 0.5 GB of 2^nd Wild Card

Key Players: Robbie Ray and Vladimir Guerro Jr.

The Toronto Blue Jays had probably the two best free-agent singings of the offseason when they signed shortstop Marcus Semien from Oakland, and re-signed Robbie Ray. To show you just how good of signings these were, I created the graph below. The way the graph works is it lists every player from the off-season who signed a contract for a higher annual value than Ray. Ray signed for $8 million, and the list concludes with Trevor Bauer, who signed the biggest contract of the off-season with an annual value of $34 million. The circles that are filled in represent where Semien and Ray are at on the graph. As you can see, Semien has by far had the best season of anyone on this list, and Ray has a top-5 WAR too. That’s really good value for the Jays.

I want to expand on Robbie Ray a little bit more. Let me ask you a question:  Which pitcher has the most strikeouts in their first 1,000 innings pitched? Nolan Ryan? Randy Johnson? Maybe even Gerrit Cole? Nope. The answer is Robbie Ray. This season he reached this benchmark of 1,000 IP with 1,244 strikeouts. Think about that for a second. More strikeouts than Roger Clemens, Bob Gibson the greatest pitchers of all time. Overall, Ray has really been a consistent force for the Jays this year but has turned it on here in the second half. He’s gone 4-1 in ten starts, pitching 65 innings, and striking out 82 batters in that span. Opponents are slugging a dismal .284 off of him in the second half. He’s been elite and is making a strong push for AL Cy Young Award.

In most years, Vladimir Guerro Jr. would be the clear front-runner for the AL MVP award. The man has raked with an OPS of over 1.000, and OPS+ of 171, and 42 bombs to go with his 100 RBIs. Unfortunately, there’s a guy named Shohei Ohtani for the Angels, who’s doing that, while also throwing 100 mph on the mound. But this isn’t about him. When you look at his numbers, there are two things that really stick out to me. (1) He’s drawing more walks this year and has been a much more patient hitter at the plate. This has been great to see in his development, as he’s waiting for the pitcher to make a mistake–not the other way around. He’s content with a walk and trusts his teammates behind him. (2) Let’s talk about his Fly Ball%. Junior had struggled to consistently lift the ball in his first two years in the majors with a Fly Ball% of around 30%. As a power hitter, he was hitting the ball on the ground about 52% of the time. That’s not ideal, and you really want those numbers to be flipped. This year, he’s closed the gap a little, with a Fly Ball% of 35.5%, and a Ground Ball% of 46%. This might not seem like a lot, but he’s essentially cut the gap in half, and this has translated to more success for Vladdy.

Central:

Chicago White Sox (80-60): 10 game lead on division

Key Players: Carlos Rodon and Lance Lynn

The White Sox this year have taken advantage of playing in the worst division in baseball and lapped everyone else in their division. The South Siders have been cruising now for a while, as no team really posed a threat to them this season. With that being said, let’s not take anything away from them. They earned this top spot in their division. This is a loaded team with their eyes set on one thing, and one thing only: the World Series. To get there, they’ll have to rely on two of their horses at the top of their rotation. Rodon has been a great story this year. He’s someone who had all the promise in the world coming up as a prospect but had never really put it together. Well, this year he has. He got off to a hot start early in the year, throwing his first career no-hitter in only his second start of the season. Overall, he leads the pitching staff with a WAR of 4.3 on the year. He’s been a dominant lefty for them this year, which is something every team needs in October.

The next guy we need to talk about is the big righty, Lance Lynn. Lynn, a Brownsburg native, has been a really good pitcher now for a long time. In fact, he won a World Series with their skipper Tony La Russa when he was with the Cardinals in 2011. Lynn’s dominance the past couple of years has been fascinating to watch. In 2018, he had his worst year, pitching to a 4.77 ERA and going just 10-10. Opponents were just crushing the ball off of him, with a Hard Hit% (which measures balls hit 95+mph off the bat) of 40.5%. One change in approach Lynn has made, is how he is trying to get outs. Take a look at this table below.

This has been a dramatic change in pitching philosophy for Lynn, but the results have been great. Lynn has become very effective in getting hitters to get themselves into outs. What I mean by this is hitters are trying to lift the ball in today’s game, and Lynn is encouraging that. If he executes his pitches, which he has done since the start of the season, hitters will have weaker contact, and won’t be able to lift the ball out of the park, but rather hit a routine fly ball or a pop-up in the infield. This is how he has evolved as the game has evolved.

West:

Houston Astros (81-58): 5.5 game lead on division

Key Players: Carlos Correa and Yordan Alvarez

Professional hitters. That’s what I think of when I think of the Houston Astros. They know how to work an at-bat, take their walks, and work one good AB after another. They have the lowest K% in baseball at 19.4%, and rank in the top 10 with a 9% walk rate. One guy at the top of this list is Carlos Correa. Sure, you can say anything you want to about the cheating scandal, but Correa has come to play in his contract year. He’s leading the team with a 5.2 WAR, and like many others on the team, has increased his walk rate, while striking out at a lower clip. This all comes while playing great defense for the division leading Astros. Next season could look different without Correa manning their shortstop position.

For Alvarez and the Astros, he is the anomaly in the lineup. Alvarez just hits tanks. He’s got a sweet stroke from the left-side of the plate, and his swing looks effortless. Yes, his walk rate has decreased this year, which is a little discouraging, but the strikeout rate has actually gotten a little better, and he’s already set a career high with 28 home runs. In an age full of one-dimensional players who can only pull a ball 500 feet, it’s nice to see a guy like Alvarez who’s not afraid to use the entire field. He pulls the ball 36.4% of the time, drives it up the middle 37.3% of the time, and goes the other way 26.3% of the time. You can probably shift him a little bit to pull, but you can’t be surprised if he pokes one the other way for a double down the line.

Seattle Mariners (76-64): 5.5 GB of division, 2 GB of 2^nd Wild Card

Key Player: Kyle Seager

Talk about a surprising team. The Mariners have found a way to stick around the entire season and are looking to make their first playoff appearance since 2001, the longest active drought by any team that plays in the four major sports (MLB/NBA/NHL/NFL) in America. The reason for their surprising season has to come from the veterans of the team. Sure, they have some young studs who will perform soon, but Kyle Seager isn’t done yet. Seager, the longest tenured Mariner, has been in Seattle since 2011. This year, in terms of pure power numbers, he’s having his best year to date. He has a career high in home runs with 34 and is just six RBIs away from breaking his previous high in that as well. His Slugging % and Hard Hit % are the highest they’ve been in a long time, and his Barrel % is well above his career average. Simply put, Seager is hitting the ball harder now than he has in any season before. The .213 batting average and .290 OBP isn’t ideal, but he has taken his power game to a new level this year.

Oakland A’s (76-64): 5.5 GB of division, 2 GB of 2^nd Wild Card

Key Player: Matt Olson

The Oakland A’s are another team like the Rays who will never lead the league in payroll. In fact, they’ll probably be in the bottom half as they are most years, but they always seem to compete. From the beginning of the season until the end of June, Oakland was 48-34 and looked to be in a prime position to make the playoffs for the 4^th consecutive year. But since July 1^st, they’ve been stuck in neutral, going just 28-30. For them, consistency has been an issue, and they’ve never really had a hot streak in the second half like we’re accustomed to seeing from them. Nevertheless, one bright spot for them this season has been Matt Olson. The man can flat out rake. After striking out a little over 31% of the time last year, he’s cut that in half, striking out at a rate of just 16.4% this year. With this, he’s slashing a career high in batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging. Of course, you can’t be a first baseman in baseball without hitting bombs as well. He’s hit 32 on the year and knocked in a career high 91 RBIs. Hopefully the A’s can find a way to pay him, or else, we could see him in a new uniform next year.

This concludes my end of the season review for each team battling for a playoff spot, and the opportunity to play October baseball. Hopefully you enjoyed reading this, as much as I enjoyed writing it, and stay on the look-out for another article from me previewing the playoffs here in a couple a weeks!

By: Brady Kas

As the leaves begin to change colors, and a cool breeze blows in the air, this can only mean one thing for baseball fans: postseason baseball is near. For any sports fan, the playoffs are always the best part, and baseball is no different. You can feel the intensity in the air as soon as you step foot into a ballpark this time of the year, and your emotions take over. You can be happy, sad, mad, excited, and confused all at once. There really is nothing like postseason baseball.

We are, however, still about a month away from the end of the regular season. Some of the playoff races this year have already been decided, like the White Sox winning the AL Central, or the Brewers winning the NL Central. The rest, for example, like the Wild Card races in both leagues, won’t be decided until the very end. With so much on the line here over the next 3+ weeks, let’s take a look at every team in the National League who is still in contention for a playoff spot, and I’ll highlight the biggest impact players for each team.

*Note that all stats are updated as of 9/10/21

East:

Atlanta Braves (74-65): 3.5 gm. lead for division

Impact Players: Freddie Freeman, Ozzie Albies, Dansby Swanson, Austin Riley

The current leaders of the NL East are the Atlanta Braves, largely thanks to the strength of their infield. This core four the Braves have with Freeman at 1^st, Albies at 2^nd, Riley at 3^rd, and Swanson at SS, have started 128 out of the 139 possible games played this season. This is an astonishing 92% of the time. To further detail their significance to this team, Swanson and Albies became only the 5^th middle infield of all time to hit 25+ home runs in a single season, and barring any injuries, all four have a realistic shot to hit 30 or more dingers this year. Riley and Freeman sit at the top with 29 homers on the year, Albies is at 27, and Swanson rounds out the list with 26. This feat has only been accomplished once before by the Marlins in 2008. This is the type of production they have needed since the season-ending injury to superstar Ronald Acuna Jr., and a pitching staff that is relatively average when looking at the primary statistics.

Philadelphia Phillies (71-69): 3.5 GB for division, 3.5 GB for wildcard

Impact Players: Bryce Harper and Zack Wheeler

In MLB history, there have been four occasions where one team has had both the MVP and the Cy Young (excluding when a player wins both), with the most recent coming in 2013 when the Tigers had Miguel Cabrera (MVP) and Max Scherzer (Cy Young). Out of these four teams, the average win total was 98, and all four teams won their division. Harper, a strong MVP candidate in the NL is quietly having one of the best years of his career. He’s slashing a strong .305/.417/.602 and has an OPS of 1.019 to go along with 30 bombs. Wheeler for his part is one of the favorites for the Cy Young since Jacob DeGrom has been injured. He’s gone a modest 12-9 on the year over 188.2 IP but has generated a 10.35 K/9 and just a 2.91 ERA. He’s striking out nearly 29% of all batters he faces and has accumulated a WAR of 6.4 on the year, second only behind Brewer’s pitcher Corbin Burnes (more on him later). So how can the Phillies have these two studs, but not win their division? The answer comes from their bullpen. The team ERA for the bullpen is at 4.56 (8^th worst in baseball), but the main issue has been late in games. Philadelphia has blown the most saves in baseball this year with 30. You have to wonder how good this team could have been with a reliable bullpen shutting down games in the 9^th.

New York Mets (70-71): 5 GB of division, 5 GB of Wild Card

Impact Players: Marcus Stroman and Pete Alonso

(Picture of Javy Baez from the AP)

Ahhhh the Mets. Every year I feel like there is no team and its fanbase who go through more ups and downs than the Mets do with their fans, but this year is completely different. As a fan of baseball, the relationship between the players, fans, and now with new owner Steve Cohen, has become comical for me. How could you not find this instance of fans booing the players, and the players booing them back anything but hilarious? Now I’m sure if you ask Mets fans, they won’t have nice things to say about this whole situation, but this is just another example of the Mets being the Mets.

Now that I got that out of the way, let’s actually talk about the Mets and their season. Jacob DeGrom is by far the best pitcher in baseball, but injuries and stints on the IL have dampened his season. Luckily for the Mets, Marcus Stroman has pitched and performed as if he’s the ace of the staff in DeGrom’s absence. To be honest, he’s been electric to watch this year. While he’s never been a big strikeout guy (career K/9 of just 7.45), he’s been very effective in getting outs on the ground. Over 50% of balls in play this year for Stroman have been on the ground. That’s good enough for the 6^th highest clip in all of baseball among starters. On the hitting side, the “Polar Bear” has been their most consistent hitter all year. As the two-time defending Home Run Derby Champ, Alonso has provided the power for the team leading them with 32 HR’s and 84 RBI’s. To put into context how impactful he has been for them this year, the next closest in homeruns on the team is Jonathan Villar with 18, and Francisco Lindor is the next closest in RBIs with 46. The Mets have struggled, with a record of just 22-31 in the second half so far, but Alonso and Stroman aren’t to blame.

Central:

Milwaukee Brewers (86-55): 12 game lead on division

Key Players: Corbin Burnes and Willy Adames

The Brewers are legit–no other way to put it. The three headed monster at the top of their rotation with Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, and Freddy Peralta is probably the best in the league, and one of the best we’ve seen in recent memory. The Brew Crew is the only team in baseball to have three starters with an ERA of sub-3.00. The last time we saw this happen was in 2017 with the Nationals when Stephen Strasburg, Max Scherzer, and Gio Gonzalez all accomplished this feat. However, there’s no doubt Burnes is the star of the show. Burnes has been throwing his cutter this year more than ever before, and it has led to huge success with his command. He started the year with 58 strikeouts before his first walk, breaking the MLB record.

To wrap up on the Brewers, let’s talk about maybe the best acquisition of any team this year before the trade deadline, and that was Willy Adames. Adames came to the Brewers from the Rays, where he had been struggling. Adames was the classic case of a guy who just needed a fresh start, and a new home. His numbers at the Trop (where the Rays play their home games), were uninspiring with a .217/.275/.341 slash, and an OPS of just .616. Outside of Tropicana Field, the man is a beast. Since arriving in Milwaukee, he’s looked like an all-star with a .294/.375/.529 slash to make for an OPS of .904. He’s been a huge bat for them and has also stabilized their shortstop position.

Cincinnati Reds (74-67): 12 GB for division, 1 GB of 2^nd NL Wild Card Spot

Key Players: Nick Castellanos, Jonathan India, Jesse Winker, and Joey Votto

As the Reds social media has said, “Joey Votto bangs.” The same could be said for the rest of the team too as Cincy has smashed 192 home runs on the year, good enough for fourth most in the NL. Votto, the 6x all star and 2010 NL MVP is the big name here, but Castellanos and Winker were actually the two who represented and started for the Reds in the All-Star game this past year. Castellanos is having a breakout year leading the team with a .317 BA, to go along with his 27 HRs and 79 RBIs. Winker is no slouch either, ranking 5^th in all of baseball with .955 OPS on the year to go along with his team leading 15.6 K%, meaning he’s not striking out a whole lot. Even with these three all stars I just named, the most important player to this team might be India, the favorite for the NL Rookie of the Year. He’s no doubt provided a spark to this lineup at the top and has been the perfect leadoff man for the team. His 3.7 WAR trails only Castellanos on the team, but ranks number one for all of rookies.

St. Louis Cardinals (71-68): 14 GB of division, 3 GB of 2^nd Wild Card

Key Player: Adam Wainwright

On a veteran-lead squad, this one player has been great for a long time, and this year has been no different. “Uncle Charlie” as Wainright is commonly referred to as, has dominated this year as he has been resurrected after a rough couple of years. From 2016-19, it looked like Wainwright’s best days may have been behind him. He had a whopping 4.58 ERA for those four years and led the league in earned runs and hits allowed in 2016. Since 2020, the ERA is back down to right above three at 3.02, much more typical of the Uncle Charlie we were accustomed to seeing. The big reason why I think we’ve seen this dramatic change in Wainwright comes from his pitch selection. Let’s compare his numbers from his worst season in 2016, to this season, and look at how using more of his off-speed pitches has translated into more success on the field.

As most pitchers do when they get older, they lose velocity in their fastball. When this happens, pitchers must either adjust, and start throwing more off-speed pitches, or before long, they’ll be out of the league. As I mentioned, Wainwright was clearly able to make this adjustment, and has had a great year for the Red Birds.

West:

San Francisco Giants (90-50): 2.5 game lead in division

Key Player: Brandon Crawford

It’s hard to find a team not named the Dodgers in the playoffs this year with more playoff success in terms of players with a championship background in their starting lineup. Just a few remain from those championship teams of the early 2010s, but the few who do are playing a major role in the team’s success this year. Crawford, at age 34, is having his best statistical season at the plate ever. Everyone knows he will give you Gold Glove defense at short, but his bat has never been elite until this year. Here are some numbers I found intriguing from Crawford this year.

The number that jumps out to me is the SLG%. Crawford has already hit the 2^nd most homeruns in his career with 20 (one shy of his career high) with a month still to play. To build off this, his Hard Hit% is 43%, which is six percent higher than his career average, and his Fly Ball% is up to 43.1%, nearly nine percent higher than his career average. For Crawford, this is how he has generated more slugging into his game by making more solid contact and getting under the ball more frequently.

Los Angeles Dodgers (88-53): 2.5 GB of division, 14.5 game lead for 1^st Wild Card

Key Player: Max Scherzer

(Picture of Scherzer with the Nationals courtesy of Fox Sports)

I mean come on. How could you not be intimidated by that man. Imagine stepping into the batters box, seeing him stare you down, then watching a 97mph fastball go right by you. Good luck. In all honesty, Scherzer has been dominant in Dodger blue. Since the trade deadline “Mad Max” has gone 5-0 with an ERA of 1.05 while striking out 63 batters over 43 innings pitched. His 2.2 WAR since July 31^st leads all pitchers in baseball. Dominance is really the only word to describe how Scherzer has performed over the past month, and he’ll be key for the Dodgers as they look to repeat as World Series Champions.

San Diego Padres (74-65): 15.5 GB of division, 1 game lead for 2^nd NL Wild Card Spot

Key Player: Fernando Tatis Jr.

Was there really any doubt who this would be? The face of baseball has come to play this year. While injuries have been a concern for sure, when Tatis Jr. has been healthy, there is nobody more exciting in the game. He’s got 37 home runs, 86 runs batted in, 24 stolen bases, and more swagger than you and I combined. There have been just 40 members of the 30 home runs / 30 stolen base club in the history of baseball, with the most recent coming in 2019 with Christian Yelich and Ronald Acuna Jr. both doing it, and it looks like “El Niño” will be next to join them in the near future. While the Padres have cooled off here a little bit in the second half, going just 21-25 since the All-Star break, this looks like the team of the future, who could compete for many championships down the road.

This wraps up my end of the season review for the National League, and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Coming up next, my preview for the American League.