Saturday, August 23rd: No Pick Today

Five more weeks of the regular season.  That is about 30 more games for teams across MLB.  There are a few good playoff and division races to follow.  

The Tigers and the Blue Jays are playing for the AL Crown, Detroit has a 1.5 game lead on the Canadian contingent.  I like the Blue Jays to win the AL.  Trade deadline acquisition, Shane Bieber, aced his first start in his return from Tommy John surgery and will be a difference maker down the stretch but the Tigers play a softer schedule into October and could very well hold onto the top spot for a bye in the first round of the AL playoffs.   

The Blue Jays will have to play good baseball in September to hold off the Red Sox for the AL East title.  Currently, Boston is 4.5 games back of Toronto but the Sox are playing good baseball.  They'll play for a four game sweep of the Yanks tomorrow night in the Sunday Night Game of the Week. 

The AL West is a two-team race between the Astros and the Mariners.  Houston has a two-game lead over Seattle and plays a fairly soft schedule into October.  I like Houston to hold on and win the AL West but it's going to be close.

Kansas City, Cleveland and Texas could all be considered contenders for the AL Wild Card.  All three teams have good pitching and could potentially unseat the Yankees or the Mariners if either team falters down the stretch.  I don't see that happening and like both the Yanks and the M's to hold onto their playoff positions but it is an interesting situation to follow over the last month of the season.  

In the NL, the Brewers look to be a lock for the crown and a first round bye in the playoffs.  They have a 6.5 game lead over both the Cubs and the Phillies.  

The most exciting race in MLB will be the battle for the NL West between the Dodgers and the Padres.  They are currently tied atop the divison.  They'll play two more games this weekend but the season series between the teams has been decided with LA having won 8 of 12 games against their SoCal rivals.  The Dodger's were big favorites preseason, it would be quite the achievement for San Diego if they were to unseat the Dodgers as division champs.

The Reds are in contention for the wild card and could very well clip the Mets for the final wild card in the NL.  I think the Reds have the better pitching and their offense has looked good since adding Miguel Andujar at the trade deadline.  The Reds are a dark horse candidate to win it all this season with a rotation that is as good as any in MLB.  

I'm looking forward to the playoffs and rooting for a Brewers / Astros World Series but all the teams are good teams and the playoffs should be exciting this season.  

Back to the picks on Monday.  Stay tuned.  

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