Baseball is here-ish!
Yesterday morning, the Seattle Mariners and Oakland Athletics technically kicked off the regular season but it wasn’t considered “Opening Day”-day because the game was played in Japan and didn’t start til before 6 a.m. The two players who benefitted most was Oakland catcher Kurt Suzuki and Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki, who got a chance to play in front of their homeland. Ichiro snacked on Athletics starter Brandon McCarthy most of the game, opening with a single en route to a 4 for 5 day batting in the three hole.
For Game 2 this morning, odds of his total hits, runs, and rbi’s being over 2.5 according to bovada are +135, while odds of him under that are -165. Continue reading
After one of the biggest off-seasons in a decade (although the NFL really snuffed it out pretty quickly didn’t it?) the dust is finally settling for the upcoming MLB season. And with just under two weeks remaining until opening day, the picture is getting clearer for individual award favorites.
As we inch closer to kicking off the 2012 MLB season, it’s only right to throw out predictions for the coveted awards given at the end of the season. With the huge offseason moves made by big names that moved into the American League, the dynamics of the MVP race is going to be one of the most exciting we have ever seen. Bovada.com is listing all odds for the MLB awards currently and there are slew of categories you can check out. Looking over the names on the list in the AL we have the usual contenders in Jose Bautista, Robinson Cano, Evan Longoria, Adrian Gonzalez, and Miguel Cabrera.
The Los Angeles Angels have not been this excited since Danny Glover was their coach. I mean, sure they did win a World Series with Mike Scioscia, but this year, there have to be supernatural forces at work for Scioscia, otherwise there’s no possibility you can get the talent he inherited in just one offseason.
If last year’s success for the Tampa Bay Rays was any sign of things to come for the franchise, the crowd’s signature hitting of the cowbell will be plentiful in October.
The Tigers made a run deep in the playoffs as the underrdog past the New York Yankees, only to fall to the Texas Rangers. Cy Young award winner Justin Verlander finally threw an entire season of quality pitching and Miguel Cabrera either quit drinking all together or hit .338 drunk, which I would prefer to think. Throw into the mix Prince Fielder hitting after Miggy and you are looking at a team that is no longer an underdog against anyone.
The Washington Nationals have something cooking with a few key free agent signings and absolute luck of grabbing two of the best number one picks in the last decade. Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmerman, Ryan Zimmerman, and Bryce Harper are just a couple of names that belong on the long list of future stars that the Nationals were fortunate enough to take in past drafts. Add to that list the team’s closer, Drew Storen, and Anthony Rendon, who were both first rounders also and you are looking are some serious pieces in place.
What the Los Angeles Dodgers lack in money, they more than make up for in talent.
The AL West has produced the American League’s representative in the World Series for the last two years, but a 0-2 record where it matters most isn’t something that anyone is looking to brag about. The good news for folks who root for the AL West as a whole, though, is that the division has got substantially upgraded over the last few months. The Texas Rangers won’t just hop, skip and jump to the Fall Classic this time around. No, in 2012 they’ll get a legitimate battle for the honor from both the Anaheim Angels and to a lesser degree the Oakland Athletics.
The NL West is an absolutely fascinating division that could wind up looking any one of a number of ways when it’s all said and done. The Dodgers, Rockies, Diamondbacks and Giants all have their fair share of strengths and weaknesses going in, and who emerges as top dog by year’s end largely depends on who is best able to maximize those strengths and minimize those weaknesses.