{"id":78314,"date":"2016-07-11T19:25:16","date_gmt":"2016-07-11T19:25:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sandbox.web.rcn.net\/rcntv\/?p=78314"},"modified":"2023-04-19T21:01:01","modified_gmt":"2023-04-19T21:01:01","slug":"behind-mic-star-break","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.astound.com\/atvn\/behind-mic-star-break\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the Mic: All-Star Break!"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s the mythical half-way point in the major league baseball season.\u00a0 It\u2019s hard to believe that the first games were played back on April 3.\u00a0 I made my predictions for the season the very next day so just as it is time for each team to get their mid-term grades, I suppose I should see how I am doing with my season predictions.\u00a0 I have listed the teams in the order I felt they would finish.\u00a0 The number in parentheses indicates where each team currently stands in the division.<\/p>\n

American League<\/strong>
\nWest<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Houston <\/a>(2) \u2013 Got off to a terrible start, but playing better now. Can they catch the Rangers?\u00a0 Not with another slump in the second half.<\/li>\n
  2. Texas Rangers<\/a> (1) \u2013 I didn\u2019t see them being one of the best teams in baseball \u2013 I was wrong \u2013 again!<\/li>\n
  3. Seattle <\/a>(3) \u2013 Offense has looked good; their pitching has not. They are right where they should be.<\/li>\n
  4. LA Angels<\/a> (5) \u2013 Veterans have not been good; playoffs seem out of the realm of possibility and most feel they have the worst farm system in baseball. Dare I say bleak future?<\/li>\n
  5. Oakland <\/a>(4) \u2013 Better than expected? Or are the Angels just worse?\u00a0 Nothing they have done has worked out so far.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Central<\/strong><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Kansas City<\/a> (4) \u2013 My worst pick of the entire list of teams. Their starting pitching is just awful, as was my pick for them to win the pennant.<\/li>\n
    2. Cleveland <\/a>(1) They look like the best in the Central \u2013 good pitching and an improved offense. Cleveland wins the NBA and now, maybe the World Series?<\/li>\n
    3. Chicago <\/a>(3) \u2013 Really started the season well and then they fell apart going 15-19 in last 34 games. They will not contend.<\/li>\n
    4. Detroit <\/a>(2) \u2013 Most thought they would be better than I did. They were right, but this is a wide-open division.\u00a0 I might end up being right.<\/li>\n
    5. Minnesota <\/a>(5) \u2013 A complete disaster.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      East<\/strong><\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Toronto <\/a>(3) \u2013 Still in the playoff hunt and they have the potential to be very good at the end of the season.<\/li>\n
      2. Boston <\/a>(2) \u2013 They score more runs than any other team and have the highest team batting average; starting pitching has been good. Could be in first by season\u2019s end.<\/li>\n
      3. New York Yankees<\/a> (4) \u2013 Where have the real Yankees gone? They really were not expected to contend, but they are the Yankees (or are they?)<\/li>\n
      4. Tampa Bay<\/a> (5) \u2013 One of the worst records in baseball \u2013 they need the Joe Madden magic.<\/li>\n
      5. Baltimore <\/a>(1) \u2013 Obviously, I botched this pick. They hit the ball.\u00a0 Starting pitching might falter, however, so I could still recover from this pick.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        My pre-season prediction: Kansas City will win the American League pennant.<\/strong>
        \nMy Grade – F<\/strong><\/p>\n

        National League<\/strong>
        \nWest<\/strong><\/p>\n

          \n
        1. San Francisco<\/a> (1) \u2013 The Giants win in even-numbered years (what? \u2013 I read it somewhere); will battle the Cubs for supremacy.<\/li>\n
        2. LA Dodgers<\/a> (2) \u2013 They should make the playoffs, but I do not see them catching the Giants.<\/li>\n
        3. Arizona <\/a>(5) – They were expected to contend, but starting pitching is woeful.<\/li>\n
        4. San Diego<\/a> (4) \u2013 Will not contend; rebuilding after trying their best with deals last year.<\/li>\n
        5. Colorado <\/a>(3) \u2013 The Rockies are competitive, but not strong enough to challenge for West title.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Central<\/strong><\/p>\n

            \n
          1. Chicago <\/a>(1) \u2013 Great start \u2013 11-11 since, but they could break the championship drought. The All-Star break will probably help them.<\/li>\n
          2. St Louis<\/a> (2) \u2013 They will be in the playoffs, despite not winning much at home in the first half of the season. They will hope that Chicago swoons again.<\/li>\n
          3. Pittsburgh <\/a>(3) \u2013 The lack of pitching has hurt the Pirates this year. They are potentially still a very good team.<\/li>\n
          4. Milwaukee <\/a>(4) \u2013 This team is better, but they are in the toughest division and exceeding expectations.<\/li>\n
          5. Cincinnati <\/a>(5) \u2013 The Reds have done what they were expected to do \u2013 lose.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            East<\/strong><\/p>\n

              \n
            1. NY Mets<\/a> (2) \u2013 They struggle to score and Washington just is better. Should still make the playoffs.<\/li>\n
            2. Washington <\/a>(1) \u2013 Great starting pitching with enough offense makes the Nationals the East champion. No collapse this year.<\/li>\n
            3. Miami <\/a>(3) \u2013 The Marlins have really improved as demonstrated by their record. They probably will not make the post-season, but currently have a very successful year.<\/li>\n
            4. Philadelphia <\/a>(4) \u2013 Rebuilding and winning more. Neither is a bad thing.\u00a0 Even though they are in fourth place, the future looks brighter every week.<\/li>\n
            5. Atlanta <\/a>(5) \u2013 They have lived up to their very low expectations. They will lose 100+ games.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

              My pre-season prediction: Chicago will beat the Mets for the N L pennant.<\/strong>
              \nMy Grade \u2013 A-<\/strong>
              \nOverall Grade \u2013 C-<\/strong><\/p>\n

              Cubs win it all!!\u00a0 Only time will tell.<\/strong><\/p>\n

              \u00a0<\/strong>
              \nABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)<\/strong><\/p>\n

                \n
              1. Did you see where NFL.com<\/a> listed Eagles<\/a>\u2019 coach Doug Pederson at the very bottom of their power rankings for coaches<\/a>? That\u2019s right \u2013 he was ranked #32 out of #32.\u00a0 Nowhere to go but up!<\/li>\n
              2. By the way, Bill Belichick ranked #1 and former Eagles\u2019 coaches Andy Reed and Chip Kelly were #6 and #20, respectively.<\/li>\n
              3. Golf rules played another major role this past weekend in the US Women\u2019s Open championship. In a three-hole playoff, Anna Nordqvist brushed the sand on her backswing<\/a> on the second hole and incurred a two-stroke penalty.\u00a0 She was not told until the third hole.\u00a0 Television replays clearly showed that she committed the violation.\u00a0 To make matters worse, the USGA President repeatedly congratulated \u201cBethany Lang\u201d for her win.\u00a0 The winner was Brittany<\/strong><\/li>\n
              4. Since my last blog, notable sports icon Pat Summitt passed away. She may have been the best-ever as a women\u2019s basketball coach.\u00a0 Buddy Ryan also passed away.\u00a0 There were very few similarities in their coaching style.<\/li>\n
              5. The RCN Blue Mountain League crew had a nice reunion with the volunteer workers at Balliet Stadium in Coplay last week. They have done a wonderful job on the field and continue to work to improve the entire summer baseball experience.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

                 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                It\u2019s the mythical half-way point in the major league baseball season.\u00a0 It\u2019s hard to believe that the first games were played back on April 3.\u00a0 I made my predictions for the season the very next day so just as it is time for each team to get their mid-term grades, I suppose I should see…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"Yoast SEO Relevanssi index exclude","inline_featured_image":false,"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3,4],"tags":[695,354],"class_list":["post-78314","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-behind-the-mic","category-featured","category-sports","tag-baseball-rankings","tag-mlb"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nBehind the Mic: All-Star Break! 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