ALDS & NLDS Predictions

ALDS

Tampa Bay Rays Vs Houston Astros

The Astros are by far the best team in the league right now. They have the best pitching staff, an incredible batting lineup, and play stout defense. I don’t believe the Rays even have a chance at winning one game in this series let alone three. Congrats to the Rays for making the playoffs, but as a team they ain’t shit compared to the Astros. This should be a nice little warm-up for the Astros to get ready for the ALCS.

Astros over Rays in 3 games

Minnesota Twins Vs New York Yankees

The Twins came on strong this season with a dominating offense that was setting records with home runs and have a couple of guys in the batting lineup who have a batting average above .300. Jorge Polanco has been playing at an MVP level batting a .296 with 22 home runs, but where he’s really dominated is at the short stop position on defense and should make a great case for a Gold Glove this season. The Yankees have had to battle through nothing but injuries from the beginning of the season, but have some-how been able to overcome all of them. The batting lineup has continued to dominate and has been a difficult task for every pitching staff that has had to face off against them. The Yankees pitching has been mediocre throughout the entire season, but they have managed to overcome that and keep winning. No team has been better at overcoming adversity this season than the Yankees because of all the injuries and I believe that will continue on into the playoffs and against the Twins. The Twins pitching has been decent, but I believe the Yankees batting lineup will be too much for them to overcome and the Yankees will continue on into the Championship Series.

Yankees over Twins in 4 games

NLDS

Washington Nationals Vs Los Angeles Dodgers

The Nationals have been one of the most surprising teams in baseball this season. After they lost Bryce Harper it was hard to believe they’d be anything better than mediocre, but they have really dominated with their starting pitching and the batting lineup has really taken off this second half of the season. While the Nationals have looked strong the past few months, the Dodgers have dominated the National League for quite some time and don’t look like they are about to cool down. When it comes to pitching the Dodgers are the best in the league statistically they rank first in ERA and WHIP, but this is not the only side of the ball where they dominate, they also will kill you with their batting lineup. You can’t ever count the Dodgers out no matter how many runs they may be down because it is very possible they can make it up in one inning and then are walking away with the win. The Nationals had a nice little run, but the Dodgers are way too deep for the Nationals to even compete.

Dodgers over Nationals in 3 games

St. Louis Cardinals Vs Atlanta Braves

The Braves were a team that silently dominated from start to finish. They have a solid pitching staff that has led the charge with one of the best batting lineups in the league. The Braves have some solid home run hitters, but they will kill you with their small ball. Acuna Jr. and Albies are smart, strong and fast hitters who are difficult to catch once they take off. The Cardinals started off the season very slow, but hit the second half of the season strong and have really dominated, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Trading for Paul Goldschmidt in the offseason and signing Marcell Ozuna as a free agent have both paid off immensely as both players are living up to their expectations. This is going to be a great series to watch because both teams matchup well against each other. I expect this to be a back and forth series with it coming down to a few crucial plays. The edge in this matchup, I believe, goes to the Cardinals because no one in the league has been on fire like they have and when you come into the playoffs playing like this, usually it carries on into the playoffs and it’s difficult for the opposing team to overcome. The Cardinals have always been a sneaky team come playoff time I wouldn’t be surprised to see them in the World Series.

Cardinals over Braves in 5 games