Ahh, the halfway point of baseball is behind us...

Anybody else been payin\' attention to what\'s been goin\' on in baseball? Well, the Yankees are on fire yet again, and trading to make their team even better than it was before, getting Jeff Weaver from the Detroit Tigers and Raul Mondesi from the Toronto Blue Jays. The Red Sox are on a surprising run, but the real question is if their starting pitching can survive. The A\'s and Mariners are doing their usual thing -- beating everybody they possibly can, in the best way possible: Pitching, defense, and offensive outbursts.
The Braves have the best record in baseball, yet only have one guy (Chipper Jones, who\'s currently in a 6 for 47 hitting slump) hitting above .300. The St. Louis Cardinals are still getting it done, even with the loss of Darryl Kile, and a depleted pitching staff. The D-backs, Giants, and Dodgers are at each other\'s throats for bragging rights in the NL West, and prove to have an exciting finish at the end of September.

I personally am saddened by the way my Cubs have played so far. I mean, 37-51 was not the way this team was supposed to be after what they did, picking up Moises Alou, and with the upcomings of Corey Patterson and Mark Prior. Oh well, they\'re 3-1 with their New Manager, and hopefully things can keep rolling from there  

So, does anybody have any predictions or thoughts as to how the season will end and how it has gone so far?

See Yuz.

My preseason pick was As vs. Cards in the series (simply because I didn\'t want to pick the Yankees again).  That still looks possible, especially if the teams make a trade to help their team.  It is actually looking like the As are really trying to do just that.  The Cards were obviously hurt in a big way by the tragic passing of Darryl Kile, but hopefully that can serve only as a motivating factor for them.  If they can just get their staff healthy, they can go far.

The Red Sox will not make the playoffs, mark my words.  They are not a second half team, and that won\'t change.  Burkett is floundering already, Hillenbrand is slowing down, and I still have doubts about how Lowe will hold up.  Unless they make a big trade, and pick up, maybe, Jim Thome, they will not make it.

The Yankees are looking more and more like the best team in baseball.  They have anything that is close to a weakness, and they improve it.  That lineup is just insane.  Non stop dangerous guys.  Soriano, Jeter, Giambi, Williams, Mondesi, Ventura, Posada...that\'s insane.  They have a great staff too, even better with Weaver in it now.  I just don\'t know how a team is going to beat them.  They will have to have some damn good pitching, which is why I picked the As.

The Braves are the hottest team in baseball, but I don\'t see them doing much in the playoffs.  They just seem to choke there year after year.  I think that either the Cards, or an NL West team will come out of that league.  If the Braves do win, and face, oh say, the Yankees, they\'ll get crushed.

The Western Divisions are what interest me right now.  Both have 3 legit playoff contenders in them.  Seattle, Oakland, Anaheim and San Fran, LA, and Arizona.  I think the wildcard team will come out of the west in both leagues.  My picks are Seattle and Oakland, and LA and Arizona.

And damn Mets.  Oh well.  Mets in 2003!

I think the Red Sox will miss the playoffs, as it seems they fall off every year. The Yankees will probably keep going steady, as will Seattle. Oakland and Anaheim will probably be battling for the Wild Card. And Minnesota is rollin\', I\'d be nice to see them in the playoffs.


The NL West race should go down to the final day. I\'m just hopin the D-Backs can build up a decent lead and let the Dodgers and Giants battle it out for a possible Wild Card spot. I see St. Louis keeping control of the Central, same for the Braves in the East.

Well, the bottom line is, St. Louis needs to make a big trade for a good starting pitcher, or else they\'re not goona get anywhere. They have the Triple A talent to get rid of, and they could get somebody, say, Paul Byrd from the Royals, to help their cause.

The A\'s really should consider going after a 2nd baseman or Brian Giles. If they could land Giles, they would be set at OF, and would have somebody batting that would give them great numbers, with Tejada and Chavez as protection. Their pitching never is a problem, and Aaron Harang is great, but they need another starting Ace, also.

The "REDSO" (Go Conan) won\'t make the playoffs unless they win their division. Seattle, Anaheim, and Oakland are just too damn good. If Anaheim wants to make a serious run, they also need to trade for one more ace. Washburn and Schoenweiss are good, but that\'s not goona hold up. Gotta love their offense though, Darin Erstad is awesome

As for the NL, The Wild Card is simply lying in the hands of the NL West. The Expos can do whatever they wanna do, but they\'re goona have to turn it up bigtime if they want to contend with The 3 teams in the NL West for that Wild Card spot. The Teams in the West are goona be on their game, simply becuase they\'re all vying for the Division, and The Wild Card as a 2nd glance. The Expos sure have helped their cause (Trading for Colon and Floyd), but they\'re goona have to be consistently good in order to have a true chance.

The Braves, how can you say that these guys are goona fall apart? Their pitching staff is the best in the game, and there\'s no way that Chipper and Andruw are goona stay quiet the rest of the season. This team, with its\' pitching staff, can go a long way in the Playoffs, and possibly even take the National League.

As for the Mets themselves, they really need to trade all of their guys for talent. They\'re not making any type of a run, and their Triple A team is depleated. They need to get a ton of talent, and rebuild for the next upcoming years. You keep Piazza, and resign Pedro Astacio to a long term deal, and center your team around them, building talent arond them as time goes on.

See Yuz.

another half of a season to watch the indians go deeper into the crapper!  I hope there is a strike the way the indians are playing....Make it STOP! I am also tired of seeing the Yankees in the WS every year...........thank god the Diamondbacks beat them last year!


:hat:ScottyJ:hat:

Yes, thank god.

Best. Sports. Moment. Ever.

I really do not think the As need another pitcher.  They got Lilly, and that helped to solidify their starting 5.  Lidle was damn good in their stretch run, if you\'re looking beyond the big 3.  I think they\'re fine at pitcher.  What they need is another bat.

The Cards would definitely be helped by another pitcher, and Byrd does seem like a good choice.  Especially with the injuries they\'re having, with Williams on the DL now and such, they need someone.

As for the Braves, the pitching staff is still anchored by Glavine and Maddux.  Those players often seem to underachieve in the playoffs.  Remember their series with the Cards two years ago?  They got shelled in all 3 games and were swept.  If those two falter, which isn\'t too unlikely at all, the team will be in a lot of trouble.  I don\'t see them making any moves before the deadline either, which means they are probably as good as they\'ll get right now.

*reads topic header*

*signs*

its only half over

[videoholic]

*Reads Topic Header*

*Sighs*

I think we are way over the half way point.  I think we hit the half way point back in the 60\'s...  This Pro Sport is DEAD!!!!

*Fingers crossed*