It’s always fun to write about things that really don’t matter in the big scheme of things. The reason being you are a whole lot less likely to tick somebody off.
During my 47-plus years of writing sports not only have I had the fact that “you can’t please everybody” quickly affirmed, I also learned that most often you can’t please anybody.
The most obvious example is anything that you might happen to write about Ole Miss and Mississippi State. The only thing most of those fan bases will agree about anything you write about the two teams is that you are most definitely a fan of the other school. It’s not a complaint, just a fact.
The same thing goes with high schools as well. It’s just part of the sports writing life.
That’s why I particularly enjoy writing columns like the one I’m now producing on a beautiful Monday afternoon from my residence on the outskirts of the Lizelia community. I will spend the next several paragraphs laying out how I see the National League pennant and playoff races will turn out, while being able to clearly let you know without any shadow of a doubt that I’M AN ATLANTA BRAVES FAN!!! See, no secrets at all.
As I write this column one thing is for sure, the Los Angeles Dodgers (currently at 101-44 with a MLB best .697 winning percentage on the season) will win the NL West and clinch the top spot in the playoffs.
The third surest bet is that the St. Louis Cardinals (who are at 87-61 and hold an eight-game lead over second-place Milwaukee) will win the NL Central. That will make the Cardinals the third seed.
What is the second best bet? That’s pretty simple: Either the Braves or Mets will win the NL East and to take the No. 2 seed in the playoffs, while the other will be the No. 4 seed as the highest ranked Wild Card team.
Let’s go ahead and solve the riddle fo the NL East first.
The Mets have 14 games left to play — five at home and nine on the road, while the Braves have 16 games left — six at home and 10 on the road. As this is being written New York is 93-55 on the season, while Atlanta is 91-55. I see both teams finishing the season with 100 or more wins.
Let’s run down the series predictions for the Mets first. Look for New York to drop two of three games at Milwaukee, before sweeping three from the A’s and splitting a pair with the Marlins. Then comes the big series in Atlanta where the Braves will likely win at least two of the three, before New York closes out the regular season winning two of three at home against the Nationals. That puts the Mets at 101-61 on the season and would give the Mets the season series win over the Braves 10 games to nine.
Look for the Braves to win each of their five remaining series. The big question is how badly will they win them. While the series with the Mets is obviously huge, they have a four-game series with the Phillies that begins tonight (Thursday).
Here’s the checklist of my Braves’ series predictions: Atlanta takes two of three at home from the Nationals, before heading to Philly and winning three of four; follow that up by winning two of three from the Nationals, Mets, and Marlins for a season ending record of 102-60.
If that holds true, then the Braves would join the Dodgers in getting first-round byes in the National League playoffs.
As far as the St. Louis Cardinals go they will win two of three from the Padres, take one out of a three-game set with the Dodgers, spilt a pair with the Brewers and then get ready to play six consecutive games to close out the season against the Pirates, three at home and three on the road. St. Louis will win four of those six games to close out the regular season at 95-67.
So that leaves the Brewers, Phillies and Padres fighting it out for the last two playoff spots.
Four of the last five series for the Padres will provide some challenges. San Diego will begin by winning only one of three against the Cardinals, before taking two of three from Colorado. Then comes only one win in a three-game set against Los Angeles, followed by series wins over the Chicago White Sox and the San Francisco Giants to end the season at 89-73.
Philadelphia will open things with a two-game split against Toronto, before losing three of four against the Braves. The Phillies will bounce back to take two of three from the Cubs and three of four front the
Nationals before taking one out a three-game series with Houston. That leaves Philly with an 88-74 record.
The Brewers have some serious work to do, but also have a favorable schedule with 12 of their last 16 games at home. Milwaukee will get off to a good start by winning two of three from the Mets and three of four from the Reds. After a two-game split with the Cardinals, Milwaukee will win three of four from the Marlins and two of three from the Diamondbacks to end the regular season at 87-69.
If the above scenarios turn out to be accurate, Los Angeles and Atlanta will get first-round byes, while the Cardinals host the Phillies and the Mets host the Padres in best of three series to open the playoffs.
Whether I’m right or not, it still should be a fun couple of weeks.
Next week, we will take a look at the American League races.
Austin Bishop, AKA The Old Sports Dude, has been covering high school, college, amateur, and professional sports since 1975 and is an ordained Assemblies of God minister. He may be contacted by email at starsportsboss@yahoo.com or by phone at 601-938-2471.
