 This is the time of baseball season that we've been waiting for. The Playoffs. Throughout this year, lots of teams were able to live up to their expectations, others regressed, but have still made it past the regular season, while some teams overachieved. With the defending champion Boston Red Sox out of the playoffs, lets see who this year's new champion will be.
American League: 1. Houston Astros 3 4. Oakland Athletics 2 4. Oakland Athletics over 2. New York Yankees 4 5. Tampa Bay Rays 3. Houston Astros 2 2. New York Yankees 3 3. Minnesota Twins 1 2. New York Yankees 4 World Series: 1. Los Angeles Dodgers 2 National League: 1. Los Angeles Dodgers 3 4. Washington Nationals 2 4. Washington Nationals over 1. Los Angeles Dodgers 4 5. Milwaukee Brewers 2. Atlanta Braves 2 2. Atlanta Braves 3 3. St. Louis Cardinals 1  This year in baseball has seen many young players take massive steps towards becoming special players. Each of them have done so in their own way throughout the season.. So without further ado, here are the baseball’s 4 superstars that are under 25 years old.
1. Juan Soto For nearly a decade, the Washington Nationals have had plenty players with lots of hype surrounding them. Players like Ryan Zimmerman, Stephen Strasburg, and Bryce Harper are having successful careers. Although Juan Soto has not yet played a full season, it seems like he may be even better. He put up extraordinary stats last year by hitting .292/.406/.517 along with 22 home runs, and 70 RBIs. This year he's hitting .285/.399/.522. He will likely top his home run total and he already topped his RBI total. He has shown the ability to prevail in key situations. His impact on the team can't be ignored as the Nationals who looked like they were in for a long season by the time May ended, are now frontrunners for an N.L. Wild Card spot. What makes his success even more amazing, is that he's only 20 years old. So while some may say its too early in his career to call him a superstar, he will probably change your mind pretty soon. 2. Ronald Acuña Jr. There are not many players who get to enjoy great individual success as well as team success. But right now, Acuña Jr. seems to be one of those players. With his ability to do whatever he wants at home plate or on the bases, Acuña Jr. is one of baseball's most entertaining players. Last year, he batted .293/.366/.552. He also hit 26 home runs which included 5 consecutive gams where he hit a spectacular 6 home runs. More importantly, he helped the Atlanta Braves reach the playoffs for the first time in 4 years with 90 wins. After the season, he was awarded the N.L. Rookie of the Year. Four months later, he got paid big time with a 8 year contract worth $100 million. It was the largest contract for a player who hasn't played one year of major league baseball. So far this year he is living up to his contract in every way possible. The Braves are looking like they're going to repeat as division champs, his powerful hitting earned him a spot in the Home Run Derby, he started in the all star game, and there's a strong chance that he'll have at 40-40. (home runs and steals.) A generational player? A likely possibility if he keeps up his great play. 3. Gleyber Torres The 2018 New York Yankees started the season with expectations of possibly winning a World Series. But those expectations were nowhere to be seen as they stumbled out the gate and were devastated by injuries. There had to be something that could spark the team. They found it in Gleyber Torres. When he was called up from the minor league last season, the 21 year old Torres helped the Yankees go on a big win streak that saw him make amazing plays at the plate and in the field. Throughout that span, it seemed like there was nothing that he couldn't do. If you needed a big play, he was going to step up. This resulted in his first all star game and a 100 win season. This season, as one of the only consistently healthy players, Torres helped the Yankees take off on a winning streak that put them atop the division only a month after it started. When they needed their starters to come back, Torres continued to come up big time with the Yankees. He was selected to his second all star game, set an M.L.B. record for the youngest player to have 7 multi home run games. He also tied the record for the most home runs vs an opponent (13 against the Baltimore Orioles! It looks like the Yankees will win the division and Torres is a major reason why. It's only been 2 years, but Torres is already establishing himself as one of baseball's most reliable stars. 4. Cody Bellinger There aren’t many players in baseball that are already good and still have to improve major areas of their game. Their drive is what separates the best from others. Twenty-four year old Cody Bellinger of the Los Angeles Dodgers is one of them. He was really impressive as a rookie, hitting 39 home runs, won N.L. Rookie of the Year, and played a big part in leading the Dodgers to the World Series. Despite losing to the Houston Astros, Bellinger established himself as a major part of a Dodgers team that looked like a possible World Series Champion. In 2018, Bellinger’s stats dipped and the Dodgers were trounced by the Boston Red Sox in the World Series. In the offseason, the Dodgers tried to keep star player Manny Machado by trading another star in Yasial Paige to the Cincinnati Reds to free cap space, but Machado left anyway. Burdened with a bigger role coming into 2019, Bellinger has been answering the challenge so far. With an offseason to work on his improving his swing, Bellinger is now doing whatever he wants at the plate. He is hitting .317/.416/.661 and has accounted for 42 home runs and 89 RBIs. He is probably going to win M.V.P. and is essential to the major success that the Dodgers are enjoying this season. Every year of baseball, fans look for the young players that are not only having one great season, but will be baseball’s top players for about the next decade or so. The focus of baseball’s current stars may be guys like Aaron Judge, Mike Trout, and Jose Altuvie amongst others, but these players will be the focus of baseball’s future.  This season, the New York Yankees have been pretty good. Now I know that you readers are probably thinking I'm not surprised. According to your article in March, they were going to win the World Series, so why are you writing another article about how good they are? The reason why I'm writing another article about how good the Yankees are, is because they are playing really good considering that they have a whopping 14 players on the injured list. Yes 14 players. Amongst those players are Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Luis Severino, Didi Gregorius, and Dellin Betances. And yet they are amongst the elite teams in the American League.
So while they are still waiting on their players to come back, how could they be doing this good? The answer, is that these players have been waiting for an opportunity to contribute for what they, along with others believe is a championship team. So even though they are a bunch of guys who are prospects playing in the minor leagues or castoffs, they are the main reason why the Yankees are now 34-15 after starting 6-9. Unlikely heroes like Clint Frazier, Mike Tauchman, Gio Urshela, D.J. Lemahieu, Cameron Maybin, Thairo Estrada, and Domingo German, have emerged throughout this stretch. Frazier who was acquired from the Cleveland Indians in 2016, showed flashes in 2017, but sat out the conclusion of the season and most of 2018 with injuries. But this year, he is enjoying a healthy season in which his 11 home runs have filled in the void of the injured sluggers on the team. Gio Urshela played sparingly for the Seattle Mariners and Indians before landing with the Yankees last year in August. His slick fielding has made many highlight reels. Maybin has played on 8 teams before getting traded to New York in late April. His key hits and plays in the field may not go in highlight reels, but are essential to this winning stretch. Lemahieu spent most of his career with the Colorado Rockies before being picked up by the Yankees. His clutch hitting has prompted Gary Sanchez to call him "The Machine." Some of the well-known players such as Sanchez along with C.C. Sabathia, Masahiro Tanaka, Aroldis Chapman, Luke Voit, and Gleyber Torres, have been playing really good baseball. Aaron Boone's growth has been evident in his sophomore season. Lots of the credit of the success of these little-known players goes to him. The Yankees' highlights include sweeping the Boston Red Sox in their first series since last year's ALDS defeat, beating the Twins who are currently one of the best teams in the A.L., and winning a huge division series against the Rays, and then winning an amazing 9th straight series against Boston. So the question, is how good will the be once their other stars who are out will come back? The answer is very good. They not only have a well talented roster of all stars, but a well balanced roster of players who have lots of experience playing for each other. As it is, they've already got some injured players back such as Sanchez and Sabathia who have been playing really good baseball while Aaron Hicks who recently returned, is already beginning to regain his old form. Other players may start out rusty, but will eventually regain their form before it's too late. As it already is, injured players during this stretch like Judge have been making lots of progress in their rehab, so by the time he returns, he'll go back to being the powerful hitter and athletic fielder the he already is. Shortstop Didi Gregorius who returned yesterday, is already playing like the consistent hitter and fielder that he is. Other guys like Severino and Stanton are now expected to be out for longer than expected, so they may be rusty, but their play will likely take a turn for the better once the season comes to an end. Once everyone is back and at full strength, the Yankees will probably be so dominant to the point here they can toy around with their lineups and still keep up the winning pace. But for now, there's a lot of reasons to be excited about this team, especially with Aaron Judge's return looming towards the end of the month. So as they are right now in arguably their best winning stretch in franchise history, their A team is making great progress as their return off the I.L. is coming closer by the day. The only question would be how to take advantage of their maximum production. Chances are, that with lots of production already happening with their A team and B team stars, it will continue to happen even with the increase of their A team stars coming back. So with the Jets patching up their GM hole and the Knicks and Nets are primed to have big off-seasons, this summer should be fun for New York Sports fans.
 Baseball is a very interesting sport. With 162 games, it opens the door for expected and unexpected playoff appearances by teams of both conferences. Baseball is also a game where injuries can change a team's season and impact in the playoffs. The National League's Washington Nationals for example, stunningly missed the playoffs last year, but most of the teams who made the 2017 postseason qualified once again. The Oakland Athletics on the other hand, qualified for the final wild card spot in the American League. While both teams could make the playoffs next year or miss it, they both serve as perfect examples of the surprises that baseball can bring to one season. So let's see who will be playing baseball for at one more month.
American League Division Winners: A.L. East: New York Yankees A.L. Central: Cleveland Indians A.L. West: Houston Astros A.L. Wild Card #1: Boston Red Sox A.L. WIld Card #2: Oakland Athletics National League Division Winners: N.L. East: Philadelphia Phillies N.L. Central: Milwaukee Brewers N.L. West: Colorado Rockies N.L. Wild Card #1: Atlanta Braves N.L. Wild Card #2: Washington Nationals American League Playoff Results: Wild Card - #1 Red Sox over #2 Athletics A.L. Division Series - #1 Yankees 3 games to 1 over #4 Red Sox. #2 Astros 3 games to 2 over #3 Indians. A.L. Championship Series - # 1 Yankees 4 games to 2 over #2 Astros. National League Playoff Results: Wild Card - #2 Nationals over #1 Braves N.L. Division - #1 Brewers 3 games to 2 over #5 Nationals. #3 Phillies 3 games to 2 over #2 Rockies. N.L. Championship Series - #1 Brewers 4 games to 3 over #3 Phillies.  After a few years of mediocrity, the New York Yankees have re-emerged as one of the MLB's elite. They have loads of talent, young core players, and good management. But it's their experience gained over the past two years that will be the key for what will probably be a memorable 2019 season.
The Yankees burst onto the scene, exceeding expectations by making the ALCS in 2017, and followed that up with a short playoff run last year. During these runs, the "Baby Bombers" have grown up, and are now primed to use their past experience for a 2019 run. The talent that this team has, is crazy. As of now, their roster is filled with players that do lots of damage both at the plate and in the field such as:
Here's some information on some of these players! Aaron Judge in just 2 years, has been amazing to watch. At 6 foot 7, he has hit home runs as far as 495 ft. He has a cannon for an arm - base runners don't have a good chance to get any extra bases once a ball is hit to him. His height helps him to steal home runs with leaping grabs at the fence. Giancarlo Stanton, who was acquired in last year's offseason, struggled at first, but rebounded with 38 home runs, 100 RBIs, and batted .266. It is likely that he'll be even better next season, now that he has had a season to adjust to the American League. Gleyber Torres was one of baseball's top rookies last year, hitting 24 home runs and batting .271. He also has shown an ability to come up big in pressure moments, which has added an exciting element to his game. Miguel Andujar has emerged as a reliable hitter as well. While there was speculation about whether he might be traded if the Yankees signed Manny Machado, Machado signed with the San Diego Padres indicating that the Yankees truly trust Andujar to become a key piece of the team. Didi Gregorius has been very consistent and reliable for the Yankees throughout last season both in the field and at the plate. Aaron Hicks has emerged as the x-factor of the Yankees. With his ability to hit at the plate, fielding skills, and competitiveness, manager Aaron Boone called him, "The most underrated player in the game." It also got him a 7 year contract extension with the team. Pitcher Luis Severino, who had a hot start followed by an inconsistent second half of last season, has still emerged as the Yankees' pitching ace. Catcher Gary Sanchez did not have as good a year as expected, but rebounded with a strong postseason. His skills both at the plate and in the field will be essential for the Yankees in the years to come. And the bullpen, led by Aroldis Chapman who added a vicious slider to his arsenal, should ensure the Yankees don't lose many leads. All of these players are, without doubt, their core players now, and most will remain key players in the future. Unlike other teams with great players, management knows to lock in their good players. During those 2 years, Brian Cashman went from making moves that only benefit the team short term, to making moves that will benefit them in the long term. Therefore, fans can thank him for all of the excellent drafts, smart trades, and carefully thought free agent signings. Judge, Severino, Sanchez, and Andujar? Drafted by the Yankees earlier this decade. Stanton, Hicks, Gregorius, and Torres were all traded to the Yankees. Chapman is the only member of this core group who was a free agent signing. The Yankees added to their core of players this offseason with the acquisitions of pitchers James Paxton, Adam Ottavino, Troy Tulowitzki, and Gio Gonzalez. Second year manager Aaron Boone will be more experienced this season and will look to manage a deep playoff run and possibly a championship. The key that will probably help this team win the World Series, is experience. There are a lot of different areas of the team that will show tremendous growth. Stanton, Torres, and Andujar will be even more comfortable with the team as they enter their sophomore season as Yankees. Aaron Boone showed some flaws but should learn from some of his mistakes. As a whole, despite only 2 years of contending, the Yankees have had significant playoff experience - as well as the motivation that comes from losing early in the playoffs that they expected to win a championship. This playoff experience should give them the mentality that makes champions, not just in 2019, but for many other years in the future. Three years ago, the Yankees had an uncertain future. They were average at best but weren't looking like a team that could compete in the years to come. Now, they look set to compete at the highest level. Before Yankees' fans know it, they could be in New York City celebrating a 28th World Series Championship  Before we start, I must say, this stings a bit as my favorite team besides the New York Yankees is the Washington Nationals (my dad grew up in the Washington D.C. area). Star outfielder Bryce Harper's new contract with the Philadelphia Phillies is not only a massive contract (13 years and $330 million), but a huge change to the landscape of baseball players.
Over this offseason, MLB stars Manny Machado, Nolan Arenado, and Bryce Harper received massive contracts. On February 20th, Machado signed with the San Diego Padres for 10 years and $300 million. Arenado resigned with the Colorado Rockies for 8 years and $260 million on February 26th. Then of course, Harper topped them all on February 28th with his contract which is the largest in baseball history. However, there is lots of ego among these players who, despite the great talent they have, are question marks for their big contracts due to the lack of deep playoff runs or consistency. Machado has been in the postseason 4 times in his career. Three of those appearances were when he was a member of the Baltimore Orioles. They only won one playoff series. He was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers midway through the 2018 season and helped them get to the World Series where they lost 4 games to 1. What was more widely known was the fact that Machado publicly said that hustling "isn't my cup of tea." When he was running the bases, he was clearly trying to intentionally trip the fielders of the Milwaukee Brewers in the Championship series. Game 4 in particular got people irritated as he intentionally tried to trip Jesus Aguilar. He was fined $10,000 by the league and M.V.P. Christein Yelich supported his teammate by calling Machado's actions "A dirty play by a dirty player. It absolutely is." So despite making his first world series, Machado's reputation has already distinguished him from being called a winner. Arenado didn't make the playoffs until 2017 when the Arizona Diamondbacks eliminated them in the Wild Card round. He won his first playoff game next year against the Chicago Cubes, but were swept 3 games to none in the divisional round by the Milwaukee Brewers. Harper has not had a losing season throughout his Nationals career. He has made the playoffs 4 out of his 7 years winning the division in every year, but the Nationals have never won a playoff series, losing in excruciating fashion in every game. So there you have it: winning for these players is common, but they still have a way to go if they want to have purely consistent winning ways. They want money to be mentioned when people talk about their legacies. They may not admit that, but they want to go out with both money and fame. The dead end to this is that not all of these players are generational talents. Harper is the only one out of the 3 who is considered a generational talent and he hasn't had any playoff success. By contrast, in the 2018 NFL off season, lots of players got big contract extensions in August. Yet those players have already proved to be generational talents already and played massive roles on their teams. In what has become a sports world in which big contracts have been common, these baseball players also wanting to get paid big time. Contract standards are also made by these players. Machado was offered $220 million by the New York Yankees, while the Chicago White Sox offered him $175 million and 8 years. The Phillies were also a dark horse candidate for Machado. The Rockies originally avoided arbitration with Arenado by giving him $26 million. Harper was given a 10 year, $300 million contract by the Nationals in hopes of resigning him in which he denied. Other teams placed solid offers for Harper, but it was the Phillies that won Harper. This is a new period in baseball, and it is a new period regarding the contracts that are handed out to these players. The sports world of contracts has already been changing dramatically and these baseball players have exceeded most of the contracts that athletes in other sports already have. It'll be interesting to see if these high paid players will deliver great individual play and championships to their teams. |
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