Sitting here tonight having a little fun with Joshua. We decided to make picks on the MLB Wild Card games coming up the next two days. Here are our picks, in our own words.
AL Wild Card Game: Astros vs. Yankees
Joshua’s take: “Everyone thinks the Astros are going to come out and pound the baseball just because they have all these youngsters. I think the Yankee veterans are going to teach them a lesson by showing plate discipline and having clutch. I think it’s going to be a battle of the pitchers, but I think ARod will come through in the clutch. Yankees win. That’s my take.”
Jason’s take: First of all, I like the thought process by Junior. You can tell he watches a lot of MLB Network.
Now, on to the AL Wild Card game. It’s hard to pick against the probable AL Cy Young Award winner Dallas Keuchel, but his numbers on the road are pedestrian (5-8, 3.77ERA, 13 HR allowed). I think the Yankee lineup will be patient and if this one becomes a battle of the bullpens, the Yankees can shorten the game awfully quickly with Betances and Miller. I’m going with the Evil Empire knocking out the upstart Astros.
NL Wild Card Game: Cubs vs. Pirates
Joshua’s take: “Best matchup of the night: Gerrit Cole vs. Kris Bryant. I think McCutchen’s gonna be set down. And I think that the crowd is going to go beserk enough that the Pirates won’t be able to handle it and they’ll make errors. I think that the Cubs are going to pull it out and win.”
Jason’s take: For one night only, I root for the Cubs.
The reason? They’re more beatable than the Pirates. Pittsburgh is just pesky, as in fly-that-buzzes-around-your-plate-at-a-church-potluck-and-won’t-leave-you-alone pesky. They’ve been on the Cards’ heels all season long. I’d much prefer the Cubs knocking out the Pirates. I’ll say this, though; if the Pirates eliminate the Cardinals, I’m all in on Pittsburgh winning it all. I hope that doesn’t happen, but I really admire what Clint Hurdle has done with this club.
So, I’m going to hope that Jake Arrieta has one more dominant start left in him in 2015. Cubs win a tight one.
We’ll make LDS picks later in the week.
