Bud Selig is finally a thing of the past. Well, not in the physical sense, as he simply refuses to die. But he is no longer the Commissioner of Major League Baseball. Taking over for the octogenarian is Rob Manfred, a guy who worked with the owners during the 1994-95 strike and joined the MLB full-time in 1998. Two years ago he headed the internal investigation of Biogenesis. In short, he might not be the best thing for the MLBPA going forward.
But what will it mean for fans? Only two months into his tenure, he's already caused a stir by casually mentioning a ban on defensive shifts, using pitch clocks in the high minors, and not responding with an immediate "FUCK NO" to Pete Rose's request for reinstatement. In other words, he seems to be willing to try anything to spice up the modern game, even things without any evidence of actually working (shifts don't significantly reduce overall offense) and seemingly contradictory goals (you want faster games but more offense?).
It's way too early to know what kind of commish Manfred will be. At the very least he's not a former team owner playing favorites or someone who will let the All-Star Game end in a tie. But baseball could be due for some seismic changes over the next few years.
As for my predictions last season, they were pretty terrible except for:
EAT IT, NERDS.
Aaaaaaaaaaaand here we go.
AL East: Boston, Toronto, Baltimore, Tampa Bay, NY Yankees
AL Central: Cleveland, Chicago White Sox, Detroit, Kansas City, Minnesota
AL West: Seattle, LA Angels, Oakland, Texas, Houston
NL East: Washington, NY Mets, Miami, Atlanta, Philadelphia
NL Central: St. Louis, Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, Cincinnati
NL West: LA Dodgers, San Diego, San Francisco, Arizona, Colorado
ALCS: Cleveland over Seattle
NLCS: Washington over LA Dodgers
WS: Washington over Cleveland
AL MVP: Mike Trout
NL MVP: Jason Heyward
AL Cy Young: David Price
NL Cy Young: Clayton Kershaw
AL Rookie: Rusney Castillo
NL Rookie: Kris Bryant
AL Comeback: Barry Zito
NL Comeback: Matt Harvey
AL Manager: John Gibbons
NL Manager: Joe Maddon
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