Category Archives: mlb

2017 MLB Season Preview: Chicago Cubs

The Cubs finally did it. They curse was officially broken. If something bad happens during the season, we can no longer blame some supernatural force.

This season will be a weird one. As a Cubs fan, I usually come into the season with a little optimism, but mostly waiting for the impending doom and gloom to arrive. Even if the team gets off to a slow start in April, these guys basically have a lifetime pass, right?

Jason Heyward played with a broken swing for the entire season. He spent the offseason rebuilding it from scratch. How long will the Cubs stick with him if he struggles again?

I usually mess with all the MLB team preview photos in MS Paint as a joke, but this photo of David Ross getting carried off is just too damn perfect.

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Chicago Cubs.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Boston Red Sox

The AL East is always a cut-throat division. Teams tend to make really bold moves just to show their fanbase they are trying to compete. The Red Sox have made some bad moves in the past when trying to keep up with the Yankees (Carl Crawford, Dice K), but they usually know when to go for it.

The Red Sox definitely ‘went for it’ by giving up a lot of prospects for starter Chris Sale. They have him under contract for three more years, so it’s not like they gave up a ton for just a rental player.

Pablo Sandoval arrived at Spring Training in great shape. Can he maintain this weight or will it be an issue again by the All Star break?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Boston Red Sox.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Baltimore Orioles

Baltimore decided to keep Buck Showalter after his managerial boner in the AL Wild Card game last year. I bet Zach Britton will be called to pitch in more tied extra innings games this season.

The AL East bounced back last season after a poor 2015 season. The Yankees and Red Sox made trades to improve their teams and the Orioles and Blue Jays both made it to the Wild Card game last year. I expect another four-team chase all season. An injury or trade could be the difference between first and fourth place in the AL East.

How will Mark Trumbo perform after getting rewarded with a new deal?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Baltimore Orioles.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves have made some interesting moves. The team has mostly relied on young talent over the last few seasons while rebuilding, but they turned the page and acquired some veterans who were once All Stars.

The Braves now have two former Cy Young winners in their rotation (Bartolo Colon & R.A. Dickey) and have acquired two other former All Stars since just before last seasons’s trade deadline (Matt Kemp & Brandon Phillips).

Both of the former Cy Young winners are over the age of 40, but if they can get 175 innings out of each of them, they will be worth their salary to mentor their young talent.

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Atlanta Braves.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Arizona Diamondbacks

Former Red Sox bench coach Torey Lovullo takes over as manager for the Diamondbacks this season. The team has a lot of needs, but does have a true ace with Zack Greinke and an All-Star power hitter in Paul Goldschmidt. Most managers don’t take over a team with those kind of cornerstones. The rest of the roster needs work, but new general manager Mike Hazen could make some moves this season.

The NL West is one of the best divisions in baseball with the Dodgers and Giants expected to battle for playoff spots. How long until Arizona is in that mix?

Will Arizona make some huge in-season trades in hopes of rebuilding or will the new general manager try to avoid a lengthy rebuild and just attempt to retool?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

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Get Ready for MLB Team Season Previews on AmericasWhiteBoy.com

We are about a month away from having real baseball taking the field (sorry, not counting Spring Training).

I love this time of the year! After a Winter of hot stove dealings, rosters start to materialize, but aren’t quite set in stone. Usually fourth and fifth spots in the starting rotations are up for grabs and at least one starting position on every team could change from now until Opening Day.

The Chicago Cubs come into the season as defending champs for the first time since the start of the 1909 season.

How will they perform without all the pressure of trying to win their first World Series championship in over a century? Will they be even better or did pressure turn them into diamonds last year?

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Three Players Elected Into Baseball Hall of Fame

The Baseball Writers’ Association of America revealed the results of their Hall of Fame vote this afternoon. Three former MLB players earned induction into this year’s Hall of Fame class.

Jeff Bagwell, Tim Raines and Ivan Rodriguez received more than the 75% threshold to earn induction. Bagwell and Raines have been on the ballot for quite awhile, but Pudge earned his election on his first time on the ballot.

There were plenty of players that fell short of the 75% threshold and one player surprised most people by falling short of receiving 5% of the vote to stay on the ballot.

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Your World Series Primer

America’s White Boy’s 2016 MLB Un-All-Star Team

It has become a yearly tradition that we look at all the former MLB All-Stars that aren’t having very good years.

The season is a little more than half over and it’s not too late for some of these players to bounce back and turn their seasons around. You can look at our Un-All-Star team article last year, many bounced back and finished strong.

Since I’m an active fantasy baseball owner, it didn’t take me long to make this list. A few of these guys were on my teams early this season, but were quickly dropped. I spent most of my time just baffled that some of these guys were actually All-Stars at one point.

The old benchmark for an All-Star was thrown out with the bathwater when Bud Selig decided each team must have at least one representative in the All-Star Game.

Here is America’s White Boy‘s 2016 MLB Un-All-Star team.

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Former Mets Pitcher Plans to Sue MLB

Major League Baseball’s drug testing program is considered one of the best in professional sports, and the punishment for failed drug tests have been severe. Since the implementation of the program, there have been fewer failed drug tests in the league because players don’t want to risk getting suspended for a season. While home run numbers are down, the game is still exciting and baseball betting lines haven’t been affected.

When the program started, there were some skeptics of the program who felt the only players that would be suspended for a long time were the marginal players that don’t have much of an impact on the team.
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Is Las Vegas a Good Fit for MLB?

Major League Baseball is toying with the idea of having an expansion team in Las Vegas, which is something that has residents of the area and some players excited about the possibility of playing in Sin City. While the news won’t have an impact on baseball betting lines, it might in the future if the commissioner decides to award the city a team.

MLB isn’t the only sports league considering having a team in Las Vegas, earlier this year, the Oakland Raiders, who haven’t been able to secure a new stadium in Oakland, said they are seriously considering moving the franchise to Las Vegas.

The NHL recently also announced interest in moving a franchise to Las Vegas or awarding an expansion franchise to the city.

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It’s Time for Sports Leagues to Allow Marijuana

It looks like Pro Bowl wide receiver Josh Gordon’s NFL career could be over…all because of marijuana. It could cost him tens of millions of dollars in future earnings.

Gordon was busted by the NFL for having a diluted urine sample, which the NFL considers as a failed drug test. He missed a portion of the 2014 season and the entire 2015 season due to marijuana-related suspensions. He also had issues in college stemming from his marijuana use, like falling asleep in a Taco Bell drive-through lane as a sophomore.

Many will look at Gordon as someone without self-control or someone that has shown signs of being an addict. It’s a fair assumption since he’s been disciplined numerous times since college for smoking weed.

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