The day has finally come, opening day of the 2021 baseball season. I am glad because to open the season all teams are allowing fans to some extent. Some teams will allow more than others. There will be some of the same traditional rules, and there will be some different rules.

Rules the Same as Last Year:

There will be 7 inning double headers, and there will be a runner on second base to start every extra inning.

Rules Different From Last Year:

The playoffs will be 10 teams like normal. There will be no universal DH, and there will be a full 162 game season.

My predictions

American League

AL East

New York Yankees

Toronto Blue Jays

Tampa Bay Rays

Boston Red Sox

Baltimore Orioles

AL Central

Minnesota Twins

Chicago White Sox

Cleveland Indians

Kansas City Royals

Detroit Tigers

AL West

Houston Astros

Oakland A’s

Los Angles Angles

Texas Rangers

Seattle Mariners

National League

NL East

Atlanta Braves

New York Mets

Philadelphia Phillies

Washington Nationals

Miami Marlins

NL Central

ST Louis Cardinals

Milwaukee Brewers

Chicago Cubs

Cincinnati Reds

Pittsburg Pirates

NL West

Los Angles Dodgers

San Diego Padres

San Francisco Giants

Arizona Diamondbacks

Colorado Rockies

Playoffs

American League

1. Yankees
2. Astros
3. Twins

Wild Card 1: Blue Jays

Wild Card 2: A’s

Wild Card Round: A’s over Blue Jays

ALDS: Yankees over A’s

ALDS: Twins over Astros

ALCS: Yankees over Twins

National League

1. Dodgers
2. Braves
3. Cardinals

Wild Card 1: Padres

Wild Card 2: Mets

Wild Card Round: Padres over Mets

NLDS: Dodgers over Padres

NLDS: Braves over Cardinals

NLCS: Dodgers over Braves

World Series

Yankees over Dodgers

Awards

AL MVP: Mike Trout

NL MVP: Mookie Betts

AL Cy Young: Gerrit Cole

NL Cy Young: Jacob DeGrom

If you want to hear why I chose some of the teams, drop a comment and I will fill you in.

Big game 55 has finally arrived after an interesting season. The Buccaneers and the Chiefs are the last 2 teams standing. The Chiefs are looking to become only the eighth team to repeat as champs; while the Bucs were only in the Big Game one other time. This year marks the first time a team will play at their home stadium in the Big Game.

How can the Chiefs win?

The Chiefs can win by containing Brady and the Buccaneers offense. While the Chiefs need to play well on defense they need their offense to produce. Mahomes needs to throw the ball to his top targets, Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce. The Chiefs should establish a lead running back. Through the regular season it was Clyde Edwards-Helaire, but in the playoffs it has been Darrel Williams. The Chiefs should run up the score using their high powered offence and not letting the Bucs come back.

What the Chiefs defense needs to look for

The Chiefs defense needs to contain the Buccaneers passing attack. The Bucs can do some major damage with weapons Chris Godwin, Mike Evans, Rob Gronkowski, and Antonio Brown. Brown is on the injury report with a knee injury. He is listed as doubtful. The Chiefs also need to keep both running backs in check. Ronald Jones was the lead runner in the regular season, but in the playoffs it has been Leonard Fournette.

How can the Buccaneers win?

The Buccaneers need to throw the ball and also establish the run game. The Bucs were second in passing yards per game with 289.1. If the Buccaneers get rolling through the air they can be hard to stop. On the other side of the ball the defense needs to make sure to contain Mahomes, Kelce, and Hill.

What the Buccaneers defense needs to watch for

The Buccaneers need to stop the passing game of the Chiefs. If the Chiefs can get the passing game going then they can be dangerous. The Bucs need to pressure Mahomes throughout the game. They should be able to do this because they have 2 good rushers in Jason Pierre-Paul and Shaquil Barrett.

My Pick

My pick is the Chiefs. I think the Chiefs will win because no team can keep up with the Chiefs high flying offense. While the Bucs have a good defense, I don’t think they will be able to shut them down completely while their own offense can score enough points to win the game. My final prediction is the Chiefs by a score of 35-31.

The 2020 football season recently started with the Chiefs playing against the Texans. The season will be different, but it will still be exciting. Some teams will be allowing small percentages of fans, while other teams will have no fans. Here are my season predictions:

AFC

AFC East

Buffalo Bills 11-5

New England Patriots 8-8

Miami Dolphins 4-12

New York Jets 4-12

AFC North

Baltimore Ravens 14-2

Pittsburgh Steelers 12-4

Cleveland Browns 8-8

Cincinnati Bengals 4-12

AFC South

Tennessee Titans 10-6

Indianapolis Colts 10-6

Houston Texans 9-7

Jacksonville Jaguars 2-14

AFC West

Kansas City Chiefs 13-3

Denver Broncos 8-8

Los Angeles Chargers 7-9

Las Vegas Raiders 4-12

NFC

NFC East

Dallas Cowboys 12-4

Philadelphia Eagles 10-6

New York Giants 4-12

Washington Football Team 2-14

NFC North

Minnesota Vikings 12-4

Green Bay Packers 11-5

Detroit Lions 9-7

Chicago Bears 5-11

NFC South

New Orleans Saints 11-5

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 11-5

Atlanta Falcons 9-7

Carolina Panthers 3-13

NFC West

San Francisco 49ers 12-4

Los Angeles Rams 11-5

Seattle Seahawks 11-5

Arizona Cardinals 5-11

Playoffs

AFC

1. Ravens(first round bye)
2. Chiefs
3. Bills
4. Titans

Wildcard: Steelers

Wildcard: Colts

wildcard: Texans

NFC

1. 49ers (1st round bye)
2. Cowboys
3. Vikings
4. Saints

wildcard: Buccaneers

wildcard: Packers

wildcard: Rams

Wild card round

AFC

Chiefs over Texans

Bills over Colts

Titans over Steelers

NFC

Cowboys over Rams

Vikings over Packers

Buccaneers over Saints

Divisional Round

AFC

Ravens over Titans

Chiefs over Bills

NFC

Buccaneers over 49ers

Cowboys over Vikings

Conference Championships

AFC

Ravens over Chiefs

NFC

Cowboys over Buccaneers

Super Bowl

Ravens over Cowboys

Season awards

Regular Season MVP: Patrick Mahomes

Offensive Player Of The Year: Lamar Jackson

Defensive Player of the Year: Nick Bosa

Offensive Rookie of the Year: Clyde Edwards-Helaire

Defensive Rookie of the Year: Chase Young

If you would like an explanation for any of my predictions drop a comment and I will fill you in.

For more sports updates, predictions, news and sports action check out my YouTube channel which is Supersportsfan 187. Be sure to like and subscribe.

Here is the link https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClsFXdZiohWCbECf75Y99sg

The 2020 baseball season will be an interesting one. The season consists of 60 games and a bunch of rule changes.

Rule Changes

Universal DH: This means there will be a designated hitter for all teams. None of the pitchers will hit, even in the National League.

Runner on second to begin extra innings: In the case of a tie after the ninth inning, there will be a runner on second base to begin every inning. The runner on second will be placed in the game as a pinch runner. The runner will be the player batting immediately before that half inning’s leadoff hitter. This rule will not apply in the playoffs.

Suspended games due to weather: If a game is cut short due to weather it will be picked up from that point in the game when it is continued at a later date.

Managers and players arguing with the umpire must remain at least 6 feet away. If they break this rule then they will be ejected, fined, and suspended.

Pitchers will be allowed to have a wet rag in there pocket since they are not allowed to spit on there fingers.

New playoff format: The playoffs will consist of 16 teams. 8 teams from each league. The top 2 teams in each division will make the playoffs. Then the next 2 best teams in each league will also make the playoffs. There will be a best of 3 wild card round, consisting of all teams. The best team will play the worst team. Then they will go on as we are used to.

AL Predictions

AL East

New York Yankees

Tampa Bay Rays

Boston Red Sox

Toronto Blue Jays

Baltimore Orioles

AL Central

Minnesota Twins

Cleveland Indians

Chicago White Sox

Kansas City Royals

Detroit Tigers

AL West

Houston Astros

Los Angles Angles

Oakland A’s

Texas Rangers

Seattle Mariners

National League

NL East

Atlanta Braves

Washington Nationals

Philadelphia Phillies

New York Mets

Miami Marlins

NL Central

Milwaukee Brewers

Chicago Cubs

ST Louis Cardinals

Cincinnati Reds

Pittsburgh Pirates

NL West

Los Angles Dodgers

San Diego Padres

Arizona Diamondbacks

Colorado Rockies

San Francisco Giants

Playoffs

AL

1. Yankees
2. Astros
3. Twins
4. Rays
5. Indians
6. Angles
7. A’s
8. White Sox

Wild Card Round: Yankees over White Sox

Wild Card Round: Astros over A’s

Wild Card Round: Twins over Angles

Wild Card Round: Indians over Rays

ALDS: Yankees over Indians

ALDS: Astros over Twins

ALCS: Yankees over Astros

NL

1. Dodgers
2. Braves
3. Brewers
4. Nationals
5. Cubs
6. Padres
7. Cardinals
8. Phillies

Wild Card Round: Dodgers over Phillies

Wild Card Round: Braves over Cardinals

Wild Card Round: Brewers over Padres

Wild Card Round: Nationals over Cubs

NLDS: Dodgers over Nationals

NLDS: Brewers over Braves

NLCS: Dodgers over Brewers

Championship

Yankees over Dodgers

Awards

AL MVP: Mike Trout

NL MVP: Christian Yelich

AL Cy Young: Gerrit Cole

NL Cy Young: Walker Buehler

AL Manager of the year: Aaron Boone

NL Manager of the Year: Brian Snitker

If you want to hear why I chose some of the teams, drop a comment and I will fill you in.

Football

Football is my absolute favorite sport because there is intense action. There is also so many types of plays teams can run. On offense you can run a pass, run, play action, or trick play. On defense you can have a zone, man to man, or blitz. There can be a zone blitz or a man blitz. Football is also very exciting because you never know when an explosive play is coming from the offense or defense.

Hockey

Hockey is my second favorite sport. Hockey is very exciting because there is a ton of non-stop action. For example there are big hits, jaw dropping goals, frequent penalties, brutal fights, and acrobatic saves. Plus, all substitutions of players are done on the fly as play continues. Hockey has made a plan to return to only do the playoffs so I a really excited about that!

Baseball

Baseball is my third favorite sport. It’s bumped down to third because there is a lot of standing around and not much going on. For example, there is only a few times per game where something exciting actually happens. Some of those include home runs, a stolen base or a run scored. At least the playoffs are very exciting because they are intense.

Basketball

Of these 4 sports, basketball is my least favorite, but I still enjoy it. I find the games to be kind of boring because not much happens. For instance, one team goes down the court and scores and then the other team does the same thing. It just keeps going back-and-forth. Some things I like about basketball are deep 3 pointers, big dunks, blocks, and buzzer beaters. I also enjoy the playoffs.

What are your favorite sports? How does your ranking compare to mine?

Sports have been missing from the line up for a while now. Thankfully, some sports have plans to return. Over the past 2 months it has been hard for this HUGE fan without sports to enjoy and analyze.

Basketball

I am not the biggest basketball fan, but I do like it. So it hasn’t been too harsh without basketball! But, I enjoy the playoffs therefore, that has been an aspect of the sport I miss. Overall for me, it is not too bad without basketball.

Football

It is not football season so luckily that is one sport that is not canceled/postponed. The draft was very unique, taking place from Roger Goodell’s basement. Now I am hoping this all goes away so pro and college football seasons can start on time.

Hockey

For me, it’s been rough without hockey, especially since there were only a few games left in the season. I find the playoffs to be the most entertaining part of the entire season. I would be okay with it if they were to skip the rest of the season and just go to the playoffs. I find the playoffs the best because all the games are so intense since all the teams are trying to advance to the next round.

Racing

Thankfully, stock car racing made its return on Sunday, May 17, at Darlington (a track in South Carolina). This is one sport that has finally returned because there is not much contact between people. Now that racing has returned it has a very heavy schedule: racing every Sunday and Wednesday until mid-June. I love racing so I am very pleased to enjoy watching it again!

Baseball

Sadly, the baseball season has been postponed. It is very boring without baseball because that is my primary spring and summer sport to watch. I really don’t care how they ultimately complete the season I just hope they come up with a plan so they can play.

How have you been feeling without sports? Are you missing some more than others?

Pick 1 Cincinnati

Cincinnati picked Joe Burrow with the number 1 overall pick. I think this was a great pick because they needed a new franchise quarterback. Joe Burrow is the guy Cincinnati needs to be under center. He had a record setting season with LSU. Burrow set the record for most touchdown passes in a single season with 60 touchdowns.

Pick 2 Washington

Washington selected Chase Young from Ohio State with the second overall pick. Washington needed an elite edge rusher. Chase Young was the guy they needed to pick. Young led the nation with 16.5 total sacks. Young also led the country with 1.38 sacks per game. He is the perfect fit for Washington.

Pick 3 Detroit

Detroit picked Jeff Okudah with the number 3 overall pick. Okudah had a great junior season. He played 13 games finishing with 3 interceptions and 34 total tackles. In addition, he had 1 tackle for a loss, 1 forced fumble and 9 pass deflections. Picking Okudah was a great way to boost the cornerback position.

Pick 4 New York

New York selected Andrew Thomas with the fourth overall pick. Thomas is a solid offensive tackle. He can play left and right tackle. Thomas only missed 1 game in his 3 year college career. He only allowed 5 sacks and 25 pressures in 3 years. Thomas is a great pick to help the offensive line and to protect Daniel Jones.

Pick 5 Miami

With the fifth pick, Miami selected Tua Tagovailoa. Miami, like Cincinnati, needed a franchise quarterback. Tua has has been a starter for 2 years at Alabama. In 2018, he threw for 3,966 yards and rushed for 190 yards. Tua came off the bench in the 2017 national championship game to throw the game winning touchdown pass in overtime. His 2019 season was cut short by a season ending hip injury. Despite this I believe Miami found their franchise quarterback in Tua Tagovailoa.

That’s my analysis of the top 5 picks, what do you think?

Top Hockey Players

1. Connor McDavid. McDavid is the best all-around player in hockey. He has scored over 100 points every year since the 2015 – 2016 season. McDavid now has 97 points but he should be able to get 100 if the regular season resumes. McDavid has led the league in points twice, been voted MVP by players twice, and has won season MVP once.
2. Nikita Kucherov. Kucherov has scored 30 + goals in every season since the 2014 – 2015 season. He has led the league in points once, won season MVP once, and won season MVP voted by players once. Kucherov is a 3-time all – star.
3. Sidney Crosby. Crosby is an elite all-around forward and an excellent scorer. He has scored over 80 points in 10 of his 15 seasons. Crosby has led the league in points twice, won season MVP twice, and the league MVP voted by players 3 times. Crosby has won 3 championships. He is a 2 time playoff MVP. Crosby has been elected to 8 all – star games, but has only played in 3 of them.
4. Alex Ovechkin. Ovechkin is a great goal scorer. He has scored over 30 goals in all 15 seasons he has played. Ovechkin has led the league in goals 8 times. He is a 3-time season MVP, 3-time MVP voted by players, and 1-time points leader. Ovechkin has won the championship once and was a playoff MVP once. He is a 10-time all – star.
5. Nathan MacKinnon. MacKinnon is one of the best young players in the league. He has scored over 90 points in the each of the last 3 seasons. MacKinnon has won rookie of the year. He is also a 4-time all – star.

Top Football Players

1. Aaron Donald. Donald is a great defensive tackle. It seems like he is always sacking the quarterback or tackling another player for a result in negative yardage. Donald has 72 career sacks in 7 seasons; that has an average of about 10 sacks per season. Donald is a 2-time defensive player of the year. He has also won defensive rookie of the year.
2. Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes is the best quarterback in the league. If Kansas City did not have Mahomes, there is no chance they would have won the big game. In his 2 seasons as a starter, he has thrown for over 4,000 yards and ran for over 200. Mahomes is a big game MVP and a 2-time regular season MVP.
3. Lamar Jackson. Jackson had a breakout season in 2019, leading Baltimore to a league best 14 – 2 record. Jackson threw for 3,127 yards. He also ran for 1,201 yards, breaking the single season rushing record by a quarterback. Jackson has won regular season MVP.
4. Kahlil Mack. Mack is always making big plays and key stops. He has had over 10 sacks in 4 of his 6 seasons. Mack has had over 35 total tackles in every season. Mack has won defensive player of the year once.
5. Todd Gurley. Gurley is the best running back in the league. Gurley has rushed for over 1,000 yards in 3 of his 5 seasons. He is a great receiving back too. For his career he has averaged 9.6 yards per catch. Gurley has won offensive rookie of the year and offensive player of the year.

How do your top players differ from mine?

Top 5 Basketball Players

1. Giannis Antetokounmpo. The Greek Freak has led Milwaukee to the playoffs each of the past 3 years; on track for a fourth. Giannis won several awards including, 2019 MVP and 2017 most improved player. He can still accomplish many other things because he is only 25 years old.
2. LeBron James. LeBron has accomplished many things over his amazing career. He has won season MVP 4 times, Finals MVP 3 times, and is a 16 time All – Star. James has also led his team to the finals an amazing 8 times, winning 3 of them.
3. Kawhi Leonard. Leonard is a solid all around player. He has been a finals MVP and defensive player of the year twice. Leonard was also the 2020 All-Star Game MVP. He has won the championship with Toronto and San Antonio.
4. James Harden. Harden has been an elite scorer ever since he moved to Houston in 2012. Every year since 2012, Harden has averaged over 20 points per game. Harden has been a season MVP and sixth man of the year once. Harden is also an 8 time All – Star.
5. Anthony Davis. Davis has been 7 time All-Star. AD has been a star ever since he entered the league. Davis is averaging a double – double for his career, averaging 24 points per game and 10 rebounds per game.

Top 5 Baseball Players

1. Mike Trout. Mike Trout is the best all-around player in the league. He has a batting average of .305 for his career. Trout has also hit at least 25 home runs in every season. Trout is a solid defender as well, with only 20 errors in his 9 year career. Trout has won 7 silver slugger awards, 3 AL MVP awards, rookie of the year, and is a 2 time All – Star game MVP. Trout is a 8 time All – Star.
2. Christian Yelich. Yelich is an amazing player. He has a .301 batting average for his career. Yelich is a NL MVP, 2 time All – Star, 2 time Hank Aaron award winner, 3 time silver slugger and a 1 time gold glove winner.
3. Cody Bellinger. Cody Bellinger is a extremely explosive hitter. Bellinger has hit over 25 home runs in each of his 3 seasons. Bellinger has won rookie of the year, NL MVP, a silver slugger award and a gold glove. Bellinger is a 2 time All – Star.
4. Mookie Betts. Betts is a solid all around player. Betts is a great consistent hitter with a career average over .300. Betts is an AL MVP, World Champion, 4 time gold glove winner and 3 time silver slugger. Betts is also a 4 time All – Star.
5. Anthony Rendon. Rendon has always been a great player, but last year Rendon had a breakout season. He had career highs in RBIs and home runs. He also had a career best batting average at .319. Rendon is a World Champion, All – Star, and comeback player of the year. Rendon is also a 2 time silver slugger award winner.

Those are my picks, what are yours?

COVID – 19 has had a huge impact on the world of sports over the last few days.

Pro Basketball

On Wednesday night the Coronavirus had a massive affect on the world of professional basketball. There were a total of 6 games scheduled for that night; 4 of the 6 games were played. Before tip-off of the Utah – Oklahoma City game, Utah had just gotten word that center Rudy Gobert had tested positive for COVID – 19. The game was postponed to a later date. The second game that was postponed was New Orleans – Sacramento. This game was postponed because one of the refs had been assigned to ref a Utah game earlier in the week. This led to Adam Silver suspending the season. Thursday morning Utah player Donovan Mitchell also tested positive for the Coronavirus. The rest of the Utah team tested negative.

I think Adam Sliver and the basketball organization have done a good thing for suspending the season. I like what they did because if some of the players have it then you would not want other players in the league to get it. They need to make sure as few people get it as possible. If the league continued to play games then that would be putting other players’ health at risk.

The Extreme League

The Extreme League has canceled the remainder of the season even though it is still the initial season. This is due to the Coronavirus outbreak and player who tested positive on the Seattle team. According to ESPN, the Extreme League is committed to playing next year in 2021. Also according to ESPN, the Extreme League is allowing players to sign with teams in other leagues.

I don’t like the cancellation of the season. I would have liked to see a suspension of the season and have them finish the season at a later date. I enjoyed the season which is why I would have liked the season finished, but at least they are planning to play again next year.

College Basketball

The Coronavirus has influenced the the college basketball committee to cancel the spring basketball tournament. Both men and women’ s tournaments were canceled This was after Kansas and Duke, and the conference Duke plays in, said they were suspending all sports.

I am very upset with this. I look forward to filling out a bracket, watching all the games, seeing where the teams seed, and seeing all the upsets. I think playing with no fans is a good enough precaution as long as no players have COVID – 19.

Click on the download button above to view my projected bracket. If you want to fill out the bracket feel free to do so. I think you can only fill it out if you print it out. None of the games will actually have results.

Hockey

The Professional hockey league has suspended it season. No player has tested positive but, hockey and basketball teams play in the same arenas. Rudy Gobert has recently played in a few of the shared stadiums. Some of the same ones include Madison Square Garden, TD Garden, and Barclays Center (is shared but Gobert has not recently played there).

I think this is smart to suspend the season because Tuesday ,March 17, 2020, 4 players on the Brooklyn basketball team have tested positive. Also their home stadium is shared with a hockey team. I enjoy hockey but the players need to make sure they are healthy.

Baseball

Professional Baseball has suspended spring training and postponed the start of the regular season. Two players in the Bronx Bombers farm system have tested positive. Who they are has not been revealed.

I think they should have postponed the season since players have tested positive. While the players that have tested positive are not in the majors, they are still affiliated with a major league team.

Hopefully the world of sports will be back to normal soon.