2021 NL West Preview

And so, just one division remains.

With Major League Baseball starting in less than 24 hours, I've covered ground in five of the six Major League divisions, having worked my way from the east coast all the way out west now.

And so, let's tackle the NL West and conclude the series. Happy Opening Day, and good luck to your team!

2021 NL Central Preview

We're halfway through Major League Baseball for the 2021 season, and with the West slated for tomorrow, it's time for me to get back to work and start the second half of the preview series for 2021.

Earlier today I attacked the AL Central, so this afternoon I'll swap leagues and attack my home division.

Let's look at the NL Central.

2021 AL Central Preview

Day two of my set of previews for the upcoming MLB season is underway!

Yesterday I covered both East divisions, and I'm working my way west over the next couple days. Since our champion came from out west, I'm saving them for tomorrow, which means I'm staying close to home today.

Starting things off, let's look at the American League Central.

2021 NL East Preview

Finishing up the first day of two-a-day's as we approach the start of the 2021 MLB season!

Earlier today I did my predictions for the AL East as I alternate leagues and work my way across the country to end with the division of our defending champion. Tomorrow I'll be in the Central divisions.

To finish today, let's look at the NL East.

2021 AL East Preview

You know we're getting back to some semblance of normalcy when you're looking at a Thursday start to the Major League Baseball season with a full 162 game slate scheduled. And since they're going all out on this... I figure I need to get back to my normal pattern as well.

Last year I didn't do a preview series for Major League Baseball because of the delay in the start of the season, then the quick start up to the abridged one. But with a full year coming up, I feel like I need to get back to my usual pattern. So each of the next few days, I'll look at two divisions a day, alternating leagues as I used to, finishing up with the division hosting our defending champion. With the playoff picture for 2021 up in the air, I won't go into Wild Card picks since my picks could be rendered meaningless in a month or two, I'll just go with record projections.

So, without further ado, here's my first look at the upcoming season.

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Championship

128 teams entered. Over six thousand games later, we're down to just two teams as we renew our quest to find the greatest MLB team of all time as part of the 2019 MLB Tournament of Champions. Every World Series champion got an invitation to the fun, and every franchise without a title got at least one iteration from their history into the festivities. They then went through a grueling 90 game double round robin to build up a significant sample size.

That accounted for 5,760 of the 6000-plus games, but that was just the beginning as I began a single elimination tournament from the top eight teams from each of the groups I'd built out for this tournament. Five rounds later, we have our top two teams left standing. And the fun part for this: we get an old rematch.

On one side was arguably the favorite coming into this whole thing. They were the best team in the 2017 Tournament of Champions, but proceeded to need every possible game to win the Championship of Champions. For a title defense, the 2016 Cubs seemed poised to be a dominant force once again, but ran into some slight hiccups. Despite losing their final four series in group play, the Cubs went 54-36, good for second place in Group H. They swept the 1919 Cincinnati Reds in the opening round of the postseason before needing winner-take-all games at home to finish off the 1972 Oakland Athletics and 1938 New York Yankees. A quarterfinal sweep over the 1944 St. Louis Cardinals, winners of their own group, and a six game victory of the legendary 1927 New York Yankees, have the Cubs back to within four wins of further immortality.

On the other side was a team that, in 2017, tied for the third-best record among my National League representatives, but was relegated to Wild Card status for the postseason. They won the Wild Card series that year before dropping a heartbreaking fifth game on a walk-off homer to... the 2016 Cubs. The 1975 Cincinnati Reds came back two years later placed in a different group, and worked to a 57-33 record... which unfortunately for them was only good for third in their group as they finished just one game behind the co-leaders. But the Reds won their first two series in four games apiece over the 2004 Boston Red Sox and 1912 Boston Red Sox, respectively, before punching their ticket to the quarterfinals with a sweep of the group champion 1924 Washington Senators. Cincinnati followed that up with a six game victory over the 1984 Detroit Tigers to remove the DH from the rest of the tournament, then won a hard-fought seven game series over the 1953 New York Yankees to get one more crack at the team that knocked them off two years ago.

This time around, the Reds will get home field advantage by virtue of their better Group Play record. It's a best of seven series played in a 2-3-2 format, so the Reds will get a little more leeway than the best-of-five they had to play in two years ago. In prior rounds of this postseason I've just gone with results and records. This time, I'm going to do brief writeups of each game in this series. You can view the bracket to date, as well as scores and standings from as far back as group play, here. All simulations for the entire Tournament of Champions are provided by WhatIfSports.com. And so, one final time this year... let's play ball!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Semifinals

And then there were four.

I started this project all the way back in April with 128 teams, including every World Series champion dating back to 1903. After 90 games for each team, that got narrowed down to 64. And after four grueling rounds, we've finally advanced to the semifinals, and there are some big names here. Murderer's Row is here, along with another Yankee iteration a generation later, the Big Red Machine has advanced after having to settle for a Wild Card and getting bounced in the NLDS two years ago, and our defending Champion of Champions in the 2016 Cubs round out what's left.

To narrow the field down to just two teams, we will play a pair of best-of-seven series in a 2-3-2 format, with home field advantage going to the team with the better group play record (and as luck would have it, seedings match that as well). With all of our 1973-onward American League teams gone, so is the designated hitter for the remainder of the tournament.

You can view the bracket to date as well as how group play went here. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's get to it!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Quarterfinals

We're down to the final eight teams as the 2019 MLB Tournament of Champions rolls on!

We've finally moved beyond the confines of group play, as the 90 round robin games and three playoff rounds were enough. We now have group "champions" as we move on to the tournament's quarterfinals.

There was a good blend of chalk and upsets through the first three rounds, as only three round robin group winners have advanced to this stage alongside a two, three, four, five, and six seed apiece. Some of the most legendary teams are included in this group, including a playoff team from the 2017 tournament as well as the defending Champion of Champions.

At this point, for all intents and purposes, seedings based on finish in group play are being dropped and home field advantage will go to the team with the better record from group play. For this round, the higher "seeds" did have better records, but I'm making this change for this round onward because I think the sample size speaks for itself. For the remainder of the tournament as well, we're expanding the rounds from best of five to best of seven to be played in a 2-3-2 format as used in Major League Baseball's postseason. We have one series that this will impact in this round, but since the 1984 Detroit Tigers played in the DH era, all of their home games will be played with a designated hitter. All other games will have the pitcher batting ninth.

You can view the updated bracket, as well as scores and standings from group play, here. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's play ball!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Group Finals

I'm breaking from football again for a little bit because the 2019 MLB Tournament of Champions is still rolling on!

We've managed to narrow the field down to 16 teams from the original 128, including every World Series champion. It's a little amazing when in other sports that I've done Tournaments of Champions for it's all more modern teams, while here, half the remaining field is from before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. Our two highest seeds from group play, as well as our defending Champion of Champions from 2017 are all still in contention.

So today I'm going through the third round, which is the last set of series that will be played within the confines of the groups I set up at the beginning of the tournament. It's also the final round of a best-of-five. Home field advantage goes to the higher seed based on group finish in a 2-2-1 format. This is only a factor for three teams and thus three series, but any home games for American Leagues from 1973 onward are played with a designated hitter; all other games have the pitcher batting ninth.

You can view the bracket so far, as well as go back to see how group play went, here. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's set up the Elite Eight!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Group Semifinals Part 2

Just 24 teams are still technically alive in this tournament, though today we're sending eight more home.

We're getting closer to completion of the MLB Tournament of Champions and our quest to find the greatest MLB team of all time. A number of our top teams from the 90 game group play have found themselves out, including three group winners between this round and the last. Some of the best playoff teams from the 2017 tournament are out, including the American League winner in the 2011 Rangers, but our defending Champion of Champions is already on to the Group Finals.

For the first three rounds of the postseason, series are a best-of-five played in a 2-2-1 format. Since I built the brackets around groups, home field advantage goes to the higher seed based on group finish. For any series involving American League teams from 1973 onward, games where those teams are the home team will be played with a designated hitter; all other games will have the pitcher batting ninth based on how my simulator is built out.

All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. You can view the up to date bracket, as well as look back at group play, here. Let's finalize the Sweet 16!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Group Semifinals Part 1

We're down to 32 teams remaining in our quest to determine the greatest MLB team of all time!

I started this project back in April with 128 teams, including every World Series champion. Those teams all played 90 games to cut the field in half, and we're through one round in the attempt to find that greatest team of all time.

Of the 32 teams still remaining, a dozen are from before the color barrier was broken, compared to just five from the current millenium. But the Yankees remain well represented, with 10 of their 27 championship teams still alive. That will definitely go down in this round as they cannibalize themselves a little bit.

We are continuing with the format from last round, as for the first three rounds of the playoffs, the bracket was set up within groups and seeded according to group play finish. Higher seeds get home field advantage for these best-of-five series played in a 2-2-1 format. This only counts for five teams this round, but for any series involving an American League team from 1973 onward, games played at that team's ballpark will use a designated hitter, while all other games have the pitcher batting ninth based on the rules established by my simulator.

You can view the updated bracket as well as group play results here. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's play ball!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Group Quarterfinals Part 4

We've got just one more set of games to go in the Round of 64!

I started this ambitious project all the way back in April with 128 teams, including every World Series champion. That number has now shrunk to 40 between the movement to postseason play and the completion of three-quarters of the first round of the postseason.

For this and the next two rounds, we're staying in the groups teams were assigned to when the tournament started. Teams were seeded based on group finish, with the higher seed getting home field advantage in a 2-2-1 format. I've mentioned this elsewhere in this round, but it bears repeating: based on the rules of my simulator, for any series involving an American League from 1973 or later, when that team plays at home a designated hitter will be used; all other games will see the pitcher batting ninth.

You can view the standings from group play, as well as the playoff bracket, here. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's get to it!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Group Quarterfinals Part 3

The 2019 MLB Tournament of Champions rolls on as we continue postseason play!

I started this very ambitious project back in April, taking 128 Major League teams, including every World Series champion, and put them through the ringer in an effort to find the greatest team of all time. We cut that field in half after a 90 game double round robin period, and now that field of 64 is down to 48 with half of the first round officially simulated and in the books. I'm going through eight more series in this post, with one more part of the Round of 64 to go before we move on to the next one.

I set the bracket up so that the first three rounds were all played within the groups from group play, and teams were seeded according to their finish in group play. Higher seeds get home field advantage for a best-of-five series in a 2-2-1 format. The one quirk of this tournament is that for any series involving American League teams from 1973 onward, when said team is at home the designated hitter will be used; for all other games the pitcher bats ninth.

All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. If you want to view the full bracket, plus look at how group play went, you can view that here. Let's play ball!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Group Quarterfinals Part 2

The postseason of the MLB Tournament of Champions rolls on!

Back in April, I started with 128 teams, including every World Series champion, vying for the title of Champion of Champions. After a 90 game schedule, the field was cut in half, and we're onto brackets now.

That field is down from 64 to 56 following the first part of this round. I broke it up this round into four parts because of the sheer number of games, but I'm not advancing to the second round until this round is complete. So far, we've had mostly chalk, though a pair of six-seeds have advanced already.

For this round and the next two, home field advantage goes to the higher seed based on group finish in a 2-2-1 format. Based on the rules of my simulator, lineup rules are determined by whoever the home team is, so any game hosted by a 1973-or-later American League team will use the DH; every other game will have the pitcher hitting ninth.

You can view the bracket, plus results from group play, here. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's get to it!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Group Quarterfinals Part 1

The field is set, the participants are ready... let's get to some playoff baseball!

I spent three-plus months (or what in real time would have amounted to through mid-July) running through 90 game mini-seasons for 128 of Major League Baseball's best teams in history. Half of them failed to make it this far, with the 2010 Texas Rangers taking the consolation crown. But now we seek to find the champion of champions.

Over the next three rounds, we're going back into the eight groups, but in bracket form. We're onto single elimination, but in best-of-five format. The higher seeds based on group finish get home field advantage in a 2-2-1 format. One thing I want to make clear is the use of the designated hitter: my simulator goes based off of the league rules of the home team, so any games hosted by American League teams from 1973 or later will utilize the designated hitter; all other games will have the pitcher automatically bat ninth.

Because of the sheer number of games that are going to be taking place for these first few rounds, I'm going to break this round up into multiple parts focusing on just a couple of groups per each post. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. You can view the bracket, as well as scores and standings from group play, here. Let's play ball!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Consolation Bracket

I really can't help myself.

I think I'd mentioned that I had the idea of pulling off a consolation tournament for the aforementioned MLB Tournament of Champions, but I hadn't officially started to set anything up until I finally worked my way through group play. The field of 128 was cut in half, but the half that missed the cut gets a chance to redeem themselves.

I'm going to run this one like I ran the unofficial consolation tournament in 2017: this will be a double elimination tournament with one-off games for each round. Seeding has been determined based first off of group finish (teams that finished ninth are the top eight seeds, followed by teams that finished tenth, and so on), then by record in group play, and finally by run differential in group play. Higher seeds host until the championship round, when the team out of the winner's bracket will get home field advantage against the team out of the loser's bracket. Any games hosted by an American League team in the DH era will be played with a DH.

You can view the full bracket here. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's play ball!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Postseason Introduction

Every team has played 90 games, and with that, it's time to cut the field in half.

I had minimal shenanigans in terms of imbalance among groups. 48 wins guaranteed advancement, and there's only one flagrant lack of advancing issue that I'm not thrilled about. The 2015 Kansas City Royals went 47-43, but eight other teams in that group had 48 or more; elsewhere I only had one sub-.500 team advance in the 1960 Pittsburgh Pirates. Elsewhere some .500 teams made it, while others didn't depending on how everything lined up. Even so, the records ended up distributing how they would in a normal baseball season. All but one team reached at least 30 wins, while just three teams hit the 60-win plateau; 61 of the 128 teams had between 40 and 49 wins.

So with those thoughts in mind, here's the bracket going into the postseason. The first three rounds will be played entirely in groups. All rounds will be best of 5 with the higher regular season finish getting home field advantage in a 2-2-1 format. For the quarterfinals onward, it will become best of seven in a 2-3-2 format, with home field advantage going first to the higher seed (based on group finish), with overall record, then run differential breaking ties.

Let's take a look at who advanced based on decade, franchise, and other criteria.

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Group Play Round 30

It all comes down to this. The 128 team field will officially be cut in half following this group of three game sets.

I started this tournament back in April and have been hard at work running through the gauntlet to start things off. Eight groups of 16 teams have been battling it out in a double round robin format, and complete their schedules in this set. From here, the top eight in each group will advance to the postseason.

To date, 47 of the 64 postseason spots have been clinched, and the 17 that remain are all tight races to grab those spots. The nice thing from what I can tell is that our worst postseason team shouldn't be far under .500. I'll have a full breakdown of that after group play is completed.

You can view the scores from the first 29 rounds, as well as the complete standings, here. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's finish up the group stage!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Group Play Round 29

We're down to the final week of group play in the MLB Tournament of Champions!

128 teams have played 84 games apiece, with six to go until we cut the field in half. We went from 13 spots having been clinched to, by my rough count, 25 teams having punched their tickets to the postseason. We're still stuck on two group winners in the 1927 Yankees and 1967 Cardinals, though we'll probably see at least one or two more groups determine winners in this round. There are a lot of tight races, but my favorite probably has to be the three way tie between the 1975 Reds, 1924 Senators, and 1952 Yankees at 54-30 atop Group D.

Meanwhile, there is still a fight for the top record in the entire tournament. The aforementioned '27 Yankees and '67 Cardinals are currently in the lead with 59-25 marks through 84 games. Those 59 wins match what the 2016 Cubs pulled off in the 2017 tournament and barring neither team caring about the final six games, both will top 60 wins, with the '44 Cardinals can hit that plateau with a .500 week and a few other teams if they win out can hit 60 as well.

You can view the full schedule for the remainder of the week, plus scores from prior games as well as standings, here. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's play ball!

2019 MLB Tournament of Champions: Group Play Round 28

We're now 90 percent of the way through the group stage of the MLB Tournament of Champions, and each team has just nine games left to try and position themselves for a run at the Championship of Champions!

By my quick count, 13 of the 64 postseason berths have been clinched to this point; these teams are guaranteed at worst a top-eight spot in their respective group. If this stage ended today, every team with at least 42 wins would make the postseason, though some 41-40 teams would miss the cut while at least one below .500 team would advance in their group. As for the tops of each group, the 1927 Yankees and 1964 Cardinals have clinched their respective group titles and thus home field advantage for at least the first three rounds of the playoffs. Our worst group leader sits at 49-32, while the '27 Yankees lead the tournament with a 59-22 mark.

You can view the full standings, plus see the remaining schedule and scores from all games here. All simulations are provided by WhatIfSports.com. Let's play ball!