2016 FedExCup Playoff Predictions

I went 0-5 in major/big tournament predictions this year.  Time to redeem myself.

The Barclays: Matt Kuchar

(Scott Halleran/Getty Images South America)

Matt Kuchar had the best round of the Olympics last Sunday as he fired a 63 to capture the bronze medal.  At one point it even looked like he may have been able to backdoor a gold medal the way he was playing.  Kuchar is notorious for finishing in the top-10, and there’s no need to look any further than eight top-10’s in his last thirteen worldwide starts.  His consistency is geared for the FedEx Cup playoffs, and Bethpage Black seems like a great place to pick up that elusive win this year.  Oh and by the way, he’s won this tournament before.

Deutsche Bank Championship: Rory McIlroy

(Alec Brzezinski/Sporting News)

It’s been a quiet year for Rory by his standards, with just the lone worldwide win coming at the Irish Open back in May.  Rory sparked some controversy recently over his comments regarding the Olympics, but just recently he admitted he may have been wrong...not a big surprise.  Bottom line, Rory has something to prove after his missed cut at the PGA Championship and refusal to play in Rio.  He's even apparently switched to a new putter that may help his troubles on the green.  TPC Boston is a familiar venue for him, and with a victory and T5 in two of his last four starts there, it’s hard not to like him this week.  The course demands accuracy, particularly off the tee, and if Rory can get hot with the driver he should make life really easy for himself.

BMW Championship: Dustin Johnson

(Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

DJ’s probably had the best summer of anyone.  In the span of about a month and a half, Johnson rattled off top-5 finishes in five of six starts, including back to back victories at the US Open and WGC Bridgestone.  He’s missed one cut this season.  It’s been a little while since he’s played competitively, but like Kuchar, Johnson’s game is geared for the playoffs.  Playing over 7,500 yards, Crooked Stick will favor the long ball and Johnson has the ability to shorten up any course he chooses.  He has finished in the top-10 of this event several times, including that victory back in 2010 and a T6 the last time Crooked Stick played host.  He should be in line for a great week.

Tour Championship: Jason Day

(Aaron Doster/USA Today Sports)

Yes, the current FedEx Cup leader will win the Tour Championship at East Lake.  Three victories with a very close second at the PGA Championship (still can’t believe that shot) have highlighted another great season by the 28 year old.  He’s coming off back to back top-10s at this event, and if there’s anything we’ve learned over the last year and a half with Day, it's that he can ramp up his game when it matters.  East Lake is understandably the hardest track of the playoff stretch, and if Day has his A-game there’s really not many who can hang with him.  In my opinion this is his tournament to win (or lose).

FedEx Cup: Jason Day

(Getty Images)

There’s not much I can really say since Day, sitting atop the standings, would very likely take the FedEx Cup with a victory at East Lake.  He’s had a great run and it would be fitting to add another trophy to the case.

Get me to the Ryder Cup.

Top 5 Moments of the 2016 MLB Season: Third Quarter

Third time around, you know the drill. Here we go:

5. Tyler Naquin hits a walk-off inside the park home run.

I was going to write this blog yesterday but I’m glad I held off because that was the most exciting finish of the season last night.  The Indians went into the bottom of the ninth inning down by a run, facing Toronto closer Roberto Osuna.  With one out, Jose Ramirez delivered a game-tying solo shot.  Next up, Tyler Naquin:

Cleveland becomes the fourth team this season to reach the 70-win mark. 

4. Brandon Crawford collects seven hits in a single game.

I know I probably sound like a broken record at this point but I truly believe Brandon Crawford is the most underrated player in the entire league.  It just feels like he’s not talked about enough for the amount of talent he has.  On August 8^th, Crawford became the sixth player in MLB history to accomplish the feat, and the first since 1975.  He’s also the first Giant to do so.

3. David Dahl starts his MLB career with a 17-game hit streak.

A lot of people probably haven’t heard about David Dahl since Colorado isn’t exactly a team that gets a lot of the spotlight.  The high-ranking prospect started his career off in very impressive fashion though, and on August 11^th he tied the MLB record of 17 games set back in 1941.  It looks like Colorado is going to fall a bit short of the postseason this year, but if they can gather some pitching upgrades they have the potential to make a run in 2017.

2. The Milwaukee Brewers score in every inning of a game.

(Tom Lynn/Associated Press)

On August 11^th the Brewers defeated the Braves 11-3 by scoring in every inning. This is obviously very impressive on the surface, but its even more impressive when you look at just how rare this feat actually is.  With all the lineups that have come and gone over the years, the 2016 Milwaukee Brewers became just the 19^th team since 1900 to score in every inning of a game.  To put it into a bigger perspective, as Adam McCalvy writes, there have been more perfect games thrown (21) in the last 116 years than teams to score in every inning.

1. Ichiro Suzuki collects his 3000^th MLB hit.

It’s no surprise that Ichiro finds himself on this list back-to-back times.  Before the All Star break he broke Pete Rose’s professional hits record, and on August 7^th he achieved the milestone of 3000 MLB hits.  If there was any speck of doubt at all regarding his Hall of Fame chances, Ichiro has safely put it to rest.  He is a first ballot Hall of Famer in my book, and one of the greatest players I’ve ever watched.

The 2016 MLB Trade Deadline: Grading the AL East

The 2016 Major League Baseball trade deadline was one of the more hectic ones in recent history.  It certainly did not disappoint and, not surprisingly, one of the most interesting divisions in the league was right in the heat of it.  How did each AL East team do?  Let's find out. 

Now to be fair, I put these grades together based on what they needed to do at the deadline, whether it be to sell, buy, or stay put.  As always these are just my thoughts but I encourage anyone to tell me otherwise.  

Baltimore Orioles: B

(Rick Yeatts/Getty Images North America)

The Orioles haven’t exactly been the team they were in June, and have played mediocre baseball over the last week or so.  The team wasn’t really in desperate need of anything particular, but found some options to help strengthen the club in Seattle lefty Wade Miley and Steve Pearce, who had previously been an Oriole from 2013 to 2015.  Miley adds another arm to the rotation that hasn’t been great but has pressed along with the help of the offense.  Pearce brings a familiar face back to Baltimore and can be used to fill in as a utility player for several guys in the lineup.  Overall, nothing was heavily expected of Baltimore but they did what they felt was necessary and came out alright.

Boston Red Sox: B

(Tony Quinn/Icon Sportswire)

The Sox made two key moves over the last couple of weeks to sure up their pitching.  Back in mid-July, the team shopped its top pitching prospect in Anderson Espinoza to acquire all-star Drew Pomeranz, who has been average since the deal. In addition, Boston brought in Arizona closer Brad Ziegler to help a bullpen plagued with injury. This is old news so I won’t harp, but they were necessary moves no matter how you look at them.  You’ve all heard the analysis, I don’t think I need to say more.  But the lone transaction at the deadline came from Minnesota as the Sox received left-handed reliever Fernando Abad for struggling rookie reliever Pat Light.  The move was another necessary one, allowing the Sox to strengthen their bullpen with a third lefty who has had a very solid season. I gave the B because on one hand the Sox failed to acquire another starter such as Jose Quintana, but on the other hand Dombrowski was smart enough to know he would overpay with prospects that could become VERY impactful.

New York Yankees: A

(Brad Penner/USA Today Sports)

The Yankees won the deadline in the East.  Plain and simple.  For the first time in my lifetime along with many others, the Yankees went into sell mode.  Now, George Steinbrenner is probably rolling over in his grave but the Yankees did exactly what they needed to do this season.  They were not built for the playoffs so they shopped what they had and milked their buyers.  Selling Aroldis Chapman and Andrew Miller has suddenly given the club a very good farm system, something the baseball world is not usually accustomed to.  The team rightfully moved Carlos Beltran and Ivan Nova as well, two guys with value this year that once again brought solid prospects in return.  The Yankees will likely remain stagnant for another year or so, but could do something special like the Cubs soon after with all of this newly acquired talent.  And I heard that kid down in Washington may join 'em too.

Tampa Bay Rays: C+

(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Tampa Bay had a very mediocre deadline in my opinion, primarily because they failed to sell Chris Archer.  Archer, along with Chris Sale, was one of the more coveted pitchers on the market but, like Sale, stayed put.  The team was the only other seller in the division, and was able to gain some decent return for Matt Moore, Steve Pearce, and Brandon Guyer but nothing compared to what they could possibly have gotten for Archer.  Matt Duffy will help Evan Longoria in the lineup, and the slew of prospects coming into the organization will hopefully materialize in a way similar to that of 2008. 

Toronto Blue Jays: B+

(Charles LeClaire/USA Today Sports)

The Blue Jays just became the AL East favorites, if they weren’t already.  Offense was never the question, although acquiring Melvin Upton Jr. may prove to help the lineup additionally.  It was their pitching though that had a couple question marks, despite very solid seasons from Marco Estrada, J.A. Happ, and Aaron Sanchez.  The team brought in several veteran arms, the biggest being Pittsburgh lefty Francisco Liriano, who was packaged with prospects for Drew Hutchison.  Joaquin Benoit and Scott Feldman will add experience to the Toronto bullpen as well.  With a tremendously upgraded pitching staff, and an offense that can overpower almost any pitcher at any given time, this team will certainly make a strong bid for a second straight division title.