BY J.A. SCHWARTZ The National League East produced the World Series champion last year for the second time in three seasons, and since the Red Sox won the 2018 title, NL teams have claimed the last three championships. Atlanta recovered from a slow start to vanquish Houston in the Fall …
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BY J.A. SCHWARTZ Coming off a 2021 season that saw them finish a full 13 games ahead of their closest competitors, the Indians, the Chicago White Sox enter this season as clear favorites to repeat as American League Central champions. That result will never happen again, since the Cleveland franchise …
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BY J.A. SCHWARTZ The American League East may well feature four of the top six teams in the league in 2022, with only the White Sox and perhaps Houston as being likely to win more games than the goliaths in the East. The Tampa Bay Rays are the defending AL …
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BY J.A. SCHWARTZ The Oakland A’s have indicated their intentions about the 2022 season with a flurry of trades that may not be fully complete even when their season begins on April 7th. Despite qualifying for the playoffs three straight years, including a division title in the shortened 2020 campaign, …
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BY J.A. SCHWARTZ The Giants won a franchise record 107 games in 2021, baffling pundits all season long as they outplayed their bitter rivals to the south to the National League West division title. Though they unseated Los Angeles atop the division for the first time since 2013, the Dodgers …
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BY J.A. SCHWARTZ Tampa Bay, led by the ageless Tom Brady, will start the defense of their Super Bowl title when the host the Philadelphia Eagles in the first round of the playoffs. The Eagles are the last franchise to defeat Brady in a Super Bowl, and will look to …
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BY J.A. SCHWARTZ The 2021 NFL season has concluded, and the playoff pairings are set. Aaron Rodgers has the Green Bay Packers sitting atop the NFC bracket, and they have the only bye in the conference with six other teams squaring off to to advance to the second round. In …
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BY J.A. SCHWARTZ The best three-point shooter in the history of the National Basketball Association (by percentage) works in the Chase Center in San Francisco. He’s the leader of the Golden State Warriors, and has been an iconic presence for the franchise since his arrival in 2014. On those days …
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BY J.A.SCHWARTZ Sports franchises are driven by clearly defined forces that prioritize victory. When their teams succeed on the field of play, they’re likely to see local broadcast ratings improve, which helps drive advertising rates and interest in the club. Winning draws more fans, spending money on parking, concessions and …
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BY J.A. SCHWARTZ Following yesterday’s American League preview, we now turn our focus to the National League, with the 106 win Los Angeles Dodgers hosting the St. Louis Cardinals, winners of 19 of their last 22 games (including a franchise record 17 in a row), Wednesday night at Dodger Stadium. …
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