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The Mac Weekly

The Student News Site of Macalester College

The Mac Weekly

The Student News Site of Macalester College

The Mac Weekly

Baseball’s Final Four: a Viewer’s Guide

Please note: This article was written before the Mets vs. Cubs game that took place on October 21.

It is finally October, that month of the year when sports fans all around the country rejoice. October means hockey starts, football really starts heating up and the MLB Playoffs begin. October is the month of the year where people curl up in their dens, turn on the television and just watch sports. This, in my opinion, makes October the best month of the year. This year, the MLB playoffs feature a wonderful array of teams and, while there are still four great teams left in contention for the World Series, there are only four teams. This may leave many of you unsure about who to root for, so I am here to try to help you out.

A few weeks ago, ESPN ran an article about this very subject, and now I am here to offer my own personal opinions, and rank the remaining four MLB teams in terms of their “likeablility” and “ratability.”

4. The Toronto Blue Jays
This team, I will be honest, is very fun to watch (unless you happen to glance at their uniforms which may be the ugliest in baseball). They lead the MLB in Home Runs with 232 and in runs scored with 891. In short, they are very exciting to watch. So why is the American League East’s whipping boy of the last 15 years so low on this list? As a team, I find them overconfident and very annoying, and I also would really hate to see baseball’s biggest games played on the atrocity that is the astroturf of the Rogers Center. Finally, how can you call your grounds crew the “fastest grounds crew in baseball” when there is only 20 square feet of dirt on the field to tend to? I don’t think that’s how it works. Don’t get me wrong, this is a great baseball team, but they are a great baseball team that I happen to not like very much.

3. The New York Mets
I think it is awesome that the Mets are finally playing decent baseball; they have a winning record for the first time since 2008. This team is all around solid. The addition of outfielder Yoenis Cespedes really sparked this team and transformed the National League playoff picture. This team also features a fan base that has been loyal to them through some terrible times struggle recently, and I would love to see this fan base get rewarded. I also love the fact that they have one of the oldest players in baseball in Bartolo Colon, who managed to win 14 games this year at age 42. So, I love this team, but I just can’t bring myself to root for a New York team, (sorry New Yorkers) which is the only reason why they are ranked 3rd on this list. This combines with the success they have enjoyed relatively recently (an NLCS in 2000 along with many other playoff berths since then), to make other teams jump up above them on the “rootability” scale.

2. The Kansas City Royals
The defending AL champions are back this year after their heartbreaking loss to the Giants last year in the World Series. The key contributors are all back, and honestly I would not be upset if this team came back to win the whole thing. The team is awesome and full of characters. They also have a fanbase that has put up with some of the worst baseball seasons in history, and they really have not enjoyed any sort of success up until the last two seasons. PLUS: many Royals rock some sick facial hair.

1. The Chicago Cubs
This is the team I am rooting for to win it all this year. This is true partially because all my teams have been out of the playoff picture since August. Besides that, though, I believe they are the most “likeable” team in this year’s playoffs. The main reason for that is because it has just been so long since this team has a World Series. Further, the last time they had a shot, they (quite literally) had a National League Championship in their grasp before it was rudely yanked away from them (looking at you Steve Bartman). On top of that, the Cubs have been tough to watch recently, as they have not had a winning season since 2009. It would be great to see them finally win something.

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