The Atlanta Braves and the World Series
The Atlanta Braves (+200) could be contenders at the World Series this year and are favored to win the National League East in 2020. The Braves are one of five teams this year including Washington Nationals (+250), New York Mets (+280), Philadelphia Phillies (+310) and the Miami Marlins (+10000).
Team leaders that are bringing the Braves to this ranking in baseball are Ronald Acuna Jr., Josh Donaldson, Ozzie Albies, Dansby Swanson and Freddie Freeman. Ronald Acuna Jr. is predicted to have 535 at bats, 104 runs, 86 RBI’s and 35 home runs.
According to Twitter, Tomahawktake (a news, humor, stats, original content and analysis) page said the Braves can make 2 offseason moves to win the 2020 World Series by firing Brian Snitker and move out of Atlanta because Atlanta sports are cursed all around even though they technically did move out of Atlanta.
The Braves will have a chance this coming season because they have brought their pitching game up to par, their dominant rookies are taking over, the arrival of young arms and a more well-rounded lineup.
The pitching by Tim Hudson has been the Braves best pitcher down the stretch holding a 5-2 record with a 2.26 ERA. The recent All-Star rookie including Craig Kimbell who has not let a run since June 11 and averages a mass amount of 15.3 strikeouts per nine innings.
The World Series is something that only comes around once a year and the Braves fans can finally say that they have more of a chance this year than any other year in history of baseball.
Tune in next week’s Sport’s Overload, I’ll be talking about the Ex-Seahawks quarterback and how he got sentenced to three years in prison for assaulting his girlfriend.
Ex-Seahawks Quarterback Trevone Boykin sentenced to three years in prison
On Wednesday March 4, the former TCU and Seahawks quarterback, Trevone Moykin, was sentenced to three years in prison for beating his girlfriend, Shabrika Bailey in Fort Worth, Texas.
Moykin pleaded guilty because of another incident of breaking her jaw back in March of 2018. He was then charged with aggravated assault and tampering with a witness.
Fox news said, “Mr. Boykin has failed to take responsibility for any of his assaultive and criminal behavior until this point. The victim in this case sustained a long-standing relationship of abuse by Mr. Boykin and, along with our office, feels his prison sentence is vindication for what she ensure and the consequences he was able to avoid in the past because of his ability on the football field.”
For those of you who do not know Trevone Boykin he was the 2014 Big 12 conference offensive player of the year and set the team records in career passing yards (10,728).
Boykin still has a future ahead of him but at this point he wad so many charges that fans don’t believe he will make it back out on the field. Many fans also think that since he is not in the right mind set, maybe jail time will serve him well so he can think about his issues and resolve them.
Kyle King, a die hard Seahawks fan said, “Boykin is just another one of those football players that makes mistake but will do his time like anybody else.”
Boykin will hopefully redeem himself to his community once he is released so he can prove to the public that he has done better work not only on the field but respect to other people and controlling his temper.
ESPN said, “He has been in trouble with the law since 2015, however, when he was involved in a barroom brawl in San Antonio two days before TCU was to meet the Oregon Ducks in the Alamo Bowl on Jan. 2, 2016. He was suspended for the game.”
On next week post, I’ll be talking about sports shutting down due to the coronavirus and where it is leading for the future of athletes!
Sports Cancel Due to Coronavirus
The Coronavirus has stopped or suspended all sports until the pandemic curve flattens out and people can go back to being normal. Athletes and fans around the world are sitting around waiting until a release is posted about whether sports will be returning soon.
Sports including MLB, Basketball and Hockey are all postponed for their playoff season which will probably not happen until late summer if not cancelled until next season.
This has upset many sports fans because they have relied on sports when the season starts along with bidding on players and games as well. Ryan Gaydos, ongoing sports reporter and baseball fan said, “MLB would later cancel the rest of spring training games and delay the start of opening day for at least two weeks.
The ESPN would then deliver the next blow, canceling the entire men’s and women’s tournaments as well as the rest of spring athletics because of the outbreak.”
Betting is a problem for many people but for fans it is something that people will miss the most because it gives the adrenaline when you win a game. Fans say the only thing that would compare to this pandemic would be 9/11 because of how tragic it was to America. Brandon Rodgers, a major sports fan, said that there will be a comeback because it has happened before.
Many athletes in college are disappointed because they could not play their last season in college before moving on with their lives. Athletes including ones that play lacrosse are given a second chance, if you are a senior, to play your last season again. Aubrie Valvo said, “As my freshman year of college ended, I couldn’t finish my first season and it was heartbreaking to see all the seniors leave and some that I will never be able to see again due to this ongoing crisis.”
Next week I will be talking about what the athletes are doing now about the Coronavirus.
Athletes take on Coronavirus
Athletes including LeBron James and James Harden, started the transition of working out at home and playing basketball at their home gym. Sports Illustrated said, “The inconvenience of derailed training regimens, of course, is insignificant when held against a cratering economy and the hundred of thousands across the world suffering from COVID-19, but the virus and its fallout are bound to take a toll on nearly every athlete’s body.”
Athletes who have tested positive for COVID-19 are Rudy Gobert, Donovan Mitchell, Daniele Rugani, Manolo Gabbiadini and Mikel Arteta. According to Sports Illustrated, these athletes are now self-isolating in their homes and getting over this pandemic. Other athletes and coaches like Kevin Durant and Sean Payton, head coach of the New Orleans Saints, said, “If people understand the curve & understand the bump, we can easily work together as a country to reduce it.”
The country needs to give more support to athletes because they give off entertainment to the news, fans and ongoing games throughout the year. Fans around the world cannot bet on players and games and cannot watch sports games at all until further notice. This is very tragic for a lot of people but then again everyone is suffering in their own ways.
Athletes across the world are doing their utmost to make sure they are in great health, but no one knows if they have the virus until they test positive or negative for it. This can be a good and bad thing for the future of sports in the upcoming seasons, especially for football season.
Tune in next week’s blog, I will be talking about the Master’s and how it has changed to a fall date!
The Masters Postponed
The 2020 Master’s has been postponed until further notice according to masters.com. The Master’s takes place in Augusta, Georgia and is one of the top sceneries in the country. It is well known for its beauty and its views. This current events are making it heart breaking for many golf fans.
Fred Ridley, Chairman of the Augusta National Golf Course said, “Considering the latest information and expert analysis, we have decided at this time to postpone the Masters Tournament, the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the Drive, Chip and Putt National Finals.” It would be safe for golf fans and the players to not play until COVID-19 is over and done with. Just like any other sport, The Masters is one of the most sought after places to be in the wonderful spring weather of Georgia. I personally was looking forward to watching the Masters at hole 8 this year, but fortunately there is talk of a later date in the fall of 2020. According to ESPN, the Masters has never been played outside of March or April since 1934 which is very breath taking for many people.
According to the New York Times, Justin Thomas said, “And that had me bummed, but hearing that they’re going to try to make it happen this year was kind of a lift. I don’t care if it’s 25 degrees and nobody is there, I’m going to go play it with a chance to win the Masters.” The New York Times also said that the Augusta National Golf Course closes from May to October because the heat turns the grass brown. Possibilities of dates are said to be in late September or early October when it is cool.
This will be my last blog post concerning sports. I have had a great time posting about what I am passionate about and I hope you enjoyed my blog!
Joey's Sports Blog 