Top 5 Reasons To Be Excited for MLB 2016

Baseball season is finally here and every fan has a reason to be excited for the upcoming season. Whether your team is rebuilding, or going all-in, there is something thrilling about six months of non-stop baseball.

(Of course, there are more than five reasons we should be excited, but for the sake of time we are just ranking the Top five.)

5. The NY Mets pitching rotation

Sorry Nationals fans, but the best pitching rotation in baseball no longer belongs to you. The Mets rotation is the best right now, and maybe among the best of all time. Sometimes compared to the marvelous rotation of the ’95 Braves, which included three Hall of Famers in Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and John Smoltz. The Metropolitans rotation does include a majestic trio with All Star Matt Harvey, 2014 Rookie of the year Jacob deGrom and phenom Noah Syndergaard.

4. Can the KC Royals do it again?

Alright, let’s face it. We were all surprised watching the Royals win the 2015 World Series. Nobody thought that they would do it. In fact, entering the 2015 season, they were predicted to finish the season 80-82. Of course that was not the case as they started off the campaign with a 7 game winning streak. By the trade deadline they traded for Johnny Cueto. Who became their ace down the stretch. The Royals finished the season with 95 wins, the best record in the American League. Cueto was a free agent this year and signed a 6yr $130M contract with the San Francisco Giants this offseason.

3. Young Superstars

I think it’s fair to say that the future of the game is in good hands, with stars like Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, Carlos Correa, Kris Bryant, Francisco Lindor, Miguel Sano, Noah Syndergaard, Mookie Betts, Kyle Schwarber and many more already on the national spotlight. The game of baseball is getting younger and it will stay this way for years to come.

2. It’s now or never for the Chicago Cubs

You better believe it because the Cubs have the best team in baseball right now, with 2015 Cy Young award winner Jake Arrieta, 2015 Rookie of the Year 3B Kris Bryant, 2015 Manager of the Year Joe Maddon, 1B Anthony Rizzo and recently acquired CF Jason Heyward. The Cubs finished 3rd in the NL Central standings with 97-65 behind the Pirates and the 100 game winnning Cardinals in 2015. The Cubs got to the NLCS via the Wild Card just to get swept  by the Mets. According to fangraphs.com, the Cubs are projected to finish the 2016 season with 94-68, good for the best record in the Majors.

1. Harper vs Trout

Let’s be honest here, after the 2012 season, Harper vs Trout has been a lopsided match up. With Trout finishing Top 3 in MVP votes every year and Harper just going in and out of the DL. But after Harper’s historic 2015 we are in for a revival of their “best in the league” rivalry. To be fair, Trout (24 years old) will still be the best until Harper (23 years old) shows us that he can have a season like this past one or something similar. But, with Harper staying healthy and Trout just being Trout, we are in for a treat for the upcoming decade.