World Series 2015: Cards And Royals To Square Off
For the Baltimore Orioles, the 2015 Major League Baseball season did not go as planned. The goal was getting to--and winning--the World Series and with a record of 81-81, they fell far short of achieving that.
Even though they finished with their fourth consecutive non-losing season, the Orioles were one of the more disappointing teams of this campaign. It will be a dramatic offseason for GM Dan Duquette and the Birds as they deal with free-agency and the task of improving the roster so they can make a run in 2016 and beyond.
Of course, even without the Orioles, the MLB Playoffs are still taking place. The Wild Card games are done and the Houston Astros and the Chicago Cubs have advanced to the Division Series round in the American and National Leagues.
The Astros, who shutout the New York Yankees on the road, will face the defending AL Champion Kansas City Royals. In the other ALDS, the Texas Rangers, champs of the AL West, will play the Toronto Blue Jays who won the AL East.
The Cubs, who blanked the Pittsburgh Pirates behind former Oriole Jake Arrieta, will face the Cardinals in a series that features the teams with the two best records in baseball. The Mets ( NL East) and Dodgers (NL West) will get together in a big-market matchup.
In the AL, I like the Blue Jays to get past the Rangers on the strength of their fearsome lineup. The Royals will do away with the pesky Astros.
In the ALCS, I'm going with Kansas City to finish Toronto's season. The Royals were one game away from winning the World Series in 2014 and will use that as motivation to advance.
The Dodgers will edge the Mets and the Cardinals will get past the Cubs. The NLCS will see the Cardinals getting it done against Los Angeles.
In 1985, the Royals came back from 3-1 to upset the favored Cards in the Fall Classic. 30 years later, St. Louis gets it's revenge.
The Cardinals will win the World Series in six games.