Greetings, sports fans!

I’ve already talked about the 11^th and 12^th. So let’s talk about the 13^th. I’m going to round it up at 20 this time so I’ll even it out.

Let’s say that “SI” absolutely missed the point. How in the world did its writers put Giancarlo Stanton with the New York Yankees at 13 and Aaron Judge also with the Bronx Bombers at 14? Giancarlo Stanton is strictly no doubt about it a top-five player and Aaron Judge should be at least 10 or 11. Giancarlo Stanton is a big guy who even scares Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers. He is everything the Yankees asked for. He finishes off the best homerun hitting lineup in the major leagues. He can hit for power, hit for average, field, which I think Aaron Boone looks away when a big guy like that jumps for a highlight real catch. He also has a lot of speed for a guy like him. He has crushed the most home runs since 2006. Aaron Judge, also a big guy, is about the same story, hitting for average – more than Stanton, hitting for power – less than Stanton but has more speed than Stanton. Also, he hit the most homers by a rookie since Mark McGwire. I don’t know all of those stupid stats like wRC which is Weighted Runs Created and it took me twice to read it. So I think “SI” made a huge mistake in putting Stanton and Judge 13^th and 14^th – they are really better.

For 15^th, I think they put Francisco Lindor of the Cleveland Indians in the right spot because he is absolutely fantastic fielder who is the best fielding shortstop in the league. He also has some pop in his bat for the Puerto Rican skinny guy hit 33 homers last year. They made a risky but correct decision when they put Josh Donaldson of the Toronto Blue Jays at 16^th because he is not the best arm at the hot corner, but definitely the best fielder. They put him there because if he didn’t have one of the best bats, it would put him even further down the line with his very modern swing with 33 dingers last year.

But I have some objections for 17, 18, 19 and 20, so, Corey Seager of Los Angeles Dodgers is not the best shortstop overall and is not the best fielder (but is the best fielder) and not the best hitter (even closer than the fielding thing) but still does NOT deserve 17^th place. I think he deserves somewhere in the top 15 and top 5 with shortstops maybe even closer to first in the top 100 because he won Rookie of the Year in 2016 and is the best shortstop in the National League.

I think it’s very weird that all the good shortstops are in the A.L. Manny Machado of the Baltimore Orioles and his bat are worthy of the top 10. Even if he went from 3B to SS over the offseason, a very hard change but easy for some, like him, but from what I’m hearing - he’s going to be really good with his towering homers and quantity of dingers and launch angles, he is the best hitting SS in the MLB.

No one thought that Justin Verlander of the Houston Astros would get traded from Detroit. He would sing his swan song in the Motor City, but, no, wait a minute, Justin Verlander just got traded, I had to read it thrice to make sure – “Verlander traded to Astros” so he came to rebuild himself in the Space City, just in time to get into perfect shape for the postseason. He won his first World Series ring there, which he will never do in Detroit (no offense to the Tigers). His velocity is rising through the innings and only a few pitchers in history have ever done that. His ERA is going to sink fast, but, hey, it’s just the beginning of the season. The Detroit Tigers paved a shabby road, with a few potholes, to Cooperstown, but the ‘Stros paved a beautiful path to The Hall of Fame with daisies, daffodils and roses along the sides, now all he has to do is be an elite pitcher, he’s getting old but he’s the first on this list that age does not deteriorate. In my book, he should get a spot two better.

And for 20^th, Chris Sale of the Boston Red Sox is an elite pitcher and this year he will prove that he is worthy of the top 15, you want me to prove it? Ok, I will, In the past 6 years, he has 15 complete games, last season, he killed everyone by far with 308 strikeouts, strikeouts per 9 IP, and fielding independent pitching, second for ERA, WAR, WHIP, Hits Per 9 IP, BB Per 9 IP and Strikeouts/BBs. His stats are nowhere in sight for the HRs, Hits, BBs, and losses as a pitcher. He is 3^rd and beyond in wins and homeruns per 9 IP. He is pitching in a league with only the Yankees and the 2018 murders row in New York. He is a top 3 pitcher in baseball and should get a spot closer to the best.

The 2nd and third games of the 2018 MLB Season were fun and boring. To start off with, the Mets, I like what Mickey Callaway is doing, putting the pitcher eighth and a batter ninth. Sadly, the Mets lost game No. 3 – their first of this season, and the Yankees are .500 faster than anyone thought that they would. Most people thought they would never do it. With the Cubs-Marlins game going into 17 innings and everyone already wishing they were in a warm bed, they had to play sweat-filled baseball instead. The big headline is that Miguel Andjuar of the New York Yankees made his major league debut today as a DH and Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Atlanta Braves is still not making his debut. Kevin Pillar of the Toronto Blue Jays stole 2nd, 3rd and home, I knew he had speed, but not that much guts.

Have another hotdog on your way out.