Thursday, March 30, 2017

Wrestlemania 33 Predictions

WWE Cruiserweight Championship Match (Kickoff Match)
Neville (c) vs. Austin Aries
What Should Happen:  This might be the match of the night.  Neville is awesome, and Aries can still rise to the occasion.  I’d actually like Neville to retain until they build up a new challenger.
What Will Happen:  Aries finally dethrones Neville to win the title.
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  Two minutes into the match, Brau Strowman obliterates both men and wants to start the battle royal now.

SmackDown Women’s Championship Match (Kickoff Match)
Champion Alexa Bliss to defend against all female SmackDown LIVE Superstars who are available to compete
What Should Happen:  Alexa retains; on Smackdown on Tuesday, announces she’s defeated all of her competition… and out comes Asuka to take the belt from her.
What Will Happen:  Natalya wins the title to start a feud with Becky Lynch
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  Carmella wins the belt because the writers love her and Ellsworth.

The Fourth Annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal (Kickoff Match)
Featuring Big Show, Sami Zayn, Braun Strowman, Apollo Crews, Mojo Rawley and more Superstars
What Should Happen:  Zayn is a giant killer, eliminating both Big Show and Strowman.
What Will Happen:  Strowman wins as his anointment as the next big man continues
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  The Ascension win and immediately begin feuding over which one is really the winner.

Raw Tag Team Championship Triple Threat Ladder Match
Luke Gallows & Karl Anderson (c) vs. Enzo Amore & Big Cass vs. Cesaro & Sheamus
What Should Happen:  Gallows and Anderson retain; Cesaro and Sheamus split up the next night and both announce they are going after the US Title
What Will Happen:  Amore and Big Cass win the belts.
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  The crowd turns on Amore and Big Cass to the point that they turn heel by the end of next week

Intercontinental Championship Match
Dean Ambrose (c) vs. Baron Corbin
What Should Happen:  Corbin wins, and Ambrose starts a slow turn into a psychotic heel
What Will Happen:  Corbin wins the title
What I’m Terrified Will Happen: Corbin wins the title when Dolph Ziggler costs Ambrose the title.  I like both Ziggler and Ambrose, but that feud feels stale for both men

United States Championship Match
Chris Jericho (c) vs. Kevin Owens
What Should Happen:  Match of the night, with both men giving dissertations on how to cheat.  Owens wins, and the crowd chants “Thank you Chris” as he heads off on tour with Fozzy.
What Will Happen:  Owens wins using every heel trick in the book
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  Samoa Joe helps Owens beat Jericho in a forgettable match

Raw Women’s Championship Fatal 4-Way Elimination Match
Bayley (c) vs. Charlotte Flair vs. Sasha Banks vs. Nia Jax
What Should Happen:  Nia Jax wins and forces the other three to work together to overcome her.
What Will Happen:  Flair wins the title when Sasha Banks turns heel
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  Flair wins the title, and the program continues as it has for months.

Power Couples Collide
John Cena & Nikki Bella vs. The Miz & Maryse
What Should Happen:  A glorious brawl that spends most of the match outside the ring.  Cena and Bella win, but Miz and Maryse look fantastic.  Cena proposes afterwards
What Will Happen:  A good match.  Same booking
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  Miz and Maryse look like total chumps in losing.

SmackDown LIVE Commissioner vs. The Phenomenal One
Shane McMahon vs. AJ Styles
What Should Happen:  Shane McMahon is attacked before the match, and Daniel Bryan announces a replacement- the returning Finn Balor. 
What Will Happen:  AJ Styles has had great matches all year.  He has another one, carrying Shane to a very good match, before winning cleanly
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  Shane wins because… well, because

Non-Sanctioned Match
Seth Rollins vs. Triple H
What Should Happen:  Samoa Joe and Kevin Owens come out with Triple H- and Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose come out to support their Shield brother to brawl/chase out Joe and Owens.  Triple H uses every dirty trick in the book- but Rollins emerges victorious.  On the next RAW, a furious Stephanie McMahon engineers a major trade (Rollins, Cesaro, Zayn, and New Day for AJ Styles and the loser of Wyatt/Orton) just to get Rollins out of her league.
What Will Happen:    An excellent brawl.  Triple H has learned when to give the face the moment to overcome the heel, and Rollins finally gets his revenge here with a clean win.
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  Samoa Joe costs Rollins the match, and Triple H finally starts showing his age.

WWE Championship Match
Bray Wyatt (c) vs. Randy Orton
What Should Happen:  Wyatt goes full Max Cady here.  Harper returns- and Sister Abagail (Crazy Mary Dobson) makes her debut as well.  Wyatt wins a wild, wild match- if any match is allowed to get blood, this one should be it
What Will Happen:  Orton wins, turning heel in the process
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  Orton wins and the announcers try to get him over as a face

The Phenom vs. The Big Dog
The Undertaker vs. Roman Reigns
What Should Happen:  Reigns turns heel and wins, telling both the fans and the McMahons to go to hell and making Undertaker go out on a stretcher
What Will Happen:  Reigns wins, there’s a handshake of respect.  The next night, Undertaker announces he’s retiring on RAW
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  Undertaker wins, then takes the microphone and tells Reigns he’s the toughest man he ever faced in the ring.

Universal Championship Match
Goldberg (c) vs. Brock Lesnar
What Should Happen:  Someone- Reigns, Owens, whoever- comes in and lays both Goldberg and Lesnar out, saying how sick they are of part timers taking their spots.
What Will Happen:  Lesnar wins, Goldberg goes back into semi-retirement, Lesnar and Reign stand face to face as the show fades out
What I’m Terrified Will Happen:  Match is less than three minutes


Other notes:
·         The New Day’s turn as host will involve a lot of jokes and ice cream giveaways- and right at intermission, they get interrupted by Christian, who is ticked off the New Day is being talked about as the greatest tag team of all time.  He points out that he and Edge were a great tag team, and the only reason they didn’t hold the record is because they had competition equal to them…  out come the Hardys to leave the New Day lying in the ring.

·         The big stories from RAW the next night are the major trade between RAW and Smackdown and the Undertaker’s retirement.  Asuka’s debut is held off for Smackdown

Baseball 2017 predictions

American League                            
EAST                           W            L
Toronto Blue Jays              92           70
Boston Red Sox                 90           72
Baltimore Orioles              88           74
New York Yankees               81           81
Tampa Bay Rays                 77           85
CENTRAL                        W            L
Cleveland Indians              96           66
Kansas City Royals             85           77
Chicago White Sox              80           82
Detroit Tigers                 77           85
Minnesota Twins                62           100
WEST                           W            L
Houston Astros                 93           69
Seattle Mariners               92           70
Texas Rangers                  88           74
Oakland Athletics              81           81
Los Angeles Angels             63           99

Notes:
Playoffs:  Seattle over Boston (Wild Card)
ALDS:      Cleveland over Seattle
           Houston over Toronto
ALCS:      Cleveland over Toronto

* Biggest story is that the Angels will consider trading Mike Trout and contending teams will offer a ton of young players and prospects- it may be the biggest trade in baseball in 50 years.



National League                            
EAST                           W            L
Washington Nationals           93           69
New York Mets                  85           77
Miami Marlins                  80           82
Philadelphia Phillies          70           92
Atlanta Braves                 70           92
CENTRAL                        W            L
Chicago Cubs                   96           66
St. Louis Cardinals            85           77
Pittsburgh Pirates             79           83
Milwaukee Brewers              75           87
Cincinnati Reds                66           96
WEST                           W            L
San Francisco Giants           92           70
Los Angeles Dodgers            89           73
Colorado Rockies               80           82
Arizona Diamondbacks           74           88
San Diego Padres               74           88


Notes:
Playoffs:  Los Angeles over New York (Wild Card)
ALDS:      Chicago over Los Angeles
           Washington over San Frnacisco
ALCS:      Chicago over Washington


World Series:  Cleveland Indians 4, Chicago Cubs 3