The halfway mark of the 2017 MLS season is approaching for most teams. In fact, three of them have already reached that point. And after this week’s games, 11 more will have played at least 17 games as part of this season’s campaign.
What sets this coming week apart from most is the fact that there are a handful of huge rivalry fixtures on the menu. It begins on Friday night as FC Dallas travels to BBVA Compass Stadium to take on their in-state rival Houston Dynamo. Saturday’s slate of games kicks off with the first Hudson River Derby matchup of the year in MLS play. NYCFC will look for revenge after falling to the New York Red Bulls in the U.S. Open Cup last week. Finally on Sunday, the Portland Timbers play host to their hated rivals to the north, the Seattle Sounders.
John is beginning to separate himself from the pack after going 7-4 last week. But Robert isn’t too far behind and can certainly cut into his lead with a good week. The rest of the pack has some catching up to do but, as mentioned above, we’re halfway through the season so there’s plenty of time to do so.
Without further ado, here are our panel of writers’ picks for this week’s games.
Last Word SC MLS Pick ‘Em – Week 17
| Expert | DC v. ATL | MIN v. POR | COL v. LA | SEA v. ORL | TOR v. NE | HOU v. DAL | RBNY v. NYC | ATL v. COL |
 John Bava (7)@LWOSJohnBava |
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| Robert Kerr (3) @LWOSR2Kerr@ |
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| Daniel Sperry (1) @SperryDaniel94 |
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| Matt Pollard (2) @LWOSMattPollard |
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| Benny LaFortune @Benny_Laft23 |
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| Kevin Drastura (1) @KDrast03 |
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| Expert | PHI v. DC | CLB v. MTL | MIN v. VAN | CHI v. ORL | LA v. SKC | SJ v. RSL | POR v. SEA | Record | PCT |
| John Bava (7) @LWOSJohnBava |
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81-92 | 46.8% |
| Robert Kerr (3) @LWOSR2Kerr2 |
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75-98 | 43.4% |
| Daniel Sperry (1) @SperryDaniel94 |
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DRAW | 69-104 | 39.9% |
| Matt Pollard (2) @LWOSMattPollard |
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DRAW | 69-104 | 39.9% |
| Benny LaFortune @Benny_Laft23 |
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DRAW | 59-114 | 34.1% |
| Kevin Drastura (1) @KDrast03 |
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DRAW | DRAW | DRAW | 58-115 | 33.5% |
