Major League Baseball Predictions
It is that time of year again. Time to dust off the old mit, tar the bat, and clean off the cleats.
Yep, it is baseball season once again.
In an off-season that better resembled a bi-polar adolescent with the induction of players like Rickey Henderson and Jim Rice into the Hall of Fame and the admission of steroid use by A-Rod (which is another story altogether), it is about time we start hearing the crack of a bat.
This offseason teams have been busy jockeying for players. The New York Yankees don't seem to be in a recession, as they acquired pitchers C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett, and first baseman Mark Texiera for very hefty sums of cash.
The other cash cow in baseball, the Boston Red Sox, also were a little busy. They signed pitchers Brad Penny and John Smoltz, while the other New York team, the Mets, sured up their suspect bullpen with closer Fransico Rodriguez aka K-Rod.
Other players have new homes, like Jason Giambi-who went back to Oakland, first basemen Adam Dunn (Washington Nationals) and pitcher Derek Lowe (Atlanta Braves).
But enough with the moves, because we all know what really counts, how they play out and where the teams finish.
It is pretty much a given that the Pirates, Royals, and Orioles are going to be near the bottom of the division. But a bigger question is, who is going to be this years Tampa Bay Rays? A few years ago, it was the Colorado Rockies that were the surprise team of the majors, and even farther back, the Arizona Diamondbacks.
I'll go division by division, and try to guess who makes the playoffs, who goes to the World Series, and who wins the Fall Classic.
American League
East
1-Red Sox
2-Yankees
3-Rays
4-Orioles
5-Blue Jays
It is hard to not pick the Yankees. They seem to have made the best acquisitions, and really do have the best team money can buy. With stars like A-Rod, Derek Jeter, Johnny Damon, Sabathia, Mariano Rivera, Texiera, and Jorge Posada, they seem they should breeze through the division.
But I question how manager Joe Girardi can control this team and the egos that go along with it.
I'm going with the Red Sox to win the division. I think they are just too good, but I wouldn't count the Rays out to make it interesting.
Central
1-White Sox
2-Twins
3-Tigers
4-Indians
5-Royals
This is the White Sox division to lose. The Twins don't wow me with their starting rotation, and neither do any of the teams for that matter. If the Tigers can get Justin Verlander and Dontrell Willis going, they could have the best rotation in the division. The Sox have one of the better hitting lineups with A.J. Pierzenski, Paul Konerko, and Jermaine Dye, but they are aging and are losing some of their spark.
West
1-Angels
2-Athletics
3-Rangers
4-Mariners
Does anyone want to beat the Angels anytime? Seems they've had a stranglehold on this division for a good while. I look for the A's to give them a little fit this year. They will have their typical young pitchers, and have bats now in Eric Chavez and Giambi. The Rangers I don't see doing much, and the Mariners are pretty much a dead franchise outside of Ichiro.
The only question for the Angels, outside of the age question, is how will they fair with K-Rod? But with the signing of Bobby Abreu in left, they have one of the best hitting outfields in the majors. The starting rotation is pretty good.
Nationa League
East
1-Phillies
2-Mets
3-Braves
4-Nationals
5-Marlins
Anyone remember that the Phillies won the World Series last year? The quiet champions return their whole team, have a strong pitching staff, and a proven closer in Brad Lidge. The Mets will continue to have their meltdowns. One team to watch though, is the Braves. They've been down the past few seasons, but they have gone young, and added some new arms with Lowe
Central
1-Cardinals
2-Cubs
3-Astros
4-Brewers
5-Reds
6-Pirates
The most competitive division in baseball. There are four teams that can win this division, while the only teams out are the Red and Pirates. The Chicago Cubs have the star power with Alphonso Soriano, Derrek Lee, and Aramis Ramirez, and have an ace in Carlos Zambrano. They did lose their closer in Kerry Wood. The only issue is that their starting rotation is pretty weak, with the only other decent pitcher being Ted Lilly.
The Astros are an aging team with Lance Berkman, Aaron Boone. They also have a pretty weak rotation outside of Roy Oswalt and Wandy Rodgriguez. They "have" Miguel Tejada, but I'm not sure how much he will actually play.
The Cardinals may have the best starting rotation in the division with Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Kyle Lohse (acquired from the Reds), and Todd Wellenmeyer. They also have Albert Pujols. My only question is how will the rest of their starters do.
The Brewers got hit the hardest, losing Sabbathia and Ben Sheets (still unsigned). They have a pretty strong lineup hitting wise, but their pitching will be way down.
West
1-Dodgers
2-Diamondbacks
3-Padres
4-Giants
5-Rockies
The second weakest conference in baseball behind the AL-West. The Dodgers should win this division, but the Diamondbacks could give them a close fight. The 'Backs have a pretty good looking pitching rotation, but they lack a true power hitter (Mark Reynolds did have 28 HRs and 97 RBIs, and Chris Young had 22 HRs and 85 RBIs).
Outside of that, the Giants and Rockies are pretty much out of it.
Now for the playoffs:
In the AL, you have Red Sox, White Sox, and Angels get in. The last spot will be between the Yankees and Twins, and I see the Yankees pulling into the fourth spot.
Let's say the Red Sox take on the Angels, and the White Sox vs the Yankees. Give me Sox over the Angels, and Yankees over the White Sox. Yankees vs Sox in the ALCS.
In the NL, you have the Phillies, Cardinals, and Dodgers and give me the Cubs in the wildcard.
Let's say the Dodgers take down the Cardinals, and Phillies beat the Cubs. The Dodgers will take on the Phillies in the NLCS.
I think the Red Sox beat out the Yankees in seven games, and the Phillies take down the Dodgers.
Give me the Red Sox over the Phillies.
Yep, it is baseball season once again.
In an off-season that better resembled a bi-polar adolescent with the induction of players like Rickey Henderson and Jim Rice into the Hall of Fame and the admission of steroid use by A-Rod (which is another story altogether), it is about time we start hearing the crack of a bat.
This offseason teams have been busy jockeying for players. The New York Yankees don't seem to be in a recession, as they acquired pitchers C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett, and first baseman Mark Texiera for very hefty sums of cash.
The other cash cow in baseball, the Boston Red Sox, also were a little busy. They signed pitchers Brad Penny and John Smoltz, while the other New York team, the Mets, sured up their suspect bullpen with closer Fransico Rodriguez aka K-Rod.
Other players have new homes, like Jason Giambi-who went back to Oakland, first basemen Adam Dunn (Washington Nationals) and pitcher Derek Lowe (Atlanta Braves).
But enough with the moves, because we all know what really counts, how they play out and where the teams finish.
It is pretty much a given that the Pirates, Royals, and Orioles are going to be near the bottom of the division. But a bigger question is, who is going to be this years Tampa Bay Rays? A few years ago, it was the Colorado Rockies that were the surprise team of the majors, and even farther back, the Arizona Diamondbacks.
I'll go division by division, and try to guess who makes the playoffs, who goes to the World Series, and who wins the Fall Classic.
American League
East
1-Red Sox
2-Yankees
3-Rays
4-Orioles
5-Blue Jays
It is hard to not pick the Yankees. They seem to have made the best acquisitions, and really do have the best team money can buy. With stars like A-Rod, Derek Jeter, Johnny Damon, Sabathia, Mariano Rivera, Texiera, and Jorge Posada, they seem they should breeze through the division.
But I question how manager Joe Girardi can control this team and the egos that go along with it.
I'm going with the Red Sox to win the division. I think they are just too good, but I wouldn't count the Rays out to make it interesting.
Central
1-White Sox
2-Twins
3-Tigers
4-Indians
5-Royals
This is the White Sox division to lose. The Twins don't wow me with their starting rotation, and neither do any of the teams for that matter. If the Tigers can get Justin Verlander and Dontrell Willis going, they could have the best rotation in the division. The Sox have one of the better hitting lineups with A.J. Pierzenski, Paul Konerko, and Jermaine Dye, but they are aging and are losing some of their spark.
West
1-Angels
2-Athletics
3-Rangers
4-Mariners
Does anyone want to beat the Angels anytime? Seems they've had a stranglehold on this division for a good while. I look for the A's to give them a little fit this year. They will have their typical young pitchers, and have bats now in Eric Chavez and Giambi. The Rangers I don't see doing much, and the Mariners are pretty much a dead franchise outside of Ichiro.
The only question for the Angels, outside of the age question, is how will they fair with K-Rod? But with the signing of Bobby Abreu in left, they have one of the best hitting outfields in the majors. The starting rotation is pretty good.
Nationa League
East
1-Phillies
2-Mets
3-Braves
4-Nationals
5-Marlins
Anyone remember that the Phillies won the World Series last year? The quiet champions return their whole team, have a strong pitching staff, and a proven closer in Brad Lidge. The Mets will continue to have their meltdowns. One team to watch though, is the Braves. They've been down the past few seasons, but they have gone young, and added some new arms with Lowe
Central
1-Cardinals
2-Cubs
3-Astros
4-Brewers
5-Reds
6-Pirates
The most competitive division in baseball. There are four teams that can win this division, while the only teams out are the Red and Pirates. The Chicago Cubs have the star power with Alphonso Soriano, Derrek Lee, and Aramis Ramirez, and have an ace in Carlos Zambrano. They did lose their closer in Kerry Wood. The only issue is that their starting rotation is pretty weak, with the only other decent pitcher being Ted Lilly.
The Astros are an aging team with Lance Berkman, Aaron Boone. They also have a pretty weak rotation outside of Roy Oswalt and Wandy Rodgriguez. They "have" Miguel Tejada, but I'm not sure how much he will actually play.
The Cardinals may have the best starting rotation in the division with Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Kyle Lohse (acquired from the Reds), and Todd Wellenmeyer. They also have Albert Pujols. My only question is how will the rest of their starters do.
The Brewers got hit the hardest, losing Sabbathia and Ben Sheets (still unsigned). They have a pretty strong lineup hitting wise, but their pitching will be way down.
West
1-Dodgers
2-Diamondbacks
3-Padres
4-Giants
5-Rockies
The second weakest conference in baseball behind the AL-West. The Dodgers should win this division, but the Diamondbacks could give them a close fight. The 'Backs have a pretty good looking pitching rotation, but they lack a true power hitter (Mark Reynolds did have 28 HRs and 97 RBIs, and Chris Young had 22 HRs and 85 RBIs).
Outside of that, the Giants and Rockies are pretty much out of it.
Now for the playoffs:
In the AL, you have Red Sox, White Sox, and Angels get in. The last spot will be between the Yankees and Twins, and I see the Yankees pulling into the fourth spot.
Let's say the Red Sox take on the Angels, and the White Sox vs the Yankees. Give me Sox over the Angels, and Yankees over the White Sox. Yankees vs Sox in the ALCS.
In the NL, you have the Phillies, Cardinals, and Dodgers and give me the Cubs in the wildcard.
Let's say the Dodgers take down the Cardinals, and Phillies beat the Cubs. The Dodgers will take on the Phillies in the NLCS.
I think the Red Sox beat out the Yankees in seven games, and the Phillies take down the Dodgers.
Give me the Red Sox over the Phillies.
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