I always find crazy players the most fun to follow, especailly when they aren’t causing problems on my own team(s). Maybe that’s why I’ve followed guys like Milton, Artest, and SJax so closely over their career, because they will provide you some entertainment, and plenty of WTF moments if you watch them enough. Earlier today in a game that’s still going on, Big Z gave up four runs in the first, and was taken out of the game after getting in the face of one of my favorite guys in the league, Derrek Lee (If you’re curious why he’s one of my favorites read this post) and pretty much anyone else that was in the dugout. I’m with the annoucers on this, I’d love to see D Lee and Big Z in the octagon! I had to get something Cubs related up for Dyslecix’s birthday today, too bad it ended up being a lowlight… Don’t be shocked if the video gets taken down… I’ve already talked about how the MLB copywright laws grind my gears…
Tag Archives: MLB
Doin MLB Power Rankings
We had some very nice weather for Memorial Day weekend in California, which is probably why we didn’t get anything posted on the blog. As the ever so powerful NBA marketing campaign has taught me, we need to get back to the top of our game. So I’m back at the computer to dish out some MLB power rankings. San Diego, Cincy, and Oakland are by far the biggest surprises in the MLB as they all hold their respective divisional leads, and nobody saw that coming. If you did, you’re a liar! It was quite an eventful weekend, and maybe if you were camping you might not have known that Roy Halladay threw a perfect game or that the Lakers and Celtics are squaring off in the NBA Finals for another classic, yippee… Anyways, here’s who I see as the top 16 teams in the league.
#1 Tampa Bay Rays (34-17)
They may have struggled a little lately. Being swept by Boston and going 4-6 over their last ten isn’t encouraging, but they have to be tested sooner or later to see if they are indeed for real. It’s a long season, and that three game lead they have in the division could disappear quickly with everyone in the AL East playing well. I think they need Pena to hit a little better than .177, and the rest of their lineup has been in a little bit of a lull. I’m sure they will start hitting again. I don’t see any Phillies like slumps coming on.
#2 New York Yankees (31-20)
The Yankees are starting to put up some runs and wins in bunches. They’ve only lost one series this whole season, and whenever you see them on your teams schedule, you are worried. I almost put them atop my rankings, but just couldn’t talk myself into it since they are three games back. The Yankees have a cakewalk in June, so don’t be surprised to see them atop the AL East by the end of the month.
#3 Minnesota Twins (31-20)
I dismissed the Twins in our predictions for the season, but when fantasy drafts came around I was all in on guys like Morneau, Mauer, and Span for all my leagues. Seems like they love their new digs. They are 19-9 in their brand new Target Field. Nick Blackburn just finished off an amazing month going 5-0 with a 2.49 era. Twins are finally liking that extension they gave him. I still can’t figure out why I didn’t see them as this good when the year started.
#4 San Diego Padres (31-20)
How do the Padres have the best record in the NL going into June? It’s a loaded question. Are they a $38 million team, built for now!?! I’ll go out on a limb and say no, but the future is as bright as the sunshine in SD. What’s amazing is they could conceivable take on some big names around the trade deadline instead of shopping AGon and Heath Bell around like we all thought they would be doing. Matt Latos went 4-1 in May with a ridiculous 1.49 ERA. Looks like they got a pretty good pitcher from Chicago in the Peavy deal. Continue reading
Who Had These Guys Leading the Way….
It’s always fun to watch the League Leaders in various statistical categories early on. You have to take everything with a grain of salt, but we’re now over a quarter of the way through the season. It’s still to early to mean anything long-term, but over here at Doin Work, it’s time to play with the numbers and see where some of these under the radar guys may end up at the end of the year (but probably not). Some notable statistical leaders through 44 games….
AMERICAN LEAGUE
- ERA – 1. Doug Fister, SEA 1.96 (on pace for…. 12 Wins, 100 Ks. Not very exciting)
- Wins – 1. David Price, TB 7-1 (on pace for 28-4 record, 184 Ks)
- Strikeouts – 1. Jered Weaver, ANA 68 Ks (on pace for 272. would be the highest season total since Randy Johnson’s 290 in 2004)
- Home Runs – 1t. Jose Bautista, TOR and Paul Konerko, CHW 14 (on pace for 56 each. not very likely)
- RBI – 1. Miguel Cabrera, DET 40 (on pace for 160. hasn’t been done since Sammy Sosa in 2001)
- Stolen Bases – 1. Juan Pierre, CHW 18 (on pace for 72. *yawn* remember when guys would break 100?)
NATIONAL LEAGUE
- ERA – 1. Ubaldo Jimenez, COL 0.99 (on pace for definitely not that)
- Wins – 1. Ubaldo Jimenez, COL 8-1 (on pace for an incredible 32-4. some throwback numbers)
- Strikeouts – 1. Tim Lincecum, SF 75 (on pace for 300. would be the first to do so since 2002)
- Home Runs – 1. Kelly Johnson, ARI and Dan Uggla, FLA 12 (on pace for 48 each. i’d love to see a couple 2Bs lead the NL in HR)
- RBI – 1. Casey McGehee, MIL 39 (on pace for 156. just seeing someone other than Fielder or Braun leading the team would be crazy enough)
- Stolen Bases – 1. Michael Bourn, HOU 15 (on pace for 60. Rickey Henderson stole 60 bases in his sleep in 1988)
Free Roy Oswalt
I’m not usually a fan of public trade demands, but this one was neither public, nor a demand. Oswalt, or his agent to be exact, asked Astros owner, Drayton McLane to be traded recently. This isn’t your typical problem child trying to pass blame on his organization. We’re talking about a standup guy, a real quality player here. Oswalt is in his 10th big league season with the Astros and has done nothing but anchor their rotation for the entire decade. He has a career record of 139-76 and a 3.21 ERA. He’s got an NLCS MVP under his belt, is a three-time All-Star, and has finished in the top 5 in Cy Young voting 5 of his 10 seasons. You don’t hear much from him, which is a good thing. But the guy’s 32, and his team is clearly on the fast track to nowhere. It’s time for Houston to let him go to a contender for the latter part of his career. GM Ed Wade says he wants to win with Oswalt on the team. Clearly that isn’t going to happen this year. Houston has the second worst record in baseball, and the worst in the National League. When a veteran who is your best player wants out, it’s time to honor that request. Oswalt ranks 5th in strikeouts, 7th in innings pitched, and 10th in ERA in the National League. All nine of his starts have been quality starts, yet he has a 2-6 record, thanks to the lowest run support in the NL. Memo to McLane and Wade….. your team isn’t going anywhere this year, or the next to be precise. Don’t hold the guy hostage. Again, this is very atypical coming from 
me, but I think Oswalt has kept himself in line for a solid decade and has done nothing but go out and play the game. If he wants to be somewhere else, you’ve got to honor that request. I swear none of this has to do with Oswalt being on my fantasy team. I’d love to see a few more W’s to go with his otherwise stellar numbers – don’t get me wrong. I just think some solid prospects would be a lot more beneficial to the Astros’ future than Oswalt is. Poor Roy is getting Munsoned down there in Houston and he really deserves to be somewhere else…. like, say,…. Oakland.
Doin MLB Power Rankings
It’s been a few weeks since we had our last power rankings up, and the landscape has changed a little now that we are about 1/5th of the way through the season. There were a few teams that fell out of the rankings, and some that moved up from the first power rankings we did. I’m really pumped that I haven’t had to put the Angels on the list. I think as long as Fuentes stays their closer that will help keep them off the list. Anyways, here’s how the top 16 shaking out.
#1 Tampa Bay Rays (22-10) – Getting zero hits and zero runs in one game doesn’t lose you the top spot, especially when it was the first time they lost two straight on the road all season, and it took perfection to do it. The Rays worst starter ERA is Wade Price’s 3.18, and is the reason they are doing so well. We will see if they can hold up when they start playing in their division more. If the Yankees hadn’t mirrored their losses, I may have moved the Rays down a spot.
#2 New York Yankees (21-10) – They’ve only lost one out of ten series they’ve played in this season.
Maybe if Brett Gardner played a little better they might be number one, haha, just kidding. I’m pretty shocked how good Gardner is doing, and if he keeps it up I’ll be mad I didn’t pick him up for the fantasy team. Swisher has been great lately too, which makes me somewhat root for them, because I love my former A’s players. They’ve lost a couple in a row, but there are no concerns in NY now that Texiera seems to finally be seeing the ball.
#3 Philadelphia Phillies (20-12) –After taking three of four from the Cards, and playing ten days in a row going 8-2 makes me think they must be the best team in the NL right now. Jason Werth wants that huge contract this winter hitting .329 with 26 RBI’s already! Their starting pitching is doing well as of late too only giving up 8 earned runs over their last six games.
#4 Minnesota Twins (21-11) – No Mauer, no problem. Wilson Ramos seems like he belongs as someone’s backstop in the league. He might be able to take up a few extra games behind the plate sliding Mauer to the DH more often, so he can stay a little fresher. I don’t see why not with the way Ramos burst onto the scene last week (10 hits in his first three games). The Twins pitching has been better than I expected. They are +48 in run differential, and have allowed the sixth fewest runs, a good recipe for success.
#5 San Diego Padres (19-12) – I along with everyone are wondering when will they fade? Not anytime soon, if their pitching keeps going the way it has. They are tied with the Giants for the fewest runs allowed (97). They don’t hit for average or power, but they do lead the league in stolen bases, and seem to push the right buttons in their small ball approach. When Adrian Gonzalez starts heating up, watch out NL West! Continue reading
Welcome to Relevancy, Braden
- The 209 hasn’t gotten this much love since Celly Cel’s 1998 heater, “The Bay”
Last week, Dallas Braden was only known outside of Northern California as the guy who called A-Roid out. The guy who has accomplished nothing in his major league career, but was blasting one of the game’s highest profile stars in the media. Many outside of the Bay Area simply shook their heads saying, “who is this guy to call out A-Rod?” But then, to the surprise of everyone, Braden comes out and throws just the 19th perfect game in the history of baseball, and the ultimate “what now” to Rodriguez. A-Rod’s last comments were that he didn’t want to extend Braden’s 15 minutes of fame. Well, Braden’s going to have more than 15 minutes now. He accomplished the rarest feat in all of sports, something A-Rod will never do. Sure, Rodriguez tied Frank Robinson on the all-time Home Run list, but you can win $2 on a lottery ticket 500 times and it doesn’t stack up to winning the jackpot. Here’s a rundown of all the publicity Dallas Braden is garnering now….
It is (Un)Writ: Dallas Braden Has Spoken – Jeff Mac Gregor, Espn.com
Dallas Braden’s Perfect Approach – Jerry Crasnick, Espn.com
Remembering When Braden Was a (non)Prospect – Rob Neyer, Espn.com (Rob Neyer is one of the few writers who knows anything about the A’s)
Before Braden Got the Win, Grandma Got the Save – Scott Ostler, San Francisco Chronicle
True Rival For Yankees in Words and Deeds – New York Times (This one’s good. Apparently the Yankees are too good for the Red Sox now, so at least maybe Braden and the A’s can provide a challenge for them!)
Braden’s Perfect Game Drags A-Rod Into Spotlight Again – Mike Vaccaro, New York Post (This one’s even better. This clown makes Braden’s perfect game all about A-Rod)
Nothing Perfect About Rays Against Lefties – Joe Henderson, Tampa Tribune (It’s more about the Rays, and rightfully so. But c’mon Joe. A perfect game is all about the pitcher, not the hitters)
Braden’s Mother’s Day Gift Is Perfect- Jeff Passan, Yahoo Sports (I don’t know that I’d kick it with Passan in real life, but I like him on paper. He does his homework and always comes correct)
Braden’s Perfecto Could’ve Ended On An Unwritten Rule Violation – Duk, Yahoo Sports (Let’s not play dumb. Everyone knows you don’t bunt to break up a no hitter. But, in fairness to the Rays, “YOU PLAY TO WIN THE GAME”, so I don’t blame Longoria. I’m just glad he didn’t succeed)
More On Dallas Braden’s Perfect Game
Normally I wouldn’t piggyback on Chappy’s post on the same subject, but today’s gem by Dallas Braden is just too significant on too many levels for me to pass up. The obvious part is that he dons the green and gold. I’ve been a lifelong A’s fan and this is the first perfect game by an Athletic in my lifetime. The only other one was Catfish Hunter’s in 1968. It also helps that Braden has been making a lot of noise in the media as a result of his encounter with Alex Rodriguez. While most baseball traditionalists agreed with Braden’s sentiments, many others were asking, “Who is Dallas Braden?” Even A-Rod dusted off Braden’s objections because he “only has a handful of wins.” I get that, but it doesn’t matter who you are at that point. I was hoping that Braden would have a good season to back up his comments a little bit, but I never could have begun to hope for this. I’m pretty sure everyone in baseball knows who he is now.
What many people don’t know – or at least didn’t before today – is Braden lost his mother to cancer in high school. So, to accomplish this feat on Mother’s Day is an amazing tribute. Though, while she wasn’t at the stadium to witness it today, his grandmother was, and he shared an emotional hug with her in front of the dugout after the game. He also had the support of his usual Stockton contingent, or section 209, which is also the area code of Stockton.
Dallas Braden was never supposed to be a factor in the big leagues. He was a 24th round draft pick of the A’s in 2004. I remember seeing his major league debut in 2007. I thought, who is this guy with the flat bill on his cap? He won his first decision, but finished the season with a 1-8 record. When I moved from the Bay Area to Sacramento in the middle of the season, Braden also was sent down to AAA-Sacramento. He wasn’t exactly dominant, but he did show signs of brilliance, in particular when he struck out 17 batters in a game late that season. Over the next season, he looked like he was going to be mired in the minor leagues for life, but he kept working, and there’s one thing you can say about Braden, he’s all business on the field. As a result, Braden has proved over the course of the last season and a half that he belongs. Today though, he proved more than that.
Who is Trying to Kill the A’s? Selig? Wolff? The Giants? Or the City of Oakland?
A common sight at the Coliseum, empty seats.
It’s no secret; the A’s have needed a new stadium for the past 15 years. What’s crazy is there’s still a few cracks from the 89 earthquake. I’ve wanted to break down the whole A’s moving somewhere situation, but I knew it would be a long winded effort. Since the Raiders moved back into town, the Oakland Coliseum has been less than adequate for a baseball team. Brad Ziegler recently tweeted that he was disappointed in the fans for not coming out, and why wouldn’t he be? The A’s sported the lowest attendance in all of baseball averaging a measly 17,392 per game last year. This year they’ve only played 15 games, but still have only averaged 17,056 per game. Ziggy later tweeted “I understand some come in late, but it’s frustrating to be at this level and know that at Triple-A (Rivercats), there are twice as many fans at the game.” I’ve been to both stadiums, and sadly it’s true, the Rivercats are a bigger draw in Sacramento than the A’s are in Oakland, and the crowd is probably louder in Sac too for AAA games. It’s also a reason Mceezy and I feel they would be a nice fit in Sacramento, but the feeling there seems to be that it’s too small of a market to support an MLB franchise. The Rivercats stadium was built in a way that it can be added on to easily, but I’m sure A’s Owner, Lew Wolff, has looked into that option, and most other possible options over the past seven plus years he’s been looking for a new stadium deal. The former owners pretty much sold Wolff the teams majority stake, because they were tired of getting rejected on their new stadium proposals. The saddest part is, that the few fans that are showing up, are being thrown out if they have negative signs ala Washington Redskins style. I don’t buy that Lew Wolff is a Sam Presti, so we can squash that rumor that he hasn’t tried in the city of Oakland. He wants to keep the team in the area, so I think or I’m sure he would’ve tried to move them. He reportedly released a 227 page book on his efforts to stay in Oakland from 2003-2006 when the Freemont deal sort of went through. Either way, the A’s need a new stadium somewhere, and whether that’s going to be in Oakland or not remains to be seen. Continue reading
The Public is High on the A’s and Giants
Some Nielson Ratings came out telling us the story on the popularity of the first three weeks of baseball. Low and behold the Giants and A’s were found to be the “sentimental” favorites in thier ratings. In scores out of a possible 5 the Giants registered in first place at a 4.5, and the A’s were 2nd place at 4.2. The scoring for this Nielson rating was based on the amount of “positive” and “negative” things that people are saying online about the teams. I’m sure this has to do with the simple fact that both teams were leading their divisions going into that week. The fans and media are fickle, so I don’t see this lasting all year, but it was cool to see that 20% of things said about the Giants were positive, and 18% of things said about the A’s were positive with only 1-2% of negative things being said about either team. The rest was neutral. I’m sure there’s some more “negative” posts on the A’s for this coming week that will be bringing their score back down with multiple injuries and a losing streak, although I’m not sure if they count that as neutral or negative. I was just happy to see a non-doin work article that put the Giants and A’s #1, and #2.
Doin MLB Power Rankings
We now we have three solid weeks of baseball action in the books, and it looks like it’s time to look at how the top 16 teams stack up. MCeezy did a premature power rankings four games into the year, and it looks like that will likely be the last time the Giants and A’s lead the way. I’d love to see Battle of the Bay Part II, but unsurprisingly I don’t see anyway that would happen.
#1 Tampa Bay Rays – Nobody should be surprised to see the Rays playing so well or at the top of the rankings. We knew they could score runs, but we didn’t know that they’d have Garza and Price dominating the way they have! The Rays are 9-1 on the road including a sweep of the ailing Red Sox. They are trying to make a push in what could be the final year they are all together. I hope they do, and that’s why I picked them to win it all!
#2 Minnesota Twins – Who needs Joe Nathan!?!
Is this the Bash Brothers Version 2.0?
Losing him hasn’t hurt them on their way to one of their best starts in recent memory at 13-6. Rauch has been a huge pickup for fantasy teams, and has been great for the Twins closing out games. Justin Morneau looks like he’s finally healthy and back to his old MVP form. Mauer wants to continue off his stellar 2009 campaign, and has kept that MVP form thus far. Maybe Nike should look into getting these two guys some MVPuppet commercials.
#3 New York Yankees – They just lost their first series of the year, but this biggest concern should be Vasquez, who has been terrible donning the pinstripes compared to his solid 2009 season in Atlanta. It’s just reminding us that moving from the NL to the AL East isn’t a good move (see Brad Penny). Tex still isn’t hitting, but he will eventually…
#4 St. Louis Cardinals – Speaking of Penny, going from the Sox to the Cards seems to have helped him regain his form (3-0, 0.95 ERA). They’ve have great offensive players that don’t need to be mentioned, and now a trio of solid pitchers. Even Piniero is pitching well. Dave Duncan know how to mold pitchers to their strengths!
#5a Oakland Athletics – 12-8 doesn’t seem like that noteworthy of a start, but there is noway before the season started you could convince me that they would be atop the west for this much of April or any of it for that matter. Since 1992, they have only started 12-8 once, so there’s some reason for renewed but reserved optimism in Oakland. Their new style of play has them winning sooner than expected. Lots of injuries already though, and hopefully it’s not a sign that 2007-09 injury plagued seasons are going to continue. Gio has the highest ERA of 3.68 out of all their starters, which is amazing! This stat sums up the main reason they lead the league in starters ERA, and are close enough to win any given game.
#5b. San Diego Padres – Bud Black seems to have his guys playing some great baseball. This is the second team in a row that everyone, including myself, had very low expectations for. You may want to call their owner Uncle Scrooge with their $38M payroll, but the guys in there are playing smart, and have been opportunistic on the base paths, and helped them score some runs! It’s surprising how good their offense has been, and just like the A’s they are stealing bases, and have guys hitting for good averages. We will see if that starting pitching can hold up… Continue reading
Alex Does Dallas Dirty
Yesterday Dallas Braden got a little peeved when A-Rod broke an unspoken baseball rule by running across the mound. Robinson Cano was at the plate and hit a foul ball and A-Rod went from 1st to 3rd. A-Rod returned to first base by running across the top of the mound, and Braden was furious about the action, and after Cano grounded out on the next play Braden had to be pulled/escorted off the field by A’s Manager Bob Geren as he tossed out some lyrical pitches in the form of f-bombs in A-Rod’s direction. Here’s the analysis from Harold Reynolds on MLBTV. After the game, Braden spoke of the unspoken rule that the pitcher owns the mound, and no player should be on the mound besides the pitcher out of respect. Here is some of the he said she said that went on…
A-Rod told reporters “He just told me to get off his mound. I was a little surprised. I’ve never quite heard that, especially from a guy that has a handful of wins in his career. I’ve never even heard of that in my career and I still don’t know. I thought it was pretty funny, actually.
Braden had a little more to say about getting so fired up, “The long and short of it is it’s pretty much baseball etiquette. He should probably take a note from his captain over there,” referring to Yankees leader Derek Jeter, “because you don’t run across the pitcher’s mound in between an inning or during the game. I was just dumbfounded that he would let that slip his mind. I was just trying to convey to him that I was still out there, that ball’s in my hand and that’s my pitcher’s mound. If he wants to run across the pitcher’s mound, tell him to go do laps in the bullpen. That’s my mound … He’s right. I don’t even have a handful of wins. I have three. Do the math A-Rod.”
I think Braden may have over reacted a little, but it’s not like A-Rod is a guy that’s known for his etiquette. Many recall the incident in Toronto when he yelled Ha rounding third base causing the 3rd baseman to drop the ball. The only problem I have with A-Rod is taking a shot at Braden’s win loss total. If he is that insignificant, you don’t need to say it, we all know how many wins he has. I said about a week ago that, Braden is a gamer, he’s the type of fiery competitor you love to have on your team. He was getting over a sickness so maybe that is what made him extra cranky.
Are the A’s For Real? I Like What I See So Far!
The A’s opened up their season with nearly every expert picking them to finish dead last in the AL West. I personally have VERY low expectations going into this season, and since they usually struggle out the gate, I figured this April would be just as rough as years past. Even back when they were winning the division crowns, they were always dubbed a second half team. Another reason for pessimism for my beloved A’s was that they are the youngest roster in the league, which usually calls for lots of growing pains. I’m not going to say that this 6-2 start makes them a lock to win the west or even a .500 ballclub, but I know that they have the potential to stay out of the cellar. A lot of the “experts” picked the Mariners and Angels to win the West. Most liked the M’s because of the big off season moves, and the Angels because they are always there over the last decade. They still could be right, but after watching both the first series between the two teams, I have to say I’m impressed with the grittiness that this years’ A’s squad has. If chicks dig the long ball, then there won’t be many in the A’s clubhouse, but if chicks dig good pitching and defense we could have the next Playboy mansion in the works.
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m probably way too overly excited about the 5-2 start, but it finally got me inspired enough to write a late preview about the club. The A’s easily could’ve swept the Mariners in their opening series, if they hadn’t committed four errors in that first game they could’ve beaten Seattle’s best pitcher, King Felix. The most inspiring part about watching them so far, sans game 1, is their ability to continue to put up runs during the game. They’ve scored in nearly 30% of their innings this year, which is a good way to win. They are supposed to have a good defense, and have played pretty good aside from opening nights four error performance. Pennington and Kouzmanoff are much better defensively than I thought they were, and now that our outfield is Cust free (I’ll get back to Cust getting cut later), we don’t have to give up an out a game wherever he happened to be. This is a grind it out team, and even this early in the year it feels like they are never out of a game. They have been behind in five of their eight games and comeback to win four of them. Continue reading
Premature Power Rankings
The first 5 days of the season are in the books. Time to rank the top 5 teams….
1. San Francisco Giants: You may never see me put the Giants atop any rankings ever again. But, for as long as they’re undefeated, they’ll remain in the top spot here. There was no question about SF’s pitching, but the bats have come through early, as the G’s are outscoring their opponents,23-10 thus far.
2. Oakland Athletics: No hometown bias here, I swear. The A’s are 3-1, soon to be 4-1. (They’re up 7-2 late in the 6th in Anaheim). After a setback in the season opener, the A’s rattled off three straight to take a 3-1 record into first place in the AL West.
3. St. Louis Cardinals: Two of three from the Reds and game one of the Brewers’ series earns the Cards the number three spot in our rankings.
4. Tampa Bay Rays: They’re no match for the mighty Bay Area teams, but they took two of three from Baltimore, and the first game of their weekend series with the Yankees.
5. Detroit Tigers: Don’t be surprised to see the Tigers sitting atop the AL Central at 5-1 after their weekend series with the Indians.
Doin MLB Predictions
I think part of college is passing out with Sister Cleo telling you to call around 3-4AM. Bust out those Tarot Cards Cleo! I need to make my predictions!
Just like anyone else, we like to be right about things, and what better way to see if we can predict the future as good as Sister Cleo than to put them in writing. We’ve decided to put up our predictions on a new tab as we make them, so it’s easy for the readers to refer back and laugh in our faces. At the end hopefully one of us can claim the coveted “I called it” moment at the end of the year. Who knows, maybe nobody will get anything right, but if that’s the case it would be one of the wackiest seasons we’ve ever seen, and unlike Cleo, we don’t have tarot card! It’s a long year, and we could look pretty ridiculous by the end, but here’s how we see the division and wild card winners, World Series, MVP’s, Cy Young’s, and top stat categories for each league playing out.
AL East Winner:
Mceezy: New York Yankees – No reason to suggest anything would change here.
Chappy: New York Yankees – No surprises here. The defending champs look as good as last year, and could be the first team to go back to back since, well, themselves.
By: Boston Red Sox – Why? Because I hate the Yankees, ’nuff said.
Dyslecix: Boston Red Sox – Meh….something about the Yankees getting it done back to back doesn’t feel right.
Cali4dre: NY Yankees. Once they move Granderson up to leadoff for good, they will be unstoppable from 1-6 and they’re 7-9 will still be better than half of MLB’s 3-5 hitters. Not to mention they’re pitching is very solid, and frankly the coach could be an orangutan and still be successful but it’s not, it’s a very serviceable Joe Girardi.
AL Central Winner
Chappy: Chicago White Sox – I just have this weird feeling that they will be good. Not that I’m overly confident in Rios and Peavy, but they are pretty solid up and down. The Tigers are talented, but don’t ever seem to put it together. I feel like the Twins will have more problems with injuries than Nathan going down for the season.
Mceezy: Detroit Tigers – I think they get big years from Cabrera and Verlander, and there’s no clear frontrunner in the Central.
By: Minnesota Twins – Why? Because Joe Mauer went to Cabo with the Playstation guy!
Dyslecix: Minnesota Twins – Not sold on the White Sox or Detroit the Twins are always there.
Cali4Dre: Detroit Tigers. The pitching staff is strong and young at the top, with Verlander and Porcello ready to carry the load. The offense is still pretty strong… love Austin Jackson as fantastic replacement for Grandy. Magglio’s bat looks to be back, Cabrera is sober, and Sizemore will be another great rookie-producer on this team. This is the year they get it together and hold off a weak Twins and White Sox combo. Continue reading
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