AMERICAN LEAGUE PREVIEW
AL EAST
1- BOSTON RED SOX(AL CHAMPION)-
Strengths- Pitching depth, all areas…. Outstanding top 3 rotation… Very good minor league system(6-7 developed stars on the team over the last 5 yrs)… Best right side of the infield in the AL… Deep team… Upgrade at SS… Underrated Manager in Terry Francona.. Potentially great defensive team with upgrades at SS, 3B, CF and LF
Weaknesses- Average power, MUST hope David Ortiz hits 3-35 home runs and new 3B Adrian Beltre pops 20-25…. Health issues with 3 of the 6 top starting pitchers: Lackey, Wakefield, Dice K… Mike Lowell situation cannot help the locker room…. Play in the AL East
FEARLESS PREDICTION: C-1B-DH Victor Martinez has a big year and is a top 3 candidate for MVP
2- TAMPA BAY RAYS(WILD CARD)
Strengths: Overall team speed and athleticism… Huge upgrade at closer with Rafael Soriano… Great minor league system… Good Power,led by stud 3B Evan Longoria and AL home run champ Carlos Pena… Young, talented rotation…. Deep bench with call ups on the way …Excellent manager in Joe Maddon
Weaknesses: Young rotation in this division can hurt…. Soriano has had arm injuries… Potential trades of free agents to be Pena and LF Carl Crawford… Can be sloppy on defense.. Play in the AL East
3- NEW YORK YANKEES
Strengths: $$$$$$$…. Tremendous top level talent at 1b, 3b, #1 Starter and Closer…. $$$$$$$$… Premier left side of the infield in the AL…$$$$$$$… Greatly improved OF defense with Curtis Granderson and Brett Gardner playing almost everyday… $$$$$… Solid starting pitching depth with Javier Vasquez and Phil Hughes in the 4-5 slots…$$$$$$
Weaknesses: More A-Rod noise with the latest steriod story…. Can Joba Chamberlain handle the 8th inning role?… Older team…. Manager Joe Girardi is about as likeable as an executioner…Play in the AL East… I HATE THEM
4- BALTIMORE ORIOLES
Strengths: Quietly, one of the most improved teams in the majors… Added a top 3 starting pitcher (Kevin Milwood), closer(Mike Gonzalez) and a #5 hitter(3b Miguel Tejada) to one of the more talented young teams in the game…Brian Matusz is a potential stud starter… Solid lineup with speed, power and athletes… Premier young catcher in Matt Wieters… Skipper Dave Trembley is a well respected baseball man
Weaknesses: Young starters outside of Milwood and RH Jeremy Guthrie… Not a great defensive team… Homefield is a launching pad… Play in the AL East
PAY ATTENTION TO: Orioles RF Nick Markakis. Great, great player who has played in Baltimore, the AL euqivalent of the witness protection program. 5 tool talent and great kid, think of David Wright playing RF!
5- TORONTO BLUE JAYS
Strengths: Excellent young power combo in 2B Aaron Hill and DH Adam Lind…Made some wise moves over the last calendar year to enhance the rebuilding process… Excellent defensive SS in veteran Alex Gonzalez… Good baseball man in Cito Gaston running the show… Nice ballpark
Weaknesses: The less I say, the better…. Not a good team, little power or speed… Uncertain closer situation…. This market has been dead since the Strike of 1994… One of the worst contracts in MLB in CF Vernon Wells… Roy Halladay doesn’t pitch here anymore.. Play in the AL East
FEARLESS PREDICTION: Easily the worst team in the majors, playing in a brutal division with 4 teams I believe will finish above .500. If this team does not lose 100 games, I will be stunned. One bright spot? LH SP Ricky Romero. Lots of Labatt and Molson for my Canadian friends!
AL CENTRAL
1- CHICAGO WHITE SOX
Strengths: Potentially the best rotation in this division… Balanced line-up with veterans and kids… Enhanced speed with OF Juan Pierre…Bright young talent in 2B Gordon Beckham… Improved overall depth… Deep, talented bullpen with power arms… Dynamic GM in Kenny Williams
Weaknesses: Not a great defensive team… Strange to say this about the White Sox but do they have enough power?.. Manager Ozzie Guillen is always in the news and could implode at anytime… Top 3 starter Jake Peavy has not be exposed to the AL
2- MINNESOTA TWINS
Strengths: Solid starting pitching with depth…. Outstanding organization from top to bottom, led by manager Ron Gardenhire… Premier player in AL in C Joe Mauer…Excellent top 6 of the batting order… Pain in the butt leadoff man in CF Denard Span… Good team power… Subtle veteran signings in 2b Orlando Hudson and DH Jim Thome
Weaknesses: Devastating season ending injury to stud closer Joe Nathan(Tommy John Surgery)… No true #1 starter… 1b Justin Morneau has battled injuries and his bat is vital to this club’s success…Nathan’s injury depletes a talented set-up core… How does this team respond to a new ballpark?(See the 2009 New York Mets)
3- KANSAS CITY ROYALS
Strengths: #1 starter Zack Greinke and closer Joakim Soria… Greatly improved every day line-up with some free agents(OFs Rick Ankiel, Scott Podsednik and Jason Kendall) and trades(2b Chris Getz)… Underrated 1b Billy Butler… Presentable top 3 of the rotation with veteran Gil Meche, Brian Bannister and Greinke…. Solid skipper in Trey Hillman.. Deep bench with good role players… Decent team speed
Weaknesses: Losing culture… Not much power… 3b Alex Gordon, vital to this club’s rebuilding program, has missed almost all of Spring training with a broken thumb and will start the season on the DL… Bullpen has the AL’s worst ERA and highest walk rate
4- DETROIT TIGERS
Strengths: #1 starter Justin Verlander… Good infield defense on the left side led by SS Adam Everett and all star 3b Brandon Inge… Veteran OF signing Johnny Damon gives them a professional left handed bat and leadership… Bullpen should be solid due to signings and trades,led by new closer Jose Valverde… Pitching oriented team playing in a huge ball park… Rookie starters in CF(Austin Jackson) and at 2B(Scott Sizemore) look like solid contributors
Weaknesses: September collapse of 2009. Ask Mets fans how this carries over… For this payroll, you would think the team would have a much better offense. 2 Everyday outs at SS and C plus two rookies. Not a recipe for success in the AL. Seriously, outside of Oakland, find me a worse offense in the AL… #2 starter Rick Porcello threw a career high in innings last year by a mile. Could he pay for it in 2010? Max Scherzer is a talent but was a mess in the NL. Max, Its a little easier to pitch to David Bush than David Ortiz. Welcome to the AL!!!… 1b Miguel Cabrera must overcome his alcohol issues as well as win back fans after his late season arrest… Media worship aside, I do not think Jim Leyland is a great game manager. Locker room wise, he is fine but I would not trust this guy to manage a Wendys
EXPLAIN THIS TO ME: What was the Tigers off-season plan? Go young and cheap was the answer early. But.. ticket sales did not look good and WHAM the check book opened for Damon and Valverde. The club got a good package back for popular CF Curtis Granderson and SP Edwin Jackson but that move appeared to be about money. However, the late activity makes you wonder if Tigers management believes the CF has topped out. More puzzling was the club not even offering arbitration to 2b Placido Polanco(would have earned the Tigers a 1st rd draft pick as compensation), who was going to get good free agent offers. Then this week, they traded LH Nate Robertson to the Florida Marlins while eating 9.6 million of his 10 million dollar salary. I guess the Tigers think often injured Jeremy Bonderman and mess Dontrelle Willis(7.49 ERA in 7 2009 starts, 9.38 in 8 2008 games) are solid! I don’t even want to mention the insane move to pick-up RF Maglio Ordonez 18 million dollar option. You want to have fun Tigers fans? Play GM and figure out who you could have signed for 18 million this offseason. Not a good job by GM David Dombrowski.
DO THIS: Oakland As cut DH-1B-OF Jack Cust today, he would provide the Tigers with 3 things they could use: a left handed bat, power and walks. SIGN HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
5- CLEVELAND INDIANS
Strengths- In total rebuilding mode with 5-6 young kids in the everyday line-up. Absolutely no expectations here… Star CF Grady Sizemore looks healthy and is an elite player… Solid #1 starter in Jake Westbrook… Team is stacked with young talent after scoring several top minor leaguers in the past two seasons for SPs Cliff Lee and CC Sabathia as well as C Victor Martinez, hi-lighted by SP Justin Masterson, C Lou Marson and 1B Matt Laporta…. Manager Manny Acta is good with young kids. GREAT energy… RF Shin-Soo Choo is one of the better players you have not seen, 25 steals and homers reasonable for 2010
Weaknesses: Kids usually take time in the AL… Not much power… DH Travis Haffner cannot stay healthy… Back end of rotation could be horrible
AL WEST
1- LOS ANGELES ANGELS
Strengths: Solid team in all areas… Play like an NL team, speed, bunt, pressure the defense, field well… Bullpen has two potential closers in returnee Brian Fuentes and FA signee Fernando Rodney… Great skipper in Mike Scioscia… Bobby Abreu helped turn this team into a on base machine, the club wears pitchers out.. Division’s deepest rotation
Weaknesses: Not much power… Club Ks a lot… LH Scott Kazmir has battled arm issues most of his career but will start the season on the DL with a hamstring injury. It does not appear to be serious but this is not a good way to start the season… Losing staff leader and tough guy John Lackey as well as OF-DH Vlad Guerrero has to hurt
2- TEXAS RANGERS
Strengths: Exciting young team, lineup has balance , speed and defense… Very good power that should feature 5 regulars who will hit 20 home runs… Deep bullpen… Excellent farm system… Tremendous young defender in SS Elvis Andrus… Love new leadoff man Julio Borbon, who could lead the AL in runs or steals.. Decent rotation
Weaknesses: Do not like the starting pitching moves of the off-season, trading Milwood and signing injury prone enigma Rich Harden does not strike me as wise… Team Ks a ton… Off field situation with popular Manager Ron Washington…. Injury prone stars in 2b Ian Kinsler(on the DL to open the year) and CF Josh Hamilton
3- SEATTLE MARINERS
Strengths: The most improved team in all of baseball thanks to a great off-season by bold GM Jack Zduriencick, having added a co #1 starter (Cliff Lee), 2B(Chone Figgins), 1B (Casey Kotchman) and LF(Milton Bradley) in trades and free agency… One of the top 5 players in the game in Ichiro… Stud starter LH Felix Hernandez…. Oustanding defensive team, led by CF Franklin Gutierrez….. Good bullpen, led by waiver find David Aardsma
Weaknesses: No power…. Bradley is a talent but has played for more teams than Led Zeppelin. Can all of them be wrong?.. 3-4-5 spots in rotation unsettled… Need DH Ken Griffey to stay healthy and he is a 155…Bottom of lineup does not scare many
4- OAKLAND ATHLETICS
Strengths: C Kurt Suzuki is a solid player…Excellent bullpen, led by rookie of year Andrew Bailey…. OF Rajai Davis could lead the AL in steals… Team has gone young and has no expectations(see Cleveland).. Young starters showed some stones, led by Brett Anderson
Weaknesses: Worst offense in AL… Signed Ben Sheets for 10 million dollars. Coming off major arm injuries, not a fiscally responsible move… Small market team with major stadium and financial issues
SEASON AWARDS:
MVP- Evan Longoria, 3B, Tampa Bay Rays
CY YOUNG- Felix Hernandez, Seattle Mariners
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Brian Matusz, SP, Baltimore Orioles
