American League East
The division often coined as the best division in professional sports will send its requisite two teams to the playoffs, but the storied Yankees-Red Sox rivalry will clearly swing to the Red Sox's favor. With stellar top to bottom pitching from the rotation to the bullpen complimented with new arrivals Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford, the Sox will run away with this division early and make a chase a the best single season record with 114 wins. The Yankees will hold on to the wild card after outlasting a surprisingly good Toronto Blue Jays squad. The Rays will take a step much further back than most expect due to a young pitching sophomore slump an frequent bullpen implosions. The Orioles show signs of life under Buck Showalter but can't overcome the talent gap.
American League Central
The Twins, keeping their division champion team mostly intact, ride the momentum of an increasingly healthy Justin Morneau to take the division, but barely edge out the Chicago White Sox, who enjoy an offensive revival with the addition of Adam Dunn, but lose ground due to surprisingly bad years by starting pitchers John Danks, Gavin Floyd and Jake Peavy. Despite some marquis names in Miguel Cabrera and Justin Verlander, the Tigers woefully underachieve, prompting GM Dave Dombrowski to consider a fire-sale by the trading deadline. The Royals mirror the Orioles season except with more talent upside, and fans of Cleveland Indians suffer through such a bad season that they yearn for the good old days when LeBron left their team, stabbing themselves with kitchen utensils every time C.C. Sabathia and Cliff Lee throw a stellar game.
American League West
The Angels, due to some mind-boggling offseason moves (losing out on Carl Crawford, trading for Vernon Wells and his historically bad contract), further cede the division to the now resurgent Rangers, who weather the loss of Cliff Lee surprisingly well. The Oakland A's show signs of life with a handful of shrewd signings plus a stellar young pitching staff which begins to looks strikingly similar to the one across the Bay. Seattle, initially gleeful after trading flotsam to the Phillies for Cliff Lee last year and then flipping him in the midseason for "can't miss prospect" Justin Smoak, sadly realize that Smoak isn't much better than the flotsam they traded to the Phillies. Karma further rolls in when Felix Hernandez develops elbow trouble and has to be shut down with two months left in the season.
National League East
Contrary to what some in the Philadelphia metropolitan areas believe, the "four aces" actually lose a few games... and they'll actually lose more than a few, disappointing many with a good, but not great regular season. Offensive woes and "merely pretty good" starting pitching prevent the Phillies from running away with the division, but they manage to edge out the Atlanta Braves, who fare just fine in their first year of life after Bobby Cox. The Marlins young pitching shows the potential to dominate, but fizzles due to a collection of injuries. The Nationals and Mets dual in a feisty battle to not finish in last place, with the Mets pulling it out with a late season win in which they allow Bernie Madoff (wearing an ankle bracelet) throw out the first pitch.
National League Central
The Cubs show signs that this could be the year, barely hiding their glee around the a series of arch rival Cardinals injuries (e.g. Adam Wainwright, Chris Carpenter) and the prospect of poaching "greatest player in the world" Albert Pujols away from them. Unfortunately for the Cubs, the opportunity slips them by as offensive ineptitude led by Carlos Pena, Aramis Ramirez and Alfonso Soriano dooms them to mediocrity. The Cardinals also stumble, unable overcome the injuries and distractions of a potential Pujols departure, after he rejects an offer giving him half the city of St. Louis, plus his choice of waterfront towns across the river in Southern Illinois. The Astros surge to surprising contention until realizing that it's been 12 months since they've traded a star player to the Phillies (see Billy Wagner, Brad Lidge, Roy Oswalt), decide to yet again "build for the future" by trading Hunter Pence for two minor league prospects. Cincinnati will fall back to earth after their banner year last year. The Pittsburgh Pirates, sensing chaos in the division consider seizing the opportunity until they realize that they're the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Brewers, despite mediocre initial results from newcomers Zach Greinke and Shawn Marcum take the NL Central behind huge offensive years from Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun. Fielder dampens the celebration by continuously saying things like, "When I'm out of this godforsaken place next year, I'm really going to relish this run..."
National League West
The Dodgers have the talent and are positioned to ride emerging superstar pitcher Clayton Kershaw to topple the defending champion Giants, but are doomed by rookie manager Don Mattingly's inability to manage a bullpen effectively, largely due to Mattingly's mentor's inability to manage a bullpen effectively. The Padres find themselves irrelevant again, with the fans realizing that with beautiful weather and great beaches, there's no need to pay money to subject themselves to lousy baseball. The Rockies stay competitive due to great years by Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki, but lose too many 10-8 and 15-7 games with no pitching outside of Ubaldo Jimenez. The Diamondbacks suffer under regressions by Chris Young and Stephen Drew, and are saved from the basement only by the Padres. The Giants enjoy a fairly clear ride to another division crown, save for another marijuana-possession incident from Tim Lincecum, leading to an unintentionally hilarious MLB public service ad where Lincecum looks into the camera after throwing a pitch and says, "If you want your stuff to stay hot - keep away from pot."
PLAYOFFS
Division Series: Red Sox over Twins
Yankees over Rangers
Phillies over Dodgers
Milwaukee over Giants
Championship Series: Red Sox over Yankees
Phillies over Milwaukee
World Series: Phillies over Red Sox
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment