It is in the air. The atmosphere seems to have improved. The sun seems to be shining better. There seems to be an aura of happiness surrounding us. There’s only one explanation for this: Its baseball season. Here we are in April 2012, about to start another insane year of baseball, attempting to follow up one of the greatest seasons of baseball we’ve ever experienced. The September leading to the playoffs was incredible, the postseason was chock full of surprises, and don’t get me started on the World Series.
And to now add a Wild Card team, give cellar franchises some actual life (Miami Marlins, Washington Nationals, Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Dodgers), and major players getting bounced around everywhere (The American League is even tougher now) and we have a highly anticipated season that can’t quite possibly have a predetermined finish line. The beauty of baseball is that anybody can beat anybody, and you can name a dozen teams that if the right pieces fall into place they can end up in the World Series and win it all.
Nonetheless, here I am with the predictions for the season. I will go division by division and start with the American League and move on from there. Alright, I know it late but here we go.
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The teams I believe that will make the postseason will have the picture next to my prediction of their season.
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AL East
1) Tampa Bay Rays
This looks bad because of my fanfare surrounding this team, it honestly does. The AL East is also a very nasty division to play in, as even my fourth place pick has a decent shot at rising to the top. But I don’t see the Yankees, whom didn’t make many moves, or the Red Sox, who are probably still trying to recover from last season’s utter self-destruct push for that top spot like the Rays. Baseball is a marathon, and what better way to survive then have a hardcore young rotation, a fresh mind in the manager position, and a few hitting veterans that can also provide extra defensive help? Carlos Pena came back, the underrated Luke Scott is here, and we have Molina as catcher. These sound like small pieces, but the Rays have always run on dozens of small pieces adding up to become a complete team that is the thorn on the sides of the heavy-spending competitors. If Jennings and Moore are as advertised, then there is no stopping the Rays. While their offense still lacks pop, the Rays will knock you out with pitching, defense, and strategy.
2) New York Yankees
Love or hate them, the Yankees seem to always be in the playoff hunt. Focusing their strategy on younger talent and smaller-profile players nowadays, the Yankees barely touched their core roster and remain essentially the same team as 2011. Nothing wrong with that, except their biggest opponents improved their squad significantly---the Rays, the Rangers, and especially the Tigers. The Yankees are the oldest team in baseball, its only a matter of time before you see a sharp decline in Jeter, Rivera, Pettite, Rodriguez, and others.
3) Boston Red Sox
The biggest collapse in the history of sports, the 2011 Red Sox will remain infamous because of their awful September and missing the playoffs by one strike. Doesn’t matter if you switched managers, doesn’t matter if you try to forget, the memory will linger in the organization for quite some time. Not many changes to the lineup will help your chances in a division that enjoys piling on the pain. I don’t see this team rising past third, although they have a legitimate shot at the second Wild Card. Bobby Valentine has a lot on his plate, and it will be a while before we see an imitation of the 2007 Red Sox—the team that is quietly awesome enough to win the whole thing.
4) Toronto Blue Jays
In any other division, the Blue Jays would be fighting for the top spot. They have the hitting, they have great fielding, and their pitching isn’t half-bad. But, it’s the American League East and having to play the Red Sox, Yankees, and Rays will diminish your win total no matter which way you look at it. Now, a great Spring Training may tell you something different, but for me the tape still reads: Good, but not that good.
5) Baltimore Orioles
See above explanation. The Orioles are in the nastiest division in baseball, and are far away from their late 90s days as a major threat to the league. They have an exceptional manager, so they can still shock and at least reach third place. But they need output from the higher-profile players, need to stay healthy, and just can’t have a paper-thin starting rotation. They need to also find a way to translate their second-half winning ways into the first half.
AL Central
1) Detroit Tigers
The easiest division in baseball meets one of the nastiest offenses the division has seen in recent years. Fielder and Cabrera together? Sounds amazing when playing offense, but defensively it’s going to become an issue. Bunt down the first base line and it will all make sense. The weakest infield defensively among the playoff hopefuls will lead to small ball veterans like the Rays and Yankees having a field day. At least the Tigers have the offense, and of course the pitching. Verlander is the top pitcher in baseball, and as long as he continues to dominate, there’s no reason why the Tigers couldn’t claim the division again.
2) Cleveland Indians
In the latest segment of God Hates Cleveland, the Indians lost another slew of key players before the season even begins. But, with the division being on the weak end they can still provide a nice push for the second place crown. At this rate, Cleveland Sports will take anything to erase the pain of The Decision. They will be exciting to watch, they will play scrappy ball, but are a few key players away from truly walking away with it all.
3) Minnesota Twins
Their reign of success is over unfortunately just as their new stadium was unveiled. Too many injuries, too many holes in their offense, and just not enough stuff to compete. With minimal movement in the offseason, with several lingering injury questions persisting, the Twins will remain in baseball purgatory at least through this season.
4) Kansas City Royals
Once upon a time, this team was deadly, this team could win championships. And once upon a time, they were a young upstart team with some pop. While both of those days are long gone we can’t escape the fact that the Royals do have a great minor league program with many potential stars lurking in the corner. They are like the Orioles of the AL Central, good young talent, just in a disjointed organization with minimal hope as of now.
5) Chicago White Sox
They lost the manager that kept them together, lost one of their star pitchers, and still are trying to bring life to Adam Dunn. There’s nothing positive going on in the South Side. They can still surprise, they can still deliver—but this will happen after this recovery season.
AL West
1) Texas Rangers
This team has been to the World Series two years in a row and was essentially one misplayed ball away from winning the entire thing. Now they are adding some more pitching and were able to keep the entire ballclub intact. Now, if that’s not a reason why they should repeat as champions again, I don’t know what else to tell you. They are the thorn to the side of the Rays, Yankees, and Tigers. If there is a team that looks poised to strike the World Series, its these guys.
2) Los Angeles Angels
Pulling out all the stops to pull a division crown from the clutches of Texas, the Angels nab great players—and then the incredible Pujols. That being said, Albert will learn that the American League is a different beast from the National—the pitchers here throw pure heat and will not back down from any challenge. The National League is all about strategy, the American League is pure brute force. That rude awakening will prevent Pujols from getting similar numbers, and if he doesn’t produce well, neither will the Angels.
3) Oakland Athletics
They are essentially like the Rays, all pitching no hitting. Even a random Manny Ramirez pick-up won’t contribute much. The difference is the Rays will beat you in multiple different ways. The Athletics lack that sort of flexibility. And until they can develop alternate ways of coping with their flaws like the Rays, the Athletics will remain nice and low in the standings.
4) Seattle Mariners
Their best player is an aging legend and a loan great pitcher in a weak rotation. The franchise is a long-shot from the good ol’ days of before and are in a very tough division. With the Astros arriving next year they will no longer sit in the bottom but as of now they have to take a brutal beating from a brutal division and become the best of the last-place squads in all of baseball.
The National League preview is coming soon...
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