Pre-Season Predictions

Spring Training is a great time of year for baseball fans. Baseball scores return again to the ESPN bottom line, fantasy baseball drafts are stressfully being completed, and player performance in these meaningless spring-training games are over-hyped. That's a valuable piece of information - don't get overly excited/nervous about the results of a spring training game. However that's not what I'm here to talk to you about, today at least.



I'm writing simply to put my predictions in stone. It's always fun (if you are patient enough) to wait till the end of the season and see how horrific your predictions were (or amazing if your me). Anyways, so here's my preseason predictions:



Al East

1st - BoSox: rotation vaults them over the Yankees

2nd - Yankees: they will once again be vying for the wild card this year

3rd - Blue Jays: they are an average team, but if rotation stays healthy will be an above-average club

4th - Rays: great young rotation, will tkae third place next year

5th - Orioles: nothing happening in Baltimore



Al Central

1st - Indians: Solid everywhere, just edge Tigers

2nd - Tigers: beast lineup and solid pitching, but too many players had career years

3rd - White Sox: traded away their future for a non-existent present

4th - Twins: Liriano, Mauer, Morneau keep them from being worst

5th - Royals: players still young and immature



Al West

1st - Angels: pretty solid all-around, weak division helps

2nd - Mariners: great front two, after that weak rotation and lineup

3rd - A's: even if healthy, they're a few years away

4th - Rangers: their Gm is the Isiah Thomas of the MLB (to an extent)



Nl East

1st - Mets: it pains me, but they will most-likely will pull it off

2nd - Phillies: can't compete with their pitching

3rd - Braves: same as Phils

4th/5th - Marlins and Nationals: honestly no one cares who comes in what



Nl Central

1st - Cubbies: just edge Brewers

2nd - Brewers: rotation simply a notch worse

3rd - Astros: after Oswalt pitching isn't there

4th - Reds: going in the right direction at least

5th - Cardinals: they have the look of a spiraling team

6th - Pirates: Glad I'm not a Pirates fan, all I have to say



Nl West - Toughest to predict

1st - Rockies - last year was a little flukey, but they are still the best

2nd - D'Backs - great 1-2 punch with question marks after that, lineup extremely young and unproven, yet very talented

3rd: Dodgers: no, not because of Torre, rather their solid lineup and decent rotation

4th - Padres: rotation isn't great after Peavy and Young, and their line-up isn't any better than last year's

5th - Giants: lineup will be one of worst all time, rotation has some intriguing young stars