The 2008 MLB Predictions Thread

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

So technically the season is underway, but that's only because money-hungry MLB decided to have the first game of America's pastime in Tokyo. Let's get everyone's predictions down in one place so that we can look back a few months down the line and realize how poorly we did.

 

(x- denotes Wild Card)

 

AL East

 

NY Yankees

x- Boston

Tampa Bay

Toronto

Baltimore

 

Thoughts: Boston and New York will both win 90+ games, but I think the hitting and pitching depth will put the Yankees over the top. Tampa Bay will surprise everyone by going .500 and staying in the race until September. Toronto might be the 6th best team in the AL, but they catch the breaks of being in the best division in baseball.

 

AL Central

 

Cleveland

Detroit

Chicago

Minnesota

Kansas City

 

Thoughts: I see no discernible difference between Cleveland and Detroit right now as I feel the offseason moves on the Tigers part are going to improve the team only marginally. It's going to come down to injuries and depth and I feel that Indians will be better able to cope with losses over the course of the year. The other three teams get to meander around the 70 win mark.

 

AL West

 

LA Angels

Seattle

Oakland

Texas

 

Thoughts: The worst division in baseball. The Angels will coast and win the division by ten plus games. Seattle regresses big time and the other two teams end up better than we expected when the kids start to click around mid-season.

 

NL East

 

NY Mets

Atlanta

Philadelphia

Washington

Florida

 

Thoughts: The Mets run away from the division and the rest of the National League behind their hitting and pitching. Atlanta and Philly fight for the Wild Card all year, but are ultimately upstaged.

 

NL Central

 

Chicago Cubs

x- Milwaukee

Cincinnati

St. Louis

Houston

Pittsburgh

 

Thoughts: The Cubs and Brewers both take another step ahead to become real title contenders. Cincinnati and St. Louis both hang until after the All-Star break but then are left behind because of each team's massive flaws (Dusty Baker and pitching, respectively).

 

NL West

 

Arizona

LA Dodgers

Colorado

San Diego

San Francisco

 

Thoughts: I see Arizona with a slight advantage here because of the pitching and continued growth of their young players, but in reality any of the top four could take it. San Fran will be the worst team in the league.

[TheDevilAndGodAreRagingInsideMe 0]

At what point is Tampa Bay not a surprize or a sleeper pick any more? Everyone is on their bandwagon, they're the sexiest sexy pick ever.

 

That being said, the Yankees will go 162-0 and win the whole thing. I don't care about the other teams.

[Smartly Pretty 0]

AL East

1.Sox

2.Rays (Wild Card. Might as well, right?)

3.Yankees

4.Blue Jays

5.

6.Orioles

 

The Rays pitching is going to carry them far, and the Red Sox just have too many returning players not to win the division.

 

AL Central

1.Indians

2.Tigers

3.Royals

4.White Sox

5.Twins

 

The Twins don't have much left, especially if Liriano doesn't come back as good as he was, so they'll probably finish last. Indians pitching is pretty deep, and I think adding Dontrelle Willis is actually going to hurt Detroits rotation. He's only going to get worse with a move to the AL.

 

AL West

1.Mariners

2.Angels

3.Oakland

4.Texas

 

The Mariners were pretty close last year until the last couple of weeks, and adding Erik Bedard to the rotation makes them so much better. It'll be close though.

 

NL East

 

1.Mets

2.Phils

3.Nationals

4.Braves

5.Marlins

 

The Mets pitching is going to be great, and I honestly think John Maine is going to be great this year and would be considered an ace anywhere else. I think the Braves pitching is going to fall apart. I don't think Smoltz can keep pitching like this as he gets older, Tom Glavine sucks, Hampton will be out for the year by May. Hudson will be good, but that's it.

 

NL Central

 

1.Cubs

2.Milwaukee

3.Cincinatti

4.St. Louis

5.Pittsburgh

6.Houston

 

I don't really know. Seriously, I don't really know.

 

NL West

 

1.Dodgers

2.Diamondbacks (wild card)

3.Padres

4.Rockies

5.Giants

 

Diamondbacks 1-2 punch of Webb and Haren is frightening. The Dodgers have all the right pieces. I'm not sold on the Rockies pitching staff. Giants can't hit worth a lick, which is a shame, because on paper their pitching staff is pretty solid.

[CanadianChris 0]

AL East

1/Boston

2/New York (Where is the pitching depth? The starters are too young, and the bullpen is too thin. The hitting will carry them, but not far enough.)

3/Tampa Bay

4/Toronto (The less said, the better. Sad thing is, this team could probably win the NL Central.)

5/Baltimore (Not only will they finish last, with fewer wins than last year, they will have the worst record in the American League, and possibly in all of Major League Baseball, depending on how badly the Giants suck this year.)

 

AL Central

1/Detroit

x2/Cleveland (They'll win the wild card, and come closer to winning the division than people think right now.)

3/Kansas City (They're coming on. Could be a .500 team in a year or two.)

4/Minnesota

5/Chicago

 

AL West

1/Los Angeles (By a LOT. At least 15 games.)

2/Texas

3/Seattle (Not nearly as good as everyone thinks.)

4/Oakland

 

NL East

1/New York

2/Atlanta

3/Philadelphia

4/Washington

5/Florida

 

NL Central

1/Chicago

x2/Milwaukee (Starting pitching will be their biggest weakness this year.)

3/St. Louis

4/Cincinnati

5/Pittsburgh

6/Houston

 

NL West (Outside of the AL East, where I have a rooting interest, this division interests me more than any in baseball. The only certainty is that the Giants will finish fifth, probably by 20 games. Seriously, I could pick the other four teams out of a hat and have as much of a chance at being right as if I put some thought into it.)

1/Arizona

2/Colorado

3/Los Angeles

4/San Diego

5/San Francisco

[Guest]

AL East

 

1. Boston

2. New York

3. Toronto

4. Tampa Bay

5. Baltimore

 

Let's put it this way, I'd rather have Tampa doing nothing and be wrong than have them finishing 2nd or 3rd and them losing 90 games. I don't like picking teams to make gigantic leaps.

 

AL Central

 

1. Detroit

2. Cleveland (WC)

3. Kansas City

4. Chicago

5. Minnesota

 

Admittedly, I think the Tigers are the best team in baseball. 3 through 5 basically comes down to whoever wins one or two more games than the other.

 

AL West

 

1. LA Angels

2. Seattle

3. Texas

4. Oakland

 

Something about Seattle tells me that last season was a fluke, but Oakland and Texas are an embarassment to baseball. Can't see Seattle finishing anywhere but second.

 

 

NL East

 

1. Atlanta

2. New York (WC)

3. Philadelphia

4. Washington

5. Florida

 

Atlanta with a bullpen will be, um, interesting. Think they'll take the East by a game or two.

 

NL Central

 

1. Chicago Cubs

2. Houston

3. Milwaukee

4. St. Louis

5. Cincinnati

6. Pittsburgh

 

Chicago's clearly the best team in the division. Maybe the best in the National League, although one always has to be wary about putting "Cubs" and "best" in the same sentence. Tejada should have a bounce-back season with the Astros and propel them to just above mediocrity.

 

NL West

 

1. Los Angeles

2. Colorado

3. Arizona

4. San Diego

5. San Francisco

 

More Matt Kemp means more wins. More wins and better use of the bullpen means a playoff appearance.

 

I don't do in-depth playoff predictions.

 

Detroit will beat the Mets to win it all.

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

It's this time of year that I really kick myself. I just haven't been able to make the jump from casual to hardcore fan the way I did I've done with golf and football.

[vivalaultra 0]

AL East:

 

1. Sawx

2. Yanks (WC)

3. Rays

4. Jays

5. Os

 

AL Central:

 

1. Tigers

2. Indians

3. Twins

4. Royals

5. Sux (hilariously intentionally typo)

 

AL West:

 

1. Mariners

2. Angels

3. Rangers

4. As

 

NL East:

 

1. Mets

2. Phils (WC)

3. Bravos

4. Nats

5. Fish

 

NL Central:

 

1. Cubs/Brewers/'Stros/Cards/Reds

2. Cubs/Brewers/'Stros/Cards/Reds

3. Cubs/Brewers/'Stros/Cards/Reds

4. Cubs/Brewers/'Stros/Cards/Reds

5. Cubs/Brewers/'Stros/Cards/Reds

6. Pirates

 

(Never underestimate the power of the entire NL Central to suck. Any one of the Cubs, Brewers, 'Stros, Cards, or Reds could win the division possibly; although some have a better chance than others. The division is just too crappy and wide open to call. I certainly don't think the Astros will come in below the Cards or the Pirates or even the Reds in any case. I'm also predicting that Wandy Rodriguez wins at least 15 games this year, Roy O wins 20, Michael Bourn steals 50 bases, Lance Berkman falls down while running from 2nd base to 3rd base at least three times, and it becomes painfully obvious around June that it was not worth paying Kaz Matsui millions of dollars based off of one decent year in Coors Field to put up with his mediocre performance and having to constantly hear about his..."anal fissures".)

 

NL West:

 

1. Padres

2. D'Backs

3. Dodgers

4. Rockies

5. San Fran

 

ALDS: Sawx over Ms, Tigers over Yanks

NLDS: Mets over Padres, Phillies over NLC representative

ALCS: Tigers over Sawx

NLCS: Mets over Phillies

WS: Tigers in 6.

[Danville_Wrestling 0]

AL East:

 

1. Boston

2. New York Yankees

3. Toronto

4. Tampa Bay

5. Baltimore

 

It'd be nice to see Tampa make a run because that team has been a proverbial bottom dweller since its existence. However, even with the projections that I have seen for them by many I still believe the only team they are beating in the division is Baltimore who is still 3-4 years from rehabilitating itself into a team people care about again. Also, Boston will take this division in much of the same style as last year by getting out to a fast start, stalling after the All-Star Break and watching a Yanks comeback, and then putting the Yanks away the last several weeks of the season.

 

AL Central:

 

1. Cleveland

2. Detroit (WC)

3. Chicago WS

4. Minnesota

5. Kansas City

 

Dontrelle will help the Tigers win early but will have his usual post-All Star game slump and hurt the team. I like the acquisitions the Tigers made in the off-season but they won't take the division. Never fear, though, because this year the Wild Card is coming out of the Central division. Also, there might not be much left in Minnesota, especially with the departure of Santana on the pitching side, but since when have the Kansas City Royals ever shown they care to emerge from the division cellar recently?

 

AL West:

 

1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

2. Seattle

3. Oakland

4. Texas

 

I don't think this is going to be a competitive division this year and the Angels will run away with it after the All-Star break. Oakland will surprise some people by not finishing last in the division but will not be near the Mariners or Angels in terms of wins.

 

NL East:

 

1. New York

2. Philadelphia (WC)

3. Atlanta

4. Washington

5. Florida

 

There is no way that the Marlins do not finish last in this divison. If they don't then it's an embarassment to any team that finishes below them. A team with a $10 million or so payroll does not deserve to be in existence on the major league level. Aside from that, is it possible for New York to have so much talent and choke away another division lead? I don't think that'll happen this season and the Mets will beat the Phillies (who everyone loves this season in the magazines) for the division crown. It's hard for me to say "no" to Atlanta, but...."no."

 

NL Central:

 

1. Chicago

2. St. Louis

3. Milwaukee

4. Cincinnati

5. Houston

6. Pittsburgh

 

The only thing easy to call in this division is Pittsburgh finishing last. However, the Cubs have too much talent not to win it. I'm a Cincinnati fan and I hate to say that this season will be another mediocre one but it will be because the pitching still isn't where it needs to be (as evidenced by the struggles of Homer Bailey and the introduction of Dusty as manager). I have a feeling that LaRussa will get the Cardinals back in competitive shape and they'll make a late run to overtake Milwaukee in September but it will be too late to catch the Cubs.

 

NL West:

 

1. Arizona

2. San Diego

3. Los Angeles

4. Colorado

5. San Francisco

 

Ah, the division I enjoy most around June and July. The Giants finish last because well, what is there on that team? There starting lineup is going to be horrendous and probably wouldn't have a good BA if pitchers were throwing beach balls. The Rockies will not be a factor down the stretch and the Dodgers won't be a factor either, causing the media to question if Joe Torre is really a great manager or if he just had tons of money/talent in New York. It will be a fun race between the Dbacks and the Padres but I say Arizona takes it because I like the young hitters/pitchers they have built and I got to watch more of their games last year than any other team thanks to mlb.tv

 

Playoffs {which I don't usually do but what the hell}:

 

ALDS: Boston over Detroit in 5, Cleveland over Anaheim in 3

NLDS: New York over Chicago in 4, Philadelphia over Arizona in 4

ALCS: Cleveland over Boston in 6

NLCS: Philadelphia over New York in 7

World Series: Cleveland over Philadelphia in 4

[Guest Tzar Lysergic]

Cubs over the Indians in six. FTW.

[Red Baron 0]

AL East.

 

Toronto

Boston

New York

Tampa Bay

Baltimore

 

AL Central

 

Tigers

Indians - Wild Card

Royals

Twins

Chicago

 

AL West

 

Anaheim

Seattle

Texas

Oakland

 

 

NL East

 

New York

Philadelphia

Atlanta

Washington

Florida

 

NL Central

 

Chicago

Milwaukee

St. Louis

Houston

Pittsburgh

Cincinnati

 

NL West

 

Los Angeles

San Diego (wildcard)

Arizona

Colorado

San Fransisco

 

 

AL:

 

Detroit

Toronto

Anaheim

Cleveland

 

NL:

 

Chicago

New York

Los Angeles

San Diego

 

AL:

 

Detroit vs Toronto

 

NL:

 

Chicago vs Los Angeles

 

World Series

 

Detroit vs Chicago

 

Detroit in six.

[USC Wuz Robbed! 0]

AL East:

 

1. Boston

2. New York

3. Tampa Bay

4. Toronto

5. Baltimore

 

AL Central:

 

1. Detroit

2. Cleveland

3. Minnesota

4. Chicago

5. Kansas City

 

AL West:

 

1. Anaheim

2. Seattle

3. Oakland

4. Texas

 

 

NL East:

 

1. New York

2. Philadelphia

3. Atlanta

4. Florida

5. Washington

 

NL Central:

 

1. Chicago

2. Cincinnati

3. Milwaukee

4. St. Louis

5. Houston

6. Pittsburgh

 

NL West:

 

1. Arizona

2. San Diego

3. Los Angeles

4. Colorado

5. San Francisco

 

 

Postseason:

 

ALDS- Boston over Anaheim, Detroit over New York

NLDS- New York over Arizona, Chicago over Philadelphia

ALCS- Detroit over Boston

NLCS- New York over Chicago

 

World Series: New York Mets over Detroit Tigers

[Cuban Linx 0]

AL East:

 

1. Boston

2. New York

3. Tampa Bay

4. Toronto

5. Baltimore

 

AL Central:

 

1. Detroit

2. Cleveland (Wildcard)

3. Chicago

4. Minnesota

5. Kansas City

 

AL West:

 

1. Anaheim

2. Seattle

3. Oakland

4. Texas

 

NL East:

 

1. New York

2. Atlanta (Wildcard)

3. Philadelphia

4. Washington

5. Florida

 

NL Central:

 

1. Milwaukee

2. Chicago

3. Cincinnati

4. Houston

5. St. Louis

6. Pittsburgh

 

NL West:

 

1. Los Angeles

2. Colorado

3. San Diego

4. Arizona

5. San Francisco

 

World Series: Atlanta over Detroit

[KingPK 0]

AL East:

 

Boston

New York

Toronto

Tampa Bay (until they actually put this whole thing together, I'm not buying it)

Baltimore

 

Notes: Cut and dried here. Baltimore will lose 110 games.

 

AL Central:

 

Cleveland

Detroit (WC)

Minnesota

Chicago

Kansas City

 

Notes: Why Detroit for the Wild Card? More bad teams to beat up in their division than the Yankees.

 

AL West

 

Anaheim (fuck Los Angeles)

Seattle

Oakland

Texas

 

NL East

 

Mets

Philadelphia

Washington

Atlanta

Florida

 

NL Central

 

Chicago

Milwaukee (WC)

Cincinatti

St. Louis

Pittsburgh

Houston

 

NL West

 

Arizona

Los Angeles

San Diego

Colorado

San Francisco

 

Notes: As it has been the last few years, the top four teams will probably be within 5 games of each other by season's end.

 

I'm going with Cleveland over the Mets in the Series.

Edited March 27, 2008 by KingPK

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

I'll post the other divisions later but

 

AL East

 

Boston

Toronto

NY

Baltimore

Tampa

 

The Os will NOT finish in last place. They will finish in 4th and with a better record than last year.

 

Deadspin Os preview

 

Remember those inspirational 2007 Colorado Rockies? How they plodded through the summer around .500, then pulled together to put on a thrilling 14-1 finishing kick, sending them sprinting to the pennant?

 

Well, the Baltimore Orioles do that every year. Only backwards. Beyond plain categories of optimism and pessimism live those of us who see a sparkling half-glass of water and know for sure that the Orioles are eventually going to take a crap in it.

 

People who don't pay attention to the O's — and why would you? — might look at the uninterrupted decade of lousy finishes (nine in fourth place, one in third) and assume the team has been steadily, hopelessly terrible. The truth is far more humiliating: The Orioles are quitters. Year after year, there comes a moment at which the Birds look up and down the standings, scan the clubhouse and collectively decide that whatever combination of talent, enthusiasm, and guts it takes to get through 162 games, they don't have it. So they stop trying.

 

---

 

Nonetheless! Andy MacPhail is the savior. It's a funny sort of housecleaning that leaves Aubrey Huff and Kevin Millar at DH and first base, but that's the kind of unhealthy obsession with the present that the Orioles are trying to get beyond. McPhail is about the future. He is going to trade and trade and build the 2010 Orioles into a dynasty to rival those world-champion Cubs teams he built in Chicago.

 

 

[CanadianChris 0]

I edited my prediction to better reflect Baltimore's chances this season.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Let's give this a spin.

 

AL East

1. Boston

2. NY Yankees

3. Toronto

4. Tampa Bay

5. Baltimore

 

Reasonable expectations for Tampa Bay, though they will surprise people. The Matt Garza trade represents a new era, where they take their pure talent and start shifting it into a contending ballclub. Last year's club was plagued with things like a complete lack of middle infield. Now they have Bartlett and Iwamura up the middle. Beyond that, the only challenge is picking the Yankees/Sox winner. Please be ensured that picking the Red Sox does not imply that I really care in any fashion.

 

AL Central

1. Cleveland

2. Detroit

3. Chi. White Sox

4. Minnesota

5. Kansas City

 

The White Sox made some stupid moves, but that will make them better this season and bite them later on. Twins have better pitching than people realize, but will experience growing pains. The Tigers I think do not have the kind of depth that Cleveland enjoys.

 

AL West

1. LA Angels

2. Seattle

3. Oakland

4. Texas

 

The Angels have the depth but injuries to Lackey and Escobar could make this a close race. Seattle is not as good as they appeared last year, their offense is particularly weak at points. Adding Bedard and Silva will at least boost the pitching. Despite rebuilding, the A's are good enough to press for .500, particularly if their key starters are not again decimated by injuries.

 

NL East

1. NY Mets

2. Philadelphia

3. Atlanta

4. Washington

5. Florida

 

I'm not counting on the Phillies' pitching for a damn thing. I'm also a bit pessimistic on the Braves, until I see John Smoltz pitching in games again.

 

NL Central

1. Chi. Cubs

2. Milwaukee

3. Houston

4. Cincinnati

5. St. Louis

6. Pittsburgh

 

I don't know where the Houston hate comes from. Carlos Lee, Lance Berkman and Miguel Tejada is a damn fine middle of the order, and Hunter Pence is in there as well. They have improved offense at shortstop, and J.R. Towles comes in to catch. Their problem has been black holes in the lineup, and they cleaned those up. If they get any kind of pitching, they're in business.

 

NL West

1. LA Dodgers

2. Arizona

3. San Diego

4. Colorado

5. San Francisco

 

I think this season the Rockies' young starters come back to earth. The Giants are without question the worst team in baseball. At least the O's have Nick Markakis, Adam Jones and Brian Roberts on the offense. The Giants have NO upside whatsoever. If it was not bad enough, Omar Vizquel is hurt and filling in is Brian Bocock, who hit .220 in the Cal League last season.

 

World Series:

Red Sox over Mets. I'm not getting cute with this one, just picking the best teams in each league.

[Annabelle 0]

AL East

1.Sox

2.Blue Jays

3.Yankees

4.Rays

5.Orioles

 

if the top 4 in the Blue Jays rotation stay healthy, they could even challenge the red sox. although the red sox look to be pretty great this year. if lester doesn't work out, that'll put a strain on the top 3. with beckett health is always an issue. matsuzaka didn't look to be having an easier of a time in majors against the a's. yankees are older. this is the year everything collapses on them from posada to damaon, jeter, pettite, mussina, rivera, ect. the rays will be better but they have a tougher division.

 

AL Central

1.Tigers

2.Indians (wc)

3.White Sox

4.Twins

5.Royals

 

willis has looked downright awful the entire pre-season. sheffield hasn't hiy well. but pudge has hit like 8 homeruns. what does it all mean? who knows. the tigers, on paper, have the best team in baseball. we all know how it goes from there. cleveland has far more pitching depth. but the tigers are a much stronger offensive team. players like denny batista and yormand bazaro will save the tigers bullpen. having a 3-4-5 of sheffield, ordonez, and cabrera is something that the indians can't match. maybe no one. the white sox made some decent moves in the spring especially the swisher move. but not enough to play with the tigers/indians.

 

AL West

1.Mariners

2.Angels

3.Oakland

4.Texas

 

the mariners have an amazing top 2. offensively they're no slouches. anaheim is in trouble with lackey breaking down and escobar possibly out for the year. torii hunter is not a great acquisition. the a's won't be so bad this year, but they won't be better than .500 with the maniacal jack cust hitting 4th. judging by his first two games, jack hannahan may be an improvement over the oft-injured chavez. bobby crosby looks the same old lost crosby.

 

 

NL East

 

1.Mets

2.Phils (wc)

3.Braves

4.Nationals

5.Marlins

 

santana and pedro solidify a rotation that still lacks a strong bullpen presense. there are more hole in their offense and defense than they would like to admit. but the top two plus reyes and wright may put them over. the phils don't have the pitching staff to hang but they have the weapons.

 

NL Central

 

1.Cubs

2.Milwaukee

3.Cincinatti

4.Pittsburgh

5.St. Louis

6.Houston

 

who cares

 

NL West

 

1.Dodgers

2.Diamondbacks

3.Rockies

4.Padres

5.Giants

 

the dodgers were close up until august. combing through some of the veterans was a good move, but they didn't go far enough. ethier and kemp should be the everyday outfielders. i'm not ready to give up on nomar. kent causes more problems with morale than goodness on the field. the pitching staff looks tough. the d'backs and rockies could easily beat up the dodgers. but the balance of experience and promising rookies makes the dodgers look good right now.

 

playoffs

 

indians over sox

tigers over mariners

 

tigers over indians

 

phillies over dodgers

mets over cubs

 

phillies over mets

 

 

tigers over phillies

[Guest Bullshiterica]

AL West: LA Angels, Seattle, Oakland, Texas

The Angels are good enough to win a bad division. The M's will be close enough to make people almost care.

 

AL Central: Detroit, Cleveland*, Minnesota, Chicago W.S., Kansas City

Tigers are the second-best team in the league behind the Red Sox. Twins will overachieve but not enough. The Sox can't pitch, run, or field, for the most part, but they'll get enough homers from Thome and Konerko to take 4th place. The Royals will will start hot by recent Royals standards, but at some point lose 12 straight games and shoot the whole thing to hell.

 

AL East: Boston, NY Yankees, Tampa Bay, Toronto, Baltimore

This division is going to really suck beyond 1 and 2, so don't get too excited about the Rays in 3rd. The Blue Jays will have a mountain of injured bodies and never amount to anything. The Orioles are going to lose 110 games.

 

NL West:

San Diego, LA Dodgers, Arizona, Colorado, San Francisco

Really good division here. The reliable old Padres will trudge out the season and make it out on top this time, with the Dodgers being a little too shaky in some parts to take 1st place. The Dbags will fall to Earth this time and lose 50 of their games by one run, and Danny Haren will struggle a bit as well for no apparent reason. The Rockies don't have enough pitching to stay above the other three, I don't think. All four will be tight and spend part of the summer in the lead, though, because the Giants will be hilariously shitty and lose 110 games. Bad year for wearing orange and black.

 

Comedy Central:

Chicago Cubs, Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Houston, St. Louis, Pittsburgh

The Brewers and Cubs will be neck-and-neck again, but the Steroid All-Star Bullpen of Turnbow/Mota/Gagne still isn't an improvement over Turnbow/Linebrink/Cordero, and it's becoming apparent that the Brewers have trouble fielding. Not trouble with Fielder, though, he'll hit 50. Braun or Hart will experience a debilitating slump, because there's no way they sustain last year's production all over again. Ned Yost makes it through the year, but gets launched after taking into consideration a mildly embarrassing paranoid midseason tirade that makes management wonder if he can handle the rigors of managing a contending team even in the smallest most-gosh-darn-happy-to-even-have-a-team city in the major leagues. Meanwhile at the Cocksuckers' Playground, Mark DeRosa has himself a pretty good year to shut up the jerks who wanted to replace him with the roid-fueled Brian Roberts. Jose Ceda becomes this year's Carlos Marmol, and Carlos Marmol becomes this year's closer when Kerry Wood tears himself apart again with his shitty mechanics. Fukudome will hit around .290, and both his successes and failures alike will be greeted with racially insensitive comments and actions. Matt Murton won't make it through the year; he'll be traded for whatever we need most at the time, much to the dismay of SABR-geek Cubs fans who were fucking obsessed with him because he came out of the Boston system and Bill James works there. The Reds will be in first for a while but no way do they sustain it; Cincinnati's love affair with a guy that has a mini-fridge in his office will last another year. I still don't think the Astros are any damn good. I know the Cardinals aren't. Pujols will singlehandedly win most of their games, the pitching staff won't get any Cardinal Magic (but none will die, either), and La Russa finally calls it quits after further humiliating himself. The Pirates suck.

 

NL East:

NY Mets, Philadelphia*, Washington, Atlanta, Florida

Mets are too good to blow it this time. Phillies will come close but finish a few games out. I've decided the Nats will surprise everyone with their new Al Davisian "we'll take your rejects" approach and do well. The Braves just won't get it together all year, plus they'll lose to the Mets like almost every time. The Marlins will lose 96 games but still sweep the Cubs.

[Kahran Ramsus 0]

AL East

 

1. Boston

2. New York

3. Tampa Bay

4. Toronto - This says more about Toronto than Tampa actually. I just get the feeling based on what I've seen happen thus far in the spring that this is one of those Murphy's Law years for the Jays. I'm putting them fourth because even the Chiefs could probably finish ahead of Baltimore.

5. Baltimore

 

AL Central

 

1. Detroit - World Series Champions

2. Cleveland - Wild Card

3. Kansas City

4. Chicago

5. Minnesota

 

AL West

 

1. LA

2. Seattle

3. Oakland

4. Texas

 

NL East

 

1. New York - NL Champions

2. Atlanta - Wild Card

3. Philadelphia

4. Washington

5. Florida

 

NL Central

 

1. Chicago

2. Milwaukee

3. Houston

4. St. Louis

5. Cincinnati

6. Pittsburgh

 

NL West

 

1. Arizona

2. Colorado

3. San Diego

4. LA

5. San Francisco

 

 

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

I edited my prediction to better reflect Baltimore's chances this season.

You all just wait til the end of the season when the Os dont finish last.

[CanadianChris 0]

I edited my prediction to better reflect Baltimore's chances this season.

You all just wait til the end of the season when the Os dont finish last.

And which season will that be?

[Guest]

2010

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

2010

By 2010 they'll be in contention for the AL Wild Card.

[Guest]

Maybe in MLB 2K8.

[Cheech Tremendous 0]

There's being a homer and then there is totally irrational. Marvin falls in the latter category.

 

Wouldn't be easier to accept the rebuilding project for what it is and watch some of the new talent blossom instead of deluding yourself into thinking that you are going to win games this year and compete in the near future?

[Guest Vitamin X]

It's this time of year that I really kick myself. I just haven't been able to make the jump from casual to hardcore fan the way I did I've done with golf and football.

I'll have to say, and if Colorado goes back to sucking again this year, that'll probably kill a lot of my interest in baseball again until Portland gets a team. I am not rooting for the Mariners.

 

I'm going to try some predictions anyways.

 

AL East

Boston

New York

Tampa Bay (this could be a fight between them and the Yanks for 2nd place)

Toronto

Baltimore

 

AL Central

Detroit

Cleveland

Minnesota

KC

Chicago White Sox

 

AL West

Los Angeles/Anaheim

Oakland

Seattle

Texas

 

NL East

Phillies

Mets

Braves

Nats

Marlins

 

NL Central

Cubs

Reds

Brewers

Cards (Carpenter will be back mid-summer and surprise people into thinking they'll make a run, but they won't)

Astros

Pirates

 

NL West

HERE COME THE ROCKIES

Dodgers

Diamondbacks

Padres

Giants

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

There's being a homer and then there is totally irrational. Marvin falls in the latter category.

 

Wouldn't be easier to accept the rebuilding project for what it is and watch some of the new talent blossom instead of deluding yourself into thinking that you are going to win games this year and compete in the near future?

The team fell apart last year and didn't lose 100 games..theres more talent on the team now and a better bullpen that was absolutely horrendous. Theres no way they'll lose 100 games and they'll finish in 4th place again. Hardly irrational thinking or being a deluded homer.

[MFer 0]

I have no clue, but I'll give it a shot anyways.

 

AL East

Red Sox

Yankees

Blue Jays

Rays

Orioles

 

AL Central

Indians

Tigers (WC)

Twins

Royals

White Sox

 

AL West

Mariners

Angels

Rangers

A's

 

NL East

Mets

Braves (WC)

Phillies

Nats

Marlins

 

NL Central

Cubs

Reds

Brewers

Cards

Astros

Pirates

 

NL West

Dodgers

Rockies

Padres

D'Backs

Giants

 

World Series: Tigers over Mets (hopefully)

 

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

The team fell apart last year and didn't lose 100 games..theres more talent on the team now and a better bullpen that was absolutely horrendous. Theres no way they'll lose 100 games and they'll finish in 4th place again. Hardly irrational thinking or being a deluded homer.

 

Did I miss a news item today or something? I could have sworn Luis Hernandez was still manning shortstop instead of Miguel Tejada.

[the max 0]

And what about Bedard?