Opening day is like putting on a fresh pair of Nike athletic socks on your feet for the first time. Unless you live in Tampa Bay, Shittsburgh, or Florida, hopes are high for a great 2008 campaign. And with the MLB baseball season almost 24 hours old (those games in Japan don't count), it's time to look into my soul and divulge how things will look come October.
AL West 1) Angels 2) Mariners 3) A's 4) Rangers
While I'd love to pick the Mariners to make their first playoffs since 2k1, I can't look past the fact that despite losing Kelvim Escobar indefinitely and John Lackey until May, the Angels are still a very good team, and the M's offense in its current form is retched.
Sports Illustrated got it right when they suggested the M's should bring back Junior and make him the regular DH (that brilliant idea also got me to re-up my subscription). Fats Vidro would be a great late inning pinch hitter. At 33, and his power declining faster than Martin Lawrence's film career, Vidro simply doesn't have what it takes to be an everyday player anymore.
Couple Vidro with the potential black hole in right field in Brad Wilkerson and Redneck Richie Sexson and the M's are stuck with a lineup that will hit for a poor average, won't get on base and won't hit for power.
The M's rotation should be much improved with Erik Bedard in tow, but after Bedard and Felix Hernandez, the M's are strapped with three number 5 starters.
Does that sound like a playoff team?
AL Central 1) Tigers 2) Indians 3) White Sox 4) Twins 5) Royals
Before folding in the second half, the Tigers looked poised to make the playoffs for the second straight year last year.
Detroit is a team loaded with aging vets, but those players, plus super stud Miggy Cabrera and Curtis Granderson give D-Town the most potent lineup in baseball. Opposing pitchers are going to have a tough time getting these guys out.
Cleveland brings back essentially the same roster as last year's ALCS losing team. Many analysts have them picked to make the World Series, but their offense isn't as good as Detroit's and their starting pitching, aside from C.C. Sabathia and Fausto Carmona, is weaker as well.
The Tribe could very well win 90 plus games and not make the playoffs. It's doesn't seem fair, but those be the rules.
AL East 1) Red Sox 2) Yankees 3) Blue Jays 4) Devil Rays 5) Orioles
The Red Sox will quickly make New Englanders forget about their underachieving football team. Curt Schilling's injury will hurt the rotation a bit, but his status as Spokesperson of the World should not falter. Having two young studs in Jon Lester and Clay Bucholz doesn't hurt either.
For the first time since the Alvaro Espinoza era, the Yankees didn't thrown ridiculous money at a big time free agent. The newfound roster stability and hard ass manager Joe Girardi will definitely help the Yanks. But like last season, when the Yanks trotted out 48 different starting pitchers, the rotation remains a big question mark.
The Yankees will make the playoffs as the AL Wild Card, but a first round playoff exit awaits.
Our sympathies go out to the Toronto Blue Jays, who never can seem to do better or worse than third place. They need to pull a Milwaukee Brewers and switch leagues.
NL West 1) Dodgers 2) D-Backs 3) Padres 4) Rockies 5) Giants
The NL West is without a doubt the best division in baseball. Four out of the five teams are playoff caliber teams. But at the end of the season, the Dodgers and D-Backs will break from the pack, earning the NL West and Wild Card respectively. Both teams are too loaded at the plate, on the mound and in the clubhouse to not achieve success.
After winning 21 of 22 before getting swept in the World Series last year, the Rockies have gotten lots of early season love. What many forget is the Rocks were a mediocre team before the streak. They had one phenomenal month that they will never replicate.
The Giants are an absolute mess. A year after giving Barry Zito the worst free agent contract ever, they decided to replicate the feat by signing Aaron Rowand to $60 million over five years. And Mariners fans think Richie Sexson's contract sucks.
NL Central 1) Brewers 2) Cubs 3) Reds 4) Astros
5) Cardinals 6) Pirates
The Brewers just missed out on the playoffs last year, and after falling short, this team is too good and too determined to miss out again. Adding Mike Cameron and his amphetamine problem in center field gives the Brew Crew some much needed veteran experience.
Tortured Cubbies fans will have to wait another year to not win a World Series. Japanese import Kosuke Fukudome (or as my girlfriend says "Fuck-You-Dome") finally gives the Cubs a reliable right fielder, but a starting rotation that's iffy after Carlos Zambrano will ultimately do the Cubs in.
NL East 1) Mets 2) Braves 3) Phillies 4) Nationals 5) Marlins
It took a historic September collapse for the Mets to realize they couldn't win with their starting rotation. There's nothing like adding baseball's best pitcher of the century to help shore up those problems.
All of a sudden, the Mets have a rotation that potentially will boast four 15+ game winners. Their lineup, anchored by studs David Wright and Carlos Beltran, will pound out enough runs for the Mets to win 95 games and the NL East title.
The Phillies snuck into the playoffs last year, but losing Aaron Rowand to free agency will ultimately prevent them from making it back. Yes, Jimmy Rollins, Chase Utley and Ryan Howard are Philly's offensive catalysts, but Rowand (.309, 27, 89) was the difference maker last year.
PLAYOFFS
ALDS
Red Sox over Tigers
Yankees over Angels
NLDS
Brewers over D-Backs
Mets over Dodgers
ALCS
Red Sox over Yankees
NLCS
Mets over Brewers
WORLD SERIES
Red Sox over Mets
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