2009 Baseball - American League

Well, it's that time of year again. I know you are all wondering about the upcoming Baseball season, and even more, looking for the prognostication that can only come from yours truly. So many questions going into spring training, one might wonder: how can you even make predictions? Easy money, baby. Nobody cares if you're wrong, but they give you lots of props if you're right. Without further ado, let's look at the American League. FULL DISCLOSURE: I am a diehard Red Sox fan. I try to separate my heart from all of this, but let's face it: I am human(ish). So away we go, by division:



AL West: The Angels are still the cream of the crop, but they are getting older. Vlad is not the threat he used to be. They are, in a lot of ways, fielding an all-DH outfield, have HUGE question marks at the infield corners both offensively and defensively, lost Jon Garland, a mid-rotation starter who yanked in 14 wins while eating innings like Rod Beck drank Coors Light, but none of these are the biggest issue. The Angels finished 31-21 in 1-run games, and this was part of a record-setting 62 save season by a closer who now lives across the country. Just flip those numbers, and suddenly they are 90-72, and looking vulnerable. But who can catch them? Oakland will gain, because rule 1 in baseball is "never doubt Billy Beane's assessment of young pitching." They also added a little more batting power (Giambi, Holliday) to the team that scored the fewest runs in the AL. Joey Devine is the real deal: watch for him to replace Ziegler in the closer role. Texas will score lots of runs, but thanks to the pitching, the team will live up to its name: Ranging all over the outfield to watch balls fly out. Seattle made some good moves, and their pitching should be improved by a better coaching staff, but they will be striving to play .500 ball, not gunning for the Angels. Winner: Angels.

AL Central: Five contenders in this division (alright, maybe the Royals are a little bit of a stretch, but hey, why not?). The White Sox went for youth, and have question marks and competition all over the field. Coming off a season where they fell so hard at the end, they had to have a one-game playoff just to get into the postseason, where they let offense (Crede, Swisher) and defense (Cabrera) get away, and added plenty of weight in the rotund third-base question mark Viciedo, watch for this team to falter a bit in the beginning. Much has been made of the losses the Indians had towards the end of last season, when they traded away Sabathia, Blake and Byrd. What people fail to notice is that after August 7th, they proceeded to win 32 games, coming together as a team. Hafner should be back, they added Mark DeRosa, Carl Pavano might return to form out of the big-city spotlight. Indians can contend if they decide to play from the beginning of the season, instead of waiting for the trade deadline. The Twins did basically nothing, so they are being written off left and right, but this is a young team that fought into a playoff race last season. Another year of maturing, and they'll be solid. Besides, doubting Ron Gardenhire's ability to win with anyone is akin to making an in-division trade with Bill Belichik: Only an idiot would do it. The Tigers are going to pretend 2008 never happened, and run out an over-talented team with no chemistry, and hope for the best. The biggest addition for them is Rick Knapp as pitching coach. He comes from the Twins, where he was a roving minor league pitching coordinator. And I think we can all agree that the Twins have some pretty decent pitching workouts, as they have had the lowest number of pitchers on the DL for the last ten years. Knapp gets that rotation healthy, and they start winning one-run games (16-25 in '08), and they are right back in it. Finally, the Royals. Can Hillman finally get the talented youth on this team to become the everyday players their potential promises? Can Coco Crisp return to his Indians form, out of the glare of Boston's Citgo sign? If so, a rejuvenated Gil Meche and a constantly improving Zach Greinke can push this team to the top of a division where 90 wins would bring the pennant home. Winner: Indians.

AL East: This is a three-pony race. The Orioles are shaking things up under Andy Macphail, but still have a ways to go. Cesar Izturis, Rich Hill and Felix Pie don't exactly set teams a-quiver. Matt Wieters will be a star, but needs more supporting cast. The Jays, oh the Jays. Picking up Rod Barajas in the off-season. This is the team that needs the prom queen, but had to settle for the editor of the yearbook. Hopefully, the Canadian dollar will rebound and they can field a team next year. No, this race is about the Yankees, Rays and Sox. The Yankees got all Steinbrenner during the off-season, to get back into the playoffs. But, really: A-Rod chokes under pressure (see: 1 postseason career RBI), and he has never seen the kind of pressure he'll be under now that everyone knows he's a cheat. Think Sox fans will let that one slide at Fenway? Sabathia is an amazing pitcher, but Milwaukee and Cleveland are not New York. One bad start, and he'll be fighting boos as well. Burnett should do well, as he will be somewhat out of the spotlight. Teixeira will be the real star. He is exactly the kind of player teams love to have: quiet, unassuming, and REALLY good. The trouble comes at the back end of their rotation, and in the bullpen. Oh no, they're sending in Damaso Marte! We're screwed! Potential starting outfield: Melky Cabrera, Nick Swisher, Xavier Nady. Red Sox might have made the best bargain deals of the off-season. If Penny returns to form, and Smoltz is Smoltz in May, they will have easily the deepest rotation in the majors. Pedroia just keeps getting better at the plate, and is one of the best defensive infielders in the game. Sort out the Lugo/Lowrie mess at shortstop, and the middle defense will be solid. The biggest question mark for a team that was one game from the Series will be Ortiz: How is that wrist? And who will protect him in the lineup? The Rays were a ridiculous young team, that seemingly overachieved. But overachieving for an entire season is not possible. It means they were for real then, and now they've enticed Pat Burrell to cross the diamond, and we all saw what David Price is going to bring to the party. However, they won't be surprising anyone this year, and the Yanks and Sox set out to beat them. Having a target in a division like this is never pleasant. Winner: Yankees. Wild Card: Red Sox.

AL World Series Rep: Well, the Angels will lose in the playoffs, the Yankees new aquisitions are terrible in the post-season, the Red Sox probably don't have the bats. In a five-game series, I take Cliff Lee and Fausto Carmona against anyone. Seven games, Indians against Red Sox. Epic battle, as they always seem to be between these two in the post-season, but in the end, the Sox have the three- and four-hole starters. Red Sox.

So there you have the AL, in brief. NL Previews to follow.