{image1} The days are counting down to the beginning of another Major League Baseball season. The anticipation for this season has been building up with the various attacks and counter attacks in the arms race between the Boston Red Sox and "The Evil Empire" New York Yankees.
On a local front, Brewers fans can begin to see the light of a franchise improving. Both the talent level and the expectations of the organization are rising. The Richie Sexson trades has created the best lineup the Brewers have posted in more than 10 years.
In general everyone is wondering who is going to be the next Florida Marlins. The last two World Series champs have not even reached the post season the previous year. This fact opens the race for the ring to as many as 20 teams.
Predicting the division winners and the year's award winners is a right of passage that must be sailed every year. My last year's predictions were mediocre at best, hitting the bulls-eye on some and missing the boat entirely on others. 2004 is a new year and I can't wait for the season to begin.
AL East:
There has been more discussion about the AL East that any other division combined. If you would like to discuss the disparity of spending in baseball this is your first stop. Regardless of how much money that was spent in this division it will be the best race to watch.
How can you not watch the Yankees? It is like watching an all-star game on a nightly basis. Has there ever been a lineup as potent as Jeter, Matsui, A-Rod, Giambi, Sheffield, Williams, Posada and etc..? Murderer's row it isn't, it is murderer's boulevard.
The Red Sox are stacked in their rotation with the likes of Pedro Martinez, Curt Schilling and Derek Lowe. They also lead the league in runs scored last year, but they will have to start the year without Nomar Garciapara and Trot Nixon. If the Yankees pitching holds up, they will lead right out of the gate and never look back.
The Blue jays and the Orioles will also be very solid teams, but their main problem is the area of the country they reside.
Winner: New York Yankees
AL Central:
The Al Central is the antithesis of the Al East. With the Chicago White Sox acting like a mid level team, this division is wide open. I find it hard to believe that the Twins will be anything less than they were last year. Yes, they lost the crux of their bullpen in Eddie Guardado and LaTroy Hawkins, but the Twins' farm system is so stacked that they won't rebuild, they will just reload.
The Royals have made significant improvements with the likes of Juan Gonzalez and Benito Santiago, but they are counting on a lot of young pitching to carry them to the promised land. Yes the pitching is very talented and Tony Perez has been able to get the most out of his players, but the Twins are still the King and they will be champions of the Central until someone knocks them off of their pedestal.
Winner: Minnesota Twins
AL West:
This is a tough division to call. The A's have the pitching. The Mariners have a solid all around team, but the Angels have made the right additions to add to a team that won the World Series just two years ago. The additions of Bartolo Colon and Vlad Guerrero along with a healthy Troy Glaus and Troy Percival mean the Angels are without question the team to beat in the AL West.
Winner: Anaheim Angels
NL East:
I did not pick the Braves last year because I thought they might actually be dead...finally. This year the Braves are actually dead. John Smotlz is the lone soldier left from the glory days and while I am reluctant to actually throw dirt on top of the 12-time NL East champions, it would defy conventional wisdom if they make it 13.
The Phillies are loaded and they took care of their one weakness acquiring Billy Wagner in an off-season trade with the Houston Astros. Also look for slugger Pat Burrell to have a bounce back year after he absolutely disappeared last year while he continually fought the swing the made him an all-star the previous year.
Yes the Marlins are the defending champs and have one of the best young staffs in the game, but the heart and soul of that team was Pudge Rodriguez and for some reason he is toiling in Detroit this year.
Winner: Philadelphia Phillies
NL Central:
This may be the most interesting division of them all. Every national magazine is touting the Cubs as the next World Champion and it is hard to argue with them. They have all of the pieces: great pitching, a solid lineup, plenty of stars and the best manager in baseball. What they have to fight is the curse. You may not believe in the curse, but what remains is the pressure of a ball club that hasn't won in eighty years. Sometimes that is a heavy burden to carry.
The Cubs also have to fight the likes of the Astros and the Cardinals. The Astros can argue that they have the best staff in baseball with the additions of Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens to go along with Roy Oswalt and Wade Miller. The Astros are poised to make a run this year after coming up just short in 2003. One of the main reasons is that they have a large number of players in contact years -- something that always seems to a quality motivator for today's player.
Lastly, the Cardinals are sitting pretty without anyone paying attention to them. Just how Tony LaRussa likes it. The question will be if the Cards brittle pitching staff can hold up over the course of time. It wouldn't surprise me to see the Cards in the race until the final days.
This is going to be a great three horse race. It is hard to not go with the Cubs and I will stick with them for one reason -- Dusty Baker has a knack for molding his team into a winner. This year he has more talent to mold than he ever has before.
Winner: Chicago Cubs
NL West:
After having three teams to pick from in the Central, the West offers almost nothing in terms of a front-runner. I am hard pressed not to pick the Giants. They still have solid pitching and regardless of the fact that they have Marquis Grissom penciled into the three slot, they still have the best player I have ever seen, Barry Bonds, hitting cleanup. Not to mention, Bonds has something to prove and will take it out on the pitchers of the NL.
On the other hand, I went chalk in the Central and the East, so it is time to go out on a limb. The San Diego Padres have a new ballpark, great young pitching and with the additions of Brian Giles and David Wells to go along with a healthy Phil Nevin the Padres could be the surprise team of the year. It also doesn't hurt for them to be playing in a division with teams that have many flaws.
Winner: San Diego Padres
AL Wildcard: I would like to leave the Red Sox out of the fun, but I am hoping for seven more classic games in October for the AL pennant between the Sox and the Yanks.
NL Wildcard: Houston Astros -- I can see the Astros winning 100 games and not winning the Central, but easily qualifying for the Wildcard.
AL MVP: Alex Rodriguez -- Now he is the best player on the best team instead of the best player on the worst team.
NL MVP: Albert Pujols -- It is now Albert's turn to win the MVP after being the bridesmaid the past couple of years. It boggles the mind to think that Pujols is still only 24 years old and getting better. Although, if Barry puts up 60 again, it will be hard not to vote for him again
AL Cy Young: Kevin Brown -- If he stays healthy, he will win 20 for the Yankees and those pinstripes sometimes have a healing power to them.
NL Cy Young: The easy pick was Mark Prior, but he will miss some significant time early in the season. My backup pick is Kevin Millwood who seems poised to finally break out of the shadows and lead the Phillies to a division title.
AL Rookie of the Year: Bobby Crosby -- Miggy Tejada leaves big shoes to fill, but the A's shortstop is the next offensive star at shortstop.
NL Rookie of the Year: Edwin Jackson -- Another in the long line of Dodgers' pitchers Jackson will prove that dominating Randy Johnson in his debut last year was not a fluke.
AL Manager of the Year: Mike Scioscia -- One of the games most underrated managers -- he will get the Angels back into the playoffs.
NL Manager of the Year: Bruce Bochy -- If my Padres pick come through, this will be a no-brainer.
Playoffs:
Boston defeats Anaheim and New York defeats Minnesota. New York defeats Boston (again)
Chicago defeats San Diego and Houston defeats Philadelphia. Chicago defeats Houston
World Series:
New York defeats Chicago in seven games. (Remember: home field will be decided in July)
