Sunday, June 1, 2014

Predictions for the National League

   So, I am quite a bit late on making this post, but I am going to make predictions about the National League nonetheless, and I will use the thought process I had thought of before the season started. Here are my predictions for the NL East, NL Central and NL West.

NL East: The Nationals should lock this division up, but anything can happen.

Washington National (92-70): The Nationals won the division back in 2012, which was a bit surprising, but failed to live up to expectations in 2013. They have what should be one of the best, if not the best rotation in baseball. Doug Fister, Gio Gonzalez, Stephen Strasburg and Jordan Zimmerman should form an overpowering quartet, and the offense the Nationals should receive should provide plenty of run support for the rotation. The bullpen is decent as well.

Atlanta Braves (88-74): The Braves probably would have been poised to repeat their success from last year, but with injuries to Brandon Beachy and Kris Medlen, that now seems doubtful despite the signing of Ervin Santana. The offense does feature one of the games best first basemen in Freddie Freeman, and a powerful and athletic outfielder in Justin Upton, Chris Johnson is underrated, and Adrelton Simmons is a defensive wiz at short. The bullpen will dominate as always. I don't expect another division crown, but with the young talent of the Braves, anything is possible.

Miami Marlins (83-79): This prediction may seem far fetched, but the Marlins might have one of the most underrated yet best outfields in baseball, and they have brought veterans in to fill holes on their team. The bullpen should be good enough to keep them in games, and the starting rotation is full of young stars headlined by Jose Fernandez, and if everything goes well, this team could exceed many people's expectations, if there is a team that can pull an upset in the NL East, this is the one.

Philadelphia Phillies (80-82): Not much to be said, high payroll of under performing veterans with questions in the bullpen and rotation beyond Cliff Lee. The A.J. Burnett signing was a good move, but Cole Hammels is on the DL, and the team cannot afford anymore health issues. Plus, the team is banking on Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, and Chase Utley to return to All-Star caliber players. Additionally, the team is counting on Dominic Brown to repeat his early 2013 success. Good luck with all of that.

New York Mets (73-89): David Wright seems to be on the DL every year, Bartolo Colon is 40, Curtis Granderson is coming off of injury, Matt Harvey is probably not going to pitch in 2014 and the bullpen and starting rotation honestly has a ton of question marks. This is not the year the Mets are going to turn it around.


NL Central: Pretty tough division to predict here.

St. Louis Cardinals (95-67): The team has a good rotation, headlined by Adam Wainwright, Michael Wacha and company, a bullpen that always seems to perform and an offense that knows how to perform with the likes of Matt Holiday, Johnny Peralta and Matt Adams in it. They should repeat their 2013 success.

Cincinnati Reds (88-74): They lost Choo, but they have one of the better rotations in baseball when healthy, one of the most disciplined hitters in the game in the form of Joey Votto, and they still have a formidable offense with stars like Jay Bruce in the lineup. The bullpen is solid as well, so the team should compete and could potentially get into the playoffs via the Wild Card.

Pittsburgh Pirates (84-78): The Pirates have an outstanding bullpen and offensive stars such as Andrew McCutchen and Starling Marte, and the rotation should at least be decent with Gerrit Cole and veteran Wandy Rodriguez, but I do not quite buy the success they achieved last year, Francisco Lariano is a candidate to regress to being mediocre, and that makes the rotation questionable with a decent offense. They'll take a step back, but not a major one.

Milwaukee Brewers (80-84): This team should improve with Matt Garza in the fold, Kyle Loshe is consistent, and the offense should be good with Carlos Gomez, Jean Segura, Aramis Ramirez, an underrated catcher in Jonathan Lucroy and perhaps Ryan Braun if he can put his recent issues behind him. The bullpen should be at least average, but this group faces tough competition and has a ways to go before challenging for the division crown.

Chicago Cubs (68-94): Poor Cubs, they still look to be a ways from contention, but Jeff Samardzija is one of the better pichers in baseball and perhaps Jason Hammel will be productive, but the bullpen has many holes and the offense may be decent with Anthony Rizzo and perhaps Mike Olt, but this team is just not good enough to compete. The future does look bright for the franchise though.


NL West: Dodgers should win this no problem, but this is baseball, and the Diamondbacks and Giants should challenge them.

Los Angeles Dodgers (94-68): They had a late season surge in 2013, but they should be more consistent this season and should have no trouble winning the division. The offense is solid all the way around, the rotation with Clayton Kershaw, Ryu and Grienke will be the strenghth of the club, plus there is veteran Josh Beckett. The bullpen knows how to pitch, and hey money can fix any of the problems they encounter, I suppose.

Arizona Diamondbacks (88-74): They made many trades in the offseason to strengthen the club, Bronson Arroyo was added as a free agent to solidify the rotation at the backend, the bullpen is always serviceable, and Paul Goldschmidt is a major threat. The Dodgers cannot take this team lightly.    


San Francisco Giants (81-81): The Giants should be improved this season, they have great pitching, and have added veteran Tim Hudson. They also signed a power threat in Michael Morse. This team is going to rely on its pitching, but that should not be a concern with a stellar bullpen and starting rotation. The issue will be the streaky offense, but this team has recently been an every other year team, so by that logic, they could exceed expectations and my prediction above.

Colorado Rockies (78-84): The Rockies have one of the most potent offenses in the game if it can stay healthy, as it contains superstars Troy Tulowitski and Carlos Gonzalez and some potentially upcoming stars in Wilin Rosario and they have added veteran Justin Morneau. However, the starting staff and bullpen is nothing special, and the team will have to depend on its offense if it wants to compete.

San Diego Padres (74-88): The Padres have a good bullpen, and an underrated starting pitcher in Andrew Cashner, but in order to compete, the Padres will need Chase Headley to replicate his 2012 success and will need a number of other factors to go right, otherwise a last place finish for this team is inevitable.  



Sunday, March 30, 2014

Predictions for the American League 2014

   I still have yet to complete my best players in MLB series, and due to school work and other commitments, the series is taking a hiatus. However tonight is Opening Night for MLB in America, so I am going to take the time to predict the final standings of each MLB Division (First to Last) and give a brief explanation. This post will concern the American League and I will post about the National League tomorrow. (Here is a look at my predictions from last season on the AL and NL East, AL and NL Central and the AL West and NL West).


AL East: Hardest division to predict, it could go any way, the Orioles and Blue Jays are dark horses, but the other three should lock down this division.

Boston Red Sox (92-70): They lost Jacoby Ellsbury, but other than that the team is basically the same. The addition of Grady Sizemore could prove to be a huge bargain, plus if it ain't broke, don't fix it. They won the World Series last year so another division crown seems likely.

New York Yankees (90-72): They spent money like old times to construct their roster, health permitting they will be very competitive. They made key additions like Masahiro Tanaka and somehow still managed to get older, but money can fix that too...maybe.

Tampa Bay Rays (89-73): They picked up established closer Grant Balfour and they are the Rays, so they will compete with their pitching defense and superstar Evan Longoria.

Baltimore Orioles (86-76): They have good bullpen and a well constructed team, but even though they are talented, this is probably the toughest division to play in.

Toronto Blue Jays (76-86): Another last place finish, they got weaker over the off season, but they have productive bats in Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion.


AL Central: The Tigers are still the class of the division, don't expect an upset.

Detroit Tigers (91-71): This is a good all around team, but should be weaker with the loss of Prince Fielder and Doug Fister. They still have a good pen and Miguel Cabrera, plus Justin Verlander put up an excellent spring.

Kansas City Royals (89-73): One of the more underrated teams, with one of the best bullpens and an offense that can produce. This one is more of a hunch.

Cleveland Indians (86-76): They lost Scott Kazmir and Ubaldo Jimmenez, they got worse, but if Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn live up to their potential then they could finish second, but I see third place as their likely finish.

Minnesota Twins (75-87): They added a ton of starting pitching this off season and rumors say they tried to add some impact bats, while they seem to have improved a ton, they will not compete in this division.

Chicago White Sox (70-92): Jose Abreu should bring some much needed offense to the lineup, and perhaps Adam Dunn and Paul Konerko will exceed expectations. The rotation will be formidable led by lefty ace Chris Sale.


AL West: Tough division up top if everyone performs, the division is between the Angels, Rangers and Athletics, but don't count the Mariners out.

Oakland Athletics (95-67): By now everyone knows the A's are a well constructed team, not a fluke. They have won the division two years in a row, the team has an underrated bullpen, a platooned offense that seems to get things done and one of the smartest GM's in baseball.

Texas Rangers (93-69): They added Shin-Soo Choo and Prince Fielder to give the offense a boost and they have Adrian Beltre who is an excellent third baseman, the early injuries to the pitching staff are not promising, but as long as that is not too detrimental, they could win the division.

Los Angeles Angels (85-77): Well they have Mike Trout locked up for the next six years, so they have that going for them. Perhaps Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton can rebound to some extent, but don't count on near career years. The pitching staff is also improved with the likes of Tyler Skaggs. If they or the Rangers win the division however, it would be hard to consider it an upset.

Seattle Mariners (80-82): Well they spent a ton of money on Robinson Cano, but the starting pitching has taken a hit and they have an alright bullpen, some complementary pieces, but if they do not bring in another formidable bat don't count on an upset. The additions of Corey Hart and Logan Morrison could prove to be good moves.

Houston Astros (64-98): Believe it or not, they spent some money this offseason. They signed Scott Feldman and Jesse Crain. but they have an awful long way to go. Some of the young talent is looking impressive, but it is not 2018 yet.