It's that time of year again when players on most teams believe for a second that their team has a chance to make playoffs and maybe the World Series this year. For half the league, this feeling last until May when they realize they were just a tad overly optimistic. From here, some players play to stat pad, some play to get traded to a contender, but many just play for the money. Well here are my predictions for the 2013 season before the "flies start dropping" already.
AL East:
1. Toronto Blue Jays-This is the hardest division in baseball to pick. Every team in this division can end up .500+, but I doubt anyone will runaway with this division. Every team in the AL East can end up first or last depending on the circumstances. With the Blue Jays pick ups, I will put them as the AL East winner, but this can easily change if their players run into injury problems (e.g Jose Reyes).
2. New York Yankees- The Yankees are no longer the clear cut winner of the AL East. With aging players and injuries, the team is in a decline. Their current disabled list is a former all-star team of their own (e.g Jeter, Granderson, A-Rod, Teixeira, Pineda). The Yankees always seem to find a way to win though, so don't count them out.
3. Tampa Bay Rays- With David Price leading the way and a solid pitching staff behind him, the Rays will still be a dominant team when playing the rest of the American League.
4. Baltimore Orioles- Their pitching staff will regress a little after a superb season last year.
5. Boston Red Sox- Still in transition, the Red Sox are starting with a new manager and some new faces such as close Joel Hanrahan. Power hitter David Ortiz is aging and free agent flops such as Carl Crawford have moved on to other teams.
AL Central:
1. Detroit Tigers- The only real dominant team in the Central this season. Like the AL East the other teams can end up anywhere between second and fifth place, but unlike the East, it's not because of the amount of talent in the division.
2. Kansas City Royals- Finally after being in rebuilding mode (since the 80's), their prospects and younger players and bound to shine through. Hosmer, Gordon, Moustakas, and Butler will lead the offense, while new additions to the pitching staff such as "Big Game" James Shields will solidify the pitching.
3. Cleveland Indians- Terry Francona is not enough to move the Indians in the right direction. The Indians are full of players that never lived up to the hype.
4. Minnesota Twins- Led by Joe Mauer, the Twins can't top the Central like they once did. The starting pitching isn't strong enough and many of their hitters are inexperienced.
5. Chicago White Sox- With no significant additions during the off season, the White Sox will remain average at best. Tyler Flowers will finally get the chance to shine after AJ's departure. The White Sox biggest off season addition was Jeff Keppinger, which is nothing to brag about.
AL West:
1. Oakland A's- After the A's ninety-four wins last season, the youngsters now have a season under their belts and the sting of a lackluster playoffs on their minds. A good blend of power, speed, and pitching will lead the West.
2. Texas Rangers- Still with some good pitching and youngsters on their way up, the Rangers will just hold off the Angels. The Rangers can fall to the Angels though if key players end up getting injured.
3. ANAHEIM Angels- The Angels went on a shopping spree this year, adding Josh Hamilton and even paying Vernon Wells twenty-eight million dollars to not play on their team. If they can stay healthy, the Angels can leap frog over the Rangers for second place.
4. Seattle Mariners- No last place finish for the Mariners. With the new addition of the Astros to the division, the Mariners will have to try hard (or not) to end up in last. No stand out players/captains to lead the team, the Mariners are just coasting by this year.
5. Houston Astros- New jerseys and a new league won't help much. The team has good role players, but also suffer from lack of star power.
NL East:
1. Washington Nationals- The former Expos have finally solidified themselves as the team to beat in the East. Solid pitching led by Strasburg, Gio Gonzales and Zimmerman mixed with the hitting of players such
as Ian Desmond and Ryan Zimmerman will lead the Nationals to the divisional win.
2. Atlanta Braves- Regaining solid pitching and gaining a pair of Upton's, the Braves will end up in second place.
3. New York Mets- There isn't much to say positive about the Mets this season. Wright leads a lackluster team in offense and the pitching staff has once again lost Johan Santana. Rookie call ups are the only positives left this season for the franchise.
4. Philadelphia Phillies- The Phillies start the season with Chase Utley, Ryan Howard, and Roy Halladay healthy for the first time in a couple of seasons. If they play up to past levels, they could take second place, but more likely than not, they'll end up in the middle.
5. Miami Marlins- Once again the Marlins franchise had a fire sale and gave up all of their noticeable players except Giancarlo Stanton. Back to the bottom of the basement for the Marlins.
NL Central:
1. Milwaukee Brewers- After finishing the second half of last year strong, the Brewers have so many positives on their team, it would be hard to bet against them. Lending thirteen players to the World Baseball Classic could possibly hurt the franchise on their way to the top.
2. St. Louis Cardinals- A solid team, but not the same as they were in their past when they had legitimate star power on the field.
3. Cincinnati Reds- A strong team on the field, but not a lot of depth. If injuries occur, they could drop farther down than third place.
4. Pittsburgh Pirates- Not much separates the Pirates from the Cardinals. They can just as easily end up in second place as long as players stay healthy.
5. Chicago Cubs- Another season will come and go with the Cubs ending up in the cellar.
NL West:
1. Arizona Diamondbacks- With young players such as Adam Eaton, AJ Pollock, and Tyler Skaggs coming up through the ranks and veteran players such as Ian Kennedy and Aaron Hill still leading the way, Arizona should still keep first over their fellow divisional rivals.
2. San Francisco Giants- Last year's champs, I don't think can win it all unless players such as Lincecum step up to All-Star levels again.
3. Los Angeles Dodgers- Going on a spending spree of their own after last year's all-star break, they are hoping that Carl Crawford will once again be the player he used to be.
4. San Diego Padres- Once known as playing in one of the hardest parks to hit in, the Padres management brought in the fences to promote a bigger offensive explosion. Players such as Carlos Quentin should see and increase in power.
5. Colorado Rockies- Once again rebuilding and healing. Not much of an upside for the Rockies.
AL Wild Cards:
New York Yankees and Texas Rangers
NL Wild Cards:
Atlanta Braves and San Francisco Giants
World Series:
Washington Nationals win in six over Detroit Tigers
AL MVP: Miguel Cabrera
NL MVP: Bryce Harper
AL Cy Young: Justin Verlander
NL Cy Young: Clayton Kershaw
AL Rookie Of The Year: Will Myers
NL Rookie Of The Year: Adam Eaton
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