WBRS Sports Blog

April is here and with it comes baseball and hope of greatness in diamonds across the country (Washington, Kansas City and Seattle excluded). If last year proved anything, it’s that the World Series can match a team barely above .500 with one picked to finish fourth in a bad division. A phenomenal rookie class brought a new crop of rising stars and more are on the way. The shroud of steroids seems to be dissipating, though a potential HGH scandal may be just around the corner. A number of vets are approaching key milestones: Tom Glavine is at 290 wins, Craig Biggio is at 2,930 hits and Trevor Hoffman could be the first to break 500 saves. In addition, Frank Thomas, Jim Thome, Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez are within the 500 HR barrier and of course, the big countdown involves everybody’s favorite villain, Barry Bonds, who is only 22 HRs away from Aaron’s career record. The mix of veterans still performing at high levels with an influx of young stars like Hanley Ramirez, David Wright, Justin Verlander and the intrigue of Daisuke Matsuzaka makes this one of the most exciting times to be a baseball fan. So without further adieu, let’s begin working through the divisions.

AL EAST

Key Questions:
How does Matsuzaka fare once he’s been through the league?
Do the Yankees have the pitching depth to be as strong as they’ve been in previous years?
Can the Blue Jays win on days Burnett and Halladay don’t pitch?
Do Baltimore’s young arms start to turn the corner in year two under Mazzone?
How quickly will Tampa Bay’s young bats grow up?

Predicted order of finish:
Boston (101-61)
New York (93-69)
Toronto (86-76)
Tampa Bay (72-90)
Baltimore (69-93)

Top Rookie: Dice-K Matsuzaka
Break-out Star: Alex Rios
MVP: David Ortiz
Cy Young: A.J. Burnett

AL CENTRAL

Key Questions:
How much does Kenny Rogers “leadership” mean to the Detroit staff?
What explicative will Ozzie Guillen use this year and who will be the target?
Will Twins fans perfect their rain dance for non-Johan starts?
Is 2004 Jhonny Peralta (.885 OPS) or the 2005 edition (.708 OPS) the real one? And why is the “h” before the “o”?
Will Alex Gordon give Royals fans hope for the first time in years?

Predicted order of finish:
Detroit (91-71)
Chicago (88-74)
Minnesota (85-77)
Cleveland (84-78)
Kansas City (63-99)

Top Rookie: Alex Gordon
Break-out Star: Josh Barfield
MVP: Johan Santana
Cy Young: Johan Santana

AL WEST

Key Questions:
Who will provide Vlad’s line-up protection?
Can Rich Harden survive a full season injury-free?
Is Hank Blalock a player on the decline or merely inconsistent?
If Felix Hernandez strikes out players in Seattle and the Mariners don’t win, does it make a sound?

Predicted order of finish:
Anaheim (92-70)
A’s (85-77)
Rangers (81-81)
Seattle (66-96)

Top Rookie: Travis Buck
Break-out Star: Howie Kendrick
MVP: Vladimir Guerrero
Cy Young: John Lackey

NL EAST

Key Questions:
Will Brett Myers and Cole Hamels take the next step to become the best twosome in the NL?
Do the Mets have enough hitting to overcome their question-mark filled rotation?
Can Kelly Johnson and Scott Thorman provide adequate offense on the right side of the Braves infield?
With Josh Johnson already out, how many of the Marlins young arms will make it through the season?
What’s worse – the Nationals rotation or their line-up?

Predicted order of finish:
Philadelphia (94-68)
New York (84-78)
Atlanta (83-79)
Florida (78-84)
Washington (58-104)

Top Rookie: Scott Thorman
Break-out star: Cole Hamels
Cy Young: Brett Myers
MVP: Ryan Howard

NL CENTRAL

Who will walk fewer batters: Ben Sheets (1.89BB/9) or David Bush (1.86BB/9)?
Will Roy Oswalt get the run support to get back to 20 wins?
How well will Adam Wainwright’s conversion to starting go?
Who will have a higher BA – Carlos Zambrano or Cesar Izturis?
Will the public finally recognize Aaron Harang as one of the league’s top 10 pitchers?
Can the crop of young pitchers + Bay/LaRoche create any sense of optimism in Pittsburgh?

Predicted order of finish:

Milwaukee (88-74)
Houston (81-81)
St. Louis (79-83)
Chicago (74-88)
Cincinnati (74-88)
Pittsburgh (67-95)

Top Rookie: Donald Veal (Cubs midseason call-up)
Break-out star: Luke Scott
Cy Young: Roy Oswalt
MVP: Prince Fielder

NL WEST

Predicted order of finish

San Diego (90-72)
Los Angeles (88-74)
Arizona (82-80)
San Francisco (78-84)
Colorado (76-86)

Top Rookie: Kevin Kouzmanoff
Break-out star: Matt Cain
Cy Young: Jake Peavy
MVP: Kouzmanoff

POSTSEASON

Divisional Round

Anaheim over New York
Boston over Detroit
Philadelphia over Los Angeles
San Diego over Milwaukee

Championship Round

Boston over Anaheim
Philadelphia over San Diego

World Series

Boston over Philadelphia (Manny as series MVP)

AWARDS
AL Cy Young: Johan Santana
NL Cy Young: Roy Oswalt

AL MVP: Vladimir Guerrero
NL MVP: Ryan Howard

AL ROY: Alex Gordon
NL ROY: Kevin Kouzmanoff