This is my favorite time of the year the beginning of the baseball season. It seems odd to be starting on a Thursday time year, and even though it’s Spring on the calendar it’s still winter in many places.
Last year I did pretty good in my picks in the 2010 season as I predicted all the American League playoff teams. I will admit though, I had no idea the Giants would have the type of year they would have. That’s what I love about baseball when a team can come out of nowhere and win it all.
National League:
In the East it should come down to two teams the Braves and the Phillies. I don’t see the Mets or Marlins doing too much this year. Washington is about two years away from playing better ball. The key for Philadelphia is health and how well their line up holds up as it’s one of the oldest in the league. The Braves have returned and should take the crown.
In the Central. The Reds have a shot at repeating this year but the Brewers seem to have constructed a team that can get into the post season. The Cards are already affected by injuries to their pitchers. I wish the Pirates would be better, just not their year and it’s not the Cubs year… again. Brewers are in it to win it.
In the West. This one is a toss up. San Diego was so close to winning the division last year but San Fran got hot, won the division and then took the Series. They should still be a strong team. The Dodgers should be good too and the Rockies can’t be counted out. Diamondbacks are a couple years away from being back. Look for the Padres and Giants to head into the Playoffs.
American League
East: The Red Sox should take this division. The Yankees don’t have the starting pitching to get them through the season. Tampa lost a lot of key players and while they have probably the best team in the Interinational Leauge, not everyone there is ready for the majors yet. Baltimore and Toronto should have better seasons. The Yanks will put up a fight but Boston invested a lot to not be good this year.
Central: If not the the Miguel Cabera incident at the beginning of Spring Training I would say the Tiger’s would have been a lock for the division. They are still a very good team and should make the playoffs if they don’t fade in the second half. The Twins and White Sox will be contenders as well. Cleveland and Kansas City won’t have the best of seasons. The Twins will win again but not without a fight from Detroit who should be a Wild Card team.
West: This is a three way race with Oakland, Texas and the Angels. Pitching will rule this division which will probably mean Texas will fall just short this year. Oakland is the better team right now but this division and the Central will be the funnest ones to watch this year.
Picks:
AL: Red Sox, Twins, A’s; Wildcard: Tigers
NL: Braves, Brewers, Padres; Wildcard: Giants
World Series: Braves over Red Sox
We’ll see how I do come October.