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| From Sportsofboston.com |
1. Baltimore Orioles
The Orioles were arguably the biggest surprise last season, finishing with a record of 93-69 and finishing 2nd in the ALE. They managed to win the Wild Card game, only to fall to the Yankees in the ALDS. But this means that the pressure is really on the O's this year. And with the rest of the league no longer sleeping on them, I can't see Baltimore winning more than 80 games this year.
If you look at the numbers, the O's did win a lot of games. Barely. 29 one-run wins and 16 wins in extra innings. That is tough to do one year, let alone two years in a row. The bullpen was amazing but the offense was lacking, a flaw that cost them in the playoffs. If the hitters can't step up this season, Baltimore will not be able to win games, especially in a division that is speckled with some of the best hitters in the league.
2. Boston Red Sox
Oh boy, where to start? The Red Sox are coming off one of the worst seasons in franchise history. Their dismal record 69-93 was enough to earn them last place in the East. Do they turn it around this year? Slightly. The Red Sox hustled to try and rebuild their team this off-season with the money they saved by dealing away Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett and Carl Crawford to the L.A. Dodgers. Ryan Dempster was added, as well as Jole Hanrahan who will fill a desperately needed closer position. David Ortiz, Dustin Pedroia, and Jacoby Ellsbury are all back from injury this year. That's great news, but Ellsbury's health has been a recurring issue the last few seasons. If he can stay healthy, he should be able to provide some solid numbers. But despite all of this, a lot could go wrong. John Lester and Clay Buchholz need to rebound after sub-par seasons, and Dempster had a 5.09 ERA last season. This is a hitting division and there is a lot of pressure on the rotation. The season depends on them. If they can't provide quality innings, the Sox may finds themselves at the bottom of the division again.
3. New York Yankees
The Yankees finished with an ALE-best 95-67 record last year before getting swept by the Detroit Tigers in the ALCS. But one word sums up the major concern for the Yankees this year: injuries. A-Rod is out for most of the year, possibly the entire season if his rehab doesn't go as planned. Derek Jeter is coming of a broken ankle, and Mariano Rivera is back from a torn ACL after pitching just 8 innings last season. Curtis Granderson will be out the first month and news broke today that Mark Texeria will be out for 8-10 weeks. The good news is that there are a few positives for this Yankees squad. They have one of the fastest outfields in the league with Brett Gardner, Ichiro, and Granderson when he returns. Kevin Youkilis should provide some solid offense and will pick up the third-base duties nicely. Robinson Cano is always a threat to have a good year, but he will have to pick up a lot of the load in the beginning of the season. Like the Red Sox, most of the pressure will be on the pitchers, especially early in the season when everyone is hurt or coming off injury. The offense will not be there and C.C. Sabathia, Andy Pettitte, Hiroki Kuroda, and the bullpen need to prove they are worth the money that is spent on them. But it is the Yankees, and sooner or later, they usually find ways to win. Just don't expect a lot for a month or two.
4. Tamapa Bay Rays
The Rays finished the season out in third place with a respectable 90-72 record. Unlike the three teams above, pitching doesn't seem to be a major concern heading in to opening day. Cy Young winner David Price should continue to tear-up hitters. Parting with James Sheild was tough, but necessary and prospect Chris Archer has potential to take over Sheild's role. Matt Moore will also have a chance to show what he is made of this season in the rotation though early reports in spring say he is showing some flaws and may be the biggest question mark in the rotation. As far as offense and defense goes, expect the typical suspects Evan Longoria and Ben Zobrist to put up good numbers. And prospect Wil Myers will be able to provide some power should they choose to bring him up from AAA. There have been debates on how good this team will be this year but if you think about it, this is one of the two teams in the East that have little concern about their roster this season. If they can jump ahead early while the rest of the division is settling in, they have potential to compete for a spot in the playoffs.
5. Toronto Blue Jays
Coming of a fourth place season of 73-89, this team has potential to be the most improved team in the league. They have had the busiest off-season after acquiring NL Cy Young R.A. Dickey, Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle and Jose Reyes. Combine this with Jose Bautista and a lineup that improves every season, and you have a team with the highest expectations in baseball. This team was missing two things to compete in the ALE: pitching and base runners. And in just a few months, they managed to acquire both. There are flaws however. The rotation does have a few kinks such as an inconsistent Ricky Romero, and Brandon Morrow and Johnson have trouble staying healthy. Bautista is a fantastic hitter but this will be his first season where he will headline an offense that is actually expected to compete. It will be interesting to see if he can handle the pressure. Not to mention that Reyes also has a history plagued with injury problems, despite staying healthy last year. The whole season will come down to staying healthy and handling pressure. But reports from Spring Training says the team is confident and excited for the up coming season. Don't sleep on Canada this year.
My prediction:
1. Blue Jays
2. Rays
3. Yankees
4. Orioles
5. Red Sox
Look out soon for future posts as I cover each division and the playoffs for the upcoming MLB season.
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