And your point is

Now that Spring Training has gotten under way, I thought it would be important to tell the world how I think the 2004 MLB baseball season will proceed.
AL East
The New York Yankees have probably the best team ever. Their worst player is starting second baseman Enrique Wilson and he is actually really good, when given a chance to play. The only question with the Yankees is whether they have enough good pitching to make it all the way through the playoffs and World Series?
The Boston Red Sox added some great pitching and will look to make another run at the Yankees. The Yankees have won the division consecutively since 1996, and Boston really wants to end the Yankees’ dreams of winning yet another division title.
The Baltimore Orioles improved their hitting prospects with the additions of Miguel Tejada, Javy Lopez and Rafael Palmeiro. After Sidney Ponson, the Orioles pitching staff is unknown and will struggle this season.
The Toronto Blue Jays did not do enough to improve their team in order to keep up with the Yankees and Red Sox. For the past few years, the Blue Jays have finished third behind the Yankees and Red Sox, but this year it looks like the Orioles may pass them by.
Finally, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (yes, they did add some pitching and hitting but we are talking about the Devils Rays), expect 10 more wins then last year.
My AL East prediction is 1.Yankees, 2. Red Sox, 3. Orioles, 4. Blue Jays, 5. Devil Rays. The Yankees will win because every hitter in their line-up can either hit over .310 or hit over 30 homeruns. A-Rod, Jeter, Gambi, Bernie Williams, Matsui, Lofton, Sheffield and Posada, this could be the best line-up one through nine ever put together. This team is going to be great. The only question I have is “will the Yankees actually ever lose a game.”
AL Central
The Minnesota Twins are such a fun team to watch. They play hard and enjoy getting dirty. Players like Jacques Jones and Shannon Stewart will help the Twins win the division.
The Kansas City Royals added some pop to their line-up with the addition of Juan Gonzales, but their pitching will continue to struggle, like it did at the end of last season (the main reason why the Royals did not make the playoffs).
The Chicago White Sox lineup will have plenty of stars in it, with Frank Thomas and Magglio Ordonez headlining but again no pitching equals a third place finish for the Sox.
The Cleveland Indians are heading in the right direction but are still a few years away from contention. Juet Gerut appears ready to lead the team after a solid rookie year. Pitching will also be a problem, as C.C. Sabathia leads a young staff into the ’04 season.
The Detroit Tigers would had to win five of their last six games of the season just to finish one game off the New York Mets 1962 season of loses (120). The Tigers finished last year with a 43-119 record, but by adding Ivan Rodriguez and a few others, look for the Tigers to get about 60 to 65 wins and only improve in the upcoming years.
My AL Central prediction is 1. Twins, 2. Royals, 3.White Sox, 4. Indians, 5. Tigers. The Twins win because they are just a good team. The Royals, White Sox and Indians will battle it out for second, while the Tigers should think of ’05.
AL West
The Anaheim Angels have what appears to be a great team. With the addition of both Vladimir Guerrero and Jose Guillen, the Angels have a great batting order. Bartolo Colon, coming over from Chicago, leads an already good pitching staff into the season. The Angels are the clear favorites for the division crown.
The Oakland Athletics are always going to be good. Their farm system produces great players year after year and the A’s always seem to be in the race. This year the big question will be how will the A’s bounce back after losing Tejada to free agency and will Bobby Crosby be a good everyday shortstop?
The Seattle Mariners always seem to be good in the regular season, but toward the end of the season they struggle and miss the playoffs. Losing closer Kazuhiro Sasaki will only hurt the pitching staff. However, the additions of Raul Ibanez and Rich Aurilia can only help a team. Pitcher Eddie Guardado has a chance to be a great addition to Seattle.
The Texas Rangers replaced A-Rod with the addition of a really good player, Alfonso Soriano. But their line-up will feature a lot of young stars, and their pitching staff is horrible and extremely inexperienced.
My AL West prediction is 1. Angels, 2. A’s, 3. Mariners, 4. Rangers. The Angels will win because of the smart additions made by the Angels owners. The A’s and Mariners will give the Angels a little trouble. Watch for the Rangers to play around .500 because their team is actually not that bad.
(NL predictions will be in the March 19 issue).

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Feb 27 2004. Filed under Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry