The Redhead’s 2009/2010 Major League Baseball Predictions:
Now that the baseball season is upon us, predictions for who will win their divisions are easily found. With that in mind, isn’t it about time that I join this game and throw in my two cents on the matter?
Starting in the NL West, the Los Angeles Dodgers won the Division last year and nothing has changed. The Dodgers are the superior team in the division: they have better hitting, pitching, and defense than most teams in baseball and especially the other teams within their division. The Rockies and Diamondbacks could give the Dodgers a run for their money, but sadly they will come up short.
The NL Central is going to be a far closer race than in the West, but the St. Louis Cardinals come out on top, hitting their way to the peak of the Central. The Cardinals have always had a heavy hitting team that managed to play great defense. Anchored by the stellar play from last year’s MVP Albert Pujols, the Cardinals won’t have any problems scoring runs, but now that Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter are healthy, St. Louis will finally have the pitching to make a run for the title like they did in 2004 and 2006.
The NL East will be the most competitive division in the National League with the Florida Marlins coming out on top in a close race with the New York Mets. Florida set an unprecedented record last year with every member of their infield hitting more than 20 home runs, with future MVP Hanley Ramirez in the middle of it. The Marlins will do what the Rays did last year; they have a young explosive team that finally has some pitching to make them a complete team. The starting rotation for the Marlins has greatly increased in talent this year and it is easy to say they have three studs at the top of their rotation. The Marlins have waited long and hard to reach the post season again and trust me they know this.
The NL Wild Card goes to the New York Mets. The Mets have always been a contender with superb starting pitching, great defense, and explosive hitting. They have also always lacked a bullpen, but with the signing of Francisco Rodriguez (the all time single season save holder) and JJ Putz the Mets finally have a complete enough team to make the playoffs.
Moving onto the American League West the Los Angeles Angles win the division easy. No other team can match up with the completeness of the Angles. Every other team in the AL East can either hit and can’t pitch or pitch and can’t hit. The Rangers are going to be nipping at their heals all year, but because of the lack of pitching the Angles will win fairly easily.
The AL Central is by far the weakest division in the American League and any one could come out and win. The Minnesota Twins are the most consistent team and that’s why they win the Central, but will lose in the first round of the playoffs. The Central’s lack of talent is the exact opposite of the AL East, which is full of extremely talented teams.
The AL East will turn out the same way it turned out last year. The Tampa Bay Rays win a close three-way race over Boston and New York. The Rays have uncanny defense, a highly powerful offense, and solid pitching. The Rays are a really complete team that plays way above their age. The Rays will out last the Red Sox who will come in second, winning the AL Wild Card, leaving the Yankees out of the playoffs, again.
The AL Wild Card goes to the Boston Red Sox, because it’s easy to see that they have the best starting rotation in all of baseball, but with the aging Big Papi, David Ortiz and Mike Lowell they going to have to deal with old men, and old man bodies, something the Rays won’t have to worry about for years to come.
The Playoff situation is leading to an all Florida World Series. The Rays will have the best record in the AL and will play Boston in the first round. The Rays come out on top, yes just like last year. The Angels beat the Twins in three games, easy. This leads to Tampa Bay and the Angels in the American League Championship with the Rays winning it all and heading back to the world series.
On the National League side, the Marlins will have the best record in baseball and will face off with the Wild Card winning Mets. The Marlins have too much firepower to lose, beating the Mets in a well-played divisional playoff. The Dodgers will put up a good fight against the Cardinals, but the Cardinals win going to the Division Championship against the Marlins. The Marlins win the National League to go face off with the Rays in an all-Florida World Series. The Rays win it all, capturing their first World Series in the history of the organization. They have more hitting and pitching than the Marlins, plus they have the experience from last year which gives them the edge over Florida.
