Tomorrow is Opening Day... who ya got in the playoffs?
- Thread starter SanfordRJones
- Start date
I'm optimistic about the Braves this year. If they can stay relatively healthy and McLouth continues to hit, they could make plenty of noise this fall.
I'll probably get all of these wrong.
NL East- Braves- I think the Phillies are really going to miss Werth and I can't see Utley being 100% this year.
NL Central- Cardinals- Homer pick, but I would probably pick them anyway. Yes, they lost Wainwright for the year, but they still have Carpenter, and some guy named Pujols.
NL West- Giants- I can't see anyone else in this division giving them much competition other than the maybe the Dodgers
Wild Card- Phillies- That certainly have enough pitching to get them to the playoffs, but maybe not quite enough to win the Division
AL East- Boston- I like the additions of Crawford and Gonzalez. Heck, even Brian Cashman said they're better.
AL Central- Twins- they have Joe Nathan back. Peavey has to prove to me that he is healthy for me to pick the White Sox.
AL West- A's- Very underrated pitching staff.
Wild Card-Yankees- The Red Sox may be better, but they're still awfully good.
World Series Champion- The St. Louis Cardinals take out the New York Yankees on an Albert Pujols home run. Adam Wainwright makes a miraculous recovery from Tommy John and is able to be the closer in the playoffs, and strikes out A-Rod to end it.
NL East- Braves- I think the Phillies are really going to miss Werth and I can't see Utley being 100% this year.
NL Central- Cardinals- Homer pick, but I would probably pick them anyway. Yes, they lost Wainwright for the year, but they still have Carpenter, and some guy named Pujols.
NL West- Giants- I can't see anyone else in this division giving them much competition other than the maybe the Dodgers
Wild Card- Phillies- That certainly have enough pitching to get them to the playoffs, but maybe not quite enough to win the Division
AL East- Boston- I like the additions of Crawford and Gonzalez. Heck, even Brian Cashman said they're better.
AL Central- Twins- they have Joe Nathan back. Peavey has to prove to me that he is healthy for me to pick the White Sox.
AL West- A's- Very underrated pitching staff.
Wild Card-Yankees- The Red Sox may be better, but they're still awfully good.
World Series Champion- The St. Louis Cardinals take out the New York Yankees on an Albert Pujols home run. Adam Wainwright makes a miraculous recovery from Tommy John and is able to be the closer in the playoffs, and strikes out A-Rod to end it.
Bullpen is a huge question mark as well as anyone hitting consistently outside of Holliday and Pujols.
that Rasmus, Freese, and Berkman have good years. I think Shumaker will hit a little bit better this year as well. Molina is pretty solid for a MLB catcher as far as hitting is concerned.
As far as the bullpen- Franklin and Motte are going to be solid. Trevor Miller is a good situational guy. This is where losing Wainwright hurts a lot because now, McClellan is forced into the rotation. Brian Tallet is going to be a key guy- I hope Dave Duncan can work his magic with him. Mitchell Boggs will pitch a lot.
As they say, hope springs eternal.
As far as the bullpen- Franklin and Motte are going to be solid. Trevor Miller is a good situational guy. This is where losing Wainwright hurts a lot because now, McClellan is forced into the rotation. Brian Tallet is going to be a key guy- I hope Dave Duncan can work his magic with him. Mitchell Boggs will pitch a lot.
As they say, hope springs eternal.
The Phillies have a great staff, but Cliff Lee is overhyped right now because of last year's postseason. He is generally always pretty mortal for stretches every year, including last year after he was traded to Texas. Oswalt can be pretty hittable at times, too (Halladay hasn't been hittable since he was in grade school, though). The Braves' rotation is pretty solid. A lot of people are expecting Hanson to have a huge year. Hudson was a Cy Young contender last year. Beachy just had arguably the best spring training of any pitcher in baseball. Sure, he's not going to keep that up in the regular season, but he looks great as a #5 starter. The Braves' bullpen is a lot better than the Phillies with Lidge out.
With Utley out, Atlanta has a much better starting 8. If Utley doesn't get healthy, they'll be depending on Howard to carry the offense. Werth is gone and Rollins has been declining for 3 years. I would love to have Victorino, but he's not capable of carrying an offense. The Braves, on the other hand, have Chipper (who hit .380 this spring), McCann, Uggla, and Heyward all capable of carrying an offense, and they have the ROTY favorite batting 8th.
With Utley out, Atlanta has a much better starting 8. If Utley doesn't get healthy, they'll be depending on Howard to carry the offense. Werth is gone and Rollins has been declining for 3 years. I would love to have Victorino, but he's not capable of carrying an offense. The Braves, on the other hand, have Chipper (who hit .380 this spring), McCann, Uggla, and Heyward all capable of carrying an offense, and they have the ROTY favorite batting 8th.
The A's have a nice staff, but the Angels have a better staff. And their position players are also better. The A's will contend and may finish 2nd ahead of Texas, but I don't see them winning the division. If Felix Hernandez could pitch 162 games, this race wouldn't even be close, though.
I like the Twins, too. That 3 team race could end up being the most entertaining in baseball this year. Or it could be the NL Central with a 4 team race.
I like the Twins, too. That 3 team race could end up being the most entertaining in baseball this year. Or it could be the NL Central with a 4 team race.
And I felt like Oakland was a pretty good team to pick. Plus, I read an article about them from Peter Gammons talking about how all the scouts were talking about how they were going to surprise everyone.
NL:
Phillies
Brewers
Giants
Braves (WC)
AL;
Red Sox
White Sox
Rangers
Rays (WC)
WS:
Phillies over White Sox
Phillies
Brewers
Giants
Braves (WC)
AL;
Red Sox
White Sox
Rangers
Rays (WC)
WS:
Phillies over White Sox
...whoever stays healthier will win it.
Plus,a great rotation doesn't mean squat if your bullpen blows. Braves bullpen >>> Phillies bullpen.
Plus,a great rotation doesn't mean squat if your bullpen blows. Braves bullpen >>> Phillies bullpen.
You think Burnett, Nova, Freddy Garcia and Fatass Colon scare anybody? CC is CC, and Hughes will get his 15ish wins, but beyond those two, there might not be another Yankee in double figure wins. On the offensive side, you're already seeing the decline of Jeter, and to a lesser extent, the unenhanced A-Rod. Posada is washed up, no matter his role. Swisher and Granderson will do some good things but are only slightly above average players. I do like what Gardner can do if they bat him at the top, and Cano is a stud. Tex is bound to be better this year than last, but even in a bad year he's pretty darn good.
That's a long answer to say yes, I think they are in worse shape than most, but it's also a lot of wishful thinking.
At least I didn't pick the Cubs to win the Wild Card. There's a limit to even wishful thinking.
That's a long answer to say yes, I think they are in worse shape than most, but it's also a lot of wishful thinking.
At least I didn't pick the Cubs to win the Wild Card. There's a limit to even wishful thinking.
al east: sawx<div>al central: sox</div><div>al west: rangers</div><div>al wc: yanks</div><div>
</div><div>nl east: phils</div><div>nl central: brewers (really like the reds too though and i could see this being a tight race all year with maybe the cards and even the cubs in the running...most competitive division in mlb?)</div><div>nl west: giants</div><div>nl wc: braves</div>
</div><div>nl east: phils</div><div>nl central: brewers (really like the reds too though and i could see this being a tight race all year with maybe the cards and even the cubs in the running...most competitive division in mlb?)</div><div>nl west: giants</div><div>nl wc: braves</div>
lee isn't just a 1 year wonder or anything, dude has been a top 5 or 6 MLB SP the last 3 seasons (halladay, felix, cc, wainwright, and lincecum being the others). <div>SanfordRJones said:
</div><div>his 3 year avg is 223 IP, 16-8 (and SPs can't really control the Ws and Ls, see hernandez, felix), 179K to 32BB, 2.99 ERA, 1.12 WHIP. all this in the AL no less.</div><div>
</div><div>so yeah, he's not overhyped based off last year's postseason, dude's been a stud for 3 years. also, his "mortal" stretches are few and far between and are generally much more shorter and farther between than almost every other SP. even halladay has runs where he's a 4.00 ERA type guy for a few weeks at a time. it happens.</div>
Are you seriously bragging about the Yankees beating the Cubs? That's as pathetic as a Stansbury 20 win season.
He was pretty horrible up until 2008, when he was phenominal. he was pretty good the last two years, but not nearly as good as 2008. from first glance, his 2009 ERA result looks pretty lucky, as he had a high average against. but 2010 looks legit.
He's 32 now, but he walks almost nobody though, so he'll probably maintain his 2009/2010 performance for 2 years (ERA between 3.25 - 3.5), before declining.
For this year, i doubt he'll come close to the production of Halladay, Josh Johnson, or Lincecum. He probably won't even be in the top 5 in the NL.
He's 32 now, but he walks almost nobody though, so he'll probably maintain his 2009/2010 performance for 2 years (ERA between 3.25 - 3.5), before declining.
For this year, i doubt he'll come close to the production of Halladay, Josh Johnson, or Lincecum. He probably won't even be in the top 5 in the NL.
bragging, I was just pointing out the fact that they play then and it's going to be a beatdown. Calm down, Sally.
CC will be good, Hughes should be fine, AJ can't be any worse than last year, I think he will bounce back. Not sure what to expect from nova, he was pretty good last year, but now people have tape on him.
Arod had one of the best springs he has had in awhile, posada is still a damn good hitter, and will make a good DH. To think for 2 seconds that they will only have 2 pitchers with double digit wins is ridiculous.
Not to mention, you know as well as I do that this won't be the rotation after the deadline. They have the prospects to go get a stud pitcher. Not to mention they have a damn good bullpen.
My biggest concern is their age
Arod had one of the best springs he has had in awhile, posada is still a damn good hitter, and will make a good DH. To think for 2 seconds that they will only have 2 pitchers with double digit wins is ridiculous.
Not to mention, you know as well as I do that this won't be the rotation after the deadline. They have the prospects to go get a stud pitcher. Not to mention they have a damn good bullpen.
My biggest concern is their age
According to Rob Dibble's 3 year rule, the book has been written that he's very good. But, while they're very good numbers, they're not worthy of the hype he's been getting this winter. I attribute it to his dominating performance in the post season and the fact that he was a free agent. I think he's more in the class of someone like Jared Weaver, a legitimate front line starter, not Lincecum or Halladay, perennial Cy Young favorites.
i think, given how bad he was right up until 2008, that he needs another year, particularly given his lucky 2009. I'd say 2010 is pretty close to his base performance level (one year better, and one year worse in stats if not results, but neither particulary that far off). And those are pretty good numbers, just not Cy Young numbers, like you said.
Also, keep in mind that great control pitchers usually do much better with a lead, and he's had lots of leads the last 3 years. we'll see how he does with a more average offense, and a bullpen situation that might leave him in games longer.
Also, keep in mind that great control pitchers usually do much better with a lead, and he's had lots of leads the last 3 years. we'll see how he does with a more average offense, and a bullpen situation that might leave him in games longer.
control pitchers also tend to age far more gracefully. i think lee will be a 3.00-3.30 era, 1.10ish whip, 7+K/9 SP for 3 or 4 more years. and still remain effective after that. 2009 might have been a little lucky, however, almost every pitcher with a sub-3.30 era is "lucky" when you look at peripherals. <div>
</div><div>speaking of guys being hittable, you's "perennial cy young" guy like lincecum had a worse 2010 than lee has had in any of the last 3 years.</div><div>
</div><div>i'm not saying lee has the same level of pure talent, or even is as good as these guys, but i think most people would classify him somewhere between the 4th best and 8th best SP in MLB. the numbers back up that that's the kinda SP he is. to say he's overrated, people would have to be claiming he's a top 2 or 3 SP ahead a halladay or felix, but they aren't.</div><div>
</div><div>also, expect some regression out of dream weaver this year, i don't think he maintains the K rate and his numbers look more 2009 weaver than 2010 weaver.</div>
</div><div>speaking of guys being hittable, you's "perennial cy young" guy like lincecum had a worse 2010 than lee has had in any of the last 3 years.</div><div>
</div><div>i'm not saying lee has the same level of pure talent, or even is as good as these guys, but i think most people would classify him somewhere between the 4th best and 8th best SP in MLB. the numbers back up that that's the kinda SP he is. to say he's overrated, people would have to be claiming he's a top 2 or 3 SP ahead a halladay or felix, but they aren't.</div><div>
</div><div>also, expect some regression out of dream weaver this year, i don't think he maintains the K rate and his numbers look more 2009 weaver than 2010 weaver.</div>