AL-APALOOZA

Let's finish up the 2008 Baseball Preview so we can all get on to better things...

AL WEST
1. L.A. ANGELS OF ANAHEIM - 92 wins (+/- 4) The Angels are (once again) very talented, kind of dull to watch and a bit enigmatic (having just moved to Denver from SoCal, I've seen more Angels games during the Mike Scoscia era than most). But even without nominal ace John Lackey (on the DL), the Angels have enough to win the pennant. Hell, they have three of the four best outfielders in the division (Torii Hunter, Vladimir Guerrero & Gary Matthews Jr.) all by themselves.

2. Seattle - 89 wins (+/- 5) My AL wildcard pick...I like what they did in the offseason and I think young pitching phenom Felix "The King" Hernandez will really start to figure things out after the All-Star break, making for a nice combo with imported ace Erik Bedard. One possible fly in the ointment--the injury to All-Star closer J.J. Putz (rhymes with "suits").

3. Oakland - 77 wins (+/- 3) The dropoff in the West division officially begins here. But Billy "Moneyball" Beane will have the A's back in contention by '09.

4. Texas - 69 wins (+/- 5) What's the one thing they can never get enough of in Arlington, besides air conditioning? Pitching. So what did they do in the offseason? Trade away their number one pitching prospect, Edison Volquez. I just don't get this team...

AL CENTRAL
1. CLEVELAND - 88 wins (+/-3) Mediocrity, thy name is the American League Central. I don't really believe in any of these teams. To me, it wouldn't be shocking if Kansas City contended for a division title this year. That being said, the Indians are the most stable team in the division and they have legitimate number one (C.C. Sabathia) and number two (Fausto Carmona) pitchers, which should make the difference. Travis Hafner needs to go back to hitting like he did in 2004-2006--then the Tribe will be true World Series contenders.

2. Detroit - 83 (+/- 7) Even before their horrific 2-9 start I had my doubts. Now I have more. Do they have any middle relief pitching? Can they count on "The Gambler", Kenny Rogers? Does Dontrelle Willis have anything left? The Tigers will need some Magnum P.I. mojo and six runs a game to climb back into contention.

3. Chicago White Sox - 81 (+/- 2) My favorite American League team...it seems like ten years ago that they finally ended their own World Series hex, but it was only 2005. There's still a lot of good players here, but the problem is that a lot of them are closer to retirement than they are to contention.

4. Kansas City - 75 (+/- 4) Finally, after nearly two decades in the wilderness (so to speak) there is hope in Kansas City. Japanesse import Trey Hillman will be in the running for manager of the year and young rakers Alex Gordon and Billy Butler are coming along nicely. They still need depth and pitching though. But not being in last place is definitely a step in the right direction.

5. Minnesota - 72 (+/- 4) Carl Pohlad is one cagey muthafucker. One of America's richest men, he continues to pinch pennies with the Twins payroll while poormouthing his way into conning the Twin Cities into paying for a nice new (outdoor!) stadium. Nevertheless, he says goodbye to Minneapolis icon Torii Hunter, perennial Cy Young contender Johan Santana and talented arbitration-eligible young pitcher Matt Garza. Here's to you Pohlad--I guess that's why you're a billionaire and I'm a blogger in my underwear.

AL EAST
1. BOSTON - 91 (+/- 3) I'm very much over the Red Sox and the whole Sox-Yankees rivalry, but there's no denying this team's talent and the way they play for each other. It's not just the big name free agent acquisitions either--the farm system has produced big league ready, All-Star or nearly All-Star players like Jonathan Papelbon, Jon Lester, Dustin Pedroia and Jacoby Ellsbury.

2. New York Yankees - 86 (+/- 2) Taking a cue from the Red Sox they focused more on promoting talent from within this year than they did in acquiring other people's talent (although you know they'll have their wallets open at the trade deadline if need be). To me, their hitting lineup looks a little old and a little thin and they could use one more quality starter to contend for the title.

3. Toronto - 85 (+/- 5) I could see them making the playoffs or I could see them losing 85 games. I like the way they play, I think acquiring Scott Rolen and David Eckstein is a total upgrade (if they stay healthy) and they have better pitching than the Yankees. Plus, Toronto is just a really freakin' cool city.

4. Tampa Bay - 77 (+/- 6) That's not a typo--the franchise that's never won 70 in a season has a chance to finish above .500 and out of the cellar. They need Scott Kazmir healthy though and Evan Longoria needs to get called up to the bigs before the All-Star break. He's too good to stay in AAA.

5. Baltimore - 66 (+/- 4) They traded away their lone chance at respectability when they sent Bedard to Seattle this offseason (they should have waited and held a ransom at this year's trade deadline--they could have pulled a heist) and though there is finally some young talent on it's way up in the organization (or even in the Opening Day starting lineup), baseball will remain pretty ugly in Charm City for the foreseeable future.

NL PLAYOFFS: Arizona over Chicago (4-2), NY Mets over Colorado (4-2), NY Mets over Arizona (4-3).
AL PLAYOFFS: LA Angels over Cleveland (4-2), Boston over Seattle (4-1), Angels over Boston (4-3).
WORLD SERIES: LA ANGELS over NY Mets 4 games to 2.

And that is the last you'll read from me about baseball until, oh, mid-September. Feel free to bookmark these predictions and save them for a good laugh this fall.

Coming soon...a new look for this blog. Peace.