AL Forecast & Burnie's Plight

At long last, here are my predictions for the 2008 MLB season (AL today, NL tomorrow). Before you go to your bookie, keep in mind that I had the Tigers and Mets squaring off in the '07 World Series...uh, yeah.

AL East
1. Boston
2. Toronto
3. New York
4. Tampa Bay
5. Baltimore

Comments: I don't care about the trip to Japan and Schilling's injury, the Red Sox are the deepest, well-built team in this division, if not all of baseball. Some may be surprised by my pick of the Blue Jays finishing second. They were injury-plagued last season and Vernon Wells had a down year. I like their one-two punch of Halladay and Burnett and they've got more than enough offense. I just don't like the Yankees' rotation. When you're relying on Pettitte, Mussina, and a couple of talented, but unproven starters, I really don't care how much you hit. The "newly-named" Rays will be improved and you have to love their young, budding stars. James Shields is a stud in-the-making, Scott Kazmir is as-advertised, and Matt Garza was a good addition in a trade with the Twinkies. Then you have Carl Crawford leading a solid lineup. Baltimore is in yet-another rebuild, but I think they have good baseball people in charge now and the return for Bedard was solid. Nick Markakis is probably the best player you've hardly heard of.

AL Central
1. Cleveland
2. Detroit
3. Minnesota
4. Kansas City
5. Chicago

Comments: Top of the Indians' rotation and their setup men are deadly. Plus, any lineup with Sizemore, Hafner, Martinez, and the unsung Ryan Garko will score plenty of runs. Speaking of runs, the Tigers' starting lineup is arguably the best in baseball, though Granderson's absence will be felt early. Detroit has too many pitching questions (rotation and bullpen) to win the division, though. No doubt the Twins' rotation has been significantly weakened by the departures of Santana and Garza, but they have some good young arms that should get them 5-6 innings per night before turning it over to the deepest bullpen in the league. Lest we forget, Minnesota still has guys named Morneau, Mauer, Cuddyer and the newly-acquired, bat-slinging Delmon Young. I really like what Kansas City is doing, but they are still not ready to compete for the division. Gil Meche and Brian Bannister head a decent rotation and Billy Buck is one of the many exciting, young position players the Royals are developing on the big league level. Do I need to waste a sentence on the White Sox? What are they doing? Sure, they'll still hit a few balls over the wall, but I think Williams and Guillen are slowly giving themselves enough rope.

AL West
1. Seattle
2. Los Angeles
3. Texas
4. Oakland

Comments: M's GM Bill Bavasi knows after the acquisition of Erik Bedard, it's now or never for him. The good news is, it looks like that move will be the difference-maker. Bedard, Felix Hernandez, and three innings-eaters like Jarrod Washburn, Miguel Batista, and Carlos Silva comprise a strong rotation. Beltre and Sexson have struggled to hit the longball in the hitter-friendly Safeco, but they have plenty of help in the lineup with Ichiro, Ibanez, Johjima, and Betancourt. The front-end of the Angels' rotation is in severe question to start the season with John Lackey and Kelvim Escobar on the shelf. The offense will get a nice jolt with the addition of Torii Hunter to a middle of the order that includes Vladi, the ageless Garret Anderson, and Gary Matthews, Jr. I really like the Rangers' lineup, especially with the additions of Josh Hamilton and Milton Bradley. If they stay healthy, those two will put up huge numbers in that bandbox. Their rotation still stinks and their bullpen is full of questions. The A's are in a full rebuild, but they have good young players that will be ready to star in couple of years in a spanking, new ballpark. It will be interesting to see what Billy Beane will do with the promise of a lot more revenue in 2010.

NL Predictions will arrive on this blog on Saturday. I know. You can hardly wait.

Burnie's Plight
A quick note on Sean Burnett being the Pirates' final cut. I don't think it will be long before we see Burnie back in the big leagues as a reliever. If Phil Dumatrait or Franquelis Osoria stumbles badly or Evan Meek is too inconsistent to keep on the 25-man roster the whole year, look for the former Eastern League Post-Season All-Star to have his contract purchased from Indianapolis. At some point, players being out of options or carried because of Rule 5 restrictions won't outweigh performance. Hang in there, Burnie and congratulations on your new arrival.