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AL West Prediction Thread

Started by Oklahawg, March 13, 2008, 09:45:40 pm

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Oklahawg

Does anyone else get frustrated with west coast baseball teams? During the summer and on vacations I can follow it because staying up for the 11pm sportscenter or baseball tonight on ESPN isn't a pain. But, early season and September always seem to be rough.

Here is the predictions for the AL West.

1. Mariners. I see Seattle as the team to beat, which surprises me as I type. The acquisition of Bedard means they are quite deep in quality starters, and King Felix and Bedard may make up the best 1-2 punch in the AL that is healthy (Beckett and Schilling being hurt right now; Indians fans, I hear you growling).

JJ Putz has become a dominant closer, and might be the best right now in all of baseball. The trade of Sherrill to Baltimore will be where this club feels the deal for years to come. I think Sherrill is one of the top 3-4 set-up guys in the AL.

Offensively you wonder if Sexson has one more big year left. Lopez and Betancourt are poised to be a very dangerous, youthful tandem up the middle. Ichiro is, well, Ichiro. How many pro athletes are known by one name: Ichiro, Michael, Tiger, ARod, Kobe, Bron-Bron...its a short list, historically.

2. Angels. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in Orange County off Rodeo Drive, or whatever they call themselves today, are one of those teams that always seems to fly under the radar for no apparent reason. My radar, at least. Intriguing mix of vets and young guys on offense. I think Casey Kotchman has a batting title in his future. A fun battle is under way at SS, where both Erick Aybar and Maicer Izturis are vying for the starting nod. Both are capable of being rock solid.

The OF is aging, and Garrett Anderson isn't the reliable source for a .300 BA and 100 RBI like his first decade. Vlad is still the Impaler and might well have one more huge season left, but he has clearly handed over the moniker as the most-feared offensive player to others.

The pitching staff bosts a deep bullpen but a shaky rotation. Escobar and Lackey are both fine starters, but the best teams will be 3-deep and I think the Mariners edge out the Angels here. Where the Angels worry is that 5th day of the week. Could be interesting, but they could easily deal one of their top prospects for a serviceable starter mid-year.

3. Rangers. A year from now I hope to be calling for the Texas ballclub to be at the head of this list. If not, then 3-4 years of my Ranger friends having hope is for not, and I'll be talking them off of a ledge. The steal of the Texiera deal isn't Saltamacchia, but Elvis Andrus, who will push Michael Young to 3B next year and force Hank Blalock to become a 1B or high-profile tradebait.

I love the infield as it is, though, and think that if likely 1B platoon mates Chris Shelton and Ben Broussard can equal the stats of Richie Sexson (and that's not a huge stretch) then the Rangers can contend, offensively.

They should deal Marlon Byrd while is stock is hot, even if the return never turns into anything substantial. Rumors of Sean Gallagher (and others, but just by himself) would help eat innings in the brutal summer heat.

I'm not convinced that the Rangers have a real closer on board right now. I bet they find one, though, and I'd really like someone to tell me who it will be. Superficial glances at the roster point to CJ Wilson but I doubt it myself. I suspect that they wish they still had Cordero.

The rotation is something I can never guage. The curse of Kevin Brown haunts the team, as they've not had a true stopper in the rotation since Ryan was around. Maybe Matt Harrison, picked up in the Texiera deal, can move into the #3 or #4 slot this summer.

4. Athletics. I like Billy Beane's style. He's not afraid to retool. He consistently does it at the right time, even if the deals don't work out as anticipated. I bet he wishes he would have dealt Chavez and signed Tejada to a long-term deal, whaddaya think? If young pups Barton, Johnson, Denorfia, Buck and (soon) Gonzalez can just be serviceable they'll have a shot at moving forward in 2009 or 2010. That's a decent core group of offensive players.

The A's may well have the most uninspiring double play tandem in the AL. 'Nuff said.

I think the pitching will surprise. Joe Blanton isn't a true #1, but is a good #2. Rich Harden IS a #1, but is also a trip to the DL waiting to happen. I'm betting he pitches 160 innings this year and gets comeback player of the year in the AL. Bret Anderson came over in the Gonzalez/Haren deal and will pay dividends by mid-summer, if not by mid-April. He is a good #3 or #4. Gaudin and Dinardo are my picks to ultimately round out the rotation.

Houston Street is lost in a lot of discussion of top closers, but I think he's certainly 2nd tier material. I think the A's should lock him up, although they've stockpiled potential replacements in Castilla, Embree, Devine and others.

The A's are capable of surprising and playing at or above .500, but it will require health (Harden, return of Chavez or the emergence of Hannahan as a capable 3B) and a bit of fortune. The most curious thing will be if Blanton and Street are dealt and just how much Billy Beane gets in return. The AL West could be a juggernaut by 2010.
I am a Hog fan. I was long before my name was etched, twice, on the sidewalks on the Hill. I will be long after Sam Pittman and Eric Mussleman are coaches, and Hunter Yuracheck is AD. I am a Hog fan when we win, when we lose and when we don't play. I love hearing the UA band play the National Anthem on game day, but I sing along to the Alma Mater. I am a Hog fan.<br /><br />A liberal education is at the heart of a civil society, and at the heart of a liberal education is the act of teaching. - Bart Giamatti <br /><br />"It is a puzzling thing. The truth knocks on the door and you say, 'Go away, I'm looking for the truth,' and so it goes away. Puzzling." ― Robert M. Pirsig<br /><br />Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good, too.  – Yogi Berra

ErieHog

The West is such a toss-up;  one big injury to the Angels rotation could drop them from contending to 4th in the division;  likewise, if Seattle's young starters struggle at all, they may be mired in the middle of the division into the late summer.

The Rangers are the team that leaves me scratching my head more often than any other in baseball;  if they had a pitching staff that wasn't a year-in-year out basket case, they'd contend.   Such inconsistency doesn't bode well, though, for picking them to make the playoffs this year.

No cause, ever, in the history of all mankind, has produced more cold-blooded tyrants, more slaughtered innocents, and more orphans than socialism with power. It surpassed, exponentially, all other systems of production in turning out the dead. The bodies are all around us. And here is the problem: No one talks about them. No one honors them. No one does penance for them. No one has committed suicide for having been an apologist for those who did this to them. No one pays for them. No one is hunted down to account for them. It is exactly what Solzhenitsyn foresaw in The Gulag Archipelago: "No, no one would have to answer. No one would be looked into." Until that happens, there is no "after socialism."

 

BradyHolzhauer

AL WEST:

1. Los Angeles Angels
2. Oakland Athletics
3. Seattle Mariners
4. Texas Rangers

bellavistamike

I want to jump on my desk, beat my chest and scream "Rangers will win it!" But, I won't.

Angels, A's, M's, or scramble 'em and pick one of the letter teams.

Still, go Rangers!

Col.Mccoy

I think you hit it right on Oklahog. That said, GO RANGERS!!!!!!
We thought about it for a long time, "Endeavor to persevere." And when we had thought about it long enough, we declared war on the Union. - Lone Watie

selfexplanatory

This year's nominee for the Coopy award.
Quote from: majp51 on June 02, 2010, 03:27:42 pm
Err, now I know it's easy to bash Shiloh Christian, but I'm pretty there aren't that many high schools in Arkansas that have a player picked in the 3rd round of the NFL Draft.
Or have you forgotten where Damian Williams played school?

UhOhioHog


Zero Tolerance

I'm picking the Rangers to finish third, but if they at least break even this year, I'll be satisfied and I'll be fired up over the offseason for a breakout '09.
Alas, for now, I'm going with the Orange County/El Segundo/Burbank/Santa Monica Angels to win the division, followed by Seattle, the Rangers and Oakland.
Jeff Long + John Pelphrey + Bobby Petrino = The dawning of a glorious new era in Arkansas sports

LVW

Quote from: ErieHog on March 13, 2008, 10:04:15 pm
one big injury to the Angels rotation

would losing Escobar for the season and Lackey for a minimum on 1 month qualify.
Van_the_man_Unusual

width=250 height=156]http://img43.imageshack.us/img43/8279/chapman.jpg

Oklahawg

Quote from: LVW on March 30, 2008, 10:30:00 am
would losing Escobar for the season and Lackey for a minimum on 1 month qualify.

They suddenly look like a 3rd place team, don't they.
I am a Hog fan. I was long before my name was etched, twice, on the sidewalks on the Hill. I will be long after Sam Pittman and Eric Mussleman are coaches, and Hunter Yuracheck is AD. I am a Hog fan when we win, when we lose and when we don't play. I love hearing the UA band play the National Anthem on game day, but I sing along to the Alma Mater. I am a Hog fan.<br /><br />A liberal education is at the heart of a civil society, and at the heart of a liberal education is the act of teaching. - Bart Giamatti <br /><br />"It is a puzzling thing. The truth knocks on the door and you say, 'Go away, I'm looking for the truth,' and so it goes away. Puzzling." ― Robert M. Pirsig<br /><br />Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good, too.  – Yogi Berra

ErieHog

Quote from: Oklahawg on March 30, 2008, 02:34:54 pm
They suddenly look like a 3rd place team, don't they.

If not worse.
No cause, ever, in the history of all mankind, has produced more cold-blooded tyrants, more slaughtered innocents, and more orphans than socialism with power. It surpassed, exponentially, all other systems of production in turning out the dead. The bodies are all around us. And here is the problem: No one talks about them. No one honors them. No one does penance for them. No one has committed suicide for having been an apologist for those who did this to them. No one pays for them. No one is hunted down to account for them. It is exactly what Solzhenitsyn foresaw in The Gulag Archipelago: "No, no one would have to answer. No one would be looked into." Until that happens, there is no "after socialism."