OPENING DAY POWER RANKINGS:
UPDATED
FAVORITES TO WIN THE WORLD SERIES.
TOP 10
10. Boston Red Sox. Fantasy owner friendly. Boston after starting out horrible in '11 turned it around to become the best team in baseball... and then collapsed and with that Manager Terry Francona was out. Not to long after Theo Epstein jumped ship. In comes Bobby Valentine but Managers don't win or lose you many games. Still one of the most talented teams in all of baseball even after losing long time closer Jonathan Papelbon. Replaced by Andrew Bailey while not as proven is just as good, although will now miss some time on the DL. Carl Crawford can only play better and Kevin Youkilis is back in the lineup. Short on pitching long on elite American League hitters.
9. San Francisco Giants. signed Matt Cain long term and have Lincecum under contract the Giants are feeling good about things. Adding Melky Cabrera MLB's most underrated player will certainly help that very thin lineup. Buster Posey is back and looks healthy so look for an improved offense out of San Francisco. The staff is one of the best in the league. Bumgarner is one of the games best young lefthanders. Brian Wilson if he can stay healthy is a top shelf closer. Should be in a close race with several teams in the NL West but get the nice ranking because of their potential playoff capability.
8. Philadelphia Phillies. Blah Blah Blah. Same old story... yet minus even less offense then before. Losing Oswalt will hurt and will certainly shorten up that rotation in a long season. Chase Utley is out. Jimmy Rollins isn't getting any younger and Ryan Howard is a big question mark. The Phillies offense confirmed what I already new last postseason. Not enough bats to score against elite playoff calibur rotations. They couldn't hit the Cardinals without Wainright. Aging pretty much every where, the window is closing quicker then everyone thought. This is a sinking ship in my opinion.
7. Atlanta Braves. Young and talented still led by future hall of famer Chipper Jones, from the bench. Top 5 pitching staff with Hudson, Jurrgens and Hanson along with the Best bullpen in all of baseball. With a staff built for the playoffs this team is looking to forget the meltdown of last summer and make a run in this October. Heyward needs to figure it out. Freeman could be the next Mark Grace. All I know is the Braves are going to be giving the Phillies a run again this year. What's new?
6. Tampa Bay Rays. Joe Maddon has a team primed to push for another run at a AL East Pennant. A Great Young stable of arms led by the real ace of the team James Shields followed in line by David Price, Hellickson and the propane arm of the phenom Matt Moore. Mix in a reliable Wade Davis and Niemann and you have a top 3 AL staff. Plenty of questions about this club like will Carlos Pena and Bossman Junior combine for over 350 strike outs this year? Can you get production out of your DH? and Kyle Farnsworth closing out games, ummmmm scary.
5. St. Louis Cardinals. Fantasy owner friendly World Champions. Can't take that away that from them... but what you can take away is the most feared hitter in baseball. Albert is gone. The best player of his generation is gone AND Oh yeah the best manager in baseball is gone to huh? Tony "Beer Googles" Larussa. "yeah that drunk" Even while losing the best manager and the best player the Cardinals are a serious threat to get back to NLCS. How can I say that? Adding Carlos Beltran was big, it makes their defense better and saves everyone from having to watch Berkman limp after balls in the down in the corner. Seems like everyone is sleeping on Adam Wainright and his 19 wins a year being put back into that rotation which should be outstanding this season.
4. New York Yankees. Fantasy owner friendly Won more games in 2011 then anyone. Then they added Michael Pineda and Kuroda to the rotation to stack up better in playoff series. C.C. is an automatic 19 wins and they have the best bullpen in the American League now that Joba is on the shelf. You have to put them as the favorite in the AL EAST and possibly the best team in baseball when it is all said and done. GRANDERSON, CANO, TEX, A-ROD's All those names still look good on that line up card. Big key to season will be if Ivan Nova can remain reliable. Great Bullpen should be October bound.
3. Detroit Tigers. Dominate team in a crappy division. Pairing Prince with Miguel Cabrera instantly makes them the most feared 3-4 hitters in the game. While losing V-Mart hurts it won't as bad as you think. Miguel Cabrera will not make the transition to 3B successfully and will ultimately have to go to DH . Think about it he was a bottom tier 1B defensively man. Jim Leland is begging thinking that he can play 3B. Having a 3-4 in the middle of the order like the Tigers now have takes you a long ways just look at Prince's old team for evidence of that. The prettiest card in the deck, the ace of spades Justin Verlander fresh off his AL Cy Young. oh yeah he also won the AL MVP, but he is a pitcher so its no big deal because that happens all the time. Jacoby Ellsbury didn't get robbed at all. BTW Time for Rick Porcello to figure it out. A weak division makes them a playoff lock if Verlander stays healthy.
2. Texas Rangers. Are they becoming the Buffalo Bills of Baseball? It is tough to win a World Series. Ask Bobby Cox. The Rangers have been so close for two years, exit CJ Wilson enter Yu Darvish. Yu will join a terrific young staff led by Ace... wait what? is this right? Colby Lewis? Umm no I guess its Derek Holland? okayyy, Harrison and the fireballer Feliz will join Darvish. Imagine if the Rangers would of landed Prince in free agency? We may of been talking about one of the best offensive lineups in the history of baseball. As is, the line up they currently sport isn't to shabby. Lay off the sauce Joshua. Lay of white lines Ron. They def get my Fantasy owner friendly stamp of approvel. Have fun opposing pitcher. No you can't use an L screen.
1. L.A. Angels of Anaheim. Fantasy owner friendly Arte Moreno stepped up and pulled out his wallet and landed "El Hombre" and CJ Wilson for a cool 330 Mill. Result = The Angels are loaded. We are talking the best rotation in baseball. 4 Aces, thats the nuts around these parts. Stealing your divisional rival's Ace? Behave Angels, that is just naughty. Weaver, Haren, Santana and Wilson makes up my top rotation in baseball. Adding Pujols and with Morales coming back all of a sudden the powerless Angels just got juiced. A crowded OF and 1B has many rumors swirling about possible trades so we will probably see some moves made at some point. Trumbo all of a sudden has no position. Trout is stuck in the minors and Abreu is wanting to know if anyone cares about him anymore. Gone is the worst offensive player in the game in catcher Jeff Mathis he is replaced by Chris Ianetta a definite upgrade. This is how I see it, Some hits are better than no hits right? Question marks? Closer Jordan Walden, can he step up and be a shutdown closer? Will they use a Bourjous, Trumbo, Trout or Conger in a trade to get a lockdown closer? What is Not a question mark? Mike Scioscia, best manager in baseball.
Showing posts with label Giants. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Giants. Show all posts
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Preseason Roundup Part1: NL West
The NL WEST was about the quietest division in baseball this off-season. The Diamondbacks signed Jason Kubel and traded for Trevor Cahill. The Dodgers went on a free agent spending spree despite their modest budget constraints. The Giants traded for Melky Cabrera and The Padres traded Matt Latos for a slew of prospects. The 2012 NL West should be competitive again, much like last year.
Colorado Rockies.
This team’s offense is good. Signing Michael Cuddyer only made them better. Michael Cuddyer will hit 30 bombs this year in that ball park. Dexter Fowler will steal 50 bases and Cargo will go for 30/30 if not possibly 40/40. The rotation is the question mark with them going into 2012. Can Jeremy Guthrie be a dominant starter and true ace of the squad? His numbers this spring are not outstanding by any means. Their best pitcher just might be rookie Drew Pomeranz who is having an excellent spring boasting a .82 ERA and walk/k rate of 3 to 1. However, this is spring and a lot can change. Note, the Rockies will be getting back Jorge De La Rosa from TJ surgery sometime in late June early July. I think this team’s offense can carry them this season to a surprising first place finish.
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Arizona Diamondbacks.
At this point this team is poised for a major regression or a step forward. After last year’s surprising season I think they can repeat last year to a point. The Diamondbacks are a young team-featuring rookie of the year candidate Paul Goldschmidt. The team’s MVP and all star Justin Upton will continue to get even better, cementing himself in fantasy line ups as the #1 pick. The big question mark was the signing of Jason Kubel. Not only does the D-backs have a solid left fielder in Parra, they have a gold glove winner! The D-backs return Ian Kennedy who last year wowed all with such a dominating performance that earned him Cy Young votes. Daniel Hudson, Josh Collmenter, Trevor Cahill and Joe Saunders round out a solid rotation.
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San Francisco Giants.
The thing holding back the Giants once again is offense. They have the pitching to win another world series but can they hit more? They have two solid run producers in Pablo Sandoval and Buster Posey but after that it is a giant question mark. Can Angel Pagan find his “lost” swing? Can Melky Cabrera repeat last year’s solid performance? Can Aubrey Huff return to the player he was in 2010? Freddy Sanchez, will he stay healthy? The Giants with Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain and Madison Bumgarner all aces in their own right will contend but the offense will falter causing them to miss the playoffs again.
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Los Angeles Dodgers.
The LA Dodgers final months under hated owner Frank McCourt are upon us. The team soon will be in the hands of an owner that can spend money on the field rather than in the courts. Dodgers fans unite! However, this season features some unique things the Dodgers can look forward to. Starting with Matt Kemp the TRUE MVP, and Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw. Matt Kemp had an amazing season last year, I think he can repeat his 40/40 mark. Clayton is coming into his own and becoming the best pitcher in the game. Ethier is due for a new contract and is looking GREAT in spring. Dee Gordon could swipe 60 bases this year and turn into the next great short stop. The team filled around these talented players with at best role players in Mark Ellis, Juan Uribe, Juan Rivera, Tony Gwynn Jr. and James Loney. They have a lights out new closer in Javy Guerra and a solid set up man in Kanley Jansen. The Dodgers are poised to compete with the Giants for third in the division.
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WON'T BE DOING MUCH OF THAT THIS YEAR.
San Diego Padres.
Not much to say about the Padres. They have one of the best farm systems in the game and much like the Royals will start plugging these guys in all over the place. Yonder Alonso came over in the Matt Latos trade and will be at first base starting off the 2012 season. Cameron Maybin is finally coming into the player he was drafted to be, which is a good thing. The Padres feature a sneaky good pitcher named Corey Luebke and a top closer in Huston Street. Around these players are older veterans like Orlando Hudson and Carlos Quentin, unproven playmakers Chase Headley, Nick Hundley and former stars looking for a new leaf in Edison Volquez. The Padres will be bad this year but the light is at the end of the tunnel.
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