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I just saw that there was a "NL east small talk" thread and it seemed stupid the AL east wouldn't have one- since it's the best division in pro sports and all. . So this year? I mean obviously the sox are gunna slay it! My buddies from T-dot are claiming big **** for the jays, but as much as that'd be nice I'm pretty sure the yanks won't let it happen.
I know it's preseason but Boston/Tampa 3-3. That shouldn't be happening in ANYTHING-season. I thought it was NHL when I first saw it and was still pissed even though thats the kind of crap you expect from the Bruins.
Seriously though, Who's gunna win the AL east? aka the real world series.
As a Sox fan it's hard for me to say anyone but. I like their chances a lot, if the young guys chip in as hoped for (big if, I know). If things stay good til midseason, getting Schilling back will be as big as any trade we could likely make. New York should feel like more of a threat this year though. They have great depth, which has been probably their biggest issue the last few years. Toronto'll at least be pesky. They've been above and around .500 for the last couple of years, I think they won 86 last year. They'll have a healthy Ryan and Rolen could be a good fit. Vernon Wells should bounce back, too, I'd think. Tampa should take fourth, I'd imagine. Baltimore really seems like the trash of the division this year.
You mean that league where the pitcher get to watch Seinfield reruns in the clubhouse while everyone else play the game? Alright, I will play along(unlike the pitcher) It wil be the Red Sox in first place, the yankees in second place and who cares about the rest? We all know who one and two will be, right? The Sox will have a ten game lead by midseason while the Yankees get beat by the celler dwellers (all the Yankee fans will be calling up the FAN trying to get Tony Paige to convince them to not jump off the BK Brigde) then they'll catch fire and win twenty straight to tie Boston, or even take the lead.
Sox fans don't kill me over saying that, I'm just playing around with y'all. I think it will be between the same two teams that battle every year. I actually like Boston as a distant second team, so I have them winning the East. I like to play around a lot, don't mind the tone of the post.
I think Toronto can make some noise in that division, and the Rays are headed in the right direction. Forget about Baltimore.
I've read alot about Tampa Bay, if they were in the NL Central they'll be in the hunt. In all honesty the AL EAST is always tough to win, my friend who's a Yankee fan told me that if Braves were in the AL East they would come in third in most years (prior to 05).
I'm a Sox fan, but it's pushing things to call the AL East race the real World Series. The world champion has come out of that division twice in this decade, three times if you count 2k as being in this decade (which means an 11-year decade if you also include 2010).
Pre-season predictions are awfully problematic. There's too much that can happen during a season that can't be predicted months ahead of time. A rash of medical problems like the Sox had two years ago, and they're out of it. Of course I'll admit that I've probably never seen any other one team in one season have as many medical issues as the Sox had that year, but still, a bunch of injuries is alwyas possible, and that can wreck it for any team, no matter how good they are when healthy. It's one of those unpredictiable factors.
All that being said, you don't know what will happen in the way of injuries, a young talent who finally blossoms (or doesn't), an old player who suddenly fades, etc., so you kind of give each team an equal chance of having those unknowns balance out, and go with the best bet. I'd say that best bet in this division is the Sox. The Blue Jays could win the division, but it's unlikely because that would depend on having both of the obvious favorites have the world come crashing down around them, which is unlikely. The Yankees have a deep lineup. However, their biggest weakness for this entire decade has been lack of depth in their pitching. That appears to be improving some, with the addition of the two younger guys who look good (Hughes and the Hutt), but they still don't appear to have the deep, deep pitching you see with a world champion.
Allowing again for how dicey pre-season predictions are, I'd go with either the Tigers or maybe the Angels as best bets to win the World Series this year. Both have added some talent over the winter, to teams that were already good. On the other hand, the Sox are starting to show the fruits of a productive farm system. It's entirely possible that they may bring up some young talent that will take the place of the trades they haven't made this winter. That's one of those unpredictable factors, however. Maybe they will strengthen themselves from within their system, and maybe they won't. You can't know for sure until you see what happens, so for now I'd say the best bet goes against a repeat World Series win, but, barring all kinds of horrible luck, the Sox should win their division.
The Blue Jays look solid for third place. I'm not sure whether to go with the others on here and pick Tampa for fourth. They LOOk better than the O's, but I've thought that the past couple of years. Guess I'll call fourth and fifth a tossup, rather than going with the Rays as the obvious pick for fourth, just because I tend to think a team that goes a few years in a row appearing to be improving but doesn't actually show it on the field has to prove they're really there before I'll believe it.
I think Toronto has the best starting 5 in the division, the Yanks have the best lineup in the division and Boston has the best pen. I think any of the these 3 could win 95 games and win the division or 85 and miss the playoffs.
Boston, New York and Toronto are the best bets to finish 1, 2 , 3 in no order.
Boston has the best ACE in Beckett and Matsusaka (although the Yanks hit them both well) is a decent # 2. After that they have questions. Bucholz is getting hit around and will go through the usual rookie struggles. Lester is really not that good IMO. He's a 5 inning pitcher with "decent" stuff but at his age he hasn't figured it out yet. Wakefield is a good innings eater but is mediocre. Overall other than the top 2, they have alot of question marks in the rest of the rotation.
Their bullpen is "decent". Outside of Papelbon and Okajima the others are really not that good. Declarmen pitched a small sample size last year, hence his "sucess". With a larger sample size he should regress. Tavarez and Timlin are trash. I am not impressed with their bullpen.
Their offense is great. They have a ton of guys who work pitchers and get on base. Ortiz should start to hit and Manny seems poised for a big year. The rest of the guys are solid.
The Yankees starting staff has similar questions as Boston. Wang is their ace, although not as good as Beckett, he is still a good pitcher. Pettite is a veteran who also is a very good pitcher. Boston and NY's top two are similar. After that it gets sketchy. Mussina doesn't have much and is really a 4.50 era pitcher. He is good for 5 innings but quickly gets roughed up after that. He is in the best case scenario the Yank's 5th starter, and I would gladly take that from him. Two rookies round out the Yankees starting five. Phil Hughes at 21 is the youngest pitcher in baseball, he was also the # 1 pitching prospect in the majors. He is struggling right now barely getting into the 5th inning. But he has the stuff and the makeup to be a great pitcher. He went through alot of lumps last year so I think his transition will be easier this year than Bucholz. I expect him to be a # 3 starter after May. Kennedy has lesser stuff but is more polished than Hughes. Kennedy eats innings and is a gamer. Overall I think the staff has potential to be good but can also be mediocre.
The Yankees have the best bullpen in the division. Rivera and Chamberlein are the best 1-2 punch in the majors. Bruney, Hawkins, Traber and Olendorf are really pitching well. Farnsworth is bad but he has his occasional moments.
The Yankees offense scored 960 runs last year. Much of the same cast is back. Arod and Posada are going to regress but look for Jeter, Damon, Cano, Cabrera, Abreu and Giambi to improve. This will make up the difference. The team struggled early offensively but have picked up the slack. When healthy this offense is a juggernaut capaable of 1000 runs. Best offense in divison.
Toronto has the best starting staff in the division. Halladay, Burnett and Mcgowan are the best 1-2-3 in the league. Marcum has potential to be a good starter too. I love their pitching.
Their bullpen is good too. Not good with names but they have a bunch of young guys coming out and throwin 95+. Of course, BJ ryan isn't too shabby.
Second best pen in division IMO.
Their offense is ok. Rios is an amazing talent. Wells should have a comeback year and Thomas is always solid. I also like Aaron Hill. Other than that the offense is blah. Alot of free swingers and as a result they can be hit or miss. This will be their problem this year IMO.
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Tampa bay has alot of good young players. BJ Upton, Carlos Pena and Crawford are all star players. The rest are decent. Their speed makes them an even more dangerous team. I think the BJ's and Rays have similar lineups.
Their bullpen stinks and their rotation has potential (Jackson., Shields) but they lack the talent that others have in this division.
With that said I think the Yankees and Sox are going to be close but in the end:
1. Yankees
2. Red Sox
3. Blue Jays
4. Rays
5. Orioles
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. So this year? I mean obviously the sox are gunna slay it! My buddies from T-dot are claiming big **** for the jays, but as much as that'd be nice I'm pretty sure the yanks won't let it happen.
