It’s not too often that a team will trade its Opening Day starter and highest-paid position player from the previous year and consider itself better the next season, but that’s what the Blue Jays believe heading into 2011. Toronto finished with a surprising 85 wins in 2010, which would have been enough to compete in the other two AL divisions but not in the powerful AL East. But because the Jays have a plethora of young talent, especially on the mound GM Alex Anthopoulos traded 2010 Opening Day starter Shawn Marcum to the Brewers and slugger Vernon Wells to the Angels. Toronto could afford to do both because of all their young pitching and because dumping Wells brought major salary relief.
2010 finish: 85-77, fourth in AL East
Key offseason additions: Frank Francisco, Octavio Dotel, Jon Rauch, Juan Rivera, Rajai Davis
Key offseason losses: Vernon Wells, John Buck, Scott Downs, Kevin Gregg, Lyle Overbay, Shaun Marcum
Bodog odds to win AL East: +1600
Bodog over/under win total: 76.5
Leading the team this year will be John Farrell, who is set to make his managerial debut after spending the past four seasons as the pitching coach in Boston. Farrell’s rotation will now be anchored by Ricky Romero, Brandon Morrow and Brett Cecil. But the pitcher to watch is top prospect Kyle Drabek, the key to the Roy Halladay trade last year. The 23-year-old Drabek made three starts without a win last year but in Double-A was 14-9 with a 2.94 ERA and 132 strikeouts over 162 innings.
The lineup will be anchored by Jose Bautista, who shocked the baseball word by leading the majors with 54 homers in 2010. Will that happen again? Considering Bautista had never exceeded 16 dingers previously, there’s no chance. He still could hit 30 and knock in 100, however. The Blue Jays need bounce-back seasons from Aaron Hill and Adam Lind, who were great in 2009 but regressed in 2010. Toronto was often all or nothing last year on offense, leading MLB by a ton in homers but 24th in batting average and 26th in on-base percentage. Of the seven players who hit at least 20 home runs for them, three – Wells, Overbay and Buck accounted for 71 – aren’t back.
Toronto hasn’t made the playoffs since Joe Carter’s epic Game 6 World Series home run off Mitch Williams in 1993. The Jays haven’t won 90 games in a season since or finished higher than third more than once. They won’t likely do either this year, either, but the future appears bright.
Projected lineup
1 CF Rajai Davis
2 SS Yunel Escobar
3 3B Jose Bautista
4 1B Adam Lind
5 2B Aaron Hill
6 RF Travis Snider
7 LF Juan Rivera
8 DH Edwin Encarnacion
9 C J.P. Arencibia
Projected rotation
1 LHP Ricky Romero
2 RHP Brandon Morrow
3 LHP Brett Cecil
4 LHP Marc Rzepczynski
5 RHP Kyle Drabek
CL: Frank Francisco
For the 13th consecutive season since winning 98 games and the American League East in 1997, the Baltimore Orioles suffered a losing season in 2010. The good news? They improved by two wins from the year before. The bad? They still only won 66 games. But there was a bright spot, as the club played much better when Buck Showalter took over. In his 57 games last year, the Birds were 34-23, leading to some true optimism for 2011.
2010 finish: 66-96, fifth in AL East
Key offseason additions: Derrek Lee, Mark Reynolds, Vladimir Guerrero, Justin Duchscherer, J.J. Hardy, Kevin Gregg
Key offseason losses: Ty Wigginton, Kevin Millwood, David Hernandez, Corey Patterson
Bodog odds to win AL East: +1800
Bodog over/under win total: 76
A full offseason and then start the new season with Showalter at the helm can only help Baltimore. However, the O’s did make some curious offseason moves. They were rumored to be in on several big names, missing out on Victor Martinez, for example. Instead they settled for an over-the hill Derrek Lee, who is at least a hard worker and good in the clubhouse. Vladimir Guererro also showed his age toward the end of last year with Texas. And Baltimore traded for Arizona’s Mark Reynolds. The good news is he probably hits 40 homers playing 81 games a year at Camden Yards. The bad news is that he struck out 211 times and hit .198 last year. The only returning starting infielder will be Brian Roberts, but he can’t stay healthy. The team also needs bounce-back years from Matt Wieters, Adam Jones and Nick Markakis, who all had productive 2009 seasons but regressed last season. At worst the new additions should enable Baltimore to improve an offense that ranked next to last in the AL in runs and 11th in home runs and on-base percentage.
Much of the second-half success last year – they had the AL’s second-best record in Showalter’s 57 games — came from the production of young starting pitchers Brian Matusz, Chris Tillman, Brad Bergesen and Jake Arrieta. Baltimore's future will depend on how well and how quickly the young pitching staff develops. Baltimore's starters had a 5.61 ERA before Showalter arrived. "The next 57 games, our starters had an ERA just over three, second best in the league," says GM Andy MacPhail.
It’s a lock that this team wins more games than it did last year, but will it compete for the division title? Of course not, not with the Yankees, Red Sox and Rays still around. But a .500 finish would be considered a huge step.
Projected lineup
1 2B Brian Roberts
2 RF Nick Markakis
3 1B Derrek Lee
4 DH Vladimir Guerrero
5 LF Luke Scott
6 3B Mark Reynolds
7 CF Adam Jones
8 C Matt Wieters
9 SS J.J. Hardy
Projected rotation
1 RHP Jeremy Guthrie
2 LHP Brian Matusz
3 RHP Justin Duchscherer
4 RHP Brad Bergesen
5 RHP Jake Arrieta
CL: Koji Uehara
The defending World Series champion San Francisco Giants got their first piece of bad news this spring when closer Brian Wilson, one of the more eccentric players in Major League Baseball (remember the beard), suffered a strained oblique muscle.
Wilson insisted he will be ready for the opener after an MRI exam Saturday morning revealed what manager Bruce Bochy called a "mild strain" of the left oblique. Wilson dismissed it as "another crappy nuisance to deal with." However, oblique injuries usually mean a month on the shelf for pitchers, though Wilson said, "I don't imagine it will be too long."
The team should have a better idea of the seriousness of the injury later Monday. The right-hander strained the same left oblique in his major league debut at Colorado on April 23, 2006, and wasn't activated again until May 20. Wilson led the majors with 48 saves last year. Wilson already was behind because of a back injury he developed after the first workout of the spring. He did not pitch in a Cactus League game until March 6 and has worked only five innings. Jeremy Affeldt, who has saved 22 games in his MLB career, including four last year, likely would get the call if Wilson is on the DL. Affeldt, incidentally, missed 23 games last year with the same injury Wilson is dealing with.
The Giants open the season on March 31 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Remember that the Giants only won the NL West on the last day of the season in 2010, so even a few games missed by their star closer could have an impact.
The Detroit Tigers thought they were in place to contend in the AL Central last season after finishing 2009 with a loss in Game 163 to the Minnesota Twins. But after a disappointing .500 finish in 2010, Tigers owner Mike Ilitch opened his checkbook by bringing in one of the best hitting catchers in baseball in Victor Martinez (he will also DH a lot) as well as Joaquin Benoit, who was only the possibly best set-up man in the majors last year with Tampa Bay. However, the main question surrounding this team is whether Miguel Cabrera can put his alcohol problems behind him.
2010 finish: 81-81, third in AL Central
Key offseason additions: Victor Martinez, Joaquin Benoit, Brad Penny
Key offseason losses: Armando Galarraga, Johnny Damon, Gerald Laird, Jeremy Bonderman
Bodog odds to win AL Central: +200
Bodog odds to win AL pennant: 12/1
Bodog odds to win World Series: 25/1
Bodog over/under win total: 84
Cabrera, when he’s focused, is possibly the most dangerous hitter in the American League. Last year he finished second to Josh Hamilton in the AL MVP race, hitting.328 with 38 home runs and leading all of baseball with 126 RBIs. However, this offseason he had a very public, very ugly DUI arrest. It was his second such alcohol-related issue with Detroit. In 2009, police said Cabrera got into a fight with his wife after a night of drinking, shortly before his team lost the AL Central title to the Minnesota Twins. During spring training last year, During spring training last year, Cabrera said he was done drinking alcohol after he spent much of the offseason in counseling. He is again undergoing treatment but it hasn’t appeared to affect his play as he has been hitting well this spring. If he’s on, along with the addition of Martinez and maturation of Austin Jackson (he led all AL rookies in hits, runs, doubles, triples and stolen bases last season), this lineup should be better than last year. The only true position battle this spring was at second base, where Will Rhymes won the job. But he’s only holding it until Carlos Guillen (microfracture knee surgery) is ready, but that could be a while. Rhymes hit .304 in 54 games for the Tigers at the end of last season in his first taste of the big leagues.
As for the rotation, the Tigers have to elite power pitchers in the prime in Justin Verlander (four straight years of 200-plus innings) and a rising Max Scherzer. The key could be No. 3 starter Rick Porcello, who was very good as a rookie but regressed last season (10-12, 4.92 ERA). If he can return to rookie form, this would be a tremendous top three. Phil Coke is slated for the No. 4 spot and pitched well in the minors as a starter in the Yankees organization, but he's got one major league start in his career. And No. 5 is Brad Penny, who is good when healthy. But that’s rare. The bullpen should be good at the back end with Benoit and closer Jose Valverde (26-for-29 in saves).
Don’t get too excited if the Tigers are leading the AL Central at the All-Star break. In each season since 2001, Detroit has gone .500 or worse after the break, with 2009 the only season in which it finished at .500. If the Tigers can avoid that this year, they should battle the White Sox and Twins all season.
Projected lineup
1 CF Austin Jackson
2 2B Will Rhymes
3 RF Magglio Ordoñez
4 1B Miguel Cabrera
5 DH Victor Martinez
6 LF Ryan Raburn
7 SS Jhonny Peralta
8 3B Brandon Inge
9 C Alex Avila
Projected rotation
1 RHP Justin Verlander
2 RHP Brad Penny
3 RHP Max Scherzer
4 RHP Rick Porcello
5 LHP Phil Coke
CL: RHP Jose Valverde
Spring training brings hope for every club in Major League Baseball, so in that regard here is the good news for the perennially downtrodden Kansas City Royals: They have arguably the deepest farm system in baseball. Now here’s the bad: All that help is probably at least a year away and Kansas City traded its best player, ace pitcher, Zack Greinke, this offseason because he was tired of losing and wanted out. That losing is likely to continue in 2011 but bright things might actually be on the horizon for this franchise.
2010 finish: 67-95, fifth in AL Central
Key offseason additions: Jeff Francoeur, Melky Cabrera, Alcides Escobar, Jeff Francis, Lorenzo Cain
Key offseason losses: Zack Greinke, Gil Meche, Brian Bannister, David DeJesus, Yuniesky Betancourt
Bodog odds to win AL Central: +2500
Bodog over/under win total: 68.5
The Royals did get a good haul from Milwaukee for Greinke, who regressed to 10-14 with a 4.17 ERA last season after winning the AL Cy Young award in 2009. He brought speedy outfielder Lorenzo Cain, young shortstop Alcides Escobar and pitching prospects Jeremy Jeffress and Jake Odirizzi for Greinke and veteran shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt. The 24-year-old Escobar hit .235 with 14 doubles, four home runs, 10 triples and 41 RBIs for the Brewers last season in his first full year in the majors. Cain batted .306 with 11 doubles, one home run and 13 RBIs in 43 games for the Brewers. In all, Kansas City added to one of the more impressive lists of prospects in baseball. The Royals' top prospects include third baseman Mike Moustakas, first baseman Eric Hosmer, infielder Cristian Colon and catcher Wil Myers. Billy Butler should be the star of the lineup and could become the Royals’ first 30-homer guy since Jermaine Dye in 2000. Kansas City signed Jeff Francouer and Melky Cabrera to man two-thirds of the outfield as those to attempt to rebuild once-promising careers.
Without Greinke and the retired Gil Meche, the pitching staff now has only one proven standout in closer Joakim Soria. Expect other teams to continue to try and swing a trade for Soria. The Royals have so far resisted all overtures but he would bring even more prospects. Offseason pickup Vin Mazzaro showed flashes of brilliance in Oakland, and fellow newcomer Jeff Francis was a solid starter for Colorado before shoulder surgery. The club is hoping for a breakout year from 2006 No. 1 overall pick Luke Hochevar, who was 6-6 with a 4.81 ERA in 18 games last year. He missed 2½ months with a right elbow strain.
GM Dayton Moore has admitted this team isn’t really thinking of winning until 2012. The Royals have had one winning season since 1995 and haven’t had a playoff berth since it won the World Series in 1985. They won’t this year, either, but look out next season.
Projected lineup
1 3B Mike Aviles
2 CF Melky Cabrera
3 1B Billy Butler
4 DH Kila Ka'aihue
5 RF Jeff Francoeur
6 LF Alex Gordon
7 C Brayan Peña
8 2B Chris Getz
9 SS Alcides Escobar
Projected rotation
1 RHP Luke Hochevar
2 LHP Jeff Francis
3 RHP Kyle Davies
4 LHP Bruce Chen
5 RHP Vin Mazzaro
CL: Joakim Soria
It’s almost to the point that you have to feel sorry for sports fans in Cleveland. The Browns have been rebuilding since they re-entered the NFL. Last year they won just five games, their fourth year in the past five seasons with no more than that many wins. The Cavaliers, meanwhile, lost their franchise player in LeBron James and proceeded to set an NBA record this season with a 26-game losing streak. So can those loyal Indian fans bank on the Indians at least? Uh, no. The Tribe have become a penny-pinching franchise and really added no one of substance after winning 69 games a year ago. At least might finish ahead of the Royals again.
2010 finish: 69-93, fourth in AL Central.
Key offseason additions: Austin Kearns, Adam Everett, Jack Hannahan, Orlando Cabrera
Key offseason losses: Andy Marte
Bodog odds to win AL Central: +2000
Bodog over/under win total: 71.5
It’s hard to imagine any team had so little change from a year ago. Basically this franchise is counting on injury comebacks by Grady Sizemore, Asdrubal Cabrera and Carlos Santana (arguably the top catching prospect in baseball), progress from guys like youngsters Matt LaPorta and Michael Brantley and the eventual arrival of third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall, second baseman Jason Kipnis and other top minor-league prospects. Sizemore was one of the rising superstars in the game as recently as 2008. Two years ago, Sizemore was hobbled by an elbow injury and the three-time All-Star missed most of last season after having microfracture surgery on his left knee. Travis Hafner is actually still on this team but hasn’t played a full season since 2007 and is a shell of the player he used to be. By far the best player in the lineup is Shin-Soo Choo. He hit 22 homers and drove in 90 last year and the Indians caught a major break when Choo’s South Korean national team won the Asia Games, earning Choo a military exemption in his native country – he was facing a mandatory two years of service.
Fausto Carmona heads the rotation and had a good bounce-back 2010 season, but it’s likely that he is traded by the July deadline – he would fetch some good prospects. He is the only starter who has pitched more than 200 innings in a season, which is why the Indians spent the offseason trying to acquire a veteran to protect their young arms. Justin Masterson, acquired when the team shipped out Victor Martinez to Boston two seasons ago, showed some potential with 180 innings and a team-high 140 strikeouts. In the bullpen, Chris Perez was 23-for-27 in save opportunities last season.
The Indians have some decent young players but are about to be surpassed by even the Royals in the division. And Cleveland, once one of the top-drawing teams in baseball, now can’t draw flies. It’s going to be a long summer.
Projected lineup
1 CF Michael Brantley
2 SS Asdrubal Cabrera
3 RF Shin-Soo Choo
4 DH Travis Hafner
5 C Carlos Santana
6 LF Austin Kearns
7 1B Matt LaPorta
8 2B Orlando Cabrera
9 3B Jack Hannahan
Projected rotation
1 RHP Fausto Carmona
2 RHP Justin Masterson
3 RHP Mitch Talbot
4 RHP Carlos Carrasco
5 RHP Josh Tomlin
CL: Chris Perez
The Boston Red Sox missed the playoffs in 2010, and when they do that and the Yankees manage to make the playoffs, well, that’s just unacceptable to Red Sox Nation. Thus Boston was one of the busiest clubs this offseason in terms of adding top-flight talent. Arguably the two biggest stunners of the offseason – other than Cliff Lee thrilling Boston fans by choosing the Phillies over the Yankees – was Boston trading for Padres star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and then signing the top free agent position player on the market in Tampa Bay All-Star outfielder Carl Crawford. Now the Red Sox are the team to beat in the American League and a favorite to add a third World Series title in the past eight seasons.
2010 finish: 89-73, third in AL East
Key offseason additions: Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, Bobby Jenks, Dan Wheeler
Key offseason losses: Adrian Beltre, Bill Hall, Victor Martinez, Mike Lowell
Bodog odds to win AL East: -150 (favorite)
Bodog odds to win AL pennant: 11/5 (favorite)
Bodog odds to win World Series: 9/2 (second to Phillies)
Bodog over/under win total: 95.5 (highest in AL)
Boston didn’t have to give up any current major-league talent in landing Gonzalez from San Diego. He has had at least 30 home runs and 99 RBIs in each of the past four seasons. The left-hander hit .298 with 31 homers and 101 RBIs last season. He’s also a Gold Glove-caliber fielder. And Boston snuck in and stole Crawford from suitors like the Yankees. Crawford hit .307 with 19 home runs, 90 RBIs, and 47 stolen bases last season for the Rays. The 29-year-old is a four-time All-Star and won his first Gold Glove in 2010. So even with losing Beltre and Martinez, this lineup should be much better. And remember that the Red Sox ranked second in the AL with 818 runs scored last season despite losing Kevin Youkilis and Dustin Pedroia for 147 games and having leadoff hitter Jacoby Ellsbury around for less than a month. Youkilis will move from first to third to replace Beltre
The rotation, meanwhile, might be the best in the American League if Josh Beckett gets back to normal. In 2010 Beckett was just 6-6 with 5.76 ERA and 1.54 WHIP — the ERA and WHIP were career-worsts — in 21 starts, though a back injury was a big part of that. He fell behind in spring training and never fully recovered. But he’s healthy now. Scarily, he’s probably only the third-best pitcher among the starting five. John Lackey should be better in his second season in Boston. His had a 4.40 ERA and 1.42 WHIP last season — the highest those numbers have been since 2004 — plus a walk rate (3.0 per nine) that was his highest since '04 and a strikeout rate (6.5) that was his lowest since '04. If there’s one concern among the pitchers it’s that closer Jonathan Papelbon regressed last year. As a team the Sox blew 22 saves and had a save percentage of 66.7, both of which were second-worst in the AL behind only Baltimore. But adding Jenks and Wheeler should make that bullpen stronger overall and Jenks can always close, as can Daniel Bard, if Papelbon struggles or is traded (the Sox might deal him as it’s the final year of his contract).
Barring another injury-filled season like 2010, the Red Sox are the team to beat in the American League.
Projected lineup
1 CF Jacoby Ellsbury
2 2B Dustin Pedroia
3 LF Carl Crawford
4 1B Adrian Gonzalez
5 3B Kevin Youkilis
6 DH David Ortiz
7 RF J.D. Drew
8 C Jarrod Saltalamacchia
9 SS Marco Scutaro
Projected rotation
1 LHP Jon Lester
2 RHP John Lackey
3 RHP Clay Buchholz
4 RHP Josh Beckett
5 RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka
CL: Jonathan Papelbon
Only with the New York Yankees can reaching the league championship series be considered a disappointment, but that was the case in 2010 when the Yanks lost to the Texas Rangers in the ALCS and failed in their attempt to repeat as World Series champions. This offseason hasn’t been a great one for the Yanks, as they basically banked on being able to sign free agent pitcher Cliff Lee but lost out on Lee to the Phillies. Plus the rival Red Sox snaked New York on Carl Crawford. So instead New York added a few veteran cast offs like Bartolo Colon and Mark Prior and overpaid for Rafael Soriano, who will get $15 million a season to be a set-up man for Mariano Rivera. Boston, meanwhile, had a banner offseason and has moved ahead of New York in most experts’ eyes.
2010 finish: 95-67, second in AL East (won wild card, lost in ALCS to Rangers)
Key offseason additions: Rafael Soriano, Andruw Jones, Russell Martin, Freddy Garcia, Bartolo Colon, Pedro Feliciano, Mark Prior
Key offseason losses: Kerry Wood, Javier Vazquez, Lance Berkman, Marcus Thames
Bodog odds to win AL East: +180
Bodog odds to win AL pennant: 7/2
Bodog odds to win World Series: 7/1
Bodog over/under win total: 91.5
The lineup was terrific last year and returns basically intact. The main difference will be Martin as the primary catcher with Jorge Posada moving to designated hitter and perhaps occasionally at first base. His catching days appear over. It will be interesting to see what Alex Rodriguez brings in 2011. He hit only .270 with 30 homers and 125 RBIs last year. Good numbers to be sure but now MVP-caliber numbers for a guy making nearly $30 million a season. At 35, age seems to be catching up to A-Rod, although he has been killing the ball this spring. Four separate ailments (quadriceps, hip surgery, hip tendinitis, calf) have cost him at least five days apiece since 2008, and he has missed 87 games total the past three years. Still, the middle of the lineup with Robinson Cano (arguably the team’s best player now), Mark Teixeira and A-Rod is among the best in baseball. The only other question in the lineup is who will hit leadoff, with Brett Gardner possibly taking over there for Derek Jeter, who is coming off the worst season of his Hall of Fame career. But now it’s looking like the two may rotate at that spot.
The rotation is a major question mark. CC Sabathia is terrific and no doubt will be in the running for the Cy Young Award again. But he can opt out of his contract after this season. A.J. Burnett has been named the No. 2 starter, but he was 10-15 with a 5.26 ERA last season, and was removed from the rotation for the American League Division Series against the Minnesota Twins. Phil Hughes, who won 18 games last year, is the No. 3. But then the questions begin – look for the Yankees to continue to ask Andy Pettitte to come out of retirement. New pitching coach Larry Rothschild will have his work cut out for him. The bullpen should be one of the best in baseball at the back end with Soriano and the incomparable Mariano Rivera.
The Yanks still have the deepest pockets in baseball and can add a frontline player near the trade deadline – look for them to do so in the rotation. New York should battle Boston all season for the AL East title but will likely fall a bit short and probably have to settle for a wild-card spot again and their 16th playoff berth in the past 17 seasons.
Projected lineup
1 LF Brett Gardner
2 SS Derek Jeter
3 1B Mark Teixeira
4 3B Alex Rodriguez
5 2B Robinson Cano
6 RF Nick Swisher
7 CF Curtis Granderson
8 DH Jorge Posada
9 C Russell Martin
Projected rotation
1 LHP CC Sabathia
2 RHP A.J. Burnett
3 RHP Phil Hughes
4 RHP Ivan Nova
5 RHP Freddy Garcia
CL: Mariano Rivera
The Tampa Bay Rays have proven that by building a successful farm system a small-market team can be competitive even in a division with the ultra-rich New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox. But the Rays are going to have to put that farm system really to the test this year because the club lost several key players off last year’s club – including a few to the Red Sox – due to a necessary reduction in team salary spending.
2010 finish: 96-66, first in AL East (lost in ALDS to Texas Rangers)
Key offseason additions: Manny Ramirez, Johnny Damon, Kyle Farnsworth, Joel Peralta, Casey Kotchman
Key offseason losses: Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, Matt Garza, Jason Bartlett, Rafael Soriano, Grant Balfour, Dan Wheeler, Randy Choate
Bodog odds to win AL East: +800
Bodog odds to win AL pennant: 11/1
Bodog odds to win World Series: 25/1
Bodog over/under win total: 84.5
The Rays watched as the Red Sox got that much stronger by adding Crawford, one of the game’s best all-around players, and Wheeler. Soriano was arguably the best closer in baseball last year, which meant he priced himself out of Tampa Bay’s budget for 2011. Garza, who had a no-hitter last year and won 15 games, was traded to the Cubs for more prospects, and Bartlett, who could have become a free agent after this season, was shipped to the Padres for more young pitching.
The lineup is bound to suffer without Crawford, especially. The Rays surprised many be deciding late in the offseason to sign both Ramirez and Damon – two veterans well past their prime – as one-year stop gaps. Neither guy can field anymore but one of them is going to have to in left and that will be Damon. Ramirez, meanwhile, has averaged only 97 games the past two seasons and only homered nine times in 2010. Evan Longoria is going to have to carry the load in the lineup now and the Rays need B.J. Upton to finally fulfill his superstar potential.
Even with losing Garza, the rotation should remain one of the best in the American League. At the top is former No. 1 overall draft pick David Price, who had his breakout season in 2010 by going 19-6 with a 2.72 ERA in 2010 and finished second in the AL Cy Young award balloting. Jeremy Hellickson, who shined in limited call-up duty last year, essentially replaces Garza. The rotation will need to be good because the bullpen, which led the AL with 51 saves and a 3.33 ERA a year ago, returns not one player of its top six from last year. Farnsworth will get the first shot at closing but it will probably be a by-committee deal for manager Joe Maddon.
Don’t sleep on the Rays because that rotation will keep them in most games. But it’s hard to imagine this club contending for another division title. A wild-card berth is a possibility, which is saying something considering the payroll was slashed from around $70 million in 2010 to $40 million this year, but more than likely a third-place finish in the AL East is looming.
Projected lineup
1 C John Jaso
2 LF Johnny Damon
3 3B Evan Longoria
4 DH Manny Ramirez
5 RF Ben Zobrist
6 CF B.J. Upton
7 1B Dan Johnson
8 2B Sean Rodriguez
9 SS Reid Brignac
Projected rotation
1 LHP David Price
2 RHP James Shields
3 RHP Wade Davis
4 RHP Jeff Niemann
5 RHP Jeremy Hellickson
CL: Kyle Farnsworth
It was one of those hype, Gus Johnson games Saturday afternoon, and Butler was the team that survived.
No. 8 Butler trailed by as much as 11 points to No. 2 Florida in the contest, but hung around enough to force overtime, capitalizing on late Gator mistakes to win 74-71. Florida was a 3.5-point favorite in the contest.
This is the second straight Final Four visit for the Bulldogs, last year they made it to the National Championship before falling to the Duke Blue Devils, who had an early exit in the Sweet 16 this year.
Butler guard Shelvin Mack was fearless down the stretch, nailing the go-ahead 3-pointer in overtime and making crucial free throws to make it a 3-point game. Mack finished with 27 points with four 3s made. Butler Forward Matt Howard chipped in 14 points including a late free throw to force overtime.
On the Florida side, there were plenty of opportunities to take the lead but the offense kept settling for deep 3s instead of using center Vernon Macklin inside. Gator guards Kenny Boyton and Erving Walker chucked up 3s late in regulation and overtime but none landed. Boyton and Erving combined for 2-10 from beyond the arch.
Butler will face the winner of No. 1 Kansas and No. 11 Virginia Commonwealth.
There’s more basketball to bet on. Get your March Madness odds in the Bodog Sportsbook! Bodog, be a player.
Baseball’s Opening Day arrives this week already, and the New York Mets will have outfielder Carlos Beltran in their lineup when they start the season on Friday against the Florida Marlins.
The Mets decided on Monday that Beltran, who is recovering from left knee tendonitis, will play Tuesday’s Grapefruit League game against the Nationals, thus ruling out the he would start the year on the disabled list. Once Beltran appears in a Grapefruit League game, the Mets cannot backdate a DL stint. It would be Beltran’s first Opening Day start since 2009.
After playing right field in minor league games over the weekend, Beltran convinced manager Terry Collins and GM Sandy Alderson that he’s ready to face major league competition. Beltran's lone Grapefruit League game came as a DH against the Boston Red Sox on March 6. He played five innings apiece in right field in Triple-A games on Saturday and Sunday.
“It does present a risk,” Alderson said. “But at some point you’ve got to roll the dice, and given his firmness about how he feels and the fact he is ready to go, I think we’ve decided this is probably the best thing for us.”
The only thing that would change this is if Beltran has a setback Tuesday. If that happens, his 15-day DL stint would only be backdated one day into spring training, rather than 10 days. Collins hinted Beltran may be de-emphasized in the lineup early in the season and not bat cleanup. Collins also may use a late-game replacement for Beltran, and strategically rest him. Beltran played just 64 games in 2010 and is in the final season of his contract.
It appeared pretty obvious all spring that the Philadelphia Phillies weren’t going to start the 2011 season with ailing All-Star second baseman Chase Utley in the lineup, and that news finally became official. Now it’s just a matter of when Utley can play – and it might not be until the All-Star break, which would be a huge blow for Bodog’s World Series betting favorites.
Utley still has no timetable for his return from chronic knee pain. When asked if he wanted to be back by the All-Star break, Utley replied, "That would be a goal, yes. … I'm optimistic at this point," he said. "I think being able to take ground balls fairly lightly, not a whole lot of intensity, just to be able to do that pain-free was important."
When the Phillies go through the formality of placing Utley on the disabled list prior to opening day on Friday, it won't be the 60-day DL, however. So that means the team thinks it’s possible he could be back before June. Utley won’t have surgery because he has been told by doctors that it could actually make his condition worse. Plus then he’d be out at least a few months. Utley is able to take "light ground balls," but there is no running.
The five-time All-Star was limited to a career-low 115 games last season following surgery in July to repair a torn tendon in his right thumb. He finished with 16 homers and 65 RBIs. Wilson Valdez and former Met castoff Luis Castillo will man second until Utley gets back. Neither is obviously in the same conversation with Utley from a hitting standpoint.
The Phillies open the regular season Friday vs. the visiting Houston Astros. Reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay gets the start against one-time Phillies right-hander Brett Myers. Bet on the game with Bodog’s MLB odds.
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Two teams that had playoff aspirations all summer in 2010 but eventually fell short face off on Opening Day when the San Diego Padres visit St. Louis, with the Cards opening as -200 favorites on Bodog’s MLB betting odds.
The Padres led the NL West for much of last season but faded late. They needed a sweep of the San Francisco Giants on the season’s final weekend to force a one-game playoff and did win the first two games. However, a 3-0 Giants win on the final day gave San Francisco the division title and left San Diego home for the postseason. Of course this season the Padres are without superstar Adrian Gonzalez, who was traded to Boston this offseason for a haul of prospects. The Padres won last year thanks in large part to their pitching, but staff ace Mat Latos, who would have started Opening Day, starts the year on the DL. Latos went 14-10 with a 2.92 ERA last year but has a strained right shoulder. Thus Tim Stauffer gets the start for this one. Stauffer went 6-5 with a 1.85 ERA over 32 appearances last season. He moved from long relief into an important spot in the rotation in September. Stauffer was the team’s best pitcher this spring.
The Cardinals have had a trying offseason after finishing second to the Reds in the NL Central last year. First, the team couldn’t agree to a contract extension with three-time NL MVP Albert Pujols, and that could be a season-long distraction with free agency on the horizon. Then St. Louis lost the NL’s top pitcher the past two seasons combined in Adam Wainwright, who has undergone Tommy John surgery. That means more pressure on co-ace Chris Carpenter, who gets the Opening Day start. It’s Carpenter’s sixth Opening Day start overall and fifth with St. Louis. In the history of the St. Louis franchise, only two other pitchers have made as many: Dizzy Dean and Bob Gibson, the record-holder with 10. Carpenter was 16-9 with a 3.22 ERA last season.
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The two Bodog favorites to win the NL Central, the defending division champion Cincinnati Reds and the much-improved Milwaukee Brewers, face off on Thursday in Ohio to kick off the 2011 season for both. Bet on this game on Bodog’s MLB odds.
Last year was a magical one for the Reds as they won their first division title and reached the playoffs for the first time since 1995 thanks in large part to Joey Votto winning NL MVP. In the postseason, however, they were dominated in the NLDS by the Philadelphia Phillies. Votto was arguably the biggest breakout star in baseball last year, winning the MVP one vote short of unanimously. He was simply stellar last year in leading the Reds to their first playoff berth since 1995. He batted .324 with 37 homers and 113 RBIs and led the NL in on-base (.424) and slugging (.600) percentages.
Cincinnati has had some pitching injuries to deal with this spring, as both Johnny Cueto and Homer Bailey will start the season on the disabled list although they should be out too long. Bronson Arroyo has mononucleosis but said won't miss any starts. The Opening Day start goes to Edinson Volquez. He allowed three runs on nine hits and four walks in his final spring outing. Volquez was brilliant in 2008 in his first season with the Reds but then missed the last half of 2009 and first half of 2010 after Tommy John surgery. After debuting just after the All-Star break last season, Volquez went 4-3 with a 4.31 ERA over 12 starts. But he had a 1.95 ERA over his final four regular-season starts. He started Game 1 of the playoffs vs. the Phillies but lasted 1 2/3 innings in allowing four runs. Volquez had an 8.38 ERA in the Cactus League this spring.
The Brewers, meanwhile, are a chic pick to win the division this year after trading for two Opening Day starters from last year, Kansas City’s Zack Greinke and Toronto’s Shaun Marcum. Greinke, however, cracked a rib playing basketball this spring and starts the season on the DL. Marcus also had some injury issues but should be fine to make his start this week. Thus Yovani Gallardo gets the start Thursday. He has been the Brewers' best pitcher this spring, posting a 1.96 ERA over five exhibition starts. He pitched five scoreless innings and struck out nine Mariners in his final spring start. Gallardo showed up in camp about 12 pounds lighter. Milwaukee finished with a composite .321 batting average this spring, best among the 16 National League clubs.
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There is no question that 2010 was a massive disappointment for the Angels, as they had World Series dreams but instead never were a huge factor in the AL West, failing to win that division for the first time in four seasons. It was presumed the Angels and owner Arte Moreno would be big spenders this offseason to make sure the club got back to the playoffs, but while Los Angeles kicked the tires on free agents like Cliff Lee and Carl Crawford as well as some big-name trade possibilities, the main move was acquiring vastly overpriced Vernon Wells and his monster contract from Toronto. Wells likely isn’t going to solve the Angels’ offensive issues.
2010 finish: 80-82, third in AL West.
Key offseason additions: Vernon Wells (LF); Scott Downs (LHP); Hisanori Takahashi (LHP)
Key offseason losses: Mike Napoli (1B/C); Juan Rivera (OF); Hideki Matsui (DH); Kevin Frandsen (INF); Scot Shields (RHP)
Bodog odds to win AL West: +225
Bodog odds to win AL pennant: 12/1
Bodog odds to win World Series: 25/1
Bodog over/under wins total: 83
The offense should get a big boost whenever Cuban first baseman Kendrys Morales returns, but he will start the season on the DL. Morales was hitting .290 with 11 homers and 39 RBIs on the heels of his breakout 2009 season when he broke his leg celebrating with teammates after a homer in late May. "In some ways," Manager Mike Scioscia sad, "there's not as much clarity with issues as we wanted — particularly with Kendrys Morales. We see where we're going; we're confident where we are. But until he gets some at-bats, we're not sure where we are." Rookie Mark Trumbo, a beast in Triple-A last year, will hold the position until Morales gets back. Last season, the Angels hit .248 as team, 10th in the AL. They ranked ninth in runs (202 fewer runs than in 2009) and 13th in on-base percentage. The team’s batting average fell from .285 to .248. Bobby Abreu, 36, hit 20 homers last season, but his RBIs and batting average dipped. With Wells' arrival, Abreu will serve as Los Angeles' primary DH. Shortstop Erick Aybar hit .309 in 2009 and just .253 last year.
The rotation should be a strength led by Jered Weaver. The Angels’ starting staff posted a 2.73 ERA from Aug. 29 on last season. When Dan Haren joined the top of the rotation in a trade from Arizona, that changed almost everything. No pitcher has been more durable than Haren over the past six years. His 203 starts since 2005 are the most in the majors. Likewise, no pitcher had more strikeouts than Weaver's 233 in 2010. Weaver and Haren have combined for 135 wins in the past five years. Only four teams enter 2011 with their top two starters claiming more wins in that time frame. Weaver and Haren rank third in combined strikeouts from 2006-10. But what about Scott Kazmir? He seems to be getting worse. The 5.92 ERA with Tampa Bay in 2009 before he was traded was actually better than the number he posted in 2010, when he went 9-15 with a 5.94 ERA. Fernando Rodney, who has converted 64 of 78 saves since 2008, will close.
The Angels should have the best rotation in the West – that’s the one edge they have over defending champion Texas. The offense will determine whether this club dethrones the Rangers.
Projected lineup
3B Maicer Izturis
2 SS Erick Aybar
3 DH Bobby Abreu
4 RF Torii Hunter
5 LF Vernon Wells
6 2B Howie Kendrick
7 1B Mark Trumbo
8 C Jeff Mathis
9 CF Peter Bourjos
Projected rotation
1 RHP Jered Weaver
2 RHP Dan Haren
3 RHP Ervin Santana
4 LHP Scott Kazmir
5 RHP Joel Piniero
CL: RHP Fernando Rodney
Despite losing star closer Joe Nathan before the 2010 season and then seeing star first baseman and American League MVP candidate Justin Morneau suffer a concussion in early July that cost him the rest of 2010, the Twins still managed to win their second straight AL Central title in the first season in their new ballpark. But getting to the playoffs is nothing new for this franchise, as it was the sixth season in the postseason since the turn of the century. However, beating the Yankees in the playoffs has been a problem. Last year’s ALDS loss to New York was the fourth time since 2003 that Minnesota has been brushed aside by the Yankees in the division series, with the Twins only winning two total games in those four best-of-five series.
2010 finish: 94-68, first in AL Central (lost in ALDS to Yankees)
Key offseason additions: Tsuyoshi Nishioka (INF), Dusty Hughes (LHP), Jim Hoey (RHP), Scott Diamond (LHP)
Key offseason losses: Jon Rauch (RHP), Brian Fuentes (RHP), Jesse Crain (RHP), Matt Guerrier (RHP), J.J. Hardy (SS), Orlando Hudson (2😎, Nick Punto (INF/OF), Ron Mahay (LHP), Randy Flores (LHP), Pat Neshek (RHP)
Bodog odds to win AL Central: +150 (favorite)
Bodog odds to win AL pennant: 9/1
Bodog odds to win World Series: 20/1
Bodog over/under wins total: 86
The Twins were relatively quiet this offseason, presuming that a return to health by Nathan and Morneau will be more than enough for them to contend again. The Twins did bring back pitcher Carl Pavano as well as fending off a challenge from the Texas Rangers to re-sign Jim Thome. He's just 11 homers short of 600 career. The middle infield will look a lot different this year. The 2010 the double-play combination of Hudson and Hardy gives way to Alexi Casilla at shortstop and Tsuyoshi Nishioka at second base. Big things are expected of Nishioka at the plate after he posted 206 hits (for a .346 average) in Japan in 2010. But he also has never played more than 130 games in a season. Morneau didn’t start participating fully in spring games until nearly mid-March as he works his way back from that serious concussion but he expects to be good to go for Opening Day. Joe Mauer is the best-hitting catcher in baseball. He has won three American League batting titles and was the AL’s most valuable player in 2009. Mauer had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee in the offseason and didn't catch in games for the first three weeks. He might have to be used at designated hitter more this season. Mauer struggled with his power at the new Target Field. His homers and slugging percentage were down from 28 and .587 in his 2009 MVP season to nine and .469 in 2010, when he didn't hit his first home run at Target until Aug. 18.
The Twins took their biggest hit this offseason in losing Crain, Rauch, Fuentes and Guerrier. Manager Ron Gardenhire is likely to use a combination of Nathan and Matt Capps as closer until Nathan proves he's fully recovered from last year's Tommy John surgery. Nathan had a career 1.87 ERA in six seasons with the Twins while averaging 41 saves per year before missing last season. The rotation is headed by Pavano and lefty Francisco Liriano. Pavano was 17-11 last year and led the staff in innings (221.0), complete games (seven) and shutouts (two) while carrying a 3.75 ERA in 32 starts. His seven complete games tied for second in the majors. Liriano was 14-10 with a 3.62 ERA in 31 starts spanning 191 2/3 innings. After those two, the rotation was inconsistent in 2010.
Assuming Nathan and Morneau get back to 100 percent, the Twins will again be in the hunt in the AL Central but the club likely still isn’t good enough to reach the World Series.
Projected lineup
1 CF Denard Span
2 2B Tsuyoshi Nishioka
3 C Joe Mauer
4 1B Justin Morneau
5 LF Delmon Young
6 DH Jason Kubel
7 RF Michael Cuddyer
8 3B Danny Valencia
9 SS Alexi Casilla
Projected rotation
1 RHP Carl Pavano
2 LHP Francisco Liriano
3 RHP Nick Blackburn
4 RHP Scott Baker
5 LHP Brian Duensing
CL: Joe Nathan
The White Sox are definitely going all-in this season in an attempt to get back to the World Series for the first time since winning it in 2005. Owner Jerry Reinsdorf allowed aggressive GM Kenny Williams to increase the club’s payroll to an all-time franchise high of $125 million, with the big fish being acquiring slugger Adam Dunn to fill what was a glaring hole at designated hitter in 2010. If things don’t go well early in the season on the South Side of Chicago, it could be the final season for Ozzie Guillen as the club’s manager. He and Williams have had their troubles in the past and Guillen nearly was a goner this offseason.
2010 finish: 88-74 (second in AL Central)
Key offseason additions: Adam Dunn (DH/1😎; Jesse Crain (RHP); Will Ohman (LHP)
Key offseason losses: Manny Ramirez (DH); Bobby Jenks (RHP); J.J. Putz (RHP); Scott Linebrink (RHP)
Bodog odds to win AL Central: +160 (second in division to Twins)
Bodog odds to win AL pennant: 11/1
Bodog odds to win World Series: 20/1
Bodog over/under win total: 84.5
Instead of going with a youth movement built around the likes of Gordon Beckham and Alexei Ramirez, the team’s double-play combination, Williams brought in Dunn and re-signed veterans Paul Konerko and A.J. Pierzynski. Konerko was an AL MVP candidate last season, hitting.312 with 39 homers and 111 RBIs. Dunn has averaged 40 homers and 101 RBIs over the past seven years, but he must adjust to the designated hitter role he never played in the National League. Runs shouldn’t be a problem with Dunn, Konerko, center fielder Alex Rios and right fielder Carlos Quentin in the middle of the order. However, can Quentin stay healthy? He hasn’t proven able to. And which Beckham will show up? The one who was stellar as a rookie, the one who struggled mightily to start 2010 or the one who was scorching hot in the second half of last season? Ramirez is now one of the best shortstops in the American League. He was named the Silver Slugger winner after batting .282 with 18 homers and 70 RBIs, and many felt he deserved the Gold Glove. The main question is at third base where Brent Morel has won the starting job. He hit just .231 in limited time last year but is terrific defensively.
The rotation could be one of the best in baseball if Jake Peavy can make it back from last season’s detached muscle in his back that led Peavy to undergo experimental surgery in July. He is expected to start the season in extended spring training as he works his way back. But if healthy, he forms what should be a stellar rotation with Mark Buehrle, John Danks, Gavin Floyd and Edwin Jackson. Buehrle is the only major-league pitcher to throw more than 200 innings in each of the past 10 seasons, and his 2,220 innings since 2001 are the most. But his contract is up after this season. Danks’ victory total has been inching up every season, while Floyd was one of the majors' top starters before shoulder soreness slowed him late last season. In 11 starts with the White Sox after a trade from Arizona, Jackson had a 3.24 ERA and four victories, but in six of those 11 starts he gave up just two earned runs or less. The only pitching question in camp other than Peavy’s rehab was at closer, where All-Star set-up man Matt Thornton will replace the departed Bobby Jenks. Thornton had been competing with LHP Chris Sale for the job. Thornton held opposing batters to a.191 average while posting an impressive 12 strikeouts per nine innings in 2010.
If the White Sox can get and stay healthy, namely Peavy and Quentin, this team will beat out the Twins and Tigers for the AL Central title.
Projected lineup
1 LF Juan Pierre
2 2B Gordon Beckham
3 DH Adam Dunn
4 1B Paul Konerko
5 CF Alex Rios
6 RF Carlos Quentin
7 SS Alexei Ramirez
8 C A.J. Pierzynski
9 3B Brent Morel
Projected rotation
1 LHP Mark Buehrle
2 RHP Gavin Floyd
3 LHP John Danks
4 RHP Edwin Jackson
5 RHP Phil Humber (until Peavy is ready)
CL: Matt Thornton
It’s going to be difficult for the Texas Rangers to improve upon 2010. After all, the Rangers won the AL West for the first time since 1999, which was their last playoff appearance. And then in the postseason, thanks in large part to a midseason trade for Cliff Lee, the Rangers upset the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees for their first-ever playoff series wins before running into a hot pitching staff in the World Series in the Giants. The Rangers were even sold to a group led by team president Nolan Ryan during last season and signed a rich new local TV contract, meaning this club should have the means to compete for years to come.
2010 finish: 90-72, first in AL West (won AL pennant)
Key offseason additions: Adrian Beltre (3😎; Yorvit Torrealba (C); Brandon Webb (RHP); Mike Napoli (1B/C); Arthur Rhodes (LHP); Mason Tobin (RHP); Brett Tomko (RHP)
Key offseason losses: Vladimir Guerrero (DH); Bengie Molina (C); Cliff Lee (LHP); Jorge Cantu (INF); Cristian Guzman (INF); Jeff Francoeur (OF); Frank Francisco (RHP); Dustin Nippert (RHP)
Bodog odds to win AL West: +115 (favorite)
Bodog odds to win AL pennant: 9/1
Bodog odds to win World Series: 20/1
Bodog over/under wins total: 84
The starting rotation is going to be a major question. The Rangers basically matched bid by the big-spending Yankees and Phillies by Lee chose to return to Philadelphia. That leaves a giant hole – Texas flirted with putting star closer Neftali Feliz in the rotation this year to help make up for Lee’s departure but the team decided near the end of camp to leave Feliz be at least for this season. He set a rookie record with 40 saves in 2010.
C.J. Wilson will head the rotation but he went only two innings in his final Cactus League start because of a hamstring injury. The left-hander was 15-8 with a 3.35 ERA last season and pitched well in the ALDS and World Series. Fellow starter Tommy Hunter has a groin strain. Derek Holland is coming off a horrible outing in spring training. The team attempted to offset the loss of Lee by also bringing in one-time NL Cy Young Award recipient Brandon Webb, but he hasn’t been the same pitcher – or healthy, for that matter — in about three years.
The offense could be better than last year despite the loss of 2010 team RBI leader Vladimir Guerrero. He was showing signs of age late in the year and Texas didn’t attempt to bring him back. To fill Guerrero’s bat the club spent big money on third baseman Adrian Beltre. He had a major bounce-back year with the Red Sox last year. Beltre will be a huge upgrade defensively at third base over Michael Young. And he brings another powerful bat to an offense that also boasts the reigning AL MVP in outfielder Josh Hamilton, as well as such other established hitters as Young, second baseman Ian Kinsler and right fielder Nelson Cruz. The team needs Kinsler to stay healthy. Kinsler was on the disabled list twice in 2010; Texas was 61-41 with Kinsler, 29-31 without him. Young made noise all offseason about wanting to be traded but it appears he will stay put and play a combination of first base and DH.
The Rangers certainly have the best offensive team in the division but it’s all going to come down to pitching and the health of guys like Hamilton, Cruz and Kinsler. If Texas is in contention in July, look for possibly another trade for an ace.
Projected lineup
1 2B Ian Kinsler
2 SS Elvis Andrus
3 LF Josh Hamilton
4 3B Adrian Beltre
5 DH Michael Young
6 RF Nelson Cruz
7 1B Mitch Moreland
8 C Yorvit Torrealba
9 CF Julio Borbon
Projected rotation
1 LHP C.J. Wilson
2 RHP Colby Lewis
3 LHP Derek Holland
4 LHP Matt Harrison
5 RHP Alexi Ogando
CL: Neftali Feliz
If you ask most experts which team is the most likely to make a big jump in the American League this season and contend for a division title, it’s the Oakland A’s. GM Billy Beane has managed to put together another talented young pitching staff reminiscent of the Tim Hudson/Mark Mulder/Barry Zito days, if not that good yet. The A’s haven’t won the AL West since 2006 but are certainly trending upward as they ended a string of three straight losing seasons with last year's 81-81 finish and placed in the division's top half for the first time since their most recent playoff trip in ‘06.
2010 finish: 81-81, second in AL West
Key offseason additions: David DeJesus (RF); Josh Willingham (LF); Hideki Matsui (DH); Brandon McCarthy (RHP); Brian Fuentes (LHP); Grant Balfour (RHP); Rich Harden (RHP)
Key offseason losses: Rajai Davis (OF); Jack Cust (DH); Ben Sheets (RHP); Eric Chavez (INF); Gabe Gross (OF); Vin Mazzaro (RHP); Justin Duchscherer (RHP); Akinori Iwamura (INF); Jeremy Hermida (OF)
Bodog odds to win AL West: +190 (second in division)
Bodog odds to win AL pennant: 11/1
Bodog odds to win World Series: 30/1
Bodog over/under wins total: 83.5
How good was last year’s rotation, led by a Big 4 of Trevor Cahill, Dallas Braden, Gio Gonzalez and Brett Anderson? The Oakland rotation finished with an ERA of 3.47, marking only the second time in 18 years that an AL starting staff logged an ERA below 3.62. Oakland's rotation also led the majors with 103 quality starts and held opponents to a league low .243 batting average and .373 slugging percentage. This year Oakland's young starters — and new No. 5 man Brandon McCarthy — will have to produce without the luxury of sneaking up on people. The bullpen should be better this year too because Beane brought in Beane veterans in Brian Fuentes and fiery righty Grant Balfour via free agency. However, closer Andrew Bailey will start the season on the DL with a strained right forearm. Oakland manager Bob Geren said it's unclear when Bailey will return to the mound for a big league game. Bailey pitched just 1 1/3 Cactus League innings this spring. Both Fuentes and Balfour likely will close while Bailey is out.
The offense is going to be what holds this team back. Last year Oakland only 11th in the AL in runs scored last year and produced 109 home runs, the third-lowest total in the majors. The team failed to sign top free-agent targets Adrian Beltre and Lance Berkman, leaving Oakland to pursue Plan B with veteran slugger Hideki Matsui, who is 36. Beane also added David DeJesus and Josh Willingham and they should upgrade what was possibly the worst offensive outfield in baseball last year. But you can't win games without scoring, which Oakland might be forced to try and do again this season. Power for sure is going to be another problem and the A’s aren’t likely to run as much after trading Davis and his 50 steals.
If the A’s can hit even a little, they should be in the AL West race all season. The question is if ownership will allow Beane to go out and add a high-priced bat if needed.
Projected lineup
1 CF Coco Crisp
2 1B Daric Barton
3 RF David DeJesus
4 LF Josh Willingham
5 DH Hideki Matsui
6 C Kurt Suzuki
7 2B Mark Ellis
8 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff
9 SS Cliff Pennington
Projected rotation
1 RHP Trevor Cahill
2 LHP Brett Anderson
3 LHP Gio Gonzalez
4 LHP Dallas Braden
5 RHP Brandon McCarthy
CL: LHP Brian Fuentes
The Seattle Mariners entered last season armed with possibly the best 1-2 pitching punch in baseball in Felix Hernandez and Cliff Lee. And they were both good – but Seattle was so bad that it traded Lee to the division-rival Rangers before the trade deadline. Why were the M’s so bad? Offense, or a lack of it. Last season the Mariners finished last in runs scored with 513, a full 74 runs behind 29th-ranked Pittsburgh (587). Seattle also finished last in home runs (101), batting (.236), on-base percentage (.298) and slugging (.339). It doesn’t appear the lineup will be that much better this season, either.
2010 finish: 61-101, last in AL West
Key offseason additions: Jack Cust (DH); Miguel Olivo (C); Brendan Ryan (SS); Adam Kennedy (INF); Chris Ray (RHP); Royce Ring (LHP); Aaron Laffey (LHP); Jose Flores (RHP)
Key offseason losses: Casey Kotchman (1😎; Jose Lopez (3😎; Russell Branyan (DH); Ryan Rowland-Smith (LHP); Sean White (RHP); Ian Snell (RHP)
Bodog odds to win AL West: +2000 (last in the division)
Bodog over/under wins total: 70
GM Jack Zduriencik was hailed last winter for assembling a team with the pitching and defense to make a splash in the AL West. Now his job is on the line. For some reason the M’s gave $7.5 million over two years to Olivo. His career .283 on-base percentage is the lowest of any active player with at least 3,000 plate appearances and he has led the league in passed balls in four of the past five years. But over that stretch he also has averaged 16 home runs and 56 RBIs with a high batting average of .269. Last year, Adam Moore batted .195 and Rob Johnson hit .191 as the pair combined for six home runs as the catching platoon. First baseman Justin Smoak was the big prize the M’s got for Lee. Smoak struggled terribly after the trade and, three weeks later, was optioned to Triple-A. But he returned to the Mariners in late September to bat .340 with three homers and nine RBIs in 14 games. The acquisition of Ryan from the St. Louis Cardinals led to several changes in Seattle's infield. Ryan, who hit .259 in four years with the Cardinals, takes over at shortstop, moving Jack Wilson, 33, to second base and Chone Figgins, 33, to third. Figgins was terrible last year at the plate after signing a big free-agent contract. New DH Jack Cust averaged 28 homers per season from 2007-2009 with the Oakland A's, but he hit just 13 after spending the first six weeks of the 2010 season in the minors. The star of the lineup is of course leadoff hitter Ichiro Suzuki. He looks to produce his 11th straight 200-hit season (10 straight is already an MLB record), and with four more hits he'll tie Edgar Martinez's franchise record of 2,247 hits. He also will likely set records for hits in the first 11 seasons of a career (2,254 by Paul Waner from 1926-36) and most hits during any 11-season span (2,293). Another season with an average of .300 or better and 25 steals would be Suzuki's 11th straight, tying him for second on baseball's all-time list with Honus Wagner.
The pitching staff was actually pretty good last year, ranking ninth in the majors with a 3.93 ERA. Hernandez won the Cy Young Award despite a 13-12 record because of his 2.27 ERA (best in baseball) and the fact he received 14 runs of support in his 12 defeats. Jason Vargas and Doug Fister were pleasant surprises in 2010. Vargas went 9-12 with a 3.78 ERA, and Fister 6-14 with a 4.11 ERA. Both were also victims of a lack of run support. Left-hander Erik Bedard, 32, returns after missing all of last season with a shoulder injury that sidelined him in 2009. Closer David Aardsma was 0-6 last season but converted 31 of 36 save opportunities. He will begin the season on the disabled list after offseason hip surgery. He is trade bait if he gets back 100 percent healthy.
Seattle should be a little better than last season only because it’s rather difficult to be worse. New manager Eric Wedge has had success in the past, leading Cleveland to a pair of 90-plus win seasons and one AL Central crown over a seven-year span from 2003-09. But contention is a pipe dream this year and a third 100-loss season in four years is certainly possible.
Projected lineup
1 RF Ichiro Suzuki
2 3B Chone Figgins
3 LF Milton Bradley
4 DH Jack Cust
5 1B Justin Smoak
6 C Miguel Olivo
7 CF Michael Saunders
8 2B Jack Wilson
9 SS Brendan Ryan
Projected rotation
1 RHP Felix Hernandez
2 LHP Jason Vargas
3 RHP Doug Fister
4 LHP Erik Bedard
5 RHP Michael Pineda
CL: Brandon League
2010 finish: 85-77, fourth in AL East
Key offseason additions: Frank Francisco, Octavio Dotel, Jon Rauch, Juan Rivera, Rajai Davis
Key offseason losses: Vernon Wells, John Buck, Scott Downs, Kevin Gregg, Lyle Overbay, Shaun Marcum
Bodog odds to win AL East: +1600
Bodog over/under win total: 76.5
Leading the team this year will be John Farrell, who is set to make his managerial debut after spending the past four seasons as the pitching coach in Boston. Farrell’s rotation will now be anchored by Ricky Romero, Brandon Morrow and Brett Cecil. But the pitcher to watch is top prospect Kyle Drabek, the key to the Roy Halladay trade last year. The 23-year-old Drabek made three starts without a win last year but in Double-A was 14-9 with a 2.94 ERA and 132 strikeouts over 162 innings.
The lineup will be anchored by Jose Bautista, who shocked the baseball word by leading the majors with 54 homers in 2010. Will that happen again? Considering Bautista had never exceeded 16 dingers previously, there’s no chance. He still could hit 30 and knock in 100, however. The Blue Jays need bounce-back seasons from Aaron Hill and Adam Lind, who were great in 2009 but regressed in 2010. Toronto was often all or nothing last year on offense, leading MLB by a ton in homers but 24th in batting average and 26th in on-base percentage. Of the seven players who hit at least 20 home runs for them, three – Wells, Overbay and Buck accounted for 71 – aren’t back.
Toronto hasn’t made the playoffs since Joe Carter’s epic Game 6 World Series home run off Mitch Williams in 1993. The Jays haven’t won 90 games in a season since or finished higher than third more than once. They won’t likely do either this year, either, but the future appears bright.
Projected lineup
1 CF Rajai Davis
2 SS Yunel Escobar
3 3B Jose Bautista
4 1B Adam Lind
5 2B Aaron Hill
6 RF Travis Snider
7 LF Juan Rivera
8 DH Edwin Encarnacion
9 C J.P. Arencibia
Projected rotation
1 LHP Ricky Romero
2 RHP Brandon Morrow
3 LHP Brett Cecil
4 LHP Marc Rzepczynski
5 RHP Kyle Drabek
CL: Frank Francisco
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