-Dexter Sports
3:03 PM
Dexter-Sports InboxNobody has to look at the standings in Major League baseball to know that the Detroit Tigers have dug a hole in last place. Who would know that Justin Verlander would have more losses than wins (2-7) and that the rest of this pitching staff would be this bad. For the Brewers, It has been much of the same story. The Brewers started off well, and for once this far in the season we see Ben Sheets pitching and not on the DL. Young ace Yovani Gallardo has landed on the DL and bullpen issues have kept them from being the powerhouse of the NL Central. These two teams are some of the biggest upsetting teams in the Major Leagues. Here are a list of "contenders" at the beginning of the season and how I believe they will end up this season.
Seattle Mariners: Many has this team slated in a battle with the LA Angels to win the AL West crown. The addition of Erik Bedard and Carlos Silva was supposed to propel this rotation to the top. Bedard has started most of the season on the DL and Silva, who gave up 7 runs last night to the Tigers has been on and off and plainly this offense just stinks. The Brad Wilkerson signing failed, Richie Sexson still doesn't know how to hit a baseball and the rest of the young infield has continued to struggle. Ichiro at the top still gives them a pretty good top of the order, but nobody is driving him in. The Mariners are 23rd in RBIs and cannot muster any offense. It seems that Adam Jones and Jose Guillen could have been better options. Add the horrid start by this bullpen and it doesn't look good for the Mariners
My Prediction: I Do not think this team has enough to put a rally together to get back in this thing. The offense is just horrible and the pitching is having a hard time staying in ball games as of late. Last Year, this teams good start is what propelled them into playoff contention. This team will finish near the bottom of the AL West.
San Diego Padres: This team was a game away from the playoffs last year and in the off season, we only saw this team get better. Though they lost Milton Bradley and Mike Cameron, they were able to bring in a couple pitchers that possibly had a lot of success in Randy Wolf and Mark Prior. We also saw the pads reach out and bring in Tad Iguchi to play second base, in what I believed was a good move. This pitching staff was going to carry the light offense. I bought into the idea that the Padres would compete in the NL West. Boy was I wrong. The Padres are a major league worse 17-30.
My Prediction: The Padres do not have what it takes to compete on the field and that has been apparent so far this season. I think sooner rather than later we will see a Padres fire sale that could see anyone go beyond Chris Young, Jake Peavy and Adrian Gonzalez. This team is just a bit too old, lacks just too much talent and also needed a hot start to make a move in the NL West.
New York Yankees: The Yankees are one of the interesting teams in the league that has seen it all so far in 2008. They have seen a young rotation falter (Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes) yet the veterans they were hoping on have pitched well (Petitte and Mussina). The offense has been slowly pulling out of slumps but still is no where near the caliber they need to be. At 20-25 there could be a lot worse things to worry about. Yet again, who knows what this bullpen will do throughout the season, especially if Joba Chamberlain becomes a starter.
My Prediction: Last year, we saw this team in the same situation throughout the first half and many were more worried than they are now. Granted they had a great manager in Joe Torre, and the emergence of Roger Clemens helped a lot, this team still has the staff and players to get back in a playoff run. If this team adds a pitcher at the deadline they are in the hunt for the wild card. If not, Hank will have fits and the Yankees could rebuild with big cash and free agents available.
Colorado Rockies: Many thought that this team was not ready to compete everyday because of their young everyday players. Analysts stated that last years run to the World Series was just that, a run that just happened to carry them. Though I agree to some extent, I went into this season feeling this team would compete. The Rockies didn't make too many free agent moves but they still had a great lineup. Now with an 18-28 record, many believe the rebuilding is about to begin. Some of the losing has to be credited to the slow offensive start. Not bringing back Kaz Matsui might have stung just a bit. He was a major spark that is clearly missing off that roster. Either way things can only go better for the Rockies.
My Predictions: Initially my thoughts were that the Rockies would simply not be able to rebound and go on a run like they did late in 2007. This team just didn't seem to have that spark that it carried into every post season game. Thinking about it more, I just can't deny that this team will compete with the Dodgers to fight for a wild card spot in the NL. Veterans like Todd Helton and Garrett Atkins are a big part of that feeling. Soon enough Troy Tulowitzski will warm up and Matt Holliday is a tremendous talent. Plus, the pitching is young and will continue to improve as we go throughout the year and the bullpen will get stronger. This Rockies team should be in the hunt when it comes down to it, though it will be hard to catch up to that amazing Diamondbacks team.
Milwaukee Brewers: The Brewers have been one of the most interesting teams of 2008. They have seen the offense slump while the pitching was very strong. Now, we are seeing the offense explode while the pitching struggles. It doesn't hurt that they have lost their best pitcher stuff wise and all of their youngsters continue to struggle. Carlos Villanueva has moved to the bullpen and Ned Yost is searching for the stop gap. Seth McClung will get the next chance. Eventually though, this bullpen will straighten out (not that it is bad now) and become shut down. I truly believe that. Soon enough Jeff Weaver will make his way to the Majors and maybe he can be the Weaver of St. Louis. Adding a pitcher or a speedy lead-off hitter wouldn't be bad, but I don't believe that it is necessary.
My Prediction: I still stick to my prediction that this team will find a way to make the playoffs. The Brewers have too good of a lineup and what I believe is the best potential bullpen in all of baseball. The Rotation, though shaky will hold together and we will see Mike Cameron, Corey Hart and Ryan Braun continue their tears and if JJ Hardy doesn't awake his bat soon, we could see a Khailil Greene or Chone Figgins make their way to Milwaukee. I just don't see this team sitting on their hands. Especially after the offensive display last night. This team finds a way to get in the playoffs. I also think we will see the cubs falter down the line (bullpen has no history of logging long innings beyond Bobby Howry). The Cubs just have too many injury prone players to hope they can stay healthy throughout 2008.
Detroit Tigers: The Tigers were supposed to field possibly the best lineup in baseball history this season, but for some reason the offense struggled out of the gates. Then we saw a surge in offense the propelled Detroit to 5th in the league in runs scored. It didn't matter though because the pitching staff was simply horrible. Ranked Last in ERA, this staff has improved, and last night we saw the offense explode. Justin Verlander and Jeremy Bonderman have had good starts back to back and the bullpen is only going to get better with flamethrower Joel Zumaya and change up master Fernando Rodney coming back soon. Jim Leyland has exploded in the clubhouse and recently on the Detroit Radio Network, told Jim Price that he shoulders all the blame, but these players have to be responsible as well. It will be the one heck of a story if this team accepts the responsibility of play so far, and moves on to be the team they are supposed to be.
My Predictions: I left the Tigers for last because they are simply the hardest to gauge. They have been way up and they have been way down. The Offense seems to be awake, but who really knows. I really like the prospect bullpen near the middle of June, when this team will add two of the leagues best relievers to its squad. I still think this team will bust out of the gates and rip a 15 game win streak along the line. This team is just too good to not win the AL Central. They will pull out of this and give the White Sox a run for the money. Though I might be crazy, I still believe this team has what it takes to win it all
