By The Other Guy

Look, it's baseball season! Time to wildly speculate as to what's going to happen in the MLB this time around. Will the Yankees, who I correctly predicted to with the AL last year, repeat as World Champions? Will the Phillies, who I correctly predicted to win the NL East last year, continue to have success in an increasingly tough division? Will I continue to overrate the Indians, who will continue to suck? Well, the answer to the third one is no, at least. Here are my preseason predictions:

AL East

Once again, the AL East, and the entire AL in general, has descended into a two horse race. The Yankees, for whom my last shred of respect crumbled with their old stadium, are looking like they could easily repeat as Word Champs, and they'll at least take this division. Boston looks very good, but they're just not New York. Tampa should be decent, but I wouldn't expect too much from them. Baltimore has improved, but that's not saying much. Toronto lost the one last shred of talent they had in their pitching staff, and it's going to be a long year for the Jays.

Predicted Finish

1. NY Yankees (Best team in baseball)
2. Boston (Prime candidate for the Wild Card)
3. Tampa Bay (Middle of the road, 81-81)
4. Baltimore (Leaving the basement at least)
5. Toronto (Gonna be a long year)

AL Central

This division is going to be interesting, purely because there is no real standout team. Chicago is either going to be fantastic or dismal, Detroit looks solid, as does Minnesota, and Kansas City is much improved. The only team that I guarantee will not win this division is Cleveland, who has less talent than last year, when they lost 97 games.

Predicted Finish

1. Chicago White Sox (Most potential)
2. Detroit (Questions on the mound)
3. Minnesota (Outdoors at last!)
4. Kansas City (Best in years, but not a high bar to clear)
5. Cleveland (Worst Indians team since '92, worst in AL this year)

AL West

Another Wide open division, the considerably weaker Angels will be facing stiff competition from Seattle and Texas, the former of which has a very veteran squad but reliability questions, the latter of which has, like always, lots of hitting and no pitching. Oakland will be decent, but I don't expect much out of them any time soon. I mean, they haven't been on national TV since the 90s, and there's a reason for that.

Predicted Finish

1. Seattle (Most talent, but health issues abound)
2. Texas (Everything but pitching)
3. LA Angels (For crying out loud, change the name already)
4. Oakland (Who on earth is Kurt Suzuki?)

NL East

The most competitive division in baseball, we see the two time defending NL champions battling to continue to stay on top against the Mets, who find a habit of snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory, and Florida, who is very due for a World Series run. Atlanta has the extra motivation of getting Bobby Cox to the playoffs one last time, but it'll be tough in this division. Washington is no better than they were last year.

Predicted Finish

1. Philadelphia (Three-Peat?)
2. Florida (They're ready for WS #3)
3. NY Mets (What do you expect, they're the Mets)
4. Atlanta (If they were in the Central they could win it)
5. Washington (More of the same)

NL Central

St. Louis is the team to beat in the Central, but they'll probably be beat a lot. This division isn't particularly strong, but there are a number of promising teams. Chicago shows promise, but I wouldn't expect miracles. Houston lacks big names but is a solid team. Cincinnati claims they've fixed their pitching rotation; now all they need is an offense. Pittsburgh fans shouldn't expect much out of a team that traded away all the good players from a team that lost 99 games, and Milwaukee has no pitching and no prospects.

Predicted Finish

1. St. Louis (Contact AARP)
2. Chicago Cubs (Surviving in this division)
3. Houston (Pitching but little else)
4. Cincinnati (Assuming the pitching is fixed)
5. Milwaukee (Faceless mediocrity)
6. Pittsburgh (62-100 should be a goal)

NL West

This division is LA's to lose, but you never know what to expect from Colorado, who could be great or disappointing. San Francisco should be decent, but I wouldn't expect any kind of miracle. San Diego and Arizona are both going to be fighting to fill the seats, unless the Dodgers are in town. Nice ballparks, but little else to look forward to there.

Predicted Finish

1. LA Dodgers (They were at their best last year without Ramirez)
2. San Francisco (Solid all around but not quite there yet)
3. Colorado (Could finish second if the stars align right)
4. San Diego (Consistently inept)
5. Arizona (Most of a 70-92 team is coming back)

Playoffs

AL: Yankees over White Sox, Red Sox over Mariners, Yankees over Red Sox

NL: Phillies over Cardinals, Marlins over Dodgers, Marlins over Phillies

World Series

As much as it pains me to say it, the Yankees are the team to beat yet again. I can only hope that the Baseball Gods have some sense of justice, and punish the Yankees for tearing down Yankee Stadium, and that the Marlins would sneak by in seven. But, reality sees the Yankees winning in four.