MLB Predictions 2010

[Don]

Bold yet serious prediction: The Nats will finish above .500 and will contend for a wild card.

[JayJaxon]

Although I do believe the Nats have improved, it would really be tough to count them in the wild card with Atlanta and Florida in the same division. Even they are not guaranteed a spot like the Red Sox seem to be every year. The wild card in the NL is a tough call, but I'm sure the Nats don't have a shot this year. But they are on the right track. I feel they have really improved this season.

[BigEd76]

AL West - Angels by 10 1/2. I don't believe in any of the other teams.

Although they've been consistent for the past decade, I think there was too much turnover this offseason. They overcame the loss of K-Rod (not that they appeared to want him back anyway) in a weak division, but they lost Lackey, Figgins, Oliver, Vlad, Speier and the overpaid useless Sarge Jr and replaced them with 1, maybe 2 years of Matsui, a questionable starter in Pineiro and two questionable relievers in Stokes and Rodney. And even if Seattle seriously underachieves (I think they could win 90+ if things go well), Texas improved too....

[BJBerthiaume]

AL East: (Loose prediciton of records in parenthesis)

Yankees (98-64)

Red Sox (96-66)

Rays (84-78)

Blue Jays (70-92)

Orioles (68-94)

AL Central:

Twins (94-68)

White Sox (86-76)

Tigers (79-83)

Indians (72-90)

Royals (68-94)

AL West:

Angels (91-71)

Mariners (88-74)

Rangers (81-81)

A's (62-100)

NL East:

Phillies (101-61)

Braves (93-69)

Marlins (82-80)

Mets (80-82)

Nationals (60-102)

NL Central:

Cardinals (92-70)

Reds (86-76)

Cubs (81-81)

Brewers (78-84)

Pirates (68-94)

Astros (67-95)

NL West:

Giants (90-72)

Rockies (86-76)

Dodgers (86-76)

Diamondbacks (82-80)

Padres (59-103)

AL Divisional:

Yankees over Angels in 3

Red Sox over Twins in 4

NL Divisional:

Phillies over Giants in 5

Braves over Cardinals in 4

AL Championship:

Red Sox over Yankees in 6

NL Championship:

Phillies over Braves in 6

World Series:

Phillies over Red Sox in 5

[Bronxmet]

Its better I realize right now this year will be a disaster then to let them rip the heart out of my chest again. I just have to face the fact the Mets will soon be the most irrelevant team in baseball and will be doomed to terrible season after terrible season until they hit rock bottom and are forced to fire everyone down to the peanut vendor.

And as a New Yorker, unfortunately I have to agree with you. It's not just because of injuries, it's the lack of starting pitching, some bad trading and free agent decisions over the past few years, among other things. Imagine if the Mets still had Scott Kazmir.

[Bronxmet]

By the way, here are my predictions

AL East

New York (95-67)

Boston (93-69) (wildcard)

Tampa Bay (86-76)

Baltimore (74-88)

Toronto (69-93)

AL Central

Minnesota (85-77)

Detroit (80-82)

Chicago (75-87)

Kansas City (72-90)

Cleveland (72-90)

AL West

Los Angeles-Anaheim (97-65)

Texas (85-77)

Seattle (84-78)

Oakland (71-91)

NL East

Philadelphia (99-63)

Atlanta (89-73) (wildcard tie)

Florida (89-73) (wildcard tie)

New York (75-87)

Washington (68-94)

NL Central

St. Louis (90-72)

Milwaukee (86-76)

Cincinnati (84-78)

Chicago (80-82)

Houston (73-89)

Pittsburgh (66-96)

NL West

Los Angeles (88-74) (tie)

Colorado (88-74) (tie)

San Francisco (83-79)

Arizona (74-88)

San Diego (72-90)

[NJTank]

Its better I realize right now this year will be a disaster then to let them rip the heart out of my chest again. I just have to face the fact the Mets will soon be the most irrelevant team in baseball and will be doomed to terrible season after terrible season until they hit rock bottom and are forced to fire everyone down to the peanut vendor.

And as a New Yorker, unfortunately I have to agree with you. It's not just because of injuries, it's the lack of starting pitching, some bad trading and free agent decisions over the past few years, among other things. Imagine if the Mets still had Scott Kazmir.

Its also poor player development how many over hyped prospects like Lanstings Miledge have done nothing.

[JayJaxon]

Over hyped prospects are part of the game. It happens on every team just about every season.

[Dilbert]

Dont ask why my picks are weird. Its just a gut feeling.

AL EAST: Its a division that belongs to Boston and New York. I think the Sox can take the East and the Yanks just miss the wildcard by a game or so. Meanwhile the Orioles stay near the bottom.

AL CENTRAL: Minnesota takes the division as they have no problem settling into their new home. The surprise of the league will be Kansas City as they take the wild card over New York. Theres always that one cinderella team, and I think the Royals are it.

AL WEST: It will be a tough but Texas takes the division over the Angels and prove to be the stronger team of the AL. My gut says they will go to their first World Series and win it. Meanwhile I think the A's will struggle.

AL EAST:

1. Red Sox

2. Yankees

3. Blue Jays

4. Rays

5. Orioles

AL CENTRAL:

1. Twins

2. Royals*

3. White Sox

4. Indians

5. Tigers

AL WEST:

1. Rangers

2. Angels

3. Mariners

4. Athletics

NL EAST:Philadelphia will take this struggling division so much so that Atlanta wont even be a wild card contender. Washington improves by getting out of the basement, but only to Tanks dismay that New York will be the New Jersey Nets of MLB.

NL CENTRAL:Its finally time for the Cubs to shine as they take the division over St. Louis with Cincinnati not far behind. The Cubs blow it in the World Series to the Rangers in 7 games.

NL WEST:The Dodgers will be the Beast of the NL this season, with San Diego taking the wild card(another gut feeling)with the Rockies coming up just short. It will be a year in the cellar for the Diamondbacks.

NL EAST:

1. Phillies

2. Braves

3. Marlins

4. Nationals

5. Mets

NL CENTRAL:

1. Cubs

2. Cardinals

3. Reds

4. Brewers

5. Astros

6. Pirates

NL WEST:

1. Dodgers

2. Padres*

3. Rockies

4. Giants

5. Diamondbacks

DIVISIONAL SERIES:

Rangers defeat Royals

Red Sox defeat Twins

Dodgers defeat Padres

Cubs defeat Phillies

CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES:

Rangers defeat Royals

Cubs defeat Dodgers

WORLD SERIES:

Rangers defeat Cubs

[rainmaker17]

I like the way Dilbert thinks. He's nuts, but I like him.

I think the Rangers are on an upswing, maybe even a postseason showing, but I don't see the crown fitting yet.

[scottysprings]

Hmm, why do you guys believe the Yankees won't repeat as World Series champions?

Jeter free agency distractions

Rivera is 40

How much do Posada and Pettitte have left?

Vazquez didn't have a great season when he was in the American League with Chicago

Nick Johnson is their new DH and he finds a way to make the disabled list every season

Boston will be better with the additions of Lackey, Beltre, Cameron and Hermida

Jeter is going to be a Yankee for the rest of his career. Regardless, the Yankees organization don't negotiate contracts during the season and as far as I can tell, the Yanks will lay down any reasonable sum Jeter asks for to stay with the team. I really don't think it'll be much of an issue.

Rivera is 40 but his age hasn't hindered him so far. Last season he converted 44/46 save opportunities, his highest total since 2004, and the fourth highest he's put up in a season dating back to 1995. He may start out slow again but once the season gets into swing I expect to see the same old Mo.

Fair thought. Posada will continue to see increased days off and playing as DH to ease up his workload. Although he lacks the offensive consistency and production of Posada, Cervelli is a solid defensive catcher and more of a threat to base stealers than Posada at this point in his career. Additionally, if the Yankees can continue to develop him as a catcher down in AAA, Jesus Montero poses awesome offensive potential and may find himself as a mid-season call up. As for Pettitte, at this point in his career he just needs to maintain his consistency and give the team a chance to win. No one expects any more out of him than to fill his role as the solid number three man and veteran on the staff.

Vazquez isn't my ideal pitcher but he will definitely help solidify the rotation compared to the mish-mash 3/4 man rotation the Yankees pulled last year. At this point in time he is certainly an upgrade from Sergio Mitre and Chad Gaudin who were placed in numerous spot starts last season. I think we got the better end of the deal with giving up Melky.

Johnson is a downgrade from Matsui in my eyes but again, I think Posada will be playing at DH a bit more this season regardless. As long as Johnson can get on base (there has been early talk of putting him as the #2 batter behind Jeter), the power behind him in the lineup can clear the bases.

Additionally, the acquisitions of Granderson, an upgrade from Damon, and Chan Ho Park, reenforcement of already one of the best bullpens in the MLB, only make the team better.

Boston certainly has an incredible lineup on paper and have the potential to win the AL East and beyond, but at this point the Yankees are the reigning champs and coming into camp seem to have the same chemistry from last season still working for them. I usually don't have well defined expectations for the teams I follow but it's foolish to discount the Yankees as a threat this season. I mean picking the Rays over both the Yankees and Red Sox? Really? This isn't 2008 by any stretch of the imagination.

[Jigga]

Its better I realize right now this year will be a disaster then to let them rip the heart out of my chest again. I just have to face the fact the Mets will soon be the most irrelevant team in baseball and will be doomed to terrible season after terrible season until they hit rock bottom and are forced to fire everyone down to the peanut vendor.

And as a New Yorker, unfortunately I have to agree with you. It's not just because of injuries, it's the lack of starting pitching, some bad trading and free agent decisions over the past few years, among other things. Imagine if the Mets still had Scott Kazmir.

He would have been the next Bill Pulsipher, Jason Isringhausen, or Paul Wilson. Omar would have found a way to ruin him.

[NJTank]

Its better I realize right now this year will be a disaster then to let them rip the heart out of my chest again. I just have to face the fact the Mets will soon be the most irrelevant team in baseball and will be doomed to terrible season after terrible season until they hit rock bottom and are forced to fire everyone down to the peanut vendor.

And as a New Yorker, unfortunately I have to agree with you. It's not just because of injuries, it's the lack of starting pitching, some bad trading and free agent decisions over the past few years, among other things. Imagine if the Mets still had Scott Kazmir.

He would have been the next Bill Pulsipher, Jason Isringhausen, or Paul Wilson. Omar would have found a way to ruin him.

That's how it works with the Mets they screw up prospects. Look at Carlos Gomez in the ALDS last year. He is fast as the wind, but the worst baserunner in baseball. I fully blame the Mets player development system for that, and nobody has lost their job excpet Tony Bernezard and that was after a big huge brew ha ha in the press. Nothing is being fixed.

The latest hype is Ike Davis, the Mets are trying to sell us he is the next big thing at first base. He will be just another mid level Roberto Pettigine in the end.

[Korkie]

NL EAST

1.) Philadelphia Phillies 95-67 -

2.) Atlanta Braves 86-76 9

3.) Florida Marlins 80-82 15

4.) New York Mets 78-84 21

5.) Washington Nationals 72-90 27

NL CENTRAL

1.) St. Louis Cardinals 91-71 -

2.) Cincinnati Reds 85-77 6

3.) Chicago Cubs 82-80 9

4.) Milwaukee Brewers 77-85 14

5.) Houston Astros 74-88 17

6.) Pittsburgh Pirates 69-93 22

NL WEST

1.) Los Angeles Dodgers 86-76 -

2.) Arizona Diamondbacks 84-78 2

3.) Colorado Rockies 83-79 3

4.) San Francisco Giants 76-86 10

5.) San Diego Padres 64-98 22

NL Wild Card

Winner: Atlanta Braves

2.) Cincinnati Reds 1

3.) Arizona Diamondbacks 2

4.) Colorado Rockies 3

5.) Chicago Cubs 4

AL EAST

1.) Boston Red Sox 97-65 -

2.) New York Yankees 93-69 4

3.) Tampa Bay Rays 84-78 13

4.) Baltimore Orioles 78-84 19

5.) Toronto Blue Jays 64-98 33

AL CENTRAL

1.) Minnesota Twins 88-74 -

2.) Chicago White Sox 86-76 2

3.) Detroit Tigers 83-79 5

4.) Kansas City Royals 71-91 17

5.) Cleveland Indians 65-97 23

AL WEST

1.) Seattle Mariners 90-72 -

2.) Los Angeles Angels 85- 77 5

3.) Texas Rangers 81-81 9

4.) Oakland A?s 74-88 16

AL Wild Card

Winner: Boston Red Sox

2.) Chicago White Sox 7

3.) Los Angeles Angels 8

4.) Tampa Bay Rays 9

5.) Detroit Tigers 10

Play-offs

NL

1 Philadelphia Phillies d. 3 Los Angeles Dodgers 3-1

2 St. Louis Cardinals d. 4 Atlanta Braves 3-0

1 Philadelphia Phillies d. 2 St. Louis Cardinals 4-2

AL

1 Boston Red Sox d. 3 Minnesota Twins 3-0

2 Seattle Mariners d. 4 New York Yankees 3-2

2 Seattle Mariners d. 1 Boston Red Sox 4-3

World Series

1 Philadelphia Phillies d. 2 Seattle Mariners 4-2

[BBTV]

I hope you're wrong about that. Cliff Lee would ask to start every single game, and would be 10x more motivated than usual to stick it to the Phillies. That's bad news for a left-handed lineup.

[Korkie]

Hamels beats Lee in Game 6.

1.) Halladay beats Hernandez

2.) Lee beats Hamels

3.) Bedard beats Blanton

4.) Happ beats whoever

5.) Halladay beats Hernandez

6.) Hamels beats Lee

[The_Admiral]

Dilbert thinks the Cubs are gonna win the pennant? They're not even gonna win 80 games! They don't have any pitching and they're bad at most everything else.

[Lights Out]

AL East: It'll be very close between the Rays, Sox, Yanks, and a young and improving O's team, but the Rays actually have some semblance of a bullpen this year and are a team to contend with once again. I also see the Yankees sliding because the Rays have improved their bullpen and one of the best starting rotations in baseball is even more loaded in Boston.

1. Rays

2. Red Sox

3. Yankees

4. Orioles

5. Blue Jays

AL Central: Twins in a landslide, everyone else is too weak to compete.

1. Twins

2. Tigers

3. White Sox

4. Royals

5. Indians

AL West: I'm liking the new, improved Mariners. I think they'll win the West in a landslide. I also think Texas will get in as a wildcard since their pitching showed signs of improving last year.

1. Mariners

2. Rangers

3. Angels

4. Athletics

NL East: Don, you aren't the only one. I too think the Nationals are finally going to start competing in this division, especially with Strasburg. Luckily for them, the Braves are mediocre and the Mets are set to be a full-on disaster this year. The Phillies win the division again, I think.

1. Phillies

2. Nationals/Marlins

3. Marlins/Nationals

4. Braves

5. Mets

NL Central: Now I'm really getting crazy. I'm picking the Reds to shock the league and win the NL Central. They could have one of the best rotations in baseball this year provided Dusty doesn't overwork them, and they're certainly much better than their record was this year. It'll be very close between them and the perenially-good Cards, though.

1. Reds

2. Cardinals

3. Brewers

4. Cubs

5. Astros

6. Pirates

NL West: The Rockies and the Dodgers will duke it out again in a tight race, but I like the Rox to win the division this year. They're just a fun team to watch and they won't get off to the painfully-slow start that they got off to last year.

1. Rockies

2. Dodgers

3. Padres

4. D-Backs

[BigMac12]

AL East: It'll be very close between the Rays, Sox, Yanks, and a young and improving O's team, but the Rays actually have some semblance of a bullpen this year and are a team to contend with once again. I also see the Yankees sliding because the Rays have improved their bullpen and one of the best starting rotations in baseball is even more loaded in Boston.

1. Rays

2. Red Sox

3. Yankees

4. Orioles

5. Blue Jays

AL Central: Twins in a landslide, everyone else is too weak to compete.

1. Twins

2. Tigers

3. White Sox

4. Royals

5. Indians

AL West: I'm liking the new, improved Mariners. I think they'll win the West in a landslide. I also think Texas will get in as a wildcard since their pitching showed signs of improving last year.

1. Mariners

2. Rangers

3. Angels

4. Athletics

NL East: Don, you aren't the only one. I too think the Nationals are finally going to start competing in this division, especially with Strasburg. Luckily for them, the Braves are mediocre and the Mets are set to be a full-on disaster this year. The Phillies win the division again, I think.

1. Phillies

2. Nationals/Marlins

3. Marlins/Nationals

4. Braves

5. Mets

NL Central: Now I'm really getting crazy. I'm picking the Reds to shock the league and win the NL Central. They could have one of the best rotations in baseball this year provided Dusty doesn't overwork them, and they're certainly much better than their record was this year. It'll be very close between them and the perenially-good Cards, though.

1. Reds

2. Cardinals

3. Brewers

4. Cubs

5. Astros

6. Pirates

NL West: The Rockies and the Dodgers will duke it out again in a tight race, but I like the Rox to win the division this year. They're just a fun team to watch and they won't get off to the painfully-slow start that they got off to last year.

1. Rockies

2. Dodgers

3. Padres

4. D-Backs

What happened to the San Francisco Giants?

[rangerfan94]

My Pirates will finish last. Again.