what team do u think will have the season that takes a turn for better or worse?
2007-03-25 00:54:21 · 23 answers · asked by Anonymous in Sports ➔ Baseball
Look for the Indians to have a monster season, bouncing back from last year's disappoinment. C.C.'s healthy and has proven he is one of the best pitchers in baseball. Westbrook and Sowers are both good pitchers and Cliff Lee (I know he's hurt but when he gets back) is just a winner. Byrd is the veteran in the mix. The bullpen is much improved. They have a closer (Borowski) and have added several arms (Hernandez, Fultz) and have some guys back from injury (Matt Miller). They've added a young, promising second baseman in Barfield, and Marte has tremendous upside at third and could break out this year. Peralta had eye surgery so he should be able to pick the ball up better both on offense and defense. They have some depth in the OF with Nixon, Delucci, and Michaels to go with Blake and young stud Sizemore. Hafner is a masher and Victor Martinez is an excellent hitter and should have a better year behind the plate this year. With tons of depth at AAA ( Adam Miller P, Fausto Carmona P, Shin Soo Choo OF, Ryan Garko masher at 1B, Ben Francisco OF, Franklin Gutierrez OF to name a few) they should be fine in case of injury. The Tribe will be a team to watch this year.
2007-03-25 01:43:41 · answer #1 · answered by Ray 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The surprise up team will be the Toronto Blue Jays. The Yankee dynasty is hanging by a string right now, and I think Toronto has a good chance to make a serious playoff run at the expense of the Yankees.
The downward team will be the San Diego Padres. Many of the NL West teams- San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Arizona- got better in the off-season and San Diego stayed in neutral, plus lost Bruce Bochy, the best manager they've ever had.
2007-03-25 02:32:03 · answer #2 · answered by Patrick M 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In the NL, I'm looking at Milwaukee, and the Cubs. The Brewers made a great run last year, but didn't quite finish. But with new solid acquisitions in the off-season, both teams have become substantially better.
In the AL, I like Cleveland and Toronto. Coming off a bad year, the Tribe went hog-wild in the off-season, adding strength to the bullpen and some power and depth to the lineup. Toronto has always had a solid team, but with a couple of adjustments to the lineup, and keeping Vernon Wells, they should be the surprise team in the AL East.
2007-03-25 03:14:52 · answer #3 · answered by jama1290 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think that the Baltimore Orioles will surprise some people this season. They have 4 young starting pitchers that if former Atlanta pitching coach Leo Mazzone can work his magic on could surprise some people. Eric Beddard had a great year last year and if Daniel Cabrera could master his control could be the next Randy Johnson. They also have Jarret Wright who flopped in NY but had a few really good season under Mazzone when he was in Atlanta and could come back to that form. The rest of there young staff is Adam Lowen who along with Beddard and Cabrera are all having a great spring. The biggest question marks is can they mature enough this season and also what is it going to take to win the incredibly tough American League east. They will be a surprise this year its just a matter of how much of one.
2007-03-25 02:14:57 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Pirates. They really turned it on at the end of last year finishing with a winning record in the second half of the season. And there closer for the end of that season Salomom Torres is still here even though Gonzalez left. We added a very good hitter in Adam Laroche. We also have an up and coming first baseman named Eldred who already has 5 HRs this spring. Look for the Pirates to be right in the thick of things this year.
2007-03-25 02:29:37 · answer #5 · answered by Freddy G 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
My predictions: NL biggest surprise will be Milwaukee in the central division where all 5 teams could win there. The Cubs also will be much improved,but like all Cubs teams their starting pitching will be their downfall again, as will be the case with the Cardinals.Cincinnati and Pittsburgh will also be much improved,Houston will be a flop and could finish in last place. the division winners will be Atlanta in the east,Los Angeles in the west.and Cincinnati in the central. The "Wild Card" will be The AMAZIN METS. The al who cares, I say bannish the D.H Pitchers are part of the 9 players on the field and they need to bat 9th in the order.
2007-03-25 04:10:05 · answer #6 · answered by D.R. Demented 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't consider teams like the Indians (loaded) or Cubs (spent $300 mil - oughta be better) "surprises". One team that could sneak into the playoffs, legitimately, is the Brewers. They have solid pitching from top to bottom, a strong bullpen, and finally got a catcher that just isn't a castoff/fill-in type. They have plenty of offense, with several of their hitters (Fielder, Weeks, Braun, Hardy, Hart) poised to make a leap forward. They have decent overal team speed and could improve defensively as well.And this is NOT coming from a Brewers fan either - I am a die-hard, loyal Cubs fan for 40 years now.
Oh, and the daily fantasy tip - if Carlos Villanueva makes their (Brewers) rotation and you don't take a flier on him in the last few rounds, you are gonna SERIOUSLY regret it!!!!
2007-03-25 02:55:37 · answer #7 · answered by hankshammers 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Watch out for the Toronto Blue Jays and especially more so thany any other team in MLB--the Cleveland Indians---these teams are stacked-loacked and loaded. Toronto has excellent pitching and some top notch bats. Indians have one of the best starting pitchers in the Amercian League last year in Sabathia who has been completely SCARY dominating this spring. Not to mention that Sizemore and Hafner are becoming two of the best players in the American League. Addition of N.L. Rookie Of The Year candidate Josh Barfield and alot of additions to the bullpen (Cleveland's only weakness last year)-makes them a team to keep on the radar.
2007-03-25 01:05:33 · answer #8 · answered by Shawn G 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm tempted to say Tampa Bay will be much improved with its great young outfield, but the pitching is Kazmir and a bunch of nobodies. Of course, TB could improve by 20 games and not make a move up the standings in their division.
The Cubs will be better but that won't be a surprise.
2007-03-25 01:04:08 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
The Brewers are going to be good. I would not be surprised to see them make the playoffs.
Sheets, Capuano, Suppan, Bush, Vargas is probably the best rotation in the NL. The lineup is young and talented. (Weeks, Fielder, Hall, Hart, Estrada, Hardy, along with veterans Jenkins & Koskie) If Turnbow gets back to form, it will really shorten the game with him and Cordero in the back of the pen.
2007-03-25 07:46:10 · answer #10 · answered by brewcards 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋