MLB midseason review

Alright, we are pretty much at the half way point of the season, so I figured I'd analyze my preseason predictions and give updated projections for the rest of the way.

AL East

1. Boston Red Sox- So far, so good. As I predicted, the addition of Loretta, Beckett, and an improved defense (set a record for most games without an error) makes Boston the strongest team in the AL East. What I didn't predict, Jonathan Papelbon being some kind of super freak who never gives up runs. I still think they will win the division, although who knows what will happen with Toronto and the Yankees by the trade deadline.

2. New York Yankees- The Yankees pitching isn't that good and Aaron Small isn't miraculously 9-0 again. However, you have to be somewhat impressed with how they are keeping relative pace with Boston. Two of the main offensive cogs (Matsui and Sheffield) are missing significant time and there are for once no names in the lineup. Add the fact that Unit usually gets better in the 2nd half and a trade for another solid outfielder could be in the works and they will be there right until the end. However, the wild card is not coming out of this division, so they better do everything right or they will be out of the playoffs, which will be strange and somewhat refreshing.

3. Toronto Blue Jays- This team is clearly improved with their offseason additions and B.J. Ryan has proved to be worth the hefty contract. A.J. Burnett has not. Everyone knew they overpaid for this guy, but they needed to so they could get him. There are rumors of the Jays making another significant addition by the trading deadline. They probably need to if they want a chance to win this division. The good news is several of their young prospects have shown good promise.

4. Baltimore Orioles- To be honest, I had to look in the standings to even see where the Orioles were. To me they are that insignificant. I was correct on Ramon Hernandez being a solid addition, but Leo Mazzone has let me down. This pitching staff is still less than adequate and Daniel Cabrera has about a 3:1 ball to strike ratio it seems. Miguel Tejada is still good, but if I was Baltimore I would trade him and rebuild to get some decent pitching prospects b/c this team is going nowhere.

5. Tampa Bay Devil Rays- I said before the season I wanted to put them in 4th and as we speak they are tied for 4th! Not sure why, but I have a fondness for this team. They have so much young talent on offense, it's ridiculous. The new ownership seems to be more dedicated to competing so I hope they can keep most of the nucleus in tact. Kazmir is phenominal and truly would have made the Mets a scary, scary team this year, but instead Victor Zambrano got hurt and the D'rays got an all-star in his early 20s. If they can add a solid starter and get a bullpen that isn't embarrassingly horrible, they could be a force to be reckoned with next season.

Division recap- Nailed the standings, and with the exception of now saying the D'rays will finish in fourth, I think everything else will stay the same.

AL Central

1. Detroit Tigers- Okay, my prediction perfection ends here, but honestly who knew? They are pretty much a carbon copy of the 2005 White Sox. Nobody thought they'd be this good, but they are legit. If they can add a solid veteran to the lineup, they really could go all the way.

2. Chicago White Sox- I said it at the beginning and I'll say it again- How could you not pick them to win it all? I still believe they are the best team in baseball despite Jon Garland realizing he's Jon Garland. The rotation isn't doing as well as last year, but Jim Thome's domination along with career years from Jermaine Dye and Joe Crede have this lineup right up there with the Yankees and Red Sox. Bobby Jenks is still dominant and now they have the experience of knowing what it takes to win.

3. Minnesota Twins- You've got to respect what they do each year. Working on a very modest payroll, they are once again proving formidable foes. As I predicted, Justin Morneau is carrying the offense along with Joe I never make an out Mauer. Francisco Liriano is pretty much Johan Santana II. If this team played in any other division, they'd have a legitimate shot at winning it, but alas, they don't.

4. Cleveland Indians- What the hell happened? Turns out Paul Byrd is not much more solid that he gets credit for. J.T. was right that this pitching staff is not good enough to get it done (though they haven't given up that many more runs than the White Sox). The offense is certainly doing its part thanks mostly to Travis Hafner being a grand slam machine.

5. Kansas City Royals- They are God awful and still are not exciting, but at least they don't have the worst record in baseball! They have been quite competitive the last month and a half after an embarrassingly terrible start to the year.

Division recap- I'd say the only change from now to the end of the year in the standings is the White Sox winning the division, but the Tigers taking home the wild card.

AL West

1. Oakland A's- So far I'm right on this, but I didn't think it would be this close of a division. Still, the A's will have their patented 15-20 game win streak most likely and end up pulling this division out. Perhaps Rich Harden can be the catalyst of that. Frank Thomas has overtaken Barry Bonds as the best old, bastardly home run hitter in the bay area.

2. Texas Rangers- Okay, I predicted they'd finish last in the division and for most of the first half they were in 1st, but they are only three games out of last so I still feel pretty good about my prediction considering everything. As I predicted, Coco Cordero would fall off and he has, but fortunately they have Akinori Otsuka delivery service to pick him up. Mark Teixeira has been a huge disappointment. I don't really get that at all. I'm pretty sure he isn't a steroids guy, so this dropoff is strange. He is hitting a lot of doubles I think, so perhaps he will find his stroke. Also, a personal thank you to Rangers management for allowing us to get Chris Young. Suckers.

3. Seattle Mariners- Probably my preseason pick that took the most balls was me putting Seattle at 2nd place. The tend to be underachievers and they actually still have a chance to prove me right. Not sure how considering Richie Sexson is hitting in the .220s, Adrian Beltre isn't really bouncing back, Eddie Guardado went frm being a top echelon closer to sucking humongous balls in one offseason, and Felix Hernandez has had a disappointing sophomore campaign. Good thing Ichiro still likes hitting .350.

4. LAAAngelsAAAAA- Their lineup has produced the fourth fewest runs in the AL, so I think my prediction was pretty accurate for them. However, they are rumoured to get just about every single big name big bat so they probably will be adding one big stick to their lineup. They have a chance to win the division or finish in last place, just like pretty much everyone in the division except Oakland.

Division recap- The 2005 NL West of 2006, the AL is a crap shoot with a bunch of mediocre teams that don't have much of a chance for postseason damage.

NL East

1. New York Mets- The only team at the break that appear to have the division sewn up barring an epic collapse. Pedro's poor June and now injury has to be a huge cause for concern b/c this team is not solid in pitching at all. The lineup has held up their end of the bargain with Jose Reyes stealing a base every time he doesn't hit a homerun or triple and David Wright continuing to blossom into one of, if not the best all around young hitter in baseball. Carlos Beltran has also returned to his 2004 postseason form. Look for Omar Minaya to make a move as this team will now officially jump into the Yankees-Red Sox ludicrous payroll category and buy whatever they need to win.

2. The Florida Marlins- What the deuce? This isn't supposed to be right. The surprise contributers do not suck after all it turns out. Perhaps they have found the magic formula for small budget teams. Win a world series once every five to ten years then sell every freaking good player and just stash away young talent. Joe Girardi should automatically win NL manager of the year since this team will apparently not only not lose 100 games, but may not finish last in the division either.

3. Philadelphia Phillies- With the exception of Tom Gordon telling me to go to hell, I pretty much nailed this one on the head. Although, the lineup isn't as explosive as I thought they had potential to be. If Abreu is traded and the team gives up on the season, they could finish at or near the bottom of the division.

4. Atlanta Braves- Huzzah! It all comes crumbling down. Mazzone hasn't cured what ails Baltimore, but this staff is certainly missing him. They are average and their bullpen is indeed quite poor. It's about time. Let's hope they finish here for 14 straight years.

5. Washington Nationals- Considering Livan Hernandez is finally showing effects of throwing 130 pitches every outing for the last few years, this team is not too bad. Ryan Zimmerman is like a junior David Ortiz when it comes to clutch hitting and Alfonso Soriano has not dropped off playing in RFK. As expected, there has been some dropoff from last year's stellar first half, but this team isn't missing too many pieces from having a chance to be competitive. They just have to hope the Mets don't make spending mistakes like the Yankees have.

Division recap- Well, I guess the interesting thing will be seeing how 2 through 5 finish since it's the Mets' division already.

NL Central

1. St. Louis Cardinals- They are still the best team in this division, but their window of opportunity for a World Series has probably closed for a little while. Aside from Pujols, their lineup is unremarkable and with Mark Mulder's implosion, the staff is the same. Acquiring a big time player by the trade deadline could still give this team a slight chance to win the pennant, but only to be crushed by the AL foe.

2. Cincinnati Reds- Guess I have a little egg on my face after this one, but much like the Tigers, this came out of nowhere. The only difference....this team is a fraud. I expect a huge second half dropoff, and I believe they will finish fourth now.

3. Milwaukee Brewers- Ben Sheets has not stayed healthy which is the primary reason this team is not the Cincinnati Reds of the first half, but they have Chris Capuano who has positioned them to still make a run for the wild card and if everything clicks an outside shot at the division title.

4. Houston Astros- This team did overachieve last year as this year's club is proving. Andy Pettitte has regressed quite a bit and Brad Lidge must have eaten a few meals with Eddie Guardado during the offseason b/c he has gone from dominant to still scary, but very unpredictable. Again, this division has lots of parity, so a strong second half could still mean a playoff birth.

5. Chicago Cubs- Mark Prior and Kerry Wood have not stayed healthy. Shocking. Unfortunately, neither has Derrek Lee and the rest of the lineup needs him there to maximize itself and have any opportunity of being adequate enough to compete. Jacque Jones has been a nice surprise, but he's probably gone by July 31st.

6. Pittsburgh Pirates- Wow, these guys suck. Oliver Perez still may have buckets of talent, but apparently there are lots of holes throughout the buckets it seems. This team looks to be a long way from competing still, which is disappointing considering their past glory and not filling up that beautiful stadium.

Division recap- This one, like many others is wiiiide open. I think this one particularly could have an exciting finish. I expect the Cardinals to pull it out, but I think it could be an excellent three team finish.

NL West

1. Your San Diego Padres!- I'm not sure how this team is in first place, but I'll take it. The offense is pretty atrocious yet again. The pitching staff is doing remarkable things considering Shawn Estes pitched about five innings and Woody Williams was out for a significant amount of time. Props to Clay Hensley as well as those in the bullpen who are still giving Trevor Hoffman the chance to dominate the 9th inning. Adrian Gonzalez has impressed me, but we probably need someone to hit better than .300 to lead the team. Thank God Ryan Klesko's ass and his salary will be gone and Chan Ho will free up about $24 million between the two. The future could be bright in years to come.

2. Los Angeles Dodgers- This team has a lot of young talent and will probably be a very solid team for the next several years, but they aren't complete/experienced enough to be dominating yet. Nomar appears to be back, which could be huge down the stretch.

3. Colorado Rockies- This team also has a lot of young talent and are doing some voodoo, humidity trick with the balls so their pitching staff now seems respectable. If they can add a solid veteran via trade, they could win the division.

4. San Francisco Giants- Barry is now mediocre as are the Giants, but this division is wide open and again if they add a decent player they could be where they need to be in the end. Ray Durham is heating up and if Randy Winn breaks out in the 2nd half, which he likes to do, the Giants could prove my preseason prediction right.

5. Arizona Diamondbacks- Well, you had some people scratching their heads for awhile, but it looks as though you're not really that good. Brandon Webb has had a career year so far with the help of that improved infield defense, but the snakes just aren't that good.

Division recap- Who knows. I'd say the trade deadline could decide this division. Gut feeling: The Dodgers pull it out.

Revised playoff predictions:

A.L.- Boston over Detroit
Chicago Sox over Oakland

Boston over Chicago Sox

N.L.- Mets over Houston
Dodgers over Cardinals

Mets over Dodgers

World Series- Boston over Mets- sweet revenge for Buckner

A.L. Mvp- David Ortiz
A.L. Cy Young- Jonathan Papelbon

N.L. Mvp- Albert Pujols
N.L. Cy Young- Brad Penny

J.H. Naners