*Once again we're going to pretend the season didn't already start in Japan. And be honest with yourself, you had no idea Seattle and Oakland already played two regular season games.
Yu Darvish's Hair Will Start a Trend- I mean look at how beautiful it is. I'm growing out my hair to have hair just like Yu. And it will be beautiful and you'll love it!
Jamie Moyer Will Win 10 Games- Yes 49-year old Jamie Moyer earned a roster/starters spot on the Colorado Rockies roster. Amazing that a man who made his debut before I was born and before President Reagan gave his "Tear Down This Wall" speech will be pitching in 2012. And Moyer will win 10 games this year with 4 of those victories against the Giants*.
*Moyer's 4 wins predictions against the Giants is the easiest prediction I can make. Pitchers like Moyer tear the Giants apart. If Moyer pitched 20 games against the Giants this year he would win the Cy Young.
Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera will combine for 90 home runs and 1,500 fat jokes- Hey Prince Fielder just hit a home run and ate a Little Caesars' pizza running around the bases. That must be some kind of record! Miguel Cabrera is at third base today folks because he barbecued Brandon Inge and ate him*.
*RJBO is like "I actually wish this was true."
The aquarium behind home plate at the Marlins park will be gone in two years- Yes the Marlins have a aquarium behind home plate in their new ballpark and it will be gone within two years. There will be too many complaints from animals activists groups or someone will break the aquarium even though Marlins brass said the aquarium glass cannot break. Hey Marlins brass, the Titanic wasn't suppose to sink and it did. That glass protecting the aquarium can break.
Washington won't make the playoffs- The Natinals are the trendy pick to win the NL East this year. I would not only bet the Natinals won't make the playoffs, but I would bet they won't even finish second in that division. Speaking of the NL East.............
Phillies fans will on their knees praying for a healthy Ryan Howard and Chase Utley in August- I've followed the San Francisco Giants closely the past three years so I want all you Phillies fans to listen to me with a clear head. Pitching can carry a team to 87 wins and a 2nd place finish in the division. And maybe that's all the Phillies need to make the playoffs with the new wild card, but Phillies fans will be praying all year for a healthy Ryan Howard and Chase Utley. Trust me when I say this, pitching can only carry a team so far.
The Mets and Orioles will be horrible again- Depression will be high in Baltimore and Queens this season.
Joe Maddon will be called a genius over 100 times this year- Is there any other manager/coach right now that can do no wrong like Joe Maddon? He could send Evan Longoria in to pitch and David Price to third base and still be called a genius. Maddon get his ass kissed more by stats geeks than Bill Belichick gets his ass kissed by the mainstream NFL media*.
*I can already hear someone in my head screaming, "Well he is a genius! He brings in his best relief pitcher at exactly the right time!"
The Anaheim Angels of California won't make the playoffs- Yes the Angels improved themselves in the offseason, but still there's a lot of stiff competition in the American League. I wouldn't be surprised at all if the AL East sends three teams to the playoffs and Texas wins the AL West leaving the Angels out of the playoffs.
The NL West will continue to suck- I wouldn't be shocked if the winner of this division only won 88 games. The Dodgers and Padres will continue to stink. The Rockies are still a two-man lineup with sketchy pitching. The Giants can't hit and the Diamondbacks will crash back down to earth.
Lew Wolff will sell the Oakland A's- Between the San Jose situation and the Dodgers selling for $2 billion, Lew Wolff will sell the Oakland A's this year. Wolff made his fortune in real estate* and the A's are nothing but a house to this man and he's looking to flip them for a profit.
*If the owner of your team is a real state magnate, I would be worried. You don't know if these people see the team they own as just a another piece of property that they'll flip or if they really do love the team they own. I go with the former with Lew Wolff.
My surprise team is the Toronto Blue Jays- Getting back to the Natinals trendy pick theme. There is a team every year in baseball that does come out of nowhere to either make a run at a playoff spot or somehow get into the playoffs. The Blue Jays are my pick this year. Their pitching has improved and their lineup is getting better. I still think they're a year away, but they'll make a run until August and then go away.
Bryce Harper will make his debut sometime this season- There's no way the Nationals don't bring up Harper if they're either struggling during the middle of the year or if Harper is tearing up the minor leagues. He'll get a call-up sometime this year maybe around the All-Star break.
The Yankees will tread that line between making the playoffs and collapse- Jeter, A-Rod, and Teixeria are getting older and more injury prone. Curtis Granderson probably won't have another season like he had last year. Swisher, Gardner, and Russell are just names being filled into the lineup card everyday. Cano is great but who will support him in the lineup? CC is also great but Pineda is already injured and the rest of their pitching staff is good at best. Everything will have to go in the right direction I believe for the Yankees to make the playoffs*.
*I can already hear kt1000 screaming, "It will! MLB won't allow the Yankees not to make the playoffs!"
The Red Sox will be a circus all year long- You thought the Yankees and Red Sox got extreme coverage in previous years. I have a feeling you haven't seen nothing yet. From everything I just described with the Yankees and the Bobby V-Red Sox marriage, we're going to be pounded with Red Sox-Yankees coverage this entire year. And yes the Red Sox will be a circus the entire season because Bobby "Hey look at me!" Valentine is their manager. I almost want to believe that's the reason the Red Sox hired Bobby V in the first place. They want to take away the negative coverage of last year's collapse and place it in Bobby V's lap which he'll take happily because he's a media whore.
My final prediction: This will be an interesting year in baseball- I don't know if this baseball season will be great, but it will certainly be interesting. Between the new wild card spot and the leagues in their last year of unbalanced schedules the end of the year will be fascinating. Also with the Red Sox circus and the Yankees aging and the media coverage that will create. What will Pujols and Fielder be like with their new teams. Will Darvish be a success? How will the Dodgers sell impact that team? How will Theo Epstein maneuver the Cubs to get them into playoff contention for next season? How will the Phillies overcome injuries? Will the Nationals compete for a playoff spot? Who wins the AL East? How will Pujols leaving affect the Cardinals?
There are a lot of questions that will be answered this year and that's why I think this will be one of the most fascinating baseball seasons in quite a while. I'm seriously looking forward to not only watching the Giants this year but all of baseball. I hope you're ready for a lot of baseball coverage on this site over the next 9 months.
The Moyer-four wins against the Giants is so spot on it hurts. I think every Giants fan is prepared for at least two losses against Moyer.
ReplyDeleteI'll throw in a prediction that the A's won't get the territorial rights to San Jose, which I'm to assume is what you were getting at when you said Lew Wolff was going to sell?
ReplyDeleteI think MLB will continue to drag their feet on that deal and Wolff will finally had enough. Also I just don't seen an real estate man like him not having his ears perk up when the Dodgers were sold. Even in their crappy stadium I'm sure Wolff could make some sort of profit by selling them.
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