I am really starting to enjoy writing these weekly power rankings. I know we are still in December and nothing much has really changed but it is Friday and I do work for the Government. Nothing much has happened in the world of baseball but a few moves could sway a couple teams’ rankings. Im looking at you San Diego fan! Again, Shane and Dews/MoDews wont be happy.
1 (1). Boston Red Sox- I continue to stress that this team will be THAT good. But im preaching to the choir here. Papolbon may be enshrined as the newest member of the "all moron team" with the World Series ball debacle. You do realize, Red Sox nation, that this is how curses begin???
2 (2) Detroit Tigers- And old rumor that I never mentioned is that Brandon Inge has requested a trade. First off, he was a senior at VCU when I was a freshman there. Hell, I watched him dominate as an All-American SS. He is rumored to be traded to SF Giants. That gets me very fired up!
3 (3) New York Yankees- I repeat- The trade rumors involving Santana heating up again. Word has it that Hank is going to do "whatever it takes" to acquire Santana. Finally, his marbles may drop.
4.(4) LA Dodgers- Oh, I absolutely loathe the Dodgers. But they look really good on paper right now. Plus they have the Joe Torre card.
5 (5)Chicago Cubs- Because they still played well and made significant upgrades to there lineup, the loss of Prior (who did not pitch in 2007) does not effect them in the standings.
6 (7) San Diego Padres- If Prior can start at least 20 games this year, he will be regarded as a salary bargain. A healthy Mark Prior will give this team the second best pitching rotation in all of baseball.
7 (6) LA Angels- Nothing to report here.
8 (8) Cleveland Indians- Or here
9 (9) Arizona Diamondbacks- Im still in shock with that Haren trade, however, Shane and I have debated this one ever since my last post. He has a point though, that being Oakland stars do not succeed outside of Oakland. Zito, Mulder, and Hudson (who did manage a decent season last year). But of the Oakland big 4, Who other than me, thinks that Haren may be the most complete?? This move could easily backfire on Oakland
10 (10) Colorado Rockies- They need a second baseman badly. Marcus Giles is still available to. Do the right thing here fella's
11(11) Minnesota Twins- If Santana does stay, they could give Detroit a real problem. The Joe Nathan rumors are all but dead.
12 (13) Houston Astros- They continue to impress me with smart deals. The acquisition of Darren Erstad gives them more depth in the OF and at 1b. They may have the best lineup in the National League but Roy Oswalt cant win 100 games for ya.
13 (12) Philadelphia Philly’s- So Taguchi is no Aaron Rowand. Nice try though.
14 (14) New York Mets- At the rate they are going, they will be in no playoff hunt this year. They still have a solid lineup but have made no attempts to plug any holes. Beltran needs to shut up and listen to Ricky. When Ricky says he will turn you into a base running master, you DONT shrug him off.
15 (15) Milwaukee Brewers- I still like this team. I can easily see them rise in the rankings.
16 (16) Tampa Bay Rays- Cliff Floyd was a good hire, but can he stay healthy? Remember, Tampa Bay is where careers end. Look at Boggs, Canstrikeout, McGriff, and Daulton. Among other players
17 (17) Seattle Mariners- Yawn- Seattle to me is like the wing man of baseball. They took the bullet for every other club and signed Carlos Silva (which i did touch on and who I still think is worthless)
18 (18) Atlanta Braves- Any luck in finding your AndUw Jones replacement?? Didnt think so
19 (19) Washington Nationals- Still my sleeper pick in the national league. Manny Acta is that good of a coach and it looks like Nick Johnson will be healthy. But where are ya gonna put him?? Dmitri Young says he will play OF, but do you want him out there?? He is a modern day Cecil Fielder
20(20) Toronto Bluejays- Nothing doing...
21(21) San Francisco Giants- We did manage to sign a minor league, Keiichi Yabu. He pitched for Oakland in 2005 but never since. I guess its better than what we have in the pen right now. But come on, look at our rotation. Makes me smile every time I think about it. Zito, Lowry, Cain, Lincecom, and Sanchez. *tear*
22 (22) Chicago Whitesox- Nothing....Please, do something.
23 (23) Cincinnati Reds- They made the only trade of the week. Josh Hamilton for Edison Valquez. Im not taking ranking slots away from them because its seems like a very even trade for the Reds. Him and Baily could round out a half decent rotation. But who will replace Hamilton??
24 (24) St Louis Cardinals- Still scratching my head as to why you let go of Eckstein.
25 (25) Pittsburgh Pirates- You need to get those Jason Bay rumors flying again.
26 (25) Texas Rangers- Yes, you lose spots. Volsquez was really the only thing I saw that was good in your pitching rotation.
27 (27) Sacramento River Cats (AKA- Oakland A's)- Still trying to figure out the mind of the "man genius" here. Your rotation reminds me of the hospital ICU and your lineup has more River Cats than Athletics. Shane, do you know something that I dont know???
28 (29) Kansas City Royals- They signed Miguel Oliva which yes, gives you a bump up. They needed a catcher badly and got a pretty damn good one. He knows how to manage a game and thats what the Royals need right now. Well done!!
29 (28) Norfolk Tides (AKA- Baltimore Orioles)- This will mos def stir up the hornets nest. The debates from last week were not strong enough to sway any decisions. And the fact that they havent done a single thing to improve is disturbing. From what I gathered from O's fan, they have a "if you cant compete then why bother" mentality. This would would make me go postal, yet, they accept it. And I know, Angelos is evil.
30 (30) Florida Marlins- The loss of Oliva will hurt. Just ask your rotation. If you could fall further, you would.
9 comments:
Regardless of how much you hate the O's, I think you underestimate the Marlins man...
Every year they are in this position where they apparently have no solid talent, but they bring up a ton of raw younger talent and are very successful.
Think of them as the old Montreal Expos of the mid to late 90's.
also I think the phrase "A Healthy Mark Prior" should NEVER be used in any serious consideration of a team's ranking EVER :)
Thanks Dusty Baker!
Yes, this is what we call a "rebuilding year" until these young kids who no one suspects blow everyone away
I dont hate the Orioles. I love their history and what they gave to the game.
As for the Marlins, you are right. Thier front office has a knack for getting solid minor league talent. But it takes a year or 2. It took them 2 years for the results of the Josh Beckett trade to pan out. This year will be no different.
I expect they will be alittle higher up in the PR in 2009.
VERY TRUE Dews. But he voluntarily took a year off to recovery. If everything goes well, he could be back to his 18 win self.
I dont see why the A's had to rebuild in the first place. They had those cheap key ingridients to win. All they had to do was find supporting players to compliment them. Now those ingridients are all gone.
The Brewers should have taken a drop simply for signing Gagne. What a bonehead move.
On curses: they begin when a team really starts taking them seriously. I think the Curse of the Bambino officially ended whenever Kevin Millar and Johnny Damon stopped giving a flying shit about anything but playing baseball. That said, I think that there are curses on the Cubs, obviously, and a curse on the Yankees right now.
Prior: what exactly is the state of his arm? Last I knew, he hadn't even thrown off a mound yet. When does he get back, July?
I agree, Gagne was a bad move but it was a necessary move. They lost there 2 best relievers. At 10million for year tho, I would have passed. Good thing it was only a 1year deal
On curses, your right. It was my poor and pathetic attempt to be the villain and possibly get a new curse going. This team is to good and Red Sox nation is to distracted with their success. Makes me ill!!
I dont think Prior will ready to pitch in the majors until May. They do have a good rotation as is. When he is ready to go the Fathers will be that much better.
I think we should call the Padres the Dads instead of the Fathers, but Fathers reminds me of a running joke we had in law school about being someone's biological father. Oh, the good times.
The move to the Padres could work wonders for Prior. Here's to hoping that Maddux teaches him to pitch.
Love,
Your biological father,
DC&H
LOL I like it....The "Dads"
Mark Prior can pitch without Maddux's guidance. He is a damn fine pitcher in fact. The problem is that Dusty Baker had him on a pitch count of like 200 while with the Cubbies. That will destroy any arm. Just ask Wade Miller, Matt Clement, and Kerry Woods (All who have had promising careers ruined by Mr. Baker and his stupidity)
Luckily for Prior, Bub Black is a pitcher's manager. Prior will not be mismanaged, hopefully.
Post a Comment