Friday, January 18, 2008

Power Rankings- Pre Season MLB


Ah life is good right now. The weather Gods spared us from a Vermont-Like snow storm, Shanes bachelor party in Las Vegas is right around the corner, and of course, lots of action in the world of baseball. Some odd trades, some good trades, and even a rumor about a former 2-time MVP making his way back into baseball. For those of you who are unaware of that shocking news, well then, I encourage you to read on, commercial and spin free.

1 (1). Boston Red Sox- Not a whole lot of action going on, however, their good news came at the expense of the NY Yankees. Hank seems to have taken the Yankees out of the Santana straw hat. Perhaps good news for folks in Queens.

2 (2) Detroit Tigers- They locked up Marcus Thames for another year and gave Nate Robertson a 3 year extension. That solidifies that already potent outfield and gives Boston a reason to worry.

3 (3) New York Yankees- Hank was on his knees and blew it again. We all know he is not his father, but come on, try to act like it. George would have pulled the trigger weeks ago.

4 (5) Chicago Cubs- I dont know if signing free agent SP Jon Lieber was worth a bump here or not. But what I do know is that he was the last Cub pitcher to win 20 games. They did good here by addressing the need for quality SP's

5 (4) LA Dodgers- The controversy at 3rd base is really the only thing making headlines. Apparently Adam LaRouche has done THAT well over the break. Nomar may ride the pine opening day.

6 (6) San Diego Padres- Its been nothing but a party town the past few weeks. Im pulling for ya Charger fan.

7 (7) LA Angels- Nothing new. I still think this team is lacking depth.

8 (8) Cleveland Indians- I still think this team needs a reliable 3rd SP. I dont see Paul Byrd putting up 2007 stats.

9 (9) Arizona Diamondbacks- It seems highly unlikely that Livan will re-sign. I love the Webb/Haren combo, but who do they have pitching the rear? I love Owings but he has a history if injury problems. Livan may not be great but he is an innings eater.

10 (10) Colorado Rockies- A very complete team. I dont expect much more action from this team at least until Spring Training

11 (11) Minnesota Twins- All signs are looking good that they will be a serious competitor at least until July 31. After that, Im afraid its rebuilding time. You better pray that Johan pitches like the Cy Young winner he is.

12 (12) Houston Astros- They failed to resign Jason Jennings. I know he missed most of 2007 but he still was the closest thing to a number 2 I can see in this rotation. BUT, you still have a potent lineup. Everything in Texas is bigger, that includes opposing batters HR's and extra base hits.

13 (13) New York Mets- They have their own Santana deal on the table. Luckily Omar Minaya is not stupid and refuses to include Jose Reyes in a trade. On a side note, Ricky is a first ballot HOFer for 2009. This should hopefully grab Carlos Beltran's attention.

14 (15) Milwaukee Brewers- Mark Cameron gives you only a slight bump. He is 35 years old and will miss the first month of baseball due to steroids. He is a good pick-up but not for this team. This forces Ryan Braum into the OF, which to me, doesnt seem to make sense. But hell, If Robin Yount could do it, so can Braum?? Yes, I made the comparison.

15 (16) Chicago Whitesox- This team isnt a middle of the road team, but I still think they are missing something. One more key ingredient and they will crack to top 10.

16 (17) Tampa Bay Rays- They continue make efforts to improve. They acquired Manny Aybar from the Braves. I dont need to tell you how big this is. They finally have infield depth!

17 (14) Philadelphia Philly’s- You lost a solid SP and that is why you lose this week.

18 (18) Washington Nationals- Im scratching my head as to why the Nats didnt give Chad Cordero a long term deal. But at least they settled that arbitration snafu. Pay the man! Washington drools over this kid in the 9th inning.

19 (20) Atlanta Braves- They actually did something. Mark Kotsay will now assume the CF duties. On paper I love this deal, but in reality he is still recovering from back surgery. Atlanta expects, hell, demands a CF be flawless. This is alot of weight on the metal rod in Kotsays back. But he is a proven lead off hitter, its a shame they had to give up so much to acquire him.

*On a side note- The Braves announced they will move their AAA affiliate out of Richmond in 2008. This is sad news; I remember going to Richmond Braves games all the time and having a great time. Oh well.

20 (19) Seattle Mariners- I know why they are hesitant to trade for Erik Bedard. They know that Adam Jones is THAT good of an OF prospect. I would think about that trade alittle longer also Mariners GM

21 (21) Toronto Blue jays- They trade one All-star, recovering from a serious injury, World Series winning, and disgruntle 3rd baseman for another one and acquired Scott Rolan. I would have made the same deal but im afraid this move doesnt make you any better. But I agree, it had to be done.

22 (22) San Francisco Giants- Those Pedro Feliz rumors are going crazy again. I think I speak for all Giants fans when I say "Sabean, WTF". He may hit 20 home runs but he is overall not very good, and for 5-7 million per year?? Please!! Do us a favor, bring in Dallas!! The good news is that we released our non-roster invitees list and that gives me some pleasure.

23 (23) Cincinnati Reds- If man-beast Brandon Phillips plays as well as he did last season, they will quickly move up in the rankings.

24 (24) St Louis Cardinals- I think Glaus will give the Cards a few extra home runs this season, however, the Defense will suffer. Ok, here is the shocker news I mentioned in the previous headline. It appears the Cardinals will give JUAN GONZALEZ, yes, "Juan Gone" an invitation to spring training. I dont know about you but this dropped my jaw. He was named in just about every steroid book and report and when he did drop the juice he was mediocre at best. But the Cardinals are not stupid. They saw what Sammy Sosa did in Texas and they drooled. 30 Home run potential for the league minimum?? That a deal you cannot pass up. But until the deal is made, this rank is where you will stay. Oh, and count your blessings that he makes the team. Word has it that Juan Encarnacion will miss the entire 2008 season due to an injury from last season. Yeh, the foul ball in the eye thing.

25 (25) Oakland A's- The loss of Mark Kotsay will hurt this lineup in a way that the Ultimate Warrior hurt Hulk Hogan in Wrestle mania (Yes, a wrestling reference). But there is good news. They acquired a damn good reliever in Joey Devine. They also found a replacement CF in Emil Brown. Brown had good years but he has had bad ones as well. They keep this spot mainly because Kotsay missed half of 2007 and still managed to compete.

26 (26) Pittsburgh Pirates- What are you waiting for??

27 (27) Texas Rangers- Jason Jennings will help this rotation, but not enough to make a huge impact.

28 (28) Kansas City Royals- Mr. 2-time no-hitter 38 year old, fomrmer ROY Hideo Nomo is back!!! He may have an inflated ERA but I do believe he can help that young pitching rotation.

29 (29) Baltimore Orioles- The good news is that they still have Bedard and Roberts. The bad news is that they are still on the trading block. The details of the Roberts deal to Chicago are pathetic and disgraceful, but I do like whats on the table for the Bedard deal. Anything less of Adam Jones would be a complete failure. But then again, this is Baltimore. Failure is the Orioles motto.

30 (30) Florida Marlins- Give them 3 years, they could easily crack the top 5.

2 comments:

Dews said...

Dude, Edwin encarnacion is a reds or dodgers prospect. You're thinking of Juan Encarnacion, formerly of the detrot tigers system years back.

SayHey Kid said...

I knew that haha.......Correction made.