okay before i go anywhere...the cubs are royally screwed. they dont have sosa and alou to lean on anymore, and now they are without nomah and todd walker. now to the predictions...AL
East: Yankees-they line-up strikes a LITTLE fear into pitchers, plus randy, wright, and pavano help balance out the old rotation
Central: Twinkies-i dont really know that much about them, except they win. pure and simple. plus they have a johan santana. thats pretty good by itself
West: Angels-who could vote against them? they have an outfield for the ages with Finley, Guerro or w/e, and Garret Anderson. and their rotation is capable of keeping them in a game.
WC:BO Sox-they have too good of a line-up to not make it. they losses of pedro and derek will be felt tho...
NL
East:Marlins-i dont see what others see from the braves...o and the addition of carlos delgado is a MAJOR for them. they now have another power bat to complement mike lowell and miguel cabrera. He'll drive in plenty of runs with pierre and castilla too. plus...isnt it time for the braves to actually LOSE a friggin' division title?
Central: Cardinals-is there really a opponent? the astros are rebuilding, and they cubs are injury prone. I would give them a lil' respect if they had prior and wood healthy together. Reds and cubs i think will compete for the WC.
West: dodgers-this was a toughy...i would give the giants the nod if they had a healthy barry, but now that hes out, they dont have a real scary line-up. dodgers had three big signings with lowe, kent, and drew. thats a good group of talent. plus u always have a chance with gagne as your closer.
WC: Braves-i may not have that much faith in them for the divison title, but theyre good enough for the WC defenatly. if not them, which would be a major dissapointment in Atlanta, it should be someone else from the East...dont doubt the 'Nats. Theyre in for the long haul.
ALCS-Yankees and Angels (they'll be looking for blood after last divisional series...)
NLCS-Cards and Marlins
WS-Cards and Angels
WS CHAMPION: STL CARDINALS! mulder is the final piece to the world series puzzle for the cardinals, and will win it in a 6 game series.
AL MVP: A-Rod...now that he's settled into NY's offence and has a year under his belt, A-Rod is gonnna' burst out with a career year. Last year wasn't even THAT bad...
NL MVP: Albert Pujols...only logical choice now that barry is sidelined. Hes averaged 41 HR and 129 rbi's each year, and now he has a great lead-off man in david eckstein, and larry walker is sure to get on at a good clip.
AL CY YOUNG: Randy Johnson...one word, dominace. he won 16 game for the hopeless Diamondbacks, when he could've won at least 21 or more. The NY line-up is more than capable to give him games even if hes not on his.
NL CY YOUNG: Mark Mulder...how couldn't he win it. hes the best cardinals pitcher in years, and he has the best line-up in the NL and agruably the whole league. look for a win total around 23...
Of course, a wild card spot is dependant on whether their pitching stays healthy (and with Dusty managing, that's a big question mark). Plus, management will need to pick up another bat by midseason, and possibly a closer (the thought of LeTroy Hawkins closing scares me).
