2014 Major League Baseball prediction and discussion thread.

[free my dawg]

EDITED:

AL East:

1. Red Sox - Ellsbury may be gone, but that's no big deal. Xander Bogaerts is an upgrade over Drew, and I think Middlebrooks bounces back. And who knows about Grady Sizemore? 94-68
2. Rays - Joe Maddon helps a lot, and David Price is in his contract year. It'll be close, but the Rays have a chance at winning this year. 92-70
3. Orioles - Not big on Jimenez at all. Cruz is good, but expect similar returns. 86-76
4. Yankees - McCann is going to be awesome for them, but I think Tanaka will be a #3 starter and Ellsbury's basically guaranteed to miss 20-40 games. Plus there's going to be a massive hole at 2B (come on, we all know Roberts is gonna get hurt). Still a .500 team. 81-81
5. Blue Jays - If they were in any other division, they would be around .500. 72-90

AL Central:

1. Tigers - Tigers gonna Tiger. 98-64
2. Royals - This is the year they turn the corner. Aoki is no slouch either. 93-69 (WC)
3. Indians - Meh. Just meh. 84-78
4. White Sox - Most definitely had an under the radar offseason, but still not good enough to beat the Indians. 70-92.
5. Twins - hhehehe. 66-96.

AL West:

1. Rangers - Smart offseason, by far the winners. 94-68
2. Athletics - Lots to like about this team going forward. Kazmir is my sleeper pick of the year. 92-70
3. Angels - Not bad, but not as good as the Rays or Royals. 85-77.
4. Mariners - Cano isn't gonna help them pass the Angels. 76-86.
5. Astros - heading out of "absolute walking disaster" territory, but not quite there yet. 54-108.

NL East:

1. Nationals - Their pitching staff isn't even fair, and a healthy Harper should do wonders for this year. 97-65.
2. Braves - Quiet offseason, but whatever. 95-67 (WC)
3. Mets - Progress! 75-87
4. Phillies - Unacceptable offseason. Lee and Hamels save this team from being the worst in the league. 67-95
5. Marlins - lol. 64-99

NL Central:

1. Cardinals - Far and away the best team in baseball. 105-57.
2. Pirates - Love this team going forward. 95-67 (WC)
3. Reds - Losing Arroyo/Choo hurts, but they're still not that bad. 91-71.
4. Cubs - Marginal offseason, but Castro should bounce back and Rizzo should break out just enough to get out of the cellar. 72-90
5. Brewers - Good on paper, crap on the field. 71-91.

NL West:

1. Dodgers - Depends on how healthy Kemp is. Can be anywhere from 93-100 wins. 96-76.
2. Giants - Decent core, but not good enough to make the playoffs. 84-78
3. Padres - Much-improved. 80-82
4. Diamondbacks - Still a .500 team. 79-83
5. Rockies - I can count a few good people on this team, but I'm honestly not too keen. 76-86.

Playoffs:

WC:
Rays over Athletics
Royals over Rays

Braves over Pirates

Division:

Sox over Rangers in 4
Tigers over Royals in 4

Cardinals over Braves in 4
Nationals over Dodgers in 5

Championship:

Sox over Tigers in 7

Cardinals over Nationals in 6

World Series:

Cardinals over Sox in 6. I turn into a drunk, crying mess.

Awards (AL/NL):

MVP: Miguel Cabrera, Bryce Harper
ROTY: Xander Bogaerts, Kolten Wong (prev. Oscar Taveras)
Cy Young: David Price, Clayton Kershaw
MOY: Ned Yost, Matt Williams
Comeback Player of the Year: Joakim Soria, Tim Hudson (prev. Feliz)
World Series MVP: Matt Carpenter

[free my dawg]

I think it's the saddest thing that Tim Lincecum is just a few months separated from throwing a freakin' no-hitter and he's been reduced to a middle-relief/mop-up role.

dallas braden, dude