2014 MLB Preview

AL East
1. Tampa Bay Rays
2. New York Yankees
3. Baltimore Orioles
4. Boston Red Sox
5. Toronto Blue Jays

It seems that Joe Madden and the Tampa Bay staff know what it takes to win under any lineup situation. Thus, in spite of having a relatively quiet off-season, in my eyes, the Rays are the class of the AL East. The rotation will be great (especially since it appears that David Price is staying put for the time being), the bullpen will be good enough, and if Desmond Jennings can finally live up to his potential, even partially, plus a full season of Wil Myers, the hitting should be better.

The Yankees are looking to be in way better shape than they did at any point last year. Their high profile additions should help big time, and they very much could win the division this year. They coulld win 92 games and nab a Wild Card spot, but, they could also win 88 and entirely miss the playoffs.

I don't know that any team will hit better in 2014 than the Baltimore Orioles. The Markakis/Machado/Davis/Jones/Wieters side of the batting order could be incredible (once Machado is healthy again), and they're even more dangerous now that they've added Nelson Cruz. The issue is definitely with pitching. I think the signing of Ubaldo Jimenez was an ok move, but, that's just not enough to win the division. Still, they should at least compete moderately for a Wild Card spot.

The Red Sox also had a very quiet off-season, and are probably inserting some youth into the lineup in Xander Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley Jr., which, rules for them in the long term. It seems like a lot of people are pretty high on the BoSox this year, but, not me. Sure, their rotation killed in the post-season. I think it's just asking a lot to repeat their 2013 magic.

Now, I was incorrectly high on the Blue Jays last year, and I won't make the same mistake twice, despite their heavy hitters. Something is off with this squad. They have two fantastic power hitters (Bautista and Encarnacion), one of which can't stay healthy anymore, and Jose Reyes, who also is known to get injured, and that's about it. The starting rotation is unpredictable (aside from Mark Buerhle, who has had the exact same season 10 times in a row, it seems) in spite of the potential it should have. It's always awesome when a team attempts to buy a championship and then that plight is squandered.

AL Central
1. Detroit Tigers
2. Kansas City Royals
3. Cleveland Indians
4. Chicago White Sox
5. Minnesota Twins

The Detroit Tigers' off-season started with a bang thanks to the blockbuster Kinsler-for-Fielder trade. I was happy with that move, along with the Joe Nathan and Rajai Bell ones. The verdict is still out on trading Doug Fister away, but, if it makes it so that the team can afford to keep Max Scherzer, I am into it. The way the Tigs lost Joaquin Benoit and Jose Veras, and yet signed Joba Chamberlain is questionable, if not just plain stupid. That being said, this team is trying to move away from the all-out power ball towards more of a small ball approach, and that is exciting, as is the improvement of their defense (despite the fact that Jose Iglesias is looking at possibly being out for the season). I also am intrigued by the idea of Drew Smyly being in the starting rotation this season. Regardless, 2014 should be another year in which the Detroit Tigers win the AL Central, and compete for the AL pennant.

I am loving the resurging Kansas City Royals. At the expense of losing Wil Myers, James Shields led the way for a vastly improved starting rotation in 2013, and, while it's not lights out, it should be even better in 2014. Their bullpen is quality and features possibly the best closer in the AL in Greg Holland. The team plays excellent defense, and they have a core group of batters that have really come around in Eric Hosmer, Billy Butler, Alex Gordon and Salvador Perez. Adding Norichika Aoki and Omar Infante at the top of the batting order is icing on the cake. The Royals should seriously compete for a Wild Card spot.

The Cleveland Indians had a magical season last year thanks to Terry Francona's managerial smarts, breakout campaigns from SPs Justin Masterson and Danny Salazar and the continued upward trajectory of Jason Kipinis and Carlos Santana. If things remain aligned, they could compete for a Wild Card spot. I see them more as a team that finishes barely over .500.

The Chicago White Sox are an interesting squad this year in that they're bringing out a youthful batch of position players with some exciting potential. The newly acquired Adam Eaton could be their lead-off hitter of the future. Jose Abreu will try to be the latest in the trend of Cuban-defectors coming to the MLB to find success (following Yoenis Cespedes and Yasiel Puig). And, acquired in the Peavy/Iglesias three-way trade last year from the Tigers, Avisail Garcia is another up-and-comer. Then there's Chris Sale, who, after only two full seasons as a starter, is already looking like one of the absolute best pitchers in the AL. Good things could be on the way in the future, but in the meantime, the White Sox don't have much more going for them after these four building blocks. They will still finish toward the bottom of the AL Central.

The Minnesota Twins are in for a sad year. Joe Mauer will be Joe Mauer, and they have an excellent closer who will be eventual trade bait in Glen Perkins, and that's it until they can unleash two of the highest ranked prospects in all of baseball in Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano (who will be unable to play for the entire year thanks to Tommy John surgery). Their mediocre attempt at improving their starting rotation surely will not lift Minnesota's title as second-worst team in the American League.

AL West
1. Texas Rangers
2. Oakland Athletics
3. Seattle Mariners
4. Los Angeles Angels
5. Houston Astros

The AL West race is going to be really fun in 2014. It could go either way between the Texas Rangers and the Oakland Athletics, and, I think the Rangers have the slight edge in the regular season. This lineup is stacked, especially in the #1-#5 spots in the batting order (Shin-Soo Choo, Elvis Andrus, Prince Fielder, Adrian Beltre, Alex Rios), and their #8 and #9 hitters (Jurickson Profar and Leonys Martin) are eyeing breakout seasons. This team will get on base a lot, steal a lot of bases, and hit a lot of home runs. Pitching is a different story. Injuries have derailed this rotation, and Yu Darvish is the only SP looking like a true stud these days (and, what a stud he is; he has to be the preseason favorite to win the Cy Young award, right?). The bullpen is sort of a mess at this point, but, could end up being one of the team's strengths if Neftali Feliz and Joakim Soria are truly healthy.

It would be awesome to see the Oakland A's win the AL West three years in a row, and, I'll probably be rooting for them to do so, but, I think they're more likely to land the first Wild Card spot, thanks to how both Texas and Seattle have improved. If Josh Donaldson can repeat his 2013 season, Brandon Moss can improve on his average and continue to hit home runs, and Yoenis Cespedes and Josh Reddick return to their 2012 form (or better, ideally), this team is dangerous on offense. That's a lot of ifs, though. he starting rotation is overflowing with potential, and it will be interesting to see if Sonny Gray becomes their ace. However, Jarrod Parker is out for the season and A.J. Griffin is missing at least the first few weeks, so this team has certainly been dealt some blows. An insanely great bullpen (Jim Johnson, Luke Gregerson, Ryan Cook, Sean Doolittle and Eric O'Flaherty, when he returns from injury, make this by far the best bullpen in baseball), will help immensely.

I was shocked that the Seattle Mariners were the team to "win" the Robinson Cano sweepstakes. Eventually they'll be kicking themselves for the long contract, but, this team needed a big name, let alone simply a high quality position player. That being said, I am much more excited about the way this starting rotation is shaping up. Felix Hernandez is one of the best in the game, and Hisashi Iwakuma has been masterful in his short stint in the MLB thus far. In 2014, the Mariners should be unleashing highly rated prospect Taijuan Walker, which at some point will make this one of the more formidable rotations in baseball. All of that is to say that the Mariners are being set up to finally compete again, but, it won't happen this season.

Before the start of the 2013 season, I predicted the Los Angeles Angels to lose to the Detroit Tigers in the ALCS. Embarrassing. After their hilarious plunge to a 78-84 record, I think it gets worse in 2014 before it gets better. Sure, they  have the best player in the world in Mike Trout, and maybe we'll finally see the Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton the Angels payed hundreds of millions for (and that better happen fast if those transactions are going to end up being worth the trouble at all). Losing Mark Trumbo's power does not help, and adding David Freese surely does not make up for that. The real kicker, though, is that their pitching is in shambles. Jered Weaver's greatness seems to be diminishing, and while closer Ernesto Frieri strikes a lot of guys out, he's also relatively unpredictable.

The Houston Astros are yet again looking to be the worst team in all of baseball, but, they have a lot of highly rated prospects coming up in the next couple of years that should help eventually. Until then... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...........

NL East
1. Washington Nationals
2. Atlanta Braves
3. New York Mets
4. Philadelphia Phillies
5. Miami Marlins

I thought the Washington Nationals had a World Series birth on lockdown last season. And, then, they only won 86 games, missed the playoffs, and the St. Louis Cardinals happened (again). This team is stacked with young, extremely high quality players offensively and defensively, and I'm going to consider 2013 a fluke. The Nats didn't really need to make any major adjustments, but, they traded for Doug Fister, making their starting rotation the best in all of baseball. As long as they can stay healthy, Stephen Strasburg is on the verge of a Cy Young season and Bryce Harper will only get better, eventually leading up to an MVP campaign or two. Aside from some bullpen concerns, the pieces are in place for the Nationals to win now, and, probably for several years to come.

A couple weeks ago, I would have said, "Of course, you can't count out the Braves, though." Forget the Yankees/Red Sox, the Nationals/Braves is the powerhouse rivalry in modern baseball. Atlanta's lineup is similar in the overwhelming amount of talent in spite of youth. Jason Heyward, Justin Upton, Freddie Freeman and Andrelton Simmons are yet to tap into their full potential, and the same could be said for starting pitchers Kris Medlen, Julio Teheren, Mike Minor, Brandon Beachy and Alex Wood. The kicker, though, is that Medlen and Beachy are now most likely going to miss the season thanks again to Tommy John surgery, and, Minor is possibly going to start the season on the DL. Unless Wood becomes the new Medlen, and, new addition Ervin Santana has the season of his career, this essentially crushes the Braves hope of winning the division, IF the Nationals perform like they should. Craig Kimbrel, the best closer in baseball, and the rest of the bullpen will be a big help, but, I feel for the Braves right now.

Beyond that, the NL East is just sad. The New York Mets had a lot to be excited about last year with the incredible seasons Matt Harvey and David Wright were having pre-injuries (Cy Young and MVP-caliber, respectively) and bringing Zack Wheeler up from AAA. Then Harvey had to go and get Tommy John surgery, and now the Mets' 2014 season is for naught. The addition of Curtis Granderson is nice, but, certainly not enough to turn this team around. It will be fun to see what kind of personal follow-up to 2013 David Wright will have, and it will also be interesting to see the development of Wheeler and former top prospect catcher Travis D'Arnaud.

The Philadelphia Phillies are in shambles. Whether Cole Hamels ends up being healthy or not, this will not be a good year for them. A.J. Burnett was a good pickup, but, I'd wager come trade deadline time he and Cliff Lee will probably be trade bait. The first half of Domonic Brown's 2013 was tremendously exciting, it just doesn't seem like that can carry over into 2014. Otherwise, this team is made up of old dudes with terrible contracts, and, it will be a while before any kind of recovery.

Three guys make the Miami Marlins interesting in 2014: Giancarlo Stanton, Jose Fernandez and Steve Cishek. The only real question regarding Stanton is not if, but, when he will have a 40 home run season. The answer is, simply, when he is healthy for the entirety of one. Take away Fernandez's rookie innings limit, and, he could have won the NL Cy Young last year. It's hard to imagine him being quite that amazing this year, but, it's not entirely out of the question. Cishek could end up being the closer on a competitor in need come the trade deadline. Aside from all of that 2014 is looking to be a season of developing young talent while sitting in the cellar of the NL East.

NL Central
1. St. Louis Cardinals
2. Cincinnati Reds
3. Pittsburgh Pirates
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. Chicago Cubs

As much as I want the Cincinnati Reds to win this division, it's going to be incredibly difficult to overcome the St. Louis Cardinals. The three Matts (Carpenter, Holiday, Adams), Allen Craig, and Yadier Molina are going to produce a ton of runs. Once Kolten Wong learns how to run the bases and if Jhonny Peralta hits like he did last year before his suspension (despite being a liability in the field), it's scary to think how good this team is. They have an impeccable young rotation and bullpen with guys who are just getting started (Michael Wacha, Shelby Miller, Trevor Rosenthal), that Adam Wainwright had a return to form is a crime.

The Reds have some questions on offense, but, Brandon Phillips, Joey Votto and Jay Bruce are safe bets to repeat or even improve on what they did in 2013. Leading off with Billy Hamilton is a little bit of a risk due to his inexperience, but, he also could be a much needed lightning rod for this group. That being said, the bottom of the batting order isn't awful, it's just nothing to be excited about. Now, I am very into this starting rotation. A healthy Johnny Cueto would do wonders for this club. If Homer Bailey can keep decreasing his ERA and increasing his strikeout totals each season, and Tony Cingrani can learn another pitch or two after his impressive 2014 debut, these guys are really in business. Oh, and, they also have Mat Latos in addition to Aroldis Chapman and hopefully a healthy Sean Marshall coming out of the bullpen. It's really not fair.

The Pittsburgh Pirates were a wonderful story last year, and they are essentially returning the same team to do it all over again. However, this team misses the playoffs in 2014 because of the Nationals. They'll still win 85-90 games with Starling Marte coming into his own and Andrew McCutchen doing his thing. The rotation could be great, or could be completely normal. There are a lot of if's there regarding Francisco Liriano, Wandy Rodriguez and Edinson Volquez. It will be fun to see what former #1 overall pick Gerrit Cole does in his first season, and this bullpen is stacked.

Rewind three or four years, and the front part of the Milwaukee Brewers' starting rotation looks quite good. At this point, I'm interested in what Marco Estrada and Wily Peralta do in 2014. I'm really looking forward to the return of Ryan Braun, and truly hopes he proves that he can be an MVP without performance enhancing drugs. Carlos Gomez and Jean Segura took off last year, and, it should also be enjoyable to see if they can improve on their breakout seasons.There's actually a lot to like about this lineup, but, they're in a division with the Cardinals, Reds, and Pirates, so, there's that.

Not really sure what to say about the Chicago Cubs. I guess there are some exciting elements about this offense. Junior Lake, Anthony Rizzo and Starling Castro will be fun to follow, but, difficult to predict. Jeff Samardzija was supposed to be their ace in shining armor. Now, he's probably not going to be a Cub for too much longer. This club will be lucky if Travis Wood has half as good a season as he did in 2013.

NL West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. San Francisco Giants
3. Arizona Diamondbacks
4. Colorado Rockies
5. San Diego Padres

If everything lines up perfectly, the Dodgers are probably the best team in the MLB. I don't see this happening, but, I'm just saying, if it does... In a perfect world, the first five batters are made of dreams. Having Carl Crawford, Hanley Ramirez and Matt Kemp healthy for an entire season seems nearly impossible at this point, but, it's a really fun thought.  Remember when Matt Kemp used to put up Ryan Braun-type numbers? I guess that could be Yasiel Puig, now, who will be tremendously fun to follow in his first full season in the majors. Adrian Gonzalez is past his prime of putting up MVP-esque numbers. He's still pretty damn good, though. Then, there's the pitching. Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu should all completely own it again this season. Adding a Dan Haren that could be healthier than he's been the past two season doesn't hurt, either. Lastly, Kenley Jansen has staked his claim as a dominating closer, and that is a great thing for this team.

Per usual, the San Francisco Giants are going to have some difficulty scoring runs, despite the talents of Buster Posey and the improvement of Brandon Belt. You don't know what you're going to get from Hunter Pence from year to year, and Pablo Sandoval is a perennial under-performer. This team will once again have to try and win with pitching and defense. The thing is, the starting rotation (Madison Bumgarner, Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum, Tim Hudson, Ryan Vogelsong) and bullpen could either be amazing and take this team deep in the playoffs, or could be a complete disaster, aside from Bumgarner ruling.

 It seems that a lot of people are under the impression that if any time in the NL West is going to give the Dodgers any trouble, it's the Arizona Diamondbacks. I just don't see it. Sure, they have Paul Goldschmidt, who is quickly becoming one of the best all around players in the game. They added Mark Trumbo, who will hit plenty of home runs at the expense of his batting average. And, there are some solid vets here who can definitely play offense in Martin Prado and Aaron Hill. The bullpen is above average, but, the starting rotation is looking rough after the news that Patrick Corban will miss the entire season. This Trevor Cahill/Wade Miley/Brandon McCarthy/Bronson Arroyo/Randall Delgado line does not seem particularly damaging. When Archie Bradley is brought up, that should be a huge help, but, until then, I think the Giants have the slight edge, and an even greater edge if everything trends just right for them.

I'm not even going to touch on pitching when it comes to the Colorado Rockies, because, you can't really pitch in that air at that ballpark, and this team doesn't really seem to care about that aspect of the game. Hitting is definitely this team's strength, and they can be sneaky dangerous in any season that features Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez both being healthy for its entirety. Will this actually happen? Probably not.

The San Diego Padres ended the 2013 season on quite a good run. I don't quite understand how or why. Third basemen Chase Headley, who had a borderline MVP season in 2012, came back down to earth hard, ruining fantasy baseball teams everywhere. Carlos Quentin continued his penchant for being surprisingly really good for half a season, and injured for the rest of it. Will Venable can do a lot of things pretty well. Everth Cabrera is working towards up-and-coming lead-off man status. Andrew Cashner displayed good stuff on the mound, and Joaquin Benoit was a surprising and good addition to the bullpen. Does this all add up to a playoff contender? Of course not. Far from it.

AL Wild Card Game
Oakland Athletics over Kansas City Royals

NL Wild Card Game
Cincinnati Reds over Atlanta Braves

ALDS
Tampa Bay Rays over Oakland Athletics, 3-2
Detroit Tigers over Texas Rangers, 3-2

NLDS
Washington Nationals over Cincinnati Reds, 3-2
St. Louis Cardinals over Los Angeles Dodgers, 3-2

ALCS
Tampa Bay Rays over Detroit Tigers, 4-3

NLCS
Washington Nationals over St. Louis Cardinals, 4-2

World Series
Washington Nationals over Tampa Bay Rays, 4-1

AL Manager of the Year - Joe Girardi, New York Yankees
AL Rookie of the Year - Masahiro Tanaka, New York Yankees (SP)
AL Cy Young - Yu Darvish, Texas Rangers
AL MVP - Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels (OF)

NL Manager of the Year - Matt Williams, Washington Nationals
NL Rookie of the Year - Archie Bradley, Arizona Diamondbacks (SP)
NL Cy Young - Stephen Strasburg, Washington Nationals
NL MVP - Carlos Gonzalez, Colorado Rockies (OF)