At Last—Major League Baseball Is Back: 2009 AL Season Predictions

—Angels. Really? When can the AL West step up and become dangerous? Not this year, but the Angels' window of owning this division is closing. However, the Halos have their three best pitchers in John Lackey, Ervin Santana, and Kelvim Escobar all out for at least the first two to three weeks of the season. Dustin Moseley, Nick Adenhart, and Shane Loux will have to step up to get off to a good start. Only if the Rangers could pitch to match that offense, we could be talking about one of the best teams in baseball.

Key to Success—Fundamentals. As long as Moseley, Adenhart, and Loux stick to what type of pitcher they are and not try to be Lackey, Escobar, and Santana, they should be ok. Also, a healthy Chone Figgins, Vladimir Guerrero, and Juan Rivera will make this offense good enough to be similar to the team that won 100 games in 2008. Brian Fuentes also needs to step up, or else the Angels will start missing K-Rod.

AL Wildcard—Rays. Apologies to be handed out to: Yankees, Twins, and White Sox. The Rays are a lot younger, a lot more matured, and also a lot more seasoned than the other three teams. The Rays are a young team with an immense amount of talent. C.C. Sabathia was a great signing and he'll be fine, but I have never trusted A.J. Burnett pitching, and 2009 will be no different. He has guaranteed money for five years and he's never had back-to-back good seasons. The Yanks lack a solid bullpen, while the Rays have a very good one. The White Sox's rotation is getting older, while the Rays have no starter even close to 30. The Rays have speed, power, youth, and defense while the Twins only have power and defense. The Rays are here to stay.

Key to Success—9+9=8 or some other witty Joe Madden motivational thought.

Awards time...yay! (Hold round of applause until November)

AL MVP—Grady Sizemore. This is a very tough decision as well.  Please let me send my apologies to: Kevin Youkilis, Jason Bay, Evan Longorhia, and Josh Hamiliton. Sizemore will steal over 40 bases, will push for 30 HR's, and will easily score 100 runs. He also plays every single day with Gold Glove caliber defense. What else can I say about the guy? Since no one hits 50 HR's or wins 25 games, this is a slam dunk pick.

AL Cy Young Award—Roy Halladay. This is a very tough decision, probably the hardest one. Sorry to: Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, C.C. Sabathia, and Francisco Liriano. No one throws more CG or innings than Doc does. He has a really low WHIP, gets the job done with SO, and has a really good beard. He also throws the least amount of pitches for complete games too. He's a lock for 35 starts, 220 IN, and 23 wins.

AL Rookie of the Year—Elvis Andres. A completely surprise pick. I say this for a few reasons: he is younger than me, truth, and he is too stubborn and stupid to realize what's going on. He also plays in Texas, so he will hit. His glove is well above what it should be for a young kid and will overall be a pleasant surprise.

AL Champs—Red Sox. See above. With superstars at multiple positions and a strong pitching staff, they are the American League's best team.

This is part one of two with NL Predictions coming later tonight.  If you cannot wait to see them, check out Facebook. So the jury's out; whatcha think?

 

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