20 Predictions That Are Sure To Happen in 2009

20. Gary Sheffield will hit his 500th home run. Considering he only needs one more this is a safe bet. However, he'll need to find a team to play for first, probably an American League team.

19. Jordan Zimmerman will win the National League Rookie of the Year Award. The Nationals' fifth starter has a career record of 15-5 with a 2.74 ERA in the minors. He looked good in spring training and lets be honest...there is no pressure pitching for the Nats.

18. Brade Lidge will blow at least five saves. He was perfect last year, but don't get too use to that.

17. The Cubs will win the NL Central. With five guys who will hit at least 20 HR and four proven starting pitchers, the Cubs will run away with the Central. Their bullpen isn't bad either, with Kevin Gregg, Carlos Marmol, and Jeff Samardjzia.

16. Mark Teixeira will have a career year with the Yankees. Not only has Teixeira been an All Star player much of his career, but he's been consistent. Look for close to 45 HR and 130 RBI, with over a .300 batting average.

15. David Ortiz will begin his decline this season. You may not notice a big dip in his HR and RBI total this year but look out for his batting average, OBP, slugging percentage, and OPS.

14. Jeff Francoeur will improve on all of his 2008 totals. He was so bad last year the Braves sent him down to Double A. With an offseason to get his head right, this 25 year old outfielder should improve on his .240 average, 11 HR, and 71 RBI. Or at least for my Braves sake he better.

13. The New York Mets will not blow 29 saves. Hell if the Mets would've just blown 20 saves last year they would've won the division by six games. So smartly the Mets went out and got two proven closers in JJ Putz, and Francisco Rodriguez. The Mets weakness last year could be their strength this year.

12. Joba Chamberlain will struggle. No I'm not talking about his ability to eat or drink alcohol, I'm talking about his pitching. His velocity has been reported to be in the low 90s and he's never pitched more then 100 innings in the majors. Coming off of arm surgery and mechanical problems, Chamberlain is sure to struggle as a starting pitcher.

11. Matt Holiday will struggle with the Oakland Athletics. Not only did Holiday leave a great hitters ballpark in Colorado, but he went to a pitchers ballpark in Oakland. Holiday will miss the mile high city.

10. Ryan Howard will strikeout at least 170 times. Good thing for Howard is that when he actually does hit the ball it goes pretty far. If it didn't, you might be seeing him at your local Burger King.

9. The Mets and Phillies will have a brawl. These two teams just can't keep their mouth shut. Jimmy Rollins has said the Phillies are the team to beat, K Rod said the same thing this year. Cole Hamels has also got into the conversation. Phillies winning the World Series put a sour taste in the Mets mouth, so look for a mid to late season brawl.

8. Johan Santana will win the Cy Young Award. It's a miracle that he won 16 games last year with the bullpen he had. With a much improved bullpen and Santana still being on the top of his game he could run away with this award.

7. The Florida Marlins will make a serious run at the NL East crown. Quietly the Marlins have one of the best offenses in the league. They have two guys who hit at least 32 HR, two more who hit at least 22, and another one hit 17. Their starting rotation is young but they gained a lot needed experience last year.

6. Red Sox starting rotation will struggle. As great as Josh Beckett is he has really only had two great years (2005, 2007). Wakefield is mediocre and it's almost guaranteed he'll have an ERA over four and the No. 5 spot is being battled out by three guys who have been hurt the past few years.

5. All of Cliff Lee's numbers will be worse. He's not an elite pitcher but he had an elite year last season. He very well may have another good season, but it wont be anywhere close last season.

4. Jamie Moyer will not win 16 games again. He's 46 years old, not exactly the ripe age for any athlete. He had a bad postseason and a bad spring training...perhaps a sign of things

3. Angels win the AL West.  They could win this thing by more than 10 games.

2. Devil Rays WILL make the playoffs. Carl Crawford missed 53 games and hit for his lowest average since his rookie year. Evan Longoria missed 44 games and was a rookie. Scott Kazmir missed seven starts. Despite all that, the Rays still won the division. Expect better from all of those guys.

1. Cubs WILL NOT win the World Series. Did anyone hear that the odds of filling out of perfect NCAA bracket is one in nine quintrillion? That's the same odds as the Cubs winning the World Series.