End Of December: Who Are the Favorites Next Year?

Yes it is very early in the off season, but I think you can still take a look at who the front runners are for the playoffs next year. So lets take a look at who should be in the hunt.

 8: Los Angeles Dodgers

They won the division last season on the sole reason that they got off to a great start. They were very average the rest of the year, and barely made it in with the Division. They have not done anything to improve their team thus far, and the Rockies and Giants look to contend again this year.  Unless they can get an ace somehow they are not going to win the division this year. 

7: Minnesota Twins

They managed to barely slip into the playoffs this last year with the division only to get killed by the Yankees in the first round. They still have Moure, and Mornoe, so never count them out. The tigers seemed to really slide last year, and the twins know they live in the worst division in baseball, so they could very easily win the division. 

6:Colorado Rockies

Their new manager really gave them a spark plug last year, and they managed to win 90 games with him only there half a season. Now with a full year under him they could move even higher up the latter I think they will beat out the Dodgers for the division.

5: Seattle Mariners:

The M's have had the best off season possibly in the franchises history. In signing Cliff Lee they now have the best one two punch in all of baseball. In signing Figgins they now have the best top of the order in baseball in Ichiro and Figgins. They also acquired Milton Bradley to add some power to the lineup. All in all it is the pitching that wins championships, and the M's have made huge progress. The Angels have done virtually nothing except get an aging outfielder in Matsui. They have lost Lackey and Figgins, and are finally looking like they will fall in the division with the Mariners and Rangers both making better teams. 

4: St Louis Cardinals

I thought they were going to be the best team in baseball last season, and was proved wrong, but I still think they are a good team. Their division has faltered to one of the worst in baseball, and they should take advantage of that. They still have the best two pitchers in the NL (despite Halliday and hamels) and that should carry them into the post season along with their powerful lineup. 

3: New York Yankees

We did not see the Yankees weaknesses until the World Series, but we finally did see them. They have nobody to start for them after Sabathia. Burnnett was disappointing in the post season, and he really is overdue for his annual injury he gets about every other year. They lost Damon, and matsui, two people that were very key to their world series win. They have not replaced them. The lineup still looks good, but the pitching looks like a glaring problem now that they did not sign anyone huge. 

2: Boston Red Sox

The Red Sox took a big hit in not re-signing Bay, but they got Lackey. By adding lackey the Sox now have the best rotation in baseball. He is probably going to be the number three starter, meaning he will not have the pressure of being the ace like he was in LA. With him the Sox have three aces in their rotation, Bukholtz who is emerging as a very good starter in this league, Dice-K who came off of injury last year and had a 2.22 ERA his last four starts of the season, and Wakefield as a long reliever when either Bukholtz, or Dice-K can't go more then four or five innings. All in all the rotation of the Red Sox is outstanding, and expect them to beat the Yankees for the Division. 

1: Philadelphia Phillies

They have been to the WS the last two years, and they improved their team this off season, how is that possible? I am not talking about the trade for Halliday, because I do not think that made any difference to the team. I am talking about Placido Planco. The lineup of the Phillies is already really good, but adding him only makes it better. he does not strike out, which is something maybe he can teach other members of the team. All in all the Phillies look prime to go back to the big show.

Honorable mention:

Los Angeles Angels:

Yes I did not put them in the top 8, but I would still put them in the top ten. Despite loosing players year after year, the Angels seem to find a way to win. The thing is that the Athletics used to be like that, and look where they are now. The Angels have the money to spend, but they choose not to spend it. They still have a pretty good pitching staff, but I worry that none of them can be an ace, and the lineup is not nearly as good without Vlad and Figgins. We will see if they can really continue to win this next year, but I question that. 

New York Mets:

Yes they were horrible last year, but that's because they had so many injuries. With everyone healthy they are a good team, so if they can stay healthy this year, perhaps they can contend for a wild card. Plus if they can sign Bay, or maybe even Damon that will surly help their lineup. 

Texas Rangers:

They finally got a coach that believes in defence and pitching. If they can continue to progress in these areas next year to go along with their insane hitting, they could be in the mix for the division as well as the Angels and Mariners.

Florida Marlins:

Now I really do not know anything about this team, but they had a pretty good year last year. They won 87 games in a pretty good division, and their rookie of the year was a monster in the second half, so maybe they can contend for the playoffs as well.