First in the East this year should be a battle. I went with the Red Sox due to their off-season activities. After being swept in the first round of the playoffs last year, the Sox made some improvements. Although Jason Bay departed for the Mets (and the money), the Sox signed Mike Cameron to take over in Center and moved Jacoby Ellsbury (my guy) to Left. Cameron may be a slight downgrade from Bay, but the Sox also added Adrian Beltre at third and Marco Scutaro to fill the void that has been at short for awhile now. With the trade of Lowell to Texas falling through, the Sox benefit with his services as a pinch hitter. As long as Ortiz continues like he left off last season and Youkilis, Pedroia and Martinez stay on course, the Sox will put up good to great offensive numbers. I didn’t mention JD Drew because 1)I’ve never been a big fan and 2)he can’t seem to stay of the DL but anything he can contribute will be a bonus. The pitching staff easily rivals there New York counterparts. Lester, Beckett, Lackey, Dice-K and Bucholtz is a dream rotation. Wakefield can easily step into that 5th spot if Bucholtz struggles. And Papelbon and Rivera might be 1 and 1a in the AL.
The Yankees slide back to second (maybe). The loss of Damon and Matsui was not offset with the signing of Curtis Granderson. Granderson should replace Damon well enough but there is still the hole left by World Series MVP Hideki Matsui. Jeter is still putting up great numbers and plays a great shortstop but Posado is starting to show his age. Cano should come back down to Earth a little since he showed some career numbers last season. Arod and Teixeira will put up big numbers, of course, and Nick Swisher has the ability to although he strikes out a lot. CC, AJ, Pettite, Vasquez, and Joba are sure to cause headaches for a lot of teams this year. The jury is still out on Joba, but this is one of the premiere rotations in the league. Rivera has shown no signs of slowing down at 40, but I’ve got to think he has to drop of a little. Not to worry Yankee fans, the AL Wildcard will once again come out of the East so there is still post season play in your future.
The Tampa Bay Rays are unfortunately in the East with the big boys. Stick them in the Central and they win the division every year. The clock is ticking in Tampa and the pressure will actually make it harder for the Rays to contend this season. The offense has a nice mix of power and speed. Longoria, Pena, Upton and Crawford are going to put up numbers but Shields, Garza, Niemann, Price, and Davis can not compete in the AL East. Look for Kelly Shoppach to take over at catcher to add some power to the lineup but the Rays are destined to finish 3rd again.
The Orioles are young but should make a bit of a splash this season. The birds signed Kevin Millwood to anchor the rotation and give some leadership to their young pitching staff. The O’s have a decent offense with Markakis, Roberts, Jones and Reimold. I would expect Weiters to improve over last season and Tejada is still serviceable but his better days are behind him. This team could stir up the pot in the East in the next couple of years but this is still a growing year.
The Blue Jays lost Alex Rios and Roy Halladay this offseason. I could stop here and no one would question why. Adam Lind, Aaron Hill and Vernon Wells will give Jays fans something to be excited about although Vernon Wells best days are in the past. Kevin Gregg should be a nice addition in the bullpen to hold those late inning leads (assuming they have some). Ricky Romero looks to be the bluebirds ace this season which won’t bode well for him. Although Romero is a good pitcher, I would look for his numbers to drop off a little this season.
