MLB 2006 Preview

So pitchers and catchers has finally come, and we all get to trade in the monotony of arbitration numbers for the minutia of Tamba Bay's LOOGY's new dungball which won't see the light of day past Kissimmee.

That being said, it is not uncommon for me to hear the complaint that I adjust my baseball thoughts mid-season in order in accord with the prevailing winds, so as to make myself appear after-the-fact more accurate. With the majik of the instaweb, I can now prove to each and every one of one of you that I either know my stuff or am capable of finding websites that do. We'll run through standings and Wild Cards, the playoffs, and a few awards.

NL East:

1. Atlanta
2. Philadelphia
3. New York
4. Florida
5. Washington

The fact that Atlanta lost a few guys in the offseason doesn't affect the fact that I declared this year that I will pick them every year until they realize worse. Despite a top 5-10 MVP season from Howard, the Phils print but don't use playoff tix for the 3rd year in a row. steM easily break their own record for "Best 3rd Place Team in History". Marlins firesale v2 won't take them to their 3rd series until 2008. Nats fans, you will learn that Pythagoras is a vindictive bitch.

NL Central:

1. St. Louis
2. Houston
3. Milwaukee
4. Chicago

Unlike their East counterparts, this is the end of the run for an aging Cards team; I hope the new ballpark is nice. Houston is there as a placeholder; this Stros team has more what-ifs than the USA Men's Hockey Team. Milwaukee, 2007 World Series champs if they make the right moves next year. Cubs, one year away from moving to the irrelavant list with Cinci and Pittsburgh.

NL West:

1. Los Angeles
2. San Diego (WC)
3. Arizona
4. San Francisco
5. Colorado

Will be suprisingly strong division this year; I expect a 3-team race into September and a dead heat finish bringing the Dojers back to the playoffs. Arizona will be the suprise team in the NL - maybe their season will look like the Nats last year through August, except with a much better team. The Barry Bonds Show should be fun, in a "we didn't really like you when you were here and although we feel bad about it, we're also happy you didn't never won a World Series" kind of way. That will be a horrible, horrible baseball team, if I wasn't so lazy I might go back and switch em with the Rocks.

AL East:

1. Boston
2. New York
3. Toronto
4. Tampa Bay
5. Baltimore

Boston people, don't be too happy - the BOS/NYY rivalry is no longer relevant as including best teams in the league. The Rivalry is a spectacle of its former self, which was itself a spectacle...can you have a spectacle of a spectacle? I don't know, but both of these teams will have plenty of time to think about philosophy in late October. Rays most improved team in the AL - I would have put them in front of Toronto, but the Jays gave me a 5-year contract that prohibits me from doing so. O's will trade Tejada mid-season; STL? HOU? SD? I don't think they would trade within their division, so NL is most likely.

AL Central:

1. Cleveland (tie)
2. Chicago (tie - WC)
3. Minnesota
4. Detroit
5. KC

The best division in baseball, this year's version of the '05 NL East, with KC playing a rendition of the Nats that actually follows the law of large numbers. The White Sox Series was no fluke; only reason they don't run away with things is 3 of the top 6 teams in baseball are trapped in the old Norris. If Minnesota can keep all of their starters healthy, you have to give them a shot to make the playoffs. Even Detroit puts up a solid season; think 162 games similar to the first 60 games of 2005.

AL West:

1. Anaheim
2. Oakland
3. Texas
4. Seattle

When you have arguably the best hitter in baseball locked up long-term at a reasonable rate, and a rotation of above average innings eaters, you beat out a scrappy Oakland team by double-digits. That's a given. Washburn will be easily replaced by a stronger Erwin Santana and an underrated Jeff Weaver. I honestly don't know what to make of Texas, except that they will be closer to the A's than the M's. I'd probably buy them to win the division or Wild Card on Trade Sports, just because you get a lot of volatility in that trade.

For the awards, I'm listing who will be deserving according to me at the end of the year, not who the idiot writers pick.

AL MVP:

1. V. Guerrero
2. T. Hafner
3. M. Texeira
4. A. Rodriguez
5. M. Tejada

Watch for Thome, I want to have his name mentioned in here as a dark horse if the Sox do win the division.

NL MVP:

1. A. Pujols *stretch I admit*
2. J. Edmonds (on the chance they change the rules and Pujols isn't eligible)
3. B. Giles
4. R. Howard
5. J.D. Drew
6. J. Bay
7. A. Dunn

AL CYA:

1. Johan Santana *this is getting easy*
2. C.C. Sabathia
3. J. Vazquez
4. J. Westbrook
5. F. Hernandez (will be higher if his team wins 70 games)

NL CYA:

1. J. Peavy
2. R. Oswalt
3. B. Sheets
4. A. Pettitte
5. T. Hudson
6. P. Martinez
7. M. Prior
8. D. Willis
9. C. Carpenter
10. J. Smoltz
11. C. Zambrano

The top pitchers in the NL in 2006 will match up with the top pitchers in any league in history. The offshoot of this is a) there will be a bias in the press to say that the AL is better than the NL and b) it will be a lot of fun to watch. At the end of the year, any of these 11 would finish 2nd in the AL CYA. All awards ignore Clemens's possible return, but if forced, say #2 in the AL, #5 in the NL.

World Series: Cleveland over Atlanta, 5 games. 1995 avenged and all that.

That's it...let's see how it looks in October!