i don't think A-Gon will hit 50 hrs, but he'll hit a ton of doubles and even singles off the monster. he might hit .450 at fenway. the rsox just have to worry abt being healthy, and i think that is cause for concern. on paper, the best team in the al.Boston Red Sox...
The offense looks stacked as long as some of the older guys stay healthy. Ortiz still has some left in the tank as long as Boston sits him for Cameron against lefties. Pride might get the better of Francona. We'll see. Adrian Gonzalez is going to hit close to 50 HRs in that park. Salty should emerge at catcher. Losing Beltre isn't such a big blow with Youklis sliding over there.
Starters look great and they could have five #1 starters on their hands. I'm not entirely sure where Wakefield fits in if everyone stays healthy ahead of him. Bullpen should be a strength if Jenks and Okajima can pitch even decently. Papelbon, Wheeler, and Bard are strong enough to make this team tough to come back on it in the later innings.
Boston is one of the top 3 teams in baseball and their rotation could feasibly be better than Phillies'. A-Gon is the guy that will put them over the edge and I do think Boston is better than New York by a decent margin. Don't be surprised if these guys win it all. I'm thinking about 98 wins is what they'll get because of how tough their division is.
i don't think A-Gon will hit 50 hrs, but he'll hit a ton of doubles and even singles off the monster. he might hit .450 at fenway. the rsox just have to worry abt being healthy, and i think that is cause for concern. on paper, the best team in the al.
when you look at the royals rotation, you have to think, 'is this even real'? if you look down the road, the royals have more of the top 100 prospects than any other team. get thru this yr, have some money to spend, then start contending (finally) in the al central.KC Royals...
The offense could be better than expected but they still don't have any power. Gordon has to improve while guys like Escobar, Betemit, and Alex Gordon should become better players. That lack of power will lead to them not scoring a ton of runs but I do like the look of Ka'aihue. This offense won't be that good but they will be better than the Indians. Maybe if Butler develops power... Aviles looks like a good one (still no power though).
The rotation is a bit of a joke. Jeff Francis can't stay healthy and his last two seasons have been poor. He's a #3 or #4 starter that the Royals are parading as their top gun. Bruce Chen is another stopgap that can't stay healthy. He'll be solid but not spectacular. No speed in his pitches but he's smart and should put in solid innings with a 4.3 ERA, assuming he stays healthy. Hochevar has potential but isn't ready yet. Davies is way too hittable while Mazzaro looks ready for a depression in his stats. KC has a nice bullpen but it's really only 3 deep (or 2 deep if you don't count Jeffries). The fact that the starters don't go deep into games will hurt them.
Kansas City is Kansas City and they have big weaknesses like always. A .500 record seems to be the goal.
when you look at the royals rotation, you have to think, 'is this even real'? if you look down the road, the royals have more of the top 100 prospects than any other team. get thru this yr, have some money to spend, then start contending (finally) in the al central.