MLB Predictions Thread 2011

[Starbreaker]

Alright, spring training hasn't even started, but give me your projected October standings (which we all know will be wrong because nobody gets these things right). Mine's biased, so sue me.

NL East

Braves
Phillies (Wild Card)
Mets
Nationals
Marlins

NL Central

Cardinals
Reds
Cubs
Brewers
Astros
Pirates

NL West

Giants
Rockies
Dodgers
Padres
Diamondbacks

AL East

Red Sox
Rays (Wild Card)
Yankees
Blue Jays
Orioles

AL Central

Twins
White Sox
Tigers
Indians
Royals

AL West

Angels
Rangers
Mariners
Athletics

AL Champion: Red Sox
NL Champion: Braves
World Series Champion: Braves

NL MVP: Omar Infante (Marlins)
AL MVP: Miguel Cabrera (Detroit)

NL Home Run Leader: Carlos Gonzalez (Rockies)
AL Home Run Leader: Adam Dunn (White Sox)

NL Cy Young: Roy Halladay (Phillies)
AL Cy Young: CC Sabathia (Yankees)

 

[SmoothieX]

I know the most about the NL East, I'd predict:

Phillies
Braves (WC)
Marlins
Mets
Nationals

I'm also looking for a team to root for this year. I'm thinking Minnesota or maybe Colorado. Anyone want me on their side? Closest I've ever been to my team winning it all was a minute away from perfection. Yeah, I know the Pats won 3 of 4 SBs, but I was an ambialent NFL fan before I moved to Vermont and in with my wife who's a batshit crazy Patriots fan. That's when I really got into them. Year after they won. As for baseball, I grew up in NY, but was too young to enjoy the Mets in 86, I started watching in 87.

If you're a SF Giants or Packers fan, stay away from me.

 

[Canadave]

I know the most about the AL East, so I'll just call that:

Boston
Tampa Bay
New York
Toronto
Baltimore

I'd say that Toronto is probably in a better position than New York right now (younger, and with a more solid rotation), but I put New York ahead because of the "Fucking Yankees" factor*.

* AKA the ability of NYY to win a bunch more ball games than anyone really thinks they should be able to.

 

[DeafPoet]

I know the most about the AL East, so I'll just call that:

Boston
Tampa Bay
New York
Toronto
Baltimore

I'd say that Toronto is probably in a better position than New York right now (younger, and with a more solid rotation), but I put New York ahead because of the "Fucking Yankees" factor*.

* AKA the ability of NYY to win a bunch more ball games than anyone really thinks they should be able to.

Pretty much this.

Those fucking Yankees Just once I'd like them to experience baseball ups and down the way the rest of us mortals do.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ The Yankees lost the ALCS last year. And in '08, they didn't make the postseason at all (first time that happened since the early 90's, AFAIK). I'd call that a 'down'.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

Uh, look at the Washington Nationals. Then see if the Yankees have experienced a real "down".

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ I see. So you want the Yankees to hit bottom like that? Gotcha. You want revenge.

And don't talk to me about downs. I'm a Mets fan too, you know.

Speaking of which, look who's interested in buying the team...

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I don't care if the Yankees hit rock bottom, I just said you don't know about ups and downs until they've had genuine swings between success and failure. And having a secondary team do poorly is inconsequential if the primary team is doing fine (in addition, if you consider your secondary team to be an adequate substitute, having the primary team fail is irrelevant if the secondary team does well).

 

[Canadave]

^ The Yankees lost the ALCS last year. And in '08, they didn't make the postseason at all (first time that happened since the early 90's, AFAIK). I'd call that a 'down'.

Yeah, I think that's the key part of your statement, here. Talk to me when your team hasn't even made the playoffs since 1993, and then I think we'll have "ups and downs" covered.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

having a secondary team do poorly is inconsequential if the primary team is doing fine

I don't agree. I want *both* my teams to do well.

 

[DeafPoet]

^ I see. So you want the Yankees to hit bottom like that? Gotcha. You want revenge.

If the universe actually does balance itself out in a just fashion this year we'll just chalk "revenge" up as a fringe benefit.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

If the universe actually does balance itself out in a just fashion this year we'll just chalk "revenge" up as a fringe benefit.

I felt much the same way after the NLCS last year.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

having a secondary team do poorly is inconsequential if the primary team is doing fine

I don't agree. I want *both* my teams to do well.

Yeah, and I want a million dollars. It doesn't mean that you can't use one to console the other. The last time the Yankees won the World Series, was your season a disappointment because the Mets didn't win?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

It doesn't mean that you can't use one to console the other.

If I do that, my loyalty to the Mets will once again be questioned. I guess I can't win, can I?

The last time the Yankees won the World Series, was your season a disappointment because the Mets didn't win?

The whole season, in general, was not a disappointment, because one of my teams did well. I would have greatly preferred it if the Mets had also had a winning season. It is NOT inconsequential to me if the Mets do badly, because I am a Met fan (in addition to a Yankee fan). It's good if one of them wins a lot of games, it's better if they both do.

(It's so rare that they play each other at all, let alone do it in the WS, that this is not a contradiction.)

 

[Alidar Jarok]

The whole season, in general, was not a disappointment, because one of my teams did well.

That was my point. You don't experience the normal ups and downs of teams because you always have the Yankees to turn to, who normally do well. My only point was you can't point to the Mets because their losses don't affect you as much as someone who has a more traditional approach to fandom. If you were only a Mets fan, or a fan of some other city's team, you would experience ups and downs. The Yankees haven't experienced that in a long, long time.

That was the only point here.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ I suppose you're right. I didn't get seriously into baseball until a few years ago, so I don't know what it's like to have *none* of my teams doing well.

 

[Skywalker]

AL East
Red Sox
Rays
Yankees
Jays
Orioles

AL Central
Twins
Tigers (Wild Card)
White Sox
Royals
Indians

AL West
Rangers
A's
Angels
Mariners

NL East
Phillies
Braves
Marlins
Mets
Nationals

NL Central
Cardinals
Brewers (Wild Card)
Reds
Cubs
Astros
Pirates

NL West
Giants
Rockies
Dodgers
Diamondbacks
Padres

AL Champion: Red Sox
NL Champion: Phillies
World Series Champion: Red Sox (homer alert! )

 

[Scout101]

I'd agree with your entire list, except probably put the Yankees at 2nd in the AL East and make them the Wild Card team.

We're only at the "on paper" portion of the season, but think that has to lead to Sox/Phillies World Series at the moment. How that plays out once baseball starts happening, we'll see, but that's my starting guess.

 

[Skywalker]

Yeah, the Yankees will probably get second place and the Wild Card simply because of the "F'ing Yankees" factor.

 

[SmoothieX]

I'd agree with your entire list, except probably put the Yankees at 2nd in the AL East and make them the Wild Card team.

We're only at the "on paper" portion of the season, but think that has to lead to Sox/Phillies World Series at the moment. How that plays out once baseball starts happening, we'll see, but that's my starting guess.

On paper that sounds like a great series. I want none of it however.

The bad thing if Boston makes it is that all my friends/coworkers will be gloating, while my team is probably going to be dog shit this year. Plus the earlier they get eliminated, it's better for my wife. She takes the train to Yawkey Station for work and it's a mess on game days.

Plus, as a Mets fan, I'm anti-Philly.