![\"It's](\"https:\/\/baseballroundtable.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/03\/a_fan_of_harry_canary.jpg\")
<\/a>It’s getting closer every day!!!<\/p><\/div>\n
James Shields has finally signed, pitchers and catchers are heading for Spring Training and it\u2019s time to take a look at what Let\u2019s look first at the standings, where \u2013 thanks to one of the most active off seasons ever – BBRT expects some new faces making the playoffs. \u00a0We’ll go over the \u00a0basics first, and then consider the division races team-by-team.<\/p>\n AL EAST<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The Red Sox added offense and depth and look positioned to once again make the trip from worst-to-first.\u00a0 The Blue Jays, also active in the off-season, \u00a0should provide the toughest competition – led by newcomer Josh Donaldson.\u00a0 The Orioles lost a couple of key offensive pieces (Nelson Cruz\/Nick Markakis) and were pretty much non-participants in the off-season marketplace, which may put them out of the playoff picture. \u00a0New York has too many \u201cage & injury\u201d questions and Tampa Bay is short on offense – and likely will miss Joe Maddon in the dugout. Predicted order of finish:<\/p>\n Boston Red Sox<\/strong><\/p>\n Toronto Blue Jays (Wild Card)<\/strong><\/p>\n Baltimore Orioles<\/strong><\/p>\n New York Yankees<\/strong><\/p>\n Tampa Bay Rays<\/strong><\/p>\n AL CENTRAL<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Possibly the closest division (top-to-bottom) in all of baseball, the White Sox appear to have made all the right moves in the off season. Still, it wouldn\u2019t surprise BBRT to see less than a dozen games separating these five teams at the end.\u00a0\u00a0 The White Sox added pitching and offense, while Detroit lost some key hurlers \u2013 paving the way for Chicago\u2019s rise. Still, Detroit \u2013 behind David Price, Justin Verlander and Anibel Sanchez \u2013 may have enough to hold first place. The Royals, who had so much go right last year, seem unlikely to make another Cinderella run, but have enough talent to be in the hunt. Cleveland and Minnesota are good enough to cause problems for the top of the division, but do not appear ready to challenge Detroit and Chicago. \u00a0Predicted order of finish:<\/p>\n Chicago White Sox<\/strong><\/p>\n Detroit Tigers<\/strong><\/p>\n Kansas City Royals<\/strong><\/p>\n Cleveland Indians<\/strong><\/p>\n Minnesota Twins<\/strong><\/p>\n AL WEST<\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n The Angels and Mariners are the powerhouses \u2013 and LA will be hard pressed to hold off Seattle.\u00a0 BBRT is picking LA, but this is an LA\/Seattle toss-up \u2013 a lot may depend on Josh Hamilton\u2019s performance when he returns to the Angels\u2019 lineup. Oakland traded away too many All Stars in revamping their team. Houston is on the rise, but with a long way to go.\u00a0 Texas has too many injury concerns \u2013 but, if healthy, could surprise.<\/p>\n Los Angeles Angels<\/strong><\/p>\n Seattle Mariners (Wild Card)<\/strong><\/p>\n Oakland A\u2019s<\/strong><\/p>\n Houston Astros<\/strong><\/p>\n Texas Rangers<\/strong><\/p>\n Now for the Awards:<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n MVP:\u00a0 Mike Trout, Angels<\/strong><\/span>.<\/p>\n Contenders: Robinson Cano, Mariners; Jose Bautista, Blue Jays; Miguel Cabrera, Tigers; Jose Abreu, White Sox<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Cy Young Award: Felix Hernandez, Mariners<\/strong><\/span>.<\/p>\n Contenders: Chris Sale, White Sox; David Price, Tigers; Yorlando Ventura, Royals<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Rookie of the Year:\u00a0 Rusney Castillo, Red Sox.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Contenders: Francisco Lindor, Indians; Steve Souza, Rays; Carlos Rodon, White Sox; Ryan Rua, Rangers.<\/strong><\/p>\n _____________________________________________________________________________________<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a more detailed look at how BBRT sees the AL 2015 races.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n AL EAST<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n First – Boston Red Sox<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Big Papi should have plenty to smile about in 2015.<\/p><\/div>\n Worst \u2013 to first \u2013 to worst \u2013 to first again<\/em>? \u00a0Three years ago, the Red Sox finished fifth in the East (26 games out), two years ago they topped the division and, last season, they dropped back to fifth (25 games out). It looks like they have put the pieces in place to get back to the top of the AL East in 2015.\u00a0 Offensively, key additions include free agents Hanley Ramirez (slated to move from the infield to left field to accommodate the Red Sox\u2019 depth) and 3B Pablo Sandoval.\u00a0 Toss in the likes of DH David Ortiz, 2B Dustin Pedroia, rising star RF Mookie Betts, early Rookie of the Year favorite CF Rusney Castillo \u2013 and more \u2013 and the Red Sox have a solid, and deep, lineup. They also have considerable OF depth (Allen Craig, Shane Victorino, Danial Nava, Jackie Bradley, Jr.) from which to make a trade \u2013 particularly for pitching.<\/p>\n The rotation does not have a true ace, but with newcomers Rick Porcello (who won 15 games for the Tigers last year), Justin Masterson and Wade Miley joining Clay Bucholz and Joe Kelly \u2013 and a bullpen featuring closer Koji Uehara, Edward Mujica and Craig Breslow \u2013 it should be enough to bring Boston home on top in the East. \u00a0If any members of the projected rotation falter, prospect Anthony Renaudo is waiting in the wings.<\/p>\n Key question:<\/strong>\u00a0 Which Clay Bucholz shows up \u2013 last year\u2019s 8-11, 5.34 version or a healthy version of the 2013 All Star?<\/p>\n Red Sox Fact<\/strong>: Brock Holt provides the Sox protection around the Diamond. In 2014, he played 39 games at 3B, 35 in RF, 12 at SS, 11 at 2B, eight at 1B and eight in RF \u2013 hitting .281, with four homers, 29 RBI and 12 steals (finishing eighth in Rookie of the Year balloting).<\/p>\n Second – Toronto Blue Jays<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Jose Bautista will again lead the Blule Jays offense.<\/p><\/div>\n Like the Red Sox, the Blue Jays will count on their offense to take them to (or near) the top of the division.\u00a0 The key to that offense will be new 3B Josh Donaldson \u2013 acquired in a trade with the Athletics.\u00a0 Donaldson hit .255 with 29 home runs and 98 RBI in pitcher-friendly Oakland last season (after .301-23-93 in 2013). The 2014 All Star should find Rogers Centre to his liking. \u00a0There is plenty of power up and down the line up with RF Joe Bautista, 1B Edwin Encarnacion and free-agent newcomer Russell Martin behind the plate.\u00a0\u00a0 SS Jose Reyes will provide some speed at the top.<\/p>\n The pitching is not as strong as the offense \u2013 but is sound.\u00a0 Four returning starters \u2013 R.A. Dickey, Mark Buehrle, Marcus Stroman, Drew Hutchinson – were all double-digit winners a year ago.\u00a0 The off-season trade of 11-game winner J.A. Happ opens the door for either Aaron Sanchez or Daniel Norris \u2013 two high-potential youngsters. The bull pen will likely be led by new closer (now that Casey Janssen has left via free agency) Brett Cecil and may include Sanchez if he doesn’t make the rotation (Sanchez has closer potential). Newcomer Marcus Estrada and Aaron Loup provide bullpen depth and a return to form by 2013 All Star Steve Delabar would be a plus.<\/p>\n Overall, it looks like the addition of Donaldson and Martin will enable the Jays to improve on their third-place finish of a year ago \u2013 grabbing a Wild Card spot or even unseating the Angels.<\/p>\n Key Question<\/strong>:\u00a0 Will 22-year-old Dalton Pompey \u2013 who hit .231 in 17 late season games for the Jays \u2013 be able to handle the regular CF spot?\u00a0 Pompey is a plus defender and hit .317 in three minor league stops a year ago.<\/p>\n Blue Jays Fact<\/strong>: The Blue Jays have MLB\u2019s longest current post-season drought \u2013 having not earned a berth in the post-season since 1993.<\/p>\n Third – Baltimore Orioles<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Basically non-participants in the off-season marketplace, the O\u2019s will feel the loss of free agent outfielders Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis. \u00a0In 2014 the pair combined for 54 home runs (25.5% of the O’s total) \u00a0and 158 RBI \u00a0(23.2% of the O’s total). Still, there are reasons for optimism: 1) The Orioles have Buck Showalter, who knows how to get the most out of his resources; 2) They did win the East by 12 games a year ago, so they have a bit of a cushion in the quest to repeat; 3) They have some players returning from injury who could close the offensive gap left by the Cruz\/Markakis departures.<\/p>\n There is still the potential for a potent offense, with returnees CF Adam Jones and RF Steve Pearce.\u00a0 A strong return from catcher Matt Weiters (Tommy John surgery). a rebound by Chris Davis (who hit 53 HRs just two seasons ago) and a year of good health from 3B Manny Machado (.278-12-32 in 82 games a year ago \u2013 knee surgery) could also boost the Orioles\u2019 2015 success.\u00a0 The middle of the infield (SS J.J. Hardy and 2B Jonathan Schoop) is dependable and defense should remain a Baltimore strength.<\/p>\n Even without a true ace, starting pitching may be the Orioles\u2019 \u201cace in the hole.\u201d The rotation features four double-digit winners with 2014 ERAs under 3.75:\u00a0 Chris Tillman; Wei-Yin Chen; Bud Norris; and Miguel Gonzalez. Closer Zach Britton (37 saves and a 1.65 ERA) will lead a bullpen that also features quality arms in the likes of Brian Matusz, Darren O\u2019Day and Tommy Hunter.<\/p>\n Baltimore will be in the hunt, but BBRT sees the Birds falling short of the post season.<\/p>\n Key Question<\/strong>: Will 1B Chris Davis rebound? Two years ago, Davis put up a .286-53-138 line. Last year, Davis declined to .196-26-72, struck out in 38.4 percent of his at bats and faced a 25-game suspension (positive test for amphetamines associated with the Adderall).<\/p>\n Orioles Fact:<\/strong>\u00a0 Baltimore led all of MLB in home runs in 2014 (211) and has topped 200 dingers in three straight seasons.<\/p>\n Fourth – New York Yankees<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n There\u2019s trouble coming to the Big Apple \u2013 Jeter is gone, as is closer Dave Robertson (free agency) and starter Huroki Kuroda, who led the team in games started (32) in 2014.\u00a0 The Yankees still do have some big names (and a big payroll), but that is both a blessing (proven players) and a curse (age and injury concerns). Among the starting nine, it\u2019s possible incoming shortstop Didi Gregorius (trade with Arizona) will be the only player under 30.\u00a0 The 24-year-old will be a defensive improvement over Jeter, but still is a work in progress at the plate (.226-6-27 in 80 games for Arizona).\u00a0 \u00a0The fact is, the Yankees have plenty of question marks in the expected line-up.\u00a0 In the outfield 37-year-old Carlos Beltran is coming off one of his worst seasons ever (and elbow surgery). First baseman Mark Teixeira hit only .216 and will be spelled by newcomer Garrett Jones. While C Brian McCann contributed 23 home runs and 75 RBI, his .232 batting average was 40 points below his career average.\u00a0 There are bright spots. \u00a0CF Jacob Ellsbury and LF Brett Gardner delivered power and speed as expected. Switch-hitting 3B Chase Headley continued to flash a solid glove \u2013 although it\u2019s unlikely he will ever match his 31-homer, 115-RBI campaign of 2012 (the only season he\u2019s topped 13 home runs).<\/p>\n On the mound, particularly given Kuroda\u2019s departure, the Yankees need healthy seasons from Masahiro Tanaka (13-5, 2.77 in a season interrupted by an elbow injury) and oft-sidelined Michael Pineda. A healthy C.C. Sabathia (coming off knee surgery) would significantly improve the Yankees\u2019 outlook.\u00a0 Other likely starters are former Marlin Nathan Eovaldi, whose upper 90s fastball offers significant promise, 36-year-old Chris Capuano and Ivan Nova (coming off Tommy John surgery). In the bullpen, 6\u2019 8\u201d flamethrower Dellin Betances looks ready to step into Robertson\u2019s closer shoes. The Yankees added quality to the pen with free agent Andrew Miller. David Carpenter, Adam Warren, Esmil Rogers and Justin Wilson give the Yankees plenty to choose from in filling out the relief corps.<\/p>\n Looking at the roster, it\u2019s hard to see the Yankees being a factor in 2015.<\/p>\n Key Question:<\/strong> \u00a0Will Alex Rodriguez be back and, if so, what will the 39-year-old have left in the tank?<\/p>\n Yankee Fact<\/strong>:\u00a0 In 2014, the Yankees were the only AL team to not have a single player receive a vote in either the MVP or Cy Young Award balloting.\u00a0\u00a0 (Note: While Tampa Bay\u2019s final roster did not include vote-getters in either category, CYA votes did go to David Price, who played the majority of his games with Tampa before the trade to Detroit).<\/p>\n Fifth – Tampa Bay Rays<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n If you\u2019re going to examine the Rays, you have to start with their strength \u2013 the pitching \u2013 because offensively there just isn\u2019t a whole lot to talk about. \u00a0Let\u2019s look at the Rays\u2019 rotation.\u00a0 While they are missing a bonafide number-one guy – thanks to last year\u2019s in-season David Price trade \u2013 the Rays have three starters who could fit into the number-two or number-three role on most teams: Alex Cobb; Chris Archer; and Jake Ordozzi.\u00a0 By mid-season, the Rays hope to have Matt Moore back from Tommy John surgery. Moore, 17-4, 3.29 in 2013, would slide into the number-one spot. Backing up the rotation is a bullpen led by Bryan Boxberger, pressed into the closer\u2019s role due to Jake McGee\u2019s off-season elbow surgery.\u00a0 McGee went 5-2, 1.89 with 19 saves and 90 strikeouts in 71 1.3 innings last season \u2013 and should return sometime in May.<\/p>\n The Rays offense was 27th<\/sup> in runs scored a year ago, and little was done to address the problem. \u00a0In fact, potential offense was traded away when 2013 Al Rookie of the Year Wil Myers was sent to San Diego as part of a three-team multi-player trade and two-time All Star 2B Ben Zobrist (arguably the face of the franchise) was sent (along with SS Yunel Escobar) to the A\u2019s for C\/DH John Jaso, prospects and cash. Escobar will be replaced by free agent signee Asdrubel Cabrera, who should be an upgrade. What qualifies as the heart of the Rays\u2019 offense beats through 3B Evan Longoria (.253-22-91). James Loney is steady at 1B, possessing a good glove, but lacking the power you expect from a corner infielder (.290-9-69). Similarly, CF Desmond Jennings appears slotted into the leadoff spot, but doesn\u2019t get on base at the rate you expect at the top of the order. The other two OF spots will likely go to Steven Souza and Kevin Kiermaier.<\/p>\n The Rays starting pitching will keep them in games, and could bring them home as high as third place.\u00a0 But there just isn\u2019t enough offense to get them into the post-season. \u00a0Souza (picked up in a trade) could surprise. In three 2014 minor league stops, Souza hit .345-18-88, with 26 steals. He was voted the International League\u2019s (AAA) Rookie of the Year AND Most Valuable Player. \u00a0At the major league level, Souza went only 3-for-23 with the Nationals \u2013 although two of his hits were home runs.<\/p>\n Key Question<\/strong>: How much will the Rays miss previous manager Joe Maddon\u2019s 11 years of managerial experience (twice AL Manager of the Year). \u00a0Maddon’s replaecment 37-year-old Kevin Cash (former major league catcher and Indians bullpen coach) has no managerial experience.<\/p>\n Rays Fact:<\/strong> The Rays\u2019 96 double plays in 2014 are the lowest total ever in a 162-game season.<\/p>\n AL CENTRAL<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n First \u2013 Chicago White Sox<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n Wow! \u00a0No really, wow! \u00a0The White Sox are poised to make the jump from fourth place to first in the AL Central \u2013 and they did it with a combination of free agent signings, trades and the development of home-grown talent.<\/p>\n Chris Sale – an early Cy Young award favorite – will lead the Sox’ rotation.<\/p><\/div>\n Consider the rotation.\u00a0 It\u2019s led by potential Cy Young winner Chris Sale (the Sox first- round pick in 2010) and Jeff Samardzija (picked up in an off-season trade with the Athletics). The number-three spot goes to Jose Quintana, with John Danks and Hector Noesi likely to round out the starting five.\u00a0 Waiting in the wings, but needing a little more seasoning, is the Sox\u2019 2014 first-round draft pick Carlos Rondon.\u00a0 The 22-year-old moved from Rookie League to AAA in his first minor league season – and could find his way into the rotation some time this season. \u00a0The bull pen \u2013 a trouble spot last season – is in good hands for 2015, led by free-agent signee closer David Robertson, who saved 39 games for the Yankees.\u00a0 The Sox also added a solid set up man (again through free agency) in Zach Duke.\u00a0 These two moves will enable the Sox to develop the bull pen roles (last season, three different relievers each reached double-digits in save opportunities for the Sox, who had 21 blown saves).<\/p>\n Chicago also upgraded its offense, adding free agents Melky Cabrera (OF) and Adam LaRoche (DH) to complement Rookie of the Year 1B Jose Abreu (.317-36-107), RF Avisail Garcia, SS Alexei Ramirez and top-of-the-order catalyst CF Adam Eaton. The Sox also added flexibility to the roster, signing free agent Emilio Bonifacio, who hit .259 in 119 games last season (Cubs\/Braves) \u2013 and spent time at all three outfield spots, as well as second base, third base and shortstop.<\/p>\n
\n<\/a> expects in 2015.\u00a0 We\u2019ll start with a look at the American League \u2013 and BBRT’s predictions for the standings and contenders for the major awards.\u00a0 Coming soon:\u00a0 NL predictions.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a>