2007 Major League Baseball Predictions Thread

[jbergey22]

Please grade your teams going into the 2007 season(truthful as possible please).... I'll start it out

Minnesota Twins
2b Luis Castillo
3b Nick Punto
C Joe Mauer
RF Michael Cuddyer
1b Justin Morneau
CF Torii Hunter
DH Rondell White
LF Jason Kubel
SS Jason Bartlett

SP Johan Santana
SP Boof Bonser
SP Carlos Silva
SP Matt Garza
SP Scott Baker/Sidney Ponson

CL Joe Nathan
SU Juan Rincon
LSU Dennis Reyes

The Twins really havent made any changes from last years divsional championship team. The offense at the end of the year blended very nicely and with a year more experience would expect a nice improvement from this end. I would expect a little more production from Joe Mauer(power in particular)Rondell White, and Jason Kubel. I would expect Morneau to have a hard time duplicating his 06 numbers athough he did play with a lot of confidence last year after the first month of the season. This defense is very solid as well

The pitching staff concerns me a bit, we lose a veteran in Radke. We have alot of very talented youngsters but we do need someone to develop into consistent #2 and #3 starters. In any case I would expect our #4 and #5 starters to be as good as any in the league. The bullpen once again will be very solid. Nathan is as good as they get, Rincon has consistently been very good and I even if Reyes falls off a bit he will still be a dominant lefty out of the pen. Neshek and Crain just add to the incredible depth of this unit which I would rate the best in baseball.

Overall the Twins should be about a B+, they will once again compete for the division Championship. I love the Tigers however there may be a World Series and blowing the division hangover effect, hopefully the Twins pounce on them early. I expect the Indians to be much improved and IMO will leapfrog the White Sox this year.

Twins will be good for 90-95 wins in a VERY strong division as long as they dont have to trade the best pitcher in baseball during the year.

[Lazareth]

C Kyle Baker
1B Aaron Hansen
2B Levi Blunk
3B Joe Stewart
SS Dave Burgraph/Nick Jensen
LF Gavin Ipsen
CF Curt Tingle
RF Boone Meyer

SP Dave Burgraph/Nick Jensen/Aaron Hansen

We're going to look good this season. Dave and Nick are really starting to hit the strike zone and Aaron coming in as one of the few LHP in the league gives us an edge when he's needed to come in. I hope to pick up a solid draft pick or two but this team looks to be the one that can go all the way. The kid in RF can't play very well, but that's why he's in right field and not at one of the key positions. (note my kid, Aaron, already has his spot as 1b/SP inked in - but has nothing to do with dad's position as coach, he's just that dang good).

[Zoso1515]

C Ivan Rodriguez - Eww
1B Chris Shelton/Shawn Casey - Still has potential/Solid vet
2B Placido Polanco - very solid player
3B Brandon Inge - My favorite, very underrated
SS Carlos Guillen - Best SS in the AL
LF Craig Monroe - Uggg
CF Curtis Granderson - Has potential
RF Magglio Ordonez - Hmmmmmm
DH Gary Sheffield - Nice pickup

SP
Justin Verlander - Yay
Jeremy Bonderman - Yay
Kenny Rogers/Mike Maroth - Can he repeat last year?/Injured last year but underrated
Nate Robertson - Very Good
Andrew Miller/Zach Miner - Can't wait to see him/Overrated

MR
Fernando Rodney - Very Good
Joel Zumaya - Orgasmic

CL
Todd Jones - eww

[nate7891]

C- Brad Ausmus...still
1B- Lance Berkman
2B Craig Biggio/ Mark Loretta
3B Morgan Ensberg/ Mark Loretta
SS- Adam Everett/Mark Loretta
LF- Carlos Lee
CF- Chris Burke
RF- Luke Scott

Rotation
Roy Oswalt
Jason Jennings
Woody Williams
Chris Sampson/Wandy Rodriguez/Chad Qualls
Fernando Nieve

MR-Chad Qualls
Setup-Dan Wheeler
CL-Brad Lidge





I dont know what to expect from this team. I dont have a very good feeling about that offense or the pitching past Oswalt.

[darkhorse]

Originally Posted by Zoso1515

C Ivan Rodriguez - Eww
CF Curtis Granderson - Has potential

LOL. Dunno which is funnier.

Probably the first as Pudge got the same evaluation as Todd Jones.

[lewis31lewis52]

Why the "ugg" for Craig Monroe? He may be overrated, but he's still a good OF. Agree on Inge, though. He's been my favorite Tiger since I first saw him back in '02, and he's very underrated, especially his range defensively.

[MorseMoose]

Originally Posted by darkhorse

LOL. Dunno which is funnier.

Probably the first as Pudge got the same evaluation as Todd Jones.

Ivan got a capital E...so he must be really bad.

[zukes]

C - Greg Zaun
1B - Lyle Overbay
2B - Aaron Hill
SS - Royce Clayton/John MacDoanld
3B - Troy Glaus
LF - Reed Johnson
CF - Vernon Wells
RF - Alex Rios
DH - Frank Thomas

Bench (this is where people will battle for spots)
C- Jason Phillips
SS - Calyton or MacDonald
3B - John Hattig
OF - Adam Lind
IF - Russ Adams
IF - Sergio Santos

Rotation
1. Roy Halladay
2. AJ Burnett
3. Gustavo Chacin
4. John Thomson
5. Josh Towers/Shawn Marcum/Dustin Mcgowan/Casey Janssen/Francisco Rasario/Scott Downs/Ty Taubenheim

Bullpen
MR - Brian Tallet and the losers of #5 spot will battle

SU - Jason Frasor
SU - Brandon League
SU - Jeremy Accardo

CL - BJ Ryan

The Jays will be able to mash with anyone in the league. If Thomson is healthy again and Burnett finally has a healthy season (BIG if's) then this rotation can be good enough to get the Jays in the playoffs.

You may not know the names in the Jays bullpen, but for the most part they are young and throw smoke. BJ Ryan is one of tyhe best in the business as a closer.

If the Jays land a starter in a trade it will come at the expense of a young pitching prospect and Alex Rios (who I am not big on trading), but may put them over the top and make the World Series contenders. However, a lot has to go right pitching-wise for this team to improve from last year's good, but also ran season.

The bench is very thin as well.

[mikev]

Oakland is shaping up to be one of several different looking lineups, they all depend on guys being healthy.

C1 - Kendall. He'll play 150 games, and if he hits like he did the 2nd half, he's actually going to be pretty decent.
1B - Dan Johnson. If he somehow learns how to not pull everything he could be a nice hitter this year. If not, Swisher goes here.
2B - Mark Ellis. Injury free, he's the best defensive 2B in the AL and had a monstrous 2nd half of 2005, but was injured last season. Should be solid.
3B - Chavez. We all know what to expect (.280/30/100 with gold glove D). Problem is every year he's been below expectations with the bat. Also injured all year, maybe he finally puts it together if he's healthy.
SS - Crosby. He's had a major injury in all but his rookie year, so it's expected that he'll miss 100 games and Scutaro will start at SS. That sucks.
LF - Swisher. Busted out the power last year, but needs to cut down on K's. Should be another very solid season.
CF - Kotsay. Back is made of glass, down defensively and offensively. League average at best.
RF - Bradley. Capable of being a middle of the order hitter, if he's healthy. Had some stints of being very good last year, but doesn't hit many homers.
DH - Piazza. Should put up better numbers than last year since he won't be catching at all. Won't equal what Big Hurt did last year, but .280/25/85 shouldn't be out of the question.

[Lawley]

C- Bengie Molina Was solid last year for catcher standards with 19 HR but im sure he wont come close to that at AT&T park, and im excited to see if Eliezer Alfonzo can put up some decent numbers like last year in the backup role.

1B- Ryan Klesko/Rich Aurilia Hopefully Klesko can add a little pop to the Giants offense, a little pop being like 7 HR? Please. And im glad to ahve good old richy back, if he could put up 20hr like last year then it would be an amazing pickup.

2B- Ray Durham If Ray has a season like he did last year, .293 avg. 26HR 93Rbi, then well be alright. I only wish he could steal a base.

3B- Pedro Feliz Idk why but as a Giants fan im still hoping Pedro will have his breakout year....soon. He can play a bunch of positions and last year he proved his D at 3rd base was improved.

SS- Omar Vizquel Old but good. Had close to a .300 avg along with 24SB last season, and ill take him as a leadoff hitter or a second man in the lineup any day. He finds ways to get on base and his D is something the Giants need and love.

Lf- Bonds I belive he will have a little bit of a better season than last year...if he doesnt have to go to jail or anything. The end.

CF- Dave Roberts SPEED, ill take it. Close to 50sb last year, holy crapola thats more than the giants have had the past 5 seasons. Ya know why Benito Santiago used to swipe all of those bags

RF- Randy Winn I think hell put up some decent numbers, more sb from him i see, and if he stays healthy he can put up 20hr with a .200avg.

sp-Barry Zito I like him, i think he will do good in the gaints big ball park and he shall lead the staff with close to 18 wins.
sp-Matt Cain I love this kid, he is the future, hes big and hes got a lot of energy, he will be able to throw 200+ip and hopefully stay hot this season.
sp-Noah Lowry If he stays healthy i see him not being a dominate pitcher but a pitcher who can win a lot of games, like good ol woody kirk rueter.
sp- russ ortiz/matt morris/j sanchez/ will all be fighting for the #4/5, although morris will get the 4 spot and he should do a hell of a lot better than last year. And if not he will be a good teacher for the youngsters.

Bullpen-no. Benitez GONE GO BYE BYE GONE BYE BYE BYE, pleasssse.

[Zoso1515]

Originally Posted by lewis31lewis52

Why the "ugg" for Craig Monroe? He may be overrated, but he's still a good OF. Agree on Inge, though. He's been my favorite Tiger since I first saw him back in '02, and he's very underrated, especially his range defensively.

.301 OBP in 2006 .310 for a career. ugg

[Zoso1515]

Originally Posted by darkhorse

LOL. Dunno which is funnier.

Probably the first as Pudge got the same evaluation as Todd Jones.

Still the best defensively but he just blows offensively. Combined 37 walks the last two years. In 2005, he had the worst OBP in baseball. Back-to-back sub-100 OPS+ seasons. Plus, he just getting older. I'd love to see Shelton go back to the minors to re-learn catcher because it doesn't look like we have much of a replacement.

[Caporegime]

NY Yankees

Starting Lineup:

CF Johnny Damon
SS Derek Jeter
RF Bobby Abreu
3B A-Rod
LF Hideki Matsui
C Jorge Posada
DH Giambi/Phelps
2B Robby Cano
1B Phelps/Mientkiewicz/Phillips(maybe)

Starting Pitching:

SP Chien-Ming Wang
SP Andy Pettitte
SP Mike Mussina
SP Kei Igawa
SP Pavano/Hughes/Karstens/Rasner

Bullpen:

CL Mo Rivera
SU Scott Proctor
SU Brian Bruney
MR Farnsworth
MR Luis Vizcaino
MR Mike Myers
MR Chris Britton

Bench

Melky Cabrera
Wil Nieves
Andy Phillips
Kevin Thompson


Lineup/offense: The starting lineup speaks for itself, with the obvious exception of 1B. Offensively the Yanks will, as usual, absolutely eviscerate mediocre pitching, of which there is no shortage in the AL. Even with the likes of light-hitting Mientkiewicz in the lineup on a semi-regular basis, scoring runs will not be a problem for the Yanks this year.

Starting Pitching: The lack of depth in the rotation is certainly a concern. One prolonged injury to one of their top three will assuredly put a nasty kink in the Yanks’ season. Both Pettitte & Moose are getting up there in years, and Wang, for all his brilliance last year, is just two seasons removed from a nasty arm injury himself. I’m less concerned about Igawa & Pavano. While it’s true that Igawa is an unproven quantity, the expectations for him don’t appear to be very high. If he can manage just 10-12 wins this season, I’m sure most Yankee fans will be happy with that. Pavano has been a perpetually injured no-show, so it would be silly of me to express any expectations concerning him. Hopefully he’ll be a pleasant surprise, but I’m not banking on it. Hughes has been given the dreaded “can’t miss” label by both the Yankee brass and scouts nationwide. However, he is still 20-years old, so it would be a bit premature and unrealistic to expect too much from him at this juncture.

Bullpen: I’ll be brief: Mo is money in the bank, Bruney looks like a stud in the making, Farnsworth is a bum, Proctor is talented but inconsistent at times, Vizcaino is decent, and Myers is a lefty specialist, but no more no less. In short, the bullpen is still a source of consternation. Outside of Mo, I don’t think anyone can predict what any of those guys will give the Yanks this season. Lot’s of question marks.

Bench: I sincerely hope that Torre can somehow find 400-450 AB’s for Melky. I really enjoyed watching him develop last year and I’m convinced that he’s an All-Star in the making. In a perfect world, Giambi would be moved elsewhere, Godzilla would DH, and Melky would play Left. But this isn’t a perfect world, and only a fool would take Giambi’s contract off the Yanks’ hands.

Prediction: 95-100 wins

[jbergey22]

Well it looks like Houston did absolutely nothing to improve its situation. I would have thought losing Clemens and Pettitte would allow them to sign some help for that pathetic offense.

I like Toronto's squad, little bit shaky at C and SS(I've always thought clayton was overrated).

Detroit looks very very good on paper. They could use a good averageguy in their lineup, they seem to favor a lot of .250-.275 hitters with above average power.

I think the Giants have improved themselves quite a bit, looks like a playoff team to me. The Molina signing will be nice for them and of course Zito. Their young solid arms will have 1 more year of expereince.

Of course the evil empire will be there. I think addition by subtraction will be key for them this year.

As for Oakland, doesnt look like to much has changed from the offensive side. I know they lose Zito but Hardon and Haren with both be healthy this year so that should help make up for the Zito loss a little. I think what hurts Oakland the most is the loss of thier manager(unclear why they fired him)

[darkhorse]

Originally Posted by Zoso1515

Still the best defensively but he just blows offensively.

Pudge hasn't been a below average hitter at his position since his rookie campaign 16 years ago. Still one of the best catchers in the game.

When his career is done, Ivan will be the best catcher to have ever played the game.

[darkhorse]

Originally Posted by mikev

1. C1 - Kendall. He'll play 150 games

2. 3B - Chavez. We all know what to expect (.280/30/100

3. RF - Bradley. Capable of being a middle of the order hitter, if he's healthy. Had some stints of being very good last year, but doesn't hit many homers.

1. I'll take that bet.

2. This one as well, since Chavez has done this only once in his career.

3. He's a quality hitter, regardless. Milton's equivalent averages the past four seasons are .326, .273, .290, and .292.

[Raderick]

San Diego Padres

Rotation
1. Jake Peavy
2. Chris Young
3. Greg Maddux
4. Clay Hensley
5. David Wells

Starting Line-up
1. 2B Marcus Giles
2. CF Mike Cameron
3. RF Brian Giles
4. 1B Adrian Gonzales
5. C Josh Bard
6. SS Khalil Greene
7. 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff
8. LF Terrmel Sledge

Bench
C Rob Bowen
2B Todd Walker
3B/OF Russell Branyon
IF Geoff Blum
OF José Cruz, Jr.

Bullpen
MR Cla Meredith
MR Scott Linebrink
MR Royce Ring
MR Heath Bell
MR Scott Cassidy
CL Trevor Hoffman

[marc]

Ryan Howard will hit atleast 20 homeruns.

IN APRIL!!!! LOL!!!! ROFFLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Arlie Rahn]

Arizona D-Backs

Lineup
CF Chris Young
SS Stephen Drew
3B Chad Tracy
LF Eric Byrnes
1B Conner Jackson
RF Carlos Quentin
2B Orlando Hudson
C Miguel Montero

Bench
2B/SS/3B Alberto Callaspo
OF Jeff DaVanon
1B Tony Clark
C Chris Snyder
OF/IF Scott Hairston

Rotation
Brandon Webb
Randy Johnson
Livan Hernandez
Doug Davis
Dana Eveland/Micah Owings/Dustin Nippert/Enrique Gonzalez

Bullpen
LR Juan Cruz
MR Brandon Lyon
MR Doug Slaten
SU Brandon Medders
SU Tony Pena/Jorge Julio
CL Jose Valverde/Jorge Julio

Lineup Comments
Arizona has an extremely young and talented lineup, but it will also be unpredictable. There are a ton of .350-.400 OBP guys (Hudson, Tracy, Drew, Jackson, Quentin and potentially Young). They won't have a lot of HRs, but should bomb out the doubles and get on base a bunch.

Bench
Snyder had a .350 OBP from the catcher spot, so he could overtake Montero if he struggles. DaVanon is a great 4th OF as he had a .371 OBP in 220 ABs last season. Clark battled injuries last season but did hit 30 HR the year before and is a nice late-inning power bat. Hairston and Callaspo are both highly touted prospects so it will be interesting to see how they do.

Starting Rotation
Webb's easily the best pitcher in the NL and both RJ and Davis have had nice 3-year splits. Livan chews up the innings and both Eveland and Owings have a high ceiling as prospects for the #5 spot. If RJ can stay as healthy, the DBacks could have one of the better starting 5s in the NL. Getting Davis locked up for three more seasons at a reasonable rate ($7 mil per) helps too. It looked like he was in line for Ted Lilly money had he gone FA after this season.

Bullpen
A lot of hard throwers with Pena, Valverde, Medders, Julio, Lyon and Cruz. Medders was great last season (esp in the second half). After struggling early, Valverde bounced back to have a 1.93 ERA after the break and should be the closer. Slaten's been a pretty effective lefty. Pena, Lyon and Julio will be key. All have been very good, but also struggle at times. If two of those guys can be somewhat consistent, this pen should be a very good one.

Overall outlook
This team is still pretty young. Outside of the rotation (Davis, RJ, Livan), they don't have another starter or bullpen guy over 30. And RJ (42), Tony Clark (34) and DaVanon (33) are the only guys over 31 on the roster. So, a good start will be key. Having their top 4 starters combine for 859 IP last season (215 IP ave) should save the pen as well. But, if this team can get going, it has the talent to be a player in the NL West.

[JayCobb]

Line Up:

1. Coco Crisp CF - Crisp was injured for most of last year, but he seemed hot and cold when he was playing.
2. Julio Lugo SS - The new addition for the Sox, looks like a good replacement for Gonzales
3. David Ortiz DH - Broke the Red Sox HR Record last year, and showed no signs of slowing down
4. Manny Ramirez LF - The chase for 500 begins
5. Wily Mo Pena RF - His Mo-ness could provide some extra pop, if he stays healthy
6. Mike Lowell 3B - A consistent, but aging hitter
7. Jason Varitek C - The Captain will have to pick it up after last years .238 season
8. Kevin Youkilis 1B - If he can keep his OBP up like last year, he will be a bottom of the order threat
9. Alex Cora 2B - Not much to say, Pedroia should be in this spot by June

Rotation:

1. Curt Schilling - This might be his last season, but he still wants to win
2. Josh Beckett - With the young aces behind him, he might not stay #2 for long
3. Daitsuke Matsusaka - This has all the makings of a bust, except for the fact that he is really, really good
4. Johnathan Papelbon - Will the closer to starter change work?
5. Tim Wakefield - Always good for 12-15 wins, Mr. Reliable might not make it to his usual plateau
6. Jon Lester - Will he be the same after his battle with cancer?

Bullpen

MR1. Julian Tavarez - He needs to step it up a notch
MR2. J.C. Romero - Did the Red Sox screw up in signing him?
MR3. Brandon Donnelly - ^^^^^^^^^
SU1. Mike Timlin - Can he be good for another season
SU2. Manny Delcarmen - Can he prove he deserve the hype?
CL. Craig Hansen - ^^^^^^^^^^

Minors:

2B Dustin Pedroia - 2B of the future
OF Jacobi Ellsbury - One more year
OF Brandon Moss - ^^^^^^^^
SP Edgar Martinez - ^^^^^^^

Prediction:

97 wins if Matsusaka works
87 if he doesnt