Now that Michigan State has finished the college basketball
season, the sporting world starts to care about other sports. Yes,
NBA and NHL playoffs are about a month away. Between now and then,
however, baseball steps in nicely to fill the void.
Last quarter, I vowed to examine the American League this month.
So tuck away the pine tar, grab a handful of sunflower seeds, and
away we go.
Starting in the east, two teams should make for the most
entertaining divisional race in baseball: the New York Yankees and
the Boston Red Sox. The Yankees, the defending World Series
champions, have pretty much everyone back from their 1999 title
run. What they have lost – Hideki Irabu to Montreal, Chad Curtis to
Texas, and Darryl Strawberry to the powder room – limits the Yanks’
depth. Essentially, New York needs to keep its starters healthy,
and make sure it has that umpire crew from last year’s ALCS one
more time.
Meanwhile, Boston will counter with a tale of two brothers
reunited (and it feels so good). Pedro and Ramon Martinez form a
one-two punch for the Red Sox. Ramon to Pedro of course is like
Chad to Rob Lowe – the sibling of note as the 1999 Cy Young winner.
The Red Sox have a good offensive lineup that hinges on the
performance of perhaps the most lovable man in Boston, Nomar
Garciaparra.
Whenever Garciaparra was hurt over the past two seasons, the Red
Sox struggled. If he stays healthy, and if new additions Carl
Everett and Jeff Fassero field and throw, respectively, the Red Sox
will be in position to challenge the Yankees. Perhaps the X-man for
Boston could be knuckleballer Tim Wakefield. Manager Jimy Williams
left Wakefield off the postseason roster last season, but Wakefield
can do so many things for the Red Sox, it’s hard to imagine he will
not be there come October.
In addition to starting, Wakefield has done middle relief, long
relief and even closed. Should Williams need a third starter in
that ALCS matchup with the Yankees, Tim Wakefield might not baffle
the Yankees, but he very well could throw off their timing long
enough to justify bringing in someone who throws harder than the
low-50s to befuddle the Yankees’ bats.
Elsewhere in the East, Baltimore has a decent manager, but Mike
Hargrove was already Albert Belle’s manager in Cleveland, where
Belle was rather unhappy. The Orioles need Hargrove and Belle to
work past any old sore spots in order to stay competitive. But
given the strength atop this division, that is a very tall order
for Baltimore, a real stretch for Toronto and downright laughable
for Tampa Bay, whose players were great four years ago.
In the central, Cleveland pretty much runs the show. The Indians
have added Chuck Finley to the rotation, who has a 27-18 career
record against Boston and New York. But at 37, Finley is an injury
risk. Cleveland’s offensive lineup is the best in baseball,
especially given Kenny Lofton’s remarkable return from off-season
shoulder surgery. The question for the Indians is their bullpen.
Paul Shuey and Steve Karsey are the two closers, and are the only
two members of the bullpen to post an ERA under four. If Steve Reed
can revert to his ’98 numbers with the Giants, and if Jaret Wright
can throw the ball over the plate instead of at batters’ heads, the
Indians will probably square off again with Boston in the first
round of the playoffs. Fighting for table scraps and moral
victories in the Central are Chicago, Detroit, Kansas City and
Minnesota.
Out west, there is an interesting three-team race with Oakland,
Seattle and Texas. The A’s have amassed a fine collection of young
talent, and if Eric Chavez and Ben Grieve can live up to their
billing, and Tim Hudson can prove that last season was not a
mirage, the A’s will contend. Their powerful lineup of Jason
Giambi, Matt Stairs and John Jaha are capable of hitting 40 ya-yas
apiece.
Seattle, in the meantime, is entering a new era in baseball –
the post-Griffey era. Brett Tomko and Mike Cameron were the
essential return on Griffey, and Tomko is in the minors. Alex
Rodriguez no longer has Griffey hitting behind him, but underrated
John Olerud is far more consistent than David Segui. The Mariners’
pitching is a concern, but perhaps newcomer Kazuhiro Sasaki can
stabilize the bullpen.
The Texas Rangers no longer have Juan Gonzalez, but they do have
a talented handful of youngsters, namely Gabe Kapler, Ruben Mateo,
Tom Evans and star-in-waiting Mike Lamb. If Kenny Rogers can put
his playoff past behind him, Texas will be at the heels of Seattle
and Oakland, but likely one step behind.
As for Anaheim, the good news is that the Jim Edmonds trade
rumors are no longer surrounding the team. The bad news is that Ken
Hill was the Angels’ opening day starter. Ouch. The team should
benefit from the stability under new manager Mike Scioscia, but the
best case scenario for the Halos is a .500 season.
So there you have it, baseball fans. The Yankees, Indians and
Athletics are division champs, with the wild card Red Sox coming in
strong. I would have taken the Indians to grab the AL pennant, but
Charlie Manuel will find that 99- game winners do not manage
themselves. I’ll take Boston to the October classic, provided that
Tim Wakefield gets that start against New York.
Sure it doesn’t make sense, but who had Wisconsin in their final
four bracket? Denicke really has nothing better to do, so please
e-mail him at [email protected].