2010 MLB Predictions !

The Yankees and Red Sox officially kick the season off one week from today, and the rest of baseball, except for Bal at TB (dumb), will start their seasons on Monday, April 5th. I will be at Miller Park on Monday with Jamie, Mike and a mystery attendee to see the Brewers take on the Rockies. I cannot wait. One thing you don't have to wait for is my 2010 MLB predictions. Here they are...

NL East
1. Phillies
2. Braves
3. Mets
4. Marlins
5. Nationals

This is the first time in a long time that I don't have the Mets winning the whole damn thing, and I don't even have them making the playoffs this year. Too many seasons of being let down. If I said 3rd, and they take the division, then I will be pleasantly surprised. But I think the Phillies are the class of the division, and the Braves look like they are ready to make a push. The Marlins are the wild card, I can see them taking anywhere from 2nd to 5th in the division, and watch out for the Nationals in a few years....

NL Central
1. Cardinals
2. Brewers
3. Reds
4. Cubs
5. Astros
6. Pirates

The Cardinals....and every one else. I like what the Brewers did in the off season, I just can't see them winning this division. I think the Reds will be a surprise team this year. Look for Homer Bailey to win 17 games, then in six months, look for 6 Atlanta's from the Dogg Haus to wallpaper my belly (courtesy of Nick Jim Korth)....side bet. The Cubs will falter, and the Astros and Pirates will struggle. Man, oh man, would I like winning baseball to return to Pittsburgh, but it won't happen in 2010.

NL West
1. Giants
2. Dodgers
3. Rockies
4. Diamondbacks
5. Padres

The Giants, Dodgers and Rockies will have a great run in this division, but in the end, Tim Lincecum will be the difference. Don't expect much out in Arizona or San Diego.

AL East
1. Red Sox
2. Rays
3. Yankees
4. Orioles
5. Blue Jays

This division is the main reason why realignment is necessary. The Birds (O's and Jays) don't have a chance. I think the Sox bounce back this year. I love the pitching, and the Yankees just seem too old (I said that last year, too....).

AL Central
1. White Sox
2. Twins
3. Tigers
4. Indians
5. Royals

Chicago's rotation will prove to be too much, and the Twins will really miss Joe Nathan. Not much else here, expect losing seasons in Detroit, Cleveland and Kansas City.

AL West
1. Seattle
2. Los Angeles
3. Texas
4. Oakland

Seattle is one of my surprise teams to watch out for. The addition of Cliff Lee to an already solid rotation will make the difference. I've been high on the Angels for years, and it's time for a new champion out of the AL West.

My prediction for the two wild card teams is Milwaukee and Tampa Bay.

The playoffs will look like this. Philadelphia vs Milwaukee, and St Louis vs San Franciscon in the NL. Chicago vs Tampa Bay, and Boston vs Seattle in the AL. It pains me to say this, but in a 5 game series, I like Philly over Milwaukee, and St Louis will sweep San Francisco. I have St Louis advancing to the World Series. The ALCS will pit Chicago vs Boston, and Boston will advance to face St Louis.

The World Series Champions will be St Louis, beating Boston in 7 games. We need a 7 game series. We haven't seen one since 2002.

Awards?

NL MVP (Albert Pujols)
AL MVP (Evan Longoria)

NL Cy Young (Tim Lincecum)
AL Cy Young (Felix Hernandez)

NL ROY (Alcides Escobar)
AL ROY (Matt Wieters)

Some miscellaneous things to look for...

I will hit for the sausage cycle this season. I predict it will happen during a Thursday afternoon game.

I would like to return to Indianapolis for a minor league game, because Terre Haute is not too far away from Indy, and I need my Chi-Chi's menu item fix.

The Twins open their new open-air stadium, and expect to see a snow out or three...

OK, enough talk, let's play ball!

The Sauce Cycle

Me and a bunch of friends recently hit Buffalo Wild Wings and ordered six of every flavor, boneless. Quick review of each flavor...

Sweet BBQ (sweet)
Teriyaki (could do without, my least favorite)
Mild (mild)
Parmesan Garlic (my favorite)
Medium (solid)
Honey BBQ (solid)
Spicy Garlic (another favorite of mine)
Asian Zing (solid)
Caribbean Jerk (rising up the charts)
Hot BBQ (very good)
Hot (hot)
Mango Habanero (hot, but tasty)
Wild (wild)
Blazin' (not for me)

Thanks to Amber, Jamie, Pat, Maria, Alan and Francisco for making this a fun night...

WrestleMania is tomorrow. Should be fun. I'm still a mark for this shit, even if it's once or twice a year...

Tomorrow afternoon, I unveil my 2010 MLB predictions...

Looking forward, looking back

Richard Roma was right...

Speaking of looking forward, our BW3 boneless bonanza is 4 days away, WrestleMania is one week away. opening day is April 5th, and Weezer is coming back to Milwaukee, on June 5th.

Some records I have to pick up soon....The National, She & Him, STP, Harper Simon and OK Go. There's more that I'm leaving out, I'm sure...

I'm in 2nd place in my college basketball brackets, only trailing my very good friend, Jamie Armata. Oh wait, I'm actually trailing his wife. OK, Tennessee vs Ohio State, Alisa. This game could very well determine our pool. I propose a bet. If Tennessee wins, I get to accuse you of something you're not, and if Ohio State wins, you can continue to be mean. Deal ?

Let's take a look at my 2010 fantasy baseball league team....

C Matt Wieters (Baltimore)
C Jason Varitek (Boston)
1B Adam LaRoche (Arizona)
2B Chase Utley (Philadelphia)
3B Casey Blake (Los Angeles)
SS Alcides Escobar (Milwaukee)
OF Chris Coghlan (Florida)
OF Brad Hawpe (Colorado)
OF Nyjer Morgan (Washington)
OF Ryan Ludwick (St Louis)
OF J.D. Drew (Boston)
1B/OF Nick Swisher (New York)
2B/3B/SS Jerry Hairston, Jr (San Diego))

SP Johan Santana (New York)
SP Chris Carpenter (St Louis)
SP Justin Verlander (Detroit)
SP John Danks (Chicago)
SP Jair Jurrjens (Atlanta)
SP John Maine (New York)
SP Manny Parra (Milwaukee)
SP Homer Bailey (Cincinnati)
SP Mike Pelfrey (New York)

RP Jonathan Papelbon (Boston)
RP Francisco Rodriguez (New York)
RP Bobby Jenks (Chicago)

The Barbara Walters Specials

Does anyone care?

Oscars? Pass.

Two albums that I've been wearing out this weekend....You in Reverse by Built To Spill, and The Shepherd's Dog by Iron & Wine. Both previously were filed in the "I need more time" bin in my head, but I now can easily file them under "Heavy rotation".

Gracie and I are working on a 200 piece Peanuts puzzle, easily her most ambitious puzzle in her young life, and let's be honest, mine too.

While the world is watching the Oscar's tonight, I will be at the gym, probably listening to one or both of the albums I've just mentioned, with the ultimate goal of getting rid of a few of these unwanted lbs.

Podcast...definitely want to do it. Obstacles? Time, money. Motive? Hella fun, promote the book. Gonna do more research tonight....

Lunch time...a bit early, yes yes?

Mixed Bag

The Browns restructure Josh Cribbs' contract......YEAAH !

Jose Reyes has a thyroid issue.....BOOOO !

The Mets are 3-2 this Spring.....YEAAH !

The Brewers are 0-2.....BOOOO !

We had Toppers tonight.....YEAAH !

My daughter isn't feeling well.....BOOOO !

Jamie and I are currently in discussions to do a baseball podcast, hopefully in time for the season. We've got some great things to discuss. Tomorrow, I will look into setting it up and getting an outline going. Very exciting stuff....

Gotta take care of Gracie.....