So far, I've taken quite a beating on my predictions for the American League. Choosing the Rays to finish last in the AL East stirred up a little bit of debate. But, hey, it's all part of the game. Everyone makes their bold predictions, and that's mine for the upcoming season.
Will I be correct?
Probably not, but it never hurts to make a bold prediction.
Now, I will continue with naming my predictions for the worst teams in the National League. I can promise all of you this: these predictions certainly won't be as bold as my picking the Rays. It's widely assumed that these teams will be the lower tier of the National League.
NL East
It's pretty safe to say that the Phillies won't be anywhere near last place this season. Their stacked rotation will leave the rest of the NL East baffled and fighting for second in the division.
With that being said, the fight for second should be won by the Atlanta Braves, entering their first season without Bobby Cox in quite some time.
Even with an unhealthy Chipper Jones, they stand to be a top team in the National League. Just imagine if he stays healthy and is productive. That could be a pretty formidable lineup.
I really believe the Nationals are getting better. I may be one of the only people around the league who thinks so, but they're doing good things in Washington. The addition of Jayson Werth may have been questionable, but they solidified the middle of the order.
The Nationals' young rotation will come into its own this year, and pitch them to a third-place finish in the tough NL East.
That leaves the Marlins and Mets.
Outside of Josh Johnson and Hanley Ramirez, the Marlins don't have much star power. Sure, they have a big up-and-comer in Mike Stanton, but it's really too early to call him a star.
The rotation is a question mark, but their lineup will score a few runs. Fortunately for them, the Mets are in their division.
The Mets will come in last in the NL East this season. The Jose Reyes extension could become a distraction for a team that already doesn't play very well in the first place.
Luis Castillo is getting up there in age, as is Carlos Beltran, and they will be without ace Johan Santana for the majority of the first half.
A rotation led by R.A. Dickey and the injury-ridden Chris Young definitely won't win you many games.
NL Central
The NL Central has three teams that could all make a run at the division crown, but I believe that the Reds will repeat as champs.
Their young stars are finally showing their worth, and the fireballing Aroldis Chapman will be more of an impact arm in his first full season.
Second place in the division, and the Wild Card, will come down to the Cardinals and Brewers. The Brewers revamped pitching staff will be very successful this season, but the consistency of the lineup remains to be seen.
The Cardinals are the National League's version of the Minnesota Twins. They always play the game the right way, they win every single year, and they aren't out of the race until the last day of the season.
This experience alone could win them second place in the NL Central.
However, I think the Brewers will be behind the Reds, with the Cardinals in the third.
The Cubs will be in fourth this season. They clearly aren't as good as the Reds, Brewers and Cardinals, yet they are nowhere near as awful as the Astros and Pirates. This fact alone puts them in fourth place.
Between the Astros and Pirates, I see the Pirates coming in last place yet again. They have 18 consecutive losing seasons, and figure to make it 19 in 2011.
The infield defense will be anchored by Lyle Overbay at first, with Neil Walker, Ronny Cedeno and Pedro Alvarez playing second, short and third, respectively.
Young star Andrew McCutchen will be in control of the outfield, and will be accompanied by left fielder Jose Tabata and right fielder Garret Jones. There really isn't a big power threat anywhere in the lineup.
The rotation will be led by left-hander Paul Maholm, assuming he isn't traded away. After Maholm, the Pirates have Kevin Correia, Ross Ohlendorf, Scott Olsen, and Charlie Morton.
It's pretty easy to see why the Pirates will be last in the NL Central, and probably last in the entire National League as well.
NL West
This division may be the easiest prediction I will make this season.
The defending World Series champs certainly won't come in last. Their pitching is more than solid and their lineup will score some runs.
I believe the Rockies will come in second. They can definitely score a ton of runs, and the pitching should be stable enough to keep them in ballgames.
There will be a battle for third place between the Dodgers and Padres, but I think the Dodgers win it because without the bat of Adrian Gonzalez, the Padres are left without a proven Major League hitter.
That leaves the Diamondbacks.
The D'Backs are solid up the middle of the field with Miguel Montero, Kelly Johnson, Stephen Drew, and Chris Young.
With Justin Upton in right field, the team will be pretty solid defensively. After trading away Mark Reynolds, though, they may have an issue scoring runs this season.
Upton will bounce back from a down year and produce in the middle of the lineup.
The starting rotation is the weakest point of this team, though.
The staff ace, by default, is left-hander Joe Saunders. The final four spots will be left up to five men in Spring Training. Ian Kennedy, Zack Duke, Bobby Enright, Armando Galarraga, and Dan Hudson will battle it out.
No matter who makes the staff, I don't predict any starter to win more than 12 games for the D'Backs this season.
It's gonna be a long season in the desert.
Tough Races Ahead
Although the National League will have its share of bad teams, there figure to be tight races this summer.
The Phillies will run away with the NL East, but the NL Central will be close, as always, and so will the NL West.
It's tough to say whether the Giants can repeat as NL champs, and its even tougher to say that the Phillies will dethrone them. With so many good teams in the National League, it should be an interesting season.
If your favorite team happens to be one mentioned in my two-part story then, well, better luck next season.
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