2010 AL East Preview

The AL East has been widely regarded as the toughest division in baseball, and this year they will try to live up to their reputation. Last year, the World Champion New York Yankees came out of this division, and we will see whether they can repeat.

1. New York Yankees
The defending World Series Champs, the Yankees lost Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon, but gained All-Star CF Curtis Granderson from the Tigers in exchange for OF Austin Jackson. The outfield this year will contain Granderson, Brett Gardner, and veteran Nick Swisher. Outfielders off the bench will be Randy Winn and Marcus Thames. The infield is anchored on the left side with A-Rod and Derek Jeter providing All-Star caliber play on both sides of the scorecard. Up and coming second baseman Robinson Cano and power hitting first baseman Mark Teixeira make up the rest of the infield. Ramiro Pena will be the utility man for the Bronx Bombers this season. Jorge Posada will start at catcher, with Francisco Cervelli backing him up. Nick Johnson will be the everyday DH for the Yankees, and could spell in the outfield and at first base. The pitching staff is lead by big ace CC Sabathia, coming off a 19-8 season last year. Following him will be AJ Burnett, Andy Pettite, Javier Vazquez, and Phil Hughes. Alfredo Aceves and Damaso Marte will work in the 6-7th innnings, while Joba Chamberlain will set up for Mariano Rivera. The fountain of catchers will flow for the Yankees in the next few years, with Jesus Montero, Austin Romine, and Gary Sanchez all top prospects in the orginization. Overall, this team should be in the position to repeat their championship from last year.

2. Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox made a few moves in the offseason following an ALDS loss to the Angels, including signing veterans OF Mike Cameron, and 3B Adrian Beltre. Cameron will start in center, with Jacoby Ellsbury in left, and JD Drew in right field. Bill Hall and Jeremy Hermida will spell in the outfield for the Red Sox this year. Veteran pickups Adrian Beltre and Marco Scutaro will start on the left side of the diamond, while Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youklis will provide solid offense and defense on the right side. Mike Lowell will spell at corner infield positions, and Bill Hall will play Behind the plate will be Victor Martinez, who can provide solid offense for the Sox. Captain Jason Varitek will back up the former Indian. At DH will be Big Papi, David Ortiz, who has struggled to find his stroke hitting the ball both last year, and early on this year. The pitching rotation is up there for the best in baseball, with Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, and John Lackey, three legitimate aces. Knuckleballer Tim Wakefield and youngster Clay Bucholz round out the rotation. Daisuke Matsuzaka will probably be up with the Red Sox soon, after throwing 11 scoreless innings in two starts so far in AAA Pawtucket, recovering from neck and back injuries. Daniel Bard, Ramon Ramirez, and Manny Delcarmen will pitch in long relif, with Hideki Okajima setting up for closer Jonathan Paplebon. Young pitcher Casey Kelly could be up in the Major Leagues as early as later this season. I think the Red Sox have a chance to make the playoffs again this year, but maybe as the Wild Card again.

3. Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays have been the victims of playing in such a difficult division in previous years, and this year will probably be similar. They have a good team, but with the Yankees and Red Sox, they may not make the playoffs. Speedy left fielder Carl Crawford and five-tool CF BJ Upton team up with RF Gabe Kapler in the Rays outfield this year, with Fernando Perez and Pat Burrell on the bench. Evan Longoria looks to further improve on a 33 HR year last year, with Jason Bartlett, Ben Zobrist, and Carlos Peña finshing out the infield. Willy Aybar, Reid Brignac, and Sean Rodriguez will play off the bench as infielders. James Shields and Matt Garza are at the top of a talented young rotation, with Jeff Niemann, David Price, and Wade Davis finishing it off. Andy Sonnanstine, Grant Balfour, and Dan Wheeler will lead up to closer Rafael Soriano. The Rays are a very talented young team, and will compete in the tough AL East, but I don't see them returning to the postseason this year.

4. Toronto Blue Jays
The Blue Jays traded away SP Roy Halladay to the Phillies this offseason, acquiring SP Kyle Drabek, 3B Brett Wallace, C Travis d'Arnaud. The Jays will look to build through the draft and the minor leagues. This year, the outfield will consist of Travis Snider, Vernon Wells, and Jose Bautista. Adam Lind will spell in left, as well as playing DH everyday. Edwin Encarnacion will start at third for the Jays, followed by Alex Gonzalez at short, John McDonald at second, and Lyle Overbay at first. All-Star and 2009 Comeback Player of the Year Aaron Hill is expected to return from injury this week and take over at second base. Mike McCoy will back up at shortstop, with Jarrett Hoffpauir off the bench at second, and Randy Ruiz will back up at first and DH. John Buck, a former Royal, will be behind the plate, with Jose Molina backing him up. The rotation without Halladay will be led by Shawn Marcum, who will try to get back to 2007 form when he won 12 games for Toronto. Brian Tallett and Ricky Romero are two promising young starters, with Brandon Morrow and Dana Eveland closing out the rotation. Jeremy Accardo and Scott Downs will lead up to Kevin Gregg and Jason Frasor. The Blue Jays have a good future, and their rotation will be strong in the future, as they will add Kyle Drabek, the centerpiece of the Halladay deal soon. This year though, the Jays will fall short of the top 3.

5. Baltimore Orioles
The Orioles have been the perennial bottom feeders of the AL East in recent years, and the trend should continue this year. The O's acquired some talented veterans in the offseason, but not enough to get them past the Blue Jays. The outfield will conatin Nolan Reimold, Adam Jones, and Nick Markakis, making the outfield a very decent group. Lou Montanez will back up at each outfield spot, with Luke Scott playing OF and DH. Miguel Tejeda will play 3rd for the O's this year, with veteran SS Cesar Izturis to his left, and Julio Lugo at second. Garrett Atkins, a former Rockie, was acquired in the offseason and will start at first. Ty Wigginton will be a pinch hitter and corner infield back up for Baltimore this year. Super prospect Matt Wieters will be behind the plate and will attempt to live up to the massive hype surrounding him, with Craig Tatum backing him up. Former Ranger Kevin Millwood and Jeremy Guthrie head the rotation, with talented young lefty Brian Matusz developing right behind them. Brad Bergesen and David Hernandez make up the bottom of the rotation. Will Ohman and Mark Hendrickson will pitch in relief, with Cla Meredith and Jim Johnson pitching the eighth and ninth innings. The Orioles need to keep developing pitchers and hitters, and could have success down the road, but the pieces are not there in Baltimore to seriously compete in the AL East.

With all of the divisions wrapped up, let's go through the AL Playoffs. In the NL Playoffs, I predicted the Phillies to top the Rockies and Dodgers to advance to another World Series. Here are my predictions for the AL Playoffs:

AL West Champs: A's
AL Central: Twins
AL East: Yankees
AL Wild Card: Red Sox

ALDS: Yankees over A's
ALDS: Twins over Red Sox
ALCS: Yankees over Twins

World Series: Yankees over Phillies in 6

So, my predictions for the 2010 season are that the Yankees will beat the Phillies in a rematch of last year's World Series and come up with the same result. I will be updating on baseball, the NBA playoffs, the NFL Draft, and many other things later in the week. Enjoy!