2011 MLB American League East Predictions
When powerhouses like the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox are present, there weren’t many people who expected the Tampa Bay Rays to take them down for a second time in AL East 2010. They had been having an unsuccessful offseason and with their continuing
streak of one loss after another, this was quite an accomplishment.
The five teams who battle it out on the field for this division title are the Boston Red Sox, the New York Yankees, the Tampa Bay Rays, the Toronto Blue Jays and the Baltimore Orioles.
Last year would have been the year for the Red Sox but their inability to perform after they had injuries is what took them down. This year they added Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez to the team, which means that even if any player on the team ends up
injured, the Red Sox would still have hope of winning. They have the best line-up, rotations and bull-pens in the American League and it will be a shame if Josh Beckett, John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka end up performing horribly, like they did last year.
No one has ever doubted the Yankees potential but it seems that questions about the player’s ages have started and with good reasoning. Alex Rodriguez is not what he used to be and seems to have lost some of his form. That being said, they are still overloaded
with talent like CC Sabathia and Phil Hughes among many others. If only the talented players would start performing like they are supposed to, the Yankees’ fans might have something to look forward to.
For the Tampa Bay Rays, losing Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena and Jason Bartlett all of a sudden this season could not have been easy. Within the passage of 24 hours, the team lost their best player ever, their best home-run hitter ever and their best short-stop,
respectively. If that wasn’t enough, Rafael Soriano, their best closer and Matt Garza, the first Ray to throw a no-hitter are not with them anymore. Only time will tell if Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez will be able to perform, given both are past their prime
times. This season doesn’t look too promising for the Rays as they do not have enough firepower at the plate or the mound to compete against the big names.
The Toronto Blue Jays haven’t appeared post season since two decades and there’s nothing that point towards this sad fact changing. Shuan Macrum and his 3.64 ERA was their only saving grace and now that he’s been traded to the Milwaukee Brewers, their rotation
is left weaker than what it was before.
The Baltimore Orioles started off with a very poor 2-16 last season but three managers later, they finished with 34-23 over their final 57 games under the guidance of Buck Showalter, which is an improvement. The Orioles have good talent at the offence as
well as the defence but somehow the pitchers just can’t seem to perform. The addition of Derek Lee, Mark Reynolds and Vladimir Guerrero is encouraging, let’s hope that the team doesn’t give up too many runs.
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