The time has come

A month into the season, some teams are suffering due to injury and others are doing great when people were expecting them to tank. The time has come to make the expectation and make T-Bombs picks. We will have a podcast explaining things more, but I will give my general expectations right here.

In the AL East, hype was on the Jays but the Reyes injury and other faults have started them off slowly.  Red Sox have started hot with their new team and though the Yankees are suffering from injury they are still having no problem displaying power. I really want the Orioles to make the playoffs again, but that will take a fully healthy year from Jones and their key bats along with some deals to pick up some better pitching. My expectation is that the Red Sox will have control until August when they begin to slip and it becomes an all out battle between the five teams with the Rays, Jays and Orioles trying to catch up to the Yankees and Red Sox. I will pick my team to come out on top in the end over the podcast.

The AL Central will be no question, Tigers will take it with ease. The White Sox were the only team that showed any threat last season and they have started off in last place this year. The Royals are suppose to have a better year, but you got to give them a year to display the kind of record to catch up with the Tigers. Verlander recently has been having some injury issues, but their offense with the addition of Hunter is still to powerful for anyone to catch up.

The AL West is very interesting. The Rangers lose Hamilton to the Angels, but yet the Rangers lead the division at the end of April and the Angels are 8 games back. Houston will finish at the bottom, with Oakland and Texas battling things out over the season. The Angles will get out of their funk and join the race come August and you never know about the Mariners. They could have a rising year, but will most likely finish with a just below .500 record. Look for the Rangers to win it this year as they prove their point that they don't need Hamilton.

The NL East is going to be a two team showdown between Washington and Atlanta. The Braves have started on fire but their pitching wont be able to keep it up all year. Hudson just got win #200 and the Upton bros have been a great addition, but Strasburgh and the Nationals will get their hot streaks going, they just need to recover from some minor injuries and they will be back in the race. I will take the Nationals even though the Braves have had such a great start. Look for the Braves to take a wildcard seat, but nothing more.

The NL Central is smaller now and though Houston was the team they could all beat up on, the Cubs will fill in that roll perfectly.  The Central will be a tight race, Reds and Cardinals expected to be the dominant teams but you can't count ut the Pirates. They are going to be in the race nearly all season. The only thing they lack is consistent pitching, which the Reds and Cardinals can provide. The Brewers have been hot throughout April, but don't expect it to last to long as they will fall out of the race come July. I expect the Brewers to be a team that many turn to when it comes to making last second deals before the trade deadline. Reds, Cardinals, and Pirates. Expect two of the three of them to make the playoffs, I would think Reds and Cardinals, but would not be surprised if the Pirates pulled it off if their bats stay hot.

The NL West has had an interesting start to the season as the Rockies currently lead which was not expected at all. The Rockies will lose their lead once their bats cool down and the Giants, Diamondbacks, and Dodgers will fight all throughout the season for the title. This division depends on which team can stay healthy. Both the DBacks and Dodgers have had health problem in April which they are just now recovering from with Kubel coming back for Arizona and Hanley returning with LA. The Giants have not been getting the same kind of pitching numbers they expect as Cain is still winless and only Bumgarner has been dominant on the mound. If the Giants arms get back to business and the Doders and DBacks bats turn it up this will be a close division to the end, but only expect one of these teams to make the playoffs. I will reveal my choice over the next podcast.