American League 2018 preview

Two of the three divisions look easy to figure, but, then again........

AL East:

It's easy to say the Yankees could not only reach the LCS this year, but the World Series, hoping to snap a 9 year drought. First year manager Aaron Boone, formerly of ESPN, has a nice problem to have with an embarrassment of riches. It wasn't enough that the Yanks picked up Danny Espinosa (Washington/Tampa Bay/Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, etc.) and Jace Peterson (Atlanta) to shore up the bench, but now they have rebuilt Murderers' Row for the 21st century with reigning Rookie of the Year and Home Run Derby champ Aaron Judge and the biggest acquisition of the winter, Giancarlo Stanton (Miami) at the center, flanked by Greg Bird, Gary Sanchez, Didi Gregorius, and their latest signee, Neil Walker (Mets/Milwaukee). They have depth all around the infield, as well as in the outfield. I question whether or not Sonny Gray, in his first full season in the Bronx, can handle the pressure after being about as consistent as a broken toilet last summer. As it is, #5 starter Jordan Montgomery will have all kinds of pressure starting the home opener vs. Tampa Bay on April 2.

In Boston, Red Sox Nation doesn't care that management may have been fleeced by Scott Boras in signing ex-Valleycat J. D. Martinez (Detroit/Arizona). As long as Martinez produces, adding to an already potent offense with two-sport star Mookie Betts, Hanley Ramirez, and Mitch Moreland, they'll be happy. I worry more about the pitching. Baltimore fans will be concerned if another Boras drone, Manny Machado, decides to walk after this season to chase the money. And they wonder why no one brings up that they haven't had a sniff of the World Series in 35 years. Along with Toronto & Tampa Bay, they're playing for show money.

Projected order of finish:

1. Yankees.
2. Boston.
3. Toronto.
3 (tie). Baltimore.
5. Tampa Bay.

AL Central:

They say that Kansas City has gone from contender to pretender. Not sure about that yet. Yes, Lorenzo Cain is gone (Milwaukee), but they did get a power bat in Lucas Duda (Mets/Tampa Bay) to replace Eric Hosmer (San Diego). Hosmer, of course, is another Boras drone. Never should've let Hosmer go. If Salvatore Perez can stay healthy, he could form a 1-2 punch with Duda. Ron Gardenhire, last seen venting his spleen in Minnesota, is now the skipper in Detroit. While the pitching is solid with Michael Fulmer and Jordan Zimmerman at the front, the offense has to come around after letting Martinez go to Arizona last summer. Miguel Cabrera & Victor Martinez aren't going to be there forever. It's really a two-horse race, if you believe the pundits, those two being Cleveland and Minnesota. The Indians foolishly decided not to keep Jay Bruce and played Indian giver by letting him go back to the Mets. The Twins' young core may be ready to finally break through. Brian Dozier wouldn't happen to be related to ex-Met & Penn State football hero D. J. Dozier, would he? If Chicago and Rick Renteria want to get back into contention, get Ken Harrelson out of the booth. His act can get stale after a while, and he wasn't the homer he is now when he was Dick Stockton's caddy in Boston many moons ago. Harrelson doesn't realize it, but he may be a plague on the White Sox. Just sayin'.

Projected order of finish:

1. Minnesota.
2. Cleveland.
3. Kansas City.
4. Detroit.
5. Chicago.

AL West:

Contrary to what I thought might happen, Houston didn't extend their World Series celebration all the way to the home district, what with a good number of Valleycats alumni (i.e. Jose Altuve, George Springer, Dallas Keuchel) as vital parts of their championship team. The division is theirs to lose. They let Mike Fiers walk, and the last I checked, he was getting regularly lit up in preseason games for Detroit. They get a full season of Justin Verlander, and picked up Gerrit Cole (Pittsburgh) to replace Fiers. In contrast, Texas, despite taking a chance on Bartolo Colon (Atlanta/Minnesota), doesn't really have enough left in their veteran core to make another run. Seattle welcomed back Ichiro Suzuki (Miami) as a free agent, and added more speed by getting Dee Gordon (Miami), who is being converted to an outfielder since Robinson Cano is the incumbent at second base. Pitching is a question mark. Moneyball won't be the necessary answer in Oakland anymore, as they're still about two years away from a playoff return. Los Angeles needs to make a big run, one last run for Albert Pujols, who entered the league the same year Ichiro did. How many more times can network yakkers talk up Mike Trout for MVP if the team's nowhere near playoff contention? How soon does Mike Scioscia need to borrow some SlimFast from Tommy Lasorda?

Projected order of finish:

1. Houston.
2. Seattle.
3. Los Angeles.
4. Oakland.
4 (tie). Texas.

Of course, I could be wrong.