1. Who will come out on top in baseball's most competitive division?
You could pick from any of the teams other than the Royals and you wouldn't be making a crazy predicition. But the safe pick would appear to be the Twins. Johan Santana is still the best pitcher in the game and although it's a little dicey in the rotation after him, the bullpen is outstanding. Joe Nathan is a top notch closer and Jesse Crain and Pat Neshek have proven to be solid options as setup men. The lineup, which used to simply be Torii Hunter and a bunch of no-names is now one of the better groups in the league. Justin Morneau is the reigning MVP and catcher Joe Mauer could easily be holding that banner himself. Michael Cuddyer had a big year and is firmly entrenched in the middle of the lineup and the afformentioned Hunter is still producing.
2. The Tigers winning 95 games last year was no fluke...right??
No fluke at all. The Tigers certainly can win over 90 again this year. The Tigers were wise to bring back Sean Casey and trade for Gary Sheffield to give the offense a boost after they may have overachieved a bit last season. Losing a veteran pitcher like Kenny Rogers hurts, but not as much as it might have last year. He helped ignite a young staff last year, but this time around guys like Justin Verlander and Jeremy Bonderman are seasoned enough to be able to continue their success. It's probably a matter of time before Joel Zumaya becomes the Tigers closer because Todd Jones isn't getting any younger and his numbers as a closer last year weren't overwhelming. The mix of young talent and veteran leadership will keep Detroit in the mix all season.
3. Can the White Sox get the good pitching they got when they won it all in '05?
It probably won't happen. Although Jon Garland somehow won 18 last year, he was not the same pitcher he was in the World Series season of 2005. But it was Mark Buehrle who was a shocking disappointment in '06 (followed a 16 win season with 12-13 and 4.99 ERA). If he can return to form, the White Sox will move in the right direction. But that still leaves Jose Contreras, who was knocked around on Opening Day, and Javier Vazquez, who has struggled since leaving the Expos. There are too many question marks surrounding this staff to think they can turn it around quickly in '07.
4. Several experts are picking the Indians to win the division. Is this justified?
It depends if you put more stock into the Indians of 2005, who won 93 games, or the Indians of 2006, who won just 78. But most likely the total this season will be somewhere between the two. And if even this year's version of the Tribe resembles the '05 version, it won't be enough to win the highly competitive American League Central. C.C. Sabathia is an ace, but they'll need more than what they got last year from Jake Westbrook and Paul Byrd, while waiting for Cliff Lee to come off the DL. Starter Jeremy Sowers was impressive as a rookie and the Indians hope he can build on that. But the closer is Joe Borowski, who is a downgrade from Bob Wickman. It's a young lineup and they can build around Travis Hafner, Victor Martinez, and Grady Sizemore for years to come, but overall the offense will fall short of teams like Minnesota and the White Sox. Much like the Brewers of the NL Central, Cleveland is probably another year or two away from making a serious run.
5. The Royals will probably finish last again, but will they at least be a little more competitive?
If the Royals were in any other division in baseball, the outlook might be a little more positive. However, they'll play nearly half their schedule against division foes, all of whom are teams capable of getting to the postseason. They'll see very little of Tampa Bay, Baltimore, or Seattle - all teams that are beatable. Even their interleague schedule is unforgiving, as they'll face the defending champion Cardinals six times, the Phillies three times, and at Milwaukee for three. Kansas City has the lineup to score some runs, but the pitching just isn't there. Gil Meche got things started right with his win against Boston, but that might be as good as it gets for K.C. this season.
