Can they repeat? Yes they can!
Everyone is writing about how the Phillies have one of the greatest pitching staffs in MLB history and that only the Red Sox stand between them and a World Series championship. Last time I looked the San Francisco Giants were the reigning champions and I would submit that their top four of Cain, Alfedlt, Sanchez, and the magnificent Tim Lincecum remain better than the Phillies staff, the addition of Cliff Lee notwithstanding. And I’ll take Brian Wilson over Brad Lidge as a closer any day of the week.
If the Giants get back to the playoffs they could break hearts everywhere except San Francisco and win another World Series. Winning their division may be the hardest part. Once again, they’ll pitch well but they need Buster Posey to mature, Freddy Sanchez to return to form, Aubrey Huff to hit, and Miguel Tejada to have gas left in the tank. If not, Cody Ross and Pablo Sandoval won’t get much to hit.
If the Giants stumble, the Los Angeles Dodgers are good enough to dethrone them, now that divorce court and Mannyworld diversions are over, and assuming that Don Mattingly knows how to manage. The staff--Billingsley, Lilly, Garland, Kuroda--isn’t spectacular, but it’s solid and if Loney, Blake, Ethier, and Kemp play to their potential and Furcal rebounds, they’ve got more firepower than the Giants. The catching sucks, though, and the Dodgers often play disinterested baseball.
The Colorado Rockies top two pitchers, Ubaldo Jimenuz and Jorge De La Rosa, are sweet. Alas, it falls off pretty quickly from there. Troy Tulowitski and Carlos Gonzalez are fun players, but unless Chris Ianetta hits a ton and Todd Helton finds the Fountain of Youth, it’s hard to see the Rockies getting as close as they did last year.
You can forget the San Diego Padres this year. They still have Mat Latos and Heath Bell, but in the offseason they pretended they were the Kansas City A’s and that the Red Sox were the ’56 Yankees. (How could they not insist on Clay Bucholtz in the Adrian Gonzalez deal?) Aaron Harang at $12.5 million? Say what? No pop, thin staff, and slim hope.
But they’ll be better than the Arizona Diamondbacks. The D’backs added Zack Duke, Aaron Heilman, Juan Miranda, and Xavier Nady. Need I say more?
Predictions:
1. Giants
2. Dodgers
3. Rockies
4. Padres
5. Diamondbacks
As someone who detests baseball (it is baseball, is it not?) this is a fabulous example of esoteric language deserving of a prize. Here's a chocolate teapot.
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