2011 Postseason Predictions

After quite possibly the most exciting night in baseball history, it's time for the postseason to provide a decent follow-up act (if possible)! Let's take a look at each series, and how I think they will unfold. First, the National League.


National League Division Series: Arizona Diamondbacks (94-68) vs. Milwaukee Brewers (96-66)

The Brewers cruised to the NL Central crown with a rock solid bullpen, a frightening offense, and a decent starting rotation that is light years better than they were in 2010. This enabled them to win their first ever division crown since 1982, when they were still in the AL East. In addition to this, they won a franchise record 96 games, breaking the old record of 95 set in 1979 and 1982.

Diamondbacks starter Ian Kennedy has been one of
the best (and most underrated) starters in baseball this year.

The Diamondbacks however, became only the third team in baseball history to reach the postseason after losing 97 games the previous year (the 1991 Braves and the 1999 Diamondbacks are the other two). They raced to the division crown featuring a decent offense and a very underrated pitching staff, led by Ian Kennedy, who finished with a ridiculous 21-4 record with a 2.88 ERA.

My prediction: Diamondbacks 3 games to 1. I believe that Ian Kennedy and Daniel Hudson will be on top of their game, stalling Milwaukee's offense along the way. Arizona's offense will find just enough pop to get by Milwaukee, and that will help lead them to their first NLCS appearance since 2007.

National League Division Series: St. Louis Cardinals (90-72) vs. Philadelphia Phillies (102-60)
The Redbirds were huge underdogs in the NL Central heading into 2011, as many prognosticators believed the Reds and Brewers were better teams (myself included). Honestly, for the first five months, this definitely appeared to be the case, as St. Louis was a whopping 10.5 games behind Atlanta in the Wild Card race as late as August 25. The Cards caught fire after that day, going 22-9 the rest of the way, while the Braves went a dismal 10-20 to miss the playoffs in one of the biggest collapses of all-time.

Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay may not no-hit the Cardinals,
but he'll help lead Philly to the NLCS for the fourth straight year.

The Phillies were just the Phillies, winning their fifth consecutive division title with a franchise-record 102 victories. They did this with the best rotation in baseball leading the way, which masked the fact that their aging, injury-prone offense wasn't much to write home about. However, the Phils slumped toward the end of the season, going on an eight-game losing streak just days after clinching.

My prediction: Phillies 3 games to 2. The Cardinals are a team on fire right now, and they will ride that momentum going into the postseason. St. Louis has also given Philly fits this year, going 6-3 against them in the regular-season. Nonetheless, the Phillies will hang on only because their rotation will be just strong enough for them to extinguish the Cards.

American League Division Series: Detroit Tigers (95-67) vs. New York Yankees (97-65)

Justin Verlander will have a lot on his
hands dealing with New York's potent offense.

The Tigers rode to their first division title since 1987 mainly behind the efforts of starting pitcher Justin Verlander, who has a terrific shot at becoming the first pitcher to win the MVP since 1992. The Tigers also have a solid offense, with AL batting champion Miguel Cabrera leading the way. Also, once you give the ball to closer Jose "Papa Grande" Valverde, it's game over; Valverde went a perfect 49 for 49 in saves this year.

The Yankees, as always, are riding on the heels of their intimidating offense into October, but the guy leading the wasn't Jeter, A-Rod or Teixeira. It was former Tiger Curtis Granderson, who hit an unprecedented 41 homers and drove in 119. The Yanks also stayed afloat with a piecemeal rotation behind ace C.C. Sabathia, as White Sox castoffs Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia have come through big for them this year.

My prediction: Yankees 3 games to 1. The Tigers will steal game one behind Verlander, but the lack of depth in their rotation will do them in against New York's mighty offense.

American League Division Series: Tampa Bay Rays (91-71) vs. Texas Rangers (96-66)

The Rangers will need for C.J. Wilson to
be on top of his game all throughout
the postseason.

Tampa Bay made their third postseason appearance in four years behind a comeback for the ages (and a collapse for the ages from the Red Sox). However, this should not mask the fact that they have one of the best rotations in the game, and all of their starters are under 30! Their team ERA of 3.58 was the second-best in the American League, only trailing the Angels' 3.57. Their offense isn't much to write home about, but then again, it wasn't last year, and they still managed to win 96 games. Simply put, their hitters know how to drive people in when it counts.

The Rangers theoretically are still the team to beat in the American League. After all, they are the defending American League champions and they are back in the playoffs. They reached the postseason again behind some decent pitching and an intimidating offense. As a team, the Rangers hit an AL-best .283.

My prediction: Rangers 3 games to 2. The Rays are on fire right now, but Texas will certainly cool them off behind their blistering offense and solid pitching. Like last year, the Rangers will need all five games to take out the Rays.

The Rest of the Postseason:
ALCS: Rangers over Yankees, 4 games to 2.
NLCS: Phillies over Diamondbacks, 4 games to 2.
World Series: Rangers over Phillies, 4 games to 3.

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Now, for my other award predictions:
AL Cy Young: Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers
NL Cy Young: Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers
AL Rookie of the Year: Jeremy Hellickson, Tampa Bay Rays
NL Rookie of the Year: Craig Kimbrel, Atlanta Braves
AL Manager of the Year: Joe Maddon, Tampa Bay Rays
NL Manager of the Year: Kirk Gibson, Arizona Diamondbacks

Also, for your reading pleasure, here's Tom Verducci's brilliant recap of last night's drama. (Sports Illustrated)

That's all for now. Take care, and enjoy the playoffs tomorrow!

My wildly outrageous 2011 MLB Predictions

• With Opening Day quickly approaching, it's always fun to predict how the season will play itself out. Here's how I think the 2011 season will go down. It'll be more fun seeing how wrong I am at the end of the season, too. Let's go!
  
  Division Predictions (asterisk denotes Wild Card winner)
  
  AL East:
  
  1. Boston Red Sox (97-65). The new acquisitions of first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and left fielder Carl Crawford will pay huge dividends to a team that is already very talented. Should everybody stay healthy, a division title is a certain lock for the Carmines.
  2. New York Yankees (88-74). Their lineup will still mash, but will their pitching be deep enough behind C.C. Sabathia to keep pace with the rest of the AL? My guess is that it won't be.
  3. Toronto Blue Jays (86-76). Much like the Yankees, the Jays will have a very formidable lineup, but there are still several question marks regarding their pitching. Also, will Jose Bautista have an encore performance at the plate this year? Chances are that he won't hit 54 home runs again, but he'll still be a very intimidating presence in their lineup.
  4. Tampa Bay Rays (79-83). The Rays may say that their pitching will still be good, but the losses of Carl Crawford, Rafael Soriano, Carlos Pena, Jason Bartlett and Matt Garza will just be too much for them to overcome.
  5. Baltimore Orioles (69-93). Their lineup looks better, and they have some young pitchers with the potential to be good, but I still think they're a year or two away from moving out of the AL East basement.
  
  
  AL Central:
  
  1. Chicago White Sox (93-69). With the new acquisition of 1B/DH Adam Dunn, Chicago's lineup will easily be the toughest in the division. Their pitching, while not overwhelming, will be good enough for them to capture their fourth division title since 2000.
  2. *Minnesota Twins (91-71). Even though they did not do much to improve themselves in the off-season, the Twins usually still find a way to get things done, and this year won't be any different, as they will capture the American League Wild Card.
  3. Detroit Tigers (87-75). They will certainly improve on last year's mediocre performance, but will their starting rotation be deep enough behind Verlander to propel them to the postseason. My guess is that they will be good, but not good enough.
  4. Kansas City Royals (68-94). Apparently they have the best farm system in baseball, so their days of misery may not last for too much longer. However, they won't be good at all this year.
  5. Cleveland Indians (61-101). Their bullpen improved last year, but that still doesn't make up for a dreadful starting rotation, and a lineup that has a steep talent drop off once you look past Shin Soo-Choo and Grady Sizemore.
  
  
  AL West:
  
  1. Texas Rangers (88-74). A strong lineup coupled with some solid pitching will vault the defending American League Champions back into the playoffs.
  2. Oakland A's (87-75). Oakland will put up a fight, as they will boast the best starting rotation in the American League for the second year in a row. However, their lack of offense will get the best of them.
  3. Los Angeles Angels (78-84). Losing out in the free agent sweepstakes will definitely cost the Angels this year, as their lineup continues to age.
  4. Seattle Mariners (65-97). At least they have Ichiro and Felix Hernandez to keep people interested.
  
  
  NL East:
  
  1. Philadelphia Phillies (102-60). The Phillies will roll to a fifth consecutive division crown behind the best rotation in baseball and a very strong lineup.
  2. Atlanta Braves (86-76). The Braves will be solid, but will they be good enough to reach the postseason again? With the multitude of deep teams in the NL, I don't think Atlanta quite stacks up to the rest of the pack. Besides, if it wasn't for San Diego's September collapse last year, the Braves would not have reached the postseason.
  3. Florida Marlins (81-81). They always seem to be stuck in gear. They are the MLB poster-child for "average."
  4. New York Mets (77-85). They could potentially be better, but we've been saying that for the last couple of years. I'll let them prove it to me before I put them ahead of the Marlins.
  5. Washington Nationals (67-95). DC's lineup should be okay, but their pitching will be wretched, especially without Strasburg.
  
  
  NL Central:
  
  1. Milwaukee Brewers (95-67). The Brew Crew are going "all in" this year, and with the additions of Zack Greinke and Shawn Marcum to their starting rotation, the Crew will have their best season since 1982.
  2. *Cincinnati Reds (93-69). Their lineup will be great again, but their pitching should be even better than last year, as their young arms will certainly improve.
  3. St. Louis Cardinals (84-78). Losing Adam Wainwright for the season will really, really hurt the Cards. Plus, an erratic lineup behind Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday certainly won't help matters.
  4. Chicago Cubs (82-80). They won't be as dreadful as they were last year, but any improvements they make this year will be only marginal.
  5. Houston Astros (70-92). Not much to say about the Astros, other than they aren't all that great.
  6. Pittsburgh Pirates (65-97). The Bucs will be dreadful, but they won't lose 100 games again. Their lineup will be stronger than most people expect, but their pitching will easily be the worst in baseball.
  
  
  NL West:
  
  1. Colorado Rockies (91-71). In a very competitive division, the Rockies will march to their first division title in team history behind a strong lineup and some solid pitching.
  2. Los Angeles Dodgers (90-72). LA will narrowly miss the playoffs, but they will hang tough into the final week of the season behind a decent offense and a deep rotation.
  3. San Francisco Giants (80-82). The defending World Champions will experience a lay over, as their offense won't be nearly as clutch as they were last year.
  4. San Diego Padres (73-89). Last year was a fluke, trust me. They'll get a good year out of Mat Latos however, as he will settle in even more to become the unquestioned staff ace.
  5. Arizona Diamondbacks (68-94). They'll improve marginally, but they still won't be that good.
  
  
  Postseason
  
  American League Division Series:
  Boston Red Sox over Minnesota Twins 3-2. The Twins will finally win a playoff game, and not only that, they'll push Boston to a fifth and deciding game before the Red Sox take care of business at home.
  
  Chicago White Sox over Texas Rangers 3-0. Chicago will make easy work of the defending American League Champions, sweeping them out of the playoffs.
  
  National League Division Series:
  Philadelphia Phillies over Cincinnati Reds 3-1. Bad luck will strike the Reds again in the form of facing the formidable Philadelphia Phillies, but they won't get swept this time though.
  
  Milwaukee Brewers over Colorado Rockies 3-1. Milwaukee will finish off the Rockies in an easy four games.
  
  American League Championship Series:
  Chicago White Sox over Boston Red Sox 4-3. The White Sox, in shocking fashion, will take down the heavily-favored Boston Red Sox in seven games.
  
  National League Championship Series: Philadelphia Phillies over Milwaukee Brewers 4-2. The Phillies will reach the World Series again for the third time in four years, but not without a fight, as Milwaukee will give them fits.
  
  World Series
  Philadelphia Phillies over Chicago White Sox 4-1. The Phillies are just too strong for Chicago, dispatching them in a quick and easy five games to take home their third title in team history. I'm not completely drinking the kool-aid right now.
  
  Awards
  
  AL MVP: Carl Crawford, Boston Red Sox.
  
  NL MVP: Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers.
  
  AL Cy Young: Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers.
  
  NL Cy Young: Roy Halladay, Philadelphia Phillies.
  
  AL Rookie of the Year: Kyle Drabek, Toronto Blue Jays.
  
  NL Rookie of the Year: Aroldis Chapman, Cincinnati Reds.
  
  AL Manager of the Year: Bob Geren, Oakland A's.
  
  NL Manager of the Year: Ron Roenicke, Milwaukee Brewers.
  
  Other wild and ridiculous predictions:


• Joey Votto will not repeat as a MVP winner, but he'll become the first Reds player in 38 years to win a batting title, hitting .347.


• Adam Dunn will have a field day in Chicago, becoming the first player in White Sox history to hit over 50 home runs. He'll finish with 53.
  


• There will be four 20-game winners in baseball this year, with two of them coming from the Phillies (Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee). John Danks of the White Sox and Justin Verlander of the Tigers will be the others.
  


• Verlander will have the best year of his career by far, as he will become the first pitcher since 2002 to strike out 300 batters in a season.
  


• The National League will win the All-Star Game once again, securing home field advantage in the World Series for the second year in a row.
  


• After 32 years of managing and after a disappointing third-place finish, the Cardinals' Tony LaRussa will announce his retirement at season's end.
  


• Even though the Nationals insist that this won't happen, star prospect Bryce Harper will be called up to the big leagues in September.

As I already mentioned at the beginning of this post, I may be completely wrong at the end of the year when I go back and look at this. However, it's always fun to make predictions on how the year will turn out, then looking back to see how right or how wrong you are!

The 30 Team/30 Day Report Cards: Day 23- Texas Rangers

It’s nothing but playoff teams from here on out. Here is the report card for the American League Champions, the Texas Rangers!

Texas Rangers
Record: 90-72 (First place in AL West, nine games ahead of Oakland. American League Champions.)

Batting Leaders
Batting Average: Josh Hamilton (.359)
Home Runs: Josh Hamilton (32)
RBIs: Vladimir Guerrero (115)
On-base Percentage: Josh Hamilton (.411)

Pitching Leaders
Wins: C.J. Wilson (15)
Strikeouts: Colby Lewis (196)
Innings Pitched: C.J. Wilson (204)
ERA: C.J. Wilson (3.35). Bullpen- Alexi Ogando (1.30)
WHIP: Colby Lewis (1.19). Bullpen- Neftali Feliz (0.88)
Saves: Neftali Feliz (40)

Highlight of the Season: On October 22, the Rangers defeated the Yankees in Game Six of the ALCS 6-1, to clinch the American League Pennant, the first in team history.

Lowlight of the Season: The euphoria from the AL Pennant would quickly end just 10 days later, as they fell to the Giants in Game Five of the World Series 3-1 to lose the Fall Classic, four games to one.

The Lowdown:
While some considered Texas a dark horse in the American League West, nobody could have imagined the impressive season the Rangers would have this year, as they ran away with the division en route to their first pennant in team history. The team finally was able to back up their impressive offense with good pitching, as C.J. Wilson, Colby Lewis and company were able to pitch efficiently enough to get the team out to a big lead in the division early. Then, on July 9, the Rangers acquired ace lefty Cliff Lee in a trade with the Seattle Mariners, and that seemed to be the icing on the cake for this team, as Lee strengthened an already decent rotation. With Oakland’s mediocrity, Seattle’s ineptitude and Los Angeles’ bad luck, the Rangers were able to easily coast to their first division title in 11 years.

Offense:
Texas had arguably the most intimidating lineup in baseball this year, featuring Josh Hamilton, a rejuvenated Vladimir Guerrero and the ever-capable bats of Nelson Cruz and Michael Young. Hamilton was simply impressive last year, hitting an American League-best .359, with 32 home runs and 100 RBIs in just 133 games. Even though he missed a great portion of September, his numbers were still good enough for him to earn the AL MVP, and deservedly so.

Behind him was DH Vladimir Guerrero, who had a phenomenal comeback year, hitting .300, with 29 home runs and 115 RBIs in 152 games. His resurgence no doubt played a big part on this team, making their lineup more formidable, as well as providing Hamilton some protection in the order.

Adding more pop in the lineup was outfielder Nelson Cruz, who hit .318 with 22 home runs and 78 RBIs in just 108 games. Third baseman Michael Young also continued to do what he does best, and that’s hit consistently. He finished with a .284 average, with 22 home runs and 91 driven in, as he missed another 200-hit campaign by only 14 safeties. Ian Kinsler, David Murphy and Elvis Andrus also contributed to making this lineup an imposing one as well.

Overall, Texas finished fifth in runs (787), first in batting average (.276), sixth in on-base percentage (.338), ninth in slugging (.419) and 10th in homers (162). When you take into consideration that Hamilton and Cruz each missed some time due to injuries, it makes this lineup look all the more impressive.
Final Grade: A+


Pitching:
The backbone of this team that led them to new-found glory in the American League was their pitching. Texas’ starting rotation to begin the year was led by a very capable stable of arms including Colby Lewis, C.J. Wilson and Tommy Hunter. The even more impressive part about their pitching was that they were able to perform well in spite of the performance of Scott Feldman, their 17-game winner from 2009. Feldman finished with a 5.48 ERA in 22 starts, along with an unspectacular WHIP of 1.60, a far cry from his 2009 numbers, when he recorded a 17-9 record with a 4.08 ERA in 189.2 innings.

Meanwhile, the other aforementioned three stepped up to account for the lack of performance put together by last year’s staff ace. Lefty C.J. Wilson stepped up big this year, recording a staff-high 33 starts and 15 wins to go with a solid 3.35 ERA. Behind him was Colby Lewis, who came up big during the regular-season and the postseason, going 12-13 in the regular season with a 3.72 ERA before going 3-0 with a 1.71 ERA in four playoff starts.

Rounding out their initial trio of starters is 23-year-old Tommy Hunter, who finished with a fantastic 13-4 record with a decent 3.73 ERA in his second full big-league season. These three starters were good enough to get Texas out to a sizable lead in the fairly weak AL West, but once they acquired lefty Cliff Lee from the Seattle Mariners, the division was effectively put to rest. Lee made 15 starts with Texas, going just 4-6 with a 3.98 ERA, but his WHIP was still a spectacular 1.06 in that time span. These four starters would form the best rotation of any American League team in the postseason last year, and looking back, I’m surprised that they were even considered a “surprise pennant winner.”

Their bullpen was just as effective last year, as they featured four pitchers with ERAs under three with at least 40 appearances. Righty Darren O’Day made the most appearances out of the ‘pen with 72, and he did a remarkable job as a set-up man for Neftali Feliz, recording 22 holds, a 2.03 ERA and a WHIP of 0.89. Slamming the door on games was AL Rookie of the Year Neftali Feliz, who set the record for saves by a rookie with 40, and he was just as good as O’Day statistically, recording a 2.73 ERA along with a WHIP of 0.88. The seemingly ageless Darren Oliver continued to be effective out of the bullpen, finishing with 2.48 ERA in 64 appearances, while Alexi Ogando was lights-out, recording a 1.30 ERA in 44 appearances.

Overall, the Rangers finished 10th in MLB in ERA (3.93), sixth in “batting average against” (.246), 11th in WHIP (1.31) and ninth in home runs allowed (162). You can give Texas a mulligan for surrendering as many home runs as they did, considering that they play in one of the more homer-friendly ballparks in baseball. Even though this staff collectively doesn’t “wow” you, they are more than capable of getting the job done night in and night out, even without Cliff Lee.
Final Grade: B+


Wild Card: Ron Washington
Even though we already know about his admission of testing positive for cocaine during Spring Training last year, Washington was able to successfully battle back from his demons to lead this Rangers squad to the penthouse of the American League. Their playoff appearance last year was their first since 1999, and their AL West title was a breath of fresh air in a division that usually saw either the Angels or A’s win it time and again (Those two teams accounted for nine of the ten division titles won in the AL West between 2000 and 2009). The work he did in battling back from an embarrassing personal situation to lead this team to the playoffs should have earned him AL Manager of the Year, but I guess the voters apparently thought that Minnesota’s Ron Gardenhire did a better job with a team that was already expected to win the division. Oh well.
Final Grade: A+


Overall:
The Rangers were able to take advantage of a weak division last year, and more power to them. What’s even better is that they did not become complacent after winning their division so handily, something that has befallen many runaway division winners in the past once playoff time came around. Hopefully for the Rangers and their fans, 2010 should just be the beginning of more great things to come for this franchise.
Final Grade: A+


Check back soon for the report card on the Atlanta Braves!

AL MVP candidates: who gets your vote?

Well, the pennant races are finally hitting the home stretch, and it is at this time of year that we usually find out who the league MVPs are. Who are the players that put their team on their back throughout the season, and carried them through the thick of the pennant race? If you took that particular player off of a contender, would that team be in the position they are in? Those are the questions that voters usually look at when it comes to who deserves the recognition of the "Most Valuable Player." Tonight, we'll take a look at the top three candidates in the American League.

Stats are as of September 13.


3.) Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers
.335 batting average, 34 home runs, 116 RBIs, .429 OBP

Cabrera is arguably having the best all-around season of the three players listed here this year. His 116 RBIs and .429 OBP both lead the American League, while his batting average and home runs rank second and third respectively. If the Tigers were having a better season, he would definitely be the runaway pick for the MVP. Unfortunately for him, and for the Tigers and their fans, this summer has not been kind to them, as their 72-72 record would attest. The fact that the Tigers are not in contention right now will be the only reason Miguel Cabrera won't win the MVP.



2.) Paul Konerko, Chicago White Sox
.322 batting average, 36 home runs, 104 RBIs, .399 OBP

I know many of you out there may think this is a heavily biased pick, but just hear me out on this one. Konerko has been raking for the Sox all year, and this year is turning out to be a career one for "Paulie." He's currently fifth in the AL in batting average, second in home runs, tied for fourth in RBIs with Vladimir Guerrero, and is fifth in on-base percentage. Here's a potential dilemma with Konerko's case though: the Sox still have a very decent shot at missing the playoffs, and still finishing with a better record than the Texas Rangers (they're only one game worse than Texas right now). The thing that could hurt Konerko's MVP chances is similar to Miguel Cabrera's in nature, but at the same time more unfair. With the way the Twins are rolling right now, they still have an outside shot at finishing with the best record in the AL, something completely out of the control of Konerko and the Sox. Should Konerko get penalized by the voters only for the reason that the Sox have a much tougher divisional foe than Josh Hamilton's Rangers do? I don't think so, but that's what usually happens in cases like these. C'est la vie.



1.) Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers
.361 batting average, 31 home runs, 97 RBIs, .414 OBP

The only reason why I still think Hamilton deserves the MVP over Konerko is because his overall numbers are better. While he trails Konerko in home runs by five and in RBIs by seven, he is still outhitting him by 39 points, and has a higher OBP by 15 points. I also believe that defense should come into play when comparing the two, and while Konerko is very underrated as a defender at first base, Hamilton plays a much more demanding position in the outfield. He still excels defensively, while putting on a great performance at the plate, too. I don't want to compare the two team's positions in the standings, because that would be unfair to both Konerko and Hamilton. In a case like this, you just look at each individual player and what they bring to their team, and in this case, Hamilton edges Konerko, both offensively and defensively.

Check back soon for the NL MVP candidates!

The Ryan Express defeats the Maverick

As you might have already heard, Nolan Ryan and Chuck Greenberg finally won ownership of the Texas Rangers early Thursday morning, after a lengthy auction against high-profile Mavericks owner Mark Cuban. By all accounts of those who were there, the auction was drama-filled, contentious, and most of all, captivating. I'm not sure if I should be considered gullible for thinking this, but Nolan's victory came as a relative surprise to me. Cuban seemed like he was willing to spend like a drunken sailor on shore leave in order to purchase the team, and with each Cuban bid, Ryan appeared as if he was barely able to outbid him. Since I'm no financial expert, all I know is that for some reason or another, Ryan was able to come up with more money up front, and that appeared to be good enough for the judge.

While I am not opposed to Cuban owning a MLB team, I do not think the Rangers would have been the right fit for him. First of all, Nolan Ryan is a Texas legend, and despite Cuban's recent run in popularity, he doesn't hold a candle to the Ryan Express in terms of appealing to the fan base. Second of all (and most importantly), it is because of Ryan that the team is where they are in the standings right now. If Cuban would have won ownership of the team, there would have been the risk of Cuban cleaning house and putting his own people in there, which likely would not have sat well with Rangers fans. Also, his ownership would have probably resulted in Nolan Ryan leaving the team, which would have been a PR disaster from the Rangers' standpoint.

Don't get me wrong, I really think Mark Cuban would be great for baseball. Unlike many of the stodgy old owners that are in the game, Cuban would be a breath of fresh air. He's funny, he's vocal, he's visible, and most of all, he would be very willing to spend whatever amount of money it would take to put a winner on the field. Unfortunately, Cuban's outspokenness and his iconoclastic nature does not sit well with many owners in baseball, so it will be very difficult for him to gain approval of being a majority owner of any team in MLB, and that is a shame. However, one can only hope that he can eventually get the opportunity to purchase a moribund franchise like Pittsburgh, Kansas City, or Baltimore and bring them back to their former glory. In the meantime, I am pretty sure that many Rangers fans are content with the Ryan Express owning the franchise.

Welcome Back!

Ladies and gentlemen, it is my pleasure to welcome you back to this blog. I would like to offer you my sincere apologies for my prolonged absence from here, mainly because school nearly had me in a choke hold over during April, May, and part of June. Now that school has been out for over a month, I can get back to offering you my opinions on the world of baseball, with special attention to the Sox.

A lot has happened since I was last here with you. There have been a whopping five no-hitters, two of which were perfect games. We have also witnessed one of the most agonizing near-misses in the history of no-hitters/perfect games, when Armando Galarraga came within inches of perfection, only to have it snatched from his hands by an errant call from first base umpire Jim Joyce.

In addition to the rash of no-hitters that have been thrown this year, there have also been remarkable stand-outs in the world of pitching. Ubaldo Jimenez of the Colorado Rockies, despite slowing down in recent weeks, has still been one of the best pitchers in baseball, as he continues to sport a 16-2 record, with a 2.67 ERA. Josh Johnson has also been right on Jimenez's heels in the National League Cy Young race, as he is featuring a 10-3 record and a major league-best 1.72 ERA. Other major league pitchers that are having standout seasons include Adam Wainwright and Jaime Garcia of the St. Louis Cardinals, David Price of the Tampa Bay Rays, Cliff Lee of the Texas Rangers and Roy Halladay of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Also, who could forget about the dynamic debut of Stephen Strasburg of the Washington Nationals? Before he went on the DL yesterday with shoulder stiffness, he has been rock solid in his rookie year, going 5-2 with a 2.32 ERA and with an excellent strikeout-to-walk ratio of 75-15 in 54.1 innings. You could almost make the case that what Bob Costas said during his first start was correct: the performance has exceeded the hype.

Plus, there have been many compelling division races in baseball through this point of the season. There have been many surprises in the National League, including the outstanding performances put on by the San Diego Padres and the Cincinnati Reds, who are both leading their respective divisions as of July 30. Also, the Atlanta Braves have returned to their perch atop the National League East, as they continue to lead their division by two and a half over Philadelphia.

There has been just as many surprises in the American League as well. The Chicago White Sox, who trailed the Minnesota Twins by a whopping nine and a half games on June 8, have stormed back to take the division lead, as they are up by a game and a half entering tonight's play. The Texas Rangers, after acquiring ace pitcher Cliff Lee in a trade with the Seattle Mariners, have plowed ahead of the Angels and A's, leading the West by eight and a half entering tonight. In addition to those races, the Rays and Yankees are continuing their battle atop the AL East, as the Yankees lead by two games over Tampa entering tonight.

Also, who can forget about the trade deadline tomorrow? There has already been a flurry of activity, as we have already seen Roy Oswalt get dealt from Houston to Philly, Edwin Jackson get dealt from Arizona to the South Side of Chicago and Matt Capps get dealt from Washington to Minnesota in just the last couple of days. With tomorrow's 4 pm deadline still looming, we should not be surprised to see more big trades go down in the next several hours.

It has been an absolute blast following baseball this summer (as it always is), and it has been even more of a blast watching the Sox make an incredible comeback to take over first place in the Central. With two months left before the postseason, you can all but gurarantee that there will be a lot more fun surprises headed our way in MLB. Rest assured, that whenever those surprises occur, I'll try to give you my thoughts on at least some of them! Once again, I would like to offer you my most sincere apologies for my prolonged absence, and you will definitely hear back from me soon!

The 30 Day/30 Team Report Cards: Day 22- Texas Rangers

It's time to head "Deep in the Heart of Texas" for today's report card, which will be issued to the Texas Rangers! Let's go!

Texas Rangers:
Record: 87-75 (Second place in the AL West, 10 games behind Los Angeles).

Batting Leaders:
Batting Average: Michael Young (.322)
Home Runs: Nelson Cruz (33)
RBIs: Marlon Byrd (89)
On-base Percentage: Michael Young (.374)

Pitching Leaders:
Wins: Scott Feldman (17)
ERA: Kevin Millwood (3.67). Bullpen- Darren O'Day (1.94).
Strikeouts: Kevin Millwood (123)
Innings Pitched: Kevin Millwood (198.2)
WHIP: Scott Feldman (1.28)
Saves: Frank Francisco (25)

Highlight of the Season: After thrashing the Athletics at home on May 30 by a score of 14-1, the Rangers extended their lead in the division to 5.5 games, in what would prove to be their biggest lead of the season.

Lowlight of the Season: Getting blasted by the Angels 11-0 on September 28, which effectively eliminated them from postseason contention.

The Lowdown:
It was another year of dashed dreams for Texas, as they saw their hopes for their first division title in 10 years thwarted by the Angels yet again. Things looked so bright for this team in the early part of the season, when, at one point, they were in first place for 65 days before finally falling out of the AL West penthouse on July 10. However, the season was not a complete disappointment for Texas, as they improved their win total by eight this season, and saw their best season since 2004. This was thanks in large part to a vastly improved pitching staff, as well as their high-octane offense, which, once again, was one of the better ones in baseball.

Offense:
The Texas Lumber Company was in full swing again in 2009, as their lineup featured a whopping six people with at least 20 or more home runs (Marlon Byrd, Chris Davis, Michael Young, Hank Blalock, Ian Kinsler and Nelson Cruz). They would be paced by 29-year-old Nelson Cruz in the home run department, as he hit a career-high 33, to go along with 76 RBIs, another career-high. This season proved to be a breakout one for Cruz, as he would play over 100 games for the first time in his career, and judging by his numbers, he obviously made the most of his opportunity.

When looking at the six people in the lineup who hit at least 20 home runs, did you notice someone missing? If you did not, then you probably weren't paying enough attention, as Josh Hamilton was the major player missing from that bunch. After enjoying a breakout season in 2008, Hamilton was hampered by injuries in '09, as he played in only 89 games. In the time that he did play though, he was likely still playing through injuries, as he hit .268, with just 10 home runs and 54 RBIs. It was quite impressive that Texas managed to stay in contention throughout the season despite being largely without the services of their best hitter. That just goes to show you the depth of their lineup.

As a whole, Texas finished 10th in MLB in runs scored (784), second in home runs (224), 24th in on-base percentage (.320) and tied for 17th in batting average (.260). Despite the low on-base percentage, Texas proved once again that they have one of the best offenses in baseball. This is probably one of my easiest grades yet.
Final Grade: A+

Pitching:
The biggest secret to Texas' resurgence in 2009 has to be their rejuvenated pitching staff. They were led surprisingly enough by Scott Feldman, a 26-year-old righty who had an ERA over five in 2008. This year was a much different story for him though, as he went 17-8, with a 4.08 ERA in nearly 200 innings. He was one of the biggest surprises in baseball this past season, and Texas will look for him to repeat his success in 2010, as they continue their quest for the AL West crown.

Of course, in order to have a successful pitching staff, Feldman could not do it all by himself. His brilliant performance was backed up by the solid performances of Kevin Millwood and Tommy Hunter. Millwood fashioned another solid season on the hill for the Rangers, as he went 13-10 with a 3.67 ERA. Hunter also put together a solid year for himself, as the 23-year-old rookie from Indianapolis went 9-6 in 19 starts, with a 4.10 ERA.

Texas' bullpen was also pretty solid in 2009, as their top three relievers were C.J. Wilson, Darren O'Day and closer Frank Francisco. Wilson and O'Day were especially great, as each appeared in over 60 games and featured ERAs of under three (Wilson- 2.81 in 74 games, O'Day- 1.94 in 64 games). They also both split time in the set up role, as O'Day recorded 20 holds and Wilson recorded 19. Frank Francisco also proved to be effective in the closer's role, as he went 25 for 29 in saves this year. Perhaps the most electric arm to come out of Texas' bullpen this year was not any of those three, though. Neftali Feliz only appeared in 20 games for Texas this past season, but the stuff he brought to those 20 appearances was something to behold, as he threw a fastball that reached up to around 100 miles per hour. The fastball proved to be effective, as he put together a 1.74 ERA in 31 innings of relief.

Overall, Texas finished 18th in ERA (4.38), 19th in runs allowed (740), 19th in bases on balls (531) and 12th in opponent's batting average (.260). Their staff also compiled an impressive 11 shutouts, which tied for sixth in MLB. This staff has certainly come a long way.
Final Grade: B+

Wild Card: Team Speed
The Rangers finished second in MLB in stolen bases with 149, and their 81 percent success rate in steals tied with Philadelphia for the best in the bigs. Rookie Elvis Andrus led the team with 33 swipes, and Ian Kinsler also checked in with over 30, as he pilfered 31 bags himself.
Final Grade: A-

Overall:
One has to wonder just where this team would have finished if Josh Hamilton was healthy? If they were able to win 87 games largely without his services, then I truly think that they would have been a playoff team had he been healthy and playing to his full potential in '09. This was a very good team this year, and it will be interesting to see if they can prove that 2009 was not a fluke next year.
Final Grade: B+

Check back tomorrow for the report card on the San Francisco Giants!