Opening Night in Major League Baseball

Ah, it's finally here. Nobody loves opening night of the baseball season more than me, and this season is shaping up to be something very special. So many storylines have filled the headlines:

"Will the Yankees live up to expectations?"
"Can the Phillies repeat?"
"Is this the year the Cubs finally do it?"
"Can the Rays do it again?"
"Will the Mets finally get over the hump?"

Many have also gone under the radar as well:
"Are the Reds for real with all that young talent?"
"Can the A's unseat the Angels?"
"Who's going to win an even AL Central?"
"Can the Braves and Marlins really compete in the NL East?"
"Are the Giants really going to win the NL West?"

These are just a few of the headlines that are making the rounds in the MLB community. This should be one heck of a year for all those reasons listed above and more.

Also, keep an eye on the youngsters this season, as several youthful players look to make a huge splash this season. Keep an eye on current minor leaguers Matt Wieters of the Baltimore Orioles and Tampa Bay Rays' hurler David Price. Also, enjoy the stylings of Jonathan Sanchez and Pablo Sandoval of the San Francisco Giants. All four should have breakout years. Oh yeah, there's also a power guy named Nelson Cruz playing down in Texas. He's good, too.

Now, everyone loves predictions as much as I do, so here are my predictions for this year, which includes division and wild card winners, playoff results, and end of season awards. So with any further delay, here are my rock-solid picks:

NL East: Philadelphia Phillies
NL Central: Chicago Cubs
NL West: Arizona Diamondbacks
NL Wild Card: New York Mets
AL East: Boston Red Sox
AL Central: Detroit Tigers
AL West: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
AL Wild Card: New York Yankees

NL Divisional Playoffs: Cubs over Mets, Phillies over Diamondbacks
NL Championship: Cubs over Phillies
AL Divisional Playoffs: Red Sox over Tigers, Yankees over Angels
AL Championship: Red Sox over Yankees
World Series: Cubs over Red Sox

NL MVP: Chase Utley
AL MVP: Josh Hamilton
NL Cy Young: Johan Santana
AL Cy Young: Josh Beckett
NL Rookie of the Year: Pablo Sandoval
AL Rookie of the Year: Nelson Cruz
NL Manager of the Year: Lou Piniella
AL Manager of the Year: Jim Leyland

Yes sir, it is going to happen this year. The Cubs have made the proper adjustments in their overly right-handed lineup to compete against all pitching, and their starting staff is second to none in the National League. Some like to pick the North Siders to seem like a genius months later if it does turn out to finally be "Next Year."

The Red Sox have the overall best pitching staff in the American League, and their hitting is still the same from last season. All the stars seemed to be aligned for this one: One of the most hard luck franchises to go head-to-head with the downtrodden-turned-powerhouse team from Beantown. These two will collide in October. Oh, and by the way, I don't believe in curses.

Also, expect the Mets to collapse yet again, just a little later this season. The money-wielding Yankees will do the same, as the playoffs have not been their forte over the last eight years. We all know how a Yankees team without a World Series Championship is considered a failure. Sorry New York, this isn't your year again.

That's was just a smidgen of what's in store for this wonderful literature. Expect better things in the weeks to come.


Enjoy,

MOD