Who's In, Who's Out in 2007

The season is now hours away. By now the fantasy teams have been drafted, your lineups for the opening week are in place, and your pitching staff is set with its probable matchups for the week. With the season’s opener being the rematch of the 2006 National League Championship Series between the Mets and the Cardinals, I felt that it was time to give you my picks for division winners, and wild card teams.

AL East-

New York Yankees- Going for their 10th consecutive division championship in 2007, the Yankees may have the best 1, 2, 3, in their rotation in baseball. Their lineup is continuous and it is very hard to find a weak spot. Their rotation has question marks at the start of the year. However, don’t go by that in April. The Yankees are still the best team in their division. The Red Sox will be better than last year and don’t expect an August fall off. The rest of the division is getting better but they have a lot of catching up to do. The Yankee bullpen appears to have gotten better which is a great thing for Rivera. Yankees will be one if the best in baseball this year and will win their 10th straight division title.

AL Central-

Detroit Tigers- The defending American League Champions will be defending their crown in October. This will be a four team race for the majority of the season this year. The Indians, White Sox, Twins, and Tigers, will go back and forth throughout the year. In the end it will come down to pitching. The Tigers led baseball last year in ERA as an American League team. Their offense now has a standout bat in Gary Sheffield. Their lineup was good enough last year with a lot of balanced power with a handful of 20+ homerun guys. Sheffield will bring more depth to the lineup. Their bullpen is comparable to the Twins who are projected to have the best bullpen. In the end Detroit will end out on top.

AL West-

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim- the Angels coming out of the spring appear to have the best team. They have some great young guys in their rotation, they have a very good bullpen, and their closer is the best in the game. Their lineup is aging, but that still won’t stop them from putting up numbers in the coming season. This division is interesting because I feel that everyone has gotten better and anyone can win the division. But when in doubt u have to take the team that has the best pitching. The Angels are that team. The A’s could challenge them, but will need consistency from Harden and Blanton. However, after that the A’s don’t have enough fire power in their offense to keep pace with the Angels. Angels are the most balanced team in the division and will be in October as AL West Champions.

AL Wildcard-

Boston Red Sox- They may finish behind the Yankees again this year, but they won’t finish out of the playoffs again. The rotation of the Red Sox is very good, and has gotten a lot better with Matsuzaka. Their bullpen has Papelbon back at closer. It worked out fine for them last year and should do the same this year. By the way, they also have Manny and Papi. This is the most formidable 1, 2 punch in baseball. They rebuilt around them and are geared up to take down the Yankees. I think they will fall short but still become the AL wildcard winner.

NL East-

New York Mets- Don’t worry about their rotation problems here in April, it won’t matter by the end of May. The Mets have a lineup that can be compared to AL lineups. They have the two best young hitters in the game in Wright and Reyes, and their bullpen will still be consistent. Their rotation has a lot to prove, but even on days where they struggle, their offense can bail them out and get the win. Either way I still feel they are the best team in their division. It won’t be as easy as it was last year when they won the division in June, but they can still win it.

NL Central-

St. Louis Cardinals- The defending champions will be back in October this year. Five out of the six of these teams in this division can win it. However, don’t sell the Cardinals rotation that fast. The young guys in Wainwright and Reyes can hold their ground in the rotation. They will get Mulder back later in the year also. Isringhausen is a solid closer in the back of the bullpen, and they also have Albert Pujols. Bottom line is you cannot expect the Cubs to make a 40 win jump from last year, the Brewers and Astros will hang tough for a while but their inexperience will eventually cost them. You can make arguments for everyone, but when in doubt u have to go with the team that has been there before.

NL West-

San Diego Padres- Like the AL Central, this division will be a dog fight all year. All 5 of the teams can make a case for winning this division. The division winner will likely has 88-93 wins because they will be beating up on each other all season. I like the Padres rotation more than the Dodgers, and their lineup has guys that should have bounce back years. Their rotation is a mix of veterans and youngsters that will show their ability in 2007. The Dodgers are a good team but I feel like they have a lot of questions about health, age, and experience that will prevent them from taking this division. The Giants are too old, and in the near future will get younger, the Rockies are missing an ace, and the Diamondbacks are too young. I feel the Padres can pull this division out in a race that can go down to the last day.

NL Wildcard-

Milwaukee Brewers- It’s time this team gets the opportunity that it deserves. I feel that the Brewers will have a chance due to the ongoing battles for the east and west divisions. While those teams beat each other down it will give a central team a central team a chance to take control of the wildcard. The Brewers are that team. Their rotation doesn’t stand out but there is a lot of consistency throughout. The bullpen is sold, especially if Turnbow can have a bounce back year, and their lineup is at the age where they can have a breakout year. This is a sleeper pick of mine to win the wildcard, and can shock you with some big wins in 2007.

Those are my projections to make it to the playoffs in 2007. It’s going to be a great year to watch the young pitchers and hitters develop over the course of the year. You will be hearing from me on a more frequent basis now that the season has started. Good Luck in fantasy and let’s enjoy the year!