The Blue Workhorse 2009 Outlook:
Solid is the best word used to describe the Dodgers.
An above average offense (likely the best in the National League) with speed and power is what the Dodgers have constructed, and they have an above average, seasoned manger steering the boat.
AND…more…including why the Hometown feels…The LA Dodgers WILL win the World Series…
Who would have thought at the beginning of last season the Tampa Bay (no longer Devil) Rays would be able to win the division owned by Boston and New York for the past decade or so, let alone be able the team representing the American League in the World Series?
In the AL East, it is no longer just a two team race: Boston may have won two World Series titles in the past five years, but now they have to try to get back to the top of the division after 2007 was their first division pennant in 12 years and only their second since 1990 & New York didn’t make the playoffs last year for the first time since the strike shortened season of 1994.
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The Blue Workhorse 2009 Outlook:
After losing in seven games in the ALCS to the upstart Tampa Bay (no longer Devil) Rays, the Red Sox are back for another playoff run in 2009. With the rival Yankees adding enough free agents to fill two teams, the Red Sox will carefully adjust their roster and win more than their rivals yet again.
AND…more…including why the Hometown feels…The Boston Red Sox WILL win the World Series…
Let’s play a quick game of name those numbers. Who has produced these incredible statistics?
151.1 IP / 9 W / 2.28 ERA / 195 K / 1.13 WHIP
Jake Peavy? Johan Santana? Many of you might see the line and figure it must have been a line from Peavy, Santana, or one of the other top-flight starting pitchers 151 innings through the season.
However, these stats were the combined 2007 season statistics of Carlos Marmol and Jonathan Broxton, two of the most dominant middle relievers in the game.
In terms of fantasy baseball, middle relievers are often forgotten when they can be a huge weapon as an added bonus to your pitching staff. They can be the secret key to lower WHIP and ERA, and many of these guys also pile up the strikeouts:
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For the past two seasons, there have been concerns about a couple of the most known and dominant closers in the game. Last season, it was New York Yankees’ stopper Mariano Rivera after he got off to a rough start. This season the troubles are in the other league, on the other coast as Trevor Hoffman, the man who enters to “Hell’s Bells,” has left without the lead, or a save, already twice in the early stages this season.
After week one of the MLB season, there have been several teams, including the Padres, that have already run into bullpen issues, particularly on Opening Day, so we decided to examine each of the 30 major league teams bullpen performances thus far and see which teams should really be concerned with their bullpen.
This year the battle could be just as highly contested as only the San Francisco Giants won’t bring a high-caliber team to the field each and every day. Arizona won the division last season but went out and made some huge trades. Colorado rode a late season hot streak all the way to the World Series. San Diego is determined to return to the playoffs after losing their last three games cost them a trip last season, and the Dodgers are looking to end one of the longest World Series droughts in the franchise’s storied history.
Here are our previews and predictions for all five NL West teams including last year’s records, key additions, key losses, projected starting lineup, projected rotation, overall outlook, fantasy impact players, and our prediction for this season:
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| By N2H | |||
