The AL East : Division Winner - NY Yankees (yes, I'm a tad biased). It's the Yankees so how can you actually go against them. Well, here's how. The Redsox have made some awesome pickups with Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford in the lineup now. The bullpen got a lift with the pick up of Bobby Jenks, former closer of the Whitesox as the set up man for Papelbon. Their pitching staff is back in order and healthy which makes them even scarier. So how do I pick the Yankees...experience. There is just too much of it on that team who also made a nice set up man pick up with Rafael Soriano former closer of the Devil Rays. Also, at the back end they have Freddy Garcia now and Ivan Nova, who some are considering for Rookie of the Year. And with utility pick ups of Eric Chavez & Andruw Jones could prove big especially if injuries come into play. Dark Horse pick - Baltimore Orioles. Big, bad lineup but no rotation. Buck Showalter has them believing with the way they finished last year so do not underestimate them.
The AL Central : Division Winner - Minnesota Twins. The return of Justin Morneau will be a big lift to the Twins. Joe Mauer even though having some knee problems should have another MVP type year. Great pick up of Jim Thome will be a scary option off the bench and their starting rotation seems to get better every year. Joe Nathan will be ready opening day and the Twins somehow even though a lot of experts pick against them seem to end up taking the division with big wins down the stretch. The Tigers will more than likely be their competition. The match up nicely with lineup and rotation. The bullpen with Valverde will be able to secure enough wins to put up a fight with the Twins and the addition of Victor Martinez makes their line up even more potent. Dark Horse pick - Cleveland Indians. With an up and coming rotation and rising stars Shin-Soo Choo & Matt Laporta and the addition of Orlando Cabrera they have a chance to be a .500 team this year. Closer Chris Perez will be able to close out enough games to be a thorn in the side of the AL Centrals top two teams this year.
The AL West : Division Winner - Oakland A's. The rotation looks like a lights out one. There's talk about Brett Anderson being a strong Cy Young candidate. Up and down the rotation are young guns that can shut down a team at the drop of a hat. But, if somehow the rotation falters, they have a great bullpen which got better with the addition of Brian Fuentes former Angels closer and Andrew Bailey to finish it off. The lineup has enough veterns in it like Hideki Matsui & Coco Crisp to help along the rising stars as Josh Willingham and Mark Ellis and lead them to the division title. The Rangers, last years division champs I believe pitched over their heads last year. They still have a potent lineup with Josh Hamilton & Nelson Cruz but will they have enough to hold off they A's from taking over the division? Not pitching wise, although, kudos to the Rangers for leaving Neftali Cruz where he was and not possibly ruining him as a starter. That could be the difference for the Rangers. Dark Horse pick - Don't really see one but both the Angels & Mariners have some talent but not enough to be any serious threat to either of the top two teams. It should be a two team race for the title.
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