Baltimore Orioles - Things just keep looking worse for the Orioles. There's no easy way to put it. After 3 straight years of win totals in the 60s and loss totals in the 90s, it seems that their wings have been clipped. A full season of Buck Showalter (who went 34-23 in his shortened stint at the end of the 2010 season) was hoped to be enough to jumpstart an infield that had a lot of potential, as well as a bullpen that was supposed to be the same, but they imploded early in the season and never regained their footing. Veterans Vladimir Guerrero, Mark Reynolds and Nick Markakis led the team in all offensive categories with respectable stats, but the other bats seemed cold and dead, which led to the O's offense being ranked in the middle of the pack throughout MLB. Their starting pitching did little to stop the pain, with Jeremy Guthrie (now of the Rockies) leading the team, LEADING the team, with a 4.33 ERA and 130 strikeouts. Zach Britton had the most wins of any Orioles pitcher last year...with 11. And the saves leader, Kevin Gregg, recorded only 22 saves. In the heat of July, they traded first baseman Derrek Lee and setup man Koji Uehara to Pittsburgh and Texas, which would have been a bad move had they been contending, but the season was too far gone at that point. Although they managed to ruin the Red Sox's season on the last day of the regular season, their role as spoiler is not one they should be content with.
- 2012 Prediction: Even with celebrated general manager Dan Duqette now at the helm, look for the Orioles to continue their slide into mediocrity. While they could always repeat themselves as spoiler, or even possibly reach 4th or 3rd in the division, it seems hopeless for a while.
Boston Red Sox - The bigger they are, the harder they fall, huh? It seemed written in the stars (or in Terry Francona's lineup card) that the Red Sox were destined to completely dominate everyone this year. The playoffs were a given, and a 3rd World Series title in 8 years seemed all but won. And as we watched (and most of us cheered with joy), they pulled off...the biggest collapse in documented baseball history. With new sluggers Adrian Gonzalez (MVP candidate) and Carl Crawford (who had his worst offensive season in his career) in tow, they had the most powerful offense...on paper. But even their stacked lineup and equally amazing rotation couldn't stop what happened on September 28th, when the Sox became the first team IN HISTORY to have a 9-game lead in September and COMPLETELY lose it by going 7-20 in the month, 90-72 for the year, and 1 game behind the Tampa Bay Rays, who had been trailing the Sox all season. The Rays won the AL Wild Card as a result, and the $#!^ started flying. Francona and Theo Epstein, two of the most beloved men in the organization to this point, quit and went to the Cubs respectively. Fan favorite John Lackey cried and whined about the reports that he, Josh Beckett and Jon Lester ate fried chicken and played video games in the clubhouse DURING CRUCIAL GAMES. While they still have most of the team that was supposed to be the best ever, 2011 is a year everyone in Boston would love to forget, and one I'll remember fondly.
- 2012 Prediction: The Red Sox will probably win the division or the Wild Card. As much as I hate them, this collapse was something extremely out of the ordinary, and if they don't get sidelined by injuries and tabloid drama, they probably will put everything together and make a serious postseason run.
New York Yankees - As much satisfaction as I felt that the Red Sox collapsed, I felt even prouder because the Yankees, despite their 3-15 record against Boston in 2011, won the division almost handily. While the Sox watched the most magnificent implosion of a team in history, the Yankees, who were supposedly going to finish in 3rd place behind them and the Rays, coasted to winning the division, with some impressive milestones on the way. Against the Athletics in late August, they became the first team to hit 3 grand slams in one game, as Robinson Cano, Curtis Granderson and Russell Martin (all All-Stars last year) each went deep with the bases loaded. Mariano Rivera, already considered to be the greatest closer of all time, solidified his legacy by passing Trevor Hoffman as the all-time saves leader. And Derek Jeter made sure that everyone remembered that he was still the captain by smashing a home run for his 3,000th career hit. Not too shabby for a team that wasn't supposed to amount to much in 2011. Unfortunately, their great run ended in a 5-game defeat in the ALDS by the Tigers, during which the Yanks basically laid down and died. While they managed to resign ace CC Sabathia after he opted out of his contract, they also acquired Michael Pineda from the Mariners and signed Hiroki Kuroda, heavily strengthening the one thing that didn't really work this past year: the anemic starting rotation. With the recent retirement of longtime catcher Jorge Posada, and Alex Rodriguez always being more of a liability than an asset, 2012 holds a lot of questions.
- 2012 Prediction: It's the Yankees. You can't ever count them out. They could be 8 games out in August and come back to win the division, or 10 games ahead in July and just miss the Wild Card. There's no telling this year.
Tampa Bay Rays - For a team with the second lowest payroll in the game, the Rays are a funny club. They're one of the newest teams in the game, but they play in an old school way. What that means is that they don't go out and buy big free agents. They draft well, they develop their young talent well, they sign veterans with a little left in the tank to 1-year deals, and it's turned them into one of the most dangerous teams in the AL East, the American League, and MLB overall. 2011 saw them make their 3rd postseason appearance in 4 years, after coming back from 9 games down to start September and beating the Red Sox out for the wild card in what's already being called the single greatest night of baseball ever. Rookie Matt Moore delivered a gem in game 1 of the LDS, and even though they were knocked out in the first round of the playoffs, the future looks awfully bright for this team. Evan Longoria, B.J. Upton and Ben Zobrist lead a lineup that has potential to be reminiscent of a Murderer's Row (if they can all stay healthy), and Rookie of the Year winner Jeremy Hellickson heads up a rotation that ranked in the top 3 of all of MLB in every category except ERA. Their bullpen, even after losing effective closer Rafael Soriano after the 2010 season, is quite possibly the most solid collection of relievers in the game. It's rare that a team can lose so many stars after one season (Soriano, Carl Crawford, Carlos Pena, Joaquin Benoit, and Matt Garza all play for other teams now), and still be powerful enough to make the playoffs the next year.
- 2012 Prediction: They most likely won't come back in spectacular fashion like they did this year, but the chances are good that, behind the immense amount of youthful talent already at the major league level and more waiting in the minors, the Rays will seriously contend again.
Toronto Blue Jays - The only MLB team north of the border seems to hover around the middle of the AL East standings in recent memory. 2011 was no exception. Even behind one-man wrecking crew Jose Bautista, who led the majors in homers for the second consecutive year with 43, rookie third baseman Brett Lawrie showing true signs of offensive and defensive greatness, and a rotation whose oldest starter, Ricky Romero, is 27, they couldn't do much to get over .500. Considering they're stuck in a division with the Yankees, Red Sox and Rays, even that is an accomplishment. However, they always seem ready to strike at any moment that those 3 powerhouses seem to be faltering, and could always make a surprise push, especially with the concept of a second wild card in each league possibly coming to fruition in 2012. The Jays haven't done much in the way of making the playoffs since their back-to-back championship wins in 1992 and 1993, but another collapse like the Sox had last season could put them in a better place. Their lineup is pretty young, as they added centerfielder Colby Rasmus from the Cardinals last season, and their bullpen, headed up by veteran Jason Frasor, is getting stronger. Once their rotation reaches its full potential, and as long as Bautista can continue his newfound ability to launch baseballs into the stands, things could be looking up for the northernmost team in baseball.
- 2012 Prediction: It'll be difficult to win the division, but the Jays can take solace in the fact that they certainly can't finish lower in the standings than the Orioles, and their future is brighter than the other Birds.
2012 Projected Standings:
Boston Red Sox
New York Yankees
Tampa Bay Rays
Toronto Blue Jays
Baltimore Orioles
Boston Red Sox
New York Yankees
Tampa Bay Rays
Toronto Blue Jays
Baltimore Orioles
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