For Better Or For Worse 3: Revenge Of The Sith - NL West.

To wrap up this year's For Better Or For Worse series, we're taking a look at the National League West Division.

Arizona Diamondbacks - Third place in a division is not a great place to be, especially after a season that where your team jumped from worst (in 2010) to first (in 2011), but the Diamondbacks appear to be stuck there for the next few years. Sure, there will be opportunities to leap over the other powerhouses in this division, but don't bet on it. After a disappointing 2012, the D'backs did something they've wanted to do since the winter of 2010: trade Justin Upton. Months of speculation and posturing led to Upton joining his brother B.J. in Atlanta, while Arizona got back third baseman Martin Prado, pitcher Randall Delgado, and three other prospects in return. It's been a busy offseason for the Snakes, as they also signed Cody Ross, Eric Chavez, and Brandon McCarthy in another attempt to win the West like many thought they would this year. They acquired Heath Bell from the Marlins at the beginning of the season, and the indication is that he will fare much better in the desert than he did near the beach: Bell led baseball with 134 saves between 2009 and 2011 while with the Padres, so he's proven that he can be successful in this division. While the offense is sure to struggle some with the loss of both Upton and Chris Young (shipped to Oakland earlier this offseason), Ross, Chavez and Prado should be more than enough to pick up the predicted slack, as well as shortstop Cliff Pennington, who recently signed a 2-year deal. Even though they'll most likely spend 2013 looking up at the Giants and Dodgers, there's a lot to like in the Diamondbacks' future.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Ross, Kubel and Parra keep the outfield safe from home runs, the rotations hands Bell plenty of opportunities to redeem himself, and the Snakes continue their climb back to the top.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Upton's absence is too strong for the team to overcome, and they find themselves dropping closer to last place than they'd like to.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Now that the Upton thing has been resolved, they can focus on developing the young talent they've accrued this offseason. Didi Gregorious, the shortstop of the future, is great defensively but needs to learn better plate discipline. Delgado could be a top-of-the-line starter, but he's still got a long way to go. The D'backs project to contend for the next 6-8 years, even in the suddenly strong NL West, but only if these prospects can pay dividends, and quickly.

Colorado Rockies - Things are tough in Colorado. They've got plenty of pieces that could possibly result in a postseason run a la 2007, but for some reason, it's just not coming together. Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez continue to be plagued by injuries, limiting CarGo to 135 games and Tulo to 47 in 2012. Even in Coors Field, which has always had a reputation for inflating batters' stats, the Rockies' offense in 2012 was pretty spectacular: the Rox didn't rank lower than 6th in any offensive category, rising as high as 2nd in batting average (.274). While last offseason's signing of Michael Cuddyer hasn't worked out fantastically yet, he's a great veteran presence in a lineup that needs it desperately. Conversely, though, the rotation was an absolute mess. The team experimented with a 4-man rotation for a while, a rare strategy in the live-ball era. Want to know how both the 4-man and 5-man rotations worked out? The Rockies were ranked dead last in EVERY SINGLE PITCHING STAT. Not most, not some. Every single one. The team ERA was 5.22. Opponents hit .290, the highest of any team. They had just 27 quality starts; in a 162-game season, 27 quality starts means every 6th game started out all right, but every other game was doomed from the beginning (barring walk-offs or rallies, of course). When your pitching is this disgustingly atrocious, there really isn't a lot you can do to solve it. While the Rockies' field will never be pitcher-friendly, it'd be a little less embarrassing for the team if some of their hurlers, namely one they received from Cleveland when they shipped Ubaldo Jimenez out of town in Drew Pomeranz, could find some way to adjust to the launching pad that is Coors. It'll be a while before the Colorado crew rises above sea level in the NL West.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Tulowitzki plays a full season and hits 30 home runs, the rotation finds a way around the Humidor, and the return of Rocktober seems like a real possibility in the near future.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Tulo and CarGo miss a combined 200 games, their starters post even worse numbers than 2012, and the Mile High team sinks to a new low by losing 100 games.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: I sound like a broken record, but it's up to Tulowitzki and Gonzalez to carry the offense. The starters are always going to post high ERAs and let opposing teams score frequently. The best way for the Rox to combat that is to keep their two power hitters healthy and happy.

Los Angeles Dodgers - Comparisons to the Yankees are something that the Dodgers have dealt with for the majority of their existence. Normally, they've been flattering. That's not the case anymore. After a tumultuous tenure under calamitous owners Frank and Jamie McCourt, the Boys in Blue finally got a revitalization of the baseball spirit when basketball legend Magic Johnson and baseball whiz Stan Kasten bought the team and immediately infused it with brand new life (and about half a billion dollars worth of star players). Since July, the Dodgers have acquired Hanley Ramirez, Shane Victorino, Brandon League, Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Josh Beckett, Korean hurler Ryu Hyun-Jin, and Zack Greinke. While they lost Victorino in free agency, this is not a team that is lacking in anything. The infield is strong, with Gonzalez and Ramirez at the corners (each a potential 30-30 threat); the outfield is monstrous (you show me a more lethal and speedy outfield than Kemp, Ethier and Crawford when they're all healthy, and I'll show you a fake outfield), and the pitching is electric (Greinke and Hyun-Jin will be numbers 2 and 3 behind Clayton Kershaw...if that sentence doesn't impress you, I don't know what will). Even the bullpen is rock steady, with League slated as the closer in front of Kenley Jansen and J.P. Howell, two would-be closers on other, less stacked teams. This is a team that really needs nothing that it doesn't already have. So why didn't they do better last year? It may have something to do with all those new faces just popping in during the middle of the season. Maybe a full year together will give these guys a better chance at dethroning the reigning champs. Or maybe another collapse is imminent. Nah...this team's "too big to fail", they certainly won't disappoint. Right?
BEST CASE SCENARIO: They win the World Series for the first time since 1988. Seriously, that's the only acceptable result for this team in 2013. If they don't, well...
WORST CASE SCENARIO: The team deemed "too big to fail" does just that, with Kemp, Ethier, Gonzalez and Crawford spending more time on the DL than the field.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Nothing. They already have all the pieces. They just have to start strong and control the division for the entire season. If they allow one moment of weakness, expect the Giants to pounce. We've seen it happen twice in the last 3 years, don't discount it.

San Diego Padres - I think all baseball fans want to see the Padres do well, regardless of who you root for. They always seem like they're just on the periphery of a postseason appearance, like 2010, when they were edged out on the last day by the Giants for the division title. There are plenty of bright spots that lead us to believe that the Friars will be playing in October soon, if not next year: Chase Headley, the sudden dark horse MVP candidate, led the National League with 115 RBI, and he also led his team with a .286 average, 31 homers and an .875 OPS (needless to say, all but the batting average are career highs). Carlos Quentin, traded from the White Sox last offseason, missed the first half of 2012 but returned to finish out the year with 16 home runs and 46 RBI in 86 games. Cameron Maybin struggled, hitting only .246, but he did steal 26 bases, a good sign of things to come from the 25 year old. As far as the pitching, there's a little more to worry about. Clayton Richards, the number 2 starter, led the team with 14 wins and a 3.99 ERA, which does little to inspire confidence in the staff. Edinson Volquez, who came over from the Reds in exchange for Mat Latos, led with 174 strikeouts, and Huston Street, acquired from the Rockies a year ago, had 23 saves to lead the bullpen. Somehow, opposing pitchers manage to take advantage of Petco Park's previously pitcher-friendly dimensions, but the Padres starters themselves couldn't capitalize. Another event sure to hurt more than help is the 50-game suspension handed down to young catcher Yasmani Grandal a few weeks after 2012 ended, meaning he'll be suspended in 2013 and the Padres will lose nearly a third of the season without their up-and-coming backstop. Hopefully the team will be able to stay afloat until he returns.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Headley continues his transformation into an MVP, Grandal weathers his suspension, and the rotation wins 50 or more games en route to a Wild Card berth for the Friars.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: The starting rotation flames out worse than before, Headley regresses to his career norm, and the Padres find themselves praying for the next Tony Gwynn.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Moving the fences in at Petco wouldn't hurt. Long known as a pitcher's park, the anemic Padres offense could potentially be deadly, given more friendly dimensions, especially after the offensive explosion we saw from Headley and others in the second half of 2012.

San Francisco Giants - In case you missed the past 3 years, the Giants are currently baseball's best team. Yes, that's a very bold statement, one that's extremely difficult to back up. Does 2 World Series titles in the past 3 years make that case any more convincing? It definitely should. And it seems very likely that the only reason they didn't make it to October in 2011 was losing former Rookie of the Year and reigning MVP Buster Posey to a nasty collision in May of that season that caused him to miss the rest of the year. Both seasons that Posey's been behind the plate full time, 2010 and this year, the Giants have won it all. Coincidence? Maybe. A strong starting rotation certainly helps: Matt Cain started the All-Star Game (that Melky Cabrera won while playing for the Giants before his 50-game suspension for PEDs) and threw a perfect game against the Astros in June, Barry Zito regained his Cy Young form near the end of the season, and Madison Bumgarner and Ryan Vogelsong kept a solid staff together at the back end. The only pitcher who left a lot to be desired was, surprisingly, Tim Lincecum, who went from staff ace to staff disgrace in 2012, posting the highest ERA (5.18) out of all starters with 100 or more innings. There's a sentence I never thought I'd hear. While Lincecum's terminal case of the yips brought the pitching down, they still ranked in the top half of all defensive stats. As for the offense, behind Posey, reigning World Series MVP Pablo Sandoval (who became the 4th player in history to hit 3 home runs in a World Series game) and midseason acquisitions Hunter Pence and Marco Scutaro, the champs finally have an offense to match their defense.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Lincecum returns to Cy Young form, Sandoval hits 40 home runs, Posey catches 145 games and the Giants defend their title, so we all have to start paying attention to them.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: The Freak's freakish 2012 turns out to be the norm, Posey can't duplicate his MVP campaign, and again, they miss the postseason 12 months after hoisting the Commissioner's Trophy.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Flying under the radar has worked for the team so far. There are overtones of a dynasty, although it's too early to expect a repeat. Obviously they need to fix whatever ails Lincecum, which may necessitate a few months in the bullpen. Timmy Boy shined in the playoffs while pitching relief, maybe a lighter workload for a while would do wonders for the 2-time Cy Young winner.

TBF's 2013 NL West Predictions:

San Francisco Giants
Los Angeles Dodgers
San Diego Padres
Arizona Diamondbacks
Colorado Rockies

For Better Or For Worse 3: Revenge Of The Sith - NL Central.

For the second to last installment of FBOFW, we're taking a look at the National League Central Division.

Chicago Cubs - Now that the Astros are in the American League, it's hard to think of a team in this division that will miss them more than the Cubs, purely because they're now the main punching bag in the Central. It's no secret that the Cubbies have been having a rough century, but the hirings of Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer to run the front office last year are still seen as promising developments. They made sure to hold onto star shortstop Starlin Castro, signing him to a 7 year, $60 million contract that will keep Castro on the North Side until 2020, meaning he is the foundation upon which the Cubbies will try to build their first World Series winners since 1908 (remember 1908?). They also swung a trade last year for Anthony Rizzo, who projects to be their first baseman of the future. Combine them with Darwin Barney, notorious for being the most defensively skilled second baseman in the National League, and Ian Stewart, their acceptable stopgap at third base until Josh Vitters finally reaches his potential, and the Cubs actually have a solid, powerful infield. The outfield leaves a lot to be desired, with Alfonso Soriano's contract (through 2014) tying the front office's hands to some extent, even though he's put up respectable numbers over the course of his megadeal (146 home runs, 475 RBI since joining the team in 2007), and veterans like Nate Schierholtz and David DeJesus are acceptable outfielders while Jorge Soler and Matt Szczur continue to develop. The rotation needs a little work, as Matt Garza and Jeff Samardjiza still need to learn a little more control, and the bullpen is absolutely dreadful behind closer Carlos Marmol (3 blown saves and a 1.54 WHIP in 2012), but with the signings of Edwin Jackson to shore up the rotation and Kyuji Fujikawa to replace Marmol as closer, this team may slowly be inching towards contention.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Castro breaks the single season hit record, Rizzo hits 30 bombs, Soriano shows he's still got some gas left in the tank, and the team only loses 90 games. That's the BEST case scenario.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Castro tears his ACL in May, Garza and Samardjiza lose 30 games between the two of them, and the Curse of the Billy Goat continues indefinitely.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: To stay the course. Epstein and Hoyer outlined a clear rebuilding plan that WILL pay dividends, as long as they don't decide to go back on their methods.

Cincinnati Reds - I love the Reds. It's not something I talk about often. They won their last World Series the year I was born, which will immediately foster positive feelings in a baseball fan. For the past few seasons, they've seen a resurgence in power, with sluggers like Joey Votto and Jay Bruce launching baseballs into the stands at an impressive rate, as well as hitters like Brandon Phillips and Zack Cozart, both of whom don't have a high amount of power but are dangerous on the bases nonetheless. They gained a potential ace in Mat Latos last offseason, sending Edinson Volquez to the Padres in return, and he turned in a good campaign, going 14-4 with a 3.42 ERA and 186 strikeouts. However, it was Johnny Cueto who truly shined in 2012: 19 wins, a 2.78 ERA, and 170 strikeouts helped him become one of the premiere pitchers in the division. They acquired Shin-Soo Choo from the Indians earlier this offseason, who projects to be their centerfielder and an adequate leadoff hitter. They signed midsesason pickup Jonathon Broxton and then resigned him this year to be their closer, signalling that the plan to turn fireballer Aroldis Chapman into a starter is finally going to be put into action. While Chapman throws faster than any other pitcher in history (his 105.1 MPH pitch in 2011 is the fastest ever officially recorded), his fastball won't be enough to turn him into a true ace. The Reds' coaching staff will have to find a way to help Chapman develop his slider to drop a little more, and if they can add a serious curveball to his repertoire, no one will ever make contact with his pitches. This team truly has nearly everything they need to win it all in 2013, as long as the pieces fit together.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: They win the division AND make it past the first round of the playoffs. They've had unceremonious first-round exits in 2010 and 2012, both after winning the Central.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Votto and Bruce regress, Phillips loses his speed, Bronson Arroyo's age finally catches up with him, and Chapman's transition to the rotation is a complete failure.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Regardless of anything else, this team lives and dies by Votto and Chapman. If both are healthy and at full strength, there simply is no stopping this team, but with Votto's recent injuries and Chapman's skill set still unproven over more than an inning of work at a time, we have yet to see what the Reds are truly capable of.

Milwaukee Brewers - Just like the Cardinals, the Brewers had to watch their power-hitting first baseman leave in free agency, with 2012 being the first post-Prince season. After making it to the NLCS in 2011, they regressed a bit last season. Then-reigning MVP Ryan Braun had allegedly failed a drug test during the postseason and faced a 50-game suspension, but it was overturned before Spring Training. They signed Aramis Ramirez and Alex Gonzalez to help out the offense, as well as adding some solid defenders to the left side of the infield, but Gonzalez tore his ACL in April and missed the entire season. They traded Zack Greinke away midseason after realizing the pitcher would be far too expensive to afford later, and got back promising young shortstop Jean Segura from the Angels, who will be an upgrade from Gonzalez in every single way. Mat Gamel, the theoretical successor to Fielder, is almost done rehabbing from a torn ACL, but Corey Hart, who was supposed to slot in as the starting first baseman (30 homers and 83 RBI in 2012), will now be out until May after a knee surgery. The rotation is worrisome, but behind Yovani Gallardo (16-9, the only returning starter with a winning record), they should be able to stay semi-relevant when compared to other starting staffs in this division. With John Axford as the team's closer, the bullpen will be able to skillfully handle any potential wins or saves that the starters can't take care of. While 2012 was pretty disappointing for several reasons, and losing Prince Fielder and Zack Greinke in the span of 6 months is always a drawback, the Brewers could feasibly contend in 2013.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Braun wins another MVP award behind another strong year, Segura or Mat Gamel wins Rookie of the Year, and the Brew Crew makes another postseason run.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Axford and the bullpen implode, Braun's moonshots are not enough to keep the offense alive, and somewhere in Detroit, Fielder quietly chuckles to himself after the regular season ends.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: To get their rotation figured out. After losing Greinke and Shaun Marcum, Gallardo leads a 5-man rotation with Chris Narveson and several unproven unknowns. While the bullpen has been improved with the signings of Burke Badenhop and Tom Gorzelanny, they still need an impact starter, whether they come from the minor leagues or they sign Kyle Lohse, the only remaining frontline hurler.

Pittsburgh Pirates - 20 losing seasons...it's hard to even fathom that. There are young Pirates fans who have never seen their team in the playoffs, or even notch a winning record. Obviously, the Bucs aren't the only team in this division with long-suffering fans (I'd imagine Cubs fans saying "You think 20 years is bad? Come to Wrigley for a few days, you'll feel a lot better about yourself."), but there are quite a few reasons to expect the Pirates to set sail in October once more. Andrew McCutchen, their centerfielder for at least the next half-decade after signing a steal of a contract (7 years, $66 million), hit .327/31/96 in his age 26 season, an extremely promising sign of things to come over the course of his new pact. The offseason acquisition of A.J. Burnett (who surprised everyone and went 16-10 with 180 strikeouts and a 3.51 ERA in his first season outside of Yankee Stadium) and the first-half emergence of James McDonald (who went 10-3 with a 2.93 ERA through the middle of July before he crashed and ended the year at 12-8 and a 4.21 ERA) helped the rotation stay afloat, and the bullpen was dominant behind Joel Hanrahan, who will now be closing games for the Red Sox. With Pedro Alvarez finally starting to touch that high ceiling we always knew he'd reach, hitting 30 home runs and 85 RBI (admittedly, his .784 OPS leaves much to be desired, but as a third baseman who's only 25, he has time to improve on that), the infield looks just a little stronger with the addition of Russell Martin behind the plate. The team ranked 8th in triples last year (37), a testament to the power and speed they have. If they can make it blossom, the Jolly Roger may finally be hoisted in October once again.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: McCutchen, in an MVP-caliber season, takes the team to a winning record for the first time since 1992, and even though they still miss the playoffs, baseball has been revitalized in Pittsburgh, and fans look to 2014 with something they haven't felt in decades...hope.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: ...Make that 21 losing seasons.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Just a few more wins. That's it. Just a few more wins. They raised their win total from 57 in 2010 to 72 in 2011 to 79 in 2012, so they're just on the cusp of .500 and beyond. They've shown they can perform well just past the All-Star break, so if they can find a way to get 3 or 4 more wins, the streak of futility will finally be snapped.

St. Louis Cardinals - For a team that lost the best player in today's game, the Cardinals had a pretty solid follow-up season after winning it all in 2011. They watched as Albert Pujols, the face of their franchise for the previous 11 years, signed with the Angels, and had to deal with the retirement of both manager Tony LaRussa and hitting coach Dave Duncan. They signed former catcher Mike Matheny to manage the team, and signed Carlos Beltran to a 2-year deal that immediately produced dividends, as he led a St. Louis squad with former World Series MVP David Freese. Midseason callups like Pete Kozma and Matt Carpenter strengthened a lineup that still contained Matt Holliday as well as Freese and Beltran, and although Chris Carpenter missed the majority of the season after a monstrous 2011, newly-rehabbed Adam Wainwright stepped in to fill the void just like Carpenter had done for him the previous season. Jason Motte managed to notch 45 saves, proving that his designation as the team's closer was no mistake. They managed to make it all the way to the NLCS, and had it not been for the Giants' magical record in elimination games, they might have had a chance to be repeat champs for the first time in franchise history. Not bad for a team that lost its top offensive producer and brilliant skipper. Even better, they were 1st in baseball in OBP, and ranked in the top 10 in all other offensive stats. The pitching, while spectacular, left a little to be desired, dropping as low as 18th in opponents' batting average. Still, it's hard to argue with the way the Cards are doing things lately, and as long as they can stay healthy, there doesn't appear to be much that other teams in this division can do to slow them down. It may be yet another Redbird October this year.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Freese, Kozma and Carpenter inject new life into the lineup, the rotation wins 65 games, and the Cards fly under the radar until they raise the Commissioner's Trophy.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: The lineup sputters behind a regression from Beltran and Holliday, Motte can't close games out anymore, and they finally have a moment to sincerely regret letting Pujols walk.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: They needed a few more reliable arms in the bullpen, and they got them when they signed Randy Choate and Mitchell Boggs to help out Motte near the end of games. The only problem now is to figure out what they'll do now that Carpenter will miss the entire season, and may not ever pitch again, due to his recurring nerve injury.

TBF's 2013 NL Central Predictions:

Cincinnati Reds
St. Louis Cardinals
Milwaukee Brewers
Pittsburgh Pirates
Chicago Cubs

For Better Or For Worse 3: Revenge Of The Sith - NL East.

In this installment of FBOFW, we're jumping leagues and starting with the National League East Division.

Atlanta Braves - It's not often that a legendary career ends in a game as controversial as the newly-hailed "Infield Fly Rule Game", the first play-in Wild Card game played in NL history. But that was the last Major League Baseball game Chipper Jones will ever man third base in. As hard as it is to watch a Hall of Fame career end in such a strange scenario, the Braves haven't let that stop them this offseason, picking up two players that are essential to their future success. What's more, these two just happen to be brothers: B.J. Upton, who signed as a free agent, and his younger brother Justin, acquired in a trade from the Diamondbacks after months of speculation and rumors, will join Jason Heyward in what my good friend described as "Up, Up, And A-Hey!" This not only gives the Braves the most dangerous outfield in the game, but gives them an even higher chance of unseating the Nationals atop the NL East, a place they have occupied most seasons since 1991. They had to give up Martin Prado to get the younger Upton, a player who was pegged to be the "veteran presence" in the clubhouse, but indications are that the team will be fine without him. Their star catcher, Brian McCann, is entering his walk year, so expect some big production from the former All-Star. Dan Uggla has everything to prove, so a bounceback year from him would do wonders for the team's offense. A full season of either Andrelton Simmons or Tyler Pastornicky at shorstop will improve the defense of a team that was already spectacular in 2012: all Atlanta infielders combined for 86 errors, 5th lowest in baseball, and their fielding percentage (.986) ranked them 4th. With figures like that, we don't even have to say anything about the magnificent rotation of Kris Medlen, Brandon Beachy, Tim Hudson and Mike Minor. While Chipper will be missed, this is a Braves team that will do just fine in 2013.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Keeping up with the Uptons becomes impossible for the rest of the East, and Chipper is remembered fondly as the Bravos handily run away with the division title.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: B.J. and Justin bomb, McCann can't return to form, Uggla's shoddy defense allows more runs than he drives in, and the team can't look up without seeing the Nationals above them.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Just keep chugging out those "Up, Up, And A-Hey!" T-shirts we all know are coming.

Miami Marlins - If you really need a recap of how the last 12 months have gone for the Marlins, you must have isolated yourself completely from the baseball world. After their lavish signings of Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle and Heath Bell last offseason, all three were shipped out of town (along with nearly every other Marlin making more than $5 million) after the team finished in last with a 69-93 record, their worst since 1999. Giancarlo Stanton, their only remaining superstar, spent 40 games on the DL and still managed to hit 37 home runs (it's terrifying to think about the damage he'll do in his career, as he's barely 23). Josh Johnson also struggled to return to form and was shipped out to Toronto with Reyes and Buehrle. When you look at your team's rotation for the upcoming season, the last thing you want to see is Ricky Nolasco (coincidentally, the only Marlin making more than $5 million this year) as your number one starter. The offense will suffer mightily with the loss of Reyes, Emilio Bonifacio (also shipped north of the border), and Hanley Ramirez (traded to the Dodgers halfway through the season), and Stanton seems disinclined to do much to help. They signed Placido Polanco to man the hot corner, but he's never been an offensive powerhouse. The rotation is led by Ricky Nolasco...do I really have to say anything else about the state of the starters? While Nathan Eovaldi (acquired in the Ramirez trade) may one day become an acceptable number 2 starter, he's done nothing so far to instill confidence. The bullpen, held down by sudden closer Steve Cishek, is laughably bad following the trades of Edward Mujica and Randy Choate (both of whom are now with the Cardinals), and it doesn't appear that the team has made any moves to rectify that. Although Mike Redmond was hired to replace the fallen Ozzie Guillen, he doesn't have his work cut out for him...he has his work cut out, tossed around, beaten up, then returned to him to fix. Good luck, Mike.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Stanton hits 65 home runs and carries the club to a winning record while missing the playoffs. That's about the best that will happen for this team in 2013.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Stanton gets injured again, LoMo is banned from Twitter and his production drops off even further, and the Fish are contracted. Congrats on ruining another franchise, Loria.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: A new owner, a new general manager, a new city, a new fanbase.

New York Mets - Most teams celebrate a pitcher when they win the Cy Young award. Some, however, decide to trade them while their value is at its peak. The Mets chose to do the latter this offseason with knuckleballer R.A. Dickey, sending him to the busy Blue Jays in return for their catcher of the future, Travis d'Arnaud. The backstop from Toronto will probably start 2013 in the minors while stopgap John Buck will hold it down behind the plate, but this deal will likely pay dividends for both teams. While the Mets brass didn't find it pertinent to extend Dickey, they did sign franchise cornerstone David Wright to a 7-year, $138 million extension that will keep him in Queens until 2020. This was a true move of necessity, as the offense is not nearly as strong as it needs to be. Ike Davis hit 32 home runs but posted a .771 OPS to go along with a .227 batting average. Kirk Nieuwenhuis made some spectacular plays in the outfield but only knocked in 28 runs in 91 games. Lucas Duda posted the lowest offensive WAR (-1.4) of his relatively short career. So, it will be upon Wright, the team's all-time leader in most offensive stats, to carry this team back to prominence. Johan Santana, the oft-injured former Cy Young winner, threw the first no-hitter in franchise history this season, a nice part of a story that's seen plenty of bumps in the road. After Dickey and Santana, though, this rotation was lacking mightily, ranking in the bottom half, except for being 1st in quality starts (101, most of which were made by Dickey). The team signed Shaun Marcum to a 1-year pact, providing them with a veteran innings-eater, which should help their bullpen mightily. While things in Queens don't appear to be getting better by next year, Wright, d'Arnaud and a healthy Santana could definitely keep them competitive. At least before the All-Star break.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Wright immediately pays dividends on his new contract and wins the MVP, Nieuwenhuis becomes the next Darryl Strawberry, and the Amazin's appear to be ready to contend in 2014.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: The rotation falls apart without their knuckler, and Wright can't stop the hemorrhaging as the team remains thankful that the Marlins exist, keeping them from falling to last place.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Pitching. Dickey was the only pitcher in last year's rotation that was worth a damn (literally, WAR shows that him and Jonathan Niese were the only hurlers to post anything higher than a 1.0), and now he's gone. Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler will be top of the line starters, but not in 2013. Maybe Kyle Lohse would be worth giving up a draft pick.

Philadelphia Phillies - After winning 5 straight division titles, the Phillies entered 2012 on a roll. Chase Utley and Ryan Howard were finally making progress on their way back from injuries, Jimmy Rollins resigned with the team, and the rotation of Halladay-Lee-Hamels was still intact, a guarantee of at least 55 wins. So what happened? Well, Utley and Howard couldn't regain their previous MVP-caliber form, Rollins was a non-factor in a lineup that desperately needed his switch-hitting prowess (23 homers and 68 RBI is nice, but his .743 OPS left a lot to be desired), and the rotation was absolutely dreadful. What was hailed as one of the greatest 3-man rotations in a long time couldn't seem to get its stuff together. Halladay's fastball dropped a full 2 miles in velocity, Lee didn't win a game until the 4th of July, and while Hamels signed an extension to keep him off this year's free agent market and posted career highs in wins and strikeouts, he still couldn't cover the ground the other two left unchecked. While Phillies pitchers managed to rank in the top half of all defensive stats, the offense ranked in the lower half. The bullpen was a particular strength, with Jonathon Papelbon notching 38 saves in his first season in the National League. The team signed John Lannan and Mike Adams to add a little more to the bullpen and rotation, after losing Vance Worley. It's doubtful that another division title is within reach for the Phils in 2013, but a Wild Card berth isn't impossible.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Halladay finds his fastball again, Lee gets his first win before July, and the offense comes alive to propel the Phils back into October.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: A team full of old hurlers and old hitters just gets a year older, and they drop even further in the standings than last year.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: An infusion of youth. They acquired Ben Revere from the Twins, a speedy young outfielder who holds the record for most plate appearances without a home run, and signed free agent Delmon Young, normally a DH, to start in right field. Both are well under 30 (Young is 27 and Revere is 24), but with an infield that has a median age of 35 (especially after trading for Michael Young of the Rangers to man third base), this team might be getting too old to be effective. The Phils don't have a very strong farm system, so maybe a few years in the cellar will fix that.

Washington Nationals - We knew the Nationals were going to win a division title after the 2010 draft. It was just a matter of time before Stephen Strasburg (first overall pick in 2009) and Bryce Harper (first overall in 2010) would join the hapless players in the nation's capital and raise them from the depths of the division to the top. We just didn't know it would be this year, when Strasburg was shackled with an innings limit after coming back from Tommy John surgery. Of course this was the year the Nats decided to be good. It had a lot to do with the acquisition of Gio Gonzalez from the Athletics, who led baseball with 21 wins. Harper was called up near the end of the first month, and immediately his presence in the lineup boosted the likes of Jayson Werth and Michael Morse (since traded to the Mariners), both of whom unfortunately spent a while on the disabled list. Adam LaRoche was a nice surprise, as the 33 year old hit as many home runs (a career high), as well as recording 100 RBI for the second time in his unnoticed career, good enough to garner him a 2-year deal with Washington this offseason. The team traded for Denard Span, formerly of the Twins, who should add a little speed in a moderately slow lineup. The pitching was the real story for the Nats, as they ranked in the top 5 of all defensive stats. With Strasburg and Gonzalez followed by Jordan Zimmermann and a plethora of acceptable starting options behind them, no wonder they were so strong. The bullpen had a setback when closer Drew Storen hit the DL, but Tyler Clippard stepped in without missing a beat, saving 32 games. With their first division title and postseason appearance under their belts, don't be surprised if Strasburg and Harper take the Nats to the top of the baseball world, and make it look like child's play.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Pitching without the knowledge of an innings limit, Strasburg records 250 strikeouts en route to his first Cy Young, and the bats of Harper and LaRoche get the Nats to the NLCS.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Gonzalez is suspended 50 games for being linked to steroid usage, Werth disappoints again on his mega-deal, and the Nats prove their NLDS meltdown is what they're really about.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: They need to stay the course. This is a Nationals team unlike any other. They've now had a taste of postseason play, and their core players are all still extremely young. With a sprinkling of vets like Werth and LaRoche, they can become a true contender as early as next year.

TBF's 2013 NL East Predictions:

Washington Nationals
Atlanta Braves
Philadelphia Phillies
New York Mets
Miami Marlins

For Better Or For Worse 3: Revenge Of The Sith - AL West.

In the third installment of this year's FBOFW edition, we're analyzing the American League West Division.

Houston Astros - Jeez, what are we supposed to say about the Houston Astros? Before 2011, they had never lost 100 or more games in a single season...they've now done it twice in a row. They played in a relatively easy division, the NL Central, where they knew that they wouldn't be in last place as long as the Cubs, Pirates and Brewers still existed, and still they managed to be the worst team in that division not based in Chicago. Now, after being sold, they're making the jump to the American League and switching divisions. Will this make things better? Don't count on it. For their part, the 'Stros have certainly been busy this offseason: they added Carlos Pena to be the first DH in team history, they picked up perfect game hurler Philip Humber on waivers (an indication of how far his value has fallen since his perfecto), they signed Rick Ankiel to bring a veteran presence to the outfield, acquired Alex White from the Rockies in exchange for reliever Wilton Lopez, and sent Jed Lowrie to the A's for some prospects. Their new manager, Bo Porter, will have a lot to work for in 2013 to prove that the Astros can hold their own in the division, but it's a real uphill battle. Out of all offensive AND defensive stats, they ranked between 24th (73 quality starts) and 30th (583 runs scored). They've done a lot to fill the holes, but it's unclear whether it will be enough. Second baseman Jose Altuve, the team's lone All-Star representative last year, could eventually become a force both at the plate and on the field, as well as last year's first pick in the draft, Carlos Correa. There's a double play combination that should give the Astros hope, as Altuve's only 22 and Correa's still 18. Other than that, it might be a while before the team sees any success like they had a few years ago with the Killer B's, so the best they can do is just weather the storm of losses and look ahead to brighter days of winning...in 2017.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Altuve becomes a powerhouse both on defense and offense, their farm system starts to pay dividends, and even though they finish last, they lose less than 100 games.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: A team that never lost 100 games in franchise history before 2011 notches its third consecutive season of 100 losses.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Everything. Hitting, pitching, defense, catching, patience at the plate, smarter baserunning, several miracles...I can keep going if necessary.

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim - If there was a team that could sign Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson a year ago, and STILL manage to get even better this year by signing the most impactful position player on the market, it's the Angels, and they did just that by signing Josh Hamilton. While 2012 saw them miss the playoffs after their Yankee-like spending spree months beforehand, the promise of a bright future arrived in the form of Mike Trout, reigning Rookie of the Year and, by all accounts, destined to become one of the all-time greats. They shipped out Jordan Walden (the closer before Ernesto Frieri came over from the Padres halfway through the season) to Atlanta and received Tommy Hanson in return, and they also signed Joe Blanton and Ryan Madson to strengthen both ends of the pitching staff. While Hamilton's numbers at Angel Stadium leave a lot to be desired (especially when compared to the damage he did in Rangers Ballpark, his former home field), he'll have plenty of chances in the next 5 years to live up to his $125 million contract. They let longtime slugger (and mentor to Trout) Torii Hunter leave to sign with the Tigers, and even though he had a career year offensively, this team will be fine without him: Angels hitters ranked no lower than 5th in any offensive stat, claiming the top spot in baseball in batting average (.274). Losing Hunter for Hamilton is only going to pump those stats up to insane levels. As far as the pitching, Jered Weaver (who threw his first no-hitter) and Wilson led the rotation to new heights, and if it weren't for the likes of Ervin Santana (traded to the Royals shortly after the season ended) and Dan Haren (signed with the Nationals after the Angels declined his option), they might have ranked higher than average in defensive stats. Still, this is a Halos team that might recapture some of that magic that helped them win the division 6 times in the past decade.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Albert Pujols, Mike Trout, and Josh Hamilton are now in the same lineup. Is there really anything else to say? An AL pennant is coming soon.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Pujols and Hamilton's injury problems get even worse, Trout isn't what his rookie year made him seem, Weaver's arm falls apart and the Halos miss the playoffs yet again.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: They needed some top-notch starters to pitch behind Weaver and Wilson. They got Hanson and Blanton. I'd call this rotation a wash for next season.

Oakland Athletics - The reigning AL West champs may have been the biggest surprise in 2012, a year full of shockers. In a division that had powerhouses like the reloaded Angels and a Rangers team that just wouldn't quit (until the last 3 games), nobody gave the A's a second look this offseason, with many predicting they'd finish in last, even behind the Mariners. The Mariners! Sure, the A's traded away a lot of good pieces in Gio Gonzalez (to the Nationals) and Andrew Bailey (to the Red Sox), and what they got in return (Derek Norris, Josh Reddick, and several mid-tier prospects) didn't seem to be commensurate compensation. Low-key signings of Coco Crisp and Bartolo Colon didn't figure to factor in much, and reaching a deal with Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes seemed like an overpay for an unproven talent. It was easy to say the A's would crash and burn this season. Boy, were we wrong. The offense ranked between 14th and 28th, but that underscores the impact of Crisp and Reddick in the clubhouse, where these two vets helped the young players loosen up in their first taste of big league ball. The pitching was considerably better, ranking no lower than 10th. Although they lost Brandon McCarthy and Cliff Pennington to the Diamondbacks, what we saw from Norris, Jarrod Parker and Tommy Milone, as well as a dominant season from closer Grant Balfour, means that we can't count this team out in 2013, no matter how unlikely their success seems.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: While they'll still be in the hunt, the A's can't defend their division title, but they still win 88 games, which possibly garners them a Wild Card berth.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Their surplus of outfielders becomes a hindrance to an anemic offense, the young rotation suffers a collective sophomore slump, and the A's really do finish behind the Mariners.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: A new stadium couldn't hurt. If this team is going to stick around for a while, they should have a field they can be proud to host postseason games in. The franchise has its eyes on San Jose, but the Giants own the rights to that area. Maybe they will eventually cede the land to the A's, but it seems unlikely. Also, a good shortstop. Offseason pickup Hiroyuki Nakajima projects as the starter, but Japanese players, especially position players, often have difficulties on this side of the Pacific. The recent acquisition of Jed Lowrie from the Astros will likely assuage their middle infield woes.

Seattle Mariners - The good thing about the Mariners is that everything they do in the interest of improving their team makes them look better. Expectations are always extremely low in Seattle, so a winning record might be celebrated just as much as an unlikely division title. The lone bright spot of the M's 2012 was stud hurler Felix Hernandez throwing a perfect game in the middle of August. After one trade with the Yankees in the offseason (sending Michael Pineda to the Bronx in exchange for Jesus Montero), they pulled off a stunner with the same team in the middle of the season, sending longtime outfielder Ichiro Suzuki to New York for 2 minor leaguers, a move of necessity for the aging Japanese slugger who wanted to play for a contender before he retired. In the offseason, the team made a push for Josh Hamilton, before he signed with the Angels. They acquired Kendrys Morales from the same team in exchange for Jason Vargas, a formality seeing as they have three stud pitchers (Taijuan Walker, Danny Hultzen and James Paxton) who will be facing Major League hitters very soon. Shortly after that, they signed Raul Ibanez for his third stint with the team, and traded for Michael Morse, who's returning to the organization that drafted him. In the same trade, they traded John Jaso to the A's, most likely in anticipation of Mike Zunino, their first pick in last year's draft, joining the big league club shortly. With this newly acquired power to match their vaunted defense, moving in the fences at Safeco like they did this offseason may see a 2013 Seattle Mariners club to be reckoned with.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Mike Morse becomes the slugger the M's hoped he would be when they drafted him years ago, and Hernandez wins 20 games while the club finishes in third place.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Hernandez tears his ACL on Opening Day, Ibanez's postseason heroics don't carry over to Seattle, and the team still falls to last place, even with the Astros now in the division.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: For a team that hasn't had any real slugging power in recent memory, they may have too much now. Morse, Ibanez, and Morales will be competing with Kyle Seager and Jesus Montero for time at first base, right field and DH. That means there's 5 people for 3 positions, a glut that won't work out well if 2 of these boppers will always be sitting on the bench. Maybe developing Montero into a true catcher will help, but the team views him as a liability back there.

Texas Rangers - Everything's bigger in Texas, including the expectations and, unfortunately, the disappointments. After losing their second World Series in a row in 2011, the Rangers were heavy favorites in 2012 to maybe, just maybe, finish what they started against the Giants in 2010 and the Cardinals in 2011 and finally bring the Commissioner's Trophy to the Lone Star State. While Josh Hamilton put up monstrous numbers, including the game in May where he hit 4 2-run homers, his second-half fade helped the team make the difficult decision to not resign him this offseason. Michael Young, Mr. Ranger himself, was shipped out to Philadelphia a few months after the season ended. Seeing as the team lost two of their most consistent producers, everyone believed they were going to make a splash this offseason, either by trading for someone like Justin Upton, or signing someone like Zack Greinke. They did neither. People expected them to make a late push for the services of Michael Bourn or Kyle Lohse. So far, they've managed to let both slip away. Is the team content with the roster they have? Sure, there's a lot to like with Ian Kinsler, Elvis Andrus and Adrian Beltre still in the lineup, and the additions of A.J. Pierzynski and Lance Berkman will add a little pop before prospects Jurickson Profar and Mike Olt are ready to be big-league regulars. But losing someone like Hamilton, as well as Young and Mike Napoli, isn't something to bounce right back from. Yu Darvish was effective in his rookie campaign in America, but he's still struggling to keep his ERA low. Converted closer Neftali Feliz is still recovering from Tommy John surgery, and Derek Holland is not what he appeared to be in the 2011 postseason. The Rangers' window to win it all might have closed, as scary as this team still is.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Kinsler is able to pick up the offensive slack left behind by Hamilton and Young, Andrus steals 70 bases, and Darvish starts Game 1 of the 2013 World Series.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Just like Wilson, the departure of Hamilton is too much to bear, Feliz's transition to the rotation continues to fail, and the Rangers wilt in the hot Texan summer yet again.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: More patience at the plate, at least atop the order. Kinsler and Andrus struck out a combined 186 times in 2012, the result of their tendency to swing at bad pitches. With these two and Beltre now responsible for keeping the offense afloat, they'll need to make contact more often.

TBF's 2013 AL West Predictions:

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Texas Rangers
Oakland Athletics
Seattle Mariners
Houston Astros

For Better Or For Worse 3: Revenge Of The Sith - AL Central.

In our next installment of FBOFW, we're taking a look at the American League Central Division.

Chicago White Sox - Being the best baseball team in Chicago is just not enough for the White Sox (go figure). Since their 2005 World Series win, they haven't done much in the way of returning to the postseason.  They let controversial manager Ozzie Guillen take his talents to South Beach at the conclusion of the 2011 season, and shortly after that they hired rookie skipper Robin Ventura to take over on the South Side. After leading in the standings through most of 2012, they faltered down the stretch and allowed the Tigers to leapfrog them in the last few weeks to win the division. The offense wasn't horrible, with Adam Dunn rebounding from the worst single season numbers for a batter since Ramiro Mendoza (Dunn's .159/.292/.277 were by far the worst of his career, and in fact may be the worst of ANY career) to hit 41 bombs and knock in 96 runs in 2012, and Alex Rios (.304/25/91) having a similar comeback year, the offense exploded to help the Pale Hose rank 7th in runs scored, as well as ranking no lower than 15th in any other offensive category. The pitching wasn't spectacular, but Jake Peavy (194 strikeouts in 219 innings) began to show signs of life again, and Chris Sale (17-8 with 192 K's and a 3.05 ERA) proved that an ace doesn't necessarily have to throw hard or fast, just throw strikes. While the Sox aren't getting any younger (even after losing 36 year old catcher A.J. Pierzynski and 35 year old third baseman Kevin Youkilis, first baseman and captain Paul Konerko is also 36 and the farm system is severely lacking in promising young talent), they've shown that they can truly be a force to be reckoned with...at least through August. They need something to keep them strong through September. Good luck figuring out what that something is.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Dunn hits 50 homers, Sale wins 20 games, Gordon Beckham finally reaches his potential, Peavy continues to revitalize his career, and the Sox win the division for the first time since 2008.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Losing Youk and A.J. affects the offense so negatively that they rank last in the AL in runs, Dunn hits under .150, and the bullpen blows more saves than Heath Bell.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Patience, both at the plate and on the bases. White Sox hitters averaged only 3.76 pitches per plate appearance, and ranked 10th in caught stealing with 43 missed attempts. If they take more time with their approach, the offense could potentially be amazing.

Cleveland Indians - This will be the year. This will finally be the season, after the last two, where the Indians will start off well, and actually execute in the second half. Offseason pickups Michael Bourn, Nick Swisher and Mark Reynolds will add some desperately needed power to this lineup, joining Asdrubal Cabrera and Carlos Santana in the quest to bring some runs to Progressive Field. They've turned their rotation into a possible strong point in a few years with the acquisition of Trevor Bauer from the Diamondbacks (giving up their last year of Shin-Soo Choo to get him), and the signing of veteran hurler Brett Myers could help take some pressure off of Justin Masterson, allowing him to focus on becoming the ace Cleveland has desperately needed for years. Their bullpen, behind outspoken closer Chris Perez, is yet another reason to believe that this Indians team can finally, FINALLY stay strong after the All-Star break and reach the postseason for the first time in 5 years. Or...maybe this won't be the year. It'll be hard for the Tribe to do any worse in 2013 than they did in 2012: although they managed to rank 11th in OBP, they were in the lower half of all other offensive stats, mainly thanks to the stifling of Carlos Santana, who still managed to lead the team with 18 home runs and 76 RBI with limited opportunities. The team foolishly resigned Grady Sizemore to a 1-year deal last offseason, and appear to have finally cut ties with him after yet another disappointing year where he missed nearly the entire season. Hopefully, these offseason acquisitions will put the Indians back on the path they seemed to be on in the late 1990s.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Sizemore returns midseason at full health and hits 25 home runs, Cabrera doesn't make an error the entire season, and Bauer leads the team to a postseason berth.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Bauer crashes and burns, the rest of this makeshift rotation does the same, and the offense is so horrendous that the team's front office mulls over getting Albert Belle out of retirement.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: A vaunted offense, or at least something better than what they've had for the past few years. While Reynolds and Swisher normally hit for a very low average and strike out entirely too often, their power numbers make up for their shortcomings. Between them and Santana, you can safely expect at least 75 home runs, something that may boost them above 25th in moonshots.

Detroit Tigers - Normally, when a team gets swept in the World Series, the expectations are mixed for the following season. Clearly, they're good enough to go nearly all the way, but they must be missing something vital to fall short after such a dominant postseason run. After shocking the baseball world with their late signing of Prince Fielder roughly this time last year (a move of necessity after Victor Martinez tore his ACL weeks before Spring Training), the Tigers seemed all but destined to make their second World Series in the last decade. With a core of Fielder, Miguel Cabrera and Justin Verlander, it was easy to get excited in Motown. Somehow, they only ranked 11th in runs scored, but ranked no lower than 6th in any other offensive category, thanks to Cabrera's majestic season (.330/44/139, good enough for the first Triple Crown season from a batter since 1967, which certainly helped Miggy win the MVP this year), Fielder's streak of 30 home runs and 100 RBI still going strong, and Verlander continuing to mystify the American League with his ability to pitch faster in the 9th inning than he did in the 2nd. While they trailed the White Sox for most of the season, they managed to leapfrog them in the final months and, after a nail-biting ALDS against the A's and a less intense ALCS against the Yanks, they found themselves poised to win it all. Unfortunately, the Giants swept them and left them stunned. Thankfully, this is a team built for the long run, with their Big Three all still under 30 and the closest one to free agency, Verlander, is still under contract for 2 more years. Don't count the Detroit crew out for a repeat appearance in the 2013 Fall Classic.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Fielder and Cabrera smash 60 home runs a piece, Verlander finally becomes a member of the Perfect Game Club, and the Motown boys finish what they started last year.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Torii Hunter and V-Mart don't perform nearly as well as the team hoped, the rotation can't back up the greatest pitcher in today's game, and the Tigers slowly whimper as they fall to last place.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: A closer. Jose Valverde isn't coming back, Phil Coke isn't the 9th-inning master they need, and going with unproven rookie Bruce Rondon is a true gamble. Tigers relievers blew 16 saves in 2012, which is right around the league average, but for a would-be contender, they need more stability for the last 3 outs of any game.

Kansas City Royals - In 2015, the Royals will win the pennant. Before that...well, probably more of the same. For a team that hasn't made the playoffs in almost 30 years (after winning the World Series in 1985), there is actually a lot to be hopeful for in the Show-Me State. The Royals have managed to stockpile a lot of amazing talent through their years of high draft picks (the lone shining benefit of consistent losing), resulting in an infield of Eric Hosmer, Johnny Giavotella, Alcides Escobar and Mike Moustakas, all of whom are close to being perennial All-Stars, or at least Gold Glovers and Silver Sluggers. Their outfield, which was supposed to contain top prospect Wil Myers before a fateful trade with the Rays, leaves more to be desired (especially with Jeff Francoeur projected as the starting right fielder), but is still passable when coupled with an infield that could potentially instill more fear than Tinkers to Evers to Chance. Their rotation was dreadful last year, as it had been for quite some time, so they traded Myers along with a few other prospects to the Rays and got James Shields and Wade Davis in return. While Davis is hardly a game-changer, Shields immediately gives this staff something it's lacked since Zack Greinke was traded: a true ace. The team also resigned Jeremy Guthrie, who had more success with the Royals last year than he did with the Rockies, and traded for Ervin Santana, who posted career highs in home runs allowed and ERA last season. Between these four, and last year's Opening Day starter Bruce Chen, this is a Royals rotation that might honestly be the best since the days of Bret Saberhagen. That's not saying much, but it's about as good as it's going to get right now. They lost their closer, Joakim Soria, twice: first to Tommy John surgery, then to the Rangers this offseason, so expect their reliance on the lineup to balance out all the runs the pitching allows to grow.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Moustakas and Butler become a modern day Brett and McRae, and the rotation holds up just enough to launch the Royals back into the postseason for the first time in 3 decades.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: The wellspring of talent still can't be properly tapped, Guthrie and Santana throw even worse than last year, and the Boys in Blue endure more "There's always next year".
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Like the Red Sox, they need a time machine. Only this time, they need it to go forward 3 or 4 years.

Minnesota Twins - The last 2 years have not been kind to the Twins. After a stretch in which they won the division 6 times from 2002 to 2010, 2011 and 2012 were extremely rough, seeing the team post their worst records (63-99 in 2011, 66-96 in 2012) since the new millennium began. Their two former MVPs, Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer, have been outrageously disappointing since their award-winning campaigns, the rest of the offense has absolutely crumbled around them (ranked last in the AL with 131 home runs), and the rotation, led by oft-injured stalwart Carl Pavano, was atrocious, ranking second to last in baseball with 62 quality starts, third to last in baseball with a 4.77 ERA, and third to last in baseball with 892 runs allowed. They strengthened their awful rotation by signing Kevin Correia and Mike Pelfrey and traded for Vance Worley (sending Ben Revere to Philadelphia), all of whom could bolster the starting staff enough to help them post a positive run differential. Then again, that has a lot to do with the offense. Morneau still seems dazed from a concussion suffered in 2010, and Mauer's leg troubles coupled with his willingness to be in every commercial he's asked about means that the two linchpins of the Twins' lineup are shells of their former selves. Third baseman Trevor Plouffe showed flashes of brilliance in his rookie campaign, and Ryan Doumit was an acceptable backup backstop, but without a true power hitter (unless Morneau can find his swing again), this team is doomed to occupy the bottom of the AL Central for the foreseeable future, what with the emergence of the Indians and Royals and the continued success of the Tigers and White Sox
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Mauer catches 140 games, Morneau makes one final attempt to return to his MVP form, and the Twinkies finally begin their climb back to the top of the division.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: The additions of Worley and Correia backfire, their lack of a proven closer hurts even more, and Mauer misses 90 games while the team loses 100 for the first time since 1982.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: This team's success, at least for the next few years, relies entirely on if Mauer is healthy or not. A catcher with bilateral leg weakness has absolutely no value, and while Mauer contributes regularly at first base or DH, he needs to stay behind the plate and call games like he did when the Twins were making the playoffs every year or so.

TBF's 2013 AL Central Final Standings:

Detroit Tigers
Cleveland Indians
Chicago White Sox
Kansas City Royals
Minnesota Twins

For Better Or For Worse 3: Revenge Of The Sith - AL East.

For the third year, we're delving deep into the new season before it begins, in our annual For Better Or For Worse series. As always, let's kick things off with the American League East Division.

Baltimore Orioles - Recording their first winning season since 1997 wasn't good enough for these Birds. They managed to secure a Wild Card spot and beat the Rangers in the inaugural play-in game, where they bore a first-round exit to none other than their postseason nemeses, the Yankees. But make no mistake, they haven't flown the coop. After a year when they managed to push their first Division Series appearance in 15 years to a full 5 games, the Orioles look to build on a 2012 campaign that saw them post a 93-69 record, with the lowest run differential (+7) of any postseason team. With a core of Adam Jones (who signed a record 6-year, $96 million contract), Manny Machado (who's already drawing strong comparisons to another famous Orioles shortstop), and Wei-Yin Chen (their young hurler who was the only starter to make more than 20 starts last season), the Birds have a great team going forward, regardless of whether or not they end up relying on midseason pickups and callups like they did with Nate McLouth and Lew Ford. As it stands, their biggest offseason acquisition has been...well, nobody. They've signed plenty of fringe players to minor league pacts with the option to make the big ballclub, but not a single player of impact has yet to sign in Baltimore. Considering that there are only a few important free agents left, only one of which (Kyle Lohse) fits the description of a player that they could really use, it seems doubtful that the O's are going to add any more significant pieces, and just hope that the good will fostered in the fans by Buck Showalter's magic will be enough to carry them even further in October 2013.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: They continue to build on 2012, Adam Jones wins the MVP, and they make their first ALCS since Cal Ripken, Jr.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: The Birds have their wings clipped by everyone else in the division, the pitching fails miserably, and they begin a new streak of consecutive losing seasons.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Another outfielder certainly couldn't hurt. The options are very limited, so the chances of an impact free agent joining are slim. The O's may have to scour the minor leagues for a solution. As stated before, Lohse would be a nice fit here as well, but it's hard to see him on the bump there. If they can continue to get production out of players like McLouth and Markakis, they should be fine.

Boston Red Sox - As a baseball fan, it's hard to watch a team like the Red Sox go through what they've experienced since September 2011. As a Yankees fan, it's downright hilarious. But no matter how you paint the picture, this is a Boston team that has a long way to go before they can be considered contenders again, especially with the re-emergence of the Orioles, a Rays team that gets better by the season, a Blue Jays team with everything to lose, and their eternal rivals in New York. After finishing 2012 with a 69-93 record (their worst since 1966), they got rid of Bobby Valentine, a move that can only be described as "the easiest choice ever made in baseball history", and after a bit of haggling, they finally got the man at the helm (John Farrell) that they've wanted since before Terry Francona was run out of town, but he quickly became the captain of a rapidly sinking ship. They resigned designated hitter and franchise player David Oritz to a 2-year deal, something he's been asking for since 2009, and managed to snag a lot of the premier free agents, signing Shane Victorino, Stephen Drew, Ryan Dempster, Jonny Gomes, Koji Uehara, and Mike Napoli. So...they did nearly the same thing they did in the 2010-2011 offseason by signing a bunch of players to lucrative contracts...except this year's crop is older and past their prime...and they expect to do better than they did a few years ago with these lesser players...and we're just going to pretend like the last 15 months didn't happen. Huh. Gonna be some rough years ahead in Beantown.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: The Sox finally pick themselves up off the ground and remind everyone why they've been one of baseball's best teams in the last 2 decades.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: History continues to repeat itself, and Ortiz spends the last 2 seasons of his potential Hall of Fame career watching Boston get worse and worse.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: A time machine. One that preferably goes backwards. One that would allow them to abduct the entire 2004 squad and bring them to present day. Or at least a few good bullpen arms. Uehara is a nice addition, and they traded for Joel Hanrahan, but the loss of Jonathan Papelbon appears to still be a problem. If they can get their relievers in shape, maybe another collapse can be prevented.

New York Yankees - However tough things may be getting in Boston, they can take solace in the fact that their greatest rivals aren't getting any better either. But my, how the times have changed. Just a year ago, nobody would have questioned the decisions of manager Joe Girardi, the durability of closer Mariano Rivera, or the work ethic of third baseman Alex Rodriguez. But 12 months later and a sweep in the ALCS by the Tigers, there are many things to question. Sure, the Yanks extended their impressive postseason streak, reaching the playoffs for the 17th season out of the last 18. But since their last World Series appearance and win against the Phillies in 2009, they've lost in the ALCS to the Rangers in 6 games in 2010, the ALDS to the Tigers in 5 games in 2011, and the ALCS to the Tigers in 4 merciless beatings this season. It's getting easier to knock the Bombers out of contention, and with Hal Steinbrenner doing the worst impersonation of his late father, it'll probably be child's play (or the Blue Jays) to dethrone them sooner than I'd like to think. They resigned Ichiro, Hiroki Kuroda, Andy Pettitte and Rivera. A-Rod's having surgery in a few weeks that will keep him out until June, so they also signed Kevin Youkilis. Derek Jeter's still rehabbing from the broken leg he sustained in the first game of the ALCS, but projects to start at shortstop on Opening Day, something he's done consistently for a decade and a half. In 2005, this team is going to kick some serious ass. They've got some serious questions to answer come November, in that Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson, AKA the two best bats they have at their disposal at this point in time, will both be free agents. And $189 million just won't fit those two superstars in. If these old farts can stay somewhat healthy, then maybe the Yanks will continue their tradition of pissing off every baseball fan on earth. But if this payroll thing continues...please, Cashman, find a Ouija board and see if George can help out from the other side.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Rodriguez learns how to hit, Jeter takes ballet to become the most graceful 39 year old shortstop, and the Yanks finally return to the World Series (3 years is just too long).
WORST CASE SCENARIO: They find themselves out of contention in August for the first time since 1992, Cano and Granderson can't keep building on the last few years, and the Bombers, well, bomb.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Do you think Boston will let them borrow that time machine?

Tampa Bay Rays - If the Rays played in any other division, they would handily win nearly all the time. Unfortunately, they're aligned in what is inarguably the toughest division in baseball. They still manage to hold their own every season, since their redesign in 2008 when they dropped the "Devil" from their name and made it to the Fall Classic (where they fell to the Phillies in 5 games), but unless the offense can match the intensity and the power of the rotation, the Rays will continue to flounder. And thanks to an 11th-hour move by the Royals, they might just get there yet. They acquired top prospects Wil Myers and Jake Odorizzi from Kansas City, shipping out James Shields and Wade Davis in the process. Myers, an outfielder, is universally hailed as the best hitting prospect in baseball, now that Mike Trout and Bryce Harper are in the big leagues to stay. In a year or two, when the 22 year old will be deemed ready, batting him behind a (hopefully) healthy Evan Longoria is going to be the scariest 3-4 punch in this division. And that's saying something. Their pitching has been an insane strength over the past 5 years, and giving up Shields and Davis still didn't make them any weaker. They've got the reigning AL Cy Young winner in David Price, with some dangerous young hurlers in Jeremy Hellickson, Matt Moore and Alex Cobb. Their bullpen is steady, especially after reclamation project Fernando Rodney recorded one of the best seasons a reliever has ever had. Again, the Rays have the misfortune of playing in the AL East, but they can still make a huge splash a la 2008.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Ben Zobrist hits .350, Evan Longoria hits 45 home runs, Desmond Jennings steals 60 bases, David Price wins 25 games, Fernando Rodney saves 55 games.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: The offense sputters and dies to give the Rays their first losing season since dropping the "Devil" from their name.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: A contact hitter, if not a power hitter. Rays sluggers combined for a .240 batting average in 2012, 27th in baseball. They also need to keep Price in Tampa, regardless of what it takes. The Rays are notorious for signing their stars to affordable contracts before they get too close to free agency, but Price appears to have fallen through the cracks of this system. They have to catch him and scoop him back up before the market for Price develops into something exponential.

Toronto Blue Jays - Due to the death of the Montreal Expos way back when, the only MLB team outside of the United States has always had a lot to prove, and 2013 will be no different. However, with the recent blockbuster trade with the Marlins that brought a proven shortstop and two reliable starters over the northern border, another swap that gained them the reigning NL Cy Young winner, and the fallen All-Star MVP signing a bargain deal to be their fourth outfielder, not only could the Jays possibly make a run in a significantly weaker AL East division, it'd be shocking if they didn't at least make the ALCS. After finishing 4th in the division and seeing their star slugger (Jose Bautista) miss nearly the entire second half, the Jays made some bold moves by acquiring Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle, Josh Johnson and R.A. Dickey through two separate trades and signing Melky Cabrera as extra outfield insurance. They shored up their rotation by getting 3 pitchers who have all been, at one point, the number 1 guy on another team's staff. It appears that it will line up so Dickey, the oldest of the three, will be their Opening Day starter, with Johnson right behind him and Buehrle taking the number 3 spot, while Ricky Romero (the Jays' 2012 Opening Day starter) will become the new number 4, and Brandon Morrow will round out the rotation. And they say no one wants to play in Canada. If the Jays were ever going to replicate the success of the early 1990s, this appears to be the roster that will possibly, probably, maybe, finally put them back on top.
BEST CASE SCENARIO: Canada finally gets to celebrate a major win in a sport other than hockey, and Melky Cabrera shows that PEDs didn't play such a huge part in his big 2012 campaign.
WORST CASE SCENARIO: Colby Rasmus's dad becomes hitting coach, Bautista gets taken out by a confused mobster, and the Jays crash and burn with the same players that did so in Miami last season.
WHAT THEY NEED TO SUCCEED: Lower expectations, but that's damn sure not happening. Bautista needs to return to his 2010 and 2011 form (when he led baseball with 54 and 47 home runs, respectively), Edwin Encarnacion needs to keep launching balls into the cheap seats at Rogers Centre, Sergio Santos needs to learn better control, and Colby Rasmus needs to finally reach that potential we've been hearing about for years.

TBF's 2013 AL East Final Standings:

Toronto Blue Jays
New York Yankees
Baltimore Orioles
Tampa Bay Rays
Boston Red Sox