While M's begin offseason, playoffs near
So many things to talk about right now!
Who will be the next M's skipper? Who is the NL Cy Young winner? Can the Yanks beat Santana?
Before previewing the playoffs, I'll quickly go over my AL and NL awards. For the first time in many years, I think things are pretty clear cut in most of the categories.
AL Cy Young
Easy pick: Johan Santana
Leads the league in ERA, Strikeouts and second in innings pitched. Best pitcher by a long shot since All Star break. Any other choice and you are banned from voting again.
AL MVP
not so easy, but still belongs to: Vlad Guerrero
This is the only choice that actually requires one to think. The fact that the Angels won the West pushed this over the top for me instead of Manny or Shef. My vote in order would be Vlad, Manny, Sheffield. Tejada had a great season, but Vlad's meant a little more especially with his incredible September. While I don't think a teams performance should eliminate someone from winning, there are enough good candidates from playoff teams to preclude me from picking somone like Tejada.
AL Manager of the Year
Easy pick: Buck Showalter
The Rangers lose Alex, and almost win the West. One of the most amazing stories of '04.
NL Cy Young
sorta easy: I pick Randy, simply because of his superior number EXCEPT wins. Leads his league in strikeouts as usual, and would have won easily on a team that actually scored runs. Still, would the Houston Astros have won the NL Wild Card w/o Roger Clemens? I don't think so.
Still, the Cy Young award is supposed to go to the best pitcher, not the most valuable to his team. I vote for Randy, then Roger. All in all, an amazing performance for both given their age.
NL MVP
easiest pick in History: Bonds
NL Manager of the Year
easy pick: Bobby Cox
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Quick playoff predictions. I can't wait for the playoffs to get started, and will have more to say on this, but real quick:
Yanks vs. Twins
Prediction: Yanks in 5
Yanks win largely due to home field advantage. Santana wins game 1, but Yanks steal one at Metrodome to bring it back to NY.
Angels vs. Sox
Prediction: Sox in 4
Schilling is the master. Boston's superior pitching beats Anaheim, despite the Angels home field advantage.
So many things to talk about right now!
Who will be the next M's skipper? Who is the NL Cy Young winner? Can the Yanks beat Santana?
Before previewing the playoffs, I'll quickly go over my AL and NL awards. For the first time in many years, I think things are pretty clear cut in most of the categories.
AL Cy Young
Easy pick: Johan Santana
Leads the league in ERA, Strikeouts and second in innings pitched. Best pitcher by a long shot since All Star break. Any other choice and you are banned from voting again.
AL MVP
not so easy, but still belongs to: Vlad Guerrero
This is the only choice that actually requires one to think. The fact that the Angels won the West pushed this over the top for me instead of Manny or Shef. My vote in order would be Vlad, Manny, Sheffield. Tejada had a great season, but Vlad's meant a little more especially with his incredible September. While I don't think a teams performance should eliminate someone from winning, there are enough good candidates from playoff teams to preclude me from picking somone like Tejada.
AL Manager of the Year
Easy pick: Buck Showalter
The Rangers lose Alex, and almost win the West. One of the most amazing stories of '04.
NL Cy Young
sorta easy: I pick Randy, simply because of his superior number EXCEPT wins. Leads his league in strikeouts as usual, and would have won easily on a team that actually scored runs. Still, would the Houston Astros have won the NL Wild Card w/o Roger Clemens? I don't think so.
Still, the Cy Young award is supposed to go to the best pitcher, not the most valuable to his team. I vote for Randy, then Roger. All in all, an amazing performance for both given their age.
NL MVP
easiest pick in History: Bonds
NL Manager of the Year
easy pick: Bobby Cox
-----------
Quick playoff predictions. I can't wait for the playoffs to get started, and will have more to say on this, but real quick:
Yanks vs. Twins
Prediction: Yanks in 5
Yanks win largely due to home field advantage. Santana wins game 1, but Yanks steal one at Metrodome to bring it back to NY.
Angels vs. Sox
Prediction: Sox in 4
Schilling is the master. Boston's superior pitching beats Anaheim, despite the Angels home field advantage.
posted by Tom at
4:44 PM
