The Braves are Really Good

One month of the season in the books, and some things are unfolding as expected.  And of course, most are not.  The Rangers are winning at a rate that far exceeds their capabilities.  The Angels are losing as a similar pace.  The AL East is backwards.  The pot stirrers on ESPN are already attempting to blow hot air against the sails that currently buoy the Orioles atop the standings.  My memory ain't so good, but I do have recollections of very bad teams starting out the season strong, only to have their lack of depth and consistency expose them for the cellar dwellers that they are by the end of May.  The Tigers are mediocre at the moment.  The Cardinals are playing great baseball sans Pujols and La Russa and Duncan.  The Dodgers are just plain silly.  The Cubs are providing the stability that enables us all to stay rooted at this early juncture of the season.  But what surprises me, despite how unsurprising it is, would have to be the success of the Atlanta Braves.  I thought they would be good,  but they may just be better than we all thought.  

Emo Joey Votto

Oriole'd

The weight of 189 losses in two seasons is heavy, man.

2012 Picks -- The Oracle Speaks True!

 

With the 2012 season set to officially underway (despite it making less than zero sense to force SEA and OAK to play regular season games a in the midst of Spring Training), about the time the most productive Americans are pouring their first cup of coffee, it is time for our contribution to the annual nobody-knows-what-the-hell-they're-doing-but-let-us-just-pretend-we-do-anyways preseason prediction extravaganza!  We've scoured the stats, examined our guts, and unearthed our local oracles to come up with our picks for each division, wild card, and playoff advancement.  All leading to the inevitable 2012 Champion.  Also, for good measure, we've taken the liberty of selecting each league's Cy Young and MVP.  Most likely we will be wrong, but it's oh-so-much-fun to be wrong.  Here we go!

This is a Picture of Rollie Fingers and Dizzy Valance

Hot mustache on mustache action.

Sleeper Picks 2012

"And this one belongs to the Reds."

The scene pictured above is one of the happiest moments of my Reds fandom, and also marks the first time since I played little league that I cried after a baseball game.  After toiling through the lost decade that was the aughts (thanks to Jim Bowden's utter ineptitude as a GM), the 2010 Reds surprised almost everyone* and clinched the NL Central on a walk-off home run by Jay Bruce.  This moment has been the high-water mark of the young right fielder's career thus far, but in my (slightly) biased opinion, the best is yet to come.

* Both Curley Bender and I picked the Reds to take the NL Central crown in 2010.

Sleeper Picks 2012

You can't help but root for the husky athlete.

Pablo Sandoval may not be in the best shape of his life, or then again he might be.  But I don't think it will matter much.  It feels like Sandoval has been around the big leagues for a while, and more importantly, it feels like he's been a disappointment for almost as long.  After bursting to prominence in 2009, Sandoval played a minor role on the Championship team of 2010, due to his copious girth combining with the general difficulties of adjusting to the adjustments of the major leagues, causing a significant regression in his production.  Perhaps it's the result of living in the East and digesting the biased media attention that scorns the West Coast, but Sandoval's reammergence as a star in 2011 flew under the radar.  The big man can hit.  And at 25 years of age, his best years may still lie ahead.  2012 could be a huge one for the Panda.

2011 Stats:  117 games

.315/.357/.552   23 HR  153 OPS+  5.5 fWAR

Sandoval's accomplishments last season were certainly undermined by the general atrocity that was the Giants' offense.  It might not be much better this season, but the addition of Melky Cabrera, who some people peg for a solid season at the plate, should help matters.  The rest of the division failed to improve much in terms of player personnel, so the Giants still-stellar pitching should given them a great chance to reclaim the West.  

The big question is whether or not Sandoval can stay on the field.  The Giants will need more than 117 games out of the big man to control the division.  If Sandoval can stay healthy, he will hit.  And he will likely hit the ball very hard.  If he manages to play 140+ games, a 35 homer season is not a stretch.  With their pitching, that may be all the offense the Giants need to win the title.  And if the Giants find themselves playing in October, don't be surprised to hear the Kung Fu Panda talked about as an MVP candidate.  We do all love colorful nicknames.

Off-the-cuff projection:

.293/.377/.581 and 35 HR