By: Mickey White
This Ain't a Scene, It's An Arms Race (Part One)
Here we are again. It's the end of July. With only a handful of days left for non-waiver trades, the contending teams are trying to make moves. The difference this year is that there are more teams contending. 10 playoff spots are up for grabs and more than half of the Major League's teams can identify themselves as contenders. That being said, some important moves have been made in the last week and I am going to properly assess the direction the teams in this league are at as of Thursday, July 26th.
AL Central:
This is a three team race at the moment. The Twins are the biggest sellers in this division. All signs indicate that they will trade Francisco Liriano. Justin Morneau, Denard Span and Josh Willingham are all on the block but the Twinkies are said to have too high of an asking price. The Giants have been cited as a potential team involved in the Liriano and Willingham sweepstakes. As for the Royals, it is not their time. They are still sitting on the gold mine of young talent that I have been waiting to come to fruition since 2008. They should not touch that gold mine. I have heard rumors that the Royals have a shot to land Josh Johnson of the Miami Marlins. The Marlins are asking for a Teixiera-esque package for Johnson and the Royals have that and then some. However, it is not worth risking on an injury-prone ace in a lost season.This Ain't a Scene, It's An Arms Race (Part One)
Here we are again. It's the end of July. With only a handful of days left for non-waiver trades, the contending teams are trying to make moves. The difference this year is that there are more teams contending. 10 playoff spots are up for grabs and more than half of the Major League's teams can identify themselves as contenders. That being said, some important moves have been made in the last week and I am going to properly assess the direction the teams in this league are at as of Thursday, July 26th. AL Central:
The Tigers, White Sox and Indians are competing for the AL Central. The Indians just took a series from the Tigers and still have life. What the Indians haven't done was make a significant move. Never mind, they picked up Brent Lillibridge.
On a serious note, the White Sox picked up Kevin Youkilis and Brett Myers. Humber is back from the DL and John Danks may be coming back in the next couple of months. The Tigers traded a highly touted pitching prospect in Jacob Turner because they wanted to win the World Series in 2012. Not the American League Central. The World Series.
The Indians picked up J.C. Romero and Brent Lillibridge. If that is what they are content with, they will not be in this division come August 15th.
Projected Finish
1. White Sox
2. Tigers (Wild Card)
3. Indians
4. Royals
5. Twins
AL East:
The Yankees picked up Ichiro and lost A-Rod. It's no secret, however, that they have this division by the throat. Tampa Bay picked up Ryan Roberts and Designated Hideki Matsui for assignment this week. They are also looking to potentially move Wade Davis. Davis can start in most major league rotations. Tampa's staff is just ripe with quality arms. They are the only team in the AL East that I feel has what it takes to make a complete run at the Wild Card or even the Yankees. The Blue Jays are the only other team who seems to be serious about making moves. I can see them rustling up a package for Josh Johnson if the Marlins find what they want growing on Toronto's farm.
The Orioles and Red Sox need arms. I am wholeheartedly encouraging the Red Sox to sell and rebuild. The Sawx are due for a facelift and an excuse to can Bobby Valentine. They owe their fans more than trotting out the Daniel Nava's and Pedro Ciriaco's of the world in the long run. The Orioles and Blue Jays have Ryan Dempster, Wade Davis, Zack Grienke, Matt Garza, Josh Johnson, Ricky Nolasco and Randy Wolf to worry about at the moment. If either of those teams pick up two of those arms, look out.On a serious note, the White Sox picked up Kevin Youkilis and Brett Myers. Humber is back from the DL and John Danks may be coming back in the next couple of months. The Tigers traded a highly touted pitching prospect in Jacob Turner because they wanted to win the World Series in 2012. Not the American League Central. The World Series.
The Indians picked up J.C. Romero and Brent Lillibridge. If that is what they are content with, they will not be in this division come August 15th.
Projected Finish
1. White Sox
2. Tigers (Wild Card)
3. Indians
4. Royals
5. Twins
AL East:
The Yankees picked up Ichiro and lost A-Rod. It's no secret, however, that they have this division by the throat. Tampa Bay picked up Ryan Roberts and Designated Hideki Matsui for assignment this week. They are also looking to potentially move Wade Davis. Davis can start in most major league rotations. Tampa's staff is just ripe with quality arms. They are the only team in the AL East that I feel has what it takes to make a complete run at the Wild Card or even the Yankees. The Blue Jays are the only other team who seems to be serious about making moves. I can see them rustling up a package for Josh Johnson if the Marlins find what they want growing on Toronto's farm.
Projected Finish
1. Yankees
2. Rays
3. Blue Jays
4. Orioles
5. Red Sox
AL West:
The Wild Wild West is run by the Rangers. They will make a run at Grienke to prove their point. They want a title. They will win this division. Dan Haren is back after getting roughed up on his way to the Angels. A reliable Haren is as good as picking up an arm for the Angels. They will pick up an arm or two if they want to. If the Angels want to win a Wild Card spot or even have a fighting chance at winning their division, they will pick up a stud arm.
The Oakland A's are 53-45. That would be good enough to lead the AL Central. If the playoffs started today, they would be in. Here's how they win. Pitching. They are in the bottom ten in the league in Slugging, On Base Percentage, Batting Average and Runs Scored. They are 8th or better in the league in ERA, Quality Starts, WHIP and BAA. Did you watch the All-Star game? If you did you might have watched a man by the name of Ryan Cook pitch a perfect 7th inning. He has an ERA 1.70 with 10 Saves and 11 Holds. He was garbage last season in Arizona before getting shipped to Oakland in the Trevor Cahill trade.1. Yankees
2. Rays
3. Blue Jays
4. Orioles
5. Red Sox
AL West:
The Wild Wild West is run by the Rangers. They will make a run at Grienke to prove their point. They want a title. They will win this division. Dan Haren is back after getting roughed up on his way to the Angels. A reliable Haren is as good as picking up an arm for the Angels. They will pick up an arm or two if they want to. If the Angels want to win a Wild Card spot or even have a fighting chance at winning their division, they will pick up a stud arm.
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