random thoughts of buckeye22 - CBSSports.com Message Boards, Blogs and Groups

Without taking when each team is playing each other into account(for example, the Tigers playing the Yankees and Red Sox early when the bullpen will struggle most), I went through each teams schedule and approximated how many wins I thought they'd get against each team they played. The standings that came out of it were this.

East
Boston 97-65
New York 96-66
Toronto 82-80
Tampa Bay 74-88
Baltimore 67-95

Central
Detroit 95-67
Cleveland 94-68
Minnesota 76-86
Chicago 75-87
Kansas City 74-88

West
L.A. 91-71
Seattle 87-75
Texas 72-90
Oakland 71-91

Of course any of these records can dramatically changed with injuries. But going into the season, I think this is a pretty good guess for how the standings may look at the end of the season.

Predicted AL standings

Looks good, the only change I would make on the order of finish is flipping the Twins & White Sox. If the White Sox can get some good pitching they should atleast be close to .500. Also I think Baltimore could very well lose 100 games , and Toronto could win 85-90.

Hopefully the Central won't be that close... GO TIGERS!!!

Predicted AL standings

Interesting predictions on the Win/Lose (never seen that in a baseball prediction... nice touch). That being said, I think Tampa will finish ahead of Toronto in the East, Cleveland I believe, has far better pitching than Detroit which should lead the Tribe to a second straight division championship, and I think KC will finish above Chicago this year. I really question Guillen in Chicago and some of the decisions he has made, and I think KC should win at least 70 games. I also think Oakland will finish about Texas, and should win at least five more games than the Rangers. Otherwise, we agree on everything else and most of the records look to be in the ballpark that I would put them in.

Predicted AL standings

I could definitely see the White Sox finishing last in the Central, along with the Indians winning it. Tampa I'm not completely sold on quite yet, I want to see them start out strong before I jump on their bandwagon. But if everything falls right they could well be a .500 team and 3rd place.

I personally just don't see it with Oakland. I guess if Harden can stay healthy he alone could get them more wins, but I feel that they don't have enough hitting to keep up.

And obviously with my W/L records, it has very little chance of happening, with only 2 teams in every division having a winning record. But I feel like this is a decent starting point, and each team could reasonably be anywhere from 5 to 10 games better or worse. Like I said in the blog, I didn't take into account when they'd be playing or possible injuries(which are too hard to predict anyway). Those 2 could obviously change everything. For example, the Tigers start out the year playing Boston and New York 13 times in the first month and a half. In this time, the bullpen will be a major question mark, and the offense may struggle with the cool weather. This could lower Detroit's win total by 4-5, leaving Cleveland as the division champs.

Predicted AL standings

Buckeye: I pretty much agree with the order in which you have the teams but not the number of wins, especially the Bosox and Yanks and I think the Blue Jays will be over .500. The Sox & Yanks both have some SP issues to start the season (Sox: Beckett, Schilling & young/untested arms--Lester got shelled today; Yanks: Pettitte, Mussina & young/untested arms also). I do agree with the Twinkies staying 3rd in the Central, even though they lost Santana & Hunter, Gardenhire always seems to get them to play up to or beyond their potential. They may not win as many games as last year but they'll still win more than the White Sox. In the Central, it'll be between the Tigers and Indians, of course, and a lot depends on which team remains the healthiest. Granderson being on the DL at the start of the season does not help the Tigers at all - he's a very important part of their lineup. Hopefully, his finger injury won't linger and he'll be 100% when he comes back. Finger, hand, wrist injuries always concern me cause they can effect a hitters swing just enough to throw him off his game. In the West, I think Seattle will make it a closer race than last year, hanging in there til the end, but the Angels will win it. I'll post my predictions soon, even though two teams have already started the season. I start with the NL, as they are the "senior circuit" though not the stronger league.

mopar58 Reputation: 97 Level: Superstar Since: Feb 4, 2008	Posted on: March 26, 2008 2:48 pm Score: 74 Predicted AL standings Looks good, the only change I would make on the order of finish is flipping the Twins & White Sox. If the White Sox can get some good pitching they should atleast be close to .500. Also I think Baltimore could very well lose 100 games , and Toronto could win 85-90. Hopefully the Central won't be that close... GO TIGERS!!! [ Reply to Comment ]
Buckeyesblow Reputation: 98 Level: Superstar Since: Mar 17, 2008	Posted on: March 26, 2008 5:42 pm Score: 24 Predicted AL standings Interesting predictions on the Win/Lose (never seen that in a baseball prediction... nice touch). That being said, I think Tampa will finish ahead of Toronto in the East, Cleveland I believe, has far better pitching than Detroit which should lead the Tribe to a second straight division championship, and I think KC will finish above Chicago this year. I really question Guillen in Chicago and some of the decisions he has made, and I think KC should win at least 70 games. I also think Oakland will finish about Texas, and should win at least five more games than the Rangers. Otherwise, we agree on everything else and most of the records look to be in the ballpark that I would put them in. [ Reply to Comment ]
buckeye22 Reputation: 99 Level: Superstar Since: Oct 11, 2006	Posted on: March 26, 2008 6:03 pm Score: 95 Predicted AL standings I could definitely see the White Sox finishing last in the Central, along with the Indians winning it. Tampa I'm not completely sold on quite yet, I want to see them start out strong before I jump on their bandwagon. But if everything falls right they could well be a .500 team and 3rd place. I personally just don't see it with Oakland. I guess if Harden can stay healthy he alone could get them more wins, but I feel that they don't have enough hitting to keep up. And obviously with my W/L records, it has very little chance of happening, with only 2 teams in every division having a winning record. But I feel like this is a decent starting point, and each team could reasonably be anywhere from 5 to 10 games better or worse. Like I said in the blog, I didn't take into account when they'd be playing or possible injuries(which are too hard to predict anyway). Those 2 could obviously change everything. For example, the Tigers start out the year playing Boston and New York 13 times in the first month and a half. In this time, the bullpen will be a major question mark, and the offense may struggle with the cool weather. This could lower Detroit's win total by 4-5, leaving Cleveland as the division champs. [ Reply to Comment ]
TigersMAN Reputation: 99 Level: Superstar Since: Jan 20, 2007	Posted on: March 26, 2008 10:06 pm Score: 95 Predicted AL standings Buckeye: I pretty much agree with the order in which you have the teams but not the number of wins, especially the Bosox and Yanks and I think the Blue Jays will be over .500. The Sox & Yanks both have some SP issues to start the season (Sox: Beckett, Schilling & young/untested arms--Lester got shelled today; Yanks: Pettitte, Mussina & young/untested arms also). I do agree with the Twinkies staying 3rd in the Central, even though they lost Santana & Hunter, Gardenhire always seems to get them to play up to or beyond their potential. They may not win as many games as last year but they'll still win more than the White Sox. In the Central, it'll be between the Tigers and Indians, of course, and a lot depends on which team remains the healthiest. Granderson being on the DL at the start of the season does not help the Tigers at all - he's a very important part of their lineup. Hopefully, his finger injury won't linger and he'll be 100% when he comes back. Finger, hand, wrist injuries always concern me cause they can effect a hitters swing just enough to throw him off his game. In the West, I think Seattle will make it a closer race than last year, hanging in there til the end, but the Angels will win it. I'll post my predictions soon, even though two teams have already started the season. I start with the NL, as they are the "senior circuit" though not the stronger league. [ Reply to Comment ]