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by Digger

Spring Training has begun! Major League players are busy getting into shape for the 2008 season.. hoping to stay focused on the game and free from petty controversies.

All World All Sports presents our division by division breakdown. Each day this week will feature a different division in order of predicted finish. Let's begin with the AL East.

Boston Red Sox (Mgr. Terry Francona, 96-66 in 2007).
The World Champion Boston Red Sox are attempting to reach dynasty status after winning two Championships in four seasons. Their '08 rotation is a bit banged up heading into opening day. GM Theo Epstein was unwilling to sacrifice young future talent to land star pitcher Johan Santana... a move which might come back to haunt this organization. Beckett and Dice K will need to have stellar seasons as Curt Schilling is rehabbing a problematic right shoulder. Knuckleballer Tim Wakefield will need to pick up the slack and produce quality starts. The rest of this rotation is up in the air at the moment while the Sox pen will be looking to repeat last years greatness.
In the field: Youkilis, Pedroia, Lugo and Lowell provide solid around the horn D while providing quality AB's at the plate. All four have Boston fans admiration and know how to use Fenway Park to their advantage. Starting LF Manny Ramirez and DH David Ortiz combine to create one of the games best middle lineup 1-2 punches. Question marks remain in CF. Coco Crisp needs to impress this spring if he wants to retain the starting nod. He'll feel the heat from up and coming Jacoby Ellsbury. In RF, JD Drew will also need to pick up his game or GM Epstein will be quick to pull the trigger on a replacement. Team captain and backstop Jason Varitek had an off year at the plate last year... he'll deliver when needed in '08.
This division will be a dog fight from beginning to end... Red Sox prevail in late September.

Toronto Blue Jays (Mgr. John Gibbons, 83-79 in '07). Toronto headed into '07 with high hopes only to quickly be derailed by costly injuries in week one. This talented group will need stay healthy and play top notch ball to have any realistic shot at winning this division. They have the tools, but can they take advantage of opportunities? Time will tell. Toronto's formula for success relies squarely on their young starting pitchers. Halladay and Burnett could turn out to be the divisions best 1-2 punch. McGowan, Marcum and Litsch all showed flashes of brilliance last year and should have matured enough for this team to turn heads. BJ Ryan pitched in all of 5 games before finally admitting his arm was torn up... and this hurt the Jays chances. If he rebounds, opponents are in for a rough ride.
In the field: Overbay and Hill anchor the right side. Both are solid and dependable players. The left side has new faces this year. Former Cardinals, David Eckstein and Scott Rolen take over. Eck is a gritty player who gives it his all on every single play. Rolen has battled injuries lately. He has a chance to return to form now that he's no longer playing for manager who publicly tattoed him in recent years (Tony LaRussa). Rolen has been one of the games best hot corner fielders and needs to get his bat back in form. In the OF, Vernon Wells must return to star status as his .245 average was tough for Jays fans to watch in '07. Rios and Johnson return as OF corner men and both seem to be getting better with age. DH Frank Thomas is still the Big Hurt. Journey man slugging Matt Stairs will fight for at bats off the bench. Gibby will find him plenty of playing time as fill in DH, 1B, LF, RF.
Toronto will battle all year long. Don't be surprised if they pull a Colorado and win this division.
Current prediction... 2nd place, wild card contender.

New York Yankees (Mgr. Joe Girardi, 94-68 in '07). The Steinbrenner boys have been handed control of an aging team from Boss George. GM Cashman was unable to win the trade war for Santana. Heading into '08 starting pitching is a major concern for the games most recognized and hated franchise. Chien-Ming Wang and Andy Pettitte must on their best all season long for the Yanks to have any chance of challenging for division honors. Mike Mussina seems to have lost his consistancy and velocity. His veteran presence will be counted on for aiding rookies fighting for rotation spots. Does he have any gas left in his tank? Probably not enough. Rookie sensation and future star Joba Chamberlain is working on developing a devastating change up to compliment is Ryan-esque fastball. This kid is for real and captivated New York fans in his very first major league game. The Yankees front office remains content to develope this phenom before rushing him into rotation status. Smart move? Or, overly conservative? Joba has the best stuff in this division... if he makes the opening day rotation then the Yanks could shift gears to division favorites. Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy, as of now, are projected to make the opening day cut as starters. These two were big topics of discussion and most wanted by Minnesota in the Santana sweepstakes. Santana, Wang, Pettitte & Joba would have destroyed this division and perhaps brought home another Series victory. However, the Yanks were content to develope what they hope are future starts. BIG MISTAKE ... and one to be felt for many years to come.
In the field: Every single player in this lineup can hit when not swinging for the fences. But, it's the poor defense on the diamond has cost the Yankees many victories in 06/07. $200M team payroll and these guys blow games with their gloves. Girardi had better stress fundamentals with this group ... something Joe Torre didn't stress enough. Giambi is a liability at first base and figures to see more playing time wearing a glove than he has in recent years. This former steroid junkie needs to have a big year or get used to hearing plenty of Bronx jeers. Cano needs to attack the ball more often than it attacks him. He makes great plays on hard hit balls but seems to lose concentration on routine grounders thru the wickets. Jeter always seems to make big plays and is the games best at tracking pop flies while running full speed away from the infield. ARod is streaky at 3B... another who makes a great diving play or super strong throw to nail speedy hitters. However, as with Cano, it's the routine plays which he muffs most often from weak grounders to pop ups. In the OF, Damon and Matsui will split time in LF. Damon used to be a Yankee killer during his Boston days... and has not been the leadoff hitter the Yanks expected. Torre often dropped his slumping bat deep into the lineup last year. Godzilla Matsui can usually be counted on for a big hit when needed but his D is suspect at times too. Cabrera has been handed the starting job in CF ... add his name to the list of somewhat erratic fielders. Abreu had an off year in '07 ... yep, you guessed it... another erratic OF. This team gives away way too many chances to their opponents. If this trend continues, too much pressure will bear down on young arms which spells disaster. Behind the plate and coming off a fine season is Jorge Posada. Without his fine play the Yanks may not have won wild card honors last year.
Many question remain heading into '08. All signs indicate.. if New York begins slowly the Steinbrenner boys will be screaming even louder than George used to. Yanks sport the American Leagues most feared lineup 1-9. As usual, it will not be enough yet again. Winning the East will be nearly impossible if Joba gets held back from making the rotation and if these millionaire's botch plays.
Predicted finish #3. Rough days ahead. NY press will have a field day lambasting this team if they begin slowly. Santana will be missed... and Cashman could be the teams first casualty.

Tampa Bay Rays (Mgr. Joe Maddon, 66-96). Tampa entered the league in 1998. For the most part they'd been a young team going nowhere, with no pitching, weak hitting, and shoddy defense. Times have changed. This squad is on the cusp of turning the corner for better days. Scott Kazmir (3.48) and Jamie Shields (3.85) have arrived. They will continue to improve ... the Rays future is in their hands. 2008 will finally make Rays fans proud. Tampa's remaining starters will be finalized after spring competition.
In the field: Around the horn... 1B Carlos Pena (46 HR's) is coming off a monster campaign. Akinori Iwamura (.285) made a smooth transition from Japanese ball to the majors and will put up better overall numbers during his second full season. He changes positions from 3B to 2B in '08. Bartlett is his double play counterpart and must cut down on 26 errors from a year ago. Evan Longoria will be given the opportunity to become Tampa's new 3B this spring. His challengers are NL castoff Willy Aybar and Joel Guzman. Proven outfielders, Carl Crawford, BJ Upton and Rocco Baldelli provide plenty of extra base hit ability and speed fordifying this clubs young and improving lineup. Troy Percival (12th all time saves) and Mgr. Maddon hope this closers arm is sound. If so, he'll be a tremendous lift to the starting corps. The future is now.
Prediction: 4th place. Tampa's first best chance at a winning season.

Baltimore Orioles (Mgr. Dave Trembley, 69-93 in '07). Owner Peter Angelos has been voted the worst owner in professional sports by famed Sports Illustrated. He bought the Orioles in 1993 and has detroyed what was one of the games most respected franchises. Baltimore fans have been vocal in urging him to sell the team and move on. Fans have created a "Free the Birds" campaign. This beleaguered and self gutted team is odds on favorite to lose more games than any other club in 2008. My guess, 110 losses is well within reach. Gone are stars Miguel Tejada and Eric Bedard. Tickets to home games should be handed out for free. Even then, who would want to bother watching what Angelos has meticulously destroyed? Even O's players are probably wincing.
In the field: Former World Series Champ Kevin Millar enters his third Bird year and must be itching to jump ship. To his right is second sacker Brian Roberts who has shown flashes of brilliance in prior season. Replacing Tejada at short figures to be Luis Gonzalez who has only 30 career games under his belt. At third is Melvin Mora who has watched his stats decline for 2 straight seasons. This infield has many holes... will give away many outs once again and could be the weakest hitting group east of Kansas City. Luke Scott and Jay Payton figure to share time in LF. Houston gave up on their once highly touted prospect. He now plays in a pressure free environment... perhaps this player will finally live up to his billing. Weak hitting Aaron Jones heads into spring training as Baltimore's projected starter in CF. The teams lone bright spot is in RF where Nick Markakis roams. He's coming off a 43 double, 23 homer year while batting an even .300. Ramon Hernandez will squat behind the plate while trying to tame an erratic pitching staff which is certain to hand out many more free passes again this season. The pitching staff is unproven with little upside potential. It's a guessing game as to who will make this inept staff. Hopefully, a bright spot will emerge. This is clearly a management group which has all but given up on fielding a competitive team. It doesn't get much uglier than this bunch.
Prediction: Do I really have to spell it out? AL's worst team resides in Baltimore. Enough said.

Stay tuned... NL East is on deck.