American League East

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* – indicates new to team

1. Boston Red Sox

They have a nice blend of veterans and young talent, but they need better pitching.

2. Toronto Blue Jays

Their rotation is coming along with an even better lineup this year.

3. Baltimore Orioles

Injury concerns and a dormant offseason could hurt this up and coming group.

4. New York Yankees

The void left by Derek Jeter’s retirement will be noticeable from Opening Day.

5. Tampa Bay Rays

A new front office and manager, but they’ll try to win under the same philosophy. Continue reading

10 Questions Heading Into Spring Training

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Halloween came and went. We stuffed our faces during Thanksgiving and celebrated the season at Christmas. We rang in the New Year and let Valentines go to the wayside. Pretty soon the unofficial holiday of Opening Day will be upon us and there are always a ton of questions as to what the new baseball season will bring us. I only have ten, but they are the ten most important and burning questions going into Spring Training. Continue reading

2014 World Series Preview

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San Francisco Giants vs. Kansas City Royals

The one theme for both of these teams throughout the entire postseason has been their bullpens. The Giants had Madison Bumgarner get them past the Pittsburgh Pirates in the wild card game and was the NLCS MVP after his stellar start against the St. Louis Cardinals. There is no denying what the Giants are trying to do. Baseball hasn’t seen this since the New York Yankees in the late 90s. If the Giants win another World Series there will be dynasty talk, but they aren’t your typical dynasty franchise. They don’t seem to like that kind of talk. Hunter Pence, Buster Posey and Pablo Sandoval are no strangers to this kind of success. All three always come up with the big hits at crucial times. It will be interesting to see if Tim Hudson can continue his amazing postseason run with his first trip to the World Series. The Giants could be seen as the favorites, but in their minds they are the underdogs.

The last time Kansas City was here they won it all. They are the hottest team in the postseason and they will need some of their key players to remain hot to win. ALCS MVP Lorenzo Cain was spectacular against Baltimore. Both in the batters box and in the field. Eric Hosmer hasn’t slowed down either and he will need to continue to drive in runs. The Royals don’t have the best starting pitchers to match up against San Francisco, but their bullpen is what put them in the Series. Greg Holland has been lights out to close out games and Wade Davis is just as good setting the Royals up to win the game. James Shields and Yordano Ventura set the tone for the Royals in the first two games in Baltimore and they now have the chance to do the same with home field advantage. All eyes will be on the Royals to finish this great story.

Giants in 6 games