2011 MLB Season Preview & Predictions

Written by Steve Janus

We have sorted through all the offseason moves, coaching changes, and player progressions for each of the 30 MLB teams, and here is a quick recap of how we see each division shaping up in 2011, plus we include our wild card teams to make the playoffs out of each division.

American League:

AL East: Boston Red Sox Win, New York Yankees Earn Wild Card – While the division isn’t as strong as it was heading into the 2010 season, with the Tampa Bay Rays likely falling back a little with all their offseason losses, the race for the top spot figures to be one worth paying attention to. We have the Boston Red Sox ranked slightly ahead of the New York Yankees after a couple of big offseason additions, but we still feel like the Yankees are good enough to win the AL Wild Card spot. We have the Rays coming in third, the Toronto Blue Jays finishing fourth, and the Baltimore Orioles once again finishing in last.

AL Central: Detroit Tigers – We have the Detroit Tigers making the biggest move of any team in the American League. Detroit finished third in the division in 2010 with a record of 81-81, but a loaded lineup and solid pitching staff has us thinking they will take over the top spot. Next in line are the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins, both have the talent to win the division, and we wouldn’t be all that surprised if they did. Look for a minor change at the bottom of this division, as we have the Kansas City Royals moving out of the basement into fourth, while the Cleveland Indians drop down a spot.

AL West: Texas Rangers – We don’t expect any surprises out of the AL West, as we see the standings ending up exactly the same as they did in 2010. The Texas Rangers are the clear front-runners, with the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Angels following close behind. While both Oakland and Los Angeles could end up winning the division, we don’t see any hope for the Seattle Mariners, who lost 101 games last season.

National League:

NL East: Philadelphia Phillies Win & Atlanta Braves Earn Wild Card – With the addition of Cliff Lee, the Philadelphia Phillies are no surprise at the top of this division. Right behind them are the Atlanta Braves, who we think will end up finishing second and taking home the NL Wild Card for a second straight season, despite no longer having manager Bobby Cox. The Florida Marlins are a sleeper in this division, and could end up stealing the Wild Card from Atlanta. With Johan Santana out for most of the 2011 season, we don’t see much hope for the New York Mets, as they come in slightly ahead of the Washington Nationals, who have finished last in this division the last three years.

NL Central: Milwaukee Brewers – This might come as a surprise to some, but we believe the Milwaukee Brewers offseason additions of Zach Greinke and Shaun Marcum will propel them into first place in the Central. We have the St Louis Cardinals right behind the Brewers, and in a wide-open division they too have a legit shot at dethroning the Cincinnati Reds. Whoever doesn’t win the division between Milwaukee and St Louis will be right there with a shot to earn the Wild Card spot. The Chicago Cubs appear to be headed in the right direction, and that has us jumping them to third from their fifth place finish in 2010. We don’t like the Reds chances of repeating, as we have them finishing fourth ahead of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Houston Astros.

NL West: San Francisco Giants - We don’t think there will be a World Series hangover, as we have the San Francisco Giants coming back to win the NL West this season. Right behind them is a dangerous Colorado Rockies team, that could end up winning the division or make the playoffs as the Wild Card. Next in line are the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers, both of which have great pitching staffs but no offense. Rounding up the NL West will be the Arizona Diamondbacks, as just don’t feel they did enough to improve greatly from last season.

Archived Season Previews:

Individual MLB Team Previews:

American League
AL West	AL Central	AL East
Rangers Predictions	Tigers Predictions	Red Sox Predictions
A’s Predictions	White Sox Predictions	Yankees Predictions
Angels Predictions	Twins Predictions	Rays Predictions
Mariners Predictions	Royals Predictions	Blue Jays Predictions
	Indians Predictions	Orioles Predictions
National League
NL West	NL Central	NL East
Giants Predictions	Brewers Predictions	Phillies Predictions
Rockies Predictions	Cardinals Predictions	Braves Predictions
Dodgers Predictions	Reds Predictions	Marlins Predictions
Padres Predictions	Cubs Predictions	Mets Predictions
Diamondbacks Predictions	Pirates Predictions	Nationals Predictions
	Astros Predictions

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