AL regular season preview: Season hinges on ...
Who's winning the American League pennant? Throw a dart. It's wide open in the AL, but that doesn't stop Paste BN Sports' baseball staff from breaking down what to expect from April through October:
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It was a busy offseason for all 30 teams, with general managers scrambling to build a championship team. For some, the season hinges on ...
1. Closers in the crosshairs: David Robertson of the Chicago White Sox and Joe Nathan of the Detroit Tigers determine who finishes ahead of the Kansas City Royals in the Central; Fernando Rodney saves the West for the Seattle Mariners.
2. The new guys: If Seattle Mariners slugger Nelson Cruz can hit 30 to 40 homers for the Mariners, if Rick Porcello can be a 15-20 game winner for the Boston Red Sox, if Jeff Samardzija can match Chris Sale's brilliance for the White Sox ...
3. Cole Hamels: Landing the Philadelphia Phillies ace might take the Red Sox from East hopefuls to World Series challengers.
4. Justin Verlander: If he's close to his old self, Verlander and David Price give the Detroit Tigers a bullish 1-2 punch into October. A repeat of 2014 Verlander and Detroit's window closes.
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Must-see new attractions
-- Daniel Norris, Toronto Blue Jays: Forget the living-in-a-van stuff. Norris is driven on the mound, too, and he's one of the young pitchers who could finally put Toronto over the top.
-- Mookie Betts, Red Sox: Already drawing comparisons to Andrew McCutchen and Derek Jeter. We're beginning to understand why the Red Sox refused to trade him for Cole Hamels.
-- Andrew Heaney, Los Angeles Angels: The newly acquired 23-year-old lefty was hit hard this spring, but he should get plenty of starts in Anaheim, where he'll benefit from a good lineup and a division full of great pitchers' parks.
-- Dalton Pompey, Blue Jays: Provides the speed and defense in center field that Toronto's been missing. Jumping all the way from Class A to the majors last season, the 22-year-old will be the AL's best rookie.
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This year, Mike Trout will...
Be baseball's best all-around player, firmly answering whispers about all of last year's strikeouts. But he'll finish second in the MVP race, leading to the invention of a new metric that links voters' eating, drinking and voting habits.
Have the greatest year of his career, striking out 50 fewer times, hitting 40 homers for the first time, lead the league in batting average — and somehow still finish runner-up in the MVP voting, Mariners second baseman Robinson Cano.
Lead the league in home runs. Trout set a career high with 36 homers at age 22. As he ages and hones his plate approach, even bigger power numbers should follow.
For some reason, garner a few Cy Young votes, as well.
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