Pack Up the Bags.
The MLB season came to a close last night. The Cardinals shocked everyone and came away the victors. Not only the victors, but they defeated the heavily favored Tigers in handy fashion. The series was not all that exciting, the only Detroit win came on the heels of another brilliant pitching effort by Kenny Rogers. Cardinals are the 2006 champions, first series title since 1982 and 10th all time, good enough for second most in majorleague history (behind who, I wonder). I'm always saddened when the World Series ends, even when a team I favor wins, because I love watching baseball. The end of the World Series means no baseball for the next 5 months. But there will be plenty off field drama with all the free agents and possible trades getting strewn about. At any rate, here's the Bobbo-approved 2006 MLB season overview.
This season saw a lot of action. Here's a list of just some of the amazing things saw this year:
*Braves losing the NL East division for the first time ever, and snapping their streak of 14 straight division titles.
*Twins falling far behind in the early part of the season only to come back at a torrid pace to win the NL Central on the very last day.
*The emurgance of the New York Mets as a powerhouse in the National League.
*Joe Mauer becoming only the second catcher in history to win the batting title.
*Joe Girardi taking a band of misfits known as the Florida Marlins, who have a combined salary of less than A-Rod's yearly salary, and keeping them in contention until September. Girardi is subsequently released because he had a falling out of with the management; a decision that should haunt the Marlins.
*Barry Bonds passes Babe Ruth for second all time on the homerrun list. At season's end, he stands only 22 away from Hank Aaron's record.
*Arguably the best class of rookies in the American League. The emurgence of Justin Verlander, Jonathan Papelbon, Jered Weaver, Francisco Liriano, and others take the baseball world by storm.
*The turning point of the season: The Yankees defeat the Boston Red Sox in an unprecedented 5-game sweep right in Fenway Park, citing rampant comparison to the Boston Massacre of 1978.
*To add insult to Beantown injury, for the first time in over a decade, they finished lower than second place, losing the runner-up spot this year to the newly rejuvenated Toronto Blue Jays.
*Nomar Garciaparra, Frank Thomas, and Jim Thome finding new teams and becoming the huge offensive threats that they were in the past, earning Nomar and Thome comeback player of the year honors.
*Trevor Hoffman passes Lee Smith to become the all-time major league leader in saves.
*The biggest shock has to be the Detroit Tigers. 3 years ago, they lost 119 games, arguably one of the worst seasons in Major League history. And it only took 3 years to turn that all around, get their first winning record and reach the playoffs for the first time in over a decade, defeat a staunch Yankee lineup, breeze through the Oakland A's, and reach the World Series. I'm still astonished.
I shall review my predictions from April, starting with my teams:
All things considered, it was a good year. The lineup was unstoppable at times. They looked like they could outslug even the original Murderer's Row at times. But sometimes, the offense just disappered, not to be found for the next few days. Unfortunately, one of the times this happened was in the ALDS versus Detroit.
The big story all year was A-Rod mired in his season-long "slump". He finished with 25 homers and 121 RBIs and a .285 average, but he never could get a hit when it counted. The fans in the Bronx started rampantly jeering him. His teammates weren't getting behind him. Even his coach began to lose faith, placing him 8th in the lineup in the last game of the season. There are plenty of columnists and radio jockeys begging and pleading for his trade. But A-Rod has vehemiently stated he isn't going anywhere, as has Brian Cashman. While I know he could bring in a crop of star level players or future all-star prospects, I think keeping A-Rod is the best course of action for now.
In the middle of the season, the Yankees' lineup was hit with a deathblow to their lineup, losing both Hideki Matsui and Gary Sheffield to severe wrist injuries; Matsui's on a sliding catch attempt, Sheffield's on the basepaths. The loss ended Matsui's coveted consecutive games streak. It's not easy to replace two perennial 100-RBI guys. But the Yankees not only stayed afloat, they thrived. They called up Melky Cabrera to take the place in left. I remember feeling uneasy, as last year's 3 game season for Cabrera was still fresh in my memory. Trot Nixon's inside-the-park homerun still ran in my head. But Cabrera easily pushed those thoughts from me with solid left field play and decent offensive production. He figures to be a mainstay in New York hopefully. The kid is great. And for awhile, the Yankees had a platoon in right field consisting of mainly Bernie Williams and Aaron Guiel. That is, until the trade deadline when they acquired embattled Phillies' star Bobby Abreu. Abreu brought consistency to the outfield and a very patient hitter at the plate. The team seemed complete with him in the lineup.
Mariano Rivera continued his torrid assault against 9th inning hitters. He only blew 5 saves this year, more than some seasons in the past, but still a good record. In September, he sat out because of a forearm injury. It's when this happened that the Yankees realized how much Mo means to them. A tandum of Proctor and Farnsworth gave Joe Torre a couple near-heart attacks by making things messy in the 9th. Mo won the DHL Delivery Man of the Year this year, his second in two years. Given the fact that the award has only been given out the last two years, I'd say that's a pretty good record too.
Derek Jeter had arguably his best season ever, garnering much attention for his winning the MVP award. Jeter battled Joe Mauer all year for the batting title while knocking in clutch hit after clutch hit. He had his second highest RBI total of his career, a result of having a true leadoff hitter in Johnny Damon in front of him. The best impression that I get of Jeter's high-caliber season happened in Game 3 of the 5 game series at Fenway. The Red Sox were up by 1 in the 9th, and they brought in their golden boy prodigy, Papelbon, who some Boston freaks like to call the "answer to Mariano Rivera". Jeter socked it to him, delivering a 3-2 fastball the other way into right field that scored a runner from second to tie up the game. The Yankees went on to win.
Things went south in the playoffs, and I'm disappointed they didn't come away with the World Series trophy. But it was a great season to watch.
Predictions:
(Best Case Scenario: 2006 World Series Champs)
Not quite.
(Worst Case Scenario: Everyone lands on the DL causing the Yankees to miss the playoffs, heck, even finish 3rd in the AL East.)
This was good, because a lot of players ended up on the DL, but the team thrived under that pressure.
(Realistic Scenario: 9th straight AL East title, Championship Series berth)
Very close to actuality, just 3 wins off.
The Mets had a spectacular season. I won't say they came out of nowhere, but I can bet you they surprised a couple people. I don't see why as they're pretty easily the most talented team in the division.
The offense was very scary. Beltran started playing like the all-star he is. Delgado added a lot of bite to the lineup. David Wright had a very MVP-like season. Jose Reyes became a mainstay at shortstop. The pitching was top notch as well, not including the late season feign of injuries to the likes of Pedro, El Duque, and others. Big ups to John Maine who became a very promising pitcher, throwing the ball very well in his regular season starts and dominating during the postseason. 3 starts, 3 wins for Maine. The bullpen was solid, working it's way to the title "best bullpen in the majors". Billy Wagner become a significant improvement over Braden Looper, slamming the door in teams' faces.
Their awesome season landed them with the best record in the NL and their first division title since the late 80s. They played at such a high level they essentially had the division locked up in mid-July. They stumbled down the stretch, but picked it back up in the playoffs. They offed the Dodgers in the first round with a 3-game sweep. They took it to the St. Louis Cardinals, forcing a very memorable Game 7. The surprising pitching duel of Oliver Perez and Jeff Suppan ended up being a stellar matchup, living up to that of a marquee matchup. Endy Chavez made one of the most miraculous catches in postseason history, robbing Scott Rolen of a go-ahead 2-run homerun. He had the timing down to a science, leaping at the absolute time to make the catch. He also had the sense of mind to huck the ball back into the infield and double up Jim Edmonds off of first. It was for not though as Aaron Heilman, who pitched a great 8th inning, gave up a 2 run shot to Yadier Molina in the 9th. The Mets season ended there.
Predictions:
(Best Case Scenario: NL East title, World Series berth)
I consider it a good year when the team comes 1 inning to matching my Best Case Scenario.
(Worst Case Scenario: Despite Omar Minaya's best efforts, the team tanks and is only able to best the hapless Marlins in the NL East)
Glad that didn't happen.
(Realistic Scenario: Heavy contention in the NL East and the Wild Card, playoff berth)
Far FAR exceeded this scenario.
Sigh.
Predictions:
(Best Case Scenario: Wild Card contention into August)
Not even Wild Card contention into May.
(Worst Case Scenario: Dead last in the whole National League)
Wasn't quite that bad, thank you Cubs.
(Realistic Scenario: 4th place in the NL Central)
Nope.
As for the rest of my predictions, let's see how they stacked up.
AL East
Predicted:
1 - New York Yankees
2 - Boston Red Sox
3 - Toronto Blue Jays
4 - Baltimore Orioles
5 - Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Actually:
4 out of 5 ain't bad. Only change is flip-flopping Toronto and Boston... which makes me smile, by the way.
AL Central
Predicted:
1 - Chicago White Sox
2 - Cleveland Indians
3 - Detroit Tigers
4 - Minnesota Twins
5 - Kansas City Royals
Actually:
How much more wrong could I be? But to be fair, who honestly saw this outcome coming? The Indians tanked all year,the White Sox imploded, and the Twins and Tigers were much better than figured. If it wasn't for knowing the Royals suck year in-year out, I would've got them all wrong.
1 - Minnesota Twins
2 - Detroit Tigers
3 - Chicago White Sox
4 - Cleveland Indians
5 - Kansas City Royals.
AL West
Predicted:
1 - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
2 - Oakland A's
3 - Seattle Mariners
4 - Texas Rangers
Actually:
Completely utterly wrong. The Rangers and A's were better than I thought. The Angels and Mariners were much worse than I thought. That's what I get for showing faith in the bastards who bounced the Yankees last year.
1 - Oakland A's
2 - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
3 - Texas Rangers
4 - Seattle Mariners
NL East
Predicted:
1 - Atlanta Braves
2 - New York Mets
3 - Philadelphia Phillies
4 - Washington Nationals
5 - Florida Marlins
Actually:
I, like everyone else, was going to pick the Braves until they proved us wrong. And now they have. Also, big ups to Joe Girardi's Marlins for shocking the world. Sure, they finished in 4th place, but they sure brought some excitement with them.
1 - New York Mets
2 - Philadelphia Phillies
3 - Atlanta Braves
4 - Florida Marlins
5 - Washington Nationals
NL Central
Predicted:
1 - St. Louis Cardinals
2 - Houston Astros
3 - Milwaukee Brewers
4 - Pittsburgh Pirates
5 - Chicago Cubs
6 - Cincinatti Reds
Actually:
Got this somewhat right. I knew the Cards would take the division and the Stros would be right there. But I think I gave the Brew Crew and Bucs a bit too much credit and th Reds not enough. Thank god for the loser Cubs though.
1 - St. Louis Cardinals
2 - Houston Astros
3 - Cincinatti Reds
4 - Milwaukee Brewers
5 - Pittsburgh Pirates
6 - Chicago Cubs
NL West
Predicted:
1 - San Diego Padres
2 - Los Angeles Dodgers
3 - San Fransisco Giants
4 - Colorado Rockies
5 - Arizona Diamondbacks
Actually:
I nailed this one perfectly. Sure, you may look at the standings and find that Arizona is ahead of Colorado, but they were tied, and that's the same thing, so eat me.
AL Wild Card
Predicted: Oakland A's
Not a bad choice, except the whole, y'know, winning the division thing.
Actually: Detroit Tigers
(The awards segment I can only speculate until the awards are announced, in which case I'll edit any inaccuracies).
AL MVP
Predicted: Travis Hafner - Cleveland
Until he got injured late in the season, he probably would've been given some consideration, but definitely not the MVP this year.
Probably: Jermaine Dye - Chicago
AL Cy Young
Predicted: Roy Halladay - Toronto
Again, he definitely will get a couple 2nd, 3rd, 4th place votes, but he isn't the winner this year.
Probably: Johan Santana - Minnesota
AL Coach of the Year
Predicted: Mike Scioscia - Los Angeles of Anaheim
Not even close. Again, that's what I get for putting that much faith into the bastards who bounced the Bombers last year.
Probably: Jim Leyland - Detroit
NL Wild Card
Predicted: New York Mets
Just like Oakland, a nice choice except for the part where they win the division.
Actually: Los Angeles Dodgers
NL MVP
Predicted: Lance Berkman - Houston
Good player, decent year, but not even close.
Probably: Ryan Howard - Philadelphia
NL Cy Young
Predicted: Tim Hudson - Atlanta
The worst thing that could've happened to Hudson was leaving Oakland. He's become faceless now. Needless to say, not even on the Cy Young radar.
Probably: Chris Carpenter or Brandon Webb - St. Louis/Arizona
NL Coach of the Year
Predicted: Willie Randolph - New York Mets
Definitely not a bad pick, and probably the most deserving considering he coached a winning team to the NLCS. But more than likely will be only 2nd place.
Probably: Joe Girardi - Florida
Playoffs
Predicted:
Chicago defeats Oakland
NY Yankees defeat Anaheim
St. Louis defeats NY Mets
Atlanta defeats San Diego
Predicting 5 out of 8 playoff teams isn't that bad of an average.
Actually:
Detroit defeats NY Yankees
Oakland defeats Minnesota
NY Mets defeat Los Angeles
St. Louis defeats San Diego
Predicted:
NY Yankees defeat Chicago
St. Louis defeats Atlanta
I put too much unfounded faith in Chicago. And Atlanta in the championship series? How the hell did I come up with that?
ALCS MVP
Predicted: Gary Sheffield (NY Yankees)
Not even if the Yankees made it that far.
Actually: Placido Polanco (Detroit)
NLCS MVP
Predicted: Scott Rolen (St. Louis)
Guess not.
Actually: Jeff Suppan (St. Louis)
Predicted: NY Yankees defeat St. Louis
Sigh. What might've been.
Actually: St. Louis defeats Detroit
World Series MVP
Predicted: Mariano Rivera
I envisioned him going 6+ innings, 6 K's, 0 BBs, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 saves.
Actually: David Eckstein.
Here's to the 2006 season, and hopes for prominence in New York come 2007.
This season saw a lot of action. Here's a list of just some of the amazing things saw this year:
*Braves losing the NL East division for the first time ever, and snapping their streak of 14 straight division titles.
*Twins falling far behind in the early part of the season only to come back at a torrid pace to win the NL Central on the very last day.
*The emurgance of the New York Mets as a powerhouse in the National League.
*Joe Mauer becoming only the second catcher in history to win the batting title.
*Joe Girardi taking a band of misfits known as the Florida Marlins, who have a combined salary of less than A-Rod's yearly salary, and keeping them in contention until September. Girardi is subsequently released because he had a falling out of with the management; a decision that should haunt the Marlins.
*Barry Bonds passes Babe Ruth for second all time on the homerrun list. At season's end, he stands only 22 away from Hank Aaron's record.
*Arguably the best class of rookies in the American League. The emurgence of Justin Verlander, Jonathan Papelbon, Jered Weaver, Francisco Liriano, and others take the baseball world by storm.
*The turning point of the season: The Yankees defeat the Boston Red Sox in an unprecedented 5-game sweep right in Fenway Park, citing rampant comparison to the Boston Massacre of 1978.
*To add insult to Beantown injury, for the first time in over a decade, they finished lower than second place, losing the runner-up spot this year to the newly rejuvenated Toronto Blue Jays.
*Nomar Garciaparra, Frank Thomas, and Jim Thome finding new teams and becoming the huge offensive threats that they were in the past, earning Nomar and Thome comeback player of the year honors.
*Trevor Hoffman passes Lee Smith to become the all-time major league leader in saves.
*The biggest shock has to be the Detroit Tigers. 3 years ago, they lost 119 games, arguably one of the worst seasons in Major League history. And it only took 3 years to turn that all around, get their first winning record and reach the playoffs for the first time in over a decade, defeat a staunch Yankee lineup, breeze through the Oakland A's, and reach the World Series. I'm still astonished.
I shall review my predictions from April, starting with my teams:
All things considered, it was a good year. The lineup was unstoppable at times. They looked like they could outslug even the original Murderer's Row at times. But sometimes, the offense just disappered, not to be found for the next few days. Unfortunately, one of the times this happened was in the ALDS versus Detroit.
The big story all year was A-Rod mired in his season-long "slump". He finished with 25 homers and 121 RBIs and a .285 average, but he never could get a hit when it counted. The fans in the Bronx started rampantly jeering him. His teammates weren't getting behind him. Even his coach began to lose faith, placing him 8th in the lineup in the last game of the season. There are plenty of columnists and radio jockeys begging and pleading for his trade. But A-Rod has vehemiently stated he isn't going anywhere, as has Brian Cashman. While I know he could bring in a crop of star level players or future all-star prospects, I think keeping A-Rod is the best course of action for now.
In the middle of the season, the Yankees' lineup was hit with a deathblow to their lineup, losing both Hideki Matsui and Gary Sheffield to severe wrist injuries; Matsui's on a sliding catch attempt, Sheffield's on the basepaths. The loss ended Matsui's coveted consecutive games streak. It's not easy to replace two perennial 100-RBI guys. But the Yankees not only stayed afloat, they thrived. They called up Melky Cabrera to take the place in left. I remember feeling uneasy, as last year's 3 game season for Cabrera was still fresh in my memory. Trot Nixon's inside-the-park homerun still ran in my head. But Cabrera easily pushed those thoughts from me with solid left field play and decent offensive production. He figures to be a mainstay in New York hopefully. The kid is great. And for awhile, the Yankees had a platoon in right field consisting of mainly Bernie Williams and Aaron Guiel. That is, until the trade deadline when they acquired embattled Phillies' star Bobby Abreu. Abreu brought consistency to the outfield and a very patient hitter at the plate. The team seemed complete with him in the lineup.
Mariano Rivera continued his torrid assault against 9th inning hitters. He only blew 5 saves this year, more than some seasons in the past, but still a good record. In September, he sat out because of a forearm injury. It's when this happened that the Yankees realized how much Mo means to them. A tandum of Proctor and Farnsworth gave Joe Torre a couple near-heart attacks by making things messy in the 9th. Mo won the DHL Delivery Man of the Year this year, his second in two years. Given the fact that the award has only been given out the last two years, I'd say that's a pretty good record too.
Derek Jeter had arguably his best season ever, garnering much attention for his winning the MVP award. Jeter battled Joe Mauer all year for the batting title while knocking in clutch hit after clutch hit. He had his second highest RBI total of his career, a result of having a true leadoff hitter in Johnny Damon in front of him. The best impression that I get of Jeter's high-caliber season happened in Game 3 of the 5 game series at Fenway. The Red Sox were up by 1 in the 9th, and they brought in their golden boy prodigy, Papelbon, who some Boston freaks like to call the "answer to Mariano Rivera". Jeter socked it to him, delivering a 3-2 fastball the other way into right field that scored a runner from second to tie up the game. The Yankees went on to win.
Things went south in the playoffs, and I'm disappointed they didn't come away with the World Series trophy. But it was a great season to watch.
Predictions:
(Best Case Scenario: 2006 World Series Champs)
Not quite.
(Worst Case Scenario: Everyone lands on the DL causing the Yankees to miss the playoffs, heck, even finish 3rd in the AL East.)
This was good, because a lot of players ended up on the DL, but the team thrived under that pressure.
(Realistic Scenario: 9th straight AL East title, Championship Series berth)
Very close to actuality, just 3 wins off.
The Mets had a spectacular season. I won't say they came out of nowhere, but I can bet you they surprised a couple people. I don't see why as they're pretty easily the most talented team in the division.
The offense was very scary. Beltran started playing like the all-star he is. Delgado added a lot of bite to the lineup. David Wright had a very MVP-like season. Jose Reyes became a mainstay at shortstop. The pitching was top notch as well, not including the late season feign of injuries to the likes of Pedro, El Duque, and others. Big ups to John Maine who became a very promising pitcher, throwing the ball very well in his regular season starts and dominating during the postseason. 3 starts, 3 wins for Maine. The bullpen was solid, working it's way to the title "best bullpen in the majors". Billy Wagner become a significant improvement over Braden Looper, slamming the door in teams' faces.
Their awesome season landed them with the best record in the NL and their first division title since the late 80s. They played at such a high level they essentially had the division locked up in mid-July. They stumbled down the stretch, but picked it back up in the playoffs. They offed the Dodgers in the first round with a 3-game sweep. They took it to the St. Louis Cardinals, forcing a very memorable Game 7. The surprising pitching duel of Oliver Perez and Jeff Suppan ended up being a stellar matchup, living up to that of a marquee matchup. Endy Chavez made one of the most miraculous catches in postseason history, robbing Scott Rolen of a go-ahead 2-run homerun. He had the timing down to a science, leaping at the absolute time to make the catch. He also had the sense of mind to huck the ball back into the infield and double up Jim Edmonds off of first. It was for not though as Aaron Heilman, who pitched a great 8th inning, gave up a 2 run shot to Yadier Molina in the 9th. The Mets season ended there.
Predictions:
(Best Case Scenario: NL East title, World Series berth)
I consider it a good year when the team comes 1 inning to matching my Best Case Scenario.
(Worst Case Scenario: Despite Omar Minaya's best efforts, the team tanks and is only able to best the hapless Marlins in the NL East)
Glad that didn't happen.
(Realistic Scenario: Heavy contention in the NL East and the Wild Card, playoff berth)
Far FAR exceeded this scenario.
Sigh.
Predictions:
(Best Case Scenario: Wild Card contention into August)
Not even Wild Card contention into May.
(Worst Case Scenario: Dead last in the whole National League)
Wasn't quite that bad, thank you Cubs.
(Realistic Scenario: 4th place in the NL Central)
Nope.
As for the rest of my predictions, let's see how they stacked up.
AL East
Predicted:
1 - New York Yankees
2 - Boston Red Sox
3 - Toronto Blue Jays
4 - Baltimore Orioles
5 - Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Actually:
4 out of 5 ain't bad. Only change is flip-flopping Toronto and Boston... which makes me smile, by the way.
AL Central
Predicted:
1 - Chicago White Sox
2 - Cleveland Indians
3 - Detroit Tigers
4 - Minnesota Twins
5 - Kansas City Royals
Actually:
How much more wrong could I be? But to be fair, who honestly saw this outcome coming? The Indians tanked all year,the White Sox imploded, and the Twins and Tigers were much better than figured. If it wasn't for knowing the Royals suck year in-year out, I would've got them all wrong.
1 - Minnesota Twins
2 - Detroit Tigers
3 - Chicago White Sox
4 - Cleveland Indians
5 - Kansas City Royals.
AL West
Predicted:
1 - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
2 - Oakland A's
3 - Seattle Mariners
4 - Texas Rangers
Actually:
Completely utterly wrong. The Rangers and A's were better than I thought. The Angels and Mariners were much worse than I thought. That's what I get for showing faith in the bastards who bounced the Yankees last year.
1 - Oakland A's
2 - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
3 - Texas Rangers
4 - Seattle Mariners
NL East
Predicted:
1 - Atlanta Braves
2 - New York Mets
3 - Philadelphia Phillies
4 - Washington Nationals
5 - Florida Marlins
Actually:
I, like everyone else, was going to pick the Braves until they proved us wrong. And now they have. Also, big ups to Joe Girardi's Marlins for shocking the world. Sure, they finished in 4th place, but they sure brought some excitement with them.
1 - New York Mets
2 - Philadelphia Phillies
3 - Atlanta Braves
4 - Florida Marlins
5 - Washington Nationals
NL Central
Predicted:
1 - St. Louis Cardinals
2 - Houston Astros
3 - Milwaukee Brewers
4 - Pittsburgh Pirates
5 - Chicago Cubs
6 - Cincinatti Reds
Actually:
Got this somewhat right. I knew the Cards would take the division and the Stros would be right there. But I think I gave the Brew Crew and Bucs a bit too much credit and th Reds not enough. Thank god for the loser Cubs though.
1 - St. Louis Cardinals
2 - Houston Astros
3 - Cincinatti Reds
4 - Milwaukee Brewers
5 - Pittsburgh Pirates
6 - Chicago Cubs
NL West
Predicted:
1 - San Diego Padres
2 - Los Angeles Dodgers
3 - San Fransisco Giants
4 - Colorado Rockies
5 - Arizona Diamondbacks
Actually:
I nailed this one perfectly. Sure, you may look at the standings and find that Arizona is ahead of Colorado, but they were tied, and that's the same thing, so eat me.
AL Wild Card
Predicted: Oakland A's
Not a bad choice, except the whole, y'know, winning the division thing.
Actually: Detroit Tigers
(The awards segment I can only speculate until the awards are announced, in which case I'll edit any inaccuracies).
AL MVP
Predicted: Travis Hafner - Cleveland
Until he got injured late in the season, he probably would've been given some consideration, but definitely not the MVP this year.
Probably: Jermaine Dye - Chicago
AL Cy Young
Predicted: Roy Halladay - Toronto
Again, he definitely will get a couple 2nd, 3rd, 4th place votes, but he isn't the winner this year.
Probably: Johan Santana - Minnesota
AL Coach of the Year
Predicted: Mike Scioscia - Los Angeles of Anaheim
Not even close. Again, that's what I get for putting that much faith into the bastards who bounced the Bombers last year.
Probably: Jim Leyland - Detroit
NL Wild Card
Predicted: New York Mets
Just like Oakland, a nice choice except for the part where they win the division.
Actually: Los Angeles Dodgers
NL MVP
Predicted: Lance Berkman - Houston
Good player, decent year, but not even close.
Probably: Ryan Howard - Philadelphia
NL Cy Young
Predicted: Tim Hudson - Atlanta
The worst thing that could've happened to Hudson was leaving Oakland. He's become faceless now. Needless to say, not even on the Cy Young radar.
Probably: Chris Carpenter or Brandon Webb - St. Louis/Arizona
NL Coach of the Year
Predicted: Willie Randolph - New York Mets
Definitely not a bad pick, and probably the most deserving considering he coached a winning team to the NLCS. But more than likely will be only 2nd place.
Probably: Joe Girardi - Florida
Playoffs
Predicted:
Chicago defeats Oakland
NY Yankees defeat Anaheim
St. Louis defeats NY Mets
Atlanta defeats San Diego
Predicting 5 out of 8 playoff teams isn't that bad of an average.
Actually:
Detroit defeats NY Yankees
Oakland defeats Minnesota
NY Mets defeat Los Angeles
St. Louis defeats San Diego
Predicted:
NY Yankees defeat Chicago
St. Louis defeats Atlanta
I put too much unfounded faith in Chicago. And Atlanta in the championship series? How the hell did I come up with that?
ALCS MVP
Predicted: Gary Sheffield (NY Yankees)
Not even if the Yankees made it that far.
Actually: Placido Polanco (Detroit)
NLCS MVP
Predicted: Scott Rolen (St. Louis)
Guess not.
Actually: Jeff Suppan (St. Louis)
Predicted: NY Yankees defeat St. Louis
Sigh. What might've been.
Actually: St. Louis defeats Detroit
World Series MVP
Predicted: Mariano Rivera
I envisioned him going 6+ innings, 6 K's, 0 BBs, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 saves.
Actually: David Eckstein.
Here's to the 2006 season, and hopes for prominence in New York come 2007.