Al West

Las Vegas - Las vegas is Returning pretty much the same team as last seasons 99 win team, with a few changes. The biggest of them all is the arrival of the funky Japanese prospect Jin-Chi Itou ( go ahead. pronounce it. i dare you). His arrival is certainly a boost from Luis Gutierrez. This kid can flat out hit. Plan on seeing him in the middle of the order. Al Pujols and Jumbo Sanchez are returning. Still cheap. Still can hit. Oh, and lets not forget the theme of this team. Speed. Put out your top Catcher during these series as i suspect LV will lead the league in SB again.
       Defensively, i hate this team. Why? They're too damn Good. Tied in best Fielding last year, and they IMPROVED their defense, albeit slightly in RF, which doesn't really make an impact. Led by Rip Baker, look for him to come home with his 2nd Gold Glove, or at least make a good run at it. All this defense is to try to cover for their only weakness, and its a slight one.
       LV has yet to get that ace that everyone wants for their rotation. After failing to find one, they settled for Bobby Kennedy to slide to number 2. Now, don't get me wrong. Their rotation is lacking the dominant 1 that you would like, but every Starting pitcher is capable of keeping them in the game, and getting it to the bullpen to shut you down. and frankly, that's what the bullpen does. Led by Ezdra DeRojas, Tony Escobar, Vern Stone and Luis Johnson, this bullpen doesn't give up runs. If you score on them, be happy. Oh, they have some hack in the minors named Sean Kennedy waiting for his call up. ( i might have TC'd Mongoose about him while doing this.) Long story short for this team? Stacked. Bring your "A" Game when facing them.

Honolulu- well, at first glance this team appears to be moving towards a rebuild with their off season plans. Oswaldo Mendez (30), Jack Harding (33), and Takahiro Suzuki (33) all left via FA, and were some of the more heavily sought after. Could be just a move towards getting younger. offensively? Fairly solid. Helps having former MVP Zach Mathews, Vinny Catalanotto, Lynn Mlicki and Alex Lima. They're your force for the hurricanes. The Rest of the lineup is rounded, but each lacks in some way. SS Vinny Ming can't hit Lefties.  C Jerry Nicholson can't hit righties (Graham Lilly would be better for offense, or a better DH than Boomer Russell). CF Norman Easly isn't quite sure what to do with the bat. Even with those, expect the middle of the order to make up for it.
     Defensively, no one stands out. That's both good and bad. No one is a bad fielder, but no one is a Gold Glover either. Vinny Ming would be their best fielder. Boasting plus range, glove, arm, and accuracy, he can't compete with some of the more defensively polished SS in the league. Worst fielder would prob go to 1B Alex Lima, but lets face it. You're not paying your 1B to field.
      Pitching wise, Rattlers wanted someone big and traded for Nigel Keats this off season. You know, the Cy young winner, 5 time all star, 2 world series ring Nigel Keats. Big move, this will definitely upgrade his rotation, which seems to be drastically under performing right now. Expect it to pick up with improved results from Keats, Vern Buckley and Laynce Nash. Rule 5 pick Victor Nicasio isn't really expected to win games this season, as to pitch deep into games and keeping the team in the game. Once it goes to the bullpen, it can go either way. It is headlined by Phil Chang, but after that, no one stands out. Will for the most part be a decent bullpen, but will melt down in some games. End result? Expect an offensive force. Keep their bats quiet and you should have the game.

Cheyenne - Cheyenne is a fun team to analyze. offensively, they're pretty decent. No major weakness's. Can't find a big one. Looking at the team, you would expect high strikeouts and low walks. Not the case, as last year the team was the 4th best at not striking out, and in the top half for walks. Most of the team has returned. Their lead off man could be better than Benito Solano, who has a career .325 OBP. Pat McRae looks like he is finally going to have his shot at 2B, but asking him to bat in the 3 hole so early might be much. Marcus martin will continue to define what the DH is for, and Charles Forrest is a good help behind him. Kevin hillenbrand is hitting 5th, but he might be better in that 3 hole. The rest of the lineup is followed by Griffith, Hernandez, Diaz and Pujols (not that pujols). Pujols is the only question mark of the lineup, but you're paying him for his glove, not his Bat.
      Defensively, i like the team for the most part. Diaz has a weak arm behind the plate, but calls a great game and at least puts the ball where he wants it. The infield is solid up the middle with Pujols and McRae both bringing nice leather. 3B is pretty good with Forrest, and Hillendbrand shows that not all 1B are offensive only. The outfield in the corners is solid with Hernandez and Griffith, but Solano in CF hurts this otherwise solid team. his 76 in range will annoy pitchers and a lot of balls will go to the gaps, but if he gets there, look for him to make the play with his 86 Glove.
      Now for my favorite, Pitching. Cheyenne went out and Signed Alex Harrelson to 3 year, 50 Mil contract. Personally, i don't like this signing at this price. Its a lot of money to pay a career 4.06 ERA pitcher. Especially since they let Bobby Kennedy go to Division Winner and rival Las Vegas for 3 years and 22.2 Mil. But, Kennedy does have a career 4.65, and clearly they wanted to improve. Hopefully the gamble pays off. Lenny Springer, Welington Cortes, Kiki Estrada, and James Fleming round it out. all are capable of pitching deep in to games and keeping the team in the game. In the bullpen, the job is to get the ball to Benj Trammel. He's been inconsistent in his career, alternating Amazing season with seasons that are OK. If he can figure things out, watch out. He's a beast. They have 2 interesting arms in Frank Igarashi and Bret Mussina. Both are solid arms and have the stamina to start, but the durability kills them. when they do pitch, they're pretty solid. The rest is filled in with arm fodder, guys that can pitch and keep the score close, but you get a little antsy when the manager calls them in. End results? solid team, but not enough to make it in this division. Needs a few more pieces.


San Diego - These teams in Huge Pitchers parks are always fun. Offensively, the team is OK. But playing in San Diego, it comes of very weak. Virgil Estrada is leading off, with Tex Guerrero. Both are good fits. Tyrone duffy and the future HOF'er, Jimmie Sequi, with Dennis Nomo being this teams heart. Don't think sequi can't hit, as last years .306/.403/.521 line disproves that. Duffy isn't bad, but should be somewhere in the bottom half of the lineup. JT French, Wayne welch, Robert Brown and Don Jacqeuz. Each has their own question marks. French has power, but strikes out without enough walks. Welch lacks a good average and OBP. Brown Seems to be on a Decline since his solid rookie year. Jacquez gets away with it only because of his superb Defense.
         Defensively, i like this team. I would make a play for best Defense if not for their catching situation. In case you haven't notice, I'm a Defense and Pitching oriented kind of guy. So, i put a huge amount on making sure my guys hit the rec's for each position, with a few exceptions. On catcher, French is the starter, but has trouble catching runners (think mike piazza). Sobkowiak is good defensively, but really, can't hit righties. No Seriously, has a 1 vs R rating. can't hit them. See the problem? Nomo is Great at 1B, routinely making + plays, with 0 - plays. Welch mans the hot corner like a black hole, and Jacquez will make a run at the Gold Glove every year. Tex Guerrero is solid. Not great, not bad. the outfield might be one of the best defensively. Brown (2 GG)  is a CF with weaker glove, and Estrada, can play the position with a great glove. Duffy could be a rock and they would be good. He has a weak glove, but good range out there. Don't expect to hit those gaps too often.
       SD has a decent SP situation. headline by Gerald Bradford, who isn't a true number one, is pretty solid, especially in this ballpark. Besides, he's only holding onto it until Willie butler takes over. Butler will be that true ace they need. Jimenez, perez, and owen take over there. All will keep you in it, and those 3 provide a pretty good matchup against most teams 3, 4 and 5 pitchers. The bullpen is its weakness here. A few interesting guys, like DITR Clay laxton, and Asdrubal castro, makes things interesting. Otherwise, no one to really turn to. Similiar to Cheyenne, They'll keep you in the game, but it won't necessarily be pretty. Long story short? If you can muster your runs against them, you'll have some pretty good chances.


The division should end up like last season. Las vegas takes the division, with honolulu taking a WC spot possibly. Cheyeen and San Diego, despite having good teams, should finish in the rear.