I’m asked to make these predictions every year, and every year, if you haven’t noticed, I pick my beloved St. Louis Cardinals. Probably something to do with re-living that glorious World Series championship season of 1964 when I was 10 (I’ll give you a moment to do the math).
So this year, it’s the Cardinals again. I don’t see them beating the Reds in the NL Central, so they’ll have to get hot at the right time and plow their way through the postseason. Hey, it can happen.
The Mariners? I wrote before spring training began that I couldn’t see this as another 101-loss team, but I also didn’t see a huge stride forward in 2011. I gave them 68 victories then and, after watching the club come together through more than six weeks of spring training, I’m not backing off that number — 68-94 and last in the American League West.
Here’s how I see baseball’s races in 2011:
American League West: 1. Rangers, 2. A’s, 3. Angels, 4. Mariners
American League East: 1. Red Sox, 2. Yankees, 3. Rays, 4. Orioles, 5.Blue Jays
American League Central: 1. Twins, 2. White Sox, 3. Tigers, 4. Indians, 5. Royals
AL wild-card winner: Yankees
AL champion: Yankees
National League East: 1. Braves, 2. Phillies, 3. Marlins, 4. Nationals, 5. Mets
National League Central: 1. Reds, 2. Cardinals, 3. Brewers, 4. Cubs, 5. Astros, 6. Pirates
National League West: 1. Giants, 2. Rockies, 3. Dodgers, 4. Padres, 5. Diamondbacks
NL wild-card winner: Cardinals
NL champion: Cardinals
World Series: Cardinals over Yankees (just like 1964)
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