Steve's MLB Preview: Postseason and Awards

First off, I think individual awards are overrated, unless a player needs them to get into the Hall of Fame after he retires. It's a big debate that comes up near the end of the season, and then by the time we hit about week 11 of the NFL season, no one can remember who won them. Who was the AL MVP last year? I have no idea. Was it A-Rod? Yes it was, but I only know because I just looked it up. Jimmy Rollins won the NL MVP? I used AL MVP as my example because I thought I knew that the NL MVP was Matt Holliday. Shows me. So to humor everyone, here are my award winning predictions. By the way, the last time I picked a pre-season manager of the year, it was 2005 and he actually got fired half way through the season, so watch out.

AL MVP - David Ortiz, Red Sox. Big Papi has never won MVP, so why not this year? Even though A-Rod will probably deserve it for personally keeping the Yankees in the wild card race, Boston's new found dominance of the AL East will push it over the edge for Ortiz. Not like anyone in the AL Central was going to win it. Besides Frank Thomas in strike shortened 1994 (and the year the Central was created) Justin Morneau is the only player to win it from the division.

NL MVP - Mark Teixeira, Braves. Like any good AL power hitter that goes to the NL, Tex will most likely dominate the NL, especially since I think the Braves will be in the playoff hunt. If you project his numbers with the Braves last year over a full season he would have hit .317 with 51 HR and 168 RBI.

AL Cy Young - Justin Verlander, Tigers. Verlander has put up Cy Young worthy numbers the past few years, but hasn't gotten it. With the Tigers getting the wild card, he'll get it this year.

NL Cy Young - Johan Santana, Mets. Who else?

AL Rookie of the Year - Alexei Ramirez, White Sox. Juan Uribe may have won the starting job at 2B, but it won't be long before the surprising Cuban refugee becomes the every day starter. Like a lot of the Japanese players that have won in recent years, Ramirez, at 26, brings tested experience with him. He also won a gold medal with Cuba at the 2004 Olympics.

NL Rookie of the Year - Jay Bruce, Reds. I have no idea who he is, just that he might win it.

AL Manager of the Year - John McLaren, Mariners. I have the M's winning the AL West this year, so this looks like the right choice.

NL Manager of the Year - Ned Yost, Brewers. He probably would have won it last year if the AL West teams weren't so surprising. I think with the Brewers winning the Central, he gets it this year.

Postseason Predictions
AL Playoff Teams: 1. Red Sox (East) 2. Indians (Central) 3. Mariners (West) 4. Tigers (WC)
NL Playoff Teams: 1. Mets (East) 2. Diamondbacks (West) 3. Brewers (Central) 4. Padres (WC)

Division Series
Tigers over Red Sox: The Sawhx age begins to show as the Tigers pull off the shocker
Indians over Mariners: Seattle, winners of a down division, are no match for the talented Indians
Mets over Padres: The Mets pitching will shut down the Padres horrible hitting
Diamondbacks over Brewers: The Brewers pitching is shaky at best. Sweeeeep!

Championship Series
Tigers over Indians: The tradition of the wild card going to the World Series continues as the Tigers take the Indians in 7 games. Why did I pick the Indians to win the division, then? I think the more experienced Tigers will not bring their "A" game every day in the regular season.
Mets over Diamondbacks: I think the Mets shake off the demons of last year and get to the World Series, and the young Diamondbacks will have to wait until 2009.

World Series
Tigers over Mets: Yep, I'm picking the Tigers too. I'm factoring in the AL advantage and the fact that the Mets are still a bunch of chokers here. Also, I'm sick of Boston teams winning championships. Who would have thought that bringing in 2 Marlins with World Series experience could help push the Tigers over the top? Kwame Kilpatrick will probably take full credit for the championship, but at least the rioting will finally lead to Detroit burning to the ground once and for all, thus putting it out of its misery.