Roller Coaster Ride in East
By Kevin Horn
Hello loyal fans of YankeesSuck.com. It's been almost a year since I've written anything for this site, but I'm back like Bruce Willis, with a vengeance. We've seen some crazy things the first two weeks of this MLB season. Every team in the AL East is separated by 3 games (as of Saturday morning), the only division closer is the AL West where 3 teams are tied for first and Seattle is 1.5 back.
So what does this mean for our beloved teams? Well the Yankees have struggled, mostly with their pitching staff, and most people don't believe Tampa Bay and Baltimore can continue their good starts. The biggest wildcard in the division this season is the new-look Blue Jays. The Jays, uncharacteristically, are getting the jobs done with their bats. They have been ripping the cover off of the ball lately, winning games with a ton of runs scored. Their pitching has not been the boon they expected, with A.J. Burnett and Roy Halladay both having injury trouble so early in this young season. However the new additions of Molina, Overbay and Glaus have been slugging the ball like nobody's business.
The Red Sox have been winning games solely on the arms of Schilling and Beckett who -- until Friday night's meltdown in Toronto -- were a combined 7-0. Manny Ramirez finally woke up against the Jays, hitting a couple of home runs against his favourite team to hit them against.
So who's the favourite in the division this year? If we look at history, it's difficult to overlook the Yankees. Baltimore probably doesn't have the horses this year, and Tampa Bay is at least 2 years away from a serious challenge. The Red Sox? Well, yes, they've been very solid over the past few years but they must avoid injury to their two big sluggers and two big pitchers. If any of those four gets hurt it may spell trouble in Sox land. Then we come to the Blue Jays. The Jays have had a bit of a strange season so far, getting by on their hitting -- which no one expected. They have also proven to be a great comeback team, showing that against Boston a few times and New York. If the Jays can get their pitching studs healthy who knows how well they can do?
That didn't answer your question though. Who do I like in the division this year? Well, to be honest, I can't say. If I had to force a guess I might say Toronto, or Boston, but I just don't feel there is one team that stands out above the rest, at least this early in the season. The Jays are maybe the biggest underdog in this division, not having the winning pedigree of the other two teams. I will say this though, the team that wins this division will be the one that beats the other two. Regardless of their record versus other divisions, to win the east you gotta beat the east! So far the team that has proven to be able to do this has been the Blue Jays, and if this trend holds true, they may see the post-season for the first time since the world series of 1993.
As always, the AL East is going to be the division to watch. However this year there's a new kid on the block, namely the Blue Jays. It will be great to watch to see if this young squad can hold it together long enough to make a serious run at the division crown. They have shown they have the hitting, hopefully they have the pitching as well as soon as their guys get off the DL. Only time will tell, but as a Blue Jays fan, I have to say I have my fingers crossed.
