The Sport Authority : Baseball 2000 AL Preview

Baseball 2000

American League Report

by Rich Ehisen

Okay, so I promise not to gloat about picking the Yankees to win the Series last year. After all, Ray Charles can see the Bronx Bombers are the deepest, most talented, and certainly richest team in the game. As such this year I won't waste any pretense about picking them to once again take the World Series trophy home to New York. As sick as it makes me to see Georgie Porgie hoisting another banner over Yankee Stadium I see no reason why the Yanks won't start this century the way they spent a great part of the last one - by winning it all.

There was some interesting movement n the American League this winter. Juan Gonzalez is in Detroit, Ken Griffey, Jr. is a Red, and Mike Hargrove is a Bird. Raul Mondesi brings his act to Toronto while his soulmate Daryl Strawberry prepares for his after-baseball life as a homeless person during his latest stint in rehab. Greg Vaughn and Vinnie Castilla join Jose Canseco and Fred McGriff in Tampa Bay, ensuring the Devil Rays will be the first team in history to field four DH's at one time.

One pleasant aspect of the 1999 season was the total failure of most clubs who chose to just throw money at their players in an attempt to buy a championship. The Yankees notwithstanding money did not solve any problems for anyone last season, in specific the horrid Baltimore Orioles and the eternally ignorant Walt Disney Corporation Mighty Angels. Those two doofs laid out almost 200 million bucks in payroll between them and still sucked.

I'll also admit right now to being totally wrong about those sad sacks from Beantown. I predicted the BoSox were sure bets for third place and damn if they didn't take the wild card from my beloved A's. I guess this proves even total baseball experts like myself (snicker) can be wrong once in a while. Anyhow, the 2000 season should be interesting...at least until the Yanks start their March to the series.

What is there to say about the New York Yankees that hasn't already been said? They have arguably the three best players in the AL with shortstop Derek Jeter, centerfielder Bernie Williams, and closer Mariano Rivera. The starters - Roger Clemens, Orlando Hernandez, Andy Pettite, and David Cone - are as good as it gets. The balance of the infield is rock solid with great gloves at the corners (Tino Martinez and Scott Brosius) and the annoying Chuck Knoblauch at second. Chuckie's little spell of wild throws last year are this group's only blemish. Some folks have speculated that the Yank's depth will be damaged by the loss of Strawberry to yet another cocaine binge, but if that is this team's only worry then I think manager Joe Torre is sleeping pretty well at night.

The Boston Red Sox can flat out hit the ball, and for a change they can even go get it when the other guy is up. GM Dan Duquette also landed a gem when he brought in Carl Everett from Houston during the winter. The switch hitting Everett has great speed, power, and even hits for average. The only thing he doesn't do is pitch, which is the sad part of the story. Pedro Martinez is the defending Cy Young winner and obviously the current best pitcher in baseball, but he is only one man and the pickings are dramatically slimmer after that. Bret Saberhagen and Tim Wakefield are warriors who will give the Beantowners all they have, but that won't be nearly enough on many nights. For the 80th consecutive season the key for Boston will be whether or not they will outhit enough teams to slug their way into a playoff spot.

The Orioles are sick. Baltimore has great players everywhere you look, but the problem is that you've been looking at them since John McGraw was managing the team back in the 1890's. Cal Ripken is so old he isn't even called Jr. anymore. B.J. Surhoff is 35, DH supreme Harold Baines is 41, Mike Bordick is 34, Albert (Mad Dog) Belle is 33, and Will Clark is 36. The Birds to have one of the game's best pitchers in Mike Mussina, but after that it is only the extraordinarily average Scott Erickson and a bunch of unproven kids. Surprisingly enough owner Peter Angelos made only one significant move last winter, which was bringing in former Indians manager Mike Hargrove to run the show. This was done at least in part for his reputation of being able to handle difficult players (read Albert Belle), but I'm afraid he'll learn soon enough that time has probably passed on these old goats.

Toronto should be a player in the wild card race most of the season. They are counting heavily on returning stud Carlos Delgado to form a devastating duo with newcomer Mondesi. Only time will tell if the Jays get the Raul who showed signs of developing into a five-tool player with Hall of Fame potential or the sniveling little baby Raul who pouted and whined his way out of Los Angeles. It's also time for shortstop Alex Gonzalez to show he's more than hype.

Tampa Bay has no chance to do anything but excite the old geezers who meander into the sterile, ugly confines of that Tropicana Field with a few prodigious bombs a night. Sacramentan Greg Vaughn signed a huge contract with the Rays, proving once again that you should never believe an athlete when he says he values winning over money. The Rays will undoubtedly score some runs, but their pitchers will just as assuredly give them back in bunches, so it should be another long and dreary year in the land of pacemakers and artificial light.

The White Sox should be the second best team in this division in 2000. Sadly that's like being the understudy to Laurence Olivier doing Hamlet. There are a few strengths here, specifically the bullpen of Keith Foulke and Bob Howry. Outfielder Magglio Ordonez also busted out in 1999, racking 30 home runs and 117 ribbies. But after that it gets pretty thin on the South Side. What has to be particularly distressing to the White Sox fans is the continued slide of Frank Thomas. There was a time when it seemed the massive Thomas was a lock for the Hall of Fame, but last year was his second straight loser campaign and many folks are whispering that he is an old 31. If there is any hope for respectability in Chicago Thomas will have to bounce back in a big way.

Detroit has weak pitching, average defense, and solid hitting. So what do they do in the off season? Yep, they traded two solid pitching prospects for a huge bat (Juan Gonzalez) and hired a manager who has not had a winning season in the last seven years. Great. I guess they think having a new ballpark will make it all better, but I can't wait to see how the famously temperamental Gonzalez handles those 400 foot power alleys. Do you hear the ticking?

Kansas City is an interesting team full of dichotomies. They score lots of runs and they can play defense, but they don't win many games. Jermaine Dye and Carlos Beltran are excellent hitters who also go get the ball in the field, and shortstop Rey Sanchez is a solid presence in the infield, but this team is still a full bullpen away from approaching .500 or better. Jose Rosado is the team's best pitcher, but he finished 10-14 last year. That should tell you something. The pen also blew more saves than it earned in 1999. Since Dan Quisenberry isn't coming back anytime soon to help out I'd say it will be another 64-97 for the Royals this year.

Minnesota is another prime example of why this is the least competitive division in baseball. The Twins have fallen so far from their glory days that you would need the robotic submarine from Titanic to find them. Heck, who knows if they'll even be in Minnesota much longer? They have once good starter in Brad Radke, but even he only went 12-14 in 1999. There are several other young players whom the Twinkies expect to make a splash someday, but unfortunately there are still games to be played now. Cristian Guzman may well be a star someday, and outfielders Chad Allen and Jacque Jones have great promise as well. Still, there are more holes than there are fingers to plug into them, so don't expect manager Tom Kelly to see another championship any time soon...or even 70 wins for that matter.

Cleveland officially clinches the division on opening day. The Indians are so vastly superior to the other teams in the Central that it almost doesn't seem fair. The Tribe sends out a lineup every day that features Roberto Alomar, Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome, David Justice, and Travis Fryman. The have the best fielding shortstop in the game in Omar Vizquel, and when he's healthy Sandy Alomar is a superb defensive catcher. All of this more than makes up for the loss of Kenny Lofton for half a season due to injury. Lance Johnson has been plugged in to the centerfield slot until Lofton returns, so Cleveland will get their fix of skinny speed burners at the top of the lineup. The big question for the Indians is always pitching and 2000 is no different. They have added Chuck Finley, which probably won't mean much until the playoffs. Bartolo Colon and Jared Wright appear ready to become consistent big time starters, and Charles Nagy is still around for his 15-17 wins a year. Steve Karsay is projected to be the closer this year, which could be a major plus if he can handle the job. Either way the Indians are only practicing until October anyway.

The Disney Angels are the best example I can give of a team that absolutely does not know what in the hell it is doing. They had ample opportunities last year to move Chuck Finley to a contender so they could at least get something for him, but instead chose to hold on to him so he could leave as a free agent. Needless to say they got nothing for him, and now their starting pitching is an absolute joke. Tim Belcher and Ken Hill are both injury prone and fragile and the balance of the core is unproven at best. The bullpen is not much better with closer Troy Percival coming off of surgery and no other bodies being worth a lot. The only strong member of the pen was Mike Magnante, but he too left via the free agency route. The everyday lineup is not bad, but not of the caliber of the teams inside of their division. Mo Vaughn and Tim Salmon are studs, but neither stayed healthy last year, nor did their fellow Angels Garret Anderson, Darin Erstad, and Jim Edmonds. If that sounds like a lot of outfielders to you then take the prize right now. The Disneys have needed to move one of this group - probably Edmonds - for a year now and still are sitting on their asses doing nothing. Maybe new manager Mike Scioscia can inspire these dorks to play better, but I would still expect a lot of 9-8 games in Goofy's world this year.

Texas has finally decided to try pitching as a means to get past the first round of the playoffs. The Rangers signed Kenny Rogers and Darren Oliver over the winter to bolster their starting staff, but they also lost Juan Gonzalez to Detroit in another move to get arms. Rogers has worn out his welcome in every place he has ever played, but the irritating jerk can still pitch. He is, however, rather gutless so it remains to be seen how he will fare with notorious firebrands like Rusty Greer and Pudge Rodriguez. Speaking of Pudge, he is still the best receiver in the game as well as one of the league's best hitters. He and Rafael Palmeiro drive in runs in gobs, so perhaps they won't miss Gonzalez that much. Gabe Kapler, who came over the big trade, has great potential in the outfield. Aside from scoring runs the Rangers strength comes at closer with the dominating John Wetteland. Texas was 84-15 when tied or leading after six innings in 199, so if you're going to get them you had better do it early. Texas still has weapons galore, but sadly for them they may have waited just long enough for the rest of the division to catch up to them.

Seattle is making lots of buzz from the media types for some reason. This is based mostly on removing the distraction of the Ken Griffey, Jr. situation and possessing a young and powerful pitching staff. I myself am mystified because I don't understand how you get better by trading your best player for chump change, nor do I get the Mariners going into another season with solid starters but no freaking closer. Have they not learned a thing from all those years of watching their bullpen pour gasoline on fires every game? Yes they still have Alex Rodriguez, who many believe has actually passed Griffey as the best player in the game, and they added John Olerud and Aaron Sele via free agency. But the best they could do to back up starters Sele, Jamie Moyer, Freddy Garcia, and John Halama is Japanese League import Kazuhiro Sasaki? Pu-lease! A healthy Jay Buhner and a last hurrah from Edgar Martinez to go with A-Rod will make the Mariners a player to the end, but I can't see that bullpen getting it done.

Oakland is fast becoming everyone's cache pick of the season. There are ample reasons for this, not the least of which is the unexpected 87-75 campaign they put together in 1999. GM Billy Beane also did a great job of re-signing his free agent class of John Jaha and Randy Velarde as well as retaining pitcher Kevin Appier. They starters are in great shape with Appier, second year man Tim Hudson, Omar Olivares, and Gil Heredia. Several great young arms are also beating down the door in the minors and should get a good look if any of these guys fall on their face. Oakland's lineup is potentially devastating with the likes of Velarde, Ben Grieve, Jaha, Matt Stairs, Jason Giambi, and 20-homer shortstop Miguel Tejada. A number of solid prospects also wait in the wings. There are, however, question marks. The bullpen features new closer Jason Isringhausen, and the jury is still out as to whether or not he can stay healthy for a full season. Oakland's defense is also a bit shaky at times, particularly in the outfield. Grieve is a statue in left field and nobody has taken over the centerfield job as of yet. Stairs has a cannon arm in right, but he's as slow as a sun dial. Rumors keep circulating about a deal with Disney for Jim Edmonds, but it's likely that even the Magic Kingdom is not so stupid as to trade a great outfielder like that to a division rival. If they do they are likely to want some of Oakland's prized young pitching prospects and that is just not an option. The A's will also not be able to sneak up on anyone this year, so the pressure will be on these youngsters from the beginning. It's up to Beane and field manager Art Howe to keep up the positive vibes when the team hits it's inevitable tough times. Whether they are up to the task remains to be seen, but there is no doubt the division is up for the taking.

Rich Ehisen is the creator and editor of his own monthly periodical, The Norcal Sports Report, as well as the co-host of The Sport Authority, a radio and television sports talk show on KCBL FM 88.7 and KCBL Public Access Television Channels 73 & 74 in Sacramento, CA. Having been involved in organized sports since the age of nine, he is still looking for his first ever sports trophy. Until then he'll have to settle for buying them and faking it.

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