Preseason Power Rankings: AL Central

[Nationals GM (Preston - Old)]

My rankings:

1. White Sox
2. Twins
3. Indians
4. Tigers
5. Royals

[Royals GM (Mac - Retired)]

where's the love preston? oh wait! that wont happen till next year

[lincy]

Indians- Have a top 5 starting staff in the bigs
Sox- Good bats, but still 2 huge holes to fill in the order
Tigers- Pretty young, I see them winning in 2-5 years
Royals- decent team, not going to win, but i don't see them in last either
Twins- Big ? at the SP, lineup should win some games though

Prediction Time
Twins
Sox
Indians
Royals
Tigers

[raisingarizo]

A.L. Central
1 Chicago White Sox
2 Detroit Tigers
3 Minnesota Twins
4 Cleveland Indians
5 Kansas City Royals

1. Chicago White Sox (104 Pts)
2009 Season Record: 79-83
Notable Acquisitions: Matt Cain, Curtis Granderson
The White Sox finished 7.5 games behind the division champion Minnesota Twins, but they should finish ahead this season. This finish is because of a decline suffered by the Twins.
The White Sox have been particularly busy this offseason, as they've added underrated Juan Pierre, Mark Teahan and Andruw Jones in the hopes of improving their lack-luster offensive attack. This along with Curtis Granderson bodes well for the offense. They will have to lock up a more reliable catcher.
Last season the ChiSox hit .258/.329/.411 and managed to score 724 runs. Sadly, they were outscored by their opponents, 724 to 732, resulting in a -8 run differential. This year the offense won’t be too much better, but should improve slightly.
One bright spot for the ChiSox was their very solid pitching staff. Jake Peavy, who arrived last season via trade and should have helped a staff that had a 4.14 ERA. The rotation includes Matt
Cain, Buehrle, Floyd, Danks and Garcia. Now Peavy has packed his bags along with Daniel Hudson. This should be okay because the staff can close ranks anchored by Matt Cain.
Looking ahead, I'd say that the Chicago White Sox will pass the Twins beginning this year. They will play much like last season, but they will also be in a weakened division..

2. Detroit Tigers (100 Pts)
2009 Season Record: 86-77
Notable Acquisitions: Delmon Young, Kelly Johnson, John Lackey, Aroldis Chapman
Hello, Tigers fans. I have to say with some of the moves the White Sox have been making, you're the obvious beneficiary.
Not to say that the Tigers won't hit numerous bumps, because in the Central anything is possible, I just don't see them finishing first.
The Tigers offense in 2009 wasn't that good—they managed to hit .260/.331/.416 and score 743 runs. And losing Granderson doesn't help their cause, either. The Tigers don't have as "potent" an offense as some seem to think.
The Tigers' strength comes in their pretty good pitching staff that includes Lackey, Porcello, Scherzer, Chapman (still TBD) and Bonderman. The team's ERA was fifth best in the AL at 4.29. And with Porcello looking like a young stud, the Tigers should have a pretty strong rotation in 2010.
Sure, they may not have that "potent" offense everybody thinks they do, but they've got pitching. Will it be enough? Will they manufacture a closer for their excellent bullpen? Who knows? One thing is for sure: in the AL Central, anything is possible.

3. Minnesota Twins (98 Pts)
2009 Season Record: 87-76
Notable Acquisitions: JJ Hardy and Ian Kennedy
The Twins continued last year to be dangerous in what was the very competitive AL Central. It seems every season that the Twins, Tigers, and White Sox are vying for the division crown and bragging rights.
But it was Minnesota that clinched the division last season and as a long shot still might be capable of repeating as division champs.
The Twins as a team had a .274/.345/.429 season. They also finished fourth in the AL for runs scored with 817.
So, by simply looking at these numbers compared to their pitching statistics, one could say that Minnesota relies heavily on its offense.
Pitching was a bit of a problem for Minnesota last season as they had a team ERA of 4.50. Opponents also hit .278 against them. So, in order for Minnesota to repeat as division champs, the pitching staff will need to pick it up. The biggest reason the pitching will fall short is the departures of Kevin Slowey, Francisco Liriano and Joe Nathan. Ian Kennedy and a cast of young pitchers will do their best to win.
Could some big trades be in the works for Minnesota? Or are they going the way of youth. Overall they should decline slightly from the success of the past few years.

4. Cleveland Indians (91 Pts)
2009 Season Record: 65-97
Notable Acquisitions: Matt Garza, Pat Burrell, Jorge Posada, Roy Halladay, Javier Vasquez, Phil Coke
2009 wasn't pretty for Indians' fans, as they saw their team lose 97 games and get outscored by opponents 773 to 865.
The Indians' offense wasn't too bad in 2009, as they were pretty much right in the middle of most offensive statistics. They as a team hit .264/.339/.417 and scored 773 runs (eighth in AL). They were led by Shin-Soo Choo (.300/.394/.489, 20 HR, 86 RBI), Grady Sizemore (.248/.343/.445, 18 HR, 64 RBI), and Travis Hafner (.272/.355/.470, 16 HR, 49 RBI). All 3 are gone and the Indians hope to fill their shoes with the likes of Jack Cust, Pat Burrell and aging catcher Jorge Posada. Cust is a career HR guy who strikes out a ton is very unproductive for his 25-30 HRs he hits each year, Pat Burrell did not take off as expected with the Rays. There are question marks about the hitting. Will it be as good as last year? No, not a chance.
Pitching in Cleveland for the 2009 season was downright hideous. The team's ERA was 5.06 (13th in AL) and opponents hit .280 (13th in AL) against them.
But that was 2009. This is 2010, and Cleveland, under new manager Manny Acta, would like to move on.
The Indians in 2010 will sport a much improved rotation that includes Roy Halladay, Javier Vasquez, Matt Garza and then several players who can pitch in the 4 and 5 spots that includes David Huff, Aaron Laffey, Fausto Carmona, and Anthony Reyes. If the Indians are to rise in the standings this season, they've got to win it with pitching. In their favor they are in a division often won by pitching. The new 1-2-3 could rival anyone’s.
Perhaps not really in it, the Indians will undoubtedley improve some this year.

5. Kansas City Royals (78 Pts)
2009 Season Record: 65-97
Notable Acquisitions: Jesus Flores, Chase Headly, Miguel Tejada, Matt Holiday, Craig Counsell, Jason Vargas
In 2009 the Kansas City Royals had one bright spot—Zach Greinke.
Greinke won the 2009 AL Cy Young Award, with his 16-8 record and 2.16 ERA.
Heading into 2010, the Royals had some problems to address. In 2009 they hit .259 (12th in AL) and were ranked 13th in OBP. with .318, 12th in SLG. with .405 and last in OPS. with .724.
Offensively they were led by Billy Butler (.301/.362/.492, 21 HR, 71 RBI), David DeJesus (.281/.347/.434, 71 RBI), Miguel Olivo (.249/.292/.490, 23 HR, 65 RBI), and Mike Jacobs (.228/.297/.401). With Alex Gordon still maturing, it seemed the Royals had to settle with their anemic offense until someone revamped it or breathed some life into it. Well, we are seeing both happening. The additions of Tejada and Matt Holliday will revamp this lineup and the natural progression of Billy Butler should also breathe much needed life into the lineup. Only time will tell if A-Gord was too valuable to trade or if as it appears right now, a brilliant trade was made by dealing him, possibly a lopsided trade in favor of the Royals.
Aside from Greinke, the Royals didn't have a stellar rotation. The team ERA was 4.83 (12th in AL), and opponents hit them hard with a .269 BAA (9th in AL). In 2010, the Royals would like Greinke, Brian Bannister, Luke Hochevar, Kyle Davies, and Robinson Tejada to improve things as a whole. Expect the same pitching challenges. The Royals replaced young pitching prospects like Hochevar with Shawn Marcum and Jason Vargas. I believe this will be a complete wash.
The Royals should show some mild improvement this year but temper your expectations.

[sirpenguin45]

Thanks for the love! I hope to make an acquisition down the line with the extra cap room that I have available