charlie 3NL Central
February 21st 2011 17:06
Cincnnati Reds- The 2010 sleeper pick was the Reds. To succeed in 2011 they will need to relay on the strenghth of their defense. As strong as their defense looks, to win the NL Central they will need Arroyo, Bailey, and Cueto to be better in 2011 than 2010.
Pittsburgh Pirates- The Pirates are on the right track but will still encounter another losing season. They have a young talent and a great farm system but will all of it fit together before Andrew McCutchen becomes a free agent and leaves Pittsburgh.
St. Louis Cardinals- Wainwright (11 losses) may have deserved the Cy Young award in 2010 but Carpenter (9 losses) got it instead, because of lack of offense. That alone should prove that the offense in 2010 was not as great as it should have been. Chemistry was another problem for the red birds. Rasmus wanted out and guys were afriad to be around Carpenter. Pujols last season in St. Louis, maybe, but still the Cards will take a weak division.
Houston Astros- I look for Myers,Rodriguez and Norris to be part of a sneaky rotation. Oswalt leaving the Astros hurt them more than people may belive. With out him the rotation may not be the same. Houston may be more stressed with out Roy. Offense will not be a problem in Houston. The Astros will be winning alot of high scoring games in 2011. You will also have to worry bout low scoring games, which i think may not go the Astros way because of the big outbursts. The bullpen may get over used but there will be no shortage of runs scored for Houston. Don't forget about closer Brandon Lyon. He is a solid closer. 2011 will not be Houstons year to compete for a title.
Chicago Cubs- The back of the bullpen will shorten games in 2011 for the Cubs. Marmol with Wood and Marshall will be a good combination. Even though Chicago is solid they will only go as far as Ramirez is willing to carry them.Unfortantly, that will not be as far as Pujols and the Cardinals can go.
Milwaukee Brewers- A potential downfall for Milwaukee is new manager Ron Roenicke wants to be aggressive on the base paths. That could mean two things either stealing bases or just taking an extra base when you can. For Prince Fielder to stay past 2011 this has to be the Brewers year. Prince may say he wants to stay now but that all could change with a bad year. The farm system in Milwaukee is wack. Injury is not an option for anyone because of the farm system. Ryan Braun will have a great yera and be the key on defense, but to get all 25 guys working together at the same time will be near impossible. A wild card spot could be all they will get. We should see a return to form from Zach Greinke. I say this because i think it is easier to pitch in the NL than the AL.
Standings
Cardinals 90-72
Cubs 86-76 4 games back
Brewers 83-80 7.5 games back
Astros 68-94 22 games back
Reds 43-119 47 games back
Pirates 37-124 52 games back
Pittsburgh Pirates- The Pirates are on the right track but will still encounter another losing season. They have a young talent and a great farm system but will all of it fit together before Andrew McCutchen becomes a free agent and leaves Pittsburgh.
St. Louis Cardinals- Wainwright (11 losses) may have deserved the Cy Young award in 2010 but Carpenter (9 losses) got it instead, because of lack of offense. That alone should prove that the offense in 2010 was not as great as it should have been. Chemistry was another problem for the red birds. Rasmus wanted out and guys were afriad to be around Carpenter. Pujols last season in St. Louis, maybe, but still the Cards will take a weak division.
Houston Astros- I look for Myers,Rodriguez and Norris to be part of a sneaky rotation. Oswalt leaving the Astros hurt them more than people may belive. With out him the rotation may not be the same. Houston may be more stressed with out Roy. Offense will not be a problem in Houston. The Astros will be winning alot of high scoring games in 2011. You will also have to worry bout low scoring games, which i think may not go the Astros way because of the big outbursts. The bullpen may get over used but there will be no shortage of runs scored for Houston. Don't forget about closer Brandon Lyon. He is a solid closer. 2011 will not be Houstons year to compete for a title.
Chicago Cubs- The back of the bullpen will shorten games in 2011 for the Cubs. Marmol with Wood and Marshall will be a good combination. Even though Chicago is solid they will only go as far as Ramirez is willing to carry them.Unfortantly, that will not be as far as Pujols and the Cardinals can go.
Milwaukee Brewers- A potential downfall for Milwaukee is new manager Ron Roenicke wants to be aggressive on the base paths. That could mean two things either stealing bases or just taking an extra base when you can. For Prince Fielder to stay past 2011 this has to be the Brewers year. Prince may say he wants to stay now but that all could change with a bad year. The farm system in Milwaukee is wack. Injury is not an option for anyone because of the farm system. Ryan Braun will have a great yera and be the key on defense, but to get all 25 guys working together at the same time will be near impossible. A wild card spot could be all they will get. We should see a return to form from Zach Greinke. I say this because i think it is easier to pitch in the NL than the AL.
Standings
Cardinals 90-72
Cubs 86-76 4 games back
Brewers 83-80 7.5 games back
Astros 68-94 22 games back
Reds 43-119 47 games back
Pirates 37-124 52 games back
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Comment by Joe Soriano
Pro Sports Wrap
Orble Sport Blog
1. Cardinals (assuming they keep Pujols)
2. Reds
3. Brewers
4. Cubs
5. Pirates
6. Astros