A sorry attempt at previewing the National League

Now I realize that you probably care about my baseball predictions even less than I care about yours, but I’m going to give them anyway, if for no other reason than to hold myself accountable, like the people who track their weight loss on their personal blogs.

And I’ll be honest, I don’t know as much about these teams as I like to think, so if you want previews that will probably be a little more accurate, you can go here and here.

National League East
The Atlanta Braves lost 25 games by one run a year ago. If they are able to cut that number in half, they should make a serious run at the division title. Still, it’s hard not to like the Mets, who would have won it last year if not for a historic collapse. Now Johan Santana comes in to head one of the most underrated rotations in all of baseball. I think the Phillies will be the team that takes the biggest step back, and they’ll finish a distant third. Washington and Florida, obviously, have no chance.

Order of finish
New York, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Washington, Florida

National League Central
It’s strange to see the Chicago Cubs as the biggest lock in baseball, but I can’t argue with the predictions of seemingly ever expert. They might have the best 2-4 hitters in the National League, and Kosuke Fukudome has already gotten off to a nice start. The bullpen might be a concern, but they should address that by the trade deadline. The sexy sleeper that never lives up to expectations seems to always come out of this division, and Cincinnati will be no different this season. They certainly have a deep bullpen, but they’ve got no left-handed starters and their leadoff hitter is Corey Patterson. Yuck. Like Philly in the East, I think Milwaukee will take a step back this year. I’m not sold on their pitching at all. If anyone will surprise you in this division, I have a feeling it will be St. Louis, a team everyone is down on.

Order of finish
Chicago, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Houston, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh

National League West
Most of the league might be unwatchable, but the NL West makes MLBTV worth purchasing for me. There are all kinds of great storylines here. Arizona’s pitching makes them the favorite, but I’m excited to see how their lineup comes together. For a group that put up laughable numbers last year, they seem to have so much promise and I think the team will win 100 games. Colorado will be interesting. On one hand, any team that goes on the streak they went on last season has to be good. On the other, they weren’t great for most of the season. In Los Angeles, people seem to think Joe Torre has the magic touch, but I think we are all overrating his abilities. That team will not score enough. Neither will San Diego. And I would bet my home on the Giants losing more than 90 games.

Order of finish
Arizona, Colorado, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco

MVP
Aramis Ramirez

Cy Young
Johan Santana

ROY
Kosuke Fukudome

NLDS
New York over Chicago
Arizona over Atlanta

NLCS
Arizona over New York

World Series
Arizona over Toronto