Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?

[Mr_October]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?



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Disappoint
Astros
Cardinals ( )


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Thanks for the good laughs!

[Vince]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?

alot of the teams you all are posting may not really be surprises cause they alot of them have high expectations to start the season.

I think a surprise team could be the rockies.The team can obviously hit and their pitchers are at least starting to get more accustomed to pitching at coors.

Another team would be The indians with their plethora of great prospects and young starts like jody gerut and victor martinez.

[Vince]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?

alot of the teams you all are posting may not really be surprises cause they alot of them have high expectations to start the season.

I think a surprise team could be the rockies.The team can obviously hit and their pitchers are at least starting to get more accustomed to pitching at coors.

Another team would be The indians with their plethora of great prospects and young starts like jody gerut and victor martinez.

[Vince]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?

alot of the teams you all are posting may not really be surprises cause they alot of them have high expectations to start the season.

I think a surprise team could be the rockies.The team can obviously hit and their pitchers are at least starting to get more accustomed to pitching at coors.

Another team would be The indians with their plethora of great prospects and young starts like jody gerut and victor martinez.

[rsox]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?


Surprise
San Diego
Tampa Bay
Cincinnati (if Griffey and co. are healthy)

Dissapoint
San Francisco
White Sox
Seattle

[rsox]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?


Surprise
San Diego
Tampa Bay
Cincinnati (if Griffey and co. are healthy)

Dissapoint
San Francisco
White Sox
Seattle

[rsox]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?


Surprise
San Diego
Tampa Bay
Cincinnati (if Griffey and co. are healthy)

Dissapoint
San Francisco
White Sox
Seattle

[SportsorDeath]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?

It's really hard to say, actually.

A lot of the teams you guys mentioned as surprises may end up doing pretty good, but I wouldn't necessarily consider it to be a "surprise", since so many people are expecting it. Some of the teams I have seen mentioned the most as surprises :

Blue Jays- they have been a decent team for a few years, and I don't see it being different this year. They should finish in 3rd again, just like almost everyone predicts.

Royals- most "experts" predict them to win the division, so that can't be much of a surprise if they do well.

Tampa Bay and Detroit- most people predict they will be better than last year, which isn't a surprise considering the fact that they both made some decent additions and can't really get much worse.

Cubs and Astros- are considered by everyone to be the top 2 teams in the division and compete right down to the wire for the division title. A lot of publications are picking the Cubbies to go to the World Series, so again, not too much of a surprise since they both have high expectations to begin with.

The only teams I can think of off the top of my head that could end up really surprising are :

Dodgers- they will have trouble scoring runs again, and that is why a lot of people don't think they will contend, but they have a good chance.

Padres- they are quickly becoming this year's chic sleeper pick, but if their young pitchers step up and their big bats stay healthy they could make some noise. The division is ripe this year for the taking.

Reds- I don't think they can realistically contend for too long with the Cubs and Houston in the same division, but if Griffey, Kearns and Dunn can stay healthy, they can do some damage. I would like them a lot better if they had added a good starting pitcher (Lidle doesn't count).

White Sox- everyone is pretty much leaving them for dead, but they still have a pretty potent lineup, and their pitching staff isn't bad at all. Remember, they only finished 2 games back last year. They really need Billy Koch to return to form, and their clubhouse is always a ticking time bomb, especially now with the whole Ozzie Guillen/Frank Thomas drama. They play in the weakest division in baseball, though, and they have the talent.

The disappointments are a little easier to make a guess at just because everyone gets so enamored with all the offseason acquisitions a team makes and anoints them as "can't miss". Every year, though, a team that everyone thinks has winner written all over it flops.

Potential disappointments :

Angels- big additions (Vlad, Colon) make them the AL West favorite in a lot of peoples' eyes, but they could disappoint. When expectations are set so high, it is often hard for a team to live up to them (see: mid 90's Dodgers and Orioles)

A's- a lot of people think they can still win the division because of "the Big 3", and they could. Their pitching will keep them in most games, but they are going to have trouble scoring runs and the fact that they play in an offense heavy division doesn't do them any favors. They are going to have to get a big season from Chavez and a huge comeback from Jermaine Dye if they are to contend.

Marlins- a lot of people are thinking they can make it back to the playoffs again this year, but I don't think so. They caught lightning in a bottle last year (and in '97) and I just don't see it happening again. They will be a good team and will probably stay in the race all summer, but I see them fading down the stretch.

[SportsorDeath]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?

It's really hard to say, actually.

A lot of the teams you guys mentioned as surprises may end up doing pretty good, but I wouldn't necessarily consider it to be a "surprise", since so many people are expecting it. Some of the teams I have seen mentioned the most as surprises :

Blue Jays- they have been a decent team for a few years, and I don't see it being different this year. They should finish in 3rd again, just like almost everyone predicts.

Royals- most "experts" predict them to win the division, so that can't be much of a surprise if they do well.

Tampa Bay and Detroit- most people predict they will be better than last year, which isn't a surprise considering the fact that they both made some decent additions and can't really get much worse.

Cubs and Astros- are considered by everyone to be the top 2 teams in the division and compete right down to the wire for the division title. A lot of publications are picking the Cubbies to go to the World Series, so again, not too much of a surprise since they both have high expectations to begin with.

The only teams I can think of off the top of my head that could end up really surprising are :

Dodgers- they will have trouble scoring runs again, and that is why a lot of people don't think they will contend, but they have a good chance.

Padres- they are quickly becoming this year's chic sleeper pick, but if their young pitchers step up and their big bats stay healthy they could make some noise. The division is ripe this year for the taking.

Reds- I don't think they can realistically contend for too long with the Cubs and Houston in the same division, but if Griffey, Kearns and Dunn can stay healthy, they can do some damage. I would like them a lot better if they had added a good starting pitcher (Lidle doesn't count).

White Sox- everyone is pretty much leaving them for dead, but they still have a pretty potent lineup, and their pitching staff isn't bad at all. Remember, they only finished 2 games back last year. They really need Billy Koch to return to form, and their clubhouse is always a ticking time bomb, especially now with the whole Ozzie Guillen/Frank Thomas drama. They play in the weakest division in baseball, though, and they have the talent.

The disappointments are a little easier to make a guess at just because everyone gets so enamored with all the offseason acquisitions a team makes and anoints them as "can't miss". Every year, though, a team that everyone thinks has winner written all over it flops.

Potential disappointments :

Angels- big additions (Vlad, Colon) make them the AL West favorite in a lot of peoples' eyes, but they could disappoint. When expectations are set so high, it is often hard for a team to live up to them (see: mid 90's Dodgers and Orioles)

A's- a lot of people think they can still win the division because of "the Big 3", and they could. Their pitching will keep them in most games, but they are going to have trouble scoring runs and the fact that they play in an offense heavy division doesn't do them any favors. They are going to have to get a big season from Chavez and a huge comeback from Jermaine Dye if they are to contend.

Marlins- a lot of people are thinking they can make it back to the playoffs again this year, but I don't think so. They caught lightning in a bottle last year (and in '97) and I just don't see it happening again. They will be a good team and will probably stay in the race all summer, but I see them fading down the stretch.

[SportsorDeath]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?

It's really hard to say, actually.

A lot of the teams you guys mentioned as surprises may end up doing pretty good, but I wouldn't necessarily consider it to be a "surprise", since so many people are expecting it. Some of the teams I have seen mentioned the most as surprises :

Blue Jays- they have been a decent team for a few years, and I don't see it being different this year. They should finish in 3rd again, just like almost everyone predicts.

Royals- most "experts" predict them to win the division, so that can't be much of a surprise if they do well.

Tampa Bay and Detroit- most people predict they will be better than last year, which isn't a surprise considering the fact that they both made some decent additions and can't really get much worse.

Cubs and Astros- are considered by everyone to be the top 2 teams in the division and compete right down to the wire for the division title. A lot of publications are picking the Cubbies to go to the World Series, so again, not too much of a surprise since they both have high expectations to begin with.

The only teams I can think of off the top of my head that could end up really surprising are :

Dodgers- they will have trouble scoring runs again, and that is why a lot of people don't think they will contend, but they have a good chance.

Padres- they are quickly becoming this year's chic sleeper pick, but if their young pitchers step up and their big bats stay healthy they could make some noise. The division is ripe this year for the taking.

Reds- I don't think they can realistically contend for too long with the Cubs and Houston in the same division, but if Griffey, Kearns and Dunn can stay healthy, they can do some damage. I would like them a lot better if they had added a good starting pitcher (Lidle doesn't count).

White Sox- everyone is pretty much leaving them for dead, but they still have a pretty potent lineup, and their pitching staff isn't bad at all. Remember, they only finished 2 games back last year. They really need Billy Koch to return to form, and their clubhouse is always a ticking time bomb, especially now with the whole Ozzie Guillen/Frank Thomas drama. They play in the weakest division in baseball, though, and they have the talent.

The disappointments are a little easier to make a guess at just because everyone gets so enamored with all the offseason acquisitions a team makes and anoints them as "can't miss". Every year, though, a team that everyone thinks has winner written all over it flops.

Potential disappointments :

Angels- big additions (Vlad, Colon) make them the AL West favorite in a lot of peoples' eyes, but they could disappoint. When expectations are set so high, it is often hard for a team to live up to them (see: mid 90's Dodgers and Orioles)

A's- a lot of people think they can still win the division because of "the Big 3", and they could. Their pitching will keep them in most games, but they are going to have trouble scoring runs and the fact that they play in an offense heavy division doesn't do them any favors. They are going to have to get a big season from Chavez and a huge comeback from Jermaine Dye if they are to contend.

Marlins- a lot of people are thinking they can make it back to the playoffs again this year, but I don't think so. They caught lightning in a bottle last year (and in '97) and I just don't see it happening again. They will be a good team and will probably stay in the race all summer, but I see them fading down the stretch.

[Sully]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?

Surprise:

Padres
Orioles

Disappoint:

Yankees (No World Series title is a failure)
Astros
Royals
Giants

[Sully]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?

Surprise:

Padres
Orioles

Disappoint:

Yankees (No World Series title is a failure)
Astros
Royals
Giants

[Sully]

Re: Who do you think will surprise and who wiill dissapoint?

Surprise:

Padres
Orioles

Disappoint:

Yankees (No World Series title is a failure)
Astros
Royals
Giants