As I was finishing up a bibliography earlier, I noticed a very disturbing image on my tv. It was the image of Mike Lowell dancing in the Sox version of Dancing with the Stars. All this begs the question as to the real meaning of Spring Training. Now while I would love to go to Florida or Arizona to watch Spring Training, I ask the question what the overall use for it is. I mean guys are being paid millions to show up in shape and ready to play nine innings that day, or so one would think. They always say that it is to get guys in shape, thats garbage b/c as mentioned before I would expect them to show up ready to play. Now a days it seems as if its just an excuse to get the team together, get some work in for about 2 hours a day followed by a round of golf and drinks later that night. Don't get me wrong, if I could trade places with these guys I'd do it in a heartbeat. For me, Spring Training has always been welcomed by me b/c it gets me in the mood for baseball, there isn't too much on ESPN now but around July, I even get tired of the highlights of baseball games. I understand how there is hype now and rightfully so. Everyone is dying to see how Santana will be in the NL. While many are ready to hand him the Cy Young, I would not be so certain on that. Peavy, Hammels and Webb are all damn good and could easily out pitch him this year. I'll state it now, here are my predictions for the season:
AL MVP: A-Rod
NL MVP: Hanley Ramirez(yes I can name a player from the Marlins and he is on my fantasy team)
AL Cy Young: Josh Beckett
NL Cy Young: Cole Hammels
Surprise Teams: Dodgers in the NL and Twins in the NL
Players to keep an eye on: Fransisco Liriano and Kerry Wood; if they can make a comeback, they will be a force to be reckoned with, especially Liriano!
World Series Matchup: Tigers vs. D-Backs
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