Sleeper teams

[chris]

What are some on your list. At this point I only have one. The Reds on paper look like a bunch of losers but not sure why I think they may have the right group if the stay or should I say if Ken stays healthy

[V3r1f13d]

Oakland and Baltimore. I don't think either will make the post season, but they will do a lot better than people think.

[CuseFan10]

Don't we have this thread already?


Seems EVERYONE thinks the Reds are going to be good, but I think they are a huge play for the UNDER for season wins because of this public perception (media not far behind). They are going to be very young this year and I'm not sure of the stats (maybe FlyersFan knows), but I'm guessing that over the past 5 years they are one of the worst second half teams in all of baseball. This is a team who can't sustain one major injury IMHO - if Griffey, Dunn or Phillips go down, it's curtains. Yes, they can bring up Bruce, but for all his talent he's still a rookie.

I don't know if they count as a sleeper team but mine would be the Milwaukee Brewers. They are seemingly getting overlooked, and on paper, maybe only the Cubs are better in that division, and we all know how that story ends. Wood gets hurt, Lee gets hurt, season over....

In the AL it's really almost impossible to find a sleeper team because with Detroit, Cleveland, New York, Boston, Las Angeles, and Seattle no one else has a snowball's cahnce in hell (realistically) of making the playoffs.

[Skinsfan]

Astros

[CuseFan10]

Originally Posted by Skinsfan

Astros

Thought about them Skins, but their starting pitching behind Oswalt is REALLY bad. Wandy Rodriguez is their projected #2 starter. Eeeeeeeeeeeeeek......

[JohnnyMapleLeaf]

Originally Posted by CuseFan10

Don't we have this thread already?

Yes...and V3 named Baltimore in both

[Skinsfan]

Originally Posted by CuseFan10

Thought about them Skins, but their starting pitching behind Oswalt is REALLY bad. Wandy Rodriguez is their projected #2 starter. Eeeeeeeeeeeeeek......

don't sleep on backe

[naught33]

how about the toronto blue jays....they have always been able to hit, if wells and rolen have good years their offensive will still be pretty solid and they got a nice young pitching staff and bj ryan returning to anchor the pen, i think they can give bos/yanks a run for their money in the AL east

[JohnnyMapleLeaf]

Originally Posted by naught33

how about the toronto blue jays....they have always been able to hit, if wells and rolen have good years their offensive will still be pretty solid and they got a nice young pitching staff and bj ryan returning to anchor the pen, i think they can give bos/yanks a run for their money in the AL east

[homedawg]

[CuseFan10]

Originally Posted by naught33

how about the toronto blue jays....they have always been able to hit, if wells and rolen have good years their offensive will still be pretty solid and they got a nice young pitching staff and bj ryan returning to anchor the pen, i think they can give bos/yanks a run for their money in the AL east

Yea, but BJ Ryan is already hurt (again... word is mum on what he did which generally means it's serious), and Scott Rolen was one of the worst offensive regulars in all of baseball last season and on top of that, he got hurt today and is going to miss anywhere from 2-6 weeks.

And they also have the minor problem known as the Red Sox and Yankees.

[JohnnyMapleLeaf]

Yup...Jays bad luck with injuries happening already this year...Rolen gone for 3-6 weeks.... not to mention awesome setup guy Janssen gone for the year.

Ryan is not hurt again He is just coming back from an injury. He wasn't expected to be back until May....looks like the team thinks he was pushing it too hard to come back early, and they are just backing him off a bit, being careful, and taking it slow. He says his arm feels fine, and the surgically repaired elbow has not been a problem. He threw on Friday (where he supposedly looked great!), and is slated to pitch again in tomorrows game! I expect Accardo to close for the first month, then BJ will take over, and Accardo will setup...

[homedawg]

Originally Posted by CuseFan10

And they also have the minor problem known as the Red Sox and Yankees.

another problem, the tribe!

correction:

4-8 last 2 years

6-12 last 3 years

8-17 last 4 years.

of all the AL teams over the last 4 years, the jays worst winning percentage is against the tribe...

[FlyersFan]

REDS are truly an enigma. They could honestly finish anywhere from 1st to 4th. They are the biggest wild card in that division.

Starting Pitching: they have Arroyo and Harang and after that it is questionable. They will apparently turn to 2 youngsters in Cueto and Volquez after that and the 5th spot is still up in the air. Both young guys have pitched very well during the spring and could very well end up being very good pitchers this year. they could also end up hitting a wall in August.

Bullpen: Gay Majewski and his 400.00 ERA hopefully wont' be around. They have a great youngster in Burton who has been just great over the last season of work. The closer last year Weathers should set up and he is more comfortable there. Then it's all down to whether Mr. New Closer ex Brewer can live up to his contract.

The Lineup: Griffey will be hurt at some point during the season. Dunn has never been a clutch hitter despite having a 2,003, 388 RC27 and a 423.80 R2D2 (not sure what his lifetime C3PO is). He has wilted on both occassions the REDS have tried to make a run. They tried to dump him at the trade deadline but what club wants a trade deadline pick up who stinks in the clutch. He will get his 40/100/100 but will it be clutch or will it be in 8-1 ballgames. Phillips, Encarnacion, Votto, Keppinger...what kind of years will they have?


honestly every category above is a big question mark. I honestly think that they are lined up for a good season. But they have been a notoriously awful team in the last half of the season when it matters. They also were the 2nd worst team in the NL last year hitting with RISP. But one thing people may forget is how bad the REDS bullpen was last year. They led i can't tell you how many times after 6 innings and coughed it up in the last 3 innings. They lost probably 30+ games when leading after 6 last year. If a good bullpen solves even half of those losses there's 15 more wins.


Honestly if you told me they won the NL Central or finished 4th (pirates will be last again and i think the Cards suck wind too) i would say sure.

[JohnnyMapleLeaf]

Originally Posted by homedawg

another problem, the tribe!

correction:

4-8 last 2 years

6-12 last 3 years

8-17 last 4 years.

of all the AL teams over the last 4 years, the jays worst winning percentage is against the tribe...

While that may be true....they are the least of the Jays worries.....6 measly games against the Tribe mean nothing.... the 40+ games against the inter-divsion Yanks & Bosox mean ALOT!