Out of the Box

The original team (Cincinnati Reds) has throw out its first pitch, thus I can now officially welcome back baseball.

The Washington Nationals had a great night as they christened their new stadium in dramatic fashion. The Nats played another pointless pre-Opening day game with Ryan Zimmerman providing the fireworks with a walk-off bomb for the home team. Earlier, Zimmerman had the task handing a ball to President Bush for the ceremonial first pitch. The crowd’s reaction as Bush strode to the mound was a near-mixture of equal cheers and boos. This was a tasteless gesture toward a man who will be out of politics within a year. While Americans have the right to boo our President, I’d expect that in Philly not D.C., and not when the fans are supposed to be celebrating their franchise’s new crowed jewel (a 40,000-plus seat stadium).



Now to the most fascinating storylines entering the 2008 MLB season. Last year was a year of milestones with Barry Bonds chase headlining, but this year shaping into a different beast. In the Big Apple, can Johan Santana fix the woes in Queens and how will A-Rod fare after signing another ridiculous contract? Also, there’s the Tigers vaunted, revamped offense, and of course the next step with steroids in baseball. However, the ultimate storyline for 2008, is can the Chicago Cubs finally end 100-years of futility and frustration?

With all that as serving as a backdrop, here are the FPS Fearless MLB Picks…

American League
NY Yankees (East) – Playing their last season playing in the House that Ruth built, how could the Yanks miss the playoffs?

Indians (Central) – Cleveland returns a great one-two punch at the top of the rotation, and the bullpen will close out tight games.

LA Angels (West) – The edition of Torii Hunter upgrades the outfield and adds leadership to a youthful Angels team. Plus the Angels aren't Seattle.

Tigers (Wild Card) – Detroit has big bats top to bottom in their lineup, if Zumaya and Rodney return mid-season, the bullpen will be formidable for a late season push.

National League
Phillies (East) – Philadelphia really has three MVPs in their infield (Howard, Rollins winners, and Utley) as well as a total mental edge over their rivals to the north.

Cubs (Central) – Easy pick in a weak division. The Cubs will make trades if they need a late season boost, something Milwaukee won’t do.

Diamondbacks (West) – Arizona’s youth is more mature due to last year’s playoff time. The addition of Dan Haren makes the D-backs rotation among the NL’s best.

Padres (Wild Card) – San Diego was three outs away from the playoffs twice last year. Peavy is an elite starter and if Adrian Gonzalez can carry the offense watch out.

World Series: Tigers over Diamondbacks

If you have any predictions for the season you'd like to share, please do so by commenting on this post.