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I never said it was just about stats, but, your logic is still inconsistent.
The Mets, who have missed the playoffs two years in a row on the basis of poor September play and are universally considering chokers by those that believe in that, have somehow suddenly found "it" and are going to win the World Series...while the Cubs, who HAVE made the playoffs each of the last two years, just don't have "it."
:rolleyes:
I'm gonna be boning Jennifer Aniston tonight. I mean, I'll tell her, "Hey, I know I'm just an average looking college student with no money, but hey, I really got it in me" and I fully expect that line to seal the deal. I mean...others might say I won't be able to get her, but I say I "got it in me" so I'm sure it'll happen.
On what grounds?Quote:
Originally Posted by metsguy234
None?Quote:
Originally Posted by eggson27
ApparentlyQuote:
Originally Posted by HoustonGM
super advanced algorithms and a numbering system far advanced from our own.Quote:
Originally Posted by HoustonGM
AL east
1.boston
2.Yanks[WC]{ Hope not hate the Yanks]
3.Rays
4. Jays
5. O's
Boston is the best they win the divsion. The Yanks just got themselves into too goof of a postion not to take them as much i want Rays and redsox in instead of the dumb Yanks.
Al central
1.Tigers[ My upset pick this year]
2. Twins
3.indains
4. Whitesox
5. Royals
Had to take a surpise some where I feel this divsion is up for grabs and if the tigers can put it together they have a good chance the again if any 1 here gets it together they could win LOL
Al west
1. Angels
2. A's
3.Rangers
4. M's
Nothing new here
Nl east
1. Mets
2. Phills[wc]
3. braves
4. Marlins
5.Nats
The pen shoudl help my Mets win it this year with phill being close and winning the WC and the braves being pretty good getting ready to contend again in 2010 and then the marlins and the nats. The only thing the Nats got going is june 6 1st pick
Nl Central
1.Cubs
2.Cards
3.astros
4.Reds
5.Brewers
6.Pirates
Cubs are gonna win it Pujols gonna keep cards around. The astros always find a 2nd half way it won't be enough. Brewers gonna suck fisnh behind young reds then the pirates.
Nl west
1. LA
2, D backs
3.rockies
4.Padres
I think La could win won't be surpised if d backs did
Playoffs
NLDS
Mets vs Dodgers 3-2
Cubs vs Phills 1-3
ALDS
Boston tigers 3-0
Yanks Angels 3-2
NLCS
Mets Phills 4-3 hoping!!!!!!!!!!
Boston Yanks 4-2
WS
Boston Mets 4-2
That post is YamivietesqueQuote:
Originally Posted by ewing6
Whats up with people leaving off one random NL West team? lol
I know what you mean, man... Sports writers dumb as kid only chose know team.Quote:
Originally Posted by ewing6
I know you have all been waiting for this...my predictions...
THE AMERICAN LEAGUE:
East:
1. Boston Red Sox (94-68)
2. Tampa Bay Rays (92-70) WC
3. New York Yankees (89-73)
4. Toronto Blue Jays (78-84)
5. Baltimore Orioles (70-92)
Central:
1. Minnesota Twins (88-74)
2. Cleveland Indians (86-76)
3. Detroit Tigers (82-80)
4. Chicago White Sox (79-83)
5. Kansas City Royals (77-85)
West:
1. Los Angeles Angels (87-75)
2. Oakland Athletics (83-79)
3. Rangers (81-81)
4. Mariners (70-92)
THE NATIONAL LEAGUE:
East:
1. Braves (90-72)
2. Mets (89-73) WC
3. Phillies (87-75)
4. Marlins (83-79)
5. Nationals (68-94)
Central:
1. Cubs (95-67)
2. Cardinals (85-77)
3. Reds (83-79)
4. Astros (81-81)
5. Brewers (77-85)
6. Pirates (66-86)
West:
1. Dodgers (91-71)
2. Diamondbacks (84-78)
3. Giants (80-82)
4. Rockies (76-86)
5. Padres (65-97)
****
Division Series:
Rays vs. Twins
Angels vs. Red Sox
Mets vs. Cubs
Dodgers vs. Braves
Rays in 4
Red Sox in 4
Mets in 5
Dodgers in 4
LCS:
Rays vs. Red Sox
Mets vs. Dodgers
Red Sox in 7
Dodgers in 6
World Series:
Red Sox vs. Dodgers
Red Sox in 6
Eddie boy, where are the Giants? Back to doing your homework.Quote:
Originally Posted by ewing6
AL East
1 Tampa
2 Boston (WC)
3 New York
4 Toronto
5 Baltimore
Toughest division by far, but despite what the Yankees have done this off-season I just don't think they're going to be able to fend off injury and age forever. I've also got my eyes on CC's health. Tampa has too much talent that isn't even fully developed to not win the East again. Boston is Boston of course and Toronto and Baltimore could finish either way. I guess the biggest question marks are Holliday, Weiters (:p) and Baltimore's Rotation.
AL Central
1 Cleveland
2 Detroit
3 Minnesota
4 Chicago
5 Kansas City
All these teams have some sort of problem with them, although not huge problems. I think Cleveland's defense and offense will be able to lift their pitching if they can get at least decent results from most of the staff. Detroit could potentially finish on top if they can get the pitching out of their rotation in Porcello, Verlander, etc... Minnesota would easily be my favorite if not for one thing, they're already having trouble staying off the DL and lots of guys are experience 'minor' things that could possibly become 'major'. When Baker, Mauer, and Morneau are all starting off the season with problems and you've got guys like Francisco Liriano pitching for you, injury should be a big concern. The White Sox seem to have to many question marks moving in to the season that I think they will fall on their faces and Kansas could be decent enough if they can get Greinke to pitch great (which he should), but beyond Greinke/Meche there isn't a ton to be excited about in the rotation, especially when you have Horacio Ramirez in the rotation. I know this from experience :p.
AL West
1 Oakland
2 Los Angeles
3 Seattle
4 Texas
I think I'm the only person to not rank Seattle at the bottom :p. Before you start calling me biased let me explain. Oakland has one of the most interesting rotations with quite a bit of potential and back that up with a pitchers park and a great defense not to mention an average lineup that is much improved from last season. They have their fair share of question marks and an injury to Chavez/Ellis/Holliday or any more pitchers could be devastating, but I think they'll be able to win the West this year. LA could possibly finish last if three things happen : 1) The rotation never recovers 100% 2) Age finally hits Vlad & Co. 3) Injury Bug. All of these things are very realistic concerns and not to mention they will be fielding one of the worst OF defenses in baseball coupled with one of the most extreme fly ball pitchers in baseball (Jered Weaver; the lone guy who hasn't had a set back thus far) and mix in some injury to Morales and Vlad/Abreu get hit with age/injury and this team isn't looking so hot. Now to Seattle, well they'll be fielding possibly the best OF defense in all of baseball and they've improved the power department a bit with Branyan/Griffey. The rotation is a huge question mark, and the bullpen should get better around July when Cordero & possibly Fields join Morrow. A lot of the younger guys still have some potential (Lopez, Gutierrez, Balentien, Clement (possible trade bait though), Felix, etc...). Still, as much potential as there is in this group, my bet is on Seattle to improve on last year, but not by a lot. Texas - well..since this is already super long I'll just say : awesome offense, but the defense & pitching are lacking this year. They've got a bright future, but it just isn't here yet.
NL will be up in a bit.
Pitchers park you mean? :pQuote:
Originally Posted by 200tang
lol I was thinking it when I was typing it, but it's very early/late sooo :) I wouldn't be surprised if there were a ton more grammar/spelling/misc mistakes in there.Quote:
Originally Posted by HoustonGM
NL East
1 New York
2 Atlanta
3 Philadelphia
4 Florida
5 Nationals
New York has Jose Reyes and David Wright who haven't reached their potential. That is all. Atlanta has a good top 3 in their rotation and not to mention an above average offense with a nice mix of defense. I doubt Chipper will be able to stay 100% healthy, but they should be okay if they can even get 100 games + replacement level out of his roster spot. I think Lowe, Vazquez, Jurrjens, Campillo and Kawakami should be able to push them past Philadelphia. While we're on the subject, "OMG PHILLY NOT 1 OR 2?!". Well..yeah, when you add an aging Raul Ibanez (+ his defense) to an already lefty lineup and your rotation isn't as good as Atlanta's and neither is your defense you're pretty much relying on your offense being better (which it is, but not by as much as you would think) and your bullpen (which it is as well). All in all, I'll take the pitching & defense. Florida is going to have to replace a lot of innings last year and their offense is not going to get the same production out of some players (CANTU!). The Nationals are a weird team. Everyone thinks they will do terrible (which they likely will), but they have more upside than most give them credit for. Their offense could possibly be one of the best in the league, if they can all stay healthy (which they wont). Assuming they come to their senses and start Dukes over Kearns, the worst hitter on their team will be a .698 OPS catcher. Really there isn't a lot to dislike in this group : Dukes (potential), Guzman (contact), Zimmerman (24 now w/ potential), Adam Dunn (He's Adam Dunn), Nick Johnson (career .396 OBP with a little pop), Willingham (pop & walks), Milledge (23 y/o w/ potential), Flores (C), Ron Belliard (decent offense for 2B). So why is this team going to likely finish last? The pitching mainly. The bullpen was actually decent last year, but I don't think they'll repeat and as for the rotation...well..Lannan should be good this year but there are question marks behind him. Olson projects to be average, Cabrera has no command but has great stuff. If the command comes around(highly unlikely) he could be a surprise. Zimmermann and Martis? round out the rotation and Zimmermann could also surprise this year. He'll have his growing pains but he should be able to flash his dominance as well. Despite what everyone says, this should be an interesting team to keep an eye on.
NL Central
1 Chicago
2 St. Louis (WC)
3 Cincinnati
4 Milwaukee
5 Houston
6 Pittsburgh
I don't see any reason to think Chicago won't repeat so I'll leave them atop the Central and leave it at that. Ah, the Cardinals. Well, they've got a great offense and if the Schumaker experiment works out which it looks like it is in the recent weeks then they could put together a very strong mix of offense and defense. In terms of pitching they have one of the best rotations and 2 very good up and coming relievers in Motte and Perez (I know he's in AAA now, but he'll be called up pretty fast IMO). Why do I have the Central winning the WC?! Well, St. Louis is a very strong team and they get to beat up on Pittsburgh and Houston all year long and pretty much any other team for that matter. Cincinnati..a very good team that has a good young nucleus in Votto, Bruce, Encarnacion and to an extent Brandon Phillips. Defensively I'll project the team as below average, especially on the left side of the infield. I like their pitching across the board and think that a lot of teams would trade their top 4 for Cinci's. The biggest question mark will be how well Harang can do coming off one of his worst seasons and how much progress Cueto will make. Micah Owings is probably my favorite 5th starter in the league by the way. His pitching won't blow your socks off (although for a 5th starter not bad, possibly average or a bit above without looking at any numbers), but his true value lies with his batting. Yes, batting for a pitcher actually has quite a bit of value when you can hit as well as Owings. Next up : Milwaukee! Well, Rickie Weeks will likely continue to tease everyone with his potential and ability to NOT BE INJURED :O (you better not burn me in fantasy WEEKS!), Ryan Braun will try and fight off some minor set backs that he's experienced so far and Prince Fielder will continue to provide a solid avg with plus power and a decent K:BB rate. Oh yeah, Corey Hart and J.J. Hardy will probably continue to be solid with the latter being one of the best shortstops in the game. As for pitching, Yovania Gallardo offers a lot of potential and will likely be their best starter during the year and Jeff Suppan happens to be one of the most consistant pitchers in all of baseball and you can pretty much pencil him in for a mid 4 ERA. Beyond those guys theirs really nobody noteworthy (Parra, Bush, Looper) and sorry Looper, but you're not going to pitch like HGM projects you to. The bullpen? Not great not terrible. Unfortunately for Milwaukee, St. Louis and Chicago are much more complete clubs at the moment. Houston? Roy Oswalt, Wandy Rodriguez, Jose Valverde, Carlos Lee, Lance Berkman, Hunter Pence. They could field just those 6 guys every game and finish pretty much the same :-\. Nobody else of note really except maybe Miguel Tejada. Pittsburgh? Paul Maholm and Matt Capps are 2 of my favorite pitchers of all time. A team to watch for in the future, but they need more time.
NL West
1 Los Angeles
2 Arizona
3 San Francisco
4 Colorado
5 San Diego
Well I'll go with what the 'majority' have and go with LA winning it. The lineup is talented up and down and having Juan Pierre as a bench option is a pretty nice option despite all the 'flak' that he gets. Oh yeah, they have Brad Ausmus, WS Bound :p (bonus points if you get the reference). They lost some pitchers this off-season, but it shouldn't matter a great deal in this division. Kershaw and Billingsley will be the obvious guys to watch and Jonathan Broxton will be one of the best relievers in the league (in terms of ability). Arizona is probaly the sleeper pick of the year to possibly win the division or WC. Even if LA does win the division, I Could see Arizona winning the WC if they get somewhat lucky. First of all their rotation : Webb (ACE+), Haren (ACE+), Scherzer (Potential ACE+), Davis (solid starter), Garland (inning eater? :-\). Well..how about the lineup? It has a lot of potential..A LOT! Chris Young, Justin Upton, and Stephen Drew are all top tier talents (not so much Young, but you know). Along with those guys who could easily take huge strides toward MVP'dom are a list of solid support guys. Felipe Lopez will bring average defense and 40 SB potential to this lineup. Reynolds is a terrible glove but he brings a lot of power to the table. Chad Tracy will continue to fight injury like always but should be a solid 1B with power and a tolerable OPS. Conor Jackson is a great hitter, defensively I don't know much about him though. I assume he's league average though; and finally Chris Snyder who's probably my favorite player on this team. Last year he had 79 hits in 334 AB's, not great right? Oh, did I forget to mention 39 (or roughly 50%) of his hits went for extra bases? Oh and he's 28 this year so expect more of that along with solid defense. Arizona could surprise if Scherzer, Upton, Drew and Young all make significant progress. Moving on, we have SF! As everyone has established they've put up a great rotation this year and will likely be something everyone will keep a tab on. Offensively this team reminds me a bit of the Oakland team last year, minus the defense (not that it's bad, just not as good). It won't strike fear in to anyone, but that isn't their strength..it's their pitching. Their ace is likely to be Lincecum who won the Cy Young last year at the age of 24. 'nuf said. Matt Cain? solid ace material and younger than Lincecum if you can believe that. Randy Johnson? He blew up a bird once. Jonathan Sanchez? Well, you got me there. He has a legitimate shot at being better than he's shown so we'll see. Barry Zito? He could be a pretty good #5 starter if he can get that ERA down to the mid 4's which is very realistic. The bullpen? Alright, not amazing. Another team that could surprise. Colorado seems to be a team in transition. Their pitching is pretty much atrocious except for Street, Corpas and Jimenez and to an extent Cook. The lineup? They play in Coors Field, even Eddie Gaedel could launch 20 in that park :P. If Helton can stay healthy and Tulo can get back to where he should be then they should be great and Dexter Fowler could put up some impressive numbers, but again, in transition this year. San Diego? Jake Peavy and Adrian Gonzalez are cool. Chris Young doesn't seem 100% healthy and neither does Cha Seung Baek. Shawn Hill will end up on the DL eventually. Oh, did I mention that pitching should be their strength? Maybe they'll offset it with their offense right? No. Well, maybe a mid season call up of a stud will push them past Colorado? No. Well...maybe they'll..No. The Padres will finish last. See image below if you disagree with me.
Man, I don't see how people still have the Yanks in 3rd or only winning 89. Hell, they won 89 last year with injuries to A-Rod, Wang, Posada, 'Deki, Joba, and starting Rasner and Ponson a TON of games with a mid 5 ERA each. Cano had his worst season ever, etc... Pretty much EVERYTHING went wrong for the Yanks last year... don't see that happening 2 straight years. We replaced Rasner, Kennedy, Hughes, Ponson with Sabathia, Burnett, Wang... We replace Molina with Posada... MAJOR upgrades. The defense has improved with Nady in RF instead of Abreu, and Tex at 1B instead of Giambi.
I guess, all in all people have their opinions, but EVERYTHING would have to go wrong for the Yankees 2 straight seasons for them to only win 89 games.
I would think because of age and terrible defense.Quote:
Originally Posted by koolzach1
I have them winning 89 because they play in the toughest division in baseball and I feel their age will catch up to them. Not to mention awful defense.Quote:
Originally Posted by koolzach1
It's simple: the Rays, Sox, and Yanks have to play 36 games against each other. That's why none of them are going to have the best record in baseball.
Most teams in baseball would be very happy to win "only" 89 games two years in a row. :rolleyes:
To add on to what I said, I also think another reason for third is because Tampa is very young and I dont think people know they havent even reached their full potential.Quote:
Originally Posted by OregonDuck1989
They also get to beat up on the rest of the American League which features two divisions full of mediocrity, plus the other two poor teams in their division. I'm confident that one of those three teams will have the most wins in the majors this year. The Rays were tied for second last year, behind the Angels who are not going to come close to 100 wins this year, and all three of the big AL East teams have improved over the winter.Quote:
Originally Posted by PotatoOfCouch13
This is true. Crawford, Upton and Longoria haven't reached their peaks yet and who knows what will happen when they do.Quote:
Originally Posted by ragecage
I don't think any team in the AL East will win 95 games because of their division strength. I think the division winner will have the best in the American but I'm not so sure about the majors.
Their division was stronger last year with Toronto also winning 86 games, and two teams won 95. With Toronto being much worse, now, I think it's a near lock that one of the top 3 wins 95.Quote:
Originally Posted by OregonDuck1989
Defense is so overrated. I mean, sure... having a good defense is always a good thing, but it definitely doesn't make or brake a team. Though, if you look at the starting pitching (Sabathia, Wang, Burnett, Pettite, Joba), 3/5 of the rotation won't really rely on the defense that much, and the ones that do rely on the defense to pick them up (Wang, and Pettite) have had plenty of success the past few years and the defense has just gotten better (though, it still isn't above average and maybe not even average).
Old age? Really?
C: Posada (37)
1B: Tex (28)
2B: Cano (26)
3B: A-Rod (33)
SS: Jeter (35, as consistant as they come)
LF: Damon (35)
CF: Gardner/Melky (25/24 respectively)
RF: Nady (30)
DH: Matsui (34)
UT: Nick Swisher (28)
SP: Sabathia (28)
SP: Wang (29)
SP Burnett (32)
SP: Pettite (36)
SP: Joba (23)
Insurance SP: Hughes (22)
CL: Mo (39)
Bullpen is all under 30 with the exception of Marte.
IMO, this isn't exactly an old team... 3 players over 35... I mean, it isn't exactly a young team, but it's not like the team is so old that they are going to be breaking down any second.
Like, I said, though, everyone has a right to an opinion, and while I respect everyone's opinion, I also just want to point out the VERY VERY VERY vast improvements this team has made from last year.
I'll agree that the AL is not as strong as last year, but if a team like Cleveland, Detroit, or the Angels can put everything together, they can easily beat up on their 'weaker' divisions and come away with more wins, just because they get only 7-10 games against the AL East's Big 3Quote:
Originally Posted by HoustonGM
I think it's safe to say that Crawford has definitely reached his peak, as has mot of the team. Upton, no, Longoria, no, but most of the team, yes. They probably even overachieved a little bit last year. Who knows if Navarro, Pena, Garza, etc.. will keep up their success... Also, last year, that pen full of a bunch of no bodies had a career year, so...Quote:
Originally Posted by OregonDuck1989
Thats a very old lineup, and that outfield is horrible. You cant realistically expect a 37 year old catcher to play 140 games this year either. Dont take it the wrong way, but you are a Yankee fan, therefore you are biased. Just to point out, how often has signing every big time free agent worked out for you guys? ;)
Didn't Baltimore have a winning record outside their division last season? Also, Toronto isn't exactly the worst team in baseball either. I'd also like to say that even though the Angels may be weakened, I think the AL West will have a better season overall this year with Oakland improving and of course the Mariners, whose record didn't reflect their talent and potential. AL Central too isn't too shabby, the Tigers have a lot of prove and the Royals, like the A's, have improved in the off-season.Quote:
Originally Posted by HoustonGM
Uh, yes, it does. Defense is very UNDERrated, it's worth about half as much as offense.Quote:
Originally Posted by koolzach1
What made the Rays go from last place to the World Series? The answer is DEFENSE. Their offense was the same as it was in 2007....but their Defensive Efficiency, the rate at which they turn balls in play into outs, went from .656 and last in the majors to .710, first in the majors. Defense MADE the 2008 Rays.
Each of those three teams has a mess of a starting rotation. It'd require a lot of luck for them to "put everything together."Quote:
Originally Posted by PotatoOfCouch13
Haha, I am not being biased... I have never said that I would expect Posada to hold up for 140+ games... I am thinking more along the lines of 120+, and I am ok with Molina playing a few games here or there with his very good defense. How is that outfield "horrible"? Damon is a VERY good LF'er... Gardner and Melky are really good defenders in CF, and overall, Nady is average-slightly above average in RF.Quote:
Originally Posted by ragecage
The Yankees have had a TERRIBLE defense for the past decade, yet they have probably been the most successful team during that time (you could also argue the Red Sox).Quote:
Originally Posted by HoustonGM
Upton hasn't reached his peak, and his peak is far above where he was last year. Longoria hasn't reached his peak. Garza hasn't reached his peak. David Price hasn't reached his peak. This is a team full of young talent that hasn't reached it's peak, and that young talent's peak is far above where they are now. Some players won't sustain their production, but it will be balanced by the increases elsewhere.Quote:
Originally Posted by koolzach1
I beleive so, too lazy to check.Quote:
Originally Posted by Slingshot
I know, but they are markedly worse than last year.Quote:
Also, Toronto isn't exactly the worst team in baseball either.
They ARE weakened. They outplayed their Pythagorean record by something in the order of 13 games last year, lost Mark Teixeira and Francisco Rodriguez, are starting the season without John Lackey for at least a month, and Ervin Santana for longer....they're a .500 team, give or take a couple wins.Quote:
I'd also like to say that even though the Angels may be weakened
I don't think they have, not after their spring training decisions. I don't think you can call any team entering a season with Horacio Ramirez and Sidney Ponson in your rotation "improved", at least not without gigantic upgrades elsewhere, which they haven't done.Quote:
and the Royals, like the A's, have improved in the off-season.
The Yankees have also had the best offense over that time. But, notice, they haven't had much playoff success, where defense takes on added importance. There was a study in the Hardball Times annual this year, which I don't have with me right now, that showed that something like 8 of the last 10 World Series teams were near the top of the league in defense.Quote:
Originally Posted by koolzach1
Defense CAN make or break a team, though, and it is most certainly not "overrated". The Rays are evidence of that. Had the Yankees defense not been terrible, they'd have been walloping the league left and right.
Lol, thanks for agreeing with me? :pQuote:
Originally Posted by HoustonGM
I was just saying that Upton hasn't reached his peak and neither has Longoria. I don't know about Garza, we'll see if he gets better or regresses. David Price hasn't reached his peak, but he may not be all that great either... he's a rook. That bullpen will not even be close to as successful as last season. BTW, I believe that Kazmir, Shields, and Sonnanstine have all reached their peak.
Even if "most" of them has reached its peak (which isn't true, because they have a huge pipeline of young talent not even in the majors yet, a good portion which is close to the majors, which you CANNOT discount), it doesn't matter, because that peak is very good.Quote:
Originally Posted by koolzach1
The Yankees haven't had a ton of success in the playoffs because of their terrible/old pitching... it wasn't as much the defense as it was that.Quote:
Originally Posted by HoustonGM
Defense is important, yes, but again, I don't believe that it will neccessarily make or break a team... especially a team that has a bunch of fireballers that don't rely on the defense as much as most pitchers.
I know they have a lot of young talent waiting to break in. They also have a lot of proven/tested talent. Longoria should be a stud... Upton, 'eh? He should be, but we'll see... Pena declined last year from his previous season and who's to say that he doesn't decline even further to where he isn't even much of an asset. Navarro had a career year, as did Bartlett, and the whole bullpen basically. Plus, I honestly don't believe that Burrell will be all that great outside of that homerun box in Philly. Don't get me, wrong, that young rotation looks awesome and on par with what the Yanks/Sox are throwing out there, but we'll see... I just don't believe that the Rays will be amazing next season.Quote:
Originally Posted by HoustonGM
Part of the "terrible" pitching was the terrible defense. A good defense can make terrible pitchers look good.Quote:
Originally Posted by koolzach1
The latter half of this is true. A team with a bunch of strikeout pitchers relies on his defense much less. However, again, defense CAN make or break a team. The Rays, with one of the worst defenses in recent times, were terrible in 2007. The next year, with a historic defensive turnaround and little change elsewhere, they were in the World Series. Defense broke them in 2007, and made them in 2008.Quote:
Defense is important, yes, but again, I don't believe that it will neccessarily make or break a team... especially a team that has a bunch of fireballers that don't rely on the defense as much as most pitchers.