30 In 30 Part 26: Cincinnati Reds

Sean Marshall is primed for a season of
filling in for Ryan Madson.

I believe that Sean Marshall's vocational paradigm shift will be one of the most important to come out of this last offseason.  With Ryan Madson undergoing Tommy John surgery, Marshall will have the opportunity to lock down the 9th inning.  Marshall has always had nasty stuff and limiting it to one inning can make him downright deadly.  In fact, they have had a really good offseason that saw them pick up both of those arms as well as Mat Latos.

Their rotation is among the division's best boasting Johnny Cueto, Bronson Arroyo, Mat Latos, Mike  Leake and the below average Homer Bailey.  They have a bevy of arms which should keep them in the race into the dog days of summer.

What can keep this team from the postseason?

Dusty Baker.

I truly believe that Dusty can only have one big run with a team he managers.  His time has passed.

The good news for the Reds is that they locked down Joey Votto.  That man is invaluable to the organization.  He brings along his cast that features Jay Bruce, Drew Stubbs and Brandon Phillips.  The problems for Cincy's offense is that they have too many holes in this "cast."  Chris Heisey, Zack Cozart and Ryan Hanigan are not people I would want filling a third of my National League lineup.  At third is an aging Scott Rolen who, if healthy, will still be solid in that lineup.  However, the Reds do not have the lineup to win their division.

They, like the Pirates, will be around for awhile.  Ultimately, this team is not built as well as St. Louis or Milwaukee is.  2012 will be more akin to 2011 than 2010.

X-FACTORS:
Lineup: OF Drew Stubbs.  The Reds would highly benefit from getting the 25 HR 85 RBI season the Reds have long been waiting for.
Rotation: Mat Latos.  I wonder how Latos will perform on a team with expectations.  The man has a live arm and live personality.  Welcome to the pennant race.
Bullpen: Sean Marshall.  Taking over the Closer role is no small feat.  How he makes up for the loss of Ryan Madson is going to make a difference of 5-10 games.
The Kids: RP Aroldis Chapman.  After an underwhelming first full season, the Cuban fireballer could be part of one of the nastiest back of the bullpen tandems.

ROYAL LIST:
#16 C Devin Mesoraco.  Should appear this season.  Will eventually take Ryan Hanigan's job.
#48 SS Billy Hamilton.  Speedster Billy Hamilton posted a 100 steal season in the minors.  The Reds are expecting him to be the leadoff hitter of the late 2010's.
#75 SS Zack Cozart.  Eldest top prospect Cozart will try to establish himself as a cornerstone of the Reds.  His health will have a lot to do with that

PREDICTION: 3rd Place NL Central
-I'm giving this team no chance at a playoff berth.

30 In 30 Part 25: Detroit Tigers

Prince makes the Tigers a lock to be
 Kings of the AL Central.

The division wrapped up in the winter would be the AL Central.  The Detroit Tigers clinched the AL Central, a division they were already heavily favored to win, by signing Prince Fielder this offseason.

The Fresh Prince of Detroit rounds out an already deadly lineup and thrust Detroit into Baseball's elite.  Perhaps we may see Detroit v. Texas round two in October.  The moral of the story is that franchises in the American League outside of New York and Boston are set up for sustained success.

Fielder is not the only smart thing, nor the most important thing that Detroit's front office has done.  The smartest thing they have done was make the necessary additions to their pitching staff.  Last July, the Tigers picked up Doug Fister from the Mariners to provide a Robin to Justin Verlander's Batman.  They also spent this offseason picking up veteran arms to finish off their bullpen, most notably Collin Balester and Octavio Dotel.

The bullpen is backed by Jose Valverde, Joaquin Benoit and Al Albuquerque.  It is not quite what Atlanta has in a Closer/Setup/Bishop combo, but it is deadly enough considering how good this lineup and rotation is.  I would call this the best Tiger bullpen since Todd Jones, Joel Zumaya and Fernando Rodney were all doing their thing in the Motor City.

In adding Fielder, they more than offset the loss of Victor Martinez they will endure for most of the season.  He also joins a lineup that includes Miguel Cabrera, Austin Jackson and Alex Avila.  There are outs in this lineup.  But there are four legitimate offensive weapons.  The problem for the rest of the division is that Brennan Boesch, Delmon Young, Jhonny Peralta, Ryan Raburn, Andy Dirks.

Before I finish, I must note that former Arkansas Razorback Drew Smyly was named the fifth starter.

X-FACTORS:
Lineup: 3B Miguel Cabrera.  Project Softball Infield is highly dependent on Miggy's ability to play third.
Rotation: Rick Porcello.  He has a great debut at Age 20 and has won 14 games twice all by the age of 23.  But Porcello needs to start pitching like everyone knows he is capable of.  Unless, of course, he wants to be Jon Garland.
Bullpen: Collin Balester.  He is at a crossroads in Detroit.  I can see him as a starter who reinvents himself as a back of the bullpen guy.
The Kids: SP Drew Smyly.  He may just be 2012's answer to 2009's Rick Porcello.

ROYAL LIST: 
#22 RHP Jacob Turner: Another Porcello reference.  Another 20 year old arm bursting onto the scene for the Tigers.
#45 3B Nick Castellanos: Another reason that I feel that Miguel Cabrera in the DH slot is imminent.

PROJECTION: 1st Place AL Central
-For obvious reasons.

30 In 30 Part 24: Los Angeles Dodgers

Magic Johnson has come to help rescue the Dodgers.

Magic Johnson.  Michigan State Spartan.  Los Angeles Laker.  Los Angeles Dodger?

Yes, Magic Johnson's ownership group did buy the Los Angeles Dodgers.  This is by all accounts a popular hire because of Magic's relationship with the city of Los Angeles, his winning track record and his role at the forefront in the battle against HIV.

Matt Kemp can go 50/50, but he'll never be Magic Johnson.  However, he can leave his mark on this city if he can lead L.A. to a title.  The good news for Kemp is that Magic and Co. has come to help push the Dodgers of Kemp and Kershaw back to the front of the NL West.  They have the pieces for it too.  A franchise player in Kemp, a franchise Ace in Clayton Kershaw, a manager who studied under one of the best in Don Mattingly and pieces of the Dodgers that stemmed from their youth movement in 2007 as well as former deadline acquisitions from more competitive seasons.

What needs to happen is leadership.  It needs to come from the capable veterans in the locker room. There is an absurd amount of experience between Jerry Hairston Jr., Juan Rivera, Juan Uribe, Mike MacDougal, Todd Coffey, Matt Guerrier,  Matt Treanor, Adam Kennedy, Chris Capuano, Ted Lilly, Mark Ellis and Jamey Wright.  Uribe and Kennedy have rings.  When you have 11 rugged veterans in your locker room, leadership, talented young players, a leadoff hitter, a manager who has a lifetime worth of experience dealing with big egos, a bullpen and some money to play with in case the team warrants some additional manpower at the deadline you have a recipe for a champion.

Will it happen in 2012?  I doubt it.  But do not be terribly surprised if this team wins a ring.

Dee Gordon is a has proven himself a speedster at a young age.  He will set the table for Kemp, Andre Ethier and perhaps a healthy Juan Uribe.   They have a solid bullpen.  Javy Guerra did great closing games last season. Chad Billingsley and Ted Lilly are a great 2-3.  This team has a lot of pieces to the puzzle.

What they need this season is to add a couple of pieces.  The Dodgers need to stay in the race for four months for them to be dangerous in this pennant race.

All it takes is a little Magic.

X-FACTORS: 
Lineup: 3B Juan Uribe.  It is imperative that Uribe stay healthy and produce like he did in San Francisco to round up Kemp's supporting cast.
Rotation: Chad Billingsley.  Billingsley has shown that he has another gear and he needs to hit it this season.  If we see 2008 Billingsley, the Dodgers have the best 1-2 punch in baseball.
Bullpen: Mike MacDougal.  He has a tendency to give up more runs than your average middle reliever.  If he can have a repeat of last season or gets a DFA, the Dodgers will be fine.
The Kids: SS Dee Gordon.  At age 23, Dee has to set the table for the rest of these guys.  Setting the table for Matt Kemp's lineup is a big deal.

ROYAL LIST:  
#62 RHP Zach Lee.  Joins former college QB's such as Josh Fields (Dodgers), Pat White (Royals) and Mitch Mustain (White Sox) in pro baseball.  At least LSU still has the Honey Badger and with that, a reason for me to watch them whenever Brent Musburger is on the call.
#95 RHP Allen Webster.  Nice arm.  Might see in September
#96 RHP Nate Eovaldi.  Same as Webster.

PREDICTION: 3rd Place NL West
-For all the talking up I did of this team, they currently have the make up of an average ball club.