Today will be the last Wednesday before the season, so it is only appropriate that I publish Serious Baseball's preseason Power Rankings today as I did for on each Wednesday of the second half last season. I will continue publishing these rankings every Wednesday as the season rolls on.
I don't think there are many surprises on this list, and my top spot belongs, very appropriately, to the defending champion Chicago White Sox. You'll notice by looking at the top ten teams where the best team play: The American League. Seven of the top ten are from the league with the designated hitter
Anyhow, without further ado:
| Rank | Team | 2005 Record (Season Result) | Comment |
| 1 |  |
99-63 (Won AL Central, World Series Champions) | Yes, I honestly didn't believe the White Sox we're that good last season, but they won the World Series, and still have young, great starting pitching. So until I'm proved right, they'll be number one. |
| 2 |  |
95-97 (Won AL East, Lost in Divisional Playoffs) | I really don't buy into the Yankees pitching, but by adding Johnny Damon their offense has become so good that they have a lot of room for error. |
| 3 |  |
88-74 (Second in AL West) | The A's have so many youngsters that project to get better in 2006, it's scary. Package that with the very valuable additions of Milton Bradley, Frank Thomas, and Esteban Loaiza, and this team should win the AL West this season. |
| 4 |  |
95-67 (Won AL West, Lost in ALCS) | Honestly, I've never really liked the way these recent Angel teams have been constructed, but they keep winning so they start the season in my top five. The addition of Jeff Weaver was a good one. |
| 5 |  |
100-62 (Won NL Central, Lost in NLCS) | The Cardinals lost a lot of big names from last season's division wining squad but still remain the team to beat in the NL Central. The most interesting story on this team will be how free agent SP Sidney Ponson rebounds after having his contract revoked by the Baltimore Orioles last season. |
| 6 |  |
93-69 (Second in AL Central) | The loss of Kevin Millwood is going to hurt. While Paul Byrd is a good pitcher, it's a safe best to say he won't replicate the production of the aforementioned Millwood. They are still a very good team though, that is full of youth. |
| 7 |  |
95-67 (Finish 2nd in AL East, Won AL Wild Card, and lost in AL Divisional Playoff) | Red Sox fans may not even recognize the team that takes the field this season at Fenway Park. But, they will still have a very good offense. Their pitching staff is old and very questionable. |
| 8 |  |
83-79 (3rd in NL East) | Yes, their offense is excellent, but after Tom Glavine and Pedro Martinez (both question marks as is) the bottom part of their rotation is Victor Zambrano, Steve Trachsel, Aaron Heilman and Brian Bannister... I don't buy that! |
| 9 |  |
90-72 (Won NL East, Lost in NL Divisional Playoffs) | So many rookies will lead to many questions. But, with John Smoltz and Tim Hudson atop the rotation, there is room for error. |
| 10 |  |
80-82 (3rd in AL East) | The Blue Jays spent a lot of money to improve both their pitching and offense and are sure to be one of the season's most interesting stories all year long. |
| 11 |  |
88-74 (2nd in NL East) | Ryan Howard should replace Jim Thome just fine, and new center fielder Aaron Rowand should really shore up their defense; but as always, pitching is a big concern. |
| 12 |  |
83-79 (3rd in AL Central) | The addition of second baseman Luis Castillo is sure to help the Twins score more runs this season. Which could be all they need with their great pitching staff. |
| 13 |  |
82-80 (Won NL West, Lost in NL Divisional Playoffs) | The additions of Mike Cameron, Mike Piazza, Termell Sledge, Adrian Gonzalez and youthful starting pitcher Chris Young should help them improve upon last season's division-winning team. |
| 14 |  |
79-83 (4th in NL Central) | While Jacque Jones isn't a great on-base threat he does have very legitimate power, and is a great fielder. Put him in a lineup with Juan Pierre leading-off, Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez cleaning up and this team has the ability to improve significantly. |
| 15 |  |
79-83 (3rd in AL West) | The trade of Chris Young to acquire Adam Eaton still makes no sense, and until the Rangers put together a pitching staff that can produce in Ameriquest Field they'll never rank too highly--at least they're trying to do just that with their new top three starters Eaton, Vicente Padilla, and Kevin Millwood. |
| 16 |  |
89-73 (2nd in NL Central, Won NL Wild Card, Lost in World Series) | The loss of Roger Clemens will hurt this team tremendously as the addition of Preston Wilson won't suddenly make them an offensive juggernaut. |
| 17 |  |
81-81 (3rd in NL Central) | I've gotten a lot of hate from Brewers Fans this off season because I don't think this team will improve on their record in 2006. We'll see if I'm right, or the fans are. |
| 18 |  |
75-87 (3rd in NL West) | The only reason I rank them this high is because of Barry Bonds. By the way, Barry is having a great spring. What if he hit like 50 HR's this season, would everybody just say he's using "undetectable" steroids? Or would we give him credit? |
| 19 |  |
71-91 (4th in NL West) | Rafael Furcal was a very good addition to this team and Bill Mueller should have some left in the tank. If every player on this team had a great season, they could be a 90 win team, but I need to see it first before ranking them any higher. |
| 20 |  |
74-88 (4th in AL East) | The hiring of former Braves pitching coach Leo Mazzone should help improve the O's pitching staff, but that doesn't suddenly make them contenders. |
| 21 |  |
71-91 (4th in AL Central) | If all of the Tiger's young starting pitchers put it together it wouldn't matter because this team still wouldn't be better than it's divisional rivals Cleveland or Chicago. |
| 22 |  |
77-85 (2nd in NL West) | This team will be very good in the future, but not now. The middle infield combo of Orlando Hudson, and Craig Counsell should be the best defensive double play combo in the entire league. |
| 23 |  |
81-81 (5th in NL East) | This team needed Alfonso Soriano's firepower, even though they got ripped off in the deal, because their offense was pitiful. Look for this team's run of good luck to run out in 2006 as they shouldn't have finished with a .500 record last season. |
| 24 |  |
73-89 (5th in NL Central) | At least they are trying to fix their pitching staff with off season acquisitions Dave Williams (Pirates) and Bronson Arroyo (Red Sox). I don't know how much it will help though. |
| 25 |  |
69-93 (4th in AL West) | It'll be interesting to watch how Japanese rookie Kenji Johjima turns out this season. Another interesting story will be if Adrian Beltre can rebound from having one of the most disastrous seasons a player could have after his career year in 2004 as a Dodger. |
| 26 |  |
67-95 (5th in AL East) | It's an entire new regime in the Tampa Bay front office in 2006. Will it lead to more victories? |
| 27 |  |
67-95 (6th in NL Central) | I don't buy that the additions of Sean Casey and Jeromy Burnitz will lead to more victories for the Pirates in 2006. Nor do I buy Zach Duke reproducing the incredible half-season he had last season, this season. |
| 28 |  |
67-95 (5th in NL West) | The Rockies will be a very interesting team to watch in 2006 with so many youngsters, such as Clint Barmes, Garret Atkins, Cory Sullivan, Matt Holliday, Brian Fuentes, Jeff Francis, and Luis Gonzalez, projected to get a full season's worth of playing time. |
| 29 |  |
56-106 (5th in AL Central) | The Royals brought in a lot of veterans (Mark Grudzielanek, Reggie Sanders, Doug Mientkiewicz, and Scott Elarton) that can only help this team get better since it was so bad last season |
| 30 |  |
83-79 (4th in NL East) | The Marlins will be fielding a Triple A team in 2006 with support from Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera. I guess all that is left to say is, "Watch out for this team in 2009." |
Thank you for reading. If you have any questions, comments, concerns, or suggestions, please do not hesitate to email me at frnkbndy@yahoo.com.
