Season Over – Which Teams are Finished?

Stephen Kersey — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 07:41:13 +0000

Early in April, every team in the major leagues is feeling good about their chances. Big market, small market – it doesn’t matter. Early April brings optimism from every corner of the baseball world.

However, it doesn’t take long to see which teams are in line for a long, long season. Which teams should start looking toward the 2009 baseball season? Here’s my list of teams that already have no shot at postseason glory.

Washington Nationals

This one is really no surprise. The Nationals were expected to be bad and they are following through on that prophecy. The bad part for Nationals fans is that the future doesn’t look especially bright. Washington is desperate for a star to come along and pull them out of their malaise.

San Francisco Giants

While the Giants’ record isn’t that bad, their hitting is that bad. Bengie Molina swings a nice bat but when he’s your cleanup hitter, something is wrong. Year one After Bond is going to be a transitional year for the Giants. Honestly, it may be the first of many transitional years.

Texas Rangers

The Rangers have always had bad pitching. The problem is that now their hitting is also poor. Josh Hamilton has been impressive but he can’t carry the entire offensive load. To top it off, the Rangers aren’t very good in the field, either. Last place in the AL West beckons.

Kansas City Royals

The Royals have a decent record. Their pitchers are solid. They have good, young players. But 2008 will again not be the year of the Royals. However, for the first time in a long while, Kansas City has hope for future seasons.

Post from: Knuckle Curve

Prince Fielder Blasts Two Homers

Stephen Kersey — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 08:01:29 +0000

Last season, Prince Fielder exploded onto the scene with 50 homers and 119 RBIs. The then 23-year-old slugger finished third in the NL MVP balloting for his efforts. His 50 homeruns were first in the NL, while his 119 RBIs placed him third.

His 2008 baseball season to date wasn’t as explosive. In his first 20 games, Fielder had only one homer. However, on Wednesday, Fielder hit a pair of homeruns to help his Milwaukee Brewers beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-5 and improve the team’s record to 13-8.

“I have got a job to do,” said Fielder after the game. “No matter how I feel, I have got to try to just win that battle every time.”

Expect Fielder to hit many more homers as the season goes on. He started slowly last year as well, before hitting 44 homeruns after May 1.

If you’ve never read about Fielder’s relationship with his father, read this story about Prince and Cecil Fielder.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons