Favre's lawyer called me and demanded any post about Minnesota had to include him. Here you go Brett.

The Twins took a big blow in spring training with the season ending injury suffered by Joe Nathan, but still look to be a contender in the AL Central.  They’ll get by, as good as Nathan is he’s a closer and more easily replaceable than any number of starters and position players on the Twins.  Nathan going down sucks, Joe Mauer going downs ends their season.

Outfield: The Twins outfield is solid if not spectacular.  LF will primarily be manned by Delmon Young, and Jason Kubel will also get some time while Jim Thome DH’s.  All spring we’ve heard about the new Delmon Young and how he’s committed to turning his career around.  If he doesn’t figure out that taking a pitch can be a good thing, it’s all for naught.  Dernard Span is a solid player in CF, and has been a better hitter in the majors than in the minors.  So far UZR hasn’t liked him in CF, but if he can continue to put up numbers like 2008 and 2009, he’ll be a very good player for the Twins.  In RF the Twins have Michael Cuddyer, who doesn’t help much defensively, but in his last three full seasons has OPS+’d 124, 112, and 124. He’s good but not great, certainly a valuable piece for the Twins.

Infield: The only star of the infield is former MVP (though not deserved) Justin Morneau.  Brendan Harris can’t hit, and based on a small sample size at 3B, can’t field.  JJ Hardy, brought over in the offseason, is a very strong defensive SS who at some point along the way forgot how to hit.  Still just 27, expect him to bounce back from his .229/.302/.357 76 OPS+ line of 2009 and return to being a league average hitter, which along with his defense at SS makes him a very valuable player.  The other half of the Twins new double play combo is Orlando Hudson.  Hudson, defensively, is still living on reputation at this point.  He hasn’t had a great year since 2005, and has had UZR’s of -5.1 and -3.3 the past two years.  He’s just about a league average hitter, but his career OPS+ on the AL is 93, in the NL it is 106.  Did he get better with age, or is a return to the better league going to hurt him?  No matter what, I don’t see Hudson bringing too much to the table in 2010.  At 1B is the aforementioned Morneau how has averaged a 131 OPS+ the last 4 years.  A very good player, but as a 1B, he’s somewhat overrated.

Catcher: I’m not going to waste too much time on Joe Mauer.  If you don’t know who he is, I don’t know how you got this year.  He won the triple slash triple crown in 2009, and is just a ridiculously good player.  Was last year’s power surge an outlier, or has he adjusted his swing to provide more pop?  That’s the biggest question with Mauer.  If the power is here to stay, he’s a perennial MVP candidate.  If not, he’s a perennial batting champion.  Either way, he’s a beast.

DH: Jason Kubel was good in 2007 and 2008, and stepped it up in 2009 with a .300/.369/.539 136 OPS+ line.  If he keeps that up, even at primarily DH, his bat plays strong.  If he falls back to the 110-115 OPS+ range, he’s strong, but not as much a difference maker.  Kubel did have a .327 BABIP last year, vs. .295 in his career before 2009, so he certainly could be in line for some regression.

Starting Rotation: The Twins rotation is full of solid arms.  In the AL Central that is more than enough, they have no true weak spot in the rotation, so all five guys give them a solid chance to win every time out.  Francisco Liriano is the wild card here, as he was terrible last year, but is the only guy on the staff with the potential to be a true ace.  If he continues to pitch like he has in the winter and spring and can come close to his 2006 season (208 ERA+), the Twins have a great shot of taking the division.  If he returns to 2009 form (76 ERA+), the rest of the guys will have to step it up.

Relief Pitching: As noted above, the loss of Nathan will hurt, but the Twins have several good arms in the pen, and should have no problem finding someone to save games. Saves, as we know, are simply overrated.  The Twins will get by without Nathan.

Final Outlook: The Twins should be in contention all year, but I think they will fall short in 2010.  Mauer will still be great, but will likely regress from his otherworldly 2009, their 2B/3B positions are weak links. Also, unless Liriano can step up his game and make 30 starts, they don’t have a difference maker in the rotation.

Rick Porcello's fan base grew by 62.2 million people with this takedown.

The Tigers lost a one game playoff for the Central division crown this year, and should again be in the thick of things this year.  They have legitimate Cy Young and MVP candidates in Justin Verlander and Miguel Cabrera and picked up Johnny Damon and Austin Jackson, formerly of the Yankees, while losing Curtis Granderson and Placido Polanco.

Outfield: Everyone knows the Johnny Damon benefitted greatly from Yankee Stadium, but the Tigers signed him anyway.  Unless Damon’s 2009 defense was just a one year blip, he will not bring much to the table for Detroit.  On the road last year he hit .284/.349/.446.  As a shoddy defensive left fielder, that kind of a line just won’t get it done for what Damon cost.  In CF the Tigers are running with rookie Austin Jackson.  Jackson should provide solid defense in CF and speed on the base paths, but not much pop with the bat.  In AAA last year he had a .759 OPS, it’s likely he won’t match that in his 1^st year in the bigs, so while he may develop down the road, don’t expect a strong year from A-Jax in 2010.  In RF, the Tigers still have Magglio Ordonez.  Ordonez was a monster in 2007, decent in 2008, and about average in 2009.  At 36 years old, it’d be foolish to expect him to put up numbers like he did when younger, and the pop in his bat appears gone, as he slugged just .428 last year, his worst performance since his rookie season.  Overall, the Tigers OF contains two past their prime stars, and one guy not quite ready for the show.

Infield: Brandon Inge returns at 3B, providing great defense and some pop with the bat, but not much else.  He hits for a low average, and doesn’t walk all that much.  All of his value comes from the glove, and at 33 don’t expect him to improve defensively.  If the glove remains strong, he’s helpful, but if he slips defensively he becomes useless.  The defensive theme continues at SS with Adam Everett.  Everett’s bat makes Inge look like Barry Bonds. Everett’s career high OPS+ is 80 and he has been at 61 the past 4 years.  Even with the great defense, he essentially plays at replacement player level.  Replacing Polanco at 2B will be rookie Scott Sizemore.  Polanco was still great with the glove, but at 34 and with a league average at best bet, the Tigers made the right decision to let him go (and the Phillies were stupid to sign him to play 3B).  Sizemore should provide solid defense and a strong bat at 2B, coming off a minor league season in which he hit .308/.389/.500 with 17 HR’s and 21 steals split between AA and AAA.  At 1B is everyone’s favorite drunken slugged Miguel Cabrera.  If alcohol truly held Cabrera back in the past, and if he’s truly quit drinking, look out.  Cabrera will turn just 27 in April yet already has over 200 career HR’s and a .311/.383/.542 line.  He’s basically Manny Ramirez.  He can flat out mash.

Catcher: At catcher is Gerald Laird, he of the famous assaulting Laird family.  Laird is a great defensive catcher, and he better be, because the bat sucks.  In his two seasons catching over 100 games, his OPS+ is 64.  If he played for the Red Sox we would hear about how fantastic a game caller he is, as evidenced by Justin Verlander’s greatness.  How those two go together I can’t figure out, ask your favorite Red Sox fan, they can explain.

DH: DH’ing for the Tigers will be Carlos Guillen.  Once a very valuable player with a plus bat at SS, Guillen simply does not hit enough to be a good DH.  He’ll be 34 this year, and coming off a .242/.339/.419 96 OPS+ season.  Someone that only hits for a living needs to hit a hell of a lot better than that.  Don’t expect a repeat of Guillen’s peak years; he’ll be a league average hitter at DH, not good for the Tigers.

Starting Rotation: As noted above, the Tigers have several below average hitters in their lineup, and will rely on their starting pitching.  Justin Verlander is a bonafide ace and coming off his best season.  Rick Porcello was great as a 20 year old, but there has to be some concern with his 4.7 K/9 rate.  He has strikeout stuff, but there has been talk that he, in trying to conserve pitches, was trying to get outs earlier in the count.  This was also the claim in his one year in the minors.  If true, expect a similar season.  His BABIP is likely to rise from .279, but an increased strikeout total can help offset that.  Pitching in The good news for Tigers fans and Porcello is that he pitched about as well on the road as he did at home in spacious Comerica Park.  Porcello, if he can increase the strikeouts, could be in the running for Cy Young votes down the road.  Not many teams can claim a 3^rd starter with the stuff of Max Scherzer.  His delivery is unorthodox, and there are injury concerns, but his stuff is unquestioned.  Even moving over to the AL, if he throws 180 innings, expect good results.  Competing for the 4^th and 5^th spots are a ton of question marks.  Jeremy Bonderman’s career has been derailed by injuries; Dontrelle Willis’ has been derailed by injuries, ineffectiveness, and anxiety issues.  Nate Robertson and Eddie Bonine just aren’t any good.  If Scherzer is healthy the Tigers have a chance with a strong top 3, but their 4^th and 5^th starters shouldn’t be expected to deliver much.

Relief Pitching: Fernando Rodney is out as closer, replaced by Jose Valverde.  Any time you bring an NL relief pitcher to the AL, there is a question mark.  Valverde’s stuff should play well in the AL, and it’s not like Rodney was exactly lights out with a 4.40 ERA and 1.47 WHIP.  A fully healthy Joel Zumaya would go a long way to stabilizing the Tigers pen, but that’s far from a sure thing.  Daniel Schlereth struggled as a rookie, but has a 1^st round pedigree and good stuff; he could end up becoming one of the anchors of the pen.  Phil Coke had his moments with the Yankees last year, and if nothing else he improves the OF defense immensely when he’s in the game by constantly pointing out fly balls.

Final Outlook: The Tigers have a chance to contend, but have a ton of question marks in the rotation after Verlander and Porcello.  If Scherzer gives them 30 starts, and someone can step up to provide a decent 4^th starter (asking for a decent 5^th starter is probably too much), the Tigers should battle the Twins and White Sox all year long.  If Scherzer has injury problems, and Porcello’s lack of strikeouts hurt him, they will be in trouble, as they don’t have the bats to carry them.

Luckily this picture of Ozzie doing his David Carradine impression is from the waist up.

The highlight of the 2010 White Sox season is undoubtedly going to be Ozzie Guillen’s twitter account.  The Sox should be in the thick of things in the AL Central this year, as there is no dominant team.  To make the playoffs in the Central, you have to win the division though, as the odds of the Wild Card not coming out of the East are slim.  The White Sox will need bounce back years all over the diamond (Rios, Quentin, Ramirez, etc.) and will need Jake Peavy to prove he is more than just an NL and Petco pitcher.

Outfield: The Sox outfield is full of question marks.  Juan Pierre, brought over in the offseason should provide plus defense in LF, but the bat is always a question.  If he repeats his solid 2009 (.308/.365/.392), Pierre can bring a lot to the table for the Sox.  If he reverts back to his career OPS+ of 85, Pierre won’t be a big help for the Sox.  Is this the year CF Alex Rios breaks out?  Unlikely.  While he has tools across the board, Rios has never taken the next step.  From 2006-2008 he OPS+’d 118 while providing great defense in RF.  He was only in RF due to The Albatross known as Vernon Wells, so 2010 will the be first year Rios is the Opening Day centerfielder.  How will he respond?  The answer to this question could go a long way to determining how the Sox far in 2010.  In RF, the Sox will also need a bounce back form Carlos Quentin.  While he may not repeat his 2008 breakout (148 OPS+ and legit MVP candidate before breaking his hand), he needs to improve on his 2009 showing of a 99 OPS+ in only 99 games.  Still only 27, Quentin very likely could see 30/100 season with a 120-130 OPS+.

Infield: New at 3B for the Sox will be jack of all trades, master of none Mark Teahen. UZR does not like Teahen at 3^rd, and he doesn’t bring much to the table at bat.  He is an upgrade over the 2009 Sox, as he is essentially replacing Chris Getz and Jayson Nix, while incumbent 3B Gordon Beckham moves over to 2B.  Beckham is a star in the making.  As a 22 year old rookie he more than held his own with a 107 OPS+ and 14 HR’s in 103 games.  Expect a solid season from Beckham this year, and stardom down the road.  At SS is Alexi Ramirez, who has yet to see pitch he didn’t think he could hit.  In 164 games at SS, Ramirez has a 2.3 UZR, so it appears he can handle the position well, but it’s still too small of a sample size to say for sure.  Offensively Ramirez was worse in his 2^nd season, but did show signs of improvement.  His OBP jumped from .317 to .333 and his BB rate jumped from 3.5% to 8.1%.  Where he regressed significantly is in his power numbers.  His slugging percentage dropped almost 100 points to .389. If he can get his slugging percentage back to the mid 400’s, while continuing to improve his pitch selection, Ramirez could be in line for a very good year.  The day of Paul Konerko being a great hitter appear to be over, as he has just a 112 OPS+ the past 3 years while playing poor defense at 1B.  Unless he turns back the clock, Konerko doesn’t bring much to the table any longer.

Catcher: Everyone’s favorite dick is back at catcher. AJ Pierzynski is as consistent as it comes behind the plate.  He’ll be good for an OPS+ of about 90, and PISD OFF OPP of about 165.  He’s one of those guys you love if they are on your team, you hate if they aren’t.

DH: At DH, and presumably backup OF for all 3 spots is Andruw Jones.  Since it is spring, we’re hearing about what great shape Jones is in.  Of course he is.  I actually think this was a good pickup, while he’s been around forever he’ll be just 33 this year and did OPS+100 last year.  That won’t get it done as a DH, but if he’s truly recommitted to baseball, this could prove to be a shrewd signing.  Call me gullible, but I’m buying into the new Andruw Jones, so much so, that I still believe he has a good chance to make the Hall of Fame when he’s done.  More on that in a future post, but feel free to tear me to shreds for that one.

Starting Rotation: Peavy is the biggest question mark in the rotation.  Leaving the NL and spacious Petco Field, is Peavy still an ace, or just a nice part of a solid rotation?  If he’s an ace, the Sox could cruise to the division title with solid pitchers filling out the 2-4 spots in Mark Buehrle, John Danks and Gavin Floyd.  As of now it appears Freddy Garcia will fill the 5^th spot, and if healthy he could put up a good season for his buddy Guillen.  Health of course is a huge issue for Garcia.  After 6 straight 200+ innings seasons, Garcia has thrown just 129 innings the past 3 years.  Is he toast, or does all of the time off the past 3 years help him find the fountain of youth?  I don’t think Garcia will make or break this team, but getting 25 starts out of him at the backend of the rotation would go a long way for them.

Relief Pitching: The White Sox will field a strong bullpen this year, and if Bobby Jenks can pitch well enough to keep the closers role, things will line up very nicely behind him with Matt Thornton, Scott Linebrink and JJ Putz.  Putz is the key here, if healthy (and getting away from the Mets can only help), the Sox will be able to get 6 strong innings from their starters and have a good chance of winning a lot of games.  A solid and deep rotation, followed by a deep bullpen will keep the Sox in contention all year.

Final Outlook: If everything goes right, I could see the Sox running away with the Central.  There are a ton of question marks though, and I just can’t see them all going the Sox’ way.  I can see them finishing anywhere from 1^st to 3^rd and anywhere from 82-95 wins.

Well at least the Indians play in the same division as the Royals, so they have a chance of not finishing in last place.  Now that I’ve gotten all of the good news out of the way, let me break it down by position.  This team will suck.

Outfield: The Indians could have a solid outfield this year.  Grady Sizemore was a disappointment with that bat last year with 111 OPS+ in only 106 games.  While that’s still productive from a CF, it’s not what is expected of Sizemore.  The good news is that Sizemore was unlucky with just a .275 BABIP, well off his pre-2009 BABIP of .322.  If he’s healthy, expect Sizemore to get back to the 130 OPS+ range we’ve become accustomed to.  Despite 5 full seasons in the majors, Sizemore doesn’t turn 27 until August.  On top of all of that, Sizemore provides plus defense in CF, and if he ever plays for a contender, will end up getting MVP votes.  In RF the Indians have the underrated Shin-Soo Choo.  Choo is about average defensively in RF, and has been great with the bat the past two seasons, putting up a .303/.395/.510 142 OPS+ line.  If he continues at that pace, he won’t be underrated much longer.  In LF the Indians will go with prospects Michael Brantley and/or Matt LaPorta.  Brantley is regarded as a much better fielder, while LaPorta is the better hitter.  Expect both flashes of greatness and flashes of youth out of LF for Cleveland this year.

Infield: Jhonny Peralta is hit or miss at 3B.  In 5 ML seasons he has had 2 solid seasons, 2 poor seasons, and one great season.  This will be his second year at 3B after moving over from SS, taking away some of his value.  Decent player, but not a difference maker.  Asdrubal Cabrera took over for Peralta last year at SS.  Defensively Cabrera has a good reputation, and had a very strong offensive season with a .308/.361/.439 115 OPS+ line with 17 steals.  If he continues that at SS, he’s a potential future All-Star.  At 2B is Luis Valbuena, who got his 1^st real taste of the majors last year and posted a 90 OPS+ in 103 games.  At best he’ll be league average as a hitter, and not highly regarded defensively.  At 1B will be Russell Branyan, if healthy.  For the 1^st time in his long career, Branyan got 500+ plate appearances last year, and broke out to a 128 OPS+ with 31 HR’s.  Buyer beware though, as along with the aforementioned injury, Branyan hit just .193/.274/.414 in the 2^nd half last year.

Catcher: Prospect Lou Marson will get the call at catcher.  Marson came over in the Cliff Lee trade, and despite being a prospect, is just holding the spot warm for uber-prospect Carlos Santana (acquired, amazingly enough, for Casey Blake).  Marson has fewer than 100 PA’s at the major league level, but was a decent hitter at the minor league level.  He’ll likely never be a star, and expect struggles as a rookie.

DH: Remember when Travis Hafner was good?  If you don’t, once upon a time the man named Pronk could mash, putting up a 170 OPS+ from 2004-2006.  Since then he’s been injured and put up a 111 OPS+, simply not getting it done for a DH.

Starting Rotation: This is scary.  Jake Westbrook, Fausto Carmona, Justin Masterson.  No, that’s not the competition for the 5^th spot, that’s 1-2-3 in the Indians rotation.  Westbrook is coming off injury and at best is barely above league average. Carmona is coming off two horrible seasons, and very unlikely to ever return to the mirage that his 2007 season was.  Masterson has good stuff and will put some great starts together, but struggles against LHP and is still young.  After that it gets even worse, with some combination of David Huff, Aaron Laffey and Jeremy Sowers.  Ugly doesn’t being to describe the Indians rotation.

Relief Pitching: Does it matter? The bullpen won’t be handed many leads. Closer Kerry Wood will be out for a while, which will save the Indians money, and likely make him a valuable trade commodity at the deadline. Chris Perez will fill in while Wood is out, and if he pitches well, they may just keep him in the role while Wood is shopped as he potentially has a future with the team, Wood does not.

Final Outlook: The Indians finished last in 2009, and will battle the Royals again for the honor.  The glory days of selling out Jacobs field are long gone, and despite making the playoffs in 2007, the core of that team has been shipped out.  Because they are in the Central, the Indians may contend within a few years with shrewd moves (more Blake for Santana trades), but will certainly struggle in 2010.