The team ratings have yet to be released for the next wave of baseball titles due out in early spring. However, Sportsgamer has taken it upon ourselves to break down who we think will be the top 5 teams in each of the games. We've also taken into consideration all of the off-season player movement up to this point. There's still plenty of time for other teams to catch up, but the five teams listed below stand out from the crowd right now as we prepare to head into the 2008 season.
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| Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis make the Detroit Tigers our World Series favorites right now. |
| #1 - Detroit Tigers | ||
 | There's not a single team in baseball that has made a bigger splash in the off-season than the Detroit Tigers. The Tigers already possessed one of the top offensive line-ups in baseball last season. However, with the addition of former Florida Marlins' third basemen Miguel Cabrera (.320, 34, 119) they now have the most feared line-up in baseball. When you're able to put together a line-up of Granderson, Renteria, Ordonez, Sheffield, Cabrera, Rodriguez, Guillen, Thames, and Polanco it's just unfair for everyone else. To make matters worse for the rest of the league, the Tigers also picked up Dontrelle Willis from the Marlins in the same trade. Willis will join an already dominant pitching staff that includes Verlander, Bonderman, Robertson, and the crafty Kenny Rogers. The Tigers now not only have the power to blow away hitters at the plate, but they also have the ability to match up their left-handed starters against the Red Sox and Yankees. There isn't another team in baseball that has a better balance. | |
| #2 - Boston Red Sox | ||
 | Red Sox fans may disagree with the #2 ranking, but to this point they've done little to improve from last season just yet. The reason I say just yet is because trade talks continue to swirl about the possible arrival of the best left-handed pitcher in the game: Johan Santana. Santana becomes a free agent at the end of the season, forcing the Twins to try to deal him now before they end up getting nothing in return for him. If Santana does, in fact, sign with the BoSox, then I think we may have a 1 and 1A at the top of these rankings. Boston's pitching would be stronger than Detroit's, but it's hard to say that the Redsox hitting would still be able to compete. Regardless of what happens with Santana, both the Redsox and the Tigers currently have firm grips on the top two spots in our rankings. | |
| #3 - New York Yankees | ||
 | Most Yankee fans are celebrating the return of Alex Rodriguez to the Bronx. Unfortunately, New York will still enter next season with the same problems on the mound that gamers were faced with last season. Ming-Wang and Pettitte will both return and provide adequate pitching, but the loss of Roger Clemens will surely hurt a rotation in need of anyone right now. Rookie Joba Chamberlain is scheduled to be thrown into the starting mix next season, but it's difficult to say what kind of ratings publishers will grant a first year player who experienced so much success last season from the bullpen. The good news for Yankees' users is if you are able to get the lead late in the game you can once again count on closer Mariano Rivera to notch the save. Rivera recently signed a three-year deal, keeping him in pin-strips for just a little longer. | |
| #4 - New York Mets | ||
 | The colossal collapse of the New York Mets last season isn't enough for us to keep them off this list. The Mets have talent all over the diamond. Despite the lack of moves this off-season, the Mets still have a great combination of speed and power throughout the line-up. There have been some talks about the Mets attempting to swap Reyes for Santana, but many baseball analyst believe that those talks have now cooled. Still, the Mets have great pitching options for gamers to choose from in Martinez, Maine, and even Hernandez. Also, it's nice to know that you'll always have Billy Wagner waiting in the pen ready to throw some gas to slam the door shut in the ninth. | |
| #5 - Chicago Cubs | ||
 | Finally, those loveable losers from Chicago fall in at #5 on our power rankings. The Cubs may have the best first four hitters in baseball. When your lead-off hitter (Soriano) has the ability to go 40-40 it has to have opponents wondering what's coming up next. Well, the Cubbies take a small dive at the #2 spot in the line-up as they typically placed the speedy Ryan Theriot (28 steals) there. However, at the #3 and #4 spots they send Ramirez and Lee to the plate. There aren't too many teams that can say three out of our first four hitters have a good chance of hitting a homerun today. As far as pitching goes, the Cubs still have hard-throwing Carlos Zambrano leading the way with Ted Lilly and his nose-to-toes curveball right behind to change the pace. Also, gamers are still able to use Mark Prior and Kerry Wood without having the worry of another season-ending injury. We're not big on Dempster or Howry to close games out, so right now we'd have to suggest going with Marmol because of just how much heat this guy can bring to the plate. | |
A few of the teams that just missed out on our top five are the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, the Philadelphia Phillies, and the Milwaukee Brewers. All three of these teams have great pieces on both sides of the plate, but they each fell just short when being compared to our selections above. Remember, we've still got a few more months before the season hits, so stay turned as all the different player acquisitions continue to unfold.
