Will Joba Chamberlain be good enough to be named 2008 AL Rookie of the Year?

Returning from a two week vacation to China, and I am delighted to see my beloved Mets have put together a nine game winning streak to pull within a half-game of the first place Philadelphia Phillies. The end of the winning streak was particularly impressive, as the Mets pitchers went five straight games allowing three hits or less, and have allowed only four runs in their last six games. Most notable has been the continued maturation of Mike Pelfrey, who has finally proved his worthiness as a first round draft pick. Pelfrey is currently on fire, and should be picked up in most leagues.

One of the “big stories” in the news is the rumored affair between Alex Rodriguez and Madonna. Sadly, the New York Post and the New York Daily News seem to think this is one of the top headlines at this point, so I am forced to read all about it. I would comment on this “story,” but it is just so difficult to work up the energy to care.

Obviously one of the biggest baseball related stories of this past week were the trades of C.C. Sabathia and Rich Harden to the Brewers and Cubs, respectively. Both pitchers responded with fantastic starts for their new clubs, and figure to have big impacts down the stretch. I suspect the Cubs will be able to hold off the Brewers, but Sabathia will put the Brewers over the top and place them in the wild card race by season's end.

As we come to the All-Star Break, I am willing to at least partially eat some crow, and take a look at my pre-season predictions, modifying them where necessary, and acknowledging the error of my ways:

Division Champions:

AL East: Boston Red Sox (Yeah, I can stick with this one)

AL Central: Detroit Tigers (After a slow start, the Tigers have crawled back to .500, and are now 7 games behind the White Sox. I am not overwhelmed by the White Sox, and think the Tigers will still take the division).

AL West: Seattle Mariners (Errrr, oops. Who knew? The Angels are 6 up on the A's, and the A's have just dealt Harden, so I'm going to have to go with the Angels).

NL East: New York Mets (The biased Mets fan says “I remain comfortable with this pick”).

NL Central: Chicago Cubs (The Brewers will give them a nice run, but the Cubs will hold them off, along with the Cardinals).

NL West: Arizona Diamondbacks (Under .500 but still in first. The only contender is the Dodgers, but I think the Diamondbacks will squeeze out the division title).

Wild Cards:

AL: Cleveland Indians (Another oops. At 12 games under .500, this simply will not happen. I want the Rays to get it, but unfortunately, I'm feeling like the Yankees will turn it on and make the Wild Card.....again).

NL: Philadelphia Phillies (They have a decent shot, but I think the acquisition of Sabathia will put the Brewers over the top and net them the Wild Card).

Playoff Matchups:

ALDS: Red Sox over Indians in 4 games (Angels over Red Sox in 5)

Tigers over Mariners in 5 games (Tigers over Yankees in 4)

NLDS: Mets over Cubs in 4 games (I will stick with this).

Phillies over Diamondbacks in 5 games (Brewers over Diamondbacks in 5)

ALCS: Tigers over Red Sox in 5 games (Angels over Tigers in 6)

NLCS:Mets over Phillies in 6 games. (Mets over Brewers in 5)

World Series: Mets over Tigers in 6 games. (Mets over Angels in 6).

Awards:

AL Cy Young: Joba Chamberlain......just kidding. Erik Bedard, Seattle Mariners (uhhhhh, again, oops. Joba seems like a better bet than Bedard at this point. That being said, given the first half, it comes down to Daisuke Matsuzaka or Roy Halladay. Although Matsuzaka missed a lot of time, I think he gets the Cy if he can get to 15 or 16 wins. Halladay can steal it from him if he gets to 20 wins, based on voters' general tendency to overemphasize wins).

NL Cy Young: Jake Peavy, San Diego Padres (Tim Lincecum has been phenomenal, but Brandon Webb, and his 13-4 first half record is the front runner for now).

AL MVP: Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers (It pains me to say this, but I am going with Alex Rodriguez, edging out the other contenders who figure to be on non-playoff teams, such as Grady Sizemore and Josh Hamilton).

NL MVP: David Wright, New York Mets (Ryan Braun of the Brewers scores his first MVP award with a second half surge to lead the Brewers to the Wild Card).

AL ROY: Joba Chamberlain, New York Yankees (This still seems fair).

NL ROY: Justin Upton, Arizona Diamondbacks (Geovany Soto of the Cubs is having a great year, and could hit 25 home runs as a rookie catcher).

AL Rolaids Relief Award: Jonathan Papelbon, Boston Red Sox (Papelbon has been fantastic, but Francisco Rodriguez may break the single season saves record, which would be good enough for the award).

NL Rolaids Relief Award: Francisco Cordero, Cincinnati Reds (Neck and neck between the NL East closers Billy Wagner and Brad Lidge. I'm giving it to Wagner by a nose).

That will do it for this week. See you next time.