Without further ado, here are my predictions for the National League this season. I agree with many that the Braves could be back in a big way but the Mets simply have too much talent to fritter it away or collapse as they did last season.

Once you're done there, any hockey fans should check out the fight involving Patrick Roy's son that took place in the Quebec Major Junior League last week as well...apparently the kid is as crazy as his old man and an unwilling opposing goaltender was the victim. Now the Powers that Be in Canada are openly asking if fighting should be banned in junior hockey. Not good.

NL East (order of finish)



1. New York Mets – This is obviously the trendy pick to win the NL East crowd after winning the Johan Santana sweepstakes, and I certainly a renowned trend-follower. A slow start or lackluster stretch could spell trouble for both manager Willie Randolph and Omar Minaya. They have four great baseball players at the height of their games in Santana, Jose Reyes, David Wright and Carlos Beltran, and I still can’t believe the Pirates basically gave up on Oliver Perez as a 24-year-old lefty with electric stuff.

2. Atlanta Braves – The sentimental baseball fan inside of me is stoked at the thought of John Smoltz and Tom Glavine reuniting with the Braves, and going out where they basically started. Atlanta has a slew of talented young hitters and outfielder Jeff Francoeur has been one of those “gained 10 pounds of strength in the offseason” spring training stories, so this could be the season he takes it to another level. This should be a playoff team provided the ultra-talented Rafael Soriano can keep it together in the Braves bullpen. Let’s also not forget that Mark Teixeira is in a contract year for the Braves.

3. Philadelphia Phillies -- The offense stroked 213 bombs on the strength of an American League-style lineup and the cozy confines of Citizens Bank Ballpark last season, and they added to it with the addition of third baseman Pedro Feliz. Feliz always put up respectable numbers in a tough ballpark in San Francisco and could be a monster at their home base of operations – he is a Hacks with Haggs “picks to click” in fantasy baseball. The bullpen could be a major drag if Tom Gordon is finally done at 40 years-old and Brad Lidge – recovering from knee surgery -- has another maddeningly inconsistent season on the field and in between his ears.

4. Florida Marlins – The most difficult decision in the MLB preview was going with which bottom-dweller in the NL East had the worse starting rotation, and therefore would be the worst in the division. The Marlins – bereft of talent throughout the pitching staff – will be starting Mark Hendrickson as their Opening Day starter…’nuff said there. Hanley Ramirez is an MVP candidate in the making, but it won’t be this year with this team. I totally forgot that Ramirez stole 51 bases last season on top of the offensive numbers…wow.

5. Washington Nationals – This club could afford to give up on John Patterson…really? They dusted Odalis Perez off the scrap heap and a guy that would have been the sixth starter for the Red Sox becomes the Opening Day starter for the Nationals. Wonderful world, that National League. The Nats have a new ballpark and commodities in Ryan Zimmerman and Chad Cordero, but this could a 100 loss season if everything doesn’t go perfectly with their pitching.

NL Central

1. Chicago Cubs – This team is full of question marks, but this might also be the most fun Cubbies fans have had on Clark and Addison Streets in quite some time. Carlos Zambrano, Milton’s own Rich Hill and Ted Lilly are an enticing big three in the rotation, and newly anointed Kerry Wood could be the National League feel-good story of the year. A healthy Derrek Lee could be a potential MVP candidate, and Fukudome’s impact should be felt. The one question is whether Lou Piniella can handle the pressure, and whether Wood can stay healthy. I’m betting he can.

2. Milwaukee Brewers – Once again pitching will be the big question mark for the Brewers after their bullpen racked up a 4.15 ERA and put a great deal of undue pressure on their starting staff, but the Brew Crew hope that Scott Linebrink will be able to help carry their ‘pen this season. Eric Gagne and Derrick Turnbow at the back end of your bullpen, though…yikes! The offense will be both young and robust with Ryan Braun in left field, Prince Fielder at first base, and Corey Hart, J.J. Hardy and Billy Hall all big-time rakers in their early to mid 20’s (The new Harvey’s Wallbangers hit 231 home runs last season…and I’m not going with Ned’s Wallbangers because it sounds like an inside joke from the Simpsons). Everything could change, though, if the delicate body of Ben Sheets again acts up.

3. Cincinnati Reds – The talk of the spring for the Reds has been the pitching work of 22-year-old Johnny Cueto and 24-year-old Edinson Volquez, but there is definitely some solid pitching beyond that. Aaron Harang is an underrated ace coming off a better-than-he’s-been-given-credit-for 16-6 season and is now in the prime of his pitching career. The crooning Bronson Arroyo is an innings eater and the signing of Francisco Cordero was a much-needed one. David Weathers and Jeremy Affeldt should be excellent in set-up roles. The offense should be just fine with Ken Griffey Jr., Adam Dunn, Brandon Phillips and Edwin Encarnacion, and the team could be a big surprise if the young pitching comes through.

4. Houston Astros – Roy Oswalt and Jose Valverde are good places to start on the pitching staff, but they are thin in both the rotation and bullpen after their best hurlers. A good nucleus of talent resides in Houston with Lance Berkman, the gritty and gutty Hunter Pence and El Caballo himself, Carlos Lee, but the bottom of the ‘Stro’s batting order is a little dicey and the order’s top is unproven. Will centerfielder Michael Bourn get on base enough and will Kaz Matsui recover from a severe case of anal fissures? Inquiring minds need to know before picking them to go any higher than this.

5. Pittsburgh Pirates – People keep waiting for this team to dust themselves off and rise out of the NL Central basement, and I’m betting this is the year. Pirates GM Neal Huntington has a great foundation to start with in a young starting pitching quartet of Tom Gorzelanny, Ian Snell, Zach Duke and Paul Maholm and closer Matt Capps. A bounce back season from outfielder Jason Bay and a productive campaign at the dish from first baseman Adam LaRoche are both musts for the well-being of the offense. With a good management team in place, I think the future is bright for the Bucs.

6. St. Louis Cardinals – How the mighty have fallen. They obviously still have Albert Pujols, but the first baseman is everything to them -- and how long his troublesome elbow holds up is a legit question. Adam Wainright and Braden Looper are passable as two members of an NL starting rotation, but there is a lot of pressure on those two slightly-better-than-average big league pitchers. They look a lot like the Chicago White Sox offense from last season: big and slow without a lot of athleticism and on base ability. Tony LaRussa might spontaneously combust after watching this squad for a few weeks.

NL West



1. Arizona Diamondbacks – Brandon Webb and Dan Haren is all that really needs to be said, as it conjures up shades of The Big Unit and the Big Schill capturing a World Series together in the desert. Orlando Hudson and Eric Byrnes are the only real veterans on this team, and the potential of a former prospect-laden lineup is intriguing for D-Backs fans. Look for big leaps forward from shortstop Stephen Drew and centerfielder Chris Young. Old Friend Brandon Lyon as a legit closer is a legit question.

2. Colorado Rockies – Tough to pick the reigning NL Pennant winners as a second-place team, but this might be the most competitive division in MLB this season. Troy Tulowitzki is the next great superstar shortstop in the making, and I thought Matt Holliday was the NL MVP last season. The young and less-than-overpowering pitching of the Rox was exposed a bit in the World Series against a good American League lineup, and I continue to be unimpressed with Jeff Francis as an ace despite the numbers.

3. San Diego Padres – The Pads have an excellent trio in Jake Peavy, Chris Young and Greg Maddux (still cuttin’ that fastball after all those years), and GM Kevin Towers is the master at building a bullpen behind future Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman. The question, as it usually is, revolves around whatever offense they can muster up at Petco Park. Adrian Gonzalez and Khalil Greene are solid middle-of-the-lineup bats, but – as Yoda would say -- two people does not a lineup make.

4. Los Angeles Dodgers – The Gandhi of fractured clubhouses, Joe Torre, is out in Chavez Ravine attempting to unite the different fractured splinters back together into one. The Dodgers, as usual, have a great deal of talent and have a pair of good, veteran bookend pitching talents capable of 400 innings combined in Brad Penny and Derek Lowe. Takashi Saito put up simply nasty numbers as LA’s closer last year, and Chad Billingsley has looked great in the spring as a young emerging starter. Russell Martin is the next great young catcher that almost every other organization is in desperate search of. Jeff Kent, 40 years-old this season, is still cranky and cranking baseballs after all these years. 

5. San Francisco Giants – They have good young pitching, but a world of pain awaits the Barry Bonds-less Giants and some would say it’s deserved after enabling the dastardly superstar all these years. The focus should be on 23-year-old Matt Cain, 27-year-old Noah Lowry (once he recovers from forearm surgery) and 24-year-old Tim Lincecum. The bullpen back-end of Brian Wilson and Brad Hennessy is a little suspect. All you need to know about the Giants offense is encapsulated in their projected clean-up hitter: Bengie Molina, who has career highs of 19 home runs and 81 RBIs.

NL MVP – Mark Teixeira, Atlanta Braves
NL CY Young – Johan Santana, New York Mets
NL Rookie of the Year – Joey Votto, Cincinnati Reds
NL Comeback Player of the Year – Kerry Wood, Chicago Cubs
NL Pennant Winner – New York Mets.
NL Wild Card Winner – Atlanta Braves

New York Mets over the Boston Red Sox in the 2008 World Series, and it’ll be a sweep for all those interested in new living room sets from Jordan’s Furniture.