I recently made my first preseason rankings for the upcoming MLB season; I'll now go a step further and make my first predictions for what will unfold in the end.

First off, the awards...

AL MVP- Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers

NL MVP- Mark Teixeira, Atlanta Braves

AL Cy Young- Justin Verlander, Detroit Tigers

NL Cy Young- Johan Santana, New York Mets

AL Manager of The Year- John McLaren, Seattle Mariners

NL Manager of The Year- Willie Randolph, New York Mets

AL Rookie of The Year- Evan Longoria, Tampa Bay Rays

NL Rookie of The Year- Cameron Maybin, Florida Marlins

AL Comeback Player of The Year- Gary Sheffield, Detroit Tigers

NL Comeback Player of The Year- Andruw Jones, Los Angeles Dodgers

The division/ wild card winners...

AL East: Boston Red Sox (95-67)- Their starting pitching is banged up right now, but I don't think Beckett's problems are severe and he'll be able to enjoy a successful season; either way, I think they're the new class of this division.

AL Central: Detroit Tigers (99-63)- Monster offense, solid starting pitching, and a great manager. The bullpen is the only concern, but I believe they'll hold it together. A team with truly awesome potential, they are my pick to lead the league in wins.

AL West: Seattle Mariners (94-68)- The Bedard addition puts them over the top at last, as they edge the Angels for the division crown.

AL Wild Card: Los Angeles Angels (92-70)- Despite losing the division, they'll still beat out the Yankees and Indians for the wild card.

NL East: New York Mets (95-67)- It's their division to lose after getting the best pitcher in the game. This is the year they finally put it all together, and I say they at least make the playoffs.

NL Central: Chicago Cubs (90-72)- The best team easily in an awful division. Milwaukee or the newly-improved Reds may make the division race interesting, but in the end I don't see any way the Cubs don't win this division.

NL West: Arizona Diamondbacks (92-70)- What was a great pitching staff already added a bona-fide ace in Dan Haren, and the young offense should continue to improve. In a rough division battle, they'll come out on top.

NL Wild Card: Los Angeles Dodgers (89-73)- Very balanced squad that should get a lift from the tutelage of new manager Joe Torre, and a possible comeback year from Andruw Jones. They'll edge the Rockies in the final week.

And at last, my postseason predictions...

ALDS

Tigers over Angels in 4

Red Sox over Mariners in 3

NLDS

Mets over Dodgers in 4

D-Backs over Cubs in 5

ALCS

Tigers over Red Sox in 6

NLCS

D-Backs over Mets in 7

2008 World Series

Detroit Tigers over Arizona Diamondbacks in 6

Here's another chain post I'll do from time to time, like my NBA Playoff Predictions (which I will update soon.)

Any way, this was a pretty hectic offseason that followed one of the most memorable seasons in MLB history, the 2007 season. A recap...

* Alex Rodriguez's career with the Yankees appeared over when he opted out of his contract the day of Game 4 of the World Series. Then, he ditched Scott Boras and negotiated a new contract with the Bronx Bombers, an incentive-laden deal that could earn him up to 300 Million.

* A-Rod may have stayed with the Yanks, but skipper Joe Torre didn't. Insulted by their initial contract offer, Torre instead took a job with the L.A. Dodgers. To replace Joe Torre, the Yankees brought in 2006 NL Manager of the Year Joe Girardi.

* In one of the more genuinely shocking moves of the offseason, The Angels (who appeared set in centerfield with Gary Matthews Jr.) signed Torii Hunter to a 5 year, 90,000,000 contract. Hunter gives Vladimir Guerrero decent protection, but also creates an outfield log-jam Anaheim has yet to fix.

* The Dodgers signed long-time Brave Andruw Jones to a 2 year, 36,000,000 deal (potentially the bargain of the offseason). Jones gives the Dodgers a bona-fide slugger and a gold-glove presence in centerfield. The Braves on the other hand said good-bye to one good friend, and welcomed back an old one in pitcher Tom Glavine.

* Dave Dombrowski and the Tigers saved the Winter Meetings from being a hot stove nightmare, by netting all-stars Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis in exchange for some top prospects. The Tigers also furthered their transformation into one of the league's most potent offenses by trading for SS Edgar Renteria and LF Jacque Jones.

* One day before his name was one of many mentioned in the Mitchell Report, the Orioles unloaded Miguel Tejada to the Astros in exchange for some top-notch young talent. They furthered their rebuilding by trading Erik Bedard to Seattle later in the offseason.

* The Diamondbacks continued to emphasize pitching by trading for Oakland ace Dan Haren. Haren joins Brandon Webb to form what should be the most fearsome one-two punch in the league.

* The Brewers lost Francisco Cordero to the Reds, and replaced him with Eric Gagne. They also brought in Mike Cameron, who should help tremendously when he starts playing following his 25-game suspension for use of banned stimulants.

* The Cardinals and Blue Jays swapped third basemen: The

Jays sending slugger Troy Glaus to St. Louis in exchange for the disgruntled Scott Rolen.

* The biggest name moved was undoubtedly former Minnesota ace Johan Santana, who was shipped off to the Mets, giving them one of the league's deadliest rotations and making them odds-on favorites in the national league.

So how do all these moves effect the balance of power? Here's a ranking of the 30 major league clubs; the higher they're ranked, the more likely they are to succeed this coming season. Without further ado, my first power rankings for the 2008 season...

1. Boston Red Sox: As the defending champs, they have to be considered #1 for now. With a solid offense, bullpen, and rotation, they are the epitome of balance and are the new class of the AL East. They have everything they need to repeat.

2. Detroit Tigers: No team had a better offseason and on paper, there probably isn't a better team. The offense has truly awesome potential, as does the rotation. If the bullpen can hold it together, it could be a special year for baseball in Motown.

3. New York Mets: How big is the Santana addition? Before they brought him in, they were still licking their wounds from their historic collapse last season. Now, everyone (including themselves) is considering them favorites in the NL East.



4. Cleveland Indians: Didn't do anything big this offseason, but they really didn't need to. Key contributors from last year will have to do it again this year if they want to retain the division crown, because they are in for a dogfight with the Tigers.

5. Arizona Diamondbacks: Despite playing in the league's toughest division, they get a top 5 ranking on the strength of their rotation and the potential of their young offense. They should only get better.

6. Chicago Cubs: Added Kosuke Fukudome to an already impressive offense, and the pitching is good enough to get by in the terrible NL Central. All in all, easily the best team in their division and a legit world series contender.

7. Anaheim Angels: Would've been ranked in the top 4 had the Mariners not gotten Erik Bedard. Boast possibly the best 5-man rotation in the league, but the surplus of outfielders is going to leave someone DHing (and none of them want to).

8. New York Yankees: Retained everyone important except Joe Torre, but they are too reliant on young arms to be in the same category as the Red Sox. I would not be surprised if they missed the playoffs this year.

9. Philadelphia Phillies: Like the Angels, they would've been ranked much higher had a divisional foe (the Mets, in this case) not gotten better. They have an American League offense, but after Hamels, the rotation is nothing special.

10. Seattle Mariners: The deal for Erik Bedard made them legit contenders in the AL West. It will not be easy by any stretch of the imagination, but this team has what it takes to make the postseason this year.

11. Los Angeles Dodgers: Joe Torre should have a positive effect on what was a notoriously divided clubhouse last year, and if the young talent blossoms as is expected, the division crown is not out of the question.

12. Milwaukee Brewers: With Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun, they can slug with the best of them. The pitching is what gets them in trouble. Last year was a great learning experience for the young players; let's see what they can do this year.

13. Colorado Rockies: As the defending NL champs, they'll be hard-pressed to fly under the radar again. A good team no doubt; unfortunately, they play in the brutal NL West.

14. Atlanta Braves: Pitching has been their mandate for years, and it remains impressive from top to bottom. Can Yunel Escobar and Mark Kotsay successfully replace Edgar Renteria and Andruw Jones though?

15. Toronto Blue Jays: They go largely unnoticed, but they honestly don't have too shabby a team there north of the border. Can they top the Sox and Yanks though? We shall see.

16. San Diego Padres: Same story, different year- stellar pitching, no offense. Two teams in their division (the D-Backs and Dodgers) just got a lot better, so it will be harder than ever to win that way.

17. Houston Astros: The Tejada addition should help the offense, but the pitching remains iffy (to say the least) after Oswalt. In the weak NL central though, they have a small chance.

18. Chicago White Sox: When many thought they should be rebuilding, they instead went out and had a shopping spree. Lots of impressive additions; enough to get them by the Indians and Tigers? I doubt it.

19. Cincinatti Reds: I personally would have ranked them higher, but they haven't proved anything yet. With Dusty Baker at the helm though, they could be ready to make some noise.

20. Tampa Bay Rays: A genuinely impressive collection of young talent, but they're still just the 4th best team in the AL East. The Sox and Yanks won't be dominant forever, so stay positive Rays fans; your day will come.

21. Minnesota Twins: Both the offense and rotation took major hits with the losses of Johan Santana and Torii Hunter. Sooner or later, they'll be contenders again but they certainly aren't this year.

22. Kansas City Royals: They continue to improve, but not enough to make noise in the brutal AL Central. There is promise for the future though.

23. St. Louis Cardinals: Did this team really win the 2006 World Series?

24. Oakland Athletics: They've found a way to win through hardships before, but the Angels and Mariners are clearly the top dogs in the AL West. They should bottom-feed this year.

25. Texas Rangers: A potent young offense that should be helped by Josh Hamilton, but the pitching remains awful as ever. When Kevin Millwood is your #1, you've got problems.

26. San Francisco Giants: The Bonds era is over, and they now boast one of the worst lineups in the league. The young pitching is the only bright spot.

27. Washington Nationals: Bad offense + worse pitching= awful team with no chance.

28. Florida Marlins: After shipping Cabrera and Willis to Detroit, they are a faceless franchise. They did net some nice young talent though, so the situation isn't totally bleak.

29. Baltimore Orioles: Bedard and Tejada are gone, Roberts could follow, and the rebuilding has begun. The blockbuster deals have given them one of the best farm systems in the majors, but for now they're awful.

30. Pittsburgh Pirates: A triple-A ballclub. They haven't had a winning season in 15 years, and that streak isn't ending any time soon.

The Cavs and Bulls have finally realized they can't end the Pistons' dominion over the Central Division alone, so now they're desperately trying to do it together. I don't envision them succeeding.



Some NBA analysists will say this move should have the Pistons trembling. In my mind, they should be laughing. I say so for two reasons, one is more basketball related, the other is a little more personal.



The first reason the Pistons should be smiling at the end of all this, is that the Cavs are trying to compensate for missing the boat on an elite point guard like Jason Kidd or Mike Bibby, by trading for a washed-up, undersized big man who was actually at one time the face of the Pistons (back when dinosaurs roamed the earth). That man is Ben Wallace, once the NBA's top energy player, and now a steadily declining has-been. GM Danny Ferry is banking on Ben Wallace's hunger to help the Cavs do away with their arch-rival, the Pistons. Wait a minute! Didn't Ben already attempt to do that with the Bulls? Wasn't that a miserable failure?



I'll get to that in a second, but let's focus first on who else Cleveland got. Also coming to the Cavs, fellow has-been Wally Szczerbiak, a "never-was" in Joe Smith (more famous for proving the idiocy of Kevin McHale, than for his play), and Delonte West, who likely will be the team's starting PG. All I gotta say to that is this; Chauncey, enjoy yourself. If Chauncey Billups can be his usual self should the Pistons face the Cavs in the playoffs, that is a mismatch they should exploit to great success. The truth is that Cleveland didn't need any of these guys; all they needed was a point guard. Mike Bibby and Jason Kidd were right there for the taking (Bibby got scooped up by Atlanta for almost nothing), but Ferry flinched, and tried to compensate. Were I a Cavs fan, something I can't imagine in my wildest dreams, I would be livid that all that bum Ferry could reel in was Ben Wallace, an egomaniacal one-dimensional "big man".



The second reason all this should satisfy the Pistons, is related to the other central division foe involved in this deal, The Chicago Bulls. Before this deal, the Ben Wallace experiment deal had been an obvious failure. After this deal, it became an OFFICIAL failure. When the Bulls signed him in 2006, it was supposed to be the beginning of a second reign in Chicago, while the Pistons' reign was supposed to end. They thought they had stole the Pistons' thunder, and they did in a way, as the Pistons struggled early on in the 2006-2007 season before regaining their championship form and spanking the baby bulls in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Now less than two years after misled skeptics eagerly awaited the downfall of the Pistons, the "star-less" franchise whose NBA championship two years earlier had been a fluke, the old-yet-wise Pistons have outwitted, outplayed, and most importantly, outlasted the Bulls in the NBA's latest version of survivor.



Am I saying the Cavs can't beat the Pistons? No, it miraculously happened last year. What I am saying is that they're in no better a position, a potentially worse one in fact, to do the impossible yet again.



Some will disagree with me, claiming the Cavs "beefed up" and at long last have gotten Lebron a decent supporting cast. That's probably the way the Pistons wanted it though; they play their best when doubted. So in that essence, I say write on skeptics. The Pistons know how to prove you wrong.

It took a while, but the New York Mets have finally gotten Johan Santana signed to a long term deal.

I have been highly critical of the Mets ever since their historic collapse last year, but my props go out to Omar Minaya for getting this guy. If one pitcher in the game is worth 150 million, it's Santana; he is the real deal and with an offense like New York's behind him, he's in line to win 20 games this year.

The Mets already had a pretty good rotation before this trade. Oliver Perez and John Maine won 15 games last year, and Pedro Martinez would've too if he'd been healthy all year long. Now, all those guys move back a spot in the rotation- it is possibly the deepest rotation in the NL (look out for Arizona and San Diego though) and I am now ready to accept the Mets as the best overall team in the National League.

As for the contract, it has incredible ramifications. You can't help but wonder now if C.C. Sabathia will command a similar amount next year (should that be the case, it's unlikely he sticks with Cleveland). All in all, the second best move of the offseason behind only the Cabrera/Willis to Detroit trade, and one that will improve the Mets greatly.

First off, it's good to be on yarkbarker. Lookin forward to it, and pumped to be on here.

Secondly, I do these every few months; my predictions for what's gonna happen in the NBA Playoffs this year. A couple observations first...

* Pau Gasol to LA is pretty big- it was only a matter of time before Bynum being hurt caught up with them. My only concern is what are they gonna do when Bynum comes back? Move Gasol to PF I'm sure, but then what do you do with Lamar Odom? If I'm the Lakers, I package Odom, Jordan Farmar, a couple young players, and get Jason Kidd. Probably won't happen though.

* Speaking of Kidd, I wonder what happens with him. I heard that Dallas, Cleveland, and Denver were possibilities; I don't think anything happens though.

* Boston is playing pretty well without KG, I'm surprised.

* My boys in Piston blue are back on track. I don't suggest anything big at the deadline, but they should try to get one more decent forward- Mickael Pietrus or Kurt Thomas would be fine by me.

* The Blazers are comin back to earth, while the Jazz are finally fulfilling their potential.

* How bout those Hornets? I called it, I said in the preseason that this team would've made the playoffs last year if they had stayed healthy. Now they're tearin it up, givin Dallas and San Antonio a run for their money.

* The Timberwolves and Heat are bad: REALLY BAD.

* The Cavs can beat anyone with LeBron, no one without him.

SEASON AWARDS

MVP: Kevin Garnett, Boston Celtics

Coach of The Year: Byron Scott, New Orleans Hornets

Defensive Player of The Year: Marcus Camby, Denver Nuggets

6th Man of The Year: Manu Ginobli, San Antonio Spurs

Rookie of The Year: Kevin Durant, Seattle Supersonics

Most Improved Player: Chris Kaman, Los Angeles Clippers

Scoring Champion: LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers

SEEDS

EAST

1. Boston Celtics

2. Detroit Pistons

3. Orlando Magic

4. Toronto Raptors

5. Cleveland Cavaliers

6. Washington Wizards

7. Atlanta Hawks

8. New Jersey Nets

WEST

1. Phoenix Suns

2. Dallas Mavericks

3. New Orleans Hornets

4. Utah Jazz

5. San Antonio Spurs

6. Los Angeles Lakers

7. Denver Nuggets

8. Golden State Warriors

QUARTER-FINALS

Celtics over Nets in 4

Pistons over Hawks in 5

Magic over Wizards in 6

Cavs over Raptors in 6

Suns over Warriors in 6

Mavs over Nuggets in 5

Hornets over Lakers in 6

Jazz over Spurs in 7

SEMI-FINALS

Celtics over Cavs in 6

Pistons over Magic in 5

Suns over Jazz in 6

Hornets over Mavs in 7

CONFERENCE FINALS

Pistons over Celtics in 7

Suns over Hornets in 6

2008 NBA FINALS

Pistons over Suns in 6