1. The Oakland A’s will finish in second place: I understand their line-up will struggle to put up runs, but with a great defense anchored by Kurt Suzuki and Rajai Davis, and a starting rotation that runs 6 deep, the A’s will give the AL West all it can handle. For most, their rotation is marked by the addition of Ben Sheets and Justin Duchscherer. For me, the success of either of these guys is only a plus. The rest of their rotation consists of future ace Brett Anderson, anchor Dallas Braden, and some back-end potential in Trevor Cahill and Gio Gonzalez.

2. Milton Bradley will NOT frustrate the Mariners locker room, but injuries to their pitching staff will: I think Milton Bradley will be happy in Seattle, but more than anything, I think Ken Griffey Jr. will keep him in check. However, if Cliff Lee and Erik Bedard cannot stay healthy, the Mariners will be leaning on the likes of Ryan Rowland-Smith and Ian Snell to carry the rest of their rotation. With a ragtag middle of the order, the Mariners will struggle to score runs at times and will need solid starting pitching other than King Felix. That being said, Cliff Lee will probably get healthy at some point, but will he be the same, or did the Phillies know something the Mariners did not?

3. The Rally Monkey will lay dormant until the second half of the season: As I said before, I like the Angels to win the division, but not right away. The Angels may be deep but there are a lot of new guys in new roles, and it may take them a while to build some chemistry. Scott Kazmir will start late, Brandon Wood will need some breaking in, and above all else, this is competitive division. So hold tight, Angel fans.

4. The Wild Card will come from the AL West: Here I go with the Oakland A’s again. I think they are going to surprise a lot of people this year. They were only 75 and 87 last year. This year they have added a few key pieces and will mature.

5. Scott Feldman will lead the division in wins: I have some issues with the rest of that rotation (including Rich Harden in the American League and in that ballpark). However, the addition of Vladdy, the coming of age of Chris Davis, and the rest of the power in that line-up should score them some runs. Scott Feldman may not be the most overpowering pitcher in this division, but he might be the most consistent. With that lineup he should be in line to win a lot of games.

6. Howie Kendrick will have over 400 AB’s: Since entering the Major Leagues, Howie has been plagued with injury. This should change, however, as he is now mimicking Torii Hunter’s training methods. With Howie, we keep waiting for the “if he can stay healthy” year. 2010 will be it.

7. Felix Hernandez will win the AL Cy Young Award: With all of the struggles I said the Seattle Mariners will have, they still have one of the best pitchers in baseball. With Roy Halladay out of the picture, I believe the award is his for the taking.

8. AL West Division Rankings: 1) Angels 2) A’s 3) Rangers 4) Mariners. As I’ve been saying all along, I really don’t think Seattle has enough depth to compete in a 162 game season. All that said, the difference between first and last place won’t be much.

9. Rajai Davis will steal 60 bases and score 100 runs: This one may not exactly be bold considering he finished the season last year with 41 SB’s and 65 runs in 390 AB’s. The Oakland A’s aren’t a patient, power hitting, moneyball team anymore. Moneyball is now speed and defense. Look for Rajai Davis to have the green light the season.

10. Joel Pineiro will lead the Angels in wins: Jered Weaver will still be the ace of the staff, but he struggles to put up the innings that Pineiro is capable of throwing. Pineiro’s pounding of the strike zone should make him the work horse of the staff. Even with the switch to the American League, most of the time he’ll be pitching in Anaheim, Seattle, and Oakland (All pitcher friendly).