Pillaging Your Peers-AL East

After the Holidays, and the Strep Throat That Will Not Die (STTWND), I will start on the American League. I admittedly have more knowledge of these teams, so they should be easier. However, the Yankees and Red Sox are always emptying their Minor League clips to acquire talent, so its constantly changing.

Baltimore Orioles-What a mess of an organization. There are only three or four guys that are worth more than a bag of balls. My short term investment would be in Matt Weiters. He's young, he plays catcher, and he has a Chuck Norris like website about Matt Weiters facts. As for my long term investment, I really like SS Manny Machado. They have a few interesting pitchers, such as Zach Britton and Brian Matusz, but Machado seems like a can't miss type with a high ceiling and high floor.

Boston Red Sox- In the course of 2 months, Boston has drastically changed their complexion. They lost Victor Martinez and Adrian Beltre, but gained Carl Crawford and Adrian Gonzalez. That's why they are always in contention. They had to give up most of theire top prospects in the Gonzalez trade, but still have some interesting pieces. I am staying away from their prospects, and selecting from proven Major League talent. Long term, I will take Jon Lester. Huge k/9 rate, survived cancer, and is still 26 years old. For the next three years, its between the aforementioned Crawford and Gonzalez. I think I will go with Crawford, for his steals and defense.

New York Yankees- The easiest team in this division. They have a top prospect in C/1B/DH Jesus Montero, who will hit and provide next to no defense, and 1B Mark Teixeira who will hit and provide excellent defense.

Tampa Bay Devil Rays- This is the team I would want if I could take over an entire organization. They are stacked with young talent at the Major League and Minor League levels. Think about this....they lost Carl Crawford to division rival Boston. I selected Crawford from Boston. I would not have selected Crawford from this roster. They also are most likely replacing Crawford with Desmond Jennings, who is essentially the same player minus 5 years. On to the selections. Short term, I will select 3B Evan Longoria. Probably the best 3B in baseball, and still has room to improve. Their prospects, however, are more difficult to choose from. Here is their projected Top 20. Do you take the top RHP prospect in baseball or the 2nd best LHP in baseball? Carl Crawford Lite, or a future closer? I will trust Sickels and say Jeremy Hellickson. I can't pass up a potential ace with a small sample size of Major League success.

Toronto Blue Jays-The second easiest team today. I believe Adam Lind is a mixture of his 2009 and 2010 seasons. That makes a nice player. Their top prospect was the key piece they got in return for Roy Halladay, Kyle Drabek. He has the MLB bloodline from his father, Doug, and would be ready to start the 2011 season in the bigs at 23.

For Baseballs best division, I was expecting harder decisions. Other than Tampa, it was fairly easy compared to most of the NL. I will do the AL West next, and save the AL Central for last.

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