Who do you like this season?

[backwardsk]

What teams are out there, that are slightly under the radar, that you think will make a lot of noise this season?

My picks are the Braves and Angels. Sports Illustrated had a nice article on the Braves. They highlighted Freddie Freeman and Jason Heyward. These two guys could be studs for years to come. They also acquired Uggla to give them more pop in their lineup. They have two outstanding young starters in Hanson and Jurrjens to compliment Lowe and Hudson. I think they'll end up giving the Phillies a good fight.

The Angels really blew it on the FA front by failing to get Crawford. But their key could be their pitching staff if Kazmir and Santana bounce back. Weaver, Haren, and a productive Santana and Kazmir could potentially be one of the better rotations in the league. They also added some pop with Vernon Wells and they get Morales's bat back.

What other teams do you like for this season?

[Sports Guy]

I like the Braves as well...they also have a strong farm system.

I could see the Dodgers making some noise as well.

Watch out for the Brewers as well. That division is wide open.

[MikeAD]

I like the Braves. I know it sounds crazy with the Phillies, but I could see them at least taking it to the end in the divisional race.

I also like Oakland to make noise in the AL West. The roster is made up of players mostly stemming from the trades of Been's rebuild and 17 players on the current roster come from trades. At the very least they will be interesting. They have some young players for depth so they might not be as effected by injuries as they've been the past few years.

[Spy Fox]

The two teams I would predict to be playoff teams that I don't see mentioned that often are the Braves and Rockies.

I hadn't thought until now about that Angels rotation until now, but it's true that if their rotation has a bounce-back year and Texas' SPs struggle, then LA could definitely be in the race.

If I had to pick teams to really come out of nowhere and have a shocking contending season, I'd probably pick Baltimore in the AL and Florida in the NL. I think Florida could surprise people with one of the best NL rotations, and if their offense has a couple breakout season I think they could be in the mix.

[waroriole]

Agree about the Braves, also watch out for the White Sox. They have some power in that lineup and I expect Beckham to be closer to the '09 version than '10.

[Nite]

I think the Braves and Marlins will both contend for a bit in the east. I think the Marlins fade though but the Braves keep up.

Central to me seems very interesting with the overachieving Reds, the Brewers, and of course the Cards. My pick for under the radar team is the Cubs though. I think they can make each of these teams sweat a bit going into Sept.

Out west is WIDE open. All 4 teams minus Arizona to me seem to all have their equal strengths and weaknesses. It will come down to which teams have good luck with injuries, and players having career years.

I think the Wild Card may come from the Central this year as they have 3 teams to beat on, Pitt, Hou, and the Cubs if they aren't what I said before and continue to beat each other up in the dugout. That combined with I feel like all 5 teams in the east are better thus the win total will be much lower there and sending the WC to the central..

In the east I think the only under radar team is the O's. Everyone is talking up to death the other 4 teams. Still think the Sox win it and the better play from Tor and Bal kicks the WC to the central but don't see any "under radar" team winning.

Central will be fun to watch. Chi, Det, and Minn all are winners. Will come down to the last week again, just this year I think they'll be playing for hosting round 1 vs going on the road as the loser will get the WC.

I can't think of an under the radar team in the AL west because everyone is talking about the A's and Tex of course. ESPN is smashing Ana down our throats so how can any of them be under the radar? The winner is just like the NL west...

I guess it's harder to think of under the radar teams when we all watch as much baseball coverage as we all do. With only 30 clubs, and only 15 of them having a legit shot you tend to know everything about the good teams so any of them winning wouldn't be a surprise unless a team like Bos hits the DL again and the O's profit...

[Nirvana]

I like the jays to compete for a wildcard spot, they have a lot of young players with huge upside.