FanNation | Fightins's Blog | MLB OFFSEASON GRADES(UPDATED) AND 2008 PREDICTIONS

OK, so after assessing what each team had done and not done in the offseason a few big moves were made. Ok 2 moves really but they were big ones that could shift the balance of power. So heres some upgrades marks for a few teams and new 08 predictions

New York Mets:

What they did right: The got Johan Santana for absolutley nothing. They didnt have to give up thier most promising young pitcher in Pelfry or thier top prospect in Fernando Martinez. The did have to give him $150 mil for 6 years and that is VERY excessive, especially for a guy with 11 losses in 07.

What they did wrong: Nothing

What they need to do: Hope Johan adjusts well to NY, and the NY media. If he cant hack it he wouldnt be the first big pitcher to collapse under the pressure of 7 NY news papers and the media giant of the Western World.

2008 Outlook: Mets fans are under the impression that Johan= World Series. They need to slow down and see that the Mets have quite a few problems that bringing in Santana has swept under the rug. Theyre still old, thier bull pen is still old, Delgado, Alou, and Castillo arent any younger. Beltran is still inconsistent. And who knows what to expect from Reyes. Willie Randolph is still the manager. Johan does not fix all of the Mets problems. However all 3 of the top teams are flawed and NYM has a shut down LHP in Santana to butcher the Phillies left handed dominated lineup. They SHOULD win the division, that doesnt mean they WILL. But theyre not the best team in the NL and certantly not better than Arizona. They should lose the NLCS in 6.

Grade: B-

Minnesota Twins:

What they did right: Nothing.

What they did wrong: They got nothing in return from Santana. Nobody they got in that trade will have a big impact, if they have an impact at all. The Twins were in a position to rebuild and bring in a ton of young prospects for guys like Nathan, Santana, and Torii Hunter. They let Hunter walk away VIA free agency when they could have and should have traded him at the deadline. They got nothing for Santana and Nathan is still a Twin. The Twins will now be a losing team for about a decade.

Grade: F--

Seattle Mariners:

What they did right: They got one of the top pitchers in the AL in Bedard and now they have the best 1-2 of any rotation in baseball with him and Felix Hernanadez.

Grade: A

2008 Outlook: Theyll now win the AL west.

2008 Predictions

AL East: Red Sox

AL Central: Indians

AL West: Mariners

WC: Angels

ALCS: Red Sox over Mariners

NL East: Mets

NL Central: Still sticking with the Reds

NL West: Arizona

WC: Dodger