Baseball is around the 70 game mark.. what teams have been the biggest surprises ?

[FlockOfSeagulls]

No.1 on the list to me would definately be the San Diego Padres. Lets be honest , I think everyone pretty much penciled them in as one of the worst teams in baseball . Unknown guys in rotation had been a huge surprise

No.2 are the Atlanta Braves. This team is by far the Jekyll and Hyde of the bunch . Were they really that bad or really that good ? Chances are , somewhere in between . They are depending on some keys guys that are greybeards in terms of baseball age. Chipper Jones, Troy Glaus, and Billy Wagner are long in the tooth. Do they have enough in tank for the stretch run .

No.3 are the Cincinnati Reds. To be honest , I still don`t know that much about this team . But right now they are in the thick of a division race

 

[storm7400]

Personally, the Orioles.

This was supposed to be the year that they strove for the .500 mark and maybe pushed for a wild card berth if a lot of things went their way. Instead they are the absolute worst team in baseball in almost every category and their promising young guns and prospects have all seen sharp declines.

 

[Mitchell]

For me, aside from the Braves, I would say the Mets and the Phillies. All of the preseason predictions said that the Mets were going to finish in fourth place, and they have far surpassed expectations.

The Phillies may be baseball's biggest disappointment so far. Logically, with the addition of Roy Halliday, and that offense, the Phillies were probably expected to run away with the NL East. It hasnt worked out that way, due to the fine play of the Braves and Mets, and the Phillies subpar play. Of course, since it is only June, the Phillies have plenty of time to rally, so us Braves and the Mets fans can't count any chickens just yet.

Mitch

 

[FlockOfSeagulls]

Personally, the Orioles.

This was supposed to be the year that they strove for the .500 mark and maybe pushed for a wild card berth if a lot of things went their way. Instead they are the absolute worst team in baseball in almost every category and their promising young guns and prospects have all seen sharp declines.

the biggest problem is the division the Orioles are in . It will always be supertough to compete consistantly with the Yankees or Red Sox . These two teams have proven they can overpay for players to outbid other teams with much more limited finances

 

[ticklingfeet4fu]

the biggest problem is the division the Orioles are in . It will always be supertough to compete consistantly with the Yankees or Red Sox . These two teams have proven they can overpay for players to outbid other teams with much more limited finances

The Rays who don't overpay for anyone has been able to hang with the Red Sox and Yankees the last two and a half years. So my belief is that the Rays need to be in that conversation.

 

[storm7400]

the biggest problem is the division the Orioles are in . It will always be supertough to compete consistantly with the Yankees or Red Sox . These two teams have proven they can overpay for players to outbid other teams with much more limited finances

That may be the biggest misnomer in all of sports frankly and its just a putrid and flawed assessment. Peter Angelos is not by any means hurting for funds, he owns the MASN network that has the television rights to both the Orioles and the Nationals and yes there is 2 channels and they both at times run parallel showings of ESPNews along with broadcasts of radio shows and radio rights for the O's, and has chosen to be a "small" market team.

The Orioles have misguided and flawed management from top to bottom. Yes bringing in Andy MacPhail 3 years ago has improved some structure in the organization as well as the drafting of talent, but once these prospects get to the bigs they are outclassed in every stretch of the imagination. Their last impactful manager was Davey Johnson and ol' Pete ran him out after the last 2 successful season in 96 and 97 because he refused to pay him and allow him credit for the teams success. That being said, these players need to actually live up to their promise, but they also need to have the owner backing them with just isn't the case.

 

[Cy/MiG]

No.1 on the list to me would definately be the San Diego Padres. Lets be honest , I think everyone pretty much penciled them in as one of the worst teams in baseball . Unknown guys in rotation had been a huge surprise

No.2 are the Atlanta Braves. This team is by far the Jekyll and Hyde of the bunch . Were they really that bad or really that good ? Chances are , somewhere in between . They are depending on some keys guys that are greybeards in terms of baseball age. Chipper Jones, Troy Glaus, and Billy Wagner are long in the tooth. Do they have enough in tank for the stretch run .

No.3 are the Cincinnati Reds. To be honest , I still don`t know that much about this team . But right now they are in the thick of a division race

Agreed on all of these in full and the only thing I'd add are the three biggest disappointments:

1. Seattle. Sure their offense was always in doubt and their luck from last year couldn't possibly continue, but I think alot of people still thought that the M's could have at least competed for a playoff spot until after the All-Star break. Just a terrible year for the Emerald City yet again.

2. Baltimore O's. A curious mix of young and old with a lack of refined pitching, but the talent there was considered enough to push toward .500. I think most thought they'd be better than the Jays.

3. Pittsburgh Pirates. A homer pick. Nobody thought they'd be good, but they almost competed for the first 40-50 games and have since imploded as everyone thought. But they really could and should be the worst team in the league (look @ their run differential).

 

[storm7400]

Agreed on all of these in full and the only thing I'd add are the three biggest disappointments:

1. Seattle. Sure their offense was always in doubt and their luck from last year couldn't possibly continue, but I think alot of people still thought that the M's could have at least competed for a playoff spot until after the All-Star break. Just a terrible year for the Emerald City yet again.

Anyone with adequate knowledge of the game of baseball could have projected Seattle not being good IMO. The media was the one projecting the idiotic notion that Seattle was going to be a force in the AL West, yet that just shows that many of these so-called "experts" are really just talking heads collecting a paycheck.

Lets just briefly see why this illusion was just that:

Signing Chone Figgins - Many played this acquisition as an injection of offense into the lineup, but I was puzzled by this theory since Seattle already had the "prototypical" leadoff guy in Ichiro?? Chone was brought in for 2 reasons; 1) addition by subtraction, i.e. he took a weapon from the Angels and 2) having been a type A free agent, the Mariners gave up a compensatory pick in a very mediocre draft at the top for which Seattle didn't want to invest top dollar on a 1st rounder where those dollars could be better utilized in later rounds.

Trading for Cliff Lee - I can't see this as nothing more then a bonehead gamble. Yes Cliff Lee is in the upper echelon of starters in the game, but how was he worth the compensation the Mariners gave up when he was nothing more then a rental? He was not going to sign a long term deal by any stretch and all reports showed his desire to hit the free agent market, hence why he didn't sign in Philly which is a much better club. Yes he gave the Mariners a deadly 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation, but that only is deadly in the playoff format and Seattle doesn't have the talent in the 3-4-5 spots of the rotation to get to that format. It will be no surprise come the trade deadline when he's flipped to a contender and maybe Seattle can recoup some of the talent lost in acquiring him.

Bringing back "The Kid" - great PR move last season to bring Griffey "home" and allow him to retire in the city it all started in, but allowing him to take up a roster spot was a ticking time bomb that exploded already. He's been washed up for a few seasons at the plate, gave you nothing for the defense, and wasn't a "clubhouse" guy, not exactly the resume for a roster spot.


Those are just 3 items off the top of my head, and frankly that is enough to show why in no way should Seattle be a disappointment. They are doing exactly what I expected of them this year.

 

[Cy/MiG]

Those are just 3 items off the top of my head, and frankly that is enough to show why in no way should Seattle be a disappointment. They are doing exactly what I expected of them this year.

While you make valid points, everyone in the NW still thought the M's had a decent chance of winning the anemic West.

It's not as if the A's, Halo's or Rangers are the cream of the crop.

If nothing else, the M's had themselves positioned to echo last years surprise season, but clearly couldn't catch lightning in a bottle twice even with improved and better personnel.

 

[Angel_2]

biggest surprise?? the Mets hands down(not saying that cuz im a Mets fan either) if you told me that on June 26th the Mets would be in 2nd place only a half game behind the Braves I would of called you crazy.

 

[usgrant]

Biggest payrolls 2010 1-5: Yankees, Red Sox, Cubs, Phillies, Mets ... Total wins 203... Smallest payrolls 2010 1-5: Pirates, Padres, Athletics, Rangers, Marlins... Total wins 182