Kuzul

Perhaps the greatest statistical achievement for a Major League pitcher to accomplish is that of the Triple Crown of pitching.

In the history of Major League Baseball, only 35 times has a pitcher led his respective league in wins, ERA and strikeouts.

In the American League, 10 pitchers have combined for 15 Triple Crown seasons. In the National League, it has been done 20 times by 15 pitchers.

Walter Johnson, Lefty Grove, Lefty Gomez, Roger Clemens, Christy Matthewson, Grover Alexander and Sandy Colfax are the only pitchers to accomplish the feat more than once.

Since 1970, it has only been done eight times, and it’s happened just three times since 2000.

The last pitcher to win the Triple Crown was Jake Peavy in 2007.

With so many dominant pitchers in today’s game, will 2011 be the year that we see someone win a Triple Crown for the first time in five seasons?

Who will be the 26th pitcher to win baseball’s Triple Crown of pitching and join this “Who’s Who” list of pitching legends?

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As the NFL season draws to a close and national interest in the NBA continues to plummet on an annual basis, most avid sports fans will begin to direct their attention to baseball and the 2011 MLB season.

Yes! It’s finally that time of year, with pitchers and catchers reporting to Spring Training earlier this week. 

Baseball spring training means new preseason favorites and predictions for the upcoming 2011 MLB Season.

Many baseball pundits, experts and so-called experts will be publishing their predictions for the 2011 season if they haven’t already.

Most of their predictions for 2011 will be the result of intense scrutiny and research into the statistics and results of the 2010 season, as well as direct interviews with professional baseball players and personnel.

It is important to note that their predictions for the 2011 MLB Season will have little to no bias.

Well, the predictions you are about to read are almost solely based on bias and little to no research. I most certainly haven’t spoken to or interviewed anyone working in the MLB.

Unlike Ken Rosenthal or Tom Verducci, my Rolodex contains only the phone number for Pizza Hut and my friend Steve.

I definitely have watched my fair share of the sport over recent years and would like to think of myself as a knowledgeable fan.

Which is to say, in terms of understanding baseball, I probably rank somewhere between Peter Gammons and the guy who jumps out of his seat every time a ball is popped up into the air thinking it is a home run.

Please, don”t be that guy.

With that being said, you are probably at the edge of your seat waiting to hear my predictions for the National League in the 2011 MLB season.

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It wasn’t that long ago, really, that we were paying homage to the home run. The American pastime had become an American afterthought after the 1994 lockout wiped out a World Series. We, as a collective fan base, were holding out for a hero to resuscitate the sport. Enter Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds … and the steroids scandal.

Nowadays, baseball no longer needs the home run as a crutch to hobble along with. The 2010 season was all about pitchers. Perfect games. No hitters. The Giants winning the World Series without an offensive player worth a box of Crackerjacks.

Fantasy baseball in 2011 will again be riding the wave of pitchers, and the following is my guide to the top 30 starting hurlers in fantasy baseball for this season:

1. Roy Halladay, PHI. There is no doubt that he deserves the top spot in all league formats here (short of AL-only, of course). His move to Philly only enhanced what was already shaping up to be a potential Hall of Fame career. Amazing at his age how the ERA consistently keeps dropping and the strikeouts keep going up. Short of some freak injury, there are few things less certain than Doc Halladay having an elite 2011 season.

2. Felix Hernandez, SEA. As many were patiently waiting for, King Felix had a career year last year for the lowly Mariners. Too bad the team couldn’t help him pad his wins totals. We all know he has the talent to keep pitching at an elite level, and while he doesn’t have the lengthy track record of a Halladay or the run support of Halladay, there is little to think he’ll regress too much in 2011.

3. Cliff Lee, PHI. Perhaps higher than some, I’m loving the change back to the NL on a team he obviously wants to play for (hence the reduced contract over what he could have received with the Yankees). He’ll be pitching from the No. 2 hole, inflating his win opportunities. Short of an injury, Lee is due for a big, big season.

4. Adam Wainwright, STL. Two seasons that are nearly mirror images of each other in terms of quiet dominance, people still aren’t totally ready to rely on Wainwright. I’m not going to blow a high pick on him when there is some solid depth at the position, but Wainwright has shown he can be counted on for an ERA in the mid-2.00s, more than 200 strikeouts and 17 or more wins.

5. Zack Greinke, MIL. To those outside of the www.chinstrapninjas.com inner circle, I preface this ranking by pointing out that I’m a Brewers fan (Yankees first, Brewers second). However, there have been ample situations where pitchers go from the AL to the NL with great results. No DH, no problem! Plus, Greinke will have the run support that he never did in Kansas City and a very good chance at playing towards a playoff berth for the first time in his career. We all saw what sort of numbers Greinke can produce when motivated (2.16 ERA, 242 strikeouts for Royals in 2009). Add in the other variables, and Greinke could be a good value come draft day.

6. Tim Lincecum, SF. Lincecum falling to sixth has more to do with the wealth of talent at the position and not as much, in my opinion at least, with the struggles he faced late last season before the playoffs began. He did right the ship in the playoffs and can be as unhittable as anyone in the game at any point. His smaller frame and some small maladies early this preseason (sore neck earlier this week keeping him out of practice) make some worried about his long-term durability. I’m more interested in his nice track record of quality production.

7. Clayton Kershaw, LAD. Again, not a matter of him being less talented, but Kershaw falls here due to quality depth at the position. And, Kershaw has a much smaller sample size to look at. The 212 strikeouts and 2.91 ERA in 2010 were impressive. Just give me another year of that production before I consider him a top 5 fantasy player at the position.

8. Justin Verlander, DET. I find it surprising how Verlander is seemingly forgotten on most expert rankings. The guy has seen a three-year drop in ERA (3.37 in 2010), a more than adequate 219 strikeouts and a second season of nearly 20 wins. The Tigers have plenty of potential to keep Verlander relevant, and while others are paying for higher priced commodities from this list, you can snag Verlander a little bit later and feel good about your situation.

9. Jon Lester, BOS. Perhaps this is my Yankee anti-Boston sentiment flaring up, but I just can’t put Lester higher on this list. His numbers are very similar to Verlander’s, except he has a little bit smaller sample size to show us. The Red Sox will win games (unfortunately) and Lester has matured into the team’s ace, and like I’ve mentioned several times already, guys on this list could easily move up if it wasn’t for such a log jam of talent near the top.

10. Ubaldo Jimenez, COL. Another young pitcher with plenty of talent, Jimenez showed plenty of flash in 2010. His 214 strikeouts and 2.88 ERA in 221 innings pitched was very commendable, and one would expect those number to improve with more work and maturity. Rumor out of Colorado suggests that Jimenez has put a lot of work into the offseason, so the momentum should continue into 2011.

11. CC Sabathia, NYY. Again, not a knock on his talent or his chances of posting a solid season. You could easily make a case for the past seven guys to be interchangeable. Sabathia has allegedly cut some weight during the offseason and is ready to pitch with a passion in 2011. Perhaps recent news is that he may opt out of his contract at season’s end in an attempt to collect a bigger pay day is playing a part in that.

12. Josh Johnson, FLA. Last season’s NL ERA leader with a sick 2.30 posted more than 185 strikeouts for the second consecutive season. Many have him higher on their respective lists, but I still can’t get over the way he struggled to consistently strike people out during his minor league days (7.41 K/9) and I wonder if he’ll regress a little. Add in the fact that he’s on a mediocre squad facing the Phillies and Braves among others, and Johnson could be a bit short of the hype this year, especially with so many other quality options at the position.

13. Cole Hamels, PHI. Three Phillies in the top 13? Yep. So much is going right for the squad, and the addition of Lee means Hamels will be pitching out of the third rotation spot, a place where he should reap plenty of wins. The stinker of a 2009 is somewhat worrisome, I suppose, but Hamels is playing for a new contract (or auditioning for a new team at the end of the season), and I can’t imagine he’ll regress too much at this point.

14. David Price, TB. Nineteen wins and 188 strikeouts while posting a 2.72 ERA shouldn’t be surprising to anyone who followed Price throughout his career. He has tons of raw talent and plays on a pretty good Rays squad. Of course, he has plenty of games against the Yankees and Red Sox to weather, but managed OK with that hurdle last year.

15. Jered Weaver, LAA. He who will get overlooked on draft day posted 233 strikeouts and a 3.01 ERA in 2010 pitching for a floundering Angels squad. While LA hasn’t done much to resurrect the team’s chances for 2011, Weaver should continue to post decent numbers in a streaky AL-West.

16. Matt Latos, SD. Another under-appreciated commodity, Latos did very well in 2010 to the tune of a 2.92 ERA, 189 strikeouts and 14 wins. His home games are played in a pitcher-friendly park. His team will struggle to give him much run support, especially with Adrian Gonzalez off in Boston.

17. Matt Cain, SF. While his ERA spiked a little in 2010 (3.14 compared to 2.89 in 2009), Cain did manage six more strikeouts. Not a guy who will win you 20 games on a team that doesn’t have much of an offense, Cain has been a pretty good source of fantasy production and can be had much cheaper than you’d think.

18. Tommy Hanson, ATL. The Braves are a team that are ready to break out this year. Veteran leadership such as Dan Uggla have been added and young players are starting to mature and show their talent. Hanson is one of the latter. In 202 innings pitched during 2010, Hanson posted 173 strikeouts and a 3.33 ERA. Those numbers will improve as Hanson continues to mature and as the Braves come together as a team.

19. Yovani Gallardo, MIL. It is hard to gauge what to expect out of Gallardo in 2011. He had streaks of brilliance in 2010, followed by mediocrity. His second consecutive 200-plus strikeout season is a major plus, and pitching out of the Brewers’ No. 2 hole should help him win a few more games. There is definite upside here.

20. Chris Carpenter, STL. There is something to be said about players that help you without putting you at major risk. Carpenter is one of those players. He consistent posts decent ERA, can strike out batters with authority when on and is good for 15-plus wins a season. Staying healthy is his X-factor, but the Cardinals have been cautious with him lately and he is playing for a new contract at season’s end.

21. Francisco Liriano, MIN. Would put him higher if it weren’t for concerns of his ERA blowing up in your face. Liriano was always a high strikeout guy, and if he can stay healthy, he should be able to whittle away at the 3.62 mark he put up in 2010.

22. Roy Oswalt, PHI. Having perhaps his best season in more than a half-decade, Oswalt posted a 2.76 ERA with 193 strikeouts in 2010 with the Phillies. Protection from a stacked squad definitely benefited Oswalt, and pitching from the Phils’ No. 4 slot will definitely help him win his fair share of games.

22. Dan Haren, LAA. Strikeouts haven’t been an issue for Haren lately. Keeping his ballooning ERA in check has been. The Angels aren’t exactly a world-beater of a team, but Haren will still provide some quality stats as long as you factor in an extra strong dose of earned runs along the way.

23. Max Scherzer, DET. Another young pitcher with plenty of upside, Scherzer improved his ERA in 2010 (3.50 still needs some work, but is better than the 4.12 in 2009) while gaining in strikeouts for the third consecutive season. The Tigers will win enough games to help Scherzer gain momentum this year and he has a bright future ahead.

24. Brett Anderson, OAK. Looking at the stats he was able to produce in between injuries in 2010, Anderson showed a lot of promise. If he can stay healthy, and if the Athletics can put him in some positions to win, he could be a nice sleeper play this year. Of course, those are some major ifs.

25. Madison Bumgarner, SF. Many rankings will overlook Bumgarner considering his stuff is so raw and we don’t have a full season to evaluate him off of yet. However, his talent is unquestioned and he should be able to build off a solid end to the 2010 season.

26. Chad Billingsley, LAD. Three years removed from a 200-plus-strikeout and 3.14 ERA, Billingsley’s stock has slipped some with an expanding ERA and diminishing strikeout total the past two seasons. At 26, he’s young enough to right the ship, however, and only signed a one-year contract, so he has plenty to play for in 2011.

27. Colby Lewis, TEX. Another under-valued pitcher, Lewis accumulated 196 strikeouts in 201 innings with a 3.72 ERA. With Cliff Lee back in Philly, Lewis becomes the defacto ace of the Texas staff (with C.J.Wilson). If he can continue to chip away at his earned run total, he could be a sneaky good play in many fantasy formats.

28. Shaun Marcum, MIL. Another pitcher who jumps from the AL (Toronto) to the NL, Marcum is starting to show up on some sleeper lists. Mine included. His overall 2010 stats aren’t awe-inspiring (3.64 ERA and 165 strikeouts in 195 innings pitched), but if you remove his stats against the Yankees, Red Sox and Rays, his averages are borderline elite. Since the NL Central is a far cry from the AL East, and because the Brewers have plenty of talent, both offensively and on the mound, Marcum could be a great asset this year out of the No. 3 rotation spot.

29. Wandy Rodriguez, HOU. His 3.60 ERA in 32 games started during 2010 wasn’t stellar, but his 178 strikeouts weren’t too shabby and he projects as the team’s ace pitcher yet again. Of course, the Astros are a far cry from what they once were during the Killer B’s era, but Wandy will still get his share of stats.

30. Gio Gonzalez, OAK. There were plenty of guys I considered for this spot. Ricky Nolasco has loads of potential, but was a total head case last year. Ricky Romero showed some signs of promise for Toronto. However, Gonzalez had the better season overall and has been consistently trending in the right direction in each stat category during his just under three seasons of action. If the A’s can produce something offensively, Gonzalez could see another stat improvement.

For more on this topic, go here.

Don’t miss my other 2011 positional rankings:  C | 1B | 2B | 3B | SS | OF | SP | RP

And, discussion on fantasy baseball ADP’s Top 10 and Top 20.

And, our 25 players 25-and-under for your dynasty/keeper fantasy baseball team.

For all your hard-hitting fantasy baseball or fantasy football advice, go to www.chinstrapninjas.com

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Just when you thought the offseason couldn’t get any worse for the New York Yankees, there is now talk of CC Sabathia possibly opting out of his contract after the 2011 season.

Considering Andy Pettitte’s retirement last week, that would be very, very bad news for Yankees fans with AJ Burnett projected as the team’s ace in 2012 were CC to leave.

Sabathia originally signed a seven-year $161 million contract with New York prior to the 2009 MLB Season. The contract includes an opt-out clause after the third year (2011) which would allow the lefty to become a free agent again or pursue an even better extension with the Yankees.

In October during the team’s playoff run, CC Sabathia told reporters that he had no intentions of opting out of his contract. Now on Monday in Tampa, FLA with a new season looming, Sabathia is changing his tune.

When asked if he would opt out of his contract, Sabathia replied,”I have no idea. It’s still in my contract, anything can happen.”

It is possible that Sabathia truly doesn’t know what he will do following the 2011 MLB Season, it is also possible that his agent instructed him to say that in order to get the New York Yankees thinking about life without CC and what they would do not to lose him.

I think he knows exactly what he intends to do next season. Like LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh scheming to join the Miami Heat in 2010, it is my best guess that CC Sabathia intends to partner with friend and former Cleveland Indian teammate Cliff Lee and join the Philadelphia Phillies in 2012.

It might seem unlikely, but did you ever think Lee would be going to Philadelphia instead of New York or Texas? I didn’t think so.

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Don’t you feel like the San Francisco Giants just won the world series just yesterday? Well, it was four months ago, but it felt like yesterday.

But as we prepare for the 2011 MLB season, everyone makes their season predictions starting in mid-February. That’s just what I am doing.

I will be making my official MLB predictions very soon. But I just couldn’t wait to make my world series predictions. So here it is.

Coming out of the NL no doubt will be the Philadelphia Phillies (even though I want the New York Mets in it, but that’s not happening). Just looking up and down the Phillies roster is full of talent.

Starting with the starting rotation: They have the 2010 NL Cy Young award winner in Roy Halladay as their ace. They added Cliff Lee in the offseason. All the talk was that the Texas Rangers or New York Yankees would acquire Lee. But the Phillies made a run on the last day and got rewarded.

Roy Oswalt is a potential ace, but his career is on the downfall with age. Cole Hamels could be a solid No. 2 starter on another team. The only problem with the rotation is the No. 5 spot, where Joe Blanton will start with it.

The infield is also filled with talent. First Baseman Ryan Howard had a disappointing season last year, but he is one of the best out there. Second baseman Chase Utley had an injury-plagued season last year, so he isn’t 100 percent. ShortStop Jimmy Rollins also had an injury season and third baseman Placido Polanco has a ton of potential.

The outfield, though, could be interesting. Raul Ibanez had a great season last year, along with Shane Victorino. But in right field, they are going with young Dominic Brown to try to replace Jayson Werth.

They will win the division, with the Atlanta Braves losing manager Bobby Cox, Troy Glaus, Derrick Lee, and Billy Wagner. The Florida Marlins are on the rise, but they are not there yet. And forget about the Mets and Washington Nationals.

And just looking at all the other good teams in the NL. The Phillies matchup against the St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Dodgers, Giants, Cincinnati Reds, and Milwaukee Brewers.

The Phillies have the best team in the NL and will show that by making it to the world series.

The American League champion will also come out of the East. This time, it will be the Boston Red Sox. They also are full of talent.

Rotation is stocked as well. Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, Clay Buchholz, John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka. The only problem, in my opinion, with the rotation is Beckett. He is coming off a dreadful season last year. He has to have a great year, with around 15 wins and around a 2.50 to a 3.00 ERA. If he can do that, the Sox will make the world series.

Other players that have to step up are David Ortiz, Dustin Pedroia and new additions Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford. In my opinion, these four guys are the most important players for the Red Sox this upcoming season.

The only position that I have an issue with is catcher. The Red Sox lost their star catcher Victor Martinez. So to fill in the spot, they brought in Jarrod Saltalamachia and have veteran catcher Jason Varitek in a back-up role.

The division, though, could cause some problems. The Yankees are obviously a threat. The Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles are on the rise. And the Tamp Bay Rays could still cause some problems, even after losing Crawford, Rafael Soriano and Willy Aybar.

World Series Prediction: Red Sox win the series in seven games.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

As MLB Spring Training approaches, predictions are being thrown around like snowballs in winter.

For the Phillies organization, losing a big offensive star in Jayson Werth was met with the arrival of pitching ace Cliff Lee.

When the opportunity arose for me to make some wild predictions of my own for the upcoming season, I couldn’t resist.

The following slideshow is my five wild predictions for the 2011 MLB season pertaining to the Philadelphia Phillies.

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Heading into the 2011 season, the Philadelphia Phillies are widely believed to be the favorite in the National League East, and maybe even the National League. 

However, to say that a team is without holes is unreasonable; in the case of the 2011 Phillies, there are indeed many questions that remain as they head to Clearwater to begin training.  On Friday, the Phillies packed up their trucks and sent the team’s gear down I-95 to Florida.

Here are the top 17 questions that remain going into Spring Training.

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In Major League Baseball today, fans are privileged to see several star hitters and pitchers square off every season.

The MLB schedule allows every team in their respective league to play each other, while mixing in inter-league play in the middle of June.

In 2011, the Boston Red Sox and their potent lineup will try to dismantle the Philadelphia Phillies, who have perhaps the best starting pitching staff on paper since the Atlanta Braves of the mid 90’s.

Aside from the prime sluggers and Cy Young candidates, 2011 refreshes bitter rivalries between New York Yankees great Alex Rodriguez and Athletics ace Dallas Braden; and Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips Vs. Cardinals youngster Jaime Garcia.

It was difficult to narrow the list of premiere match-ups down to 20, but the following hitter-pitcher duels will surely cause headlines…

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The Phillies have pulled off some trades for some top pitching talent over the past few seasons. 

In 2008, the Phillies traded Josh Outman, Adrian Cardenas and one other to acquire Joe Blanton. 

In 2009, the Phillies traded Carlos Carrasco, Jason Donald and Jason Knapp to acquire Cliff Lee. Then, in the offseason that year, the Phillies traded Kyle Drabek, Michael Taylor and Travis D’Arnaud for Roy Halladay.  

During the 2010 season, the Phillies traded J.A. Happ, Anthony Gose and another player for Roy Oswalt.

As you can tell, the Phillies system has been decimated by trades and therefore there is very little talent at the AA and AAA levels that can come up to the major league club and help fill specific needs.

Here are some ways the Phillies can strategically replenish the farm system.

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Alex Anthopoulos is a general manager not afraid to pull the trigger on any deal that may/could cause some to question his approach to rebuilding this club. 

In his short time at the helm, Anthopoulos has been at the forefront of some very elaborate dealings involving some of the biggest names in recent Blue Jays memory: Roy Halladay, Vernon Wells and, in some way, Shaun Marcum. 

Relinquishing the team of such character players that were the face of a franchise would devastate most clubs and their fans. Instead, the loss of such on-field leadership leads one to ponder: who is the leader in the clubhouse these days?

In 2010, you could say Shaun Marcum was the leader of the pitching staff with Wells behind the wheel as club representative. Now, players like Aaron Hill, Adam Lind, Ricky Romero and Jose Bautista are taking control of this team; “team” being the key word. 

All on that list are home grown talent with the exception of Bautista. Nevertheless, the Jays have a core—a nexus if you will—of budding young stars whose talent has not yet reached its full potential.

The difference in Toronto this year is a feeling of accomplishment and possibility.

With a refined focus on scouting and player development, the team is in a unique position to compete where division rivals are again playing the odds in the free agent market.

Countless others spend millions on established “names” and supposed stars labelled by the experts as the missing piece of the puzzle. 

Lucky for us, all signs point to the Jays reverting back to the golden age of baseball, worrying more about in-house matters than that of the green-eyed monster, to fulfil their tireless quest for a World Series championship.

Devon is the founder of The GM’s Perspective

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