MLB Experts' 2010 Predictions

It's that time of year again. Yes, it's time to peer into our crystal ball and try to discern what will unfold on the road to the World Series over the next seven months, before it actually does unfold and some (or all) of us invariably look silly. Don't believe me? Take a gander at last year's picks.

As we noted Thursday for our award picks, these are for entertainment purposes only. After all, baseball wouldn't be much fun if we could predict exactly what was going to happen before it actually did.

Before we get down to brass tacks a few interesting notes about this year's predictions:

• Let's begin at the end. There's some good news and some bad news for Yankee haters. Only five of our 13 experts have them repeating as World Series champions -- that'll have to qualify as the positive part. As for the negative, only four of 13 don't have them at least returning to the Fall Classic, and just one of us has them out of the playoffs altogether (enjoy that island, Mr. Hickey).

• Our safest bet as a division winner: the Phillies. Twelve of 13 experts took the reigning National League champs, and the one who didn't has them as the NL wild card.

• After that, we like the Yankees, Cardinals and -- wait for it -- Rockies the most, with only two panelists picking against each of them to win their respective division.

• We can't come anywhere close to a consensus in the AL Central or West, with three teams in each division receiving votes. The Central is particularly muddled, with the Twins getting six nods, the White Sox five and Tigers one.

AL East Predictions
Ed Price	Yankees	In recent years we've seen bad teams become good teams largely by improving their defense. Take a team like the Red Sox, who were already pretty good, and make them better at four positions (LF, CF, SS, 3B) and you've got a recipe for a champion. Oh, and their top 3 starters are better than the Yankees No. 2. -- Jeff Fletcher The reigning champs may have lost Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon, but they got younger with Curtis Granderson and bolstered their rotation with Javier Vazquez. No one in the AL East made up enough ground over the winter to eclipse New York. -- Andrew Johnson
Jeff Fletcher	Red Sox
Frankie Piliere	Yankees
John Hickey	Rays
Tom Krasovic	Yankees
Steve Phillips	Yankees
Andrew Johnson	Yankees
Marc Lancaster	Yankees
Matt Snyder	Yankees
Tom Fornelli	Yankees
Knox Bardeen	Yankees
Josh Alper	Yankees
Pat Lackey	Yankees

AL Central Predictions
Ed Price	White Sox	When in doubt go with the pitching. The AL Central is a muddled mess of mediocre teams, but the Pale Hose have a deep and formidable rotation that should give them enough consistentcy to win the title. -- Andrew Johnson Joe Nathan or no Joe Nathan, the Twins still have the best offense in the division and should be able to find a suitable closer. Considering the quality of teams in the AL Central this season, that's likely all they're going to need. -- Tom Fornelli
Jeff Fletcher	Twins
Frankie Piliere	Twins
John Hickey	Tigers
Tom Krasovic	Twins
Steve Phillips	Twins
Andrew Johnson	White Sox
Marc Lancaster	Twins
Matt Snyder	White Sox
Tom Fornelli	Twins
Knox Bardeen	White Sox
Josh Alper	White Sox
Pat Lackey	Twins

AL West Predictions
Ed Price	Angels	This division appears up for grabs, and the Rangers will certainly need some breaks to go their way -- most notably the health of newcomers Vladimir Guerrero and Rich Harden. But there's plenty of talent here, and if Ron Washington can keep the ship in order and everyone on the field, they've got a chance. -- Marc Lancaster The Angels are still the team to beat. Adding Joel Piniero gives them a good rotation depth to help make up for the loss of John Lackey, and with Brandon Wood seemingly finally ready to break out on the big league level, the Angels should have one more year on top before the rest of the division catches up with them. -- Pat Lackey
Jeff Fletcher	Angels
Frankie Piliere	Angels
John Hickey	Angels
Tom Krasovic	Angels
Steve Phillips	Angels
Andrew Johnson	Angels
Marc Lancaster	Rangers
Matt Snyder	Mariners
Tom Fornelli	Rangers
Knox Bardeen	Mariners
Josh Alper	Mariners
Pat Lackey	Angels

AL Wild Card Predictions
Ed Price	Rays	With the once again loaded New York Yankees in the division, the Red Sox will have their work cut out for them. They may not have the firepower to win the division, but this is one of baseball's elite clubs and they have perhaps the league's deepest pitching staff. -- Frankie Piliere The AL wild card has come out of the East six of the last seven years, and there's no reason to expect anything different this time. With Carl Crawford and Carlos Pena likely in their last season at the Trop, Tampa Bay's young core -- led by a resurgent B.J. Upton -- will pull together and edge out Boston. -- Marc Lancaster
Jeff Fletcher	Yankees
Frankie Piliere	Red Sox
John Hickey	Red Sox
Tom Krasovic	Rays
Steve Phillips	Red Sox
Andrew Johnson	Red Sox
Marc Lancaster	Rays
Matt Snyder	Red Sox
Tom Fornelli	Red Sox
Knox Bardeen	Red Sox
Josh Alper	Rays
Pat Lackey	Rays

NL East Predictions
Ed Price	Phillies	From top to bottom, the Phillies have the fiercest batting order in the National League. While their pitching staff might not be as rounded as Atlanta's, it's good enough, with their hitting, to hold off the Braves and Marlins for one more year -- at least. -- Knox Bardeen Even without Javier Vazquez, Tommy Hanson and Jair Jurrjens form the core of a great young pitching staff and with hitters like Yunel Escobar, Nate McLouth, and Martin Prado hitting what should be their prime, they should finally have enough offense to support that staff. -- Pat Lackey
Jeff Fletcher	Phillies
Frankie Piliere	Phillies
John Hickey	Phillies
Tom Krasovic	Phillies
Steve Phillips	Phillies
Andrew Johnson	Phillies
Marc Lancaster	Phillies
Matt Snyder	Phillies
Tom Fornelli	Phillies
Knox Bardeen	Phillies
Josh Alper	Phillies
Pat Lackey	Braves

NL Central Predictions
Ed Price	Reds	Scouts noticed a strong Cincinnati lineup this spring, and the Reds have a deeper pool of pitching than most NL teams. The Cardinals don't have depth or much outside 3-4 in their lineup, and the Cubs are ready to slide under .500. -- Ed Price Nearly everything went wrong for the Cubs last year -- injuries, laziness, overconfidence, Milton Bradley and even a serious health issue to the infant daughter of Ryan Dempster. The team still went 83-78 and was right with the Cardinals until the second week of August. This year, those issues are gone and they have the motivation of the underdog everyone is counting out. Not me. -- Matt Snyder
Jeff Fletcher	Cardinals
Frankie Piliere	Cardinals
John Hickey	Cardinals
Tom Krasovic	Cardinals
Steve Phillips	Cardinals
Andrew Johnson	Cardinals
Marc Lancaster	Cardinals
Matt Snyder	Cubs
Tom Fornelli	Cardinals
Knox Bardeen	Cardinals
Josh Alper	Cardinals
Pat Lackey	Cardinals

NL West Predictions
Ed Price	Rockies	Winners of the wild card in 1995, 2007 and 2009, the Rockies have the balance and depth to claim their first NL West title in franchise history. Watch for pitching prospect Christian Friedrich to join Colorado for the stretch drive. -- Tom Krasovic In a division that will be as closely contested as the NL West, I like to look for the team with the best starting pitching. That would be the Giants. If they can muster some offense this year, I like their chances. -- Tom Fornelli
Jeff Fletcher	Rockies
Frankie Piliere	Rockies
John Hickey	Rockies
Tom Krasovic	Rockies
Steve Phillips	Rockies
Andrew Johnson	Rockies
Marc Lancaster	Rockies
Matt Snyder	Rockies
Tom Fornelli	Giants
Knox Bardeen	Dodgers
Josh Alper	Rockies
Pat Lackey	Rockies

NL Wild Card Predictions
Ed Price	Braves	An appealing blend of youth and experience should put Bobby Cox's team back in the playoffs. Believe it or not, the Braves haven't been to the posteason since 2005, when the Astros beat them in the divisionals. -- Tom Krasovic Once you get beyond the Cards and Phils, few teams in the muddled National League can boast dual Cy Young/MVP candidates to rival Josh Johnson and Hanley Ramirez. If they do, they don't have talented players like Chris Coghlan, Cameron Maybin, Ricky Nolasco and Chris Volstad waiting to explode behind them. -- Josh Alper
Jeff Fletcher	Braves
Frankie Piliere	Braves
John Hickey	Brewers
Tom Krasovic	Braves
Steve Phillips	Braves
Andrew Johnson	Braves
Marc Lancaster	Braves
Matt Snyder	Giants
Tom Fornelli	Rockies
Knox Bardeen	Braves
Josh Alper	Marlins
Pat Lackey	Phillies

World Series Predictions
Ed Price	Angels over Rockies	Yes, the Angels lost John Lackey, Vladimir Guerrero and Chone Figgins. But they keep turning over their roster, and they keep winning behind the game's top manager, Mike Scioscia. They overcame one recent bugaboo last year in getting past the Red Sox in the ALDS, and now it's time for the next step. -- Ed Price Don't like their offense as much as in years past? That's OK. The Red Sox boast great pitching and defense, meaning their still above-average offense will be enough. In October, have fun dealing with Lester, Beckett, Lackey and maybe even a polished Buchholz. They could be as dominant as the White Sox rotation was in the '05 playoffs. -- Matt Snyder
Jeff Fletcher	Red Sox over Phillies
Frankie Piliere	Yankees over Phillies
John Hickey	Rays over Rockies
Tom Krasovic	Phillies over Yankees
Steve Phillips	Phillies over Yankees
Andrew Johnson	Rockies over Yankees
Marc Lancaster	Rockies over Yankees
Matt Snyder	Red Sox over Rockies
Tom Fornelli	Yankees over Phillies
Knox Bardeen	Yankees over Dodgers
Josh Alper	Yankees over Cardinals
Pat Lackey	Yankees over Cardinals