After 162 regular season games, the AL Central title came down to a one game playoff between Minnesota and Detroit because of the fact they finished with an identical 86-76 record. The Twins beat the Tigers 6-5 but it was all for naught as they were promptly swept by the Yankees three games to none in the Divisional Championship series. Chicago was the third place team in the division with a record of 79-83, 7 ½ games out of first. There was also a tie for last place in the Central with Cleveland and Kansas City finishing with identical 65-97 records, 21 ½ games out of first. Here is a brief preview of all the teams in the Central and their future odds for the 2010 season.
Minnesota Twins – Odds to Win the American League 9/1 Odds to Win the World Series 20/1
The Twins come in as the slight odds-on-favorite to win the Central division strictly based on their offensive fire power, not their pitching. They do have Francisco Liriano and Scott Baker leading the rotation and Joe Nathan as their closer, but there are still more questions than answers with this staff. With AL MVP Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, and Jason Kubel anchoring the offense they should still win enough games to right back on top of the division this season.
Chicago White Sox – Odds to Win the American League 12/1 Odds to Win the World Series 25/1
Chicago added ace Jake Peavy to the starting rotation and along with Mark Buehrie and closer Bobby Jenks they now have one of the better pitching staffs in the AL. New acquisitions Mark Teahan, Omar Vizquel, Andruw Jones, and Juan Pierre should provide the new look Sox with enough talent to have a solid shot at recapturing the Central division title.
Detroit Tigers – Odds to Win the American League 14/1 Odds to Win the World Series 28/1
The Tigers will rely heavily on a pair of young arms with Max Scherzer and Rick Porcello leading the rotation along with Jose Valverde as their closer. They did just sign Johnny Damon to a one year deal, but will still need to find a way to replace the loss of Curtis Granderson, Edwin Jackson, and Placido Polanco. Aging veterans Magglio Ordonez and Carlos Guillen will have to shoulder most of the load if the Tigers are going to go anywhere this season.
Cleveland Indians – Odds to Win the American League 35/1 Odds to Win the World Series 75/1
Cleveland never seemed to recover from the loss of P Cliff Lee and C Victor Martinez last season on their way to finishing 16 games under .500. Their current pitching staff is sketchy at best with Justin Masterson and David Huff as two of the better starters and Kerry Wood and Chris Perez in the bullpen. They do have some offensive power with Grady Sizemore, Asdrubal Cabrera, and Matt LaPorta in the lineup, but do expect any miracles from this team as they will struggle just to have a winning record.
Kansas City Royals – Odds to Win the American League 45/1 Odds to Win the World Series 85/1
Kansas City has a solid rotation led by Zack Grienke, Gil Meche, and Brian Bannister and a decent closer in Joakim Soria which should help them improve on last year’s 65 win season. Where they are lacking is having the bats to successfully compete in a very tough division. They did add Josh Fields to go along Billy Butler and David DeJesus but it probably will not be enough to keep them from spending another season in Central division basement.
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