They have, however, done little to improve an unreliable bullpen and starters Haren, Pinero and Kazmir have simply not shown they can maintain high levels of performance for an entire season. The Angels still have some top quality pitching and a better than average lineup. I would never bet against Mike Scioscia but he will earn a place in Cooperstown if he can bring a championship with the pieces he has been given this year. This team cannot be as bad as last year’s but it is almost certain to finish at the bottom of the division. As usual, the pitching will be good to great with three strong starters at the top of the rotation and an exciting rookie power are in Michael Pineda who will be asked to finish his development in the majors. Speaking of anemic offenses, the Mariners hope to attract fans by showcasing some young talent throughout the year but have little else to offer. It is also hard to imagine the team getting full seasons out of aging players like Matsui and Mark Ellis or injury-prone outfielders like Coco Crisp and DeJesus. Of course, there is always the specter of injury hovering over young pitchers but even if they stay healthy, the lineup does not have depth needed for a championship. The young A’s pitching staff has incredible talent that will keep them in games throughout the year. Some expect Oakland to challenge and point to the addition of Hidecki Matsui and David DeJesus who are expected to bring some pop to an anemic offense. There are a lot of power arms and great veteran presence with Arthur Rhodes and Darren Oliver tossing from the port side.ĭespite these questions, the Rangers have fewer missing parts than the other AL West teams. In the absence of a trade, it is unclear if a reliable closer will emerge. The Ranger bullpen was solid last year, especially as Feliz showed he could own the ninth inning. This is the stuff of much hope, but the Rangers have had good rotations fall apart in the past. Nefti Feliz has a great power arm but it remains to be seen how he will perform as a starter. Tommy Hunter and Scott Feldman had promising, if inconsistent, seasons. Wilson and Colby Lewis were studs last year. Skeptics are wondering if a Lee-less staff can repeat its 2010 success. Pitching proved itself last year even before Cliff Lee appeared. Texas has a top shelf line-up with quality depth at every position. This year, the question is, “Can the Rangers be beaten?” The simple answer is not in the West. Seattle, WA-March 23, 2011-As the 2010 season began, virtually no one saw Texas winning the AL West, much less the AL crown. You can find out more about MLB11: The Show HERE.īy Laird Harris, Seattle-Based FenwayNation Columnist So, all in all, if you like baseball and you like playing a very realistic virtual version of it, go out and get MLB11: The Show. And the 'Road To The Show' minor league mode is even better than before. He also likes something called the '2 versus 2 multi-player mode'. My son tells me that he likes the 'pure analog controls'. And, while I hate the fact that hitters can call endless timeouts during real MLB at-bats, the fact that you can do it in this game lends even greater credibility to the experience. I also noticed that in this year's version the pitcher can balk if he's not careful-excellent. For example, if you look closely, you'll see that some players have clumps of mud on their cleats. Some of the most impressive things to me are the little details that add so much to the realism of the experience-something SONY has always been good at. Not that he's a geek or anything-you know what I mean!īottom line? MLB11: The Show is really fun to play. I left that part to my 15-year old son, who contributed his evaluation of the game to this review. So, my assessment of MLB11: The Show is purely based on the extent to which I'm having fun playing it-and very little to do with the geeky technical aspects. I'm over 50 and remember when "Pong" was the hot video game.
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