2010 Major League East Wrap-Up - Part 1 of 3

Around the League:
East:

New York (94-68): New York wins the East, behind the tremendous performances of Pedro Lewis, Steven Hyde, Keith Lee, Brett Solo, and Chad White. Chad led the league in HR & RBI, while Brett Solo may have had the best season of his career. Brett hit 40 HR, batted .310, and knocked in 125 runs. Late in the year, he also tied a record by hitting 4 HRs in a single game, in a crucial victory over eventual wild card winner Philadelphia. Pedro won the pitchers triple crown, and was dominant thru the entire season, as evidenced by his league high 5 shutouts. Late in the year, New York reshapes their team by acquiring OF Peter Gibson and RP Jonathan Papelbrad in exchange for a minor league prospect and #4 starter Brad Pearce. Gibson gives the team speed and defense in the outfield, and replaces the underachiving group of Roy Brown and Sammy Swopa. Papelbrad augments New York's already fierce bullpen. New York will host Bay Area in the first round of the playoffs for the 2nd time in 3 years.

Philadelphia (90-72): Philly claims the wild card for the 4th straight year. This year, they do it with solid starting pitching, a dominant closer, and an MVP caliber year (albeit in not enough at bats) from their catcher Matt Bulger. Bulger hits .340 in 406 at bats with a .547 slugging percentage. The ageless Roscoe Savage (38) has a dominant season going 15-6 3.09 in 166 IP. Converted starter to bullpen ace Alex Devarez may be the MVP of the team, with his 45 saves, 2.01 ERA, and 55-10 K/BB ratio. Philadelphia will travel to Denver to begin the 1st round of the playoffs.

Florida Penguins (73-89): Florida wasnt expected to contend this year, and they didnt disappoint. The good news was the play of George White, Kenny Anderson Jr., and Conn the Barbarian. George went 10-10 3.22 with a 192-56 K/BB ratio. Rookie Clayton Lewis showed promise, going 11-12 3.38 and 141 K in 176 IP. Conn was much better in the 1st half than in the 2nd half, but still finished with 28 HR, 45 SB, and 98 RBI. He should be a 40-40 man in his 3rd year. Kenny had a nice season that reminded us of a vintage season from his father. Kenny Jr. hit .299 with 111 SB and 0 HR. For all you math majors and sabremetricians out there, that a zero power-speed score.

Toronto Seagulls (64-98): Toronto was easily the most disappointing team in the league this season. After getting the #1 draft pick, signing the Garciajawa brothers, and trading for Alex Maldonado, much more was expected. Michael G. hit only .245, but did manage 44 doubles, 10 triples, and 17 homers. However, in 689 at bats, those numbers were not up to par. His older brother, Nomad, seemed to have lost his power stroke (13 HR) and hit only .289. The good news in Toronto is that John Hafner had a career season. The gold glove 1B led the league with a .352 avg and also hit 12 HRs and 38 doubles. Maldonado hit only .247 with 9 homers in half a season, before being traded to Denver (more on that later). On the mound, their best pitcher was Danny Almonte, who went 14-8 2.79 with 184 K's in 206 IP. The worst pitcher in the leauge was by far Jean-Luc Lewis, who had a historically bad season. The young jawa went 1-15 6.38 with 138 IP, 168 hits, 42 walks, and 126 K's. The dominant pitcher of the future is still expected to be Stephen Hamburg. Hamburg showed signs of dominance this year with 215 K's and 41 walks in 212 IP. However, he was erratic at times and finished 9-12 3.82 and allowed 22 HR. Scouts say that once he gets the gopher ball under control, he will be the best pitcher in the league.