2020 Predictions By Division: AL Central

Not even a day after I finished my 2020 AL East division predictions, MLB announced that Chris Sale would miss the entirety of the season due to Tommy John surgery, despite an announcement a few weeks back that contradicted the more recent statement.

I'd like to say that this announcement was a surprise, but Sale's been injury-prone since arriving in Boston in 2017. Arm and elbow problems have consistently landed him on the injured-list, most notably in 2019 when he was limited to just 147 innings.

Hopefully, there won't be any news headline that'll prove detrimental to my AL Central predictions. After all, with the season already scheduled to be significantly limited, the last thing I want is for any player's season to be cut even shorter, let alone ended before it begins.

With all of that in mind, let's talk about the AL Central division race, one that has been one of the least competitive in Baseball over the last few seasons.

This year, however, could be more exciting following an offseason in which the Chicago White Sox made some substantial improvements.

The Minnesota Twins, last year's division champs, set the single-season home run record before being swiftly defeated by the Yankees in the ALDS. It'll be interesting to see whether they have what it takes to repeat, or if another team will rise to the occasion.

As for the bottom 2 teams, I expect the Royals and Tigers to fight to the death for 4th place. Without any further adieu, let's take an in-depth look at the American League Central division.

1st Place: Minnesota Twins

The true test for the Minnesota Twins in 2020 will be consistency, an attribute that they've struggled with in the past. Following a Wild Card game appearance in 2017, for example, the Twins finished the 2018 season with a disappointing record of 78-84.

Fortunately, they soared to new heights in 2019, capturing the AL Central Division title and breaking the 2018 Yankees record for home runs in a single season, a feat I don't think anyone saw coming. To my knowledge, most of the team, including the 39-year old Nelson Cruz, will be returning for another crack at a World Series championship.

This team has a very talented, young core, both at the plate and on the mound, and I don't foresee any AL Central team taking the crown away from the Twins anytime soon.

2nd Place: Chicago White Sox

Signing Dallas Keuchel and Edwin Encarnacion to contracts along with extending Yoan Moncada's have positioned the Chicago White Sox to be in the 2020 AL Wild Card hunt and, possibly take home the division title as early as next season.

Don't forget, Tim Anderson captured the AL batting title last year as well, meaning this Chicago White Sox offense can do it all. Eloy Jimenez, in what will be his 2nd season, also seems destined for great things.

But the true test to the strength of the Chicago White Sox will be when and how well Luis Robert can contribute to the team's postseason hopes. If he gets some solid playing time, I expect the White Sox to be in the hunt 'till the very end.

3rd Place: Cleveland Indians

The Indians may have gone 93-69 in 2019, but in my opinion, their window for winning a World Series championship has closed, and the team's front office seems to share that belief. Why else would they trade 2-time Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber for Delino DeShields Jr?

It seems like the Indians are throwing in the towel before the season starts, and if things continue at this rate, I wouldn't be surprised to see them shopping face of the franchise Francisco Lindor at the trade deadline.

Up against any other NL team in 2016, the Indians likely would've walked away from the World Series as champions. But they had to face the historic Chicago Cubs team, and ever since that game 7 loss, Cleveland hasn't come close to being the team they once were.

4th Place: Kansas City Royals

Last year, the AL Central featured 2 100-loss teams, the Kansas City Royals and the Detroit Tigers.

Although neither team is poised to make a run for a playoff berth, the Royals roster gives me slightly more hope than the Tigers, which is why it stands to reason that they'll beat Detroit out for 4th place for the second year in a row.

Whit Merrifield is one of the most underrated players in the game, and his all-around talents shine brightly along with the surging, power-hitting Jorge Soler, who led the AL with 48 dingers last year.

I don't know much about the team aside from those 2 players, but if they perform at the levels they did in 2019, Kansas City, if nothing else, can take home 4th.

5th Place: Detroit Tigers

A few years ago, Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera seemed like a shoo-in for the 500 home run club. Now, at the age of 36, he's coming off missing the vast majority of the 2019 season, and his Detroit Tigers are coming off a season in which they lost 114 games.

I probably couldn't name 5 players on this Tigers team, a testament to how much they've regressed over the past few seasons without many signs of hope.

Truth be told, nothing's going to change for this team until Casey Mize makes his way to the MLB. Hopefully, he'll be the reincarnation of Justin Verlander for Detroit, and they can find success once more.

Frankenset Page #69

I plan on getting into the Washington Nationals' historic World Series victory in a blog post later this weekend. For now, however, I'll stick to how impressed I am that in the first year without Bryce Harper, this team made history.

Like I said, there's a lot to get into with the Nationals, and a performance like this is worthy and deserving of its own blog post. Thus, I'll get to them on Saturday or Sunday, and I'll stick to frankenset page #69 today.

Featuring cards #613-621, this page spans 5 decades (the 1970s-2010s) of Baseball history. Without any further adieu, let's begin with #613, a card from earlier this decade.

#613 2011 Topps Dexter Fowler

In hindsight, perhaps giving Dexter Fowler a 5-year $83 million deal wasn't the brightest move that the St. Louis Cardinals could've made following a campaign in which they went 86-76 but missed the playoffs.

Now 33 years old, Fowler's been relegated to a bench role; his 3 seasons in St. Louis thus far have been marred with injuries and an overall decrease in production since making the All-Star team with the Cubs back in 2016.

#614 1990 Fleer Jeff Robinson

Seeing a Tigers logo alone reminds me of how much this team has slipped since the early part of the 2010s when they were one of the most feared teams in the game. Detroit won 90 games 5 years ago in 2014 before losing to the Orioles in the ALDS.

Flashforward to the 2019 MLB season. The Tigers are the worst team in Baseball at 47-114. That's a huge statement, considering that there were 4 teams with 100+ losses this season.

#615 1983 Topps Garry Maddox

For some reason, a ton of Garry Maddox cards come to mind when I think of my favorites from the 80s, and it's not even like he's one of my player collections. First, there's his 1985 Donruss card, now '83 Topps.

Granted, there are a million cards from the '83 set of hitters wearing powder blue uniforms, but there's something about Maddox's that's extra special.

#616 2006 Topps Kenji Johjima

In other news, the Red Sox hired Chaim Bloom, the former Rays senior vice president of baseball operations, to be their new chief Baseball officer, an expansion of the job previously held by Dave Dombrowski.

Bloom will jump directly into a challenging situation with J.D. Martinez and Mookie Betts' respective futures in Boston unsure. Dombrowski, on the other hand, likely won't find a job as high up in an organization as president of baseball ops given how he left Boston.

#617 1980 Topps Joaquin Andujar

Long before they moved to the American League and won a World Series, the Houston Astros had some incredibly talented teams towards the end of the 1970s and early 1980s.

Led by guys like Cesar Cedeno, J.R. Richard, and Joaquin Andujar, the teams, in one way or another, are reminiscent of the perennial championship-contending squad of the late 2010s. However, they weren't able to capture the Fall Classic title until many decades later.

#618 1983 Topps LaMarr Hoyt

In last week's frankenset post, I remember mentioning the White Sox uniforms, introduced during the mid-1980s, with "SOX" spelled in large letters on the front of the jersey.

More so than most MLB teams, the White Sox have had a surplus of different uniforms, so I never know what to expect when I stumble upon one of their cards from the 70s or 80s. Along with the red stripes, I'd rank this uniform as one of my favorites in the team's history.

#619 2008 Topps Heritage Blake DeWitt

Though Topps Heritage, for me, isn't as impressive or desirable as it once was, the on-point recreations of iconic Flagship designs have remained impressive, from 2001 all the way to 2019.

The 2008 Heritage design paid homage to the 1959 Topps set, one of my top 15 favorites of all-time. It was refreshing to see Topps utilize the design once again in 2019 Topps Archives with new names and better photography.

#620 1971 Topps Frank Howard

It's very fitting that, following the Nationals' World Series win, my frankenset page features a card of Frank Howard, a member of the Washington Senators, the last team to play in the nation's capital before the Expos became the Nats in 2005.

Aside from Walter Johnson, Howard may just be the most recognizable player in Senators' history. He made 4 All-Star game appearances in Washington and finished top 5 in MVP voting twice before the team relocated to Texas.

#621 1988 Donruss Donnie Moore

Last up, an alright card from 1988 Donruss which, given the set design, is as good as you can hope for. I love the Angels uniform above as it reminds me of guys like Rod Carew from the early and mid-1980s.

If only it was accompanied by a better base set design, this card could emerge as one of my favorites of the page.

Another Oddball Appreciation Post

Though I'm constantly on the lookout for new cards at the show, online, or at my LCS that I'd want to add to my collection, I must say that I'm definitely content with my collection right now. As far as what I collect goes, I certainly feel confident and proud even of what I've acquired over the course of the time I've been collecting. 

However, if there's one thing I wish I had more of, it would probably be oddball cards such as the set that's going to be the focus of my blog post today; 1976 Chicagoland Cards Chicago's Greats, a set my Dad and I got for free from the Chicagoland booth with a purchase of cards at this years' National.

From what I know, the set appears to have been a promotional item produced by the Chicagoland cards company back in 1976, honoring the greats to wear both Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox jerseys. 

Since this set was produced in the mid-1970's, the impact of players such as Billy Williams and Fergie Jenkins on the Cubs wasn't felt as significantly as it is today, so those 2 were left out of this product. Instead, the set is geared more towards the players from the 30's-50's with some 60's players like Ron Santo included as well.

Although the set mainly focuses on players, there are a couple exceptions with the main one being P.K. Wrigley who inherited ownership of the Chicago Cubs and the Wrigley gum company. Surprisingly, the Chicagoland company decided not to produce a card of William Wrigley Jr. who was known to be far more flamboyant than P.K. The same simple design translates to the card of Wrigley as it does for the players, and like the rest of the set, the photo chosen is in black and white.

As I previously mentioned, both Cubs and White Sox players were included in this set in what was a 25-card set with 13 White Sox included and 12 Cubs. Although I'm undoubtedly far more familiar with the Cubs than I am with the White Sox, I was able to recognize a couple White Sox names when I looked at the checklist such as Minnie Minoso and Al Lopez, players that I've shown the cards of above along with another duo of White Sox players.

I can't say I would be able to identify this card product online or anywhere for that matter if I hadn't received it from that company at the card show. The card backs, shown above, provide no information about the set but do include stats with the Cubs or White Sox (depending on the team), lifetime stats, and career highs for each of these players in addition to the basic information and a quick blurb at the bottom of each card listed under "Highlights."

Since there aren't many names associated with the eras of baseball that I am familiar with which are the 70's-80's, I had some trouble recognizing a couple names from the Cubs portion of the checklist as well as the White Sox part. Until now, I hadn't noticed that a player had been chosen from each position to represent the team, appearing like a "dream team" of sorts. A minor exception to this rule is the 2nd righthanded pitcher due to the White Sox occupying more spots in the checklist than the Cubs.

If we're going strictly off design, it's not the most exciting oddball set you've ever seen, especially if you're one who's indifferent about black and white photos. However, I can definitely see what whoever made this product was trying to do, and I appreciate that, especially considering it's an oddball set.

And like I said before about oddballs, the more the merrier.