Inside Pitch

Welcome to this week's daily division previews on ye olde Inside Pitch blog. Each day we'll provide you some nuggets on each team, make our own selection and then give you a chance to cast your vote on the division winner. We start in the AL East, the division where so many Buffalo fans are focused every year.

The Rays won it last year and went to the World Series. Remember that? All the Yankee-Red Sox talk that goes on every year seems to overlook that point heading into '09. And Tampa Bay is no fluke either. A great lineup and some terrific pitching mean Joe Maddon's club is no fluke. Still, B.J. Upton's shoulder is an early-season trouble spot, the bullpen overachieved last year and can't possibly be that good again and I hate starting David Price at Triple-A Durham to keep his innings down (I still think it's a money move to slow his arbitration clock).

So I think the Rays take a step back this year and the Red Sox are primed to make another run. They lost Game Seven of the ALCS last year at Tampa or we could be talking about three World Series titles in five years after none in the previous 86. You have to love how the Sox are reinventing themselves from within: Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury, Kevin Youkilis, Jon Lester and Jonathan Papelbon are stars and none of them were around in '04.

Then there's the Yankees. I love the signing of CC Sabathia (although he's done nothing in October). I'm OK with Mark Teixeira and I don't think much of A.J. Burnett, who had one good year in Toronto. There are still questions about injuries in the rotation and about A-Rod's status. How good a shortstop can Derek Jeter still be and is Brett Gardner really the starting center fielder? It all figures to be a pretty interesting inaugural year in the new Yankee Stadium. 

Only because duty calls do we even bother with the Orioles and Blue Jays. I do think Baltimore will be improved this year and the O's are trying to do it through the farm (catcher Matt Wieters is a keeper). Ex-Bison Jeremy Guthrie is the Opening Day starter for the second straight year. The Blue Jays lost Burnett and injuries have shelved Shawn Marcum (for the season) and Dustin McGowan (at least until May). This might be the year Roy Halladay is dealt at the deadline.

So my picks are 1-Red Sox; 2-Yankees (AL wild card); 3-Rays; 4-Orioles; 5-Blue Jays.

Choose your AL East winner below. Next: NL East.

---Mike Harrington