Batter's Box Interactive Magazine Batter's Box Interactive Magazine Batter's Box Interactive Magazine
Insert  "the Blue Jays win 133 games in this division" joke.
[More] (2,430 words)
Of all the divisions in the American League, this one had the best winning percentage?
[More] (2,338 words)
Sox it to me... (ugh that was bad even by my standards...)
[More] (1,739 words)
Getting closer now...
[More] (1,860 words)
The AL Central is a perpetual division of mystery here on The Box; I don’t think anyone has ever come reasonably close to predicting an order of finish that was remotely correct. For this I mostly blame the White Sox, and all indications are they may mess it up again, as they seem intent on both rebuilding and contending at the same time. Still, this is a pretty exciting time for a division that’s been in the cellar for a while. The Tigers were a big player in the off-season, signing Prince Fielder. The Royals are starting to graduate players from what was very recently the Majors best farm system, and Cleveland has some high upside talent to go along with a few grizzled veterans. That just leaves the Twins, which may be for the best. Let’s take a look.

[More] (2,489 words)
Here's a breakdown of what that other division will be throwing at the Jays this year. The White Sox and Tigers reload in an effort to bring down the two-time defending champs, while the Royals lurk in the shadows.
[More] (3,143 words)
In Surprise news, the Royals still suck.
[More] (1,918 words)
The AL Central promises to be one of the most balanced divisions in baseball in 2009. No team should win more than 90 or less than 70, and a bunch of 80 win teams would not be surprising. Heck, even Vegas agrees - they predict all the teams will fall into the 75-85 win range. Does that make the Central boring or exciting? Gwyn and I will try to give you a couple of reasons why it might be of interest. With that being said, we'll start our preview.
[More] (2,335 words)
Joey Gathright is on the Royals and you know what that means!
[More] (544 words)

It isn’t his age that bothers him, but rather the fact that he is aging. Generally lauded for the strength of his ascent, Lance Veld is now at the supposed apex for a would-be politician – the point at which one is expected to break through and secure the long-sought victory. He has come close before, but as he has progressed through his prime years, the excitement of aspiration has given way to the discomfort of knowing that the window of opportunity is shrinking.

[More] (856 words)

Last week, the Toronto Star ran a feature in which they solicited readers to submit their life story in six words.  As this is my first assignment for Batter’s Box - my Spring Training if you will - I figured I should start to stretch myself out and continue with The Star’s theme in breaking down the Minnesota Twins.

 Depressing offseason.  Johan gone.  76-86 inevitable.

[More] (2,000 words)
I don't need to tell you what the Tigers have been up to this offseason. GM Dave Dombrowski made the biggest news of the winter not involving anyone named Barry, Roger or Johan by trading a bevy of prospects and Mike Rabelo for Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis. They promptly locked D-Train up through 2010 for $29mil. Cabrera remains unextended, but he isn't a free agent until after 2009, so there's still time.
[More] (2,538 words)
Do you believe in miracles?
[More] (2,316 words)

I thought I would take a broad-based approach to my Tigers preview this year. Why depend on only one brain, when I have at my disposal a network of hundreds if not thousands of better baseball brains to take advantage of? After plumbing the depths of my e-mail contact list, I managed to solicit a variety of different answers to a few specific, important questions regarding this year's Tiger team. Take it away, guys...

[More] (3,079 words)
The following is not a preview so much as an attempt to start a conversation about Cleveland’s chances in 2006, in light of some different projection systems and expectations produced by the free market.

Last year in this space, I did a run-down of some of the available “investment” markets that pertained to the team and how various projection systems felt about the futures markets and propositions. This year, I will do the same.
[More] (3,705 words)