Ozzie Guillen hopes to lead his White Sox to a division title this season.
(Creative Commons)

AL CENTRAL

Chicago White Sox

2009 Record: 79-83 (Third place)

2009 Recap: The White Sox entered the 2009 season as defending American League Central champions, but they weren't able to repeat the performance. They didn't score nearly enough runs, finishing 12th in the league in that category, and seemed overly reliant on the long ball. Their roster was full of older, broken down veterans -- which seems to be a common theme in this division. Manager Ozzie Guillen was frequently complaining about the poor performance of his players, and threw a tantrum when he caught them watching a college football game in the clubhouse.
    
Mark Buerhle, John Danks and Gavin Floyd formed a decent top of the rotation, but Chicago's other starters struggled. Buerhle was responsible for the highlight of the season when he threw a perfect game against the Rays on July 23. Aside from that, everything was far from perfect for the White Sox. They made a trade for Jake Peavy halfway through the season, but Peavy wasn't able to make his first start until late September.

Key Additions:
-OF Andruw Jones
-OF Juan Pierre
-RHP J.J. Putz
-3B Mark Teahen
-INF Omar Vizquel

Key Losses:
-INF Wilson Betemit
-RHP Octavio Dotel
-OF Jermaine Dye
-OF Scott Posednik

2010 Prediction: First place.

With the acquisition of Peavy and the return of Freddy Garcia, the Sox have the strongest starting staff in the division. Chicago got away from its power-first approach, signing players like Juan Pierre. They look like they finally have a decent combination of speed and power. They also strengthened their defense by picking up Mark Teahen from the Royals, and shifting Gordon Beckham over to second base.
    
The question marks in the lineup will be Alex Rios, who the Sox acquired from the Blue Jays last season, and Andruw Jones. Both players had trouble performing with their previous teams. The Sox also have a number of young players, such as shortstop Alexei Ramirez, moving into key roles, which could lead to growing pains.

Between their deep rotation, their new approach to offense and the offseason struggles of their competitors, the White Sox look poised to finish first in the AL Central this year.

Minnesota Twins

2009 Record: 87-76 (First place)

2009 Recap: Minnesota reached the playoffs after beating the Detroit Tigers in a play-in game for the right to face the Yankees in the Division Series. While the games against New York were exciting, they didn't go well for Minnesota. They got swept in three games to put a quick end to their season.
    
The Twins struggled early. Hard-throwing starter Francisco Liriano, who Minnesota expected to play a key role in the rotation, performed poorly. But a gamble on Carl Pavano paid off. Pavano helped the Twins stay in the race with the Tigers to win the division.

Catcher Joe Mauer had an incredible season and finally received the recognition he deserves as one of the elite talents in the game when he was named AL MVP. What made Mauer's contributions even more important was the loss of first baseman Justin Morneau for the season on Sept. 14. This left a huge gap in the lineup, but Mauer filled in aptly, picking up the slack and guiding his team to the playoffs.

Key Additions:
-RHP Clay Condrey
-SS J.J. Hardy
-2B Orlando Hudson
-1B Jim Thome

Key Losses:
-RHP Boof Bonser
-SS Orlando Cabrera
-3B Joe Crede
-OF Carlos Gomez

2010 Prediction: Second place.

New stadium, new contract for their star catcher -- could this mean a new attitude has taken hold in Minnesota? The Twins have long been considered a "small market" team, but after inking Mauer to an eight-year, $184 million deal that seems to be changing. The team's payroll is quickly approaching $100 million.

A big reason for the apparent shift in team philosophy is the opening of their new stadium, the open-air Target Field. Signing Mauer was a great decision, but an open-air stadium in Minnesota...really? I want to meet the architect that thought that was a good idea. (For the first time since elementary school, ballplayers in Minnesota can look forward to the possibility of a snow day.)

The season hasn't started yet, but the Twins have already received some dismal injury news. Closer Joe Nathan blew out his elbow in spring training. It looks like the Twins will try to fill his void with Jon Rauch, who struck out 49 batters in 70 innings last season and had a 3.60 ERA.

Minnesota has a strong rotation. They're expecting big things from Liriano when he rejoins a staff anchored by Nick Blackburn, Scott Baker and Kevin Slowey. The Twins are hopeful about Liriano -- evidence from spring training shows that he has rediscovered his speed and control.

The lineup should have more than enough power, with a healthy Morneau rejoining Mauer, Michael Cuddyer and Jason Kubel. The team also added speed and defense with the signings of second baseman Orlando Hudson and shortstop J.J. Hardy. The Twins had reason for optimism heading into the season. But with the injury to Nathan and the question marks about Liriano's performance, this team will finish no better than second in the division.

Detroit Tigers

2009 Record: 86-77 (Second place)

2009 Recap: Detroit led the division for much of the season, but suffered a collapse at the end rivaling only that of the auto industry. The Tigers now have the distinction of being the only team in MLB history to lose a three-game lead with only four games left to play. Justin Verlander, Edwin Jackson and rookie Rick Porcello formed a strong starting staff. Verlander earned a league-high 19 wins and Porcello flashed brilliance as an early season call-up. Unfortunately, former phenom Dontrelle Willis still hasn't lived up to his potential in Detroit. Willis spent time in the minors as well as two and a half months on the disabled list after being diagnosed with an anxiety disorder.
    
The Tigers' lineup was formidable, albeit aging, as Miguel Cabrera and Brandon Inge provided the power, and Magglio Ordonez hit for average. Yet Cabrera seemed to find himself in trouble all season. One night before a game he decided it would be a good idea to stay out until 6 a.m., come home drunk and get in a fight with his wife. Manager Dave Dombrowski picked Cabrera up at the police station a mere 11 hours before the team's game against the White Sox. During the game, the slugger looked hung over and went 0-4.

Key Additions:
-LHP Phil Coke
-OF Johnny Damon
-OF Austin Jackson
-RHP Max Scherzer  
-RHP Jose Valverde

Key Losses:
-OF Curtis Granderson
-1B Aubrey Huff
-RHP Edwin Jackson
-2B Placido Polanco
-RHP Fernando Rodney
-LHP Jarrod Washburn

2010 Prediction: Third place.

The Tigers made some mind-boggling moves this offseason. They trimmed payroll and looked like they were entering rebuilding mode by trading Curtis Granderson and Edwin Jackson, yet proceeded to sign outfielder Johnny Damon a few weeks later. The team essentially swapped a younger, less expensive Granderson for an older, pricier Damon, which doesn't seem to make much sense.

Cabrera should provide power on offense, but it is unknown what the Tigers can expect from rookies Austin Jackson and Scott Sizemore. I got a chance to see Jackson play this spring and he definitely has speed -- he ran around the field faster than a fat kid chasing an ice cream truck. Aside from the two rookies and Cabrera, the Tigers have a roster full of old players who could be entering their decline phase.
    
The Tigers' pitching staff still includes Verlander and Porcello - as well as Max Scherzer, who was acquired from the Diamondbacks in the offseason - but Jackson is no longer with the team. Coaches in Detroit liked the way Willis was throwing the ball this spring, and are expecting big things from him, but he hasn't flashed anything close to the brilliance he once had. If Porcello struggles or Willis fails to recover, this team will be in a lot of trouble. In the bullpen, the Tigers lost their closer, Fernando Rodney, but managed to sign Jose Valverde as a replacement. Since Detroit's pitching could falter and its lineup looks old and at risk of declining, Tigers fans shouldn't expect their team to finish better than third.

Kansas City Royals

2009 Record: 65-97 (Tied-Fourth place)

2009 Recap: The Royals entered the month of May leading the division last year, but quickly fell all the way to fourth by June. Aside from ace Zack Greinke there was little talent on the team. The other starters struggled all year, but that could be a product of the team's terrible defense and lack of run support. The fact that Geinke managed to record 16 victories and win the Cy Young award with the Royals behind him speaks volumes about his brilliance as a pitcher.
 
Third baseman Alex Gordon continued to fail to live up to his potential, struggling through slumps and injuries all season. No one else in the lineup provided the power or consistency necessary to score runs either, and the team committed far too many errors on defense.

Key Additions:
-OF Brian Anderson
-OF Rick Ankiel
-INF Wilson Betemit  
-C Jason Kendall
-OF Scott Posednik

Key Losses:
-C John Buck
-OF Coco Crisp
-1B Mike Jacobs
-C Miguel Olivo
-3B Mark Teahen

2010 Prediction: Fourth place.

I'm not sure who I feel worse for heading into the season -- Zack Greinke or Royals fans. Greinke recently signed a four-year, $38 million contract with Kansas City, ensuring that the ace won't get a chance to pitch for a competitive team until he's 30. At least he is getting paid though.

2010 leaves little reason for excitement from Royals fans, aside from every fifth day when Greinke takes the hill, of course. The only other potential draw to Kauffman Stadium is an incredible promotional schedule that includes 72 days of discounts or freebies. That speaks more to the team's outlook than the owner's generosity, however, as 72 days of promotions is on par with most minor league teams.  
    
The team is inexplicably going to try Kyle Farnsworth in the starting rotation, which is worse than trying to fit a square peg into no hole. Kansas City also lacked anything resembling a strategy this offseason. Their only big signings were Rick Ankiel and Jason Kendall, which isn't really much help. The rest of their acquisitions were underperforming players ditched by the White Sox.

The Royals will enter yet another season with far too few capable players on their roster. Unless the team figures out some way to send Greinke to the mound every day, KC is slated for another fourth place finish.  

Cleveland Indians

2009 Record: 65-97 (Tied-Fourth place)

2009 Recap: 2007 seems so long ago. That's the last time the Indians fielded a competitive team. For the second year in a row, the Indians inexplicably traded away a Cy Young-winning pitcher, trading Cliff Lee to the Phillies in July. Watching the World Series had to sting for fans in Cleveland as the franchise's two best pitchers both made it to the championship while playing for different ballclubs. The Indians were hoping for Fausto Carmona to pick up the slack, but that didn't happened.
    
Cleveland's lineup suffered a huge power outage as centerfielder Grady Sizemore and designated hitter Travis Hafner missed significant time to injuries, and nobody stepped up to fill the void. Last year's underperforming offense and struggling rotation were so terrible that it cost manager Eric Wedge his job, as the team's ownership announced that he would not be coming back at the end of the season.
    
Key Additions:
-1B Russell Branyan
-OF Austin Kearns
-C Mike Redmond

Key Losses:
-RHP Greg Acquino
-INF Jamey Carroll
-C Kelly Shoppach

2010 Prediction: Fifth place.

The Indians signed manager Manny Acta to captain their ship this season. Acta is walking into a situation that he will be very familiar with. Last season he posted a .299 winning percentage as the Nationals' skipper, so losing is definitely something he is used to.

Cleveland is keeping its fingers crossed that Sizemore and Hafner return healthy and can rediscover their strokes on offense. Even if those two rebound, the roster just doesn't look threatening. The Indians have a spotty starting rotation at best, and are clearly in the middle of a rebuilding phase. The best thing that can be said about their roster is that they have some prospects with potential - the result of those idiotic trades they've made the last two years.

The Indians should expect to perform just like they did in the movie "Major League," only with a less enjoyable cast and no happy ending. Cleveland is doomed to finish last in the division this season.