There have been some monumental player transactions during the off-season, and the biggest so far have been pulled off by the Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Red Sox.
The Phillies added pitching ace Cliff Lee to its already loaded starting rotation that includes Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt, and Cole Hamels. That four-man rotation is easily the best in Major League Baseball. Their fifth starter will almost be inconsequential.
The Red Sox have added slugging first baseman Adrian Gonzalez who played for San Diego last year and left fielder Carl Crawford who played for Tampa Bay.
Because of these transactions, most 'experts' have made the teams the favorites to meet in the 2011 World Series. While I agree that both teams are formidable, let's not crown them just yet.
After all, baseball is a sport that is unpredictably predictable. Just when we believe we have it figured out, something totally unexpected occurs.
For example, how many people picked the San Francisco Giants to win the title last year? None outside of Northern California.
However, they got hot at the end of the season and sprinted to the title. And, what team did they play in the Series? Yes, it was those perennial championship challengers the Texas Rangers. Of course, I was being sarcastic there. The Rangers had never won a playoff series before last year much less gone to the World Series.
This just shows that anything is possible once they start playing the games. I agree the Red Sox and Phillies will be excellent teams in 2011.
But, let's make them prove their greatness before handing out the championship rings.
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