As big sports fans, it would be tough for us here in the Basement to let the beginning of the baseball season to go by without getting a word in. Of course, I didn’t let any of the other basement guys have a say in any of this, so at the end of the season, I can bask in the glory alone.

A.L. EAST
1. Boston Red Sox
Player to watch: Jon Lester
His fight back from lymphoma could become this year’s feel good story. He’s starting out in single A, but hopefully he will be back in the big leagues soon.

2. Toronto Blue Jays
Player to watch: Alex Rios
Look for his numbers to improve as his confidence continues to grow from last season’s performance.

3. New York Yankees
Player to watch: Kei Igawa
With the early injuries to their pitching staff, the left handed Japanese import could be huge for the Yankees.

4. Baltimore Orioles
Player to watch: Daniel Cabrera
He’s got big league stuff, and can rack up the K’s, but he needs to do it on a consistent basis.

5. Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Player to watch: Delmon Young
One of the games most hyped prospects, should be fun to see how he does using the bat on a ball, and not on a umpire.

A.L. CENTRAL
1. Detroit Tigers
Player to watch: Justin Verlander
Should be interesting to see how the hard throwing righty performs coming off of his Rookie of the Year performance.

2. Chicago White Sox
Player to watch: Andrew Sisco
The 6’ 10” lefty reliever has some serious potential to be a force out of the bullpen.

3. Minnesota Twins
Player to watch: Francisco Liriano
Time to see if Liriano is the real deal. If he is, he can make the leagues best 1-2 combo with Johan Santana. If not, it could be a long season in Minny.

4. Cleveland Indians
Player to watch: Trot Nixon
Nixon has had the potential to be a solid player, but really needs to stay healthy.

5. Kansas City Royals
Player to watch: David DeJesus
With a name like that, he better be good. When the team finally has enough, he can turn the water in the dugout in to wine.

A.L. WEST

1. Los Angles Angeles
Player to watch: Chone Figgins
The man who spells his name better then any other “Shawn” can also play just about any position on the field. He’s also one of the fastest guys in the league.

2. Texas Rangers
Player to watch: Brandon McCarthy
The kid had the stuff to start last season, but got stuck behind a stacked White Sox rotation. Pitched good out of the pen, but he finally gets to start, which is where his potential lies. To bad his home games are in Texas.

3. Oakland A’s
Player to watch: Mike Piazza
The DH role in Oakland worked out well for Frank Thomas last season, and parlayed it into a nice contract with Toronto. Piazza would love to have a similar season.

4. Seattle Mariners
Player to watch: Felix Hernandez
He is just about the only thing the Mariners have going for them. Hope they start drafting well.

N.L. EAST

1. New York Mets
Player to watch: Oliver Perez
With Pedro out for a good stretch of time, the Mets rotation must step up big time. Perez has the most potential, and will play the biggest part in keeping the Mets going until Martinez’s return.

2. Philadelphia Phillies
Player to watch: Cole Hamels
The hard throwing lefty had some solid starts last season, absolutely dominating some of his opponents. He can easily end the season as the best Phillies pitcher.

3. Atlanta Braves
Player to watch: Brian McCann
The 23 year old catcher is coming off of an All-Star season. This could be his make or break year.

4. Florida Marlins
Player to watch: Sergio Mitre
The former pitching prospect of the Chicago Cubs is running out on time to prove he can stay a starter in the bigs.

5. Washington Nationals
Player to watch: Ryan Zimmerman
The young third baseman had a good campaign last season, and is the only real bright spot for the Nationals this year.

N.L. CENTRAL

1. Cincinnati Reds
Player to watch: Aaron Harang
He is the first pitcher in league history to lead a league in both wins and strikeouts, and not win the Cy Young (he didn’t even get a vote). Time for revenge.

2. Houston Astros
Player to watch: Brad Lidge
Should be interesting to see how he rebounds from the lack of confidence that he was shown towards the end of last season.

3. St. Louis Cardinals
Player to watch: Adam Wainwright
Last season, he won the World Series as a closer. This season he gets to show his stuff as a starter.
4. Milwaukee Brewers
Player to watch: J.J. Hardy
A solid defensive shortstop, Hardy has been working on his swing. If he can get his offense up to par, he can become one of the better shortstops in the league.

5. Chicago Cubs
Player to watch: Alfonso Soriano
We get to find out if the leagues new $10 million man is actually going to care at all this season, since he doesn’t have a contract to play for.

6. Pittsburgh Pirates
Player to watch: LOL

N.L. WEST

1. San Diego Padres
Player to watch: Jake Peavy
Peavy hasn’t had the same stuff since his amazing 2004 season. If he gets back on track, the Padres can easily walk away with the division.

2. Los Angeles Dodgers
Player to watch: Takashi Saito
Saito gets to be Dodgers closer again, but now that Gagne isn’t around, the fans won’t be as lenient when he screws up.

3. Arizona Diamondbacks
Player to watch: Stephen Drew
The less injury prone brother of J.D., the young shortstop finally gets to show himself off throughout an entire season.

4. San Francisco Giants
Player to watch: Matt Cain
Cain is coming off of a great rookie campaign where he was arguably the Giants best pitcher. He and Barry Zito can form a great 1-2 combo, but the lack of offense will destroy the Giants again.

5. Colorado Rockies
Player to watch: Troy Tulowitzki
The Rockies 1st pick in the 2005 draft, Tulowitzki gets to show off his stuff at the major league level. He has a ton of pop and being in Colorado can only help his numbers. To bad its still the Rockies.

N.L. Champions: San Diego Padres

A.L. Champions: Los Angeles Angles

World Series: Padres in 6