2017 Ab Wheeler Division

It's time for making predictions about the upcoming season.

But first, here are last year's 2016 predictions:
Overall:
1. Sidewinders
2. Tweeners
3. Goofs
4. Bees
The Snakes will again win the AWD. Only the Tweeners are capable of putting any pressure on them, but they should at least be a favorite for a wild card spot. The Goofs will finish 3rd. They just don't have enough to play with the Tweeners. The poor Bees are in for a really long year. But... they'll be back.

I'd say that was pretty much dead on. The Sidewinders not only won the AWD, they won the whole damn thing. The Tweeners competed for a wild card spot right up until the final month of the season. The Goofs finished 3rd, well back of the Tweeners and well ahead of the Bees... who will indeed be back.

Now for this year... The question is not so much can the Snakes repeat, but can anyone challenge them? Will the Tweeners improve enough to get into the post season that eluded them last year? Will the Goofs replace the Tweeners as the AWD runner-up? And how long before the Bees replace the Snakes as the dominant team in the division?

Starting Pitching
1. Goofs
2. Sidewinders
3. Tweeners
4. Killer Bees
I know, I know... Nobody ever has better starting pitching than the Snakes. But, I'm tellin' ya, the Goofs do. Not as good as Sale, of course. And Lester is still good... but after that there's quite a dropoff for the champs. The Goofs have Darvish, Roark, Degrom, Wright, and Tanaka; so I'm giving them a slight edge. MadBum is the second best SP in the division, but King Felix's card isn't even in the top ten.

Bullpen
1. Sidewinders
2. Sidewinders AAA club
3. Sidewinders AA club
4. Goofs
The Snakes' real strength last year is still their strength this year. Their bullpen features 7 of the top 8 relievers in the division.

Catcher
1. Goofs
2. Tweeners
3. Sidewinders
4. Killer Bees
Catcher is not a strong suit for the AWD. Carlos Ruiz is the best catcher in the division, and he only has 200 AB. Plus, he sucks. The Bees don't even have a catcher. They had Zunino, but put him on the cut list - then traded him to the Snakes - and it still had no effect on the ratings.

First Base
1. Killer Bees
2. Sidewinders
3. Tweeners
4. Goofs
Freddy Freeman wins this category for the Bees, ranking just ahead of Belt.

Second Base
1. Sidewinders
2. Tweeners
3. Goofs
4. Killer Bees
Neil Walker is the best in the division, which is NASOMAspeak for The AWD sucks at 2b.

Third Base
1. Tweeners
2. Goofs
3. Sidewinders
4. Killer Bees
A much better-represented position for the AWD. Arenado's defense and power slide him ahead of Yunel Escobar, who has some pretty good numbers. Longoria isn't far behind, and Maikel Franco is damn good, too.

Shortsop
1. Sidewinders
2. Killer Bees
3. Tweeners
4. Goofs
If Trea Turner wasn't a 4... or if Swanson had more AB, the Bees would be #1 here, ahead of Gregorius. But Turner is better in CF, and Swanson only has 129 AB. The Tweeners (Iglesias and Cozart) and the Goofs (Hechavarria) have three ss-1's between them. Too bad you can't DH for the SS.

Left Field
1. Sidewinders
2. Tweeners
3. Goofs
4. Killer Bees
Starling Marte gets the nod here over Ben Zobrist. The platoon of Pagan and Raburn for the Goofs isn't too bad.

Center Field
1. Killer Bees
2. Goofs
3. Tweeners
4. Sidewinders
Trea Turner is a cf-3, and he's the best hitter (not named David Ortiz) in the whole division. Maybin isn't the fielder Pillar is, but he hits a little better. Slidin' Billy Hamilton brings up the rear here.

Right Field
1. Tweeners
2. Killer Bees
3. Sidewinders
4. Goofs
Springer with a slight nod over Polanco. Jay Bruce is well back, but still better than anything the Goofs have.

Designated Hitter
1. Sidewinders
2. Goofs
3. Killer Bees
4. Tweeners
Ortiz is a stud. Hard to believe he's retiring after a season like that. Kang is the most likely DH for the Goofs. The Bees' Sano is not very good... yet. Both are in another time zone from Ortiz.

Draft Picks
1. Tweeners
2. Killer Bees
3. Goofs
4. Sidewinders
All four teams pick early in the first round, but the Tweeners have two seconds. Four of the first eight picks will go to the AWD.

Overall
1. Sidewinders
2. Goofs
3. Tweeners
4. Killer Bees
The champs will repeat their division crown if not their league crown. The core of Sale, Lester, Ortiz, and that outstanding bullpen will vault the Snakes to the top of the AWD, and it won't even be close. The Goofs have enough good SP to win more than they lose, but they won't make the post season. The Tweeners appear to be rebuilding a bit, and MadBum, Arenado, and a pretty decent outfield should put them ahead of the Bees. The Bees have Freeman and Trea Turner, but they're still a year away from returning to contender status.