Revisiting preseason picks at the halfway mark

Lets have some fun and see how well gumbercules' preseason predictions are shaking out. That's right, despite him asking us not to hold him to any of his predictions, we're going to do it anyway. We'll start with the National League.

NL East
gumbercules' predictions:
1. Norfolk should be able to win this division. It's possible that Atlanta and/or Trenton have better offenses, but that's debatable and will not offset Norfolk's big pitching advantage.

2. At least one (probably 2) team(s) in this division will not have the same closer at the end of the year as they do now.

3. The second place team (Trenton or Atlanta in a toss-up) does not even come close to a wild card position.

Now:
It's possible gumber was being a bit coy about his Trenton team as they currently lead the division by 3 games over Norfolk. It looks like both Trenton and Norfolk will be in the playoff chase for the long haul. Atlanta is nowhere near a playoff berth, or second place for that matter. Philly seems to have been under the radar as they stand a game over .500 at the break and certainly have the offense to make a wild card run. Norfolk's pitching also doesn't seem to have lived up to the expectations so far.

NL North
gumbercules' predictions:
1. Montreal takes the division. Far and away the best offense in this division. Cincinnati should be in the thick of the race for a wild-card berth and could be very dangerous in the postseason.

2. Fargo and Chicago will "battle" for the 3rd spot. Could go either way.

3. Chris Siddall (Fargo) will be dealt to a contender before the deadline. Several Cubs position players could be headed out of Chicago by that time, too.

4. At least for the first few years, Montreal and Cincinnati will be the premier rivalry in the NL.

Now:
Cincinnati currently holds the division lead by three games over Montreal while also boasting the best record in the National League. Gumber looks to have been dead on about this being one of the best rivalries out there right now. He may have underestimated just how strong that Fargo bullpen is though while at the same time overestimated the Chicago team in general. To be fair, the teams have gone in different directions since the predictions with Chicago selling off ML talent for prospects and Fargo bolstering its bullpen and calling up prospects. For the record, Siddall is going nowhere and should have been an All-Star (thanks for putting up with that rant). Overall, pretty accurate predictions here.

NL South
gumbercules' predictions:
1. Tough division to predict, as there seems to be no clear-cut favorite and each team has a major question mark. Can San Juan close games? Can New Orleans score enough? Will Houston get enough out of their starters? Can Memphis be solid enough across the board? If I had to choose I'd say New Orleans, but I could see San Juan winning this or even Houston if they get a few good breaks. Don't think Memphis has quite enough, although they could be in it for a while.

2. New Orleans will try to acquire offense near the deadline, while San Juan tries to add pitching. Not sure where it would come from.

3. If Memphis should indeed fall out of contention, multiple teams will inquire about the services of Eli Jacquez.

Now:
You really can't hold gumber to his predictions here as Houston's trade for Matty Eusebio changed the landscape of this division and made them one of the best teams in the NL. Memphis has fallen out of contention and Jacquez has been traded to Montreal, good foresight there. It doesn't appear that San Juan will be adding any pitching near the deadline as they too are seemingly out of contention. New Orleans still has a chance with half a season to go and may look to add some offense, though they've done nothing yet.

NL West
gumbercules' predictions:
1. Arizona comes out of this division- too much offense and a solid rotation. It would, however, to see how they would match up with a team like Cincinnati who possibly could derail their WS hopes in a short series with Robinson and Christians. Could their offense get to those guys? It would be fun to watch if it did happen.

2. Salem may not have enough pitching to make the wild-card, but are they really that much worse than teams like Trenton, Atlanta, Chicago, or anyone in the south? I've got Cincinnati just about penned into the 5 spot (if they can't overtake Montreal), and this last spot is WIDE open.

3. The Diamondbacks finish in the top 2 in runs in the NL.

4. Boise's pitching staff leads the league in walks.

Now:
It's Salem, not Arizona, at the head of the class out West though the D'Backs only trail by a game. The call up of Dwight Salmon has been a major boost for Salem. 'Zona is towards the top of the NL in runs scored but not second (they're sixth) and Boise's pitching staff is actually second in the league in walks, so pretty close on those two predictions. Things could shake out in the second half to where these predictions will be dead on.