2010 Mota Division Preview

Last Saturday's preview of the Molitor division is located here
Last Monday's preview of the Baines division is located here

On to the Lenny Harris League! The Mota division has added a couple new faces this year when the dispersal teams Brighton and Old Bridge were added to the division. Also, Lehigh Valley has moved over to Long Island to become the Nassau G-Men. Last year's division winner Washington Booze Hounds and Oregon are the two teams returning from last year. However, not without some upgrades.

Washington has added a new rookie closer and have added Javy Vazquez, Ted Lilly, and Adam Wainwright to their rotation in a hope to get to the TBA Championship this season. Oregon adds rookie starter Jeff Niemann, outfielder Ben Francisco, and will have Marlon Byrd for a full season in their quest for the playoffs this season.

WASHINGTON BOOZE HOUNDS

The Booze Hounds have loaded up this year to make a run at the Cup this season. Only Ricky Nolasco and Jon Sanchez remain from last season's rotation as they have imported three new faces while last season call-up Max Scherzer has emerged as a candidate to make the rotation.

Washington holds the best infield in baseball with catcher Joe Mauer leading the charge. Mauer is the pre-season favorite to win MVP. The additions of Shane Victorino and Josh Willingham will more than make up for losing Ryan Church's bat.

Projected Starters

C: Joe Mauer
1B: Mark Teixeira
2B: Robinson Cano
3B: Ryan Zimmerman
SS: Troy Tulowitzki
LF: Jacoby Ellsbury/Josh Willingham
CF: Shane Victorino
RF: Carlos Gonzalez/Will Venable

Projected Rotation/Closer:
Javier Vazquez
Ted Lilly
Adam Wainwright
Ricky Nolasco
Max Scherzer/Jon Sanchez
CL: David Aardsma

Division Finish: 1st Place and 100 wins

BRIGHTON BEARCATS

Brighton has an excellent foundation starting with 2B Chase Utley. Utley is surrounded both with young stars and some veterans that could propel this team to a wild card berth. Outfielders Matt Holliday and Adam Jones will team up with Lance Berkman, Yunel Escobar, and of course Utley to score some runs for this team this season.

The pitching isn't great but has plenty of talent in it to come out with a second place finish. The rotation needs to hold together and just keep the offense in the game. Young lefty Jon Lester is the only one who really can shut down the opponent any given game. In a weak division this season, Brighton should be able to squeak out a second place finish over Oregon.


Projected Starters

C: Gerald Laird
1B: Lance Berkman
2B: Chase Utley
3B: Andy LaRoche
SS: Yunel Escobar
LF: Matt Holliday
CF: Adam Jones
RF: Juan Rivera

Projected Rotation/Closer:
Jon Lester
Jon Garland
Scott Kazmir
Clay Buchholz/Kevin Slowey
Joe Saunders
CL: Ryan Madson

Division Finish: 2nd Place

OREGON BEAVERS

Oregon will fight all season long with Brighton for second place in the division. If Carlos Beltran could stay healthy Oregon would get the nod but Beltran is slated for only about 90 games this season. The Beaver's rotation doesn't have any aces in it but is solid and crafty from Ryan Dempster to Doug Davis.

Defense will play a key part for Oregon again this season. Derrek Lee, Maicer Izturis, Brenden Ryan, and Ryan Theriot all bring gold glove caliber defense to the infield. Ben Francisco also gives manager Bob Boyd another good glove in the outfield.


Projected Starters

C: Bengie Molina
1B: Derrek Lee
2B: Maicer Izturis/Brenden Ryan
3B: Casey Blake
SS: Ryan Theriot
LF: David Murphy/Magglio Ordonez
CF: Carlos Beltran
RF: Marlon Byrd

Projected Rotation/Closer:
Ryan Dempster
Zach Duke
Jarrod Washburn
Jeff Niemann
Doug Davis
CL: Dan Wheeler/Matt Guerrier

Division Finish: 3rd Place

NASSAU G-MEN

Nassau management knows this year will be a retooling one for the G-Men. Mark Reynolds and Franklin Gutierrez are the top two young pieces in place for Nassau with rookie outfielder Gerardo Parra about ready to make the jump to the majors this season. If Chris Davis can put it together and become a legitimate power threat Nassau will have a great nucleus for the future.

Add in their top pick in the draft, Rick Porcello, to go along with Cole Hamles and Joakim Soria and this team could be looking to make a run in 2011 if everyone progresses as expected. For now though, this team is looking at a tough season.

Projected Starters

C: Mike Napoli
1B: Nick Johnson
2B: Casey McGehee
3B: Mark Reynolds
SS: Christian Guzman
LF: Nick Swisher
CF: Franklin Gutierrez
RF: Jermaine Dye



Projected Rotation/Closer:
Erik Bedard
Hiroki Kuroda
Cole Hamels
Rick Porcello
Kenshin Kawakami
CL: Joakim Soria

Division Finish: 4th Place

OLD BRIDGE TITANS

Old Bridge is in the same territory as Nassau this year except their talent is a little younger. Reid Brignac and Michael Brantley are waiting in the minors for their turn while BJ Upton is looking to figure it out in the majors. Top pick Tommy Hanson will go a long way to make this team into a contender in the future. The team already has quality starters Wandy Rodriguez, Jason Marquis, Paul Maholm, and Ross Ohlendorf and another top pitching prospect in Trevor Cahill.


Projected Starters

C: Ronny Paulino/Ryan Hanigan/Omir Santos
1B: Kendry Morales
2B: Felipe Lopez
3B: Melvin Mora
SS: Rafael Furcal
LF: Angel Pagan
CF: David DeJesus
RF: Jeff Francouer

Projected Rotation/Closer:
Tommy Hanson
Ross Ohlendorf
Wandy Rodriguez
Carl Pavano
Jason Marquis
CL: Leo Nunez

Division Finish: 5th Place