How many wins will Brett Anderson get in 2011? (Photo Credit: The Recliner GM Blog)

The A’s feature some very young and talented arms in their starting rotation, and southpaw Brett Anderson is one of them.

Anderson, 23, is the future of the A’s rotation, so long as he manages to stay healthy. Last season, the lefty went 7-6 with a 2.80 ERA in just 19 starts. Two elbow injuries limited the southpaw to just 112 innings in 2010, but Oakland is confident that Anderson will enter camp fully healthy and ready to go.

Oakland awarded Anderson with a four-year extension in April last year, and the A’s are hoping that Anderson can continue to grow and develop as the staff’s ace.

Last year, fellow youngster Trevor Cahill assumed the role of ace for Oakland’s staff. Cahill went 18-8 with a 2.97 ERA last year, en route to a Cy Young-worthy season.

But it’s been long known that Oakland’s best young pitcher is Anderson. Anderson possesses it all. He’s got great control of all his pitches, and he’s capable of becoming a dominant pitcher in the league.

Health, however, has been the only thing setting Anderson back. (more…)

The A's hope for the best in 2011.

Heading into the 2010 season, many expected the newly revamped Seattle Mariners to clash with the Los Angeles Angels for the division crown. The Mariners, who added players like Chone Figgins, Milton Bradley, Casey Kotchman and Cliff Lee to their roster during the offseason, had hoped their aggressive offseason would lead to a division title in 2010. After all, the Angels lost players like John Lackey, Chone Figgins, and Vladimir Guerrero that offseason.

Many baseball experts, writers, and bloggers like myself, seemed certain that the Mariners would give the Angels a run for their money in 2010. I even went as far as ranking them as the No.5 team in baseball behind only No.1 New York Yankees, No.2 Philadelphia Phillies, No.3 Boston Red Sox, and No.4 St. Louis Cardinals.

Unfortunately, however, the Mariners were an immediate train-wreck.

The Mariners had all the tools for a pretty decent team heading into the 2010 season, but the team really never came together as GM Jack Zduriencik had envisioned they would. As a result, the Mariners eventually faded out of the picture and spent most of the season in the division cellar. The Angels, the powerhouse team in the West, also took a dip in the standings as well.

The Rangers (No.12 in my Early Rankings), and A’s (No.22), however, emerged as the two teams that would eventually compete for the division in 2010. Yes, the A’s would ultimately lose out on the division, but no one showed the Green-and-Gold any love early in the season. They played particularly well when you consider the amount of injuries they had, and the anemic offense they featured on the field.

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