When I was a kid, growing up in the 1970s and began following big league baseball on a daily basis, the first periodical I subscribed to was the already venerable Baseball Digest.  I'm sure I wasn't the only one but for those of you unfamiliar with the magazine, it was largely a compilation of articles published in other periodicals, statistical lists and monthly features, like "So You Think You Know Baseball" (a kind of test of extremely arcane baseball rules), "The Game I'll Never Forget" (where a ballplayer related his recollections of a particularly memorable contest), the baseball "Quick Quiz" (self-explanatory) and so forth.

But this was not exclusively the case.  The April issue each year was the "season preview."  Though it came out in late February, shortly before the start of spring training, it was always the largest and most anxiously anticipated issue of the year.  The full American and National League schedules were published in this issue as were the rosters for each team.  And--most importantly--the April issue was the repository for Baseball Digest's season predictions.  This was the single most important article of the year, from my point of view, back in the day.  The predictions article was written each year by George Vass.

Though I didn't know it at the time, Vass was a Chicago-based sportswriter, first for the old Chicago Daily News and after that paper folded, the Chicago Sun-Times.  From what I can gather, he now writes about sports on a freelance basis.

In any case, Vass was the designated predictions article writer, among other things, for Baseball Digest for a long time.  As you might expect, the predictions were always controversial.  The May and June issues of the periodical were always full of letters to the editor denouncing Vass as an imbecile because he picked Team X to finish in nth place in its division.  In hindsight, Vass was probably no better or worse than the average prognosticator, but back when I was a kid I used to take these things very seriously.  If George Vass wrote, as he did in 1977, that the Orioles were going to be bad (sixth place, he said, because of the loss of Reggie Jackson, Bobby Grich and Wayne Garland to free agency, only ahead of the expansion Toronto Blue Jays), I was extremely distressed.  (Never mind the fact that the Orioles ended up tied for second that season.)  It was my sense that Vass almost always underrated the Orioles' chances back in the 1970s, though I doubt he was alone in that regard, but I suppose I'm biased.

I let my original subscription lapse in the mid-1980s some time.

My brother gave me a gift subscription to Baseball Digest in 2005 and I quickly noted that few things had changed.  The nature of the periodical was essentially the same as it had been 30 years earlier.  The letters to the editor feature was still called "The Fans Speak Out."  The editor's column was still referred to as "Warm Up Tosses."  There was the usual assortment of recycled articles from elsewhere and lists of numbers; the quiz was still around, along with "The Game I'll Never Forget."  The "So You Think You Know Baseball" column had morphed into "Baseball Rules Corner," but retained the same basic character.

And, of course, the April issue brought on the predictions article.  George Vass isn't doing it anymore; in fact, the job has been divided between two writers, one for the AL and one for the NL.  I thought it would be interesting to share the Digest's predictions for 2006.  The AL writer is Paul Hoynes, who has been covering baseball for the Cleveland Plain Dealer for 23 years.  The NL prognosticator is Joe Rutter, who's covered baseball for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review for the last 13 years.

American League
East
1. New York
2. Boston
3. Toronto
4. Tampa Bay
5. Baltimore

Central
1. Chicago
2. Cleveland
3. Minnesota
4. Detroit
5. Kansas City

West
1. Oakland
2. Los Angeles (Anaheim)
3. Texas
4. Seattle

Batting Champ:  Vladimir Guerrero, Angels
HR Title:  Richie Sexson, Mariners
RBI Leader:  Alex Rodriguez, Yankees
Comeback Player:  Jim Thome, White Sox
MVP:  Mark Teixeira, Rangers
Wins Leader:  Mark Buehrle, White Sox
ERA Champ:  Johan Santana, Twins
Strikeout King:  Johan Santana, Twins
Saves Leader:  Francisco Rodriguez, Angels
Cy Young Winner:  Josh Beckett, Red Sox

National League
East
1. Atlanta
2. New York
3. Washington
4. Philadelphia
5. Florida

Central
1. St. Louis
2. Houston
3. Milwaukee
4. Chicago
5. Pittsburgh
6. Cincinnati

West
1. Arizona
2. San Diego
3. Los Angeles
4. Colorado
5. San Francisco

Batting Champ:  Albert Pujuols, Cardinals
HR Title:  Adam Dunn, Reds
RBI Leader:  Carlos Delgado, Mets
Comeback Player:  Scott Rolen, Cardinals
MVP:  Derrek Lee, Cubs
Wins Leader:  Pedro Martinez, Mets
ERA Champ:  Carlos Zambrano, Cubs
Strikeout King:  Jake Peavy, Padres
Saves Leader:  Billy Wagner, Mets
Cy Young Winner:  Roy Oswalt, Astros

There's a lot to pick at in the lists above.  I'll defer from doing so here, to avoid setting the tone for the ensuing conversation.  Have at it...just be careful about who you call an imbecile. :)

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