Grading the MVRL

With Draft Day behind us it's time to look forward to the upcoming baseball season. Here's a quick look at each team in the MVRL & a grade for their overall roster:

AAA
strengths: the best infield in the league & his rookie depth stand out for Brent.
weakness: the main weakness right now is at closer. I'm not sold on Tom Gordon in Philly or Jose Valverde in Arizona.
player to watch: Chris Young (SD). The NL newcomer was on many owners wish list, but Brent nabbed him early (2nd round) in hopes he'll benefit from pitching in spacious Petco.
grade: B+

A'Balls
strength: speed, speed, speed. Alex could challenge the league SB record.
weaknesses: starting pitching & power. Alex could use a top-of-the-rotation starter & a bopper in his lineup if he wants to contend.
player to watch: Brad Penny (LA). Penny claims to be in the best shape of his life following an active off-season. He works in a pitchers park & has a manager who is known for staying with his starters late in games, so the opportunity is there for a breakout year.
grade: C

Clabberbones
strengths: power hitting & power pitching.
weaknesses: lack of speed & with apologies to Brad Ausmus, catching. Sorry Mr. Ausmus, but you suck in this league.
player to watch: Craig Biggio (Hou). Biggio's power numbers have risen each of the past three years (love those Crawford Boxes), but he has only hit above .280 twice in the past six years.
grade: B

Double Down
strength: young studs. Jason Vargas, Matt Cain, Josh Barfield, & Willy Tavares are all potential keepers & Grady Sizemore could be a 30-30 guy in the AL.
weakness: the risk of injury. J.D. Drew, Austin Kearns, Mark Prior, & Kerry Wood are all beasts when healthy, but worthless on the DL. If Daniels can keep all these guys healthy and pick up another quality starter, he could win his 2nd Title.
player to watch: Xavier Nady (NY). Nady could be the best of the 27-year-old bunch this year hitting in that lineup.
grade: A-

Fagan's Team
strength: a solid lineup that features one of the league's better infields.
weaknesses: power. After Hafner & Feliz there's not many HRs left. And Fagan could use a team name. Maybe the former Team Keyshawn should be Team Paco.
player to watch: Oliver Perez (Pitt). Perez was a major disappointment last year after a breakout 2004 campaign. If he thrives under new skipper Jim Tracy, Fagan could have a keeper.
grade: C+

Flying Chaucers
strength: hitting. From top to bottom, the best lineup in the league.
weakness: pitching. After Carpenter, Smoltz, & Dempster it's pretty thin.
player to watch: J.J. Hardy (Mil). Which Hardy will show up in April, the one from last season's first half or second half? If it's the latter, Al & TQ got a steal.
grade: B-

Knights
strength: closers. For now anyway, the Knights have 3 closers on their roster.
weakness: starters. Jae Seo? Russ Ortiz? Ryan Madson? Not exactly a good recipe for your WHIP.
player to watch: Roy Halladay (Tor). When Doc got his leg broke last year, he and Johan Santana had similar stats. If he can stay healthy all year, the Knights may have a shot.
grade: B

Pits
strength: memories of WWII. Half the roster remembers what they were doing in the afternoon on Sunday, December 7, 1941.
weaknesses: besides the ungodly age of this team, the starting pitching is shaky. Johnson & Lieber will need to carry the load until Sheets is healthy.
player to watch: Adrian Beltre (Sea). Hoping to capture a little of that 2004 magic, Pietsch has put his faith in the '04 POY to bounce back with a big '06.
grade: C+

Rampage
strength: overall depth. Has quality reserves that can be servicable fill-ins & has position flexibility with many of his players.
weakness: speed. Terry will need to pick up some cheap SBs to score significant points in this category.
player to watch: Barry Bonds (SF). If he plays 125 games, he should provide some significant HRs. If he retires, Terry will have another reason to hate him.
grade: B

Red Barons
strength: Atlanta's infield minus Renteria. Hoffman may watch more Braves games than Troy this summer.
weakness: closer. If another closer is added, Hoffman may claim his first ever MVRL Title.
player to watch: Aaron Harang (Cin). The Reds starter is considered by many to be a major sleeper this year, but pitching in Cincy can be a risk.
grade: A-

Strong Bads
strengths: not taking Raul Mondesi in the first round. I know that's been worn out. Power. Kirk is the early favorite to lead the league in HRs.
weaknesses: speed & pitching. Not many SBs in that lineup & like many others, another quality starter & closer would help.
player to watch: Jason Lane (Hou). 35 HRs & 100 RBIs is not out of the question.
grade: B-

The Benchpressers
strength: OF. Wes may think he has the league's best INF, but in reality he has the best OF.
weakness: inexperience. The Pressers are putting a lot of faith in a lot of unproven players. If they are up to the challenge, Wes could (gulp) win it all.
player to watch: Edwin Encarnacion (Cin). Too bad Spring Training stats don't count, because Encarnacion was a beast in Florida. If he stays hot after heading north, look out.
grade: B+

VanderWal Family Reunion
strength: young hitters. Hanley Ramirez, Reggie Abercrombie, & James Loney in the Rookie Draft & Scott "didn't know about the Rookie Draft." I don't know if knowing about it would've made a difference because those are three great picks. He later added Brandon Watson.
weakness: old pitchers. Matty Mo, El Duque, Chan Ho, & David Weathers. Is it 1997?
player to watch: Roger Clemens. He's an old pitcher, but he's also a fine wine. If he stays in the NL Scott becomes a top-5 team.
grade: B-

While no team graded above an A-, no team graded below a C. In terms of parity, has the MVRL become the NFL?