[Note by hugo, 03/18/09 11:25 AM EDT ] Moved From Fanposts - Hugo

Every team needs and ace, the AL East is full of them except for in Baltimore where so far in the standings their offence isn’t that far off from the Jays in terms of the ranking I’m doing but the difference maker is pitching for them.  There’s a new ace in NY, two top starters in Boston and TB so the ranking is a lot different then it would have looked last year at this time except for the #1 spot.

1. Roy Halladay (TOR)

I don’t really care what the Cy Young voters said, Roy Halladay was the best pitcher in the AL last year.  Many experts are saying that CC Sabathia is the best pitcher in the AL now but still (even if I wasn’t a Jays fan) I can’t rank anyone ahead of Roy Halladay.  The guy goes out every 5th day and pitches amazing and well into the games.  I hope they don’t over use him this year but I see no reason why he won’t finish with near 20 wins, a sub 3.00 ERA, a WHIP around 1.00 and close to 200 Ks.

2. CC Sabathia (NYY)

CC has had a great run over the last two years winning the 2007 AL Cy Young and making a case to win the NL Cy Young in 2008 after spending only a few short months with the Brewers.  Non Jays fans will say CC is better then Doc, I think with the transition to NY, the huge contract and the treat of injury on his huge 290 pound body that CC is just a tick behind Doc as the best pitcher in the AL (and thus AL East).  If CC has no issues with the transition to the Big Apple and stays healthy he could very well outperform Doc however too many others have struggled under the lights and with the pressure of a new contract to warrant the #1 spot.

3. Josh Beckett (BOS)

I couldn’t decide if Beckett or Dice-K should be Boston’s ace for this list.  When Beckett is on he’s one of the best in the game, when he’s off he’s still pretty darn good.  He should rebound this year and win 17+ games posting a strong ERA, WHIP and strikeout totals.  The key for him is avoiding the injury bug which he has been able to do the last few years in Boston.

4. Scott Kazmir (TB)

Like with Boston I had trouble deciding whether to go with Shields or Kazmir here as TB’s ace, I also had trouble ranking either Kazmir/Shields and Beckett/Dice-K on this list.  For TB’s ace I went with Kazmir based on potential.  He has shown flashes of the potential the last few years but injuries have slowed him down, if he stays healthy this year he could be a Cy Young candidate with a lot of wins on a good TB team, a lot of Ks and very strong ERA/WHIP stats.  I ranked Kazmir behind Beckett because Kaz’ injury troubles have been more recent then Beck’s but I could see them being swapped too.

5. Jeremy Guthrie (BAL)

Coming in a distant 5th place on the list is Baltimore’s Jeremy Guthrie.  Guthrie is an innings eater that will post solid stats in ERA/WHIP.  On a contender he’d be a mid to back end rotation pitcher, on the pitching thin Orioles he’s the #1.  I think he’s a very solid and consistent starter who would fare much better on a stronger team.

The tally so far:

New York: 34

Boston: 33

Tampa Bay: 31

Toronto: 29

Baltimore: 23

Up next…Starters 2 through 5