A different kind of preview (pt 1)

SPORTING GOODS

On a recent cross-country plane trip, I set out to put together my own World Cup preview for readers of this blog. Even those without much interest in soccer will concede that this is the biggest event in world sports this year, even though the Winter Olympics occurred just a couple of months ago.

But, it's not as if I could preview the World Cup better than a site like Soccernet or the BBC, so I've decided to do something a bit different. In four parts, I will be comparing each team that has qualified for the World Cup finals to a team in major league baseball. I have tiered both types of teams, and used their overall strengths, success both current and past, and team dynamics to try to draw comparisons. In the end, I think it was largely effective, with only a few teams I really had to stretch for.

So, without further ado, here are 2006 World Cup finalists group A and B, and their MLB alter-egos, along with any other thoughts I have on each group.

Group A:
Germany - NY Mets : Some readers of this blog might not be too thrilled about that one, but the host country draws its comparison with the Metropolitans. The teams are good, but there are still questions as to how far they can really go. They have won in the past, but have not lived up to expectations over the last 2-3 years. Things may change this year, however. Both teams face an immense amount of pressure to win, perhaps more than any of their competition.
Costa Rica - San Diego Padres: The best team in Central America, by a slight margin, matches up with what (at least last year) was the best team in the NL West. In both cases, that isn't really saying much. Still, you won't hear anyone complaining, as if you live in either place how much is there to complain about?
Poland - Chicago Cubs: Been rolled over in the past by stronger foes. There are often high expectations, and often some very good players that create those expectations, but never the results to meet them.
Ecuador - Pittsburgh Pirates: A bit of a stretch, but both are boring, and used to be better. A team that you can look past on the schedule.

Host country Germany got an easy group, so even though the team is weaker than usual, they should have no troubles. Call me crazy, and maybe it's my fond memories of my honeymoon and talking to a number of Ticos about football, but I think Costa Rica is a real threat to Poland to snag the second slot in the group. They played very well at the end of qualifying after switching coaches; almost all of their players come from two teams, so familiarity is not an issue. If they can go into halftime 0-0 with Germany in the opening match, it could get very interesting...

Group B:
England - St. Louis Cardinals: A high number of stars, with solid role players filling out the roster. Winning history, but have largely come up short in recent years despite fielding a consistently strong team. They are now considered a heavy favorite if their stars remain healthy. Both teams have hardcore fans that truly enjoy holding dominance over their major regional rivals, who pretty much stink most years.
Sweden - Texas Rangers: Young, talented, punishing. Probably underrated overall, but haven't proven selves. Yet.
Paraguay - Colorado Rockies: Play at extremely high altitudes, making them difficult to beat at home. But on a neutral field, not really much to worry about, despite showing flashes that they could be more than a pretender.
Trinidad & Tobago - Tampa Bay Devil Rays: Young, some exciting players, but in the end not a threat. One can certainly find nice things to say about each team and its players, but the results don't impress. TNT!

This one should be a cakewalk for England and Sweden. Sweden is underrated, and I wouldn't be surprised to see them go far. England has got to be one of the top 3 favorites, but if young star Wayne Rooney can't play due to his broken foot, that may change things. England has defenders and a midfield that stacks up with anyone in the world; put a healthy Rooney up front and you can pencil them in to the semi-finals.

Groups C through H coming between now and the opening kickoff!