Has San Jose done enough to improve on their dismal 2009 campaign? (Getty Images)

Forgive me for a second for this coming out as late as it did. I had every intentions earlier in the week to get this one out on Wednesday but a certain clash in Holland kept me from finishing it until yesterday.

Anyways, we continue on with out look at each Major League Soccer club’s preseason happenings here. We’re in the final stretch with just San Jose, Seattle and Toronto to go. Up first today is San Jose, a club that is hoping to rebound after a dismal effort in 2009. Frank Yallop has made some moves this winter to shake things up by the Bay but will it pay off is the key question.

I thought going into the winter that Yallop and GM Frank Doyle would do a lot of work on this roster that only won seven games in 2009. Reshaping an offense that only scored 36 goals was also another issue but the biggest may be redoing a defense that gave up a league-high 50 goals.

So let us dive into the Earthquakes to see who they have going into the new campaign and where else they need to go to get back into the playoffs.

Keepers:

Who they have: Joe Cannon, Andrew Weber, Mike Graczyk

Notes: I’l be honest, I thought Cannon was gone after last season. I just figured he was on the trading block for real this time and would be in a different city by the end of the SuperDraft in January. Turns out I was wrong. Not to say that things are still rosy with Cannon and the Quakes but it appears he will be the main guy this season for Yallop.

After Cannon they do have a decent back up in Weber and a third option in Graczyk. I do think that should Cannon not work out we’ll see a lot more of Weber this season, or this club will go out and get a keeper in the summer.

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Defense:

Who they have: Bobby Burling, Ike Opara, Chris Leitch, Justin Morrow, Jason Hernandez.

Notes: I do think I heard talks of moving Ramiro Corrales to the backline this year. Not entirely sure how true that is but after yesterday’s move to waive Aaron Pitchkolen I think its probably more likely to happen now. Good thing too because this club has zero depth in the back at the moment. If any injuries pop up like last year with key guys like Hernandez expect some major issues for this defense.

I do like the addition of Opara to the backline. I think he’ll bring the right size and skill that was missing with this group a year ago. I do still think this group is pretty light even if they switch some midfielders here. Its definitely an area that they should have addressed more in the offseason.

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Midfield:

Who they have: Ramiro Corrales, Simon Elliot, António Ribeiro, Arturo Alvarez, Bobby Convey, Brandon McDonald, Joey Gjertsen, Ramon Sanchez, Andre Luiz, Javier Robles.

Notes: I like the new additions of Gjertsen and Robles to this group. Them along with the core group of guys could make this bunch a tough one to deal with and a fun one to watch. They still have some young fire power in Alvarez and Convey too. Hopefully for Quake fans Convey turns his act around in 2010. If the Quakes want to compete in the west they need a better showing from him for sure.

Will the additions of Gjertsen and Robles be enough? Possibly. If Gjertsen can return to his USL MVP form from a few years go it will turn out to be a very good pickup for this club.

I’m curious to see if Luiz and Sanchez can pick up where they left off late in the season last year. If they do this club will be better offensively.

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Forwards:

Who they have: Ryan Johnson, Eduardo, Cornell Glen, Quincy Amarikwa

Notes: I’m a big fan of Johnson here, he proved last year he can score goals and carry this club. Thing was his club stunk so bad he wasn’t able to carry them enough. The addition of Eduardo should provide a nice boost to the offense though. From early scouting reports, the two are linking pretty well together. I’m definitely curious to see them in person to see if that is the case.

Johnson needed a partner last year and if Eduardo can be that partner then expect plenty more goals in 2010 from this group.

I do think this group is still a little light but if Johnson nets another 10 to 14 goals and Eduardo or someone else chips in another 8 to 10 then they’ll be fine.

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Overall:

I was high on the Quakes bandwagon going into last year but boy was I way off base about them. I hink they’ve improved going into this year but I’m still shaky on giving them a good write off here until I see it for myself. Defensively I still have concerns that they didn’t do nearly enough to fix their issues from a season ago. I do think they’ll stay with teams on the field offensively this year though but a lot of pressure rests in the midfield. If that group can come together and keep quality possession then this club will surprise people in 2010.

Most of the 15 clubs are in action except for RSL, DC and New York. I think most Red Bull fans are excited to see the club actually get a weekend off for once here. Still we have six big games to talk about, all on Saturday. Don’t forget about the Gold Cup this weekend too, the US has one more group game left before heading on to the quarterfinals.

Feel free as always to leave your predictions and thoughts below.

Saturday:

Houston Dynamo – at – Seattle Sounders FC:

This should be a good game even without all the players missing for Gold Cup duties. Seattle won’t just be missing a few guys but they will also be without head coach Sigi Schmid who will be attending another child’s wedding (the guy has to get his kids to stop getting married in the middle of the season!). Again both rosters will be lacking important guys, Tyrone Marshall and Brad Evans from Sounders FC and Brian Ching, Andrew Hainaut and Stuart Holden for Houston. Also throw in for Houston that they will be without defenders Bobby Boswell and Geoff Cameron, both are suspended for this game.

After all of that you have to wonder what Houston will bring to the table while missing so many key starters, especially on the defensive end. I know the Dynamo and Dominic Kinnear usually find ways to pick up points but the task seems pretty tall if you ask me. I like Seattle picking up three due to the important guys sitting out for Houston and the fact that Fredy Montero is really on good form here.

WVH Prediction: Seattle 2, Houston 1

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Kansas City Wizards – at – New England Revolution:

Right now the Revs are looking very bad. Mainly due to the amount of injuries they have piled up on their roster at the moment. Wizard’s coach Curt Onalfo has to like heading on the road and see so many injuries on the other side’s injury report. Many key guys will be out for the Revs while KC will just be lacking a couple international callups for the Gold Cup. In a way it levels things a bit since KC has a fairly weak and young defense. As much as I want to pick KC in this one I just see New England getting by some how with a draw. Maybe it’s blindness on my part to pick Steve Nicol’s group right now but something just tells me KC isn’t quite there to pick up important points on the road right now. Just a hunch I have.

WVH Prediction: New England 1, KC 1

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Columbus Crew – at – Chicago Fire:

Game of the week material right here folks, even ESPN2 has it picked up for your viewing pleasure. I think the Fire really made a statement last week in Colorado and that continues this week at home against the defending champions. Thing is this one could really go either way even though I thought the Crew looked totally over worked last week at home against DC. The Fire could just be starting to hit their stride as we head into the ladder half of the season, which is a dangerous thing for the rest of the eastern conference. Columbus will be lacking Robbie Rogers and Chad Marshall but I do see them finding a way to make things interesting. In  the end though I see a mental breakdown late by the Crew leading to a Chicago win. I expect Brian McBride or Marco Pappa to be a reason for the Chicago win.

WVH Prediction: Chicago 2, Columbus 1

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FC Dallas – at – Colorado Rapids:

I thought the Rapids would be a little further along right now than where they really are. Their last few games haven’t been at all what I expected out of this bunch but maybe another visit from Dallas could help. Thing is however Dallas is really starting to come around here right now and that will only make it tougher out west if they (along with RSL and LA) push up the standings towards the Rapids. Colorado is missing a slew of key guys for this one while Dallas only lacks Kenny Cooper. Depth is a killer for either one of these clubs and right now Dallas just has a little more to go on than Colorado. Call it an upset if you will but I’m picking the Red Stripes to pull a big road upset this weekend thanks to guys like Dave van den Burgh and Jeff Cunningham.

WVH Prediction: FC Dallas 2, Colorado 1

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Toronto FC – at – San Jose Earthquakes:

Both clubs come into this game at an interesting point in the season. Toronto hasn’t looked great on the road this season (or ever for that matter) while San Jose is seemingly riding the waves until they can get the right pieces in place to build a winner. Nick Garcia returns to the Bay area to face his former side for the first time, so that may be the biggest story to watch here. There are also reports that draft pick O’Brien White may make his season debut off the bench this weekend as well for the Reds. That could be good to see as well. As much as I want to pick the home side here something just feels rigth about Toronto at least picking up some points in San Jose this weekend. They know they need them to stay up in the top part of the standings. A draw wouldn’t surprise me but I am picking the Reds to get a win here. I just don’t care for the Quakes defense right now and without Ramiro Corrales in the midfield it could be a tougher day for the Quakes to hold possession anyways.

WVH Prediction: Toronto 2, San Jose 0

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LA Galaxy – at – Chivas USA:

I always find it interesting to see the Galaxy as the road team in their own stadium but that is the case this weekend as the SuperClasico returns for another edition. The first meeting this season between these two sides was a 0-0 card fest. I’d expect nothing but the same this weekend, even with the way both sides are playing right now. Chivas hasn’t been in good form in any match recently but returning to league play against their stadium rivals could be a good cure. LA gets Landon Donovan back, which could be the key for them to win this one. However I just see this game being another foul-happy, card fest like before. Only this time we will see each side score.

WVH Prediction: Chivas 1, LA 1