I was sort of standoffish on buying my usual season preview magazine, but I finally picked up a Baseball Digest season preview, which was the only one available initially. I’d only bought it really for a couple of articles. I read through the team previews first and was left a bit dissatisfied.
Later, an Athlon Baseball Preview appeared. I wasn’t interested at first, but when I went back to buy another copy of Tim Hagerty’s Tales From the Dugout (I lent my other one out to Ron and haven’t seen him since, I went ahead and got it. They said in the editorial that they’d been on hiatus for a couple of years. I’d been buying the Lindy’s one, but that wasn’t available on my newsstand. I probably picked it up mostly because I noticed dear Sarah Langs contributed an article. This one was more comprehensive, though I haven’t read the articles in this one either yet. Like most previews, it’s chocked full of increasingly obscure stats to prove points about players and teams. “There’s lies, there’s damn lies, and then there’s statistics.”
Though I have purchased two baseball preview magazines, I’m not sure I’m really in the mood to really make predictions. I have some observations, though.
American League East
Yankees: Even losing out on Juan Soto, the pinstripes seemed to be sitting pretty with the upgrades to their pitching staff, especially Max Fried. Then Gerrit Cole got injured in Spring Training. I have some doubts about their hitting. It feels like their lineup is either past their prime and/or injury prone. Still, losing Cole could be the incident that causes everyone else to step up their game or causes everyone to try and do too much. It feels like either another World Series appearance or they miss the playoffs.
Orioles: Fans keep puzzling over the team’s new ownership not spending more given that they’ve already assembled a really good team. I wonder if the owners found out that the team doesn’t make that much money regardless of how good the team is (which the previous owner knew). Baltimore isn’t that big a market and they’re sort of sharing it with Washington. Still, they’re getting back good pitching this year with Felix Bautista and Kyle Bradish coming off of injury. Management may not feel the need to spend big right now. They should have enough prospects to make a trade for whatever they need at the deadline.
Red Sox: They made some big moves by getting Garrett Crochet, Walker Buehler, and Alex Bregman (that move occurred late after both previews had come out). It feels like they’re still putting the pieces together for a contender. They’re not ready to go crazy with the checkbook yet.
It doesn’t matter what the Rays do, they’re playing at the Yankees’ Spring Training field. The Blue Jays are stilling trying to sign Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to a huge contract. I wonder if he has incriminating pictures of team ownership, because otherwise, there was no reason for it. You’d just make him harder to trade, which is inventible in a couple of seasons.
American League Central
Indians: This is THE freaking sore spot for me with baseball. Perhaps Trump can make an Executive Order to force the Indians and Redskins to change their names back. It feels like this team overachieved last season and then lost pieces in the meantime. There’s enough individual talent to make them competitive, but I’m not convinced the team as a whole is good enough for the playoffs.
Tigers: I’m all in! This is their year! Probably not. I’ve just about fallen off the limb I keep going out on for these guys. They didn’t do anything to improve the team in the offseason. It’s unlikely AJ Hinch can pull off that pitching and lineup chaos that got them into the playoffs for a full season. I am rooting for them to surprise everyone again.
Royals: I have to applaud ownership for doing a good job assembling this great team on a small market budget. They’re playing for a new stadium, so they’ve got lots of motivation. Given that the funding issue has already been shot down, I’m not sure what the new plan is. These guys should be good this season anyway.
The White Sox also want a new stadium. Well, good luck with that on your way to losing another hundred games this season. The Twins are in the middle of being sold. That’s going to affect the team in a negative way, regardless of talent.
American League West
Rangers: I’m a believer. This time for real. With Jacob deGrom back from injury, along with several hurt position players back, this should be a refreshed team. They even picked up a couple of sluggers. Unfortunately, they lost a couple of starters in Spring Training. They might not have enough, unless Chris Young, president of baseball operations, can work some more magic. They’ve at least gotten their broadcasting settled by creating their own company, which hampered their spending last season.
Astros: They lost Kyle Tucker and Alex Bregman without replacing them. They’re likely just a couple of injuries to key players away from being a .500 team. Still, with the competition in this division, they could win it. They’ve also renamed their stadium with a new sponsor, Daikin. Every time you think stadium names can’t get any worse.
The A’s are sharing a Triple-A park. (I hesitate to imagine the scheduling.) Oddly, they boosted payroll (because MLB forced them to) and have a decent team. Meanwhile, the Angels, who have spent wildly and badly, cannot compete, even when they got the right players. As much as fans and media want other teams to have new ownership, the Angels should be at the top of that list. The Mariners are returning the same team that didn’t make the playoffs last year. Expect the same result.
National League East
Braves: I have a feeling this team has lost too much pitching to compete this year. They’re getting good injured players back during the season, but I suspect management is writing this year off and will regroup next year.
Mets: Having the richest owner in the MLB, who is a big baseball fan, this is another club committed to driving up the cost of free agency. He “won” the Juan Soto sweepstakes with a contract that could have paid for most of a stadium for a couple of homeless teams. They also brought back Pete Alonso. It’s a good-looking lineup. They don’t have the starting pitching, though. You can safely write them off for this season, but I’m sure they’ll be buying pitching in the offseason.
Phillies: I’m rooting for Bryce Harper to win a World Series. It’ll make the Phanatic so happy. They didn’t do much over the offseason because they finally hit a point of financial restraint, but didn’t lose much either and are returning a very good team. Father Time will ultimately defeat this team in the near future and they know it. Look for an injection of fresh young talent at the trade deadline.
The Marlins aren’t even worth mentioning. Apart from Sandy Alcantara, I don’t think I recognize anyone else on their roster. The Nationals will be competitive in the future. They’ve got the young talent. (Too bad they play in the same division as the Phillies, so don’t expect any trades.) As soon as this team starts showing potential, ownership should start picking up free agents and making deals.
National League Central
This whole division is completely up for grabs. Whoever wins it will be a nice warm up for a better team in the playoffs. The Brewers won it last season. I don’t know how. (It was good pitching.) Maybe they can do it this season for our dearly departed, Bob Uecker. They’ve at least sorted out their stadium issues by extending their lease and fixing their roof. The Cubs are theoretically a better team, but let’s see it. The Reds have Elly de la Cruz and the Pirates have Paul Skenes, Oneil Cruz, and the ageless Andrew McCutchen, if you want to see exciting superstar players. Unthinkably, the Cardinals will not be a factor. They have a fanbase on par with the Yankees that only sees the playoffs and won’t tolerate a loser.
National League West
Dodgers: You know it’s bad when the baseball media continually says that, “This team isn’t invincible. It’s not a given that they’ll win it all.” Yeah, with what they have and what they’ve acquired and their massive revenue (including Japanese TV broadcasts), it’s basically already over, but they gotta get fans of the other teams to watch their games. If this team has problems, don’t worry, Dodger ownership will just buy the Twins or the Rays or A’s and make a few “shrewd” trades involving minor leaguers for star players. Honestly, if these guys lose, it’s a billion-dollar choke. No pressure.
Padres: This really sucks. Losing their previous owner hasn’t closed the team’s checkbook, but after some family ownership squabbling, financial restraint has crept into the picture, as they are way over-spending relative to their market. Simply, nobody’s outspending the Dodgers anyway. The team has some contracts that will not age well, but right now, they’ve got a really good team and a fanbase that fills the park every night. Their window is going to close and slam shut in the near future, so I hope that ownership will properly support the team if they’re competitive.
Diamondbacks: This team wanted a new stadium, but appears to be close to a deal to just renovate their current one. (They’ve also fixed their retractable roof issues for this season.) Their broadcasting has been taken over by MLB and cost them revenue, but their owner is committed to paying whatever for a winning team on a smaller scale than the Big 3. This is a young, hungry team that got way better with the addition of Corbin Burnes to their rotation. I doubt either the D-Backs or Padres can win the West over the Dodgers, but I like their chances of reaching the playoffs and maybe beating the Dodgers in a short series.
The Rockies may have hit a point of absolute hopelessness. They’ve actually got good players, though no stars (yet). Even if the team got much better, their division is stacked. As for the Giants, Bruce Bochy was asked about Buster Posey becoming their GM. He cleared his throat and was surprised about this move, because he thought Buster would become a manager, but was sure he’ll do a great job. My thoughts exactly. For now, they’re carrying some big contracts, but do not have a good team surrounding them.
Predictions
Again, I don’t have any predictions for this season other than the Dodgers walking all over everybody. (Also, this post is running long.) Well, unexpected things can happen the playoffs. There are several other teams that I think can contend if they make it in and get hot, such as the Rangers, the Phillies, the Diamondbacks, the Padres, the Yankees, and the Orioles. If you want a real dark horse, I think the Royals are your pick. Whatever happens, hopefully we’ll get a fun season with some surprises.
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