Category Archives: 2017 MLB Team Previews

2017 MLB Season Preview: Minnesota Twins

The Minnesota Twins were a team on the way up, but they had some growing pains last year. I was high on them before the season, but they regressed and lost 103 games. There were numerous reasons for the rough season, but it was mostly due to their young players hitting a plateau in their development.

They need Bryon Buxton, Max Kepler and Jose Berrios to keep improving in order to avoid another lost season. They need them to step up as trade rumors will continue all season concerning Brian Dozier. They are sure to land a load of prospects in return for the power hitting middle infielder.

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Minnesota Twins.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Milwaukee Brewers

The NL Central is a tough division to navigate for the Brewers when the Cubs and Cardinals are two of the best teams in the National League… the Pirates aren’t too shabby either. Milwaukee has to play against some great offenses and their starting rotation is one of the worst in the Majors.

Milwaukee is expected to have another down year. Live odds for online betting has their over/under season win total at 70.5. I have them winning under that amount of games. The bet will come down to the final days of the season to payout.

The Brewers do have some talent on the team. They will cause a headache for opposing catchers. They have a ton of speed and will have the green light to run. Milwaukee could ‘steal’ a few games if they can easily get runners in scoring position.

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Milwaukee Brewers.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Miami Marlins

The Marlins didn’t spend the offseason trying to replace Jose Fernandez, who was killed in a boating accident late last season. It would be impossible for them to replace his talent on the field and presence in the clubhouse. They added a few pitchers and boosted their bullpen. I like the additions they made.

The Marlins may not be able to keep up with the Nationals or Mets, but they will be competitive this season. They hope to improve on last season’s 79 wins. I think they have a shot.

Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria is arguably the worst owner in MLB. Will he finally sell the team this season?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Miami Marlins.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Los Angeles Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers have the highest payroll in the Majors by more than $20 million. That number could increase over the next few years when they extend Corey Seager and Joc Pederson. As crazy as it sounds, they’ve still actually been pretty smart with their signings.

The Dodgers have set themselves up to be a contender in the National League for many years to come. They even have a pretty good farm system, which isn’t anything new for the Dodgers. They’ve historically done a good job maintaining a stockpile of top prospects.

Will the Dodgers run away with the NL West or will the Giants keep it close?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Los Angels Dodgers.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Los Angeles Angels

The Angels will get asked the same question until they get this team back on track, are you willing to trade Mike Trout to improve your farm system?

I know that’s the last thing you want if you’re an Angels fan, but it might be their only option to jump-start this team. He is under team control through 2020 and it might be that year before this team competitive again.

The Angels made some minor improvements to the team this offseason. They filled some holes with veterans like Cameron Maybin and Danny Espinosa and signed some candidates to round out the back-end of their rotation.

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Los Angels Angels.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Kansas City Royals

The Royals made some move this offseason that were more long-term decisions. I think Kansas City’s front office is looking to the future instead of trying to build a contender this year. They have contracts coming up and they need to make some trades or see them walk after this season with just draft pick compensation.

The Royals did make a few short-term motivated deals too, but those were made out of an immediate need following the death of Yordano Ventura. Their starting rotation is a bit of a patchwork job, but it will need to get them through the season.

Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer and Lorenzo Cain are all in the last year of their contracts. Will any stay in Kansas City the entire season or will the Royals move them all in deals?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Kansas City Royals.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Houston Astros

Almost everyone expected the Astros to make the postseason last year, but their starting pitching collapsed. Dallas Keuchel followed up his Cy Young award season in 2015 with a season that saw him lose more games than he won. The advanced metrics showed he was a little unlucky and was better than his ERA and win-loss record would suggest.

Houston decided to invest in some veteran talent this offseason. They signed guys with playoff experience like Carlos Beltran and Brian McCann. Will those signings payoff are they just getting in the way of a younger guy needing at-bats?

Could Carlos Correa or George Springer turn into potential MVP candidates?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Houston Astros.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Detroit Tigers

Nearly every expert predicted the Detroit Tigers would battle the Royals for the AL Central title last year. The Royals fell off a cliff, but the Tigers still put up a little fight for the division. The Indians ended up running away with it by winning 94 games.

The Tigers missed a Wild Card spot by three games. I blame the back-end of their starting rotation for them missing the postseason. Their bats were alive and even Justin Verlander looked like his old self.

I thought the Tigers would make a few big moves this offseason, but their biggest transaction was trading for a platoon-option centerfielder Mikie Mahtook.

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Detroit Tigers.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Colorado Rockies

For the first time in a many years, I like the current trajectory of the Colorado Rockies. It all started when they waited until the perfect time to trade Troy Tulowitzki to Toronto and got some really nice pieces in return. I’ve been waiting for them to do the same thing with Carlos Gonzalez, but they just keep holding onto him. I never thought he would last the entire contract when he signed the seven-year/ $80 million contract before the 2011 season.

I’m curious to see how well the Rockies starting rotation will do this season. Jon Gray was outstanding at times last year. It was nice to see him get comfortable at the Major League level.

Can Colorado surprise us all and contend for a Wild Card spot this season?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Colorado Rockies.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Cleveland Indians

The Cleveland Indians had a remarkable run in the playoffs last year. If the Chicago Cubs didn’t have Aroldis Chapman, the Indians would have taken home the title. The Cubs didn’t have another reliever that could hold off Cleveland’s hot bats.

The Indians added one of the league’s best power hitters this offseason. Edwin Encarnacion is icing on the cake since Cleveland already had a lethal batting order. This means Kipnis, Lindor and Brantley will see better pitches if Encarnacion is hitting behind them.

The Indians have some of their starters back after they began to fall like flies late last year. Will they run away with the AL Central or will the Tigers keep pace?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Cleveland Indians.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds finished up unloading all their tradable stars when they recently sent Brandon Phillips to Atlanta. They still have a couple stars on the team, but Homer Bailey is broken and there’s no chance they are trading Joey Votto.

The Reds have relied on rookie starting pitching since just after the 2015 trade deadline (yes, well over a season). Their young pitchers have shown promise, but you can’t expect the Reds to be very competitive during this stretch.

Homer Bailey will once again start the season on the DL after undergoing another elbow surgery. Which young starter will emerge as the ace of the staff?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Cincinnati Reds.

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2017 MLB Season Preview: Chicago White Sox

This isn’t the best time for the White Sox to begin a rebuilding process. The team across town (the Cubs) won the World Series and the Sox are on the South Side trading their best players away.

The White Sox still have some very good players left on the team. It is still up in the air for how long they will remain there.

Chicago received favorable deals this offseason when they unloaded Adam Eaton to Washington and Chris Sale to Boston. If they can make solid deals for their remaining stars, they could be back in the AL Central mix in just a few years.

Will Chicago hold off until the trade deadline to make some deals or will they get it over with early?

Here is the 2017 MLB season preview for the Chicago White Sox.

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