Category Archives: mlb

2018 MLB Season Preview: Milwaukee Brewers

The NL Central is a tough division to navigate for the Milwaukee Brewers when the Cubs and Cardinals are two of the best teams in the National League. They bolstered their offense this offseason with two big additions of outfielders Christian Yelich and Lorenzo Cain.

Milwaukee needed to add to their starting rotation this offseason, but they whiffed at adding any top-of-the-rotation starters. They just added a few veteran ‘fifth starters’ with no upside.

The Brewers have a ton of speed and will have the green light to run, like last year. Milwaukee could ‘steal’ a few games if they can easily get runners in scoring position.

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Milwaukee Brewers.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Miami Marlins

The Miami Marlins were sold to a Derek Jeter-led group was made official late last year. He took over as CEO of the team and is in control of the baseball decisions. I’m sure it wasn’t totally his call, but he spent the entire offseason getting rid of payroll.

The Marlins are expected to call-up a lot of young talent to fill the large void the former plays left. Unfortunately, the farm system isn’t stocked with enough young blue chip talents to adequately step into those roles.

There are still a few Marlins players on the roster that could fetch a decent return. Will Jeter pull the trigger on deals to send JT Realmuto and others elsewhere?

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Miami Marlins.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Los Angeles Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers come into the season with a payroll of $178 million. That amount is due to rise soon with ace Clayton Kershaw in a contract opt-out year and a few young players due to hit arbitration in the coming years. The front office may need to make some hard decisions when it comes to money.

Those decisions are at least a year away, so the Dodgers just need to use their resources to improve this year’s team. They could be in the market for bullpen help as they get closer to the playoffs.

Can the Giants or Rockies catch them in the NL West?

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Los Angels Dodgers.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Kansas City Royals

The Kansas Royals are no longer World Series contenders. They had a nice run with homegrown talent. They saw some of those guys leave for big money deals, but they still have a competitive squad coming into the season…but could look different by season’s end.

The Royals were able to keep one of their core homegrown talents that led them to a World Series title a few seasons ago. Mike Moustakas was hoping to land a huge contract after belting 38 homers last season. He turned down a qualifying offer, but found the landscape barren. Teams are saving their money for a talented free agent class next offseason. Moose came back for a deal that’s about half of the qualifying offer he turned down.

Will the Royals make any more moves towards a full rebuild?

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Kansas City Royals.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Houston Astros

The Houston Astros did everything right last season and won the World Series. They were arguably the best team from beginning to end.

Houston didn’t stand pat hoping the current squad was good enough to win another championship. They went out and traded for another arm (starter Gerrit Cole) to bolster what was already one of the best rotations in the Majors.

The AL West is always a competitive race. Nearly every team in the division made big moves this offseason. It will be hard for Houston to repeat last year’s success against an improved Angels and Mariners rosters.

Can the Astros repeat and win back-to-back rings?

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Houston Astros.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Detroit Tigers

The Tigers look a lot different than they did going into last season. They traded a lot away and now are just a mix of aged-out veterans and replacement-level players.

I hate to throw Hall of Fame candidates like Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez in the ‘aged-out’ category, but age finally reared its ugly head last season. They are clearly on the downside of their prolific careers.

The Tigers fired manager Brad Ausmus at the end of the season and hired a manager with experience, Ron Gardenhire. He managed a rebuilding team during his 13-year tenure as the Twins skipper. He’s the perfect guy for this job.

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Detroit Tigers.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Colorado Rockies

I like the current trajectory of the Colorado Rockies. They have been slowly amassing talent and all of their call-ups have been effective. They have many young position players in the minors, but they lack arms at that level. Could they flip a few of their blue chip prospects for a true ace?

Jon Gray has improved over the last two seasons, but can he be leaned up in pressure situations? Also, can the end-of-the-rotation starters hang with other team’s pitchers in the same role?

Charlie Blackmon had a career year in 2017. Can he keep up those numbers or is a regression candidate?

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Colorado Rockies.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Cleveland Indians

The Cleveland Indians are on a nice run. They’ve made the postseason a couple seasons in a row and have one of the most dynamic starting rotations in the Majors. They also saw young players like Francisco Lindor turn into MVP candidates.

After making the World Series in 2016, Cleveland didn’t stand pat and hope to make it again. They added power and bullpen arms to finish the job last season. They failed to make another World Series appearance, but their team was as dangerous as any other team in the Majors.

They come into this season with basically the same team. Can the Indians finally end their championship drought and win it all this season?

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Cleveland Indians.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds roughly two seasons into their rebuild and they now have some solid young players at the Major League level. It will be up to their coaches to keep them developing into a contender.

The starting rotation has been filled with rookies or second-year guys the last two seasons. Experience has been the tool the Reds have used to develop their arms. They have used a handful of guys and haven’t decided on a five-man rotation. The back-end is still up for grabs this Spring.

Which position players could the Reds call-up this season?

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Cincinnati Reds.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox got off to a huge start to their rebuild when they traded Chris Sale to the Red Sox. They received some stud prospects in return and have been drafting near the top of the draft for a couple seasons.

They weren’t finished with making deals. They got another load of good prospects from the Cubs last season when they sent starter Jose Quintana across town. These trades have sped up the rebuilding process by a lot. Some players from this trade should contribute for the White Sox as early as this season.

Are the White Sox finished dealing? Could first baseman Jose Abreu be the next player to be moved?

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Chicago White Sox.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs couldn’t repeat as World Series champions last year, but they still had a very good year. They ran into a better Dodgers team in the NLCS and were eliminated in five games.

This Cubs didn’t stand pat this offseason. They made some moves and cut some of the fat by deciding to not re-sign a few starters and let a few bullpen arms walk. They spent wisely by signing starter Yu Darvish to a pretty team-friendly contract. The Cubs did spend $126 million, but many thought Darvish could command a contract near $200 million at the start of the offseason.

Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant are perennial MVP candidates for the Cubs. Kyle Schwarber could be a guy on their level, but he has a rough year at the plate. He focused on his fitness this offseason and dropped weight. Will his power still be there?

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Chicago Cubs.

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2018 MLB Season Preview: Baltimore Orioles

Over the last decade, the AL East is one of the most competitive divisions in baseball. The Baltimore Orioles have been right up there with the Yankees and Red Sox in recent memory, but they took a step back last year.

Baltimore didn’t make many moves this offseason. They let some guys walk and didn’t make any big money deals. They could benefit from adding a free agent starter before the season, but they haven’t been tied to any of them.

Baltimore had a disappointing season in 2017 by only winning 75 games. Some young talent made huge strides, but at the same time, some of their high-priced talent didn’t live up to their paychecks. Can they compete for the division with their current roster?

Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Baltimore Orioles.

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