Opening day is 2 weeks away. Yay baseball! Predictions? Thoughts? Kris Bryant is tearing up spring training after hitting 43 HR's in the minors last year and probably won't be on the opening day roster. Can't say as I blame the Cubs, if he's in the minors for the first 12 days of the season they get an extra year before he's a free agent. 12 days in the spring likely won't make or break the Cubs season. I'd rather have a full season of him after a few years in the majors then 12 days of him trying to figure shit out. The Marlins may make things interesting in a tough division...there is some serious talent on that team beyond Stanton. Can Gordon get on base? That's going to be the key to their season I think. Stanton and Ozuna can mash behind him. Ozuna projects to be a 30-40 HR guy which gives them one hell of a 1-2 punch. The Nationals. On paper, their pitching staff should have them cruising to the World Series. But, they need to score some runs. Is Zimmerman healthy? Does Harper finally quit running into walls and hurting himself and break out? The Padres. What a flurry of off season moves. They added power, which is probably useless in Petco, but Kemp did put up decent numbers in Dodger Stadium which has always been pitcher friendly. Adding Wil Myers was a brilliant move, he was injured last year, but he's only one season removed from being the spark plug of enthusiasm that turned the Rays around. Also remember, he can rake. He hit 37HR's in the minors a couple seasons ago. And then there's my favorite subject...the AL West. Quite a few folks are projecting the Mariners to win it, which would be awesome. I thought signing Cano to that contract was the dumbest thing ever initially, but a year removed from the signing I'm a believer. He brought a spark to the team that was missing and watching him play the field was something I'd never seen. Day in and day out, he made it look so easy. Like he was sitting on his couch at home having a beer. Absolutely no effort. Signing Cruz? I dunno. I see him hitting maybe 25 playing half his games at Safeco, but it does give some protection to Cano in the line up. Was Kyle Seagar's production last year a fluke? What are y'all's thoughts?
This is a rebuilding year for the Rangers. Losing Wash and then Darvish being injured...ehhhh. If they win 75 I'm okay with that.
The Athletics will win the west. I have no idea how they will do it, but in Billy Beane I trust. Actually, as long as the A's keep winning the season series against the Giants and I keep collecting on my Beer Bets against those arrogant ass fans (third only to Boston and Yankee fans) I will be content. Oh and of course I need bragging rights against Shimmered so they better finish ahead of the Rangers. All the other divisions are irrelevant.
I think the Mariners have a real chance at a deep run, but they absolutely have to produce more runs. They've certianly tried to remedy that with the offseason moves. I think Seagar is legit and am betting on an even better year. The pitching staff is a bit of a wild card, but if Paxson, Walker and Elias contribute its a deadly staff. Should be fun. Mostly, though, I'm looking forward to fantasy baseball and needing out on statistics.
The guy I'm most interested in is Mike Zunino. As of right now, he's got a OBP for .414. I know, spring training stats and everything, but it's really encouraging to me that Zunino is actually getting on base now instead of striking out two to three times a game. If he hits even .240 with 20+ home runs, I'll consider this season a success. If I have any worries at all, it's the pitching depth. They'll be going with a smaller bullpen this year because they might actually have a decent bench. I think that McClendon has a tendency to pull guys too quickly if he thinks his starters are struggling which puts a lot more pressure on the bullpen. I know the bullpen is talented. After all, they led the AL in allowing the fewest earned runs while pitching the most innings. If Paxton, Walker, Elias and Happ can solidify the back end of that rotation and their offense can be even league average, they'll be tough to beat. But seriously though, fuck the A's and Angels, man.
I'll be happy if the Cubs make it past 500. This is not the year. This is the year of figuring out how many of these fucks belongs on a major league roster. We've filled the minors with major league prospects, now we find out if they belong with the big club. I will admit though, this is the first time I've been excited for Cubs baseball in a while. Someone should come up with a new word that means "Over a 100 Year Nadir"
People saying that this is the year are morons and just help perpetuate the dumb jokes about the Cubs. I suspect many are just building it up so they can make the same tired jokes over again about ineptitude. Epstein and Hoyer have patiently and masterfully built this team the right way, just need a bit more patience. I think 83-85 wins is a good target. They won't be contending for a pennant and likely not the division, but this will be a fun year. Seeing Bryant, Baez, and Soler raking, Lester as their first dominant pitcher since Kerry Wood, it will be fun stuff. I'd like to see Addison Russell progress enough that they can flip Castro at the deadline for more pitching. Also, the inevitable shift if Kris Bryant to LF, much like Braun in Milwaukee, will be interesting.
I bet you get off on kicking puppies and stealing toys from handicapped children. The ALW will come down to Seattle and Oakland. LAA have some issues - that Hamilton money they spent is just burning in their outfield because his production is long past. Houston has the Nolan magic - that's a thing. Trust me. Rangers - Man. Yu is an excellent, incredible pitcher. I hope recovery from surgery goes smoothly for him. Prince looks more fit - but....neck stuff is scary. I LOVE me some Beltre but he's getting old for the hot corner. Maybe bringing Michael Young back into the team like they did will net a positive result. However. Fucking Jurickson Profar. What. A. Goddamn. Waste. We could've traded that kid ages ago for some serious pitching, and Jon Daniels held on to him. Unbelievable. I didn't see the need then - we had Elvis and Kinsler with some solid midfield players in the minors (Odor is HUNGRY out there), and I'm absolutely baffled even now. Mitch Moreland. I don't know what to make of him. He swings a beautiful bat and he's got pop but goddamn is he delicate. My MLB renews automatically, so I've been watching the spring training games. It could be worse, but not by much.
Not to worry, Prince is poised to use his speed from here on out. http://m.mlb.com/cutfour/2015/03/24/114 ... his-career
I think Castro may stick around and Baez will be traded because Baez is having serious trouble mentally adjusting. His mechanical changes (diminished leg kick) and mental changes (pitch recognition) are overwhelming him. Joe Maddon believes that he has major league skills everywhere but hitting, so if Baez breaks camp with the team he may lose his confidence real quick if he can't make contact
From all I've heard and read Kris Bryant is a good, level headed kid. Add Scott Fucking Boras mouthing off, telling the Cubs how to run their team, and whispering in Bryant's ear and he seems to be turning into a spoiled brat. Should he be upset after his spring that he's probably not going to be on the opening day roster? Yeah, I would be too. Should he be talking to media about it? No, unless it's to say "I'm just here to play ball, if they think I need to be in AAA, that's where I'll be until they think I can help the team." He's already a millionaire and he stands to makes hundreds of millions over his career. No matter what Epstein is saying publicly, we all know it is a financial decision that will keep him off the opening day roster. Bryant, and especially Boras, knew the rules when he put pen to paper. Now they're bitching. Does anyone remember when Carlos Delgado first came up with the Blue Jays? He hit a ton. Every night, Baseball Tonight led off with his latest huge game. And then everything went bad and Delgado was sent down to the minors for a while. The exact same thing could happen to Bryant and the Cubs know this. So, do they cave and lose their prized prospect to free agency one year early or wait 12 days and have control of him in the prime of his career for an extra year? No matter what, he's going to walk in his free agent year. It's the Boras way. Seriously, fuck Scott Boras.
In the end, an agent is acting in the best interests of himself, because why wouldn't they? A ball player that hits free agency earlier means this agent is getting his commission faster. Considering that players are by and large treated like cattle, they should be making as much as they can as fast as they can do it. Imagine your employer kept you from making ten times as much as you're making now for over a year because of ten days of service time?
I wouldn't like it. However, my employer also didn't give me $6.7 million to come to work for them. Bryant has already made more money then I will in my entire life.
It's full of hyperbole, but holy shit did he crush that ball: http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/eye-on-baseball/25126936/watch-bryce-harper-kills-unsuspecting-baseball
I'm starting the season on the road. I'll be catching a Nats/Mets game down in D.C. in a week and a half. Hopefully I'll see Strasburg/DeGrom. I'm fan of neither team, but I'm a big fan of pitching. I'd rather see a brilliantly pitched 1-0 game than a 12-3 game, or even a 10-8 game. Should be fun. Nationals Park is new, but that's about it. Nothing unusual or interesting about it. I was there two years ago. I like that the Metro stop spits you out right at the stadium, but the park is kind of plain.
I was so pumped to see Christian Vazquez gunning down runners every other game again... until I read that he's going to see James Andrews about his elbow. Welp, time for Ryan Hanigan I guess... yayyy
It's a nice stadium, with a view of a parking garage. It's positioned with home plate looking north towards the capital but then they built a parking garage to block the view. The area around the stadium's undergone a massive redevelopment, but be mindful, you can still quickly find yourself in a sketchy neighborhood.
I like the fan area - that was cool to see. And that ballpark feels generally intimate. It's a lovely field. That said, I won't be visiting there this year because the Rangers are only playing at Camden. ONE GODDAMN TIME.
Woah! Braves deal Kimbrel, Upton to Padres http://m.mlb.com/news/article/116488476/padres-land-kimbrel-upton-in-blockbuster-deal-with-braves