Back to Blog
Finicky fox5/18/2023 Speaking of strikeouts, the Human Fan, aka Eugenio Suarez had almost identical power numbers his first year in Seattle as he did in Cincinnati, which means when hitters get on in front of him with two outs, there’s a good chance he’ll either hit a multi-run homer or whiff. They have one of the game’s youngest and brightest superstars in the making in 22-year-old AL Rookie of the Year Julio Rodriguez, who easily could be a 30-30 guy in 2023 if he can cut down on his strikeout rate. As the oddsmakers are telling you, Seattle is a real threat in the American League, and if any team is going to knock the mighty Astros from their lofty perch, it’s most likely going to be this one. Much of the buzz in the AL West this offseason has been on the two teams from Texas, and that includes the Rangers, who suddenly seem to be a contender after they acquired shortstop Corey Seager before the 2022 season and fireballer extraordinaire Jacob deGrom this past offseason.īut if you overlook this M’s team and think they are just a one-year wonder, you’re making a big mistake. Houston will be tough to knock from its perch, but it certainly isn’t impossible, and it would be a surprise if they ran away like they have in the recent past. (Although back problems are finicky, even for someone who is 24 years old.)īig bopper Jose Abreu comes over from the White Sox to play first base, but can he return to form after a very sub-par 2022 season in which he only hit 15 homers and collected 75 RBIs in 157 games? Other than that, Jeremy Pena is ready for a second season at shortstop in taking over for Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman is a stalwart in the lineup, and Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Tucker already are superstars at just 25 and 26 years old, respectively. Also, while their rotation is still one of the best in the American League, they are now suddenly mighty shallow after the top four with injuries to Lance McCullers and rookie Hunter Brown (back), who is expected to return as early as the first week of the season. The defending World Champions finally moved well past their trashcan debacle and clearly were the best team in baseball, despite all the preseason talk of the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers.īut it would be sort of silly to think the Astros can win 106 games again this season, especially with the fact they lost Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander in free agency. Odds to win the World Series: +400 (MLB favorite) But it still has been fun with lots of home runs, plenty of big-name stars and a team from the Pacific Northwest that is trying to make sure they were not a one-season wonder.Ĭan it be closer in 2023? Let’s break down each team and digest the American League West futures. In other words, there hasn’t been very much drama here. Do we really count 2020 either, in which the Athletics took the title in a truncated 60-game, pandemic-plagued campaign? They now have won five division championships over the past six seasons. The biggest question heading into the season: Will the Seattle Mariners be the team that finally gives the Houston Astros a run for their money? I mean, other than Astros fans, who isn’t sick of seeing them run away from the other teams come late August and September? As we wrap up our Major League Baseball division previews, we come to what might be the most fun division in baseball – not the one with the most total wins, mind you, but one every fan will enjoy watching.
0 Comments
Read More
Leave a Reply. |