2018 Pre-Season Power Rankings
Mar 26, 2018 16:40:45 GMT -5
Colorado Rockies, Chicago Cubs, and 4 more like this
Post by Philadelphia Phillies on Mar 26, 2018 16:40:45 GMT -5
So, you may be thinking that this guy has way too much time on his hands. Well, I have a boring job at the moment, and screw you. Anyway, below is a way too long and definitely very wrong power ranking list with my estimated records. Last year, I correctly picked 1 division winner (worse than random guessing on average) and ranked the team with the best record 14th and the team with the most points 16th. So, I probably can't do much worse, right? Well, I probably will.
I started writing this a while ago, so there may be some inaccuracies due to trades and injuries.
1. Chicago Cubs (113-49) 1st in NL Central - The Cubs have wheeled and dealed their way into accumulating 5 first round picks from last year’s draft and 12 from the first 4 rounds, which is pretty amazing. With their depth, this team is a preseason lock for the playoffs. In most of the trades leading into this season, Chicago has stated that he is going all-in for this year, but his entire line-up and rotation is signed long-term and on well below-market deals. I expect the Cubs to be in the playoffs for the foreseeable future.
Biggest Strength - Goddamn this team is stacked, but their first basemen duo of Rizzo and Goldschmidt stands out as the most ridiculous.
Biggest Weakness - I would like to point out that the Cubs have the worst player currently owned in the league in Tim Tebow, who sucks at more than baseball. As a competitor to the Cubs, I hope the pointless media following of Tebow distracts them into blowing it. Seriously though, they could improve RF as Trumbo is injured and Nick Williams won’t play every day, but not much else can be improved.
Player to watch - Chris Sale. Aces can really carry a team in this league and Sale did so last year almost taking a mediocre Pirates team to the playoffs. I don’t think the Cubbies need him to make the playoffs, but they might need him in the playoffs. Sale has been mediocre in his career in September, including last year, so it should be interesting to see if the Cubs can rely on Sale to carry them to a World Series.
2. St. Louis Cardinals (95-67) 2nd in NL Central - The defending NL champs bring back a very good squad that should compete for another pennant but will have a tough time repeating in the Central due to the ridiculous Cubs. The team has not changed much since last year, with Khris Davis replacing Carlos Santana being the main difference. This should change the consistency of the lineup a bit, but probably not too much for the overall outcome.
Biggest Strength - Top of Rotation. Lindor might compete for offensive MVP, but the top of the Cardinals’ rotation will be the key to their success. Carrasco and deGrom are one of the top pairs in the league even if they are #2 on their own teams. If they end up pitching consistently on the same day, however, the Cardinals will have a tough time competing with the Cubs.
Biggest Weakness - SP depth. The Cardinals do not have any major weaknesses, but with Salazar’s injury in ST, depth might be a concern. Jaime Garcia has been bad for 2 years, especially in this point system and Wainwright seems like he might be done. With no apparent help coming from the minors, an injury to one of the top 3 could be deathly.
Player to watch - Adrian Beltre. At 38, it is amazing that he has stayed elite for this long but father time will catch up to him at some point and it might be this year. I doubt the Rangers are going to compete so motivation for the old man might be tough. Also, www.sbnation.com/mlb/2017/7/27/16048596/adrian-beltre-ejected-relocating-on-deck-circle-my-god-he-is-the-best.
3. Los Angeles Angels (102-60) 1st in AL West - The Angels had a very disappointing season in 2017 and it was partly based on some significant injuries, which could certainly be the case again this year. However, if the Halos can stay healthy, a big if, this team could do some real damage and should be unstoppable on days that Syndergaard pitches.
Biggest Strength - the Lineup. 1-9 for the Angels is littered with great hitters. If Miggy and Kipnis rebound, which I expect them to, this could very well be the top scoring offense.
Biggest Weakness - Injury concerns. The Angels have some depth, but, unlike the Cubs, can’t plug in league-average players for all of their holes and their list of players with a recent injury history is extremely deep (Miggy, Kipnis, Syndergaard, Stanton, Lucroy, Trea Turner, Span, Cespedes).
Player to watch - Gleyber Torres. Gleyber, even when he is inevitably called up, does not project (in my view) to help the Angels this year, being blocked by better options for 2018. It will be interesting to see how the Angels decide to let the situation play out as his emergence could make LeMahieu or Kipnis expendable. I predict that one of those 2 will be traded before the deadline so that the Angels can bring in someone to fill in a hole (that’s what she said) caused by injury. Given the Angels 2018 cap issues, I will almost guarantee that one will be gone before next season.
4. Cleveland Indians (105-57) 1st in AL Central - The defending World Series Champions have the easiest road back to the playoffs of any team. I would not be surprised if the AL Central has 4 of the bottom 10 teams in terms of points. Joey Votto probably won’t repeat as MVP, but the Tribe won’t need him to.
Biggest Strength - SP depth. Patrick Corbin could be sneaky good with the humidor being added in Arizona, and he projects to be their #5 starter. Nola is a dark horse ace candidate and Jose Quintana has been on NL Cy Young lists.
Biggest Weakness - Strikeouts. Ks in real life are not much worse than a ground out or fly out, but the scoring system here amplifies their negative effect and the Cardinals have a few players (Cruz, Frazier, Schwarber, Hedges, Crawford) that are going to have more than their fair share of negative days.
Player to watch - Willie Calhoun. The Cards will be rotating players in and out of the Utility spot throughout the year, but Calhoun has the potential to change that when he is inevitably called up (.900 OPS in AAA last year).
5. Philadelphia Phillies (90-72) 1st in NL East - The NL East is deep and is not going to have any easy wins throughout the year. The Phillies are the defending champs and I am completely biased, so I picked them (me?) to repeat. A deep lineup headlined by newcomer Buster Posey should lead one of the top offenses in the league.
Biggest Strength - Lineup. The lineup should have good production at every position, especially from Mookie who had a down year in 2017 but still winded up as the 3rd best OF.
Biggest Weakness - Starting rotation. Ohtani’s terrible spring (who needs international prospects for the next 8 years?), McHugh’s demotion to the Bullpen, and Big Erv’s finger injury bring further questions to a rotation with no ace. There are a bunch of pitchers that should be solid, but the Phillies clearly lack the ace that most other contenders have.
Player to watch - Luiz Gohara. Gohara has the strikeout potential to be an ace. He won’t start in the pros, but a midseason callup could be a big boost to the Phillies chances. Plus who doesn’t love to watch fat pitchers to make them think they could be pro athletes too?
6. Colorado Rockies (92-70) 1st in NL West - The Rockies’ recent acquisition of Verlander has shot them up my projected rankings even though I fully expect Kate Upton’s boo to take a decent step backwards this year. The star-laden lineup finally has help and makes this team a playoff contender.
Biggest Strength - Middle of the lineup. Trout/Arenado/Murphy should put up more points than any trio in the league even with Murphy out for the beginning of the year.
Biggest Weakness - Depth. The Blake Street Bombers are one of the least equipped teams to handle an injury. Their current UTIL spot is occupied by a platoon player in Almora and there is not a ton of positional flexibility. The rotation has 5 projected starters (maybe 6 if Amir Garrett gets some starts early on) but not many possibilities for replacement. The Rockies will need to stay healthy.
Player to watch - Ryan McMahon. He should get called up shortly into the season and with the Coors effect could be stud fantasy contributor from the get-go.
7. San Diego Padres (91-71) 2nd in NL West - The Padres went out and spent very big (about 55M big ones per year) to solidify a weak rotation and it should pay dividends as they should battle with Colorado for the division throughout the year. The Friars are solid all around although not spectacular anywhere except one spot.
Biggest Strength - Catcher. Gary Sanchez is an absolute beast and is the only C in my opinion in the vicinity of Posey and he may be better. The Padres were able to pair him with his real-life backup so they won’t even need to worry about common catcher off days. (Could also go with their stud bullpen with 2 top-tier closers).
Biggest Weakness - Back end of rotation. Andriese looks like he is going to be limited to a few innings per appearance and Bettis barely strikes anyone out and pitches in Coors. The top 4 are solid enough to carry the team, but the Friars will be vulnerable when these 2 pitch.
Player to watch - Kevin Kiermaier. The Kierbear, as only I call him, is known for his really very good defense, but at 27, I think he is going to break out and become a fantasy stud.
8. Atlanta Braves (88-74) 2nd in NL East - The Braves were not really on my radar going into this edition of my inaccurate power rankings, but the Kluber trade catapulted the Cowards up about 10 spots. Like the Pirates (with Sale) of last year, the Braves do not have a great supporting cast (but better than the Pirates), but it should be enough with the reigning Cy Young winner going every 5th day to make a playoff push.
Biggest Strength - Kluber. CKloobs is a beast and is good for a quality start almost every time out. Even with a subpar offense, the Bravos will be almost impossible to beat when he pitches.
Biggest Weakness - LF. I don’t think Randal Grichuk is good. He strikes out a ton and barely walks. Plus, I read his name and don’t know how to pronounce it, which is annoying.
Player to watch - Cole Hamels. After many years of very good pitching, Cole dropped to just okay last year. It will be interesting to see what he has left in the tank. He’ll always be great in my heart as I sadly member
the ‘08 Phillies though.
9. Houston Astros (91-71) 2nd in AL West - The ‘Stros are not bad at pretty much everything, but not great, and could repeat in the West if things go right. Texas has taken a large step back in my opinion and Oakland/Seattle are not ready to compete, so there should be plenty of wins for Houston to steal.
Biggest Strength - Altuve. The closest thing to a Tolkien character in the MLB since Eddie Gaedel sure can hit and should blow out the competition at 2B this year with Murphy starting the year on the shelf.
Biggest Weakness - Rotation. The Biggios have guys to take the mound, but none inspire a ton of confidence. Porcello and Sanchez could very well revert to their 2016 stud-like selves and that could make the Bagwells a World Series contender. Even if that happens, Roark and Folty and Tillman aren’t going to scare anyone and the Astros may be looking for rotation help at the deadline.
Player to watch - Edubray Ramos. I’m a Phillies fan, so this is a homer pick, but the guy has electric stuff and the potential to dominate at the end of a game or spend the year in the minors. He has sleeper closer potential plus a great name. He's no Dovydas Neverauskas (wtf?) though.
10. Boston Red Sox (88-74) 1st in AL East - I expect the AL East to be the most hotly contested division this year with no clear dominators and no duds. However, I do think that the Sawx are the clear favorites to repeat due to a deep lineup. The pitching is mostly trash, like the Red Sox before the rest of the league stopped taking steroids.
Biggest Strength - Outfield. Ozuna, Marte, JD, and Markakis (point system strength) could be the highest scoring outfield in the league. It will be interesting to see how JD’s bat plays in Fenway, which is favorable but probably not as favorable as that dry air in the hell-hole that is Arizona.
Biggest Weakness - #3 SP. Cueto is solid and Lynn should be serviceable, but the rest of the rotation is either bad options or non-existent. The Lineup can only carry the team so far and it will be interesting to see if the Sawx move some offense for pitching as the season goes on.
Player to watch - Odrisamer Despaigne. Just kidding, he’s terrible, I just wanted to type that name. Starling Marte. Coming off of a half-season where his hitting dropped significantly after a drug suspension, will he be able to get back to All-Star caliber play?
11. Cincinnati Reds (84-78) 3rd in NL Central - The land of backup Catchers knocked off the Braves in the Wild Card last year and are in a position to potentially face them again, but might need some help. They still boast a solid lineup with a lot of depth and mediocre pitching. The Central is not as deep as it was last year, but the top is heavier which is why I’ve dropped the Reds down.
Biggest Strength - Offensive Depth. The Big Red Machine is definitely big, offensively, as they have the most amount of ML-playing hitters of any team. This should allow them to play matchups and squeeze the most value out of their players. It will be interesting to see if they end up trading from depth to upgrade some of their weaker areas in the lineup.
Biggest Weakness - Bullpen. The pitching in general isn’t great, but the Reds probably have the worst bullpen of any of the teams trying to contend. Bullpens aren’t all that important in this league, but if I were the Reds, I might be scouring the FA pool to upgrade.
Player to watch - Byron Buxton. The consensus worst pick of the draft (sorry for dragging that up again Milwaukee) was close to the worst player in the league halfway through last season. Then Milwaukee traded him and he actually played well down the stretch. He is still not a great match for this point system, but his speed and power could make him a stud.
12. New York Yankees (84-78) 2nd in AL East - The Bronx Bombers have generally exceeded my expectations and were the team I was most wrong about last season, so take my ranking with a grain of salt. They boast a very strong rotation and a lineup with the potential for many holes.
Biggest Strength - Rotation. I don’t know if David Price is going to be an ace again, but I do think he is going to have a very good year and will lead the Yanks in points. Lester should bounce back a bit as well which should counter Gio’s inevitable ride back to Earth. With sleepers Lamet and Godley dropping Ks like they’re hot, this is one of the most balanced rotations in the league.
Biggest Weakness - Point system. Players like Judge, Story and Smoak should be more valuable in real life than in this league given their propensity to strikeout on a daily basis. If a K was treated like a groundout, the Evil Empire would rank higher.
Player to watch - Jose Martinez. The Yankees have a lot of players penciled into the lineup that are going to have to fight for regular at bats and Martinez is no exception. He put up great numbers in 2017 in limited at bats and, if injuries open up a spot in the daily lineup, he could be the surprise team MVP that Judge was last year.
13. New York Mets (83-79) 3rd in NL East - The Zombie Marlins were a good team last year that dug itself into a giant hole earlier on and couldn’t flop themselves out. They’ve added Greinke as a legitimate ace and added an expensive Jay Bruce, which should help them avoid another early hole.
Biggest Strength - Depth. With 7+ projected starting pitchers and 6 MLB players on their bench, the Mets should be able to overcome many injuries.
Biggest Weakness - Lack of Stars. Despite proclamations of stardom for Chris Stratton, Greinke is the only player on this team that projects in the top third in ppg going into the season at his respective position. The projections are not going to be right, but there are not a lot of clear cut studs on the roster.
Player to watch - Matt Harvey. There are a lot of interesting players on the Mets this year that could vary widely in terms of production, but Harvey tops the list. He clearly fell apart mentally and physically over the last couple years and I do not expect him to return to being a top 10 SP, but he very well could be a No. 2 or 3. He could also be out of baseball in a year.
14. San Francisco Giants (82-80) 3rd in NL West - The Giants have new owner and have put some effort into fielding a competitive team this year and should eclipse last year’s win total easily, but I do not think they are on the same level as Colorado or the Whale’s Vagina. That may have been a different story a couple weeks ago, but potentially devastating injuries to Turner and Eickhoff might put them in too big of a hole early in the year.
Biggest Strength - Bullpen. Closers Cody Allen and Raisel Iglesias could be top 5 and Chad Green could be the new right-handed version of Andrew Miller. The Giants could steal some late-night wins with those three pitching in the final innings.
Biggest Weakness - Health. Pedroia, Turner, Cotton and Eickhoff will start the year on the DL. Garrett Richards and Rich Hill have long injury histories and Matt Joyce is being evaluated at the time of this writing. Healthy, this team is a contender, but that seems unlikely at this point.
Player to watch - Wil Myers. He carried the Giants to being one of the top offensive teams early in the year and dropped off significantly as the year went on. He is going to be switching positions and it will be interesting to see if it has any effect on his bat. Hosmer hitting in the lineup could help too.
15. Washington Nationals (79-83) 4th in NL East - The Nationals have a lot of potential on their team that could explode and make them a World Series contender. On the other hand, they could not do much and make them a cellar dweller in a competitive NL East. Greg Bird and Lucas Giolito exemplify this the most as they could be MVP/Cy young contenders or complete non-factors.
Biggest Strength - Top of the rotation. Strasburg, Tanaka, and Giolito can carry the Nats to a lot of wins. Giolito could be an absolute stud on a bad team and Tanaka/Strasburg will reap the rewards of great offense behind them and should put up their consistently good numbers.
Biggest Weakness - Left and Center field. The combination of Magnerius Sierra (if he makes the team) and Tomas aren’t all that great and won’t be playing often at all. There will be a lot of zeroes in those positions if Washington doesn’t make some moves before opening day.
Player to watch - Whit Merrifield. Whitley is a terrible name and was never more than a fringe prospect, but ended up being really good at 29. I personally don’t think he repeats, but it will be interesting to see if he has broken out for good.
16. Tampa Bay Rays (82-80) 3rd in AL East - The Rays will be looking to get back to the playoffs and will be relying heavily on a very solid pitching staff. The lineup looks like it has good potential for many holes and may hold them back, but Scherzer, et al. will definitely be able to hide some of those issues.
Biggest Strength - Rotation. Although only 5 deep (maybe 4 if Stroman isn’t ready to start the season), the Rays have some studs in Scherzer, Archer and Darvish. Manaea is a breakout candidate as well and could end up being the ace of this staff in couple years.
Biggest Weakness - Lineup. They won’t get consistent at bats from 1B, LF, or the UTIL spot. C and SS have serious injury risks and only Jose Ramirez projects to be an above average regular in my mind. The Rays were smart in that they have backups that will fill in with the Tulo/Diaz and Healy/Vogelbach combos but this will be a bad offense overall unless a couple players surprise me.
Player to watch - Daniel Vogelbach. He has raked this spring and could get significant playing time early with Cruz/Healy dealing with injuries. He has a decent pedigree and could win a full time job and might be the Rays’ second best hitter by the end of the season.
17. Baltimore Orioles (78-84) 5th in AL East - The chat has gotten significantly more boring since last year’s owner left, but the O’s should be a bit more competitive this year. The additions of Brantley and Paxton should help them put up a fight in a deep AL East, but I do not think it will be enough.
Biggest Strength - James Paxton. Big Maple has the ability to be a legitimate ace in this league and could pull a Chris Sale and make the Orioles a contender. They will definitely need a big year out of him if they want to make a run.
Biggest Weakness - Depth. The Orioles have some veterans with injury histories and virtually no way to counteract a loss as there is almost no help on the bench or in the minors. The Orioles could be trade happy as the season goes on out of necessity.
Player to watch - Roughned Odor. He took a significant step back last year, barely batting over the Mendoza Line, striking out once per game, and with an OPS under .700. He is still very young and hasn’t lost his home run power and should bounce back, but you never know.
18. Miami Marlins (77-85) 5th in NL East - The Fish formerly known as the Mets are looking to rely on some bounceback campaigns from some veterans if they want to make a playoff run as well as some break out campaigns from some younger players. King Felix, Hanley Ramirez, and Brandon McCarthy are coming off of down years and are looking to return to the olden days when they were fantasy studs. On the other end, Carlos Rodon (currently injured), Piscotty, Sano, Margot, and company are going to be trying to replicate Chris Taylor’s 2017 and grow into fantasy studs. This team has a very wide range of possibilities.
Biggest Strength - Bullpen. Maybe the only team with 3 locked-in closers with Kimbrel, Neris, and Morrow, the Marlins have a good chance to lead the league in late-inning pitching points. With Boston and CHC seemingly set to win a ton of games, I fully expect the Marlins to lead the league in saves.
Biggest Weakness - Top of rotation. The team that will probably never really try to win but still have 2 WS championships (assholes) have decent depth in the rotation, but no one stands out as a reliable ace. Shark had a chance, but is now injured, as did Rodon. Urena is somehow starting opening day for the real Marlins, but is pretty bad. I don’t know if anyone on the Marlins is going to help them steal wins on days their offense does not show up.
Player to watch - Chris Taylor. The projected leadoff hitter for the Dodgers came out of nowhere to be a great player last year. He has a pretty strong minor league success record with the bat and has raked in Spring Training. He is going to play CF in real life and start at 2B for the Marlins, missing out on key assists, but his hitting should more than make up for it.
19. Texas Rangers (75-87) 3rd in AL West - The Rangers barely missed out on the playoffs last year, but if they hope to get there this year, some moves are going to have to be made. There are a lot of holes and Zack Wheeler’s recent demotion is not going to help matters.
Biggest Strength - Clayton Kershaw. He is arguably the best pitcher in the game and if he avoids the nagging back injuries, should be the Cy Young. Even with half a lineup, the Rangers should win every day he pitches.
Biggest Weakness - 5-9 of the lineup. The killer Cs (Cano, Carpenter, Castillo, Conaldson) should provide as ton of points, but the rest of the roster is just backups that are not very enticing. Getting 0 points from more than half your lineup is enough to sink a team even with a great top.
Player to watch - Robbie Ray. Ray was an offseason acquisition and the Rangers will need him to repeat his stellar 2017 if they want to compete. He has the strikeout numbers and it will be interesting if he can keep his control issues at bay again this year. He should benefit greatly from the humidor.
20. Toronto Blue Jays (76-86) 5th in AL East - The first team that I am predicting to be last in their division has the capability of being a top 5 offense. They are very young, but have tons of offensive potential. Pitching, on the other hand, is a completely different story, especially with their projected 3rd starter (out of 3) Scott Kazmir being released so that Anibal “hasn’t had an ERA under 5.50 in two years” Sanchez can get a spot in the rotation.
Biggest Strength - Young Lineup. Outside of Russell Martin and Howie Kendrick, this lineup is young and oozing with potential. Correa and Bryant should be near the top of their respective positions and Rhys Hoskins could compete for an MVP in this league down the road. Mazara, Herrera, and Polanco have all shown glimpses of being future stars as well.
Biggest Weakness - Starting Pitching. The BJs project to have 2 starting pitchers this year, one of which hasn’t had an ERA under 5.50 in three years (albeit due to injuries). The lineup has great potential, but not enough to compensate for such a terrible/non-existent rotation.
Player to watch - Ronald Acuna. Wanting to keep an extra year of control over him, the Braves decided to fuck him over and keep him in AAA for a couple of weeks, but the stud prospect might be reminding people of a young Andruw Jones very soon and anchor an already very solid lineup.
21. Chicago White Sox (80-82) 2nd in AL Central - The AL Central is looking bad right now and the White Sox could take advantage of a soft schedule to flirt with a playoff spot. This would presumably enrage teams like the Cubs and Pirates from last year. There isn’t much that is overly flashy, but they should put up decent points fairly regularly which might be enough.
Biggest Strength - Keuchel/McCullers. Having your two best starters pitching for the same team in real life is a big bonus as they will never overlap. These two are going to get a lot of wins with the Houston offense backing them up and can combine for a lethal 1-2 punch throughout the season.
Biggest Weakness - Offense. When Maikel Franco and his .230/.281/.409 2017 line is projected to be your best offensive player, you are going to have problems. I think that the ChiSox were expecting Melky and Brandon Phillips to contribute, but they remain unsigned.
Player to watch - Joey Gallo. Gallo struck out 196 times in 449 at bats last year, which is fairly amazing given that he still had an OPS over .850. Reports from spring training suggest that he will have a different approach this year and he will need to cut down on the exorbitant Ks to be an above-average 1B in this league, even if he hits 50 HRs.
22. Arizona Diamondbacks (75-87) 4th in NL West - The DBacks are under new management and have performed a partial strip-down/rebuild of the roster. The AL West should be a lot tougher this year, and the DBacks will likely struggle to compete. They do have decent depth though and if injuries hurt the teams they’re chasing, a wild card berth is not out of the realm of possibility.
Biggest Strength - Rotation depth. The sandsnakes (horribly done in Game of Thrones) don’t have a true ace, but they do have a lot of options. Even with Pomeranz starting the year on the DL, they project to have about 7 starters in the early going.
Biggest Weakness - Right side of the infield. I expect very little production from the Rua (platoon), Profar (utility), etc. group that Arizona will throw out there. The rest of the lineup doesn’t exactly inspire confidence, but they should at least be on the field most days.
Player to watch - Mike Clevinger. Sunshine has the ability to be a pretty darn good rotation piece given his high K-rate. He walks a lot of guys, but I like his potential. If Salazar didn’t get injured, however, Clevinger would probably be in the bullpen right now.
23. Oakland Athletics (72-90) 4th in AL West - Oakland has started to rebound from a few ill-advised moves during the draft and while they don’t seem to be quite back into contention, they aren’t far off now. Still young and with good potential offensively, the A’s look primed to compete in the near future.
Biggest Strength - OF, by far. The A’s might have the best OF in the league by the end of the season, although I do expect a bit of a sophomore slump from Benintendi this year. Still, Harper/Pollock/Beni will put up a ton of points if healthy. Duvall ain’t too shabby either.
Biggest Weakness - SP. The current ace has a fastball in the 80s and had an ERA near 5 last year. Finnegan will likely start on the DL and Moore and Gibson just aren’t very good.
Player to watch - Yoan Moncada. The former top prospect struck out in over a third of his plate appearances last year, making him a less than ideal option. He is very young though and should improve. He obviously has immense talent and it will interesting to see if he can translate that to fantasy stardom.
24. Kansas City Royals (78-84) 3rd in AL Central - The Royals finished 87-75 last year despite being 19th in overall points. I think the Royals take a step back this year, but could have a similar discrepancy between performance and record due to the weak division.
Biggest Strength - Middle infield. Schoop, although not great for the point system, should be one of the best 2B in the league, and Segura and Asdrubal should also put solid points for an otherwise uninspiring offense.
Biggest Weakness - Quality starting pitching. The Royals have 4 starters ready to pitch in the beginning of the year and 3 of them are starting on opening day (bad luck to start the year). None of them are actually deserving of the opening day nod, however. Graveman barely strike anyone out and has had a bad spring, Clayton Richard also lacks Ks and isn’t very good otherwise, and Zimmermann is useless. He’s the third best player with Zimmer in their name, slightly better than Don Zimmer, who has been dead for 4 years.
Player to watch - Andrew Toles. Can he win back the LF job from Matt Kemp? If so, he could have decent upside. Doesn’t look likely early in the season, however.
25. Los Angeles Dodgers (72-90) 5th in NL West - I think there is a fairly large gap between the Dodgers and Royals and I don’t expect anyone at this point or below to compete for a World Series this year. The Dodgers have a lot of interesting young pitchers that could help the Dodgers play spoiler in the second half, but early on, I expect them to struggle.
Biggest Strength - Youth. There are a lot of young players with big upsides that are not quite established in the majors yet (i.e. Baez, Rosario, Andujar, Brinson, Castillo, etc.). A few will likely breakout a la Cody Bellinger last year and could become cornerstones for the franchise.
Biggest Weakness - Youth. Youth is a double-edged sword and there are very few proven commodities on the team. Some will break out and play well and others will struggle mightily.
Player to watch - Tyler Glasnow. He has great stuff and will strike out a ton while starting the year in the bullpen, but it be interesting to see if he sticks with the Pen and kills his long term value.
26. Pittsburgh Pirates (67-95) 4th in NL Central - The Cubs and Cards are going to beat down the Pirates this year after Sale was unloaded for a ton of pieces. Probably a smart move to build for the future as the roster they had was unlikely to compete this year in a tough division.
Biggest Strength - Bullpen. Colome and Familia should start the season in closers’ roles and Parker should get a fair bit of saves in LA’s closer by committee. Not many teams can compete with those save numbers.
Biggest Weakness - 1B. There are few weaknesses, but with Reynolds unsigned, the Pirates will be rolling out presumed pinch hitter Garrett Cooper who is likely to get sent down soon.
Player to watch - Domingo Santana. The biggest piece of the Sale trade hit very well last year but may struggle for playing time in Milwaukee’s crowded outfield. He should play everyday based on his performance, but so should the other options.
27. Minnesota Twins (68-94) 4th in AL Central - Well, the Twins are going to be bad, but should still blow the bottom three teams out of the water based on the current rosters. There is not a lot to look for early in the year, but they will get some publicity if Maxwell protests again at least.
Biggest Strength - Rotation. The rotation isn’t great, but it’s almost okay. A ringing endorsement, I know. I like Musgrove to surprise and be pretty good. Nick Pivetta has the stuff to be above average (still unlikely). The thing is, the Twins seem to have a projected 6 arms in the rotation to start the year which is pretty rare.
Biggest Weakness - Middle Infield. Chase Utley is good for the locker room and for pissing off Mets’ fans, but not good for a fantasy team. Miguel Rojas is good for playing SS because of injury on the tankiest team in baseball, but not much else. Will be better after Polanco’s suspension, but it will be rough for 80 games. At least Bo Bichette is on the way.
Player to watch - Jake Lamb. Dude has had a great couple years in Coors Field Lite, but with the addition of the humidor and his tendency to whiff, he might be due for a step back. Then again, he’s only 27 and could take a step forward in development.
28. Detroit Tigers (67-95) 5th in AL Central - Not quite as depressing as the city of Detroit, the Tigers are not going to do much this year. There are some young pieces that could be fun to watch (Happ, Dahl), an old piece that will be sad to watch (Alex Gordon), and many more young pieces that will use this year to develop with little pressure.
Biggest Strength - Happ. There is very little to get excited about for this team, but Happ has flashed brilliance and is projected to bat leadoff for a stacked lineup and is leading the league in homeruns this spring.
Biggest Weakness - SS. They literally don’t have one in the majors or one expected to be called up soon.
Player to watch - David Dahl. He’s starting the year in AAA, but he has a very high upside and should get called up when CarGo gets injured.
29. Seattle Mariners (61-101) 5th in AL West - New owner took over a bare system and spent a lot in FA to put together a decent lineup, although not great. The pitching, however, is almost nonexistent and is going to make it tough to compete. At least Ichiro is back in real life.
Biggest Strength - IF. It will take a little bit for Cozart to get 3B eligibility, but when that happens, there is good potential for the infield to produce. Santana is a proven commodity that fits well for the point system, Albies crushed it in a brief call up last year, and Swanson has a very high ceiling. This infield could stick together for a long time.
Biggest Weakness - Pitching. I have mocked some SPs, like Jordan Zimmermann, for sucking, but the Mariners don’t even have any suckers to send out for a start. Maybe Steven Brault wins the 5th starter spot for a weak Pirates rotation and saves them from that embarrassment, but this staff is not going to do much.
Player to watch - Swanson. Can he get some consistency? Month to month last year showed a very good player vs. one of the worst in the league.
30. Milwaukee Brewers (35-127) 5th in NL Central - Trust the Process. It worked for the Sixers and Astros, why can’t it work for the Brew Crew? They will be bad, but weren’t going to compete this year in a stacked NL Central, so it made sense for them to tear down. There are some interesting pieces. Can Brad Miller bounce back? Is Preston Tucker for real? Can Jarrod Dyson's scrawny ass lift Eric Thames?
Biggest Strength - No.
Biggest Weakness - Yes.
Player to watch - Drew Steckinrider. He struck out 54 in 34 innings last year. He’s a bit wild, which makes him fun to watch. Thames should be interesting too. Playing time will be cramped in Milwaukee, and his second half last year was not nearly as good as his first, but he's still a good player.
I started writing this a while ago, so there may be some inaccuracies due to trades and injuries.
1. Chicago Cubs (113-49) 1st in NL Central - The Cubs have wheeled and dealed their way into accumulating 5 first round picks from last year’s draft and 12 from the first 4 rounds, which is pretty amazing. With their depth, this team is a preseason lock for the playoffs. In most of the trades leading into this season, Chicago has stated that he is going all-in for this year, but his entire line-up and rotation is signed long-term and on well below-market deals. I expect the Cubs to be in the playoffs for the foreseeable future.
Biggest Strength - Goddamn this team is stacked, but their first basemen duo of Rizzo and Goldschmidt stands out as the most ridiculous.
Biggest Weakness - I would like to point out that the Cubs have the worst player currently owned in the league in Tim Tebow, who sucks at more than baseball. As a competitor to the Cubs, I hope the pointless media following of Tebow distracts them into blowing it. Seriously though, they could improve RF as Trumbo is injured and Nick Williams won’t play every day, but not much else can be improved.
Player to watch - Chris Sale. Aces can really carry a team in this league and Sale did so last year almost taking a mediocre Pirates team to the playoffs. I don’t think the Cubbies need him to make the playoffs, but they might need him in the playoffs. Sale has been mediocre in his career in September, including last year, so it should be interesting to see if the Cubs can rely on Sale to carry them to a World Series.
2. St. Louis Cardinals (95-67) 2nd in NL Central - The defending NL champs bring back a very good squad that should compete for another pennant but will have a tough time repeating in the Central due to the ridiculous Cubs. The team has not changed much since last year, with Khris Davis replacing Carlos Santana being the main difference. This should change the consistency of the lineup a bit, but probably not too much for the overall outcome.
Biggest Strength - Top of Rotation. Lindor might compete for offensive MVP, but the top of the Cardinals’ rotation will be the key to their success. Carrasco and deGrom are one of the top pairs in the league even if they are #2 on their own teams. If they end up pitching consistently on the same day, however, the Cardinals will have a tough time competing with the Cubs.
Biggest Weakness - SP depth. The Cardinals do not have any major weaknesses, but with Salazar’s injury in ST, depth might be a concern. Jaime Garcia has been bad for 2 years, especially in this point system and Wainwright seems like he might be done. With no apparent help coming from the minors, an injury to one of the top 3 could be deathly.
Player to watch - Adrian Beltre. At 38, it is amazing that he has stayed elite for this long but father time will catch up to him at some point and it might be this year. I doubt the Rangers are going to compete so motivation for the old man might be tough. Also, www.sbnation.com/mlb/2017/7/27/16048596/adrian-beltre-ejected-relocating-on-deck-circle-my-god-he-is-the-best.
3. Los Angeles Angels (102-60) 1st in AL West - The Angels had a very disappointing season in 2017 and it was partly based on some significant injuries, which could certainly be the case again this year. However, if the Halos can stay healthy, a big if, this team could do some real damage and should be unstoppable on days that Syndergaard pitches.
Biggest Strength - the Lineup. 1-9 for the Angels is littered with great hitters. If Miggy and Kipnis rebound, which I expect them to, this could very well be the top scoring offense.
Biggest Weakness - Injury concerns. The Angels have some depth, but, unlike the Cubs, can’t plug in league-average players for all of their holes and their list of players with a recent injury history is extremely deep (Miggy, Kipnis, Syndergaard, Stanton, Lucroy, Trea Turner, Span, Cespedes).
Player to watch - Gleyber Torres. Gleyber, even when he is inevitably called up, does not project (in my view) to help the Angels this year, being blocked by better options for 2018. It will be interesting to see how the Angels decide to let the situation play out as his emergence could make LeMahieu or Kipnis expendable. I predict that one of those 2 will be traded before the deadline so that the Angels can bring in someone to fill in a hole (that’s what she said) caused by injury. Given the Angels 2018 cap issues, I will almost guarantee that one will be gone before next season.
4. Cleveland Indians (105-57) 1st in AL Central - The defending World Series Champions have the easiest road back to the playoffs of any team. I would not be surprised if the AL Central has 4 of the bottom 10 teams in terms of points. Joey Votto probably won’t repeat as MVP, but the Tribe won’t need him to.
Biggest Strength - SP depth. Patrick Corbin could be sneaky good with the humidor being added in Arizona, and he projects to be their #5 starter. Nola is a dark horse ace candidate and Jose Quintana has been on NL Cy Young lists.
Biggest Weakness - Strikeouts. Ks in real life are not much worse than a ground out or fly out, but the scoring system here amplifies their negative effect and the Cardinals have a few players (Cruz, Frazier, Schwarber, Hedges, Crawford) that are going to have more than their fair share of negative days.
Player to watch - Willie Calhoun. The Cards will be rotating players in and out of the Utility spot throughout the year, but Calhoun has the potential to change that when he is inevitably called up (.900 OPS in AAA last year).
5. Philadelphia Phillies (90-72) 1st in NL East - The NL East is deep and is not going to have any easy wins throughout the year. The Phillies are the defending champs and I am completely biased, so I picked them (me?) to repeat. A deep lineup headlined by newcomer Buster Posey should lead one of the top offenses in the league.
Biggest Strength - Lineup. The lineup should have good production at every position, especially from Mookie who had a down year in 2017 but still winded up as the 3rd best OF.
Biggest Weakness - Starting rotation. Ohtani’s terrible spring (who needs international prospects for the next 8 years?), McHugh’s demotion to the Bullpen, and Big Erv’s finger injury bring further questions to a rotation with no ace. There are a bunch of pitchers that should be solid, but the Phillies clearly lack the ace that most other contenders have.
Player to watch - Luiz Gohara. Gohara has the strikeout potential to be an ace. He won’t start in the pros, but a midseason callup could be a big boost to the Phillies chances. Plus who doesn’t love to watch fat pitchers to make them think they could be pro athletes too?
6. Colorado Rockies (92-70) 1st in NL West - The Rockies’ recent acquisition of Verlander has shot them up my projected rankings even though I fully expect Kate Upton’s boo to take a decent step backwards this year. The star-laden lineup finally has help and makes this team a playoff contender.
Biggest Strength - Middle of the lineup. Trout/Arenado/Murphy should put up more points than any trio in the league even with Murphy out for the beginning of the year.
Biggest Weakness - Depth. The Blake Street Bombers are one of the least equipped teams to handle an injury. Their current UTIL spot is occupied by a platoon player in Almora and there is not a ton of positional flexibility. The rotation has 5 projected starters (maybe 6 if Amir Garrett gets some starts early on) but not many possibilities for replacement. The Rockies will need to stay healthy.
Player to watch - Ryan McMahon. He should get called up shortly into the season and with the Coors effect could be stud fantasy contributor from the get-go.
7. San Diego Padres (91-71) 2nd in NL West - The Padres went out and spent very big (about 55M big ones per year) to solidify a weak rotation and it should pay dividends as they should battle with Colorado for the division throughout the year. The Friars are solid all around although not spectacular anywhere except one spot.
Biggest Strength - Catcher. Gary Sanchez is an absolute beast and is the only C in my opinion in the vicinity of Posey and he may be better. The Padres were able to pair him with his real-life backup so they won’t even need to worry about common catcher off days. (Could also go with their stud bullpen with 2 top-tier closers).
Biggest Weakness - Back end of rotation. Andriese looks like he is going to be limited to a few innings per appearance and Bettis barely strikes anyone out and pitches in Coors. The top 4 are solid enough to carry the team, but the Friars will be vulnerable when these 2 pitch.
Player to watch - Kevin Kiermaier. The Kierbear, as only I call him, is known for his really very good defense, but at 27, I think he is going to break out and become a fantasy stud.
8. Atlanta Braves (88-74) 2nd in NL East - The Braves were not really on my radar going into this edition of my inaccurate power rankings, but the Kluber trade catapulted the Cowards up about 10 spots. Like the Pirates (with Sale) of last year, the Braves do not have a great supporting cast (but better than the Pirates), but it should be enough with the reigning Cy Young winner going every 5th day to make a playoff push.
Biggest Strength - Kluber. CKloobs is a beast and is good for a quality start almost every time out. Even with a subpar offense, the Bravos will be almost impossible to beat when he pitches.
Biggest Weakness - LF. I don’t think Randal Grichuk is good. He strikes out a ton and barely walks. Plus, I read his name and don’t know how to pronounce it, which is annoying.
Player to watch - Cole Hamels. After many years of very good pitching, Cole dropped to just okay last year. It will be interesting to see what he has left in the tank. He’ll always be great in my heart as I sadly member
9. Houston Astros (91-71) 2nd in AL West - The ‘Stros are not bad at pretty much everything, but not great, and could repeat in the West if things go right. Texas has taken a large step back in my opinion and Oakland/Seattle are not ready to compete, so there should be plenty of wins for Houston to steal.
Biggest Strength - Altuve. The closest thing to a Tolkien character in the MLB since Eddie Gaedel sure can hit and should blow out the competition at 2B this year with Murphy starting the year on the shelf.
Biggest Weakness - Rotation. The Biggios have guys to take the mound, but none inspire a ton of confidence. Porcello and Sanchez could very well revert to their 2016 stud-like selves and that could make the Bagwells a World Series contender. Even if that happens, Roark and Folty and Tillman aren’t going to scare anyone and the Astros may be looking for rotation help at the deadline.
Player to watch - Edubray Ramos. I’m a Phillies fan, so this is a homer pick, but the guy has electric stuff and the potential to dominate at the end of a game or spend the year in the minors. He has sleeper closer potential plus a great name. He's no Dovydas Neverauskas (wtf?) though.
10. Boston Red Sox (88-74) 1st in AL East - I expect the AL East to be the most hotly contested division this year with no clear dominators and no duds. However, I do think that the Sawx are the clear favorites to repeat due to a deep lineup. The pitching is mostly trash, like the Red Sox before the rest of the league stopped taking steroids.
Biggest Strength - Outfield. Ozuna, Marte, JD, and Markakis (point system strength) could be the highest scoring outfield in the league. It will be interesting to see how JD’s bat plays in Fenway, which is favorable but probably not as favorable as that dry air in the hell-hole that is Arizona.
Biggest Weakness - #3 SP. Cueto is solid and Lynn should be serviceable, but the rest of the rotation is either bad options or non-existent. The Lineup can only carry the team so far and it will be interesting to see if the Sawx move some offense for pitching as the season goes on.
Player to watch - Odrisamer Despaigne. Just kidding, he’s terrible, I just wanted to type that name. Starling Marte. Coming off of a half-season where his hitting dropped significantly after a drug suspension, will he be able to get back to All-Star caliber play?
11. Cincinnati Reds (84-78) 3rd in NL Central - The land of backup Catchers knocked off the Braves in the Wild Card last year and are in a position to potentially face them again, but might need some help. They still boast a solid lineup with a lot of depth and mediocre pitching. The Central is not as deep as it was last year, but the top is heavier which is why I’ve dropped the Reds down.
Biggest Strength - Offensive Depth. The Big Red Machine is definitely big, offensively, as they have the most amount of ML-playing hitters of any team. This should allow them to play matchups and squeeze the most value out of their players. It will be interesting to see if they end up trading from depth to upgrade some of their weaker areas in the lineup.
Biggest Weakness - Bullpen. The pitching in general isn’t great, but the Reds probably have the worst bullpen of any of the teams trying to contend. Bullpens aren’t all that important in this league, but if I were the Reds, I might be scouring the FA pool to upgrade.
Player to watch - Byron Buxton. The consensus worst pick of the draft (sorry for dragging that up again Milwaukee) was close to the worst player in the league halfway through last season. Then Milwaukee traded him and he actually played well down the stretch. He is still not a great match for this point system, but his speed and power could make him a stud.
12. New York Yankees (84-78) 2nd in AL East - The Bronx Bombers have generally exceeded my expectations and were the team I was most wrong about last season, so take my ranking with a grain of salt. They boast a very strong rotation and a lineup with the potential for many holes.
Biggest Strength - Rotation. I don’t know if David Price is going to be an ace again, but I do think he is going to have a very good year and will lead the Yanks in points. Lester should bounce back a bit as well which should counter Gio’s inevitable ride back to Earth. With sleepers Lamet and Godley dropping Ks like they’re hot, this is one of the most balanced rotations in the league.
Biggest Weakness - Point system. Players like Judge, Story and Smoak should be more valuable in real life than in this league given their propensity to strikeout on a daily basis. If a K was treated like a groundout, the Evil Empire would rank higher.
Player to watch - Jose Martinez. The Yankees have a lot of players penciled into the lineup that are going to have to fight for regular at bats and Martinez is no exception. He put up great numbers in 2017 in limited at bats and, if injuries open up a spot in the daily lineup, he could be the surprise team MVP that Judge was last year.
13. New York Mets (83-79) 3rd in NL East - The Zombie Marlins were a good team last year that dug itself into a giant hole earlier on and couldn’t flop themselves out. They’ve added Greinke as a legitimate ace and added an expensive Jay Bruce, which should help them avoid another early hole.
Biggest Strength - Depth. With 7+ projected starting pitchers and 6 MLB players on their bench, the Mets should be able to overcome many injuries.
Biggest Weakness - Lack of Stars. Despite proclamations of stardom for Chris Stratton, Greinke is the only player on this team that projects in the top third in ppg going into the season at his respective position. The projections are not going to be right, but there are not a lot of clear cut studs on the roster.
Player to watch - Matt Harvey. There are a lot of interesting players on the Mets this year that could vary widely in terms of production, but Harvey tops the list. He clearly fell apart mentally and physically over the last couple years and I do not expect him to return to being a top 10 SP, but he very well could be a No. 2 or 3. He could also be out of baseball in a year.
14. San Francisco Giants (82-80) 3rd in NL West - The Giants have new owner and have put some effort into fielding a competitive team this year and should eclipse last year’s win total easily, but I do not think they are on the same level as Colorado or the Whale’s Vagina. That may have been a different story a couple weeks ago, but potentially devastating injuries to Turner and Eickhoff might put them in too big of a hole early in the year.
Biggest Strength - Bullpen. Closers Cody Allen and Raisel Iglesias could be top 5 and Chad Green could be the new right-handed version of Andrew Miller. The Giants could steal some late-night wins with those three pitching in the final innings.
Biggest Weakness - Health. Pedroia, Turner, Cotton and Eickhoff will start the year on the DL. Garrett Richards and Rich Hill have long injury histories and Matt Joyce is being evaluated at the time of this writing. Healthy, this team is a contender, but that seems unlikely at this point.
Player to watch - Wil Myers. He carried the Giants to being one of the top offensive teams early in the year and dropped off significantly as the year went on. He is going to be switching positions and it will be interesting to see if it has any effect on his bat. Hosmer hitting in the lineup could help too.
15. Washington Nationals (79-83) 4th in NL East - The Nationals have a lot of potential on their team that could explode and make them a World Series contender. On the other hand, they could not do much and make them a cellar dweller in a competitive NL East. Greg Bird and Lucas Giolito exemplify this the most as they could be MVP/Cy young contenders or complete non-factors.
Biggest Strength - Top of the rotation. Strasburg, Tanaka, and Giolito can carry the Nats to a lot of wins. Giolito could be an absolute stud on a bad team and Tanaka/Strasburg will reap the rewards of great offense behind them and should put up their consistently good numbers.
Biggest Weakness - Left and Center field. The combination of Magnerius Sierra (if he makes the team) and Tomas aren’t all that great and won’t be playing often at all. There will be a lot of zeroes in those positions if Washington doesn’t make some moves before opening day.
Player to watch - Whit Merrifield. Whitley is a terrible name and was never more than a fringe prospect, but ended up being really good at 29. I personally don’t think he repeats, but it will be interesting to see if he has broken out for good.
16. Tampa Bay Rays (82-80) 3rd in AL East - The Rays will be looking to get back to the playoffs and will be relying heavily on a very solid pitching staff. The lineup looks like it has good potential for many holes and may hold them back, but Scherzer, et al. will definitely be able to hide some of those issues.
Biggest Strength - Rotation. Although only 5 deep (maybe 4 if Stroman isn’t ready to start the season), the Rays have some studs in Scherzer, Archer and Darvish. Manaea is a breakout candidate as well and could end up being the ace of this staff in couple years.
Biggest Weakness - Lineup. They won’t get consistent at bats from 1B, LF, or the UTIL spot. C and SS have serious injury risks and only Jose Ramirez projects to be an above average regular in my mind. The Rays were smart in that they have backups that will fill in with the Tulo/Diaz and Healy/Vogelbach combos but this will be a bad offense overall unless a couple players surprise me.
Player to watch - Daniel Vogelbach. He has raked this spring and could get significant playing time early with Cruz/Healy dealing with injuries. He has a decent pedigree and could win a full time job and might be the Rays’ second best hitter by the end of the season.
17. Baltimore Orioles (78-84) 5th in AL East - The chat has gotten significantly more boring since last year’s owner left, but the O’s should be a bit more competitive this year. The additions of Brantley and Paxton should help them put up a fight in a deep AL East, but I do not think it will be enough.
Biggest Strength - James Paxton. Big Maple has the ability to be a legitimate ace in this league and could pull a Chris Sale and make the Orioles a contender. They will definitely need a big year out of him if they want to make a run.
Biggest Weakness - Depth. The Orioles have some veterans with injury histories and virtually no way to counteract a loss as there is almost no help on the bench or in the minors. The Orioles could be trade happy as the season goes on out of necessity.
Player to watch - Roughned Odor. He took a significant step back last year, barely batting over the Mendoza Line, striking out once per game, and with an OPS under .700. He is still very young and hasn’t lost his home run power and should bounce back, but you never know.
18. Miami Marlins (77-85) 5th in NL East - The Fish formerly known as the Mets are looking to rely on some bounceback campaigns from some veterans if they want to make a playoff run as well as some break out campaigns from some younger players. King Felix, Hanley Ramirez, and Brandon McCarthy are coming off of down years and are looking to return to the olden days when they were fantasy studs. On the other end, Carlos Rodon (currently injured), Piscotty, Sano, Margot, and company are going to be trying to replicate Chris Taylor’s 2017 and grow into fantasy studs. This team has a very wide range of possibilities.
Biggest Strength - Bullpen. Maybe the only team with 3 locked-in closers with Kimbrel, Neris, and Morrow, the Marlins have a good chance to lead the league in late-inning pitching points. With Boston and CHC seemingly set to win a ton of games, I fully expect the Marlins to lead the league in saves.
Biggest Weakness - Top of rotation. The team that will probably never really try to win but still have 2 WS championships (assholes) have decent depth in the rotation, but no one stands out as a reliable ace. Shark had a chance, but is now injured, as did Rodon. Urena is somehow starting opening day for the real Marlins, but is pretty bad. I don’t know if anyone on the Marlins is going to help them steal wins on days their offense does not show up.
Player to watch - Chris Taylor. The projected leadoff hitter for the Dodgers came out of nowhere to be a great player last year. He has a pretty strong minor league success record with the bat and has raked in Spring Training. He is going to play CF in real life and start at 2B for the Marlins, missing out on key assists, but his hitting should more than make up for it.
19. Texas Rangers (75-87) 3rd in AL West - The Rangers barely missed out on the playoffs last year, but if they hope to get there this year, some moves are going to have to be made. There are a lot of holes and Zack Wheeler’s recent demotion is not going to help matters.
Biggest Strength - Clayton Kershaw. He is arguably the best pitcher in the game and if he avoids the nagging back injuries, should be the Cy Young. Even with half a lineup, the Rangers should win every day he pitches.
Biggest Weakness - 5-9 of the lineup. The killer Cs (Cano, Carpenter, Castillo, Conaldson) should provide as ton of points, but the rest of the roster is just backups that are not very enticing. Getting 0 points from more than half your lineup is enough to sink a team even with a great top.
Player to watch - Robbie Ray. Ray was an offseason acquisition and the Rangers will need him to repeat his stellar 2017 if they want to compete. He has the strikeout numbers and it will be interesting if he can keep his control issues at bay again this year. He should benefit greatly from the humidor.
20. Toronto Blue Jays (76-86) 5th in AL East - The first team that I am predicting to be last in their division has the capability of being a top 5 offense. They are very young, but have tons of offensive potential. Pitching, on the other hand, is a completely different story, especially with their projected 3rd starter (out of 3) Scott Kazmir being released so that Anibal “hasn’t had an ERA under 5.50 in two years” Sanchez can get a spot in the rotation.
Biggest Strength - Young Lineup. Outside of Russell Martin and Howie Kendrick, this lineup is young and oozing with potential. Correa and Bryant should be near the top of their respective positions and Rhys Hoskins could compete for an MVP in this league down the road. Mazara, Herrera, and Polanco have all shown glimpses of being future stars as well.
Biggest Weakness - Starting Pitching. The BJs project to have 2 starting pitchers this year, one of which hasn’t had an ERA under 5.50 in three years (albeit due to injuries). The lineup has great potential, but not enough to compensate for such a terrible/non-existent rotation.
Player to watch - Ronald Acuna. Wanting to keep an extra year of control over him, the Braves decided to fuck him over and keep him in AAA for a couple of weeks, but the stud prospect might be reminding people of a young Andruw Jones very soon and anchor an already very solid lineup.
21. Chicago White Sox (80-82) 2nd in AL Central - The AL Central is looking bad right now and the White Sox could take advantage of a soft schedule to flirt with a playoff spot. This would presumably enrage teams like the Cubs and Pirates from last year. There isn’t much that is overly flashy, but they should put up decent points fairly regularly which might be enough.
Biggest Strength - Keuchel/McCullers. Having your two best starters pitching for the same team in real life is a big bonus as they will never overlap. These two are going to get a lot of wins with the Houston offense backing them up and can combine for a lethal 1-2 punch throughout the season.
Biggest Weakness - Offense. When Maikel Franco and his .230/.281/.409 2017 line is projected to be your best offensive player, you are going to have problems. I think that the ChiSox were expecting Melky and Brandon Phillips to contribute, but they remain unsigned.
Player to watch - Joey Gallo. Gallo struck out 196 times in 449 at bats last year, which is fairly amazing given that he still had an OPS over .850. Reports from spring training suggest that he will have a different approach this year and he will need to cut down on the exorbitant Ks to be an above-average 1B in this league, even if he hits 50 HRs.
22. Arizona Diamondbacks (75-87) 4th in NL West - The DBacks are under new management and have performed a partial strip-down/rebuild of the roster. The AL West should be a lot tougher this year, and the DBacks will likely struggle to compete. They do have decent depth though and if injuries hurt the teams they’re chasing, a wild card berth is not out of the realm of possibility.
Biggest Strength - Rotation depth. The sandsnakes (horribly done in Game of Thrones) don’t have a true ace, but they do have a lot of options. Even with Pomeranz starting the year on the DL, they project to have about 7 starters in the early going.
Biggest Weakness - Right side of the infield. I expect very little production from the Rua (platoon), Profar (utility), etc. group that Arizona will throw out there. The rest of the lineup doesn’t exactly inspire confidence, but they should at least be on the field most days.
Player to watch - Mike Clevinger. Sunshine has the ability to be a pretty darn good rotation piece given his high K-rate. He walks a lot of guys, but I like his potential. If Salazar didn’t get injured, however, Clevinger would probably be in the bullpen right now.
23. Oakland Athletics (72-90) 4th in AL West - Oakland has started to rebound from a few ill-advised moves during the draft and while they don’t seem to be quite back into contention, they aren’t far off now. Still young and with good potential offensively, the A’s look primed to compete in the near future.
Biggest Strength - OF, by far. The A’s might have the best OF in the league by the end of the season, although I do expect a bit of a sophomore slump from Benintendi this year. Still, Harper/Pollock/Beni will put up a ton of points if healthy. Duvall ain’t too shabby either.
Biggest Weakness - SP. The current ace has a fastball in the 80s and had an ERA near 5 last year. Finnegan will likely start on the DL and Moore and Gibson just aren’t very good.
Player to watch - Yoan Moncada. The former top prospect struck out in over a third of his plate appearances last year, making him a less than ideal option. He is very young though and should improve. He obviously has immense talent and it will interesting to see if he can translate that to fantasy stardom.
24. Kansas City Royals (78-84) 3rd in AL Central - The Royals finished 87-75 last year despite being 19th in overall points. I think the Royals take a step back this year, but could have a similar discrepancy between performance and record due to the weak division.
Biggest Strength - Middle infield. Schoop, although not great for the point system, should be one of the best 2B in the league, and Segura and Asdrubal should also put solid points for an otherwise uninspiring offense.
Biggest Weakness - Quality starting pitching. The Royals have 4 starters ready to pitch in the beginning of the year and 3 of them are starting on opening day (bad luck to start the year). None of them are actually deserving of the opening day nod, however. Graveman barely strike anyone out and has had a bad spring, Clayton Richard also lacks Ks and isn’t very good otherwise, and Zimmermann is useless. He’s the third best player with Zimmer in their name, slightly better than Don Zimmer, who has been dead for 4 years.
Player to watch - Andrew Toles. Can he win back the LF job from Matt Kemp? If so, he could have decent upside. Doesn’t look likely early in the season, however.
25. Los Angeles Dodgers (72-90) 5th in NL West - I think there is a fairly large gap between the Dodgers and Royals and I don’t expect anyone at this point or below to compete for a World Series this year. The Dodgers have a lot of interesting young pitchers that could help the Dodgers play spoiler in the second half, but early on, I expect them to struggle.
Biggest Strength - Youth. There are a lot of young players with big upsides that are not quite established in the majors yet (i.e. Baez, Rosario, Andujar, Brinson, Castillo, etc.). A few will likely breakout a la Cody Bellinger last year and could become cornerstones for the franchise.
Biggest Weakness - Youth. Youth is a double-edged sword and there are very few proven commodities on the team. Some will break out and play well and others will struggle mightily.
Player to watch - Tyler Glasnow. He has great stuff and will strike out a ton while starting the year in the bullpen, but it be interesting to see if he sticks with the Pen and kills his long term value.
26. Pittsburgh Pirates (67-95) 4th in NL Central - The Cubs and Cards are going to beat down the Pirates this year after Sale was unloaded for a ton of pieces. Probably a smart move to build for the future as the roster they had was unlikely to compete this year in a tough division.
Biggest Strength - Bullpen. Colome and Familia should start the season in closers’ roles and Parker should get a fair bit of saves in LA’s closer by committee. Not many teams can compete with those save numbers.
Biggest Weakness - 1B. There are few weaknesses, but with Reynolds unsigned, the Pirates will be rolling out presumed pinch hitter Garrett Cooper who is likely to get sent down soon.
Player to watch - Domingo Santana. The biggest piece of the Sale trade hit very well last year but may struggle for playing time in Milwaukee’s crowded outfield. He should play everyday based on his performance, but so should the other options.
27. Minnesota Twins (68-94) 4th in AL Central - Well, the Twins are going to be bad, but should still blow the bottom three teams out of the water based on the current rosters. There is not a lot to look for early in the year, but they will get some publicity if Maxwell protests again at least.
Biggest Strength - Rotation. The rotation isn’t great, but it’s almost okay. A ringing endorsement, I know. I like Musgrove to surprise and be pretty good. Nick Pivetta has the stuff to be above average (still unlikely). The thing is, the Twins seem to have a projected 6 arms in the rotation to start the year which is pretty rare.
Biggest Weakness - Middle Infield. Chase Utley is good for the locker room and for pissing off Mets’ fans, but not good for a fantasy team. Miguel Rojas is good for playing SS because of injury on the tankiest team in baseball, but not much else. Will be better after Polanco’s suspension, but it will be rough for 80 games. At least Bo Bichette is on the way.
Player to watch - Jake Lamb. Dude has had a great couple years in Coors Field Lite, but with the addition of the humidor and his tendency to whiff, he might be due for a step back. Then again, he’s only 27 and could take a step forward in development.
28. Detroit Tigers (67-95) 5th in AL Central - Not quite as depressing as the city of Detroit, the Tigers are not going to do much this year. There are some young pieces that could be fun to watch (Happ, Dahl), an old piece that will be sad to watch (Alex Gordon), and many more young pieces that will use this year to develop with little pressure.
Biggest Strength - Happ. There is very little to get excited about for this team, but Happ has flashed brilliance and is projected to bat leadoff for a stacked lineup and is leading the league in homeruns this spring.
Biggest Weakness - SS. They literally don’t have one in the majors or one expected to be called up soon.
Player to watch - David Dahl. He’s starting the year in AAA, but he has a very high upside and should get called up when CarGo gets injured.
29. Seattle Mariners (61-101) 5th in AL West - New owner took over a bare system and spent a lot in FA to put together a decent lineup, although not great. The pitching, however, is almost nonexistent and is going to make it tough to compete. At least Ichiro is back in real life.
Biggest Strength - IF. It will take a little bit for Cozart to get 3B eligibility, but when that happens, there is good potential for the infield to produce. Santana is a proven commodity that fits well for the point system, Albies crushed it in a brief call up last year, and Swanson has a very high ceiling. This infield could stick together for a long time.
Biggest Weakness - Pitching. I have mocked some SPs, like Jordan Zimmermann, for sucking, but the Mariners don’t even have any suckers to send out for a start. Maybe Steven Brault wins the 5th starter spot for a weak Pirates rotation and saves them from that embarrassment, but this staff is not going to do much.
Player to watch - Swanson. Can he get some consistency? Month to month last year showed a very good player vs. one of the worst in the league.
30. Milwaukee Brewers (35-127) 5th in NL Central - Trust the Process. It worked for the Sixers and Astros, why can’t it work for the Brew Crew? They will be bad, but weren’t going to compete this year in a stacked NL Central, so it made sense for them to tear down. There are some interesting pieces. Can Brad Miller bounce back? Is Preston Tucker for real? Can Jarrod Dyson's scrawny ass lift Eric Thames?
Biggest Strength - No.
Biggest Weakness - Yes.
Player to watch - Drew Steckinrider. He struck out 54 in 34 innings last year. He’s a bit wild, which makes him fun to watch. Thames should be interesting too. Playing time will be cramped in Milwaukee, and his second half last year was not nearly as good as his first, but he's still a good player.
