Anyone hear any confirmation on if the Brewers have to pay for Ben Sheets' arm surgery?
MLB 2009 thread
- Thread starter Becks...poamr
- Start date
It's actually a pretty hard thing to do. Off the top of my head the only people I can think of that are really great with power at the top of the league constantly and that hardly stuck out while they did it are Ted Williams and Barry Bonds. There are a few others I'm sure, but the list is pretty small and even that list contains some of the best players ever.
Manny is a disgrace to the game. He has no respect for it even though he could be making 25 millions and I hope he gets blacklisted and nobody signs him.
Couldn't agree more. Like I said, there's a pretty strong correlation between the two. The issue for me though, is that there are people who say Ryan Howard, Adam Dunn, Jack Cust and the lot like them need to cut down strikeouts to increase their power and offensive output, and that logic is completely backwards.
I agree. The Dodgers have more needs than throwing cash at Manny. With Boras basically calling the Dodgers fools, I don't think the Dodgers could sell it to their fans if they sign Manny at this point. Manny has effectively burned the Dodger Bridge.
I think the best team for Manny to sign would be the Giants actually..but they have stated publically that they think he will go into "Destraction Manny Mode" and not be a useful player.
It might make sense for Manny to sign for a team that doesn't face intense scrutiny from community like LA and Boston and New York---maybe Manny will go to the Rangers, the Marlins, or the Padres. The Padres need his stick. They can't score any runs.
It's always been my belief that as long as all the rest of their offensive production is good then strikeouts aren't that big of a deal. An out is an out, and at least when they are striking out they aren't doing something like grounding into a double play.
He and the union will probably claim there's a conspiracy and claim collusion like they always do when something like that happens. They will never figure people just didn't think he was worth what he thinks he's worth.
From all of the historical data I've looked at, that's pretty much a fact. :thumbsup:
The thing with Manny is, we can sign him and our team will almost automaticly make the Dodgers the West Champions.
If we sign Dunn and a free mediocore pitchers that dosent transform our team into the champions of the west.
Besides, done was hitting HR's every 12 at bats in Cinci (which is known as a hitters park) and every 18 at bats in Arizona. I dont really want to find out how he would produce in a proclaimed "pitchers park"
If we sign Dunn and a free mediocore pitchers that dosent transform our team into the champions of the west.
Besides, done was hitting HR's every 12 at bats in Cinci (which is known as a hitters park) and every 18 at bats in Arizona. I dont really want to find out how he would produce in a proclaimed "pitchers park"
Well Dunn has signed with Nats and Abreu may sign with Angels, so unless Dodgers can convince Manny to sign for 1 year they will be a worse team than 2008, but then again you can be a 500 club in the NL West and still win the division.
Yeah but without Manny I could see them finishing 3rd in the divison maybe second.
If they dont sign Manny I think the D-Backs will win the divison and the Giants could very well end up in second place with their pitching.
I dont really see whats so great about the Giants pitching. I mean they can all have a sub 3.00 ERA and still be below .500 with wins and losses. They are gonna lose alot of 2-1 games. That offense is still crap. If Giants management had some true fans in the higher ups, they would sign Manny already. Getting better and screwing the dodgers? Priceless.
Skyraider22
The One and Only Big Daddy
I don't know you never can tell and Spring Training is about to start they (manny and his agent) may make that move.:glugglug:
Last year they had a lot of young players. With a guy like Manny and a young solid staff they can go far in the west. Look what happen to the Dodgers when they traded for Manny?
Part 2: (Warning LONG post)
NL Central:
From here on out, I’m going to eliminate player win value, simply because it would be too time consuming to finish the rest, and many players need multiple seasons worth etc…
Chicago Cubs:
C: Geovany Soto (+17 runs, +0 runs)
Had a breakout year last year, let’s see how he does to follow it up.
1B: Derrek Lee (+14 runs, +3 runs)
He’s starting to decline, it’s a fact, but he can still be a productive hitter, and is at the very least an average fielder.
2B: Aaron Miles/Mike Fontenot (+0 runs, +0 runs/ +14 runs, +4 runs)
Fontenot has more raw power, gets on base at a higher level, and oh yeah, strikes out much more. Despite that, I expect him to get the majority of the playing time with Miles spelling him occasionally.
SS: Ryan Theriot (+0 runs, +0 runs)
He’s an average player at a premium defensive position, we’ll see how he fares.
3B: Aramis Ramirez (+26 runs, -4 runs)
Great offensive player, but defense is still below average. CHONE has him at about .291/.366/.544, which I think is probably going to be the case.
LF: Alfonso Soriano (+16 runs, -2 runs)
Elite player who’s only limitation so far has been injury. If he OPSes anywhere .880, things will probably be going well for the Cubs.
CF: Kosuke Fukudome (-3 runs, +8 runs)
Started off really hot, seemingly delivering everything Cubs fans have been longing for in a player, then started to come back down to Earth, and never stopped declining. He’ll need to cut WAY down on strikeouts unless the power comes up, but judging by his whopping .120 career ISO, that isn’t going to happen.
RF: Milton Bradley (+37 runs, +0 runs)
Here’s the good news, he’s an improvement over Fukudome so far. The bad news? Forget clashes with Lou, he’s just not as good as he played last year. His career average in OPS was beaten by nearly 300 points, and that has regression written all over it. Sure, he’s annoying, and he may well wear out his welcome in Chicago, but it may not be his attitude that turns Cubs fans against him: it may be decline.
SP: Carlos Zambrano (+15)
If he can keep his walks down like he has the past two seasons, he’s golden, otherwise, he’s probably going to pitch at the level of his 4.75 FIP pre-2006 numbers suggest he is. By all indications, he’s improved his control, so I look for him to be really, really good.
SP: Ted Lilly (+5)
He’s not overpowering, nor is he overly crafty. But he’s got solid stuff, and should post somewhere in the neighborhood of a 4.05 ERA next season.
SP: Ryan Dempster (+20)
Where the hell did he come from? I remember him playing for the Marlins and just getting lit up every game. Thankfully for Cubs fans, those days seem to be behind him, and the numbers he put up last year, though a bit of a stretch, aren’t terribly far from where he should be this season.
SP: Rich Harden (+20)
I still can’t believe the Cubs got Harden from my A’s for so little (although Donaldson is a great return), but that’s beside the point. Harden, when healthy, is one of the top four pitchers in the league. Don’t believe me? Last season, his first semi-full season in four years, Harden had an adjusted ERA of 2.95, which isn’t far from his 3.20 career average. Three pitchers had better adjusted ERAs than Harden: Tim Lincecum, Cliff Lee, and CC Sabathia. Oh yeah, two of those guys won Cy Young awards last year. I feel like I say this every year, but if healthy, Harden could easily be worth as much as +40, but if he doesn’t, the Cubs are in a world of trouble.
SP: Sean Marshall (+0)
He’s got good stuff, but has never really shown up while up with the big club.
Bullpen:
C. Marmol (+5)
Has to get the walks down. Has to.
K. Gregg (+0)
Ditto.
K. Hart (-5)
Very hittable, and walks more than the previous two.
R. Wells (-10)
More walks!
C. Fox (-10)
Seriously? More walks?
N. Cotts (+0)
C. Gaudin (+0)
J. Samardzija(+0)
L. Vizcaino(-5)
A. Guzman(-5)
M. Wuertz (+0)
A. Heilman (+5)
Overall:
About +120 runs or about +12 wins, if Cubs fans can bear all the walks the bullpen will probably issue.
About 93-69.
Cincinnati Reds:
C: Ramon Hernandez (-8 runs, -5 runs)
Defense has slipped significantly, and the offensive numbers have as well. Not getting any younger, he may be in line for a huge drop off.
1B: Joey Votto(+20 runs, +5 runs)
A great second half seemed to show he can finally adjust to big league pitching. I look for him to have a big year.
2B: Brandon Phillips (-5 runs, +13 runs)
The power is there, or should I say home run power, because he’s fallen off big time in terms of slugging and OBP, and that could continue if he doesn’t cut down on the K’s.
SS: Alex Gonzalez (+0 runs, +0 runs)
Injuries derailed his 2008 season, but before that he was terrible in Boston, he’ll be hard pressed to be league average.
3B: Edwin Encarnacion (+10 runs, -10 runs)
Offense = good, defense = terrible.
LF: Chris Dickerson (+6 runs, +0)
Adequate in just about everything he does. Problem is, left field is where you want someone who excels.
CF: Willy Tavaras (-20 runs, -8 runs)
Once the OBP went down, so did the career potential. He’s probably already peaked, and that’s not good considering some of the options the Reds have.
RF: Jay Bruce (+0 runs, -5 runs)
The bad news is that Bruce fell off big time last year from what he did in the minors. The good news is that he’ll probably make the right adjustments and break out this year. I’m looking at about +15 this year, possibly more.
SP: Aaron Harang (+0)
Bad year last year may just be a fluke, but I’m thinking not.
SP: Edison Volquez (+30)
Astonishingly good last season, and to top it off, he’s just now learning to pitch instead of throw. He’s going to be excellent for quite some time. He’s an elite strikeout pitcher who doesn’t walk many, and gets a lot of ground balls. That’s pure and simple a recipe for success.
SP: Bronson Arroyo (+10)
SP: Johnny Cueto (+0)
SP: Micah Owings (+0)
Better than his numbers looked last season, as he seemed to get unlucky every time he pitched for the D-Backs.
Bullpen:
F. Cordero (+5)
D. Weathers (+0)
J. Burton (+0)
Sleeper pick on the Reds to break out.
B. Bray (+0)
A. Rhodes (+5)
M. Lincoln (+0)
N. Masset(-5)
R. Ramirez (-5)
J. Roenicke (-10)
D. Herrera (-5)
Overall:
About +18 runs, which isn’t going to turn out too pretty. About 82-80.
Houston Astros:
C: Humberto Quintero (-10 runs, -5 runs)
The Astros better hope that J.R. Towles (-13 runs last season) shows why he was so highly touted as a prospect, and soon.
1B: Lance Berkman (+42 runs, +11 runs)
Still superb, still the main offensive reason that the Astros have any hope.
2B: Kaz Matsui (+5 runs, -3 runs)
Defense has been suspect at times, and that’s probably not going to change with his age.
SS: Miguel Tejada (-8 runs, +0 runs)
I’m going to go a bit high on his defensive rating, but you can’t lie about the offense. His stats have been steadily slipping for years now, and considering he never walks, it’s a wonder that he has an OBP over .300. He may be in for a really rough year.
3B: Geoff Blum (-8 runs, +4 runs)
Age, lack of walks, and a steadily decline in SLG and isolated power all lead me to believe he’s going to drop off, and I mean big time.
LF: Carlos Lee (+27 runs, -8 runs)
Consistent is the word that comes to mind with Lee, as in that’s what his career numbers show him as. Glove might hurt, but in Minute Maid is that even going to matter?
CF: Michael Bourn (-21 runs, +0 runs)
Average defense combined with abysmal offense. Not looking good.
RF: Hunter Pence (+3 runs, -6 runs)
Strikeouts are his shortcoming at this point, that and the fact that walks are again hard to come by for him.
SP: Roy Oswalt (+35)
SP: Wandy Rodriguez (+15)
Going to regress, he’s simply never put up the numbers he did last year, and overall even they weren’t that impressive.
SP: Brandon Backe (-10)
SP: Mike Hampton (+0)
SP: Brian Moehler (+5)
Bullpen:
J. Valverde (+10)
G. Geary (+0)
L. Hawkins (+5)
D. Brocail (+0)
W. Wright (-5)
T. Byrdak (-10)
C. Sampson (+5)
A. Arias (-5)
Overall:
The offense is shaky at best outside of Berkman and Lee, and the rotation may be in for some trouble especially if Oswalt struggles early.
Overall about +68 runs, about 88-74.
Milwaukee Brewers
C: Jason Kendall (-17 runs, -5 runs)
Age is a factor, especially when he’s making solid contact less than 10% of the time.
1B: Prince Fielder (+23 runs, -12 runs)
Offensively elite, the defensive is no question about it, awful.
2B: Ricky Weeks (+0 runs, -5 runs)
The power is still there in spurts, but long term, he’s below average.
SS: J.J. Hardy (+13 runs, +2 runs)
He’s showed why the Brewers have kept their best prospect down in the minors for so long.
3B: Bill Hall (-11 runs, +5 runs)
The K rate is way to high for someone with ISO that low, abysmal plate discipline is primarily to blame. He’ll hit some out for sure, but he’s going to strike out. A lot.
LF: Ryan Braun (+26 runs, -3 runs)
Oozing power, and has the potential to still build on it.
CF: Mike Cameron (+10 runs, +12 runs)
Decline is likely, as he is getting up there in terms of both injury history, and age.
RF: Corey Hart (+0 runs, -4 runs)
I think he’ll be better, but if not, that’s still about league average.
SP: Y. Gallardo (+0)
SP: D. Bush (+0)
SP: B. Looper (+10)
SP: J. Suppan (-5)
SP: M. Parra (+15)
Bullpen:
T. Hoffman (+10)
D. Riske (-5)
C. Villanueva (-5)
J. Julio (+0)
S. McClung(+0)
T. Coffey(+0)
M. Stetter(+0)
E. Gagne(-15)
E. Morlan(+0)
R. Swindle(+0)
Overall:
The offense is still there, and it will probably still be potent. As expected, the Brewers are going to miss CC and Ben Sheets dearly, as the starting staff has a lot of question marks, or injury issues. The bullpen outside of Hoffman is shaky at best, so Brewers fans may be in for a rather long year.
Pittsburgh Pirates
C: Ryan Doumit (+15 runs, +5 runs)
An exceptional player who has a history of improving.
1B: Adam LaRoche (+14 runs, -5 runs)
Offense again is good, defense not so much.
2B: Freddy Sanchez (-17 runs, -1 run)
Not many good things to say. He’s been in steady decline for years now.
SS: Jack Wilson (-9 runs, +8 runs)
Plain and simple, he’s an offensive black hole. His only contribution at this point is good defense.
3B: Andy LaRoche (-18 runs, +0 runs)
He’s still young, so there is some hope that he can be at least serviceable, but right now, he’s horrendous.
LF: Nyjer Morgan (+0 runs, +0 runs)
Strikeouts are a concern here, because he’s not no discernable power.
CF: Nate McLouth (+25 runs, -14 runs)
His offense is very much in line with what he’s always been projected to do, but not so much of the defensive side, where he may be relegated to another position if he doesn’t improve.
RF: Brandon Moss(-3 runs, +5 runs)
Given a full season, could reasonably become a league average right fielder.
SP: P. Malholm (+10)
Surprising good last season, and has a history of improvement.
SP: I. Snell (+0)
Last year was tough for Snell, and unless he gets control of his walk rate, it’ll continue.
SP: Z. Duke(+5)
Solid middle of the rotation guy, he just has to hope his defense shows up every once in a while.
SP: T. Gorzelanny (-15)
One guy in recent memory has had as drastic a drop off as Gorzelanny, and he now plays center field in St. Louis.
SP: R. Ohlendorf (-10)
The Pirates may one day get a back of the rotation guy out of Ohlendorf, but probably not anytime soon.
Bullpen:
M. Capps (+20)
J. Grabow (-5)
Ghastly BB% for someone in a late inning role.
T. Yates (-10)
S. Burnett (-15)
P. Dumatrait (-10)
C. Hansen (-10)
J. Chavez (-10)
R. Sanchez (-5)
Overall:
This season may be a long one for Pirate fans, as they’ve got some offense, but the defense just isn’t there, and the pitching is inconsistent, and in decline overall. I’m giving them a lot of perks here, as they will most likely be worse than most of the predictions I’ve read, but so be it. Totals up to about -45 runs or about 76-85.
St. Louis Cardinals
C: Yadier Molina (-5 runs, +0 runs)
Offense isn’t his specialty, but his defense is adequate enough to cover for it.
1B: Albert Pujols (+70 runs, +8 runs)
Unbelievable. Simply unbelievable. The best player in the game right now, hands down.
2B: Brendan Ryan (-8 runs, +0 runs)
Not hard to replace what Aaron Miles did, but Ryan doesn’t even look like he’ll get there.
SS: Khalil Green (-18 runs, -6 runs)
It’s beginning to look more and more like his rookie season and the two thereafter were flukes.
3B: David Freese (+0 runs, +0 runs)
He’s never played at the MLB level, so I’m going to give him the benefit of the doubt and assume that he’s at least league average (he was in the minors).
LF: Skip Schumaker (+8 runs +0 runs)
Has been pretty good so far, CHONE has him improving, and I agree.
CF: Rick Ankiel (+14 runs, -9 runs)
Who knew he’d be this good? He’s a good bet to improve or at least maintain.
RF: Ryan Ludwick (+41 runs, +0 runs)
He had a phenomenal season last year, but I just don’t see him hitting like that again.
SP: A. Wainwright (+15)
SP: K. Lohse (+10)
Looked really good last year, should be at least league average at a middle of the rotation.
SP: T. Wellemeyer (+5)
After years of disappointment, he showed some promise again. How much is another question altogether.
SP: J. Piniero (+0)
SP: C. Carpenter (+0)
The biggest question mark on this staff. If he is healthy and he performs to his career average, the entire staff in better, by about +10 runs each. He’s that important, we’ll just have to wait and see how he does.
Bullpen:
C. Perez (+0)
J. Motte (+5)
R. Franklin (-5)
J. Kinney (+0)
K. McClellan (+5)
B. Thompson (+0)
Overall:
The offense will be pretty good with Ankiel, Pujols, and Ludwick, and the starting rotation could be really good, but the bullpen is a pretty big problem as is, which may be the Cardinals weakest point. Overall about +13 wins or 94-68.
NL Central:
From here on out, I’m going to eliminate player win value, simply because it would be too time consuming to finish the rest, and many players need multiple seasons worth etc…
Chicago Cubs:
C: Geovany Soto (+17 runs, +0 runs)
Had a breakout year last year, let’s see how he does to follow it up.
1B: Derrek Lee (+14 runs, +3 runs)
He’s starting to decline, it’s a fact, but he can still be a productive hitter, and is at the very least an average fielder.
2B: Aaron Miles/Mike Fontenot (+0 runs, +0 runs/ +14 runs, +4 runs)
Fontenot has more raw power, gets on base at a higher level, and oh yeah, strikes out much more. Despite that, I expect him to get the majority of the playing time with Miles spelling him occasionally.
SS: Ryan Theriot (+0 runs, +0 runs)
He’s an average player at a premium defensive position, we’ll see how he fares.
3B: Aramis Ramirez (+26 runs, -4 runs)
Great offensive player, but defense is still below average. CHONE has him at about .291/.366/.544, which I think is probably going to be the case.
LF: Alfonso Soriano (+16 runs, -2 runs)
Elite player who’s only limitation so far has been injury. If he OPSes anywhere .880, things will probably be going well for the Cubs.
CF: Kosuke Fukudome (-3 runs, +8 runs)
Started off really hot, seemingly delivering everything Cubs fans have been longing for in a player, then started to come back down to Earth, and never stopped declining. He’ll need to cut WAY down on strikeouts unless the power comes up, but judging by his whopping .120 career ISO, that isn’t going to happen.
RF: Milton Bradley (+37 runs, +0 runs)
Here’s the good news, he’s an improvement over Fukudome so far. The bad news? Forget clashes with Lou, he’s just not as good as he played last year. His career average in OPS was beaten by nearly 300 points, and that has regression written all over it. Sure, he’s annoying, and he may well wear out his welcome in Chicago, but it may not be his attitude that turns Cubs fans against him: it may be decline.
SP: Carlos Zambrano (+15)
If he can keep his walks down like he has the past two seasons, he’s golden, otherwise, he’s probably going to pitch at the level of his 4.75 FIP pre-2006 numbers suggest he is. By all indications, he’s improved his control, so I look for him to be really, really good.
SP: Ted Lilly (+5)
He’s not overpowering, nor is he overly crafty. But he’s got solid stuff, and should post somewhere in the neighborhood of a 4.05 ERA next season.
SP: Ryan Dempster (+20)
Where the hell did he come from? I remember him playing for the Marlins and just getting lit up every game. Thankfully for Cubs fans, those days seem to be behind him, and the numbers he put up last year, though a bit of a stretch, aren’t terribly far from where he should be this season.
SP: Rich Harden (+20)
I still can’t believe the Cubs got Harden from my A’s for so little (although Donaldson is a great return), but that’s beside the point. Harden, when healthy, is one of the top four pitchers in the league. Don’t believe me? Last season, his first semi-full season in four years, Harden had an adjusted ERA of 2.95, which isn’t far from his 3.20 career average. Three pitchers had better adjusted ERAs than Harden: Tim Lincecum, Cliff Lee, and CC Sabathia. Oh yeah, two of those guys won Cy Young awards last year. I feel like I say this every year, but if healthy, Harden could easily be worth as much as +40, but if he doesn’t, the Cubs are in a world of trouble.
SP: Sean Marshall (+0)
He’s got good stuff, but has never really shown up while up with the big club.
Bullpen:
C. Marmol (+5)
Has to get the walks down. Has to.
K. Gregg (+0)
Ditto.
K. Hart (-5)
Very hittable, and walks more than the previous two.
R. Wells (-10)
More walks!
C. Fox (-10)
Seriously? More walks?
N. Cotts (+0)
C. Gaudin (+0)
J. Samardzija(+0)
L. Vizcaino(-5)
A. Guzman(-5)
M. Wuertz (+0)
A. Heilman (+5)
Overall:
About +120 runs or about +12 wins, if Cubs fans can bear all the walks the bullpen will probably issue.
About 93-69.
Cincinnati Reds:
C: Ramon Hernandez (-8 runs, -5 runs)
Defense has slipped significantly, and the offensive numbers have as well. Not getting any younger, he may be in line for a huge drop off.
1B: Joey Votto(+20 runs, +5 runs)
A great second half seemed to show he can finally adjust to big league pitching. I look for him to have a big year.
2B: Brandon Phillips (-5 runs, +13 runs)
The power is there, or should I say home run power, because he’s fallen off big time in terms of slugging and OBP, and that could continue if he doesn’t cut down on the K’s.
SS: Alex Gonzalez (+0 runs, +0 runs)
Injuries derailed his 2008 season, but before that he was terrible in Boston, he’ll be hard pressed to be league average.
3B: Edwin Encarnacion (+10 runs, -10 runs)
Offense = good, defense = terrible.
LF: Chris Dickerson (+6 runs, +0)
Adequate in just about everything he does. Problem is, left field is where you want someone who excels.
CF: Willy Tavaras (-20 runs, -8 runs)
Once the OBP went down, so did the career potential. He’s probably already peaked, and that’s not good considering some of the options the Reds have.
RF: Jay Bruce (+0 runs, -5 runs)
The bad news is that Bruce fell off big time last year from what he did in the minors. The good news is that he’ll probably make the right adjustments and break out this year. I’m looking at about +15 this year, possibly more.
SP: Aaron Harang (+0)
Bad year last year may just be a fluke, but I’m thinking not.
SP: Edison Volquez (+30)
Astonishingly good last season, and to top it off, he’s just now learning to pitch instead of throw. He’s going to be excellent for quite some time. He’s an elite strikeout pitcher who doesn’t walk many, and gets a lot of ground balls. That’s pure and simple a recipe for success.
SP: Bronson Arroyo (+10)
SP: Johnny Cueto (+0)
SP: Micah Owings (+0)
Better than his numbers looked last season, as he seemed to get unlucky every time he pitched for the D-Backs.
Bullpen:
F. Cordero (+5)
D. Weathers (+0)
J. Burton (+0)
Sleeper pick on the Reds to break out.
B. Bray (+0)
A. Rhodes (+5)
M. Lincoln (+0)
N. Masset(-5)
R. Ramirez (-5)
J. Roenicke (-10)
D. Herrera (-5)
Overall:
About +18 runs, which isn’t going to turn out too pretty. About 82-80.
Houston Astros:
C: Humberto Quintero (-10 runs, -5 runs)
The Astros better hope that J.R. Towles (-13 runs last season) shows why he was so highly touted as a prospect, and soon.
1B: Lance Berkman (+42 runs, +11 runs)
Still superb, still the main offensive reason that the Astros have any hope.
2B: Kaz Matsui (+5 runs, -3 runs)
Defense has been suspect at times, and that’s probably not going to change with his age.
SS: Miguel Tejada (-8 runs, +0 runs)
I’m going to go a bit high on his defensive rating, but you can’t lie about the offense. His stats have been steadily slipping for years now, and considering he never walks, it’s a wonder that he has an OBP over .300. He may be in for a really rough year.
3B: Geoff Blum (-8 runs, +4 runs)
Age, lack of walks, and a steadily decline in SLG and isolated power all lead me to believe he’s going to drop off, and I mean big time.
LF: Carlos Lee (+27 runs, -8 runs)
Consistent is the word that comes to mind with Lee, as in that’s what his career numbers show him as. Glove might hurt, but in Minute Maid is that even going to matter?
CF: Michael Bourn (-21 runs, +0 runs)
Average defense combined with abysmal offense. Not looking good.
RF: Hunter Pence (+3 runs, -6 runs)
Strikeouts are his shortcoming at this point, that and the fact that walks are again hard to come by for him.
SP: Roy Oswalt (+35)
SP: Wandy Rodriguez (+15)
Going to regress, he’s simply never put up the numbers he did last year, and overall even they weren’t that impressive.
SP: Brandon Backe (-10)
SP: Mike Hampton (+0)
SP: Brian Moehler (+5)
Bullpen:
J. Valverde (+10)
G. Geary (+0)
L. Hawkins (+5)
D. Brocail (+0)
W. Wright (-5)
T. Byrdak (-10)
C. Sampson (+5)
A. Arias (-5)
Overall:
The offense is shaky at best outside of Berkman and Lee, and the rotation may be in for some trouble especially if Oswalt struggles early.
Overall about +68 runs, about 88-74.
Milwaukee Brewers
C: Jason Kendall (-17 runs, -5 runs)
Age is a factor, especially when he’s making solid contact less than 10% of the time.
1B: Prince Fielder (+23 runs, -12 runs)
Offensively elite, the defensive is no question about it, awful.
2B: Ricky Weeks (+0 runs, -5 runs)
The power is still there in spurts, but long term, he’s below average.
SS: J.J. Hardy (+13 runs, +2 runs)
He’s showed why the Brewers have kept their best prospect down in the minors for so long.
3B: Bill Hall (-11 runs, +5 runs)
The K rate is way to high for someone with ISO that low, abysmal plate discipline is primarily to blame. He’ll hit some out for sure, but he’s going to strike out. A lot.
LF: Ryan Braun (+26 runs, -3 runs)
Oozing power, and has the potential to still build on it.
CF: Mike Cameron (+10 runs, +12 runs)
Decline is likely, as he is getting up there in terms of both injury history, and age.
RF: Corey Hart (+0 runs, -4 runs)
I think he’ll be better, but if not, that’s still about league average.
SP: Y. Gallardo (+0)
SP: D. Bush (+0)
SP: B. Looper (+10)
SP: J. Suppan (-5)
SP: M. Parra (+15)
Bullpen:
T. Hoffman (+10)
D. Riske (-5)
C. Villanueva (-5)
J. Julio (+0)
S. McClung(+0)
T. Coffey(+0)
M. Stetter(+0)
E. Gagne(-15)
E. Morlan(+0)
R. Swindle(+0)
Overall:
The offense is still there, and it will probably still be potent. As expected, the Brewers are going to miss CC and Ben Sheets dearly, as the starting staff has a lot of question marks, or injury issues. The bullpen outside of Hoffman is shaky at best, so Brewers fans may be in for a rather long year.
Pittsburgh Pirates
C: Ryan Doumit (+15 runs, +5 runs)
An exceptional player who has a history of improving.
1B: Adam LaRoche (+14 runs, -5 runs)
Offense again is good, defense not so much.
2B: Freddy Sanchez (-17 runs, -1 run)
Not many good things to say. He’s been in steady decline for years now.
SS: Jack Wilson (-9 runs, +8 runs)
Plain and simple, he’s an offensive black hole. His only contribution at this point is good defense.
3B: Andy LaRoche (-18 runs, +0 runs)
He’s still young, so there is some hope that he can be at least serviceable, but right now, he’s horrendous.
LF: Nyjer Morgan (+0 runs, +0 runs)
Strikeouts are a concern here, because he’s not no discernable power.
CF: Nate McLouth (+25 runs, -14 runs)
His offense is very much in line with what he’s always been projected to do, but not so much of the defensive side, where he may be relegated to another position if he doesn’t improve.
RF: Brandon Moss(-3 runs, +5 runs)
Given a full season, could reasonably become a league average right fielder.
SP: P. Malholm (+10)
Surprising good last season, and has a history of improvement.
SP: I. Snell (+0)
Last year was tough for Snell, and unless he gets control of his walk rate, it’ll continue.
SP: Z. Duke(+5)
Solid middle of the rotation guy, he just has to hope his defense shows up every once in a while.
SP: T. Gorzelanny (-15)
One guy in recent memory has had as drastic a drop off as Gorzelanny, and he now plays center field in St. Louis.
SP: R. Ohlendorf (-10)
The Pirates may one day get a back of the rotation guy out of Ohlendorf, but probably not anytime soon.
Bullpen:
M. Capps (+20)
J. Grabow (-5)
Ghastly BB% for someone in a late inning role.
T. Yates (-10)
S. Burnett (-15)
P. Dumatrait (-10)
C. Hansen (-10)
J. Chavez (-10)
R. Sanchez (-5)
Overall:
This season may be a long one for Pirate fans, as they’ve got some offense, but the defense just isn’t there, and the pitching is inconsistent, and in decline overall. I’m giving them a lot of perks here, as they will most likely be worse than most of the predictions I’ve read, but so be it. Totals up to about -45 runs or about 76-85.
St. Louis Cardinals
C: Yadier Molina (-5 runs, +0 runs)
Offense isn’t his specialty, but his defense is adequate enough to cover for it.
1B: Albert Pujols (+70 runs, +8 runs)
Unbelievable. Simply unbelievable. The best player in the game right now, hands down.
2B: Brendan Ryan (-8 runs, +0 runs)
Not hard to replace what Aaron Miles did, but Ryan doesn’t even look like he’ll get there.
SS: Khalil Green (-18 runs, -6 runs)
It’s beginning to look more and more like his rookie season and the two thereafter were flukes.
3B: David Freese (+0 runs, +0 runs)
He’s never played at the MLB level, so I’m going to give him the benefit of the doubt and assume that he’s at least league average (he was in the minors).
LF: Skip Schumaker (+8 runs +0 runs)
Has been pretty good so far, CHONE has him improving, and I agree.
CF: Rick Ankiel (+14 runs, -9 runs)
Who knew he’d be this good? He’s a good bet to improve or at least maintain.
RF: Ryan Ludwick (+41 runs, +0 runs)
He had a phenomenal season last year, but I just don’t see him hitting like that again.
SP: A. Wainwright (+15)
SP: K. Lohse (+10)
Looked really good last year, should be at least league average at a middle of the rotation.
SP: T. Wellemeyer (+5)
After years of disappointment, he showed some promise again. How much is another question altogether.
SP: J. Piniero (+0)
SP: C. Carpenter (+0)
The biggest question mark on this staff. If he is healthy and he performs to his career average, the entire staff in better, by about +10 runs each. He’s that important, we’ll just have to wait and see how he does.
Bullpen:
C. Perez (+0)
J. Motte (+5)
R. Franklin (-5)
J. Kinney (+0)
K. McClellan (+5)
B. Thompson (+0)
Overall:
The offense will be pretty good with Ankiel, Pujols, and Ludwick, and the starting rotation could be really good, but the bullpen is a pretty big problem as is, which may be the Cardinals weakest point. Overall about +13 wins or 94-68.
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