It's been a slow start to the MLB offseason, but not one that's been without some excitement, the signing of Japan's Babe Ruth, Shohei Otani, and the trade of MVP Giancarlo Stanton come to mind. With that, let's take a look at three teams who have improved themselves the most, and three that are in worse shape than they were two months ago.
THREE WINNERS
1. New York Yankees - With the addition of Giancarlo Stanton alone, the Yankees would've been the clear-cut winners this offseason, but they also managed to move the salaries of Starlin Castro and Chase Headley to help reduce their overall salary figure and put them in a position to potentially make a run at Manny Machado in 2018 or some additional starting pitching.
2. Los Angeles Angels - The Angels have been busy re-signing Justin Upton, winning the Shohei Otani sweepstakes, trading for Atlanta Braves closer Jim Johnson (who has two 50+ save seasons under his belt), and acquiring veteran infielders Ian Kinsler (via trade) and Zack Cozart (via free agency). When you add in the fact that they'll also be getting a healthy Mike Trout (limited to 114 games in 2017), this team quickly becomes a candidate for a big improvement on their 80-82 record last season.
3. Houston Astros - Yeah, it's a bit of a homer pick for me, but Houston came into the offseason with almost the entire team that won the World Series still under contract for 2018. Their only losses (or anticipated losses) from their 25-man World Series roster are Francisco Liriano, Luke Gregerson (Cardinals), Juan Centeno (Rangers), Cameron Maybin, and Carlos Beltran (retired). They also lost Mike Fiers (Tigers), but he didn't make any of Houston's postseason rosters this year and Houston's starting rotation is over-filled as it is. So, with a healthy Jake Marisnick likely to return as Houston's 4th outfielder and filling Maybin's slot, Max Stassi notionally serving as the back-up catcher with Evan Gattis getting more ABs as the DH to cover Beltran and Centeno, all that was really left was a couple of bullpen slots to fill. By adding Joe Smith from Cleveland and Hector Rondon from the Cubs, both of those bullpen slots appear to be filled, and while they didn't address the need for a lefty reliever, they do still have Tony Sipp under contract, and they took a flier on Rule 5 pick, outfielder-turned-pitcher Anthony Gose who's your typical low risk, high reward opportunity. I don't see Houston being on this list when the offseason is over just because so many big names are still on he board, but to be the defending champion in mid-December without any pressing needs is a good place to be.
THREE LOSERS
1. Miami Marlins - The Marlins are on this list because they gave away Giancarlo Stanton, the reigning NL MVP, for almost nothing. They also unloaded Dee Gordon (201 hits in 2017) and Marcell Ozuna (191 hits, 37 homers in 2017) in an effort to drive down payroll. I know they've brought in a ton of prospects with these deals, and while the 2020 Marlins might be amazing as a result of this, the 2018 Marlins will probably be much worse.
2. Boston Redsox - The Redsox haven't really done anything wrong this season, but they also haven't really done anything at all short of exercising some options. With the Yankees adding Stanton, the pressure's on Boston to make a corresponding move, and thus far this offseason, that hasn't happened.
3. Baltimore Orioles - The Orioles won the AL East in 2014 and were a wild card team in 2016, and now, following a last place finish in 2017, they've yet to make a significant move of their own while watching the rich in their division get richer. Now rumors are swirling around Manny Machado and a potential dealing of their star third baseman. With both the Sox and Yanks building around young cores, the future does not look bright for this Orioles team.
No comments:
Post a Comment