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DownloadAssorted Rants, Rumblings and Ruminations from the Mind of a “So-Called” Expert
CATCHER: Stephen Vogt and Manny Pina are the likely opening day duo with Jett Bandy and Andrew Susac also in the mix.
INFIELD: The left side looks good with Travis Shaw and Orlando Arcia. Eric Thames and Jesus Aguilar look to share time at first. Second base is unclear with Jonathan Villar the leading candidate along with Hernan Perez and Eric Sogard.
OUTFIELD: When healthy, Ryan Braun is a sure thing, as is Domingo Santana. Center field will be a battle between Keon Broxton, Brett Phillips and Lewis Brinson.
BENCH: The losers of the battle for second and outfield will yield decent depth, with Perez able to play all over the place..
ROTATION: Chase Anderson and Kyle Davies will hold down the fort until Jimmy Nelson returns. Youngsters Brandon Woodruff and Brent Suter should earn rotation spots with veteran Junior Guerra still an option. Josh Hader is a wild card as he looked great in relief, but has the stuff to start.
BULLPEN: Corey Knebel emerged as the go-to guy, one of the league's top closers. Jacob Barnes, Jeremy Jeffress and Jared Hughes are a capable set-up corp, along with Hader if he sticks in the bullpen.
PROSPECTS TO WATCH: You likely know about Brinson, Phillips and Hader. No one else is all that close, except maybe starting pitcher Luis Ortiz, who could get a look if he handles Triple-A Colorado Springs, perhaps the worst park for a young arm to sow his oats.
POSSIBLE ACQUISITIONS: Depending on how close management feels they are to competing, I can see a veteran arm coming from agency (CC?) along with a second baseman since they seemed to have soured on Villar.
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CATCHER: J.T. Realmuto is one of the few nearly every day backstops left in the league. Tomas Telis picks up the scraps.
INFIELD: The right side will be Justin Bour and Dee Gordon, though there's some whispers Gordon could be moved as a cost-cutting measure. Martin Prado should be healthy, thus assume his gig at the hot corner. J.T. Riddle and Miguel Rojas will battle to complete a rather uninspiring group. Derek Dietrich always gets his share of the pie as well.
OUTFIELD: Hold on a sec, I need to check something......Yup, as of this writing, Giancarlo Stanton is still on the club. He's joined by Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna, comprising of the best young trio in the league. Too bad they have to pretend they're broke and break it up.
BENCH: Dietrich and the loser of the shortstop battle will provide infield depth with Brian Anderson helping out too. The outfield is in flux with the Stanton situation, but keep in mind Yelich and Ozuna rarely sit. Destin Hood is in the system and has MLB experience.
ROTATION: When you have to feature Dan Straily on the image, you know pitching isn't a team strength. Wei-Yin Chen and Jose Urena are also slated to start with Adam Conley likely to join the party. Dillon Peters deserves a chance with Odrisamer Despaigne, Chris O'Grady, Justin Nicolino and Vance Worley all having MLB experience.
BULLPEN: If he'd only reduce the walks, Kyle Barraclough could close, but as presently constituted, Brad Ziegler gets the job with Bearclaw setting up. A name to watch is Drew Steckenrider, a candidate for the 100-K club. Junichi Tazawa, Nick Wittgren and Jarlin Garcia round out a quietly effective group.
PROSPECTS TO WATCH: Anderson is their top prospect, at least until some pieces are moved. Outfielder Austin Dean is a candidate to make an in season debut.
POSSIBLE ACQUISITIONS: While the Fish may bring in some cheap veterans for stability, they're looking to pare down payroll, so don't expect anything major. That said, a decent arm should fare well in The Aquarium. Yes, I am still crusading to have Marlins Park to adopt that nickname. It's not as noble as Jonah Keri helping Tim Raines make the Hall of Fame, but it's close.
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CATCHER: The pecking order is a little murky as Austin Barnes usurped the job from Yasmani Grandal towards the end of the season and into the playoffs.
INFIELD: The left side is set with Justin Turner and Corey Seager. Logan Forsythe and Enrique Hernandez are in the mix for second, though Chris Taylor could wind up there, depending how the NL Champs round out their roster. Adrian Gonzalez is still under contract but his best days are obviously behind him so Cody Bellinger will continue to see a lot of time at first base.
OUTFIELD: Yasiel Puig is set. Taylor and Bellinger could stay in the outfield with Joc Pederson platooning.
BENCH: Hernandez can flip between the infield and outfield, as can Charlie Culberson. Andrew Toles and Trayce Thompson are candidates for outfield depth.
ROTATION: Clayton Kershaw and Rich Hill are sure things. When healthy, Hyun-Jin Ryu will start as should Brandon McCarthy. Alex Wood and Kenta Maeda will likely round out the rotation, but both have durability issues. The forgotten man, Scott Kazmir is still in the picture as are Brock Stewart and Ross Stripling. Julio Urias hopes to return in the second half. Geez, that's a lot of arms. if only there were a means to game the system to get them all some starts.
BULLPEN: The best in the business, Kenley Jansen returns with Pedro Baez, Josh Fields, Tony Cingrani and Luis Avilan lending a hand.
PROSPECTS TO WATCH: The Dodgers made some moves to fortify their playoff run, however they didn't move Alex Verdugo or Walker Buehler, a stick and an arm expected to be solid players down the line, with a chance to contribute in 2018.
POSSIBLE ACQUISITIONS: When bullpen is your primary need, and you have Jansen at the back end, you're doing OK. A veteran outfielder is possible as is a more reliable front end starter to replace Yu Darvish.
Do you want to win your league?
Platinum 2018, featuring the industry's earliest projections has launched. All you have to do is register an account, make sure you're logged in and click HERE.
Please direct all questions to support@mastersball.com.
Follow me on Twitter @ToddZola
Follow the site on Twitter @Mastersball