Day 3 and we are still in the NL West this time we have a preview of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
New owners Magic Johnson and company have done a wonderful job of one things over the last year since buying the team and that is spend an absurd amount of money, whether that has been via trade or free agent signing or even just giving big money contracts to their own players they have spent nearly $500 million.
Now its time to see if that pays off with a full season of new additions Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, Zach Greinke and Josh Beckett.
Starting at first Gonzalez give the Dodgers Gold Glove caliber defense and 25-30 home runs with an easy 100 RBI season. Back in the NL West where he thrived for so many years as a San Diego Padre, the Southern California surprisingly didn't put up that much power in his first 30 or so games with the club but I expect thats a fluke and he ends up back near his career averages.
Second base is maned by 35 year-old Mark Ellis, who is coming off a major leg injury last season that about 40 games. Ellis probebly starts the season as the stater and may hold down the job well into the season but if the team stumbles out of the gate former shortstop prospect Dee Gordon could take over the spot.
At short the Hanely Ramirez moves back to his more natural position where his bat more than makes up for the glove on most occasions but its not that his glove is bad just not Gold Glove material. Ramirez won't be relied upon to produce as many runs as he had to in his Marlins days but he should still hit 20-25 bombs and drive in 85-95 runs.
Third base gets a little dicey for the team and is the one position in the infield that is uncertain at the moment for the club. Right now Luis Cruz looks like the front runner to take over the position but that could change if the team wants to get Ramirez and Gordon into the lineup at the same time. Cruz has never really jumped off the page as a stelar third base man but is serviceable so the team could give him the full chance their or they move Gordon or Ramirez to the hot corner preeminently.
Gordon was suppose to be the Dodgers shortstop of the future but the speedster has struggled in the field and from the dish on occasion and is now blocked at this more natural position by Ramirez. If Gordon can get on base, however, he is a potential 30-40 steal a year gut but he has to improve defensively in order to get on the field wether its at short, third or second.
Behind the plate veteran A. J. Ellis continues to man the dish for the team and coming off a career year looks to improve even more. Ellis hit 13 home runs by far his most at any level of perfesional play and should continue that trend this year in the Dodgers line up. Ellis is a solid defensive catcher as well so that job is all but locked up.
Tim Federowicz and Eliezer Alfonzo come in battling for the back up catchers spot with the younger Federowicz likely winning the job.
The outfield is loaded with talent starting with superstar center fielder Matt Kemp. After starting the year off on fire Kemp was sidelined for much of May and the entire month of June with an injury. He came back from the injury playing well but steadily decline over that last month and a half of the season and will need to regain his MVP form from 2011 if the Dodgers really want to contend.
Right field goes to to Andre Ethier. Although Ethier hit 20 home runs and drove 89 runs last season he probebly drops a little of both as he moves from the three spot in the order to the two spot or lower.
Left field is slated to be maned by new accusation Carl Crawford. Crawford is coming off two injury riddled seasons in Boston with the most recent injury causing him to have to have Tommy John's Surgery. If he can bounce back he's got the legs to play stellar defense in right field as well as give the Dodgers a potent bat at the top of the line up.
The bench gets rounded out with Skip Schumaker and Jerry Hairston.
Projected Line up:
1. LF Crawford/ 2B Ellis
2. LF Crawford/ 2B Ellis/ RF Ethier
3. CF Kemp
4. 1B Gonzales
5. SS/3B Ramirez
6. RF Ethier/Crawford
7. C Ellis/3B Cruz
8. 3B Cruz/C Ellis/SS Gordon
9. Pitcher
The pitching for the Dodgers is where the spent most of their off-season money and is where they will have to the most likely improvement.
Lefty Clayton Kershaw steps in as the number 1 in the Dodgers rotation and gets to 20 wins with relative easy in my opinion. 1A is newly acquired righty Zach Greinke. If he can keep his axniety disorder down then he probebly gets 15-20 wins as well and has a change to dominate NL West hitters after years in the American League.
The third spot most likely goes to newly acquired Japanese league signee Hyun-Jin Ryu. The import might have a hard time figure out American hitters but still she get to 10 wins on pure stuff.
The fourth and fifth spots in the rotation is where it gets a little murky.
Josh Beckett, Chad Billingsley, Chris Capuano, Arron Harang and Ted Lilly are all coming into the season eyeing to be starters but Lilly and Billingsley have to prove they are healthy in Spring Training.
The four spot goes to Billingsley if healthy because he is a proven winner and may slide up to the three spot in the Dodgers think Ryu needs a little time to develop.
The fifth spot however is wide open and at this point any one of the four remaining pitchers has a shot at it but ill give the inside track to former World Series MVP Beckett. If he stays healthy I think pitching in the NL West can make Beckett a star once again.
One of the other three makes the transition to the bullpen in a long reliever role and Capuano is the only one that has had to do that before, but who knows if the Dodgers go that route. I think they do and look to trade of release the other two baring any set backs with injuries.
Harang is the most likely of the four not to make the team in some capacity.
The Bullpen is also deep with talent with the acquisition of Brand League. League and incumbant closer Kelly Jansen will fight for the role this spring and I think Jansen and his 97+ mile an hour fastball wins the job, with league as the set-up guy.
Non-roster invitte Kelly Gregg has a chance win a spot in middle relief and if the former closer has anything left could provided the team with good insurance.
Projected Rotation:
1. Kershaw
2 Grenkie
3. Ryu/Billingsley
4. Billingsley/Ryu
5. Beckett/Capuano
Bullpen:
Jansen/League (Closer)
League/Jansen (set-up)
Gregg
Capuano/Beckett
Ronald Bellisario
JP Howell
Matt Guerrier
Jay Guerra
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Day 2: Defending Champs, San Francisco Giants
Ok its day two so the second team on the list San Francisco.
2012 record 94-68 World Series Champs
The Giants bring back pretty much their entire core of players from last years championship squad with a few minor tweaks.
Lets start on the infield with reigning National League MVP Buster Poesy behind the plate. Now two years removed from his horrific ankle injury I think Poesy has an even better shot to improve on his numbers from last year. While hitting .336 again maybe a long shot .310 to .320 is a realistic number, and the 24 home-runs are nice he could bump that number into the low 30's with easy. Same goes for his RBI total, 103 is good but the Giants need him more in the 120 to 125 range this season. Poesy's back Hector Sanchez is a switch hitting catcher that many teams would love to have as a starter. Two years younger than Poesy the Giants have a chance to keep both of them long term but I don't see Buster moving to first base full time and any time soon especially with Brandon Belt at the position at the moment.
Moving to first, Belt had a rough go of it last season struggling to find his swing during a full year of big league ball. The third year major league player has been promoted quickly in the Giants system and while he has needed time to develop he has the bat and the glove to play everyday at first and should figure things out this season and produce a 15-25 home run season and in the range of somewhere between 85-100 RBIs if all goes well. On the other hand if things keep on the same trend of last where he struggled early the Giants might not want to keep the talented player much in the same mold as the Diamondbacks trading Justin Upton this offseason.
Over to second base where Marcos Scutaro firmly took control of the poisson late in the year last season and didn't disappoint. Many outside observers questioned the move as both the Red Sox and the Rockies gave up on the aging veteran. The change of scenery was apparently just what he needed and guess what he produced a career year from the plate and parleyed that into a big offseason contract.
While I don't think he keeps up the .362 average he had in 61 games with San Fran. I do think he can hit somewhere in the .275-.285 range and be serviceable at second. The Giants definitely overpaid to keep him but with no alternative option he should give them a good season or two to find a player they like and develop them at second.
At the shortstop spot Brandon Crawford took over the spot full time and while he struggled from the plate his arm and glove showed he is going to be a big leaguer at that position for years to come.
The bat may never fully mature at the big league level and he doesn't have the typical speed of a shortstop he will hit somewhere in the .265 range and give you one of the best defenders at the position in the majors.
Rounding out the infield World Series MVP Pablo Sandoval mans the hot corner for the fourth season in a row. A wrist injury derailed much of the season for the Kung Fu Panda but by the time it healed the power was back in full force. Hitting 3 home runs off Justin Verlander showed just how much pop the Panda has. Always an up and down player last year saw 12 homers in the regular season with 63 RBIs but he has proven he can hit for power and should go for about 20-25 bombs and 85-95 ribbies.
The outfield looks a lot different for this years opening day than it did last season.
Angel Pagan comes into the season fully entrenched in center field with a brand new contract as well and should be the table setter once again for the team. A .275-.285 batting average with 20-30 steals and 5-10 homers from the lead off spot is likely.
Right field goes to the ever so awkward Hunter Pence. The mid-season acquisition struggled in his first handle full of games with his new team but of any Giant Pence is the most likely candidate for a bounce back year. He has 25-30 home run power and 100 RBI potential but on this team its more in the 20-25 range and 80 RBIs this season.
Left field goes to the man who saved Matt Cain's perfect game in Gregor Blanco. The speedy left give the team another option at lead off when Pagan has the day off but also gives the Giants one of the best defensive outfields in the division if not the league. A player that will most likely hit in the .250 range will have to stay near the bottom of the order but like Crawford his defense more than makes up for it.
The one area the Giants needed to improve on was the fourth outfielder spot and they hope to have that this year in former starting center fielder Andres Torres. Torres was a popular player during his first go around with the Giants but was traded to the Mets last season for Pagan and struggled. As a starter he doesn't have much value at this point but as the a fourth outfielder he should thrive.
The bench is should be rounded out by Brent Pill backing up the infield corners as well as providing insurance for the outfield. Joaquin Arias provides the team with a do-everything utility guy who can fill in a third, second, short, and the outfield.
A player to watch is prospect Nick Noonan. The middle infielder could make the team out of spring training but most likely ends up in double or triple A to solidify his hitting but could eventually supplant Scutaro at second.
Projected line-up
1. CF Pagan
2. 2B Scutaro
3. C Poesy
4. 3B Sandoval/ RF Pence
5. RF Pence/1B Belt/3B Sandoval
6. 1B Belt/RF Pence
7. LF Blanco/SS Crawford
8. SS Crawford/LF Blanco
9. Pitcher
The Giants pitching staff is top-5 in baseball right now and the only spot up for grabs is most likely the fifth spot in the rotation.
Matt Cain is the clear cut number one with a perfect game on his record and should push 20 wins with a 3 ERA. The number two spot goes to Madison Bumgarner. Bumgarner lost his mechanics toward the end of last season but discovered them again in time for the playoffs and if he is healthy should put up 15-18 wins.
Three and four belong to the two-some of Ryan Vogelsong and Tim Lincecum. Lincecum is a former Cy young winner but fell apart last season. If you finds the magic once again the Giants have four pitchers that can get to 15 wins with ease. Vogelsong is getting up there in age but was the number two starter in the world series and can approach 15 wins as well.
The fifth spot is a dicey one for the Giants as Barry Zito currently holds it down right know. In the final year of his monster contract he most likely leaves the Giants at the end of the year but he might not last that long. There is a couple of prospects that might take Zito's spot in the rotation but none that jump out to start the year but by mid season anything is possible at the five spot.
Closer Sergio Romo got baptized by fire last year in the post season and came out looking like the next dominate closer in a long line of Giants. From Rod Beck to Robb Nen to Brian Wilson, Romo is ready to fill the role this season.
Santiago Casilla, Javier Lopez and Jeremy Affeldt give the Giants a solid back end and they should be able to close out a lot of games.
Projected Starters:
1. Cain
2. Bumgarner
3. Lincecum
4. Vogelsong
5. Zito
Projected Bullpen:
Romo (Closer)
Casilla (Set-up)
Lopez
Affeldt
George Kontos
Mijares
Projected 2013 season 90-72, First place in the NL West on the high end 88-88, second to third in the NL West on the low end.
2012 record 94-68 World Series Champs
The Giants bring back pretty much their entire core of players from last years championship squad with a few minor tweaks.
Lets start on the infield with reigning National League MVP Buster Poesy behind the plate. Now two years removed from his horrific ankle injury I think Poesy has an even better shot to improve on his numbers from last year. While hitting .336 again maybe a long shot .310 to .320 is a realistic number, and the 24 home-runs are nice he could bump that number into the low 30's with easy. Same goes for his RBI total, 103 is good but the Giants need him more in the 120 to 125 range this season. Poesy's back Hector Sanchez is a switch hitting catcher that many teams would love to have as a starter. Two years younger than Poesy the Giants have a chance to keep both of them long term but I don't see Buster moving to first base full time and any time soon especially with Brandon Belt at the position at the moment.
Moving to first, Belt had a rough go of it last season struggling to find his swing during a full year of big league ball. The third year major league player has been promoted quickly in the Giants system and while he has needed time to develop he has the bat and the glove to play everyday at first and should figure things out this season and produce a 15-25 home run season and in the range of somewhere between 85-100 RBIs if all goes well. On the other hand if things keep on the same trend of last where he struggled early the Giants might not want to keep the talented player much in the same mold as the Diamondbacks trading Justin Upton this offseason.
Over to second base where Marcos Scutaro firmly took control of the poisson late in the year last season and didn't disappoint. Many outside observers questioned the move as both the Red Sox and the Rockies gave up on the aging veteran. The change of scenery was apparently just what he needed and guess what he produced a career year from the plate and parleyed that into a big offseason contract.
While I don't think he keeps up the .362 average he had in 61 games with San Fran. I do think he can hit somewhere in the .275-.285 range and be serviceable at second. The Giants definitely overpaid to keep him but with no alternative option he should give them a good season or two to find a player they like and develop them at second.
At the shortstop spot Brandon Crawford took over the spot full time and while he struggled from the plate his arm and glove showed he is going to be a big leaguer at that position for years to come.
The bat may never fully mature at the big league level and he doesn't have the typical speed of a shortstop he will hit somewhere in the .265 range and give you one of the best defenders at the position in the majors.
Rounding out the infield World Series MVP Pablo Sandoval mans the hot corner for the fourth season in a row. A wrist injury derailed much of the season for the Kung Fu Panda but by the time it healed the power was back in full force. Hitting 3 home runs off Justin Verlander showed just how much pop the Panda has. Always an up and down player last year saw 12 homers in the regular season with 63 RBIs but he has proven he can hit for power and should go for about 20-25 bombs and 85-95 ribbies.
The outfield looks a lot different for this years opening day than it did last season.
Angel Pagan comes into the season fully entrenched in center field with a brand new contract as well and should be the table setter once again for the team. A .275-.285 batting average with 20-30 steals and 5-10 homers from the lead off spot is likely.
Right field goes to the ever so awkward Hunter Pence. The mid-season acquisition struggled in his first handle full of games with his new team but of any Giant Pence is the most likely candidate for a bounce back year. He has 25-30 home run power and 100 RBI potential but on this team its more in the 20-25 range and 80 RBIs this season.
Left field goes to the man who saved Matt Cain's perfect game in Gregor Blanco. The speedy left give the team another option at lead off when Pagan has the day off but also gives the Giants one of the best defensive outfields in the division if not the league. A player that will most likely hit in the .250 range will have to stay near the bottom of the order but like Crawford his defense more than makes up for it.
The one area the Giants needed to improve on was the fourth outfielder spot and they hope to have that this year in former starting center fielder Andres Torres. Torres was a popular player during his first go around with the Giants but was traded to the Mets last season for Pagan and struggled. As a starter he doesn't have much value at this point but as the a fourth outfielder he should thrive.
The bench is should be rounded out by Brent Pill backing up the infield corners as well as providing insurance for the outfield. Joaquin Arias provides the team with a do-everything utility guy who can fill in a third, second, short, and the outfield.
A player to watch is prospect Nick Noonan. The middle infielder could make the team out of spring training but most likely ends up in double or triple A to solidify his hitting but could eventually supplant Scutaro at second.
Projected line-up
1. CF Pagan
2. 2B Scutaro
3. C Poesy
4. 3B Sandoval/ RF Pence
5. RF Pence/1B Belt/3B Sandoval
6. 1B Belt/RF Pence
7. LF Blanco/SS Crawford
8. SS Crawford/LF Blanco
9. Pitcher
The Giants pitching staff is top-5 in baseball right now and the only spot up for grabs is most likely the fifth spot in the rotation.
Matt Cain is the clear cut number one with a perfect game on his record and should push 20 wins with a 3 ERA. The number two spot goes to Madison Bumgarner. Bumgarner lost his mechanics toward the end of last season but discovered them again in time for the playoffs and if he is healthy should put up 15-18 wins.
Three and four belong to the two-some of Ryan Vogelsong and Tim Lincecum. Lincecum is a former Cy young winner but fell apart last season. If you finds the magic once again the Giants have four pitchers that can get to 15 wins with ease. Vogelsong is getting up there in age but was the number two starter in the world series and can approach 15 wins as well.
The fifth spot is a dicey one for the Giants as Barry Zito currently holds it down right know. In the final year of his monster contract he most likely leaves the Giants at the end of the year but he might not last that long. There is a couple of prospects that might take Zito's spot in the rotation but none that jump out to start the year but by mid season anything is possible at the five spot.
Closer Sergio Romo got baptized by fire last year in the post season and came out looking like the next dominate closer in a long line of Giants. From Rod Beck to Robb Nen to Brian Wilson, Romo is ready to fill the role this season.
Santiago Casilla, Javier Lopez and Jeremy Affeldt give the Giants a solid back end and they should be able to close out a lot of games.
Projected Starters:
1. Cain
2. Bumgarner
3. Lincecum
4. Vogelsong
5. Zito
Projected Bullpen:
Romo (Closer)
Casilla (Set-up)
Lopez
Affeldt
George Kontos
Mijares
Projected 2013 season 90-72, First place in the NL West on the high end 88-88, second to third in the NL West on the low end.
Monday, February 11, 2013
Baseball is Back! Season Preview Day 1
As an avid sports fan today has to be one of my favorite days of the year next to the Super Bowl, World Series, and March Madness. Today is the day pitchers and catchers report to their respective teams. Let's be honest while today maybe the official start to the MLB season most pitchers and catchers have been working out at their team training facilities for weeks now.
I follow the Pittsburgh Pirates on twitter and they posted something a few days ago about having 29 of the 34 pitchers and catchers already reported to camp.
Even though hitters don't report for another week or so most of those players also come in early and report with the pitchers and catchers.
Over the next 30 days I'll profile ever team starting the in the National league west and in honor of the Pope's resignation we'll start with the San Diego Padres.
San Diego Padres: 2012 record (76-86, fourth place)
The Padres started the 2012 year off as one of the worst teams in baseball after trading staff ace Matt Latos to the Cincinnati Reds before the start of the year but the pieces they got in return for Latos make the team a better ball club coming into this year.
Yondor Alonso seems like the long term answer at first base if he can consistently find his swing in Petco Park. A rookie last season Alonso showed better power on the road than he did at home but he did put up the same average no matter what park he was playing in. Even though the youngster only hit 9 home runs all of last year he has shown good power in the minors as he averaged a homer every 8 games so that should translate after a year to get acclimated to major league hitting, especially after he posted 7 of those HR's in the last three months of the season.
The other premier piece in the Latos deal catcher Yasmani Grandal looked to be well on his way to stardom as the switch-hitter posted 8 home runs and 36 RBI's in his first 60 games but got busted for PED use in the fall so he will miss the first 50 games of the season and may not preform at that level agains. He is only 24 years old so he still has a chance to develop into a solid offensive catcher which is a rarity but will be on a short lease after the PED scandal.
With Grandal sidelined the team turns to veterans Nick Hundley and John Baker behind the plate.
Hundley had a dismal 2012 season and was sent down to the minors for a short stint and even that trip couldn't turn around his swing. Hundley starts the season on the bench for the Padres.
Baker didn't have much better of a season last year and while both are more suitable for back-up jobs I think he gets the opening day nod.
The brightest player on the team last season was by far third baseman Chase Headley. Another switch hitter in the Padres line up, Headley posted a career year in home runs (31), RBI's (115), walks (86), stolen bases (17), slugging percentage (.498), OPS (.875) and on base percentage (.376). Headley is still under team control for the next two seasons so depending on where the Padres are at at the trade deadline he could be a valuable asset for the team going forward.
Shortstop Everth Cabrera lead the national league with 44 stolen bases but only hit .246 so the question is can he get on base enough to to continue providing the team with speed at the top of the line-up.
The outfield for the Padres has great depth starting with Center Fielder Cameron Maybin. The former Florida Marlins prospect looks to have finally shown he can hit in the majors well enough to merit and everyday job especially in San Diego. He has shown an adept feel for the spacious center field in Petco and looks to be primed for a break out season with 15-20 home runs and 25-45 steals well with in his reach.
The corners are a different story as a platoon of Carlos Quentin, Kyle Banks, Chris Denorfia, Jesus Guzman and Will Venable is likely.
The teams needs pop in the line-up and Quentin can provided that so long as he stays healthy which is a big concern. The left field spot is his job to lose even if at this point he's better suited for a DH roll in the American League to keep his legs fresh. Saying that Quentin still has a bat that profiles at 20-30 home runs and thats why he was signed.
The right field spot for the Padres is a whole different story as any one of the four remaining players could conceivably win the job. My bet is on Denorfia to beat out his other competitors and win the job but the Padres love Venable so he very well may end up your opening day starters their. The best bet in right might and probably should be a left-right split between the two depending on the opposing pitcher. A platoon should give produce around 20 home runs and 100 runs batted in between the two.
As for Guzman and Blanks its probably a race between the two to see who backs up Alonso at first as well as provide insurance in the Padres outfield. Guzman most likely wins the job and Blanks gets sent back minors or traded during the season.
Projected Line up
1. SS Cabrera
2. CF Maybin
3. 3B Headley
4. LF Quentin
5. 1B Alonso
6 RF Venable/Denorfia
7. 2B Forsythe/C Baker
8. 2B Forsythe/C Baker
9. Pitchers spot
Bench:
1B/OF Guzman
UTIL Amarista
C Hundley
OF Venable/Denorfia
On the mound this season the Padres have some depth to build around in projected opening day started Clayton Richard. The lefty went 14-14 last year with a respectable 4.13 ERA but really came on at the end of last year as he went 7-3 over the last two months of the year. Richard gets the nod at number one and is primed for a break out year at age 30.
The number two spot in the Padres order might be the most intriguing player on the team next to Headley. Edinson Volquez is a couple of seasons removed from Tommy Johns surgery and a 50 PED suspension but the right hander has always shown flashes dating back to his days on the mound for the Texas Rangers. Volquez find his grove at the end of the season last year and posted a 6-4 record over the last 3 months of the season and looks to have regained his 2008 All-star form and could produce close to a 20 win season for the Padres.
The 3-5 spots in the rotation are all up for grabs in spring training. Eric Stutls, Tony Ross, Anthony Bass, Jason Marquis and Casey Kelly are all vying for a spot in the rotation.
The best bet to win the jobs go to Marquis, Bass and Stults.
Stults posted the best numbers of the bunch going 8-3 while posting a 2.92 ERA after being picked up from the Chicago White Sox mid-season and likely gets slated at the number three spot.
Bass has the liveliest arm of the bunch but posted a dismal 2-8 record but the Padres like him a lot and give him the shot as the number four.
Marquis has been a journeyman since his days in St. Louis but posted a solid 6-7 record with a 4 ERA and gets one last shot to show he belongs in a major league rotation.
A sleeper that could weasel his way into a spot on the team whether in the bullpen or the rotation is non-roster invitee Freddy Garcia. The 37 year-old right hander posted 7 wins pitching for the Yankees in the American League East last year, so he's got a shot to make something happen.
The 'pen is anchored by All-star closer Huston Street and set-up man Luke Gergerson. If Street stays healthy he get 30 saves easily.
The 'pen took a blow in the offseason when Andrew Cashner lacerated a tendon on the thumb of his pitching hand in the offseason and will need a few months to recover and won't be back tell June at the earliest.
Projected Rotation:
1. Richard
2. Volquez
3. Stults
4. Bass
5. Marquis
Bullpen:
Street (closer)
Gergerson (set-up)
Thayer
Broxberger
Branch
Layne
Thatcher
The NL West is a loaded division with the defending World Series Champion San Francisco Giants, a Los Angeles Dodgers team willing to spend money and a Arizona Diamondbacks team that is hungry to make a run at the postseason. In saying that the Friars most likely finish the season with a 80-85 record a four win improvement but they stay in fourth place with a chance the finish in third.
I follow the Pittsburgh Pirates on twitter and they posted something a few days ago about having 29 of the 34 pitchers and catchers already reported to camp.
Even though hitters don't report for another week or so most of those players also come in early and report with the pitchers and catchers.
Over the next 30 days I'll profile ever team starting the in the National league west and in honor of the Pope's resignation we'll start with the San Diego Padres.
San Diego Padres: 2012 record (76-86, fourth place)
The Padres started the 2012 year off as one of the worst teams in baseball after trading staff ace Matt Latos to the Cincinnati Reds before the start of the year but the pieces they got in return for Latos make the team a better ball club coming into this year.
Yondor Alonso seems like the long term answer at first base if he can consistently find his swing in Petco Park. A rookie last season Alonso showed better power on the road than he did at home but he did put up the same average no matter what park he was playing in. Even though the youngster only hit 9 home runs all of last year he has shown good power in the minors as he averaged a homer every 8 games so that should translate after a year to get acclimated to major league hitting, especially after he posted 7 of those HR's in the last three months of the season.
The other premier piece in the Latos deal catcher Yasmani Grandal looked to be well on his way to stardom as the switch-hitter posted 8 home runs and 36 RBI's in his first 60 games but got busted for PED use in the fall so he will miss the first 50 games of the season and may not preform at that level agains. He is only 24 years old so he still has a chance to develop into a solid offensive catcher which is a rarity but will be on a short lease after the PED scandal.
With Grandal sidelined the team turns to veterans Nick Hundley and John Baker behind the plate.
Hundley had a dismal 2012 season and was sent down to the minors for a short stint and even that trip couldn't turn around his swing. Hundley starts the season on the bench for the Padres.
Baker didn't have much better of a season last year and while both are more suitable for back-up jobs I think he gets the opening day nod.
The brightest player on the team last season was by far third baseman Chase Headley. Another switch hitter in the Padres line up, Headley posted a career year in home runs (31), RBI's (115), walks (86), stolen bases (17), slugging percentage (.498), OPS (.875) and on base percentage (.376). Headley is still under team control for the next two seasons so depending on where the Padres are at at the trade deadline he could be a valuable asset for the team going forward.
Shortstop Everth Cabrera lead the national league with 44 stolen bases but only hit .246 so the question is can he get on base enough to to continue providing the team with speed at the top of the line-up.
The outfield for the Padres has great depth starting with Center Fielder Cameron Maybin. The former Florida Marlins prospect looks to have finally shown he can hit in the majors well enough to merit and everyday job especially in San Diego. He has shown an adept feel for the spacious center field in Petco and looks to be primed for a break out season with 15-20 home runs and 25-45 steals well with in his reach.
The corners are a different story as a platoon of Carlos Quentin, Kyle Banks, Chris Denorfia, Jesus Guzman and Will Venable is likely.
The teams needs pop in the line-up and Quentin can provided that so long as he stays healthy which is a big concern. The left field spot is his job to lose even if at this point he's better suited for a DH roll in the American League to keep his legs fresh. Saying that Quentin still has a bat that profiles at 20-30 home runs and thats why he was signed.
The right field spot for the Padres is a whole different story as any one of the four remaining players could conceivably win the job. My bet is on Denorfia to beat out his other competitors and win the job but the Padres love Venable so he very well may end up your opening day starters their. The best bet in right might and probably should be a left-right split between the two depending on the opposing pitcher. A platoon should give produce around 20 home runs and 100 runs batted in between the two.
As for Guzman and Blanks its probably a race between the two to see who backs up Alonso at first as well as provide insurance in the Padres outfield. Guzman most likely wins the job and Blanks gets sent back minors or traded during the season.
Projected Line up
1. SS Cabrera
2. CF Maybin
3. 3B Headley
4. LF Quentin
5. 1B Alonso
6 RF Venable/Denorfia
7. 2B Forsythe/C Baker
8. 2B Forsythe/C Baker
9. Pitchers spot
Bench:
1B/OF Guzman
UTIL Amarista
C Hundley
OF Venable/Denorfia
On the mound this season the Padres have some depth to build around in projected opening day started Clayton Richard. The lefty went 14-14 last year with a respectable 4.13 ERA but really came on at the end of last year as he went 7-3 over the last two months of the year. Richard gets the nod at number one and is primed for a break out year at age 30.
The number two spot in the Padres order might be the most intriguing player on the team next to Headley. Edinson Volquez is a couple of seasons removed from Tommy Johns surgery and a 50 PED suspension but the right hander has always shown flashes dating back to his days on the mound for the Texas Rangers. Volquez find his grove at the end of the season last year and posted a 6-4 record over the last 3 months of the season and looks to have regained his 2008 All-star form and could produce close to a 20 win season for the Padres.
The 3-5 spots in the rotation are all up for grabs in spring training. Eric Stutls, Tony Ross, Anthony Bass, Jason Marquis and Casey Kelly are all vying for a spot in the rotation.
The best bet to win the jobs go to Marquis, Bass and Stults.
Stults posted the best numbers of the bunch going 8-3 while posting a 2.92 ERA after being picked up from the Chicago White Sox mid-season and likely gets slated at the number three spot.
Bass has the liveliest arm of the bunch but posted a dismal 2-8 record but the Padres like him a lot and give him the shot as the number four.
Marquis has been a journeyman since his days in St. Louis but posted a solid 6-7 record with a 4 ERA and gets one last shot to show he belongs in a major league rotation.
A sleeper that could weasel his way into a spot on the team whether in the bullpen or the rotation is non-roster invitee Freddy Garcia. The 37 year-old right hander posted 7 wins pitching for the Yankees in the American League East last year, so he's got a shot to make something happen.
The 'pen is anchored by All-star closer Huston Street and set-up man Luke Gergerson. If Street stays healthy he get 30 saves easily.
The 'pen took a blow in the offseason when Andrew Cashner lacerated a tendon on the thumb of his pitching hand in the offseason and will need a few months to recover and won't be back tell June at the earliest.
Projected Rotation:
1. Richard
2. Volquez
3. Stults
4. Bass
5. Marquis
Bullpen:
Street (closer)
Gergerson (set-up)
Thayer
Broxberger
Branch
Layne
Thatcher
The NL West is a loaded division with the defending World Series Champion San Francisco Giants, a Los Angeles Dodgers team willing to spend money and a Arizona Diamondbacks team that is hungry to make a run at the postseason. In saying that the Friars most likely finish the season with a 80-85 record a four win improvement but they stay in fourth place with a chance the finish in third.
Friday, February 8, 2013
Softball hands Tennessee 800th win
The SUU softball team dropped its first game of the season
Thursday falling to the University of Tennessee 18-3 in their first game
of the Red Desert Classic.
The win also gave the Volunteers their 800th win in program history.
“They have four of the top 50 players in the country,” head coach Kyle Magnusson said. “They made the world series last year and they returned seven of nine players (from that team). They showed why today and we have some kids that come out of junior college or are freshman and they saw today what its like to compete at this level.”
Making her first start at the Division 1 level Ariel Zimmerman gave the T-Birds a strong opening frame, striking out two of the first four Volunteers she faced, but that didn’t stop UT from putting the first run on the board thanks to All-Americans Madison Shipman and Raven Chavanne.
Chavanne led of the off the game with a walk, stole second and was driven home by Shipman with a two-out single to right.
The T-Birds had a shot to answer in the bottom half of the inning as right fielder Mikkel Griffin was hit by a pitch to give SUU its first base runner of the day but All-American pitcher Ivy Renfroe worked around the the hit-by-pitch to strike out the side.
The Volunteers added two more in the second as center fielder Melissa Brown sent a Zimmerman pitch deep over the right field wall for a two-run home run to extend the lead to 3-0.
The T-Birds again had another opportunity in the bottom half of the second inning as first baseman Madison Resely reach base after being hit by a pitch but yet again the T-Birds left the runner stranded at first base.
The Vols’ broke it wide open in the top of the third as the team scored six runs to turn a 3-0 cushion into a 9-0 cushion heading into the bottom half of the inning.
Renfroe kept the T-Birds off the scoreboard once again in the bottom half of the inning and watched her team push across three more runs in the top of the 4th to extended the lead to 12-0.
The Vols’ changed pitchers in the bottom half of the inning, turning the ball over to Cheyanne Tarango and the pitching change gave the T-Birds new life.
Kelsey Bryant lead off the inning with a single to left to give the T-Birds their first hit of the day. The next batter, Resely drew a walk to give SUU runners on first and second with no outs and third baseman Kadi Henderson coming to the plate.
Henderson wasted little time giving the T-Birds their first runs of the year as the junior sent a inside fastball over the left center wall to give the T-Birds a little life.
The momentum was short lived, however, as Tarango settled into a grove and sat the T-Birds down in short order after that.
UT fired back in the top of the fifth scoring six runs off the T-Birds third pitcher of the game Ashely Ostler to seal the 18-3 victory.
The T-Birds did not commit an error in a game, ending a streak of eight straight games with an error, while the Volunteers committed one.
“We didn’t play defense very well last year and we need to play better defense (this season),” Magnuson said. “With our pitchers being more of a ground-ball pitchers, we need to pick up the ball better and I think we are better at it, especially after only being outside for four practices.”
Shipman led the Vols’ as the Junior went 3-5 from the plate driving in 5 runs and adding two stolen bases.
Bryant led the T-Birds as the senior went 2-3 from the dish but Henderson added the fire-works with the home-run.
Zimmerman finished the game going 2 and a third, giving up 6 runs and striking out 5.
“I think we you are excited and pumped up I think you have a tendency to overthrow and thats what (Zimmerman) did,” Magnusson said. “It was a pretty good test of how good she is; (Tennessee’s) coach is a guy on the selection committee for the women’s national team and he said after the game that she was pretty good.”
The T-Birds will be back in action today for the second day of the Red Desert Classic to face-off against Arkansas and Utah Valley.
First pitch against the Wolverines is scheduled for 1:30 and first pitch against the Razorbacks is scheduled for 4.
The win also gave the Volunteers their 800th win in program history.
“They have four of the top 50 players in the country,” head coach Kyle Magnusson said. “They made the world series last year and they returned seven of nine players (from that team). They showed why today and we have some kids that come out of junior college or are freshman and they saw today what its like to compete at this level.”
Making her first start at the Division 1 level Ariel Zimmerman gave the T-Birds a strong opening frame, striking out two of the first four Volunteers she faced, but that didn’t stop UT from putting the first run on the board thanks to All-Americans Madison Shipman and Raven Chavanne.
Chavanne led of the off the game with a walk, stole second and was driven home by Shipman with a two-out single to right.
The T-Birds had a shot to answer in the bottom half of the inning as right fielder Mikkel Griffin was hit by a pitch to give SUU its first base runner of the day but All-American pitcher Ivy Renfroe worked around the the hit-by-pitch to strike out the side.
The Volunteers added two more in the second as center fielder Melissa Brown sent a Zimmerman pitch deep over the right field wall for a two-run home run to extend the lead to 3-0.
The T-Birds again had another opportunity in the bottom half of the second inning as first baseman Madison Resely reach base after being hit by a pitch but yet again the T-Birds left the runner stranded at first base.
The Vols’ broke it wide open in the top of the third as the team scored six runs to turn a 3-0 cushion into a 9-0 cushion heading into the bottom half of the inning.
Renfroe kept the T-Birds off the scoreboard once again in the bottom half of the inning and watched her team push across three more runs in the top of the 4th to extended the lead to 12-0.
The Vols’ changed pitchers in the bottom half of the inning, turning the ball over to Cheyanne Tarango and the pitching change gave the T-Birds new life.
Kelsey Bryant lead off the inning with a single to left to give the T-Birds their first hit of the day. The next batter, Resely drew a walk to give SUU runners on first and second with no outs and third baseman Kadi Henderson coming to the plate.
Henderson wasted little time giving the T-Birds their first runs of the year as the junior sent a inside fastball over the left center wall to give the T-Birds a little life.
The momentum was short lived, however, as Tarango settled into a grove and sat the T-Birds down in short order after that.
UT fired back in the top of the fifth scoring six runs off the T-Birds third pitcher of the game Ashely Ostler to seal the 18-3 victory.
The T-Birds did not commit an error in a game, ending a streak of eight straight games with an error, while the Volunteers committed one.
“We didn’t play defense very well last year and we need to play better defense (this season),” Magnuson said. “With our pitchers being more of a ground-ball pitchers, we need to pick up the ball better and I think we are better at it, especially after only being outside for four practices.”
Shipman led the Vols’ as the Junior went 3-5 from the plate driving in 5 runs and adding two stolen bases.
Bryant led the T-Birds as the senior went 2-3 from the dish but Henderson added the fire-works with the home-run.
Zimmerman finished the game going 2 and a third, giving up 6 runs and striking out 5.
“I think we you are excited and pumped up I think you have a tendency to overthrow and thats what (Zimmerman) did,” Magnusson said. “It was a pretty good test of how good she is; (Tennessee’s) coach is a guy on the selection committee for the women’s national team and he said after the game that she was pretty good.”
The T-Birds will be back in action today for the second day of the Red Desert Classic to face-off against Arkansas and Utah Valley.
First pitch against the Wolverines is scheduled for 1:30 and first pitch against the Razorbacks is scheduled for 4.
SUU women's basketball snaps two game skid
Coming off a disappointing four-game road trip that saw the T-Birds go 1-4, the SUU women's basketball team need a win
against in-state rival Weber State but the 72-54 win didn't come as easily as the T-Birds would have liked.
SUU spotted the Wildcats the first seven points of the game and had to battle back against a team that hasn't won a game in nearly a year and a half.
"We were kind of a little bit lethargic," head coach JR Payne said. “We turned it over two or three of the very first possessions, so we have to take care of the ball better.”
Hailey Mandelko led all scores with a game high 18 points on 4-of8 shooting from beyond the arc. Teammate Sofia Hepworth chipped in with the second most points in the game at 15.
Regina Okye led the Wildcats with 12 points and Desiree Romas added 10.
The win SUU improves to 5-7 in conference and moves them back to five hundred on the season at 11-11, overall.
The loss extends the Wildcats NCAA lead losing steak to 41 games. WSU has not won a game since defeating Cal State Bakersfield, 85-72, Dec. 10th last season.
“Even though they are losing, they are a tough, young, and really talented team,” Payne said. “I think Weber State is going to be really good in the future.”
Even with the 7-0 deficit the T-Birds, weathered the storm and took their first lead of the game on a lay-up by Tayler Anderson with 15:12 to play in the first half.
WSU didn’t crumble under the pressure and stayed with the T-Birds, eventually regaining the lead, at 15-13, on a jumper by Desiree Ramos with 13 minutes to go in the first half.
The T-Birds tied the game on the next possession and took the lead a possession latter but the Wildcats would answer with a basket of their own and tie the game at 17 with 10:06 remaining in the half.
The T-Birds took the lead for good two minutes later on a 3-pointer by Mandelko.
“We all just came out with a chip on our shoulders and we were not going to let this one slip away,” Mandelko said.
Despite never taking the lead again the Wildcats kept it tight for the remainder of the first half and cut it as close to one, at 26-25, with 3:56 to go.
The T-Birds responded to the pressure, closing the first half on a 10-4 run capped by a 3-pointer from Andrea Jones with three seconds to play, to take a 36-29 halftime lead.
“They were playing tough and I think we were just going through the motions,” Hepworth said. “We kinda let them push us around a little and then I think we realized we needed to step it up and pick up our effort and intensity.”
When the second half rolled around the T-Birds attempted to close the door again but the Wildcats still refused to go away.
WSU scored the first basket of the second period but unlike the first half instead of settling for jump shots the T-Birds took the ball to the hoop again and again and the move paid off.
SUU went to the charity strip 10 times in the first five minutes of the second half, to turned a five point lead into a double digit blow out.
“Any time your not shooting the ball well you have to get to the free throw line,” Payne said. “We talked about being more aggressive (at halftime), so we were able to execute that, which was good and we needed that.”
The T-Birds cursed from there eventually going up by as much as 19 with 1:39 to play in the game, before settling for the win.
SUU has a quick turn around and will be facing arguably the hottest team in the Big Sky at the moment in Idaho State.
The Bengals head into the contest with the T-Birds winners of six of their last eight games to move from the bottom of the BSC standings to the fifth seed overall.
Tip-off against ISU is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside the Centrum Arena Saturday night.
against in-state rival Weber State but the 72-54 win didn't come as easily as the T-Birds would have liked.
SUU spotted the Wildcats the first seven points of the game and had to battle back against a team that hasn't won a game in nearly a year and a half.
"We were kind of a little bit lethargic," head coach JR Payne said. “We turned it over two or three of the very first possessions, so we have to take care of the ball better.”
Hailey Mandelko led all scores with a game high 18 points on 4-of8 shooting from beyond the arc. Teammate Sofia Hepworth chipped in with the second most points in the game at 15.
Regina Okye led the Wildcats with 12 points and Desiree Romas added 10.
The win SUU improves to 5-7 in conference and moves them back to five hundred on the season at 11-11, overall.
The loss extends the Wildcats NCAA lead losing steak to 41 games. WSU has not won a game since defeating Cal State Bakersfield, 85-72, Dec. 10th last season.
“Even though they are losing, they are a tough, young, and really talented team,” Payne said. “I think Weber State is going to be really good in the future.”
Even with the 7-0 deficit the T-Birds, weathered the storm and took their first lead of the game on a lay-up by Tayler Anderson with 15:12 to play in the first half.
WSU didn’t crumble under the pressure and stayed with the T-Birds, eventually regaining the lead, at 15-13, on a jumper by Desiree Ramos with 13 minutes to go in the first half.
The T-Birds tied the game on the next possession and took the lead a possession latter but the Wildcats would answer with a basket of their own and tie the game at 17 with 10:06 remaining in the half.
The T-Birds took the lead for good two minutes later on a 3-pointer by Mandelko.
“We all just came out with a chip on our shoulders and we were not going to let this one slip away,” Mandelko said.
Despite never taking the lead again the Wildcats kept it tight for the remainder of the first half and cut it as close to one, at 26-25, with 3:56 to go.
The T-Birds responded to the pressure, closing the first half on a 10-4 run capped by a 3-pointer from Andrea Jones with three seconds to play, to take a 36-29 halftime lead.
“They were playing tough and I think we were just going through the motions,” Hepworth said. “We kinda let them push us around a little and then I think we realized we needed to step it up and pick up our effort and intensity.”
When the second half rolled around the T-Birds attempted to close the door again but the Wildcats still refused to go away.
WSU scored the first basket of the second period but unlike the first half instead of settling for jump shots the T-Birds took the ball to the hoop again and again and the move paid off.
SUU went to the charity strip 10 times in the first five minutes of the second half, to turned a five point lead into a double digit blow out.
“Any time your not shooting the ball well you have to get to the free throw line,” Payne said. “We talked about being more aggressive (at halftime), so we were able to execute that, which was good and we needed that.”
The T-Birds cursed from there eventually going up by as much as 19 with 1:39 to play in the game, before settling for the win.
SUU has a quick turn around and will be facing arguably the hottest team in the Big Sky at the moment in Idaho State.
The Bengals head into the contest with the T-Birds winners of six of their last eight games to move from the bottom of the BSC standings to the fifth seed overall.
Tip-off against ISU is scheduled for 7 p.m. inside the Centrum Arena Saturday night.
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