2024 MLB Season Preview

Standings

AL EAST
x-Baltimore Orioles 95-67
y-Tampa Bay Rays 90-72
y-New York Yankees 89-73
Toronto Blue Jays 85-77
Boston Red Sox 73-89

AL CENTRAL
x-Cleveland Guardians 85-77
Kansas City Royals 82-80
Minnesota Twins 78-84
Detroit Tigers 74-88
Chicago White Sox 64-98

AL WEST
x-Texas Rangers 95-67
y-Houston Astros 93-69
Seattle Mariners 87-75
Los Angeles Angels 63-99
Oakland Athletics 57-105

NL EAST
x-Atlanta Braves 100-62
y-Philadelphia Phillies 88-74
New York Mets 83-79
Miami Marlins 75-87
Washington Nationals 73-89

NL CENTRAL
x-Chicago Cubs 86-76
y-Cincinnati Reds 84-78
St. Louis Cardinals 80-82
Pittsburgh Pirates 74-88
Milwaukee Brewers 70-92

NL WEST
x-Los Angeles Dodgers 99-63
y-Arizona Diamondbacks 89-73
San Francisco Giants 82-80
San Diego Padres 76-86
Colorado Rockies 61-101

Playoffs

ALWC	ALDS	ALCS	–
3 – Cleveland vs. (In 2 Games) 6 – NY Yankees	1 – Texas vs. (In 4 Games) 6 – NY Yankees
		1 – Texas vs. (In 6 Games) 2 – Baltimore	Baltimore Orioles AL Champions
4 – Houston vs. (In 2 Games) 5 – Tampa Bay	2 – Baltimore vs. (In 5 Games) 4 – Houston

NLWC	NLDS	NLCS	–
4 – Arizona vs. (In 3 Games) 5 – Philadelphia	1 – Atlanta vs. (In 5 Games) 4 – Arizona
		1 – Atlanta vs. (In 6 Games) 2 – LA Dodgers	Los Angeles Dodgers NL Champions
3 – CHI Cubs vs. (In 3 Games) 6 – Cincinnati	2 – LA Dodgers vs. (In 3 Games) 3 – CHI Cubs

WORLD SERIES:
Los Angeles Dodgers over Baltimore Orioles in 6 games

Team Projections

AMERICAN LEAGUE

MVP: Corey Seager, TEX
CY YOUNG: George Kirby, SEA
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Wyatt Langford, TEX
COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Casey Mize, DET
MANAGER OF THE YEAR: Stephen Vogt, CLE

Baltimore Orioles

Manager: Brandon Hyde
6th year, Career/Team record: 315-394, Playoff record: 0-3 – AGE: 50

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
3B	#2	Gunnar Henderson	22	L/R	.255 AVG, 28 HR, 82 RBI, .814 OPS
C	#35	Adley Rutschman	26	S/R	.277 AVG, 20 HR, 80 RBI, .809 OPS
RF	#25	Anthony Santander	29	S/R	.257 AVG, 28 HR, 95 RBI, .797 OPS
1B	#6	Ryan Mountcastle	27	R/R	.270 AVG, 18 HR, 68 RBI, .779 OPS
LF	#21	Austin Hays	28	R/R	.275 AVG, 16 HR, 67 RBI, .769 OPS
DH	#13	Heston Kjerstad (R)	25	L/R	7/30, 2 HR, 3 RBI, .748 OPS
CF	#31	Cedric Mullins	29	L/L	.233 AVG, 15 HR, 74 RBI, 19 SB
2B	#11	Jordan Westburg (R)	25	R/R	.260 AVG, 3 HR, 23 RBI, .715 OPS
SS	#3	Jorge Mateo	28	R/R	.217 AVG, 7 HR, 34 RBI, 32 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#27	James McCann	33	R/R	.222 AVG, 6 HR, 26 RBI, .646 OPS
1B	#32	Ryan O’Hearn	30	L/L	.289 AVG, 14 HR, 60 RBI, .801 OPS
INF	#29	Ramón Urías	29	R/R	.264 AVG, 4 HR, 42 RBI, .703 OPS
OF	#26	Ryan McKenna	27	R/R	.254 AVG, 2 HR, 18 RBI, 5 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#39	Corbin Burnes	29	RHP	10-8, 3.39 ERA, 200 Ks, 1.07 WHIP – (MIL)
SP	#64	Dean Kremer	28	RHP	13-5, 4.12 ERA, 157 Ks, 1.31 WHIP
SP	#47	John Means	30	LHP	23.2 IP, 2.66 ERA, 10 Ks, 0.72 WHIP
SP	#30	Grayson Rodriguez	24	RHP	7-4, 4.35 ERA, 129 Ks, 1.34 WHIP
SP	#68	Tyler Wells	29	RHP	7-6, 3.64 ERA, 117 Ks, 0.99 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#46	Craig Kimbrel	35	RHP	23 SVs, 3.26 ERA, 94 Ks, 1.04 WHIP – (PHI)
SU	#78	Yennier Canó	29	RHP	8 SVs, 2.11 ERA, 65 Ks, 1.00 WHIP
RP	#55	Dillon Tate	29	RHP	5 SVs, 3.05 ERA, 60 Ks, 0.99 WHIP
RP	#58	Cionel Pérez	27	LHP	3 SVs, 3.54 ERA, 44 Ks, 1.56 WHIP
RP	#53	Mike Baumann	28	RHP	60 GP, 3.76 ERA, 61 Ks, 1.31 WHIP
RP	#71	Jacob Webb	30	RHP	1 SV, 3.69 ERA, 57 Ks, 1.29 WHIP – (LAA/BAL)
RP	#54	Danny Coulombe	34	LHP	2 SVs, 2.81 ERA, 58 Ks, 1.11 WHIP
LNG	#19	Cole Irvin	30	LHP	1-4, 4.42 ERA, 68 Ks, 1.28 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	R/L	Injury
SP	#38	Kyle Bradish	27	RHP	Torn UCL Has no timetable to return
CP	#74	Félix Bautista	28	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Will miss the entire season

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Bryan Baker – #43 (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Keegan Akin – #45 (RP, Age: 29, LHP)
Kaleb Ort – #81 (RP, Age: 32, RHP)
Nick Vespi – #79 (RP, Age: 28, LHP)
Bruce Zimmermann – #50 (SP, Age: 29, LHP)
Nick Maton – #65 (INF, Age: 27, L/R)
Tyler Nevin – #41 (3B/1B, Age: 27, R/R)
Colton Cowser – #17 (OF, Age: 24, L/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #19
Sam Hilliard – #60 (OF, Age: 30, L/L)
Kyle Stowers – #28 (OF, Age: 26, L/L)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Jackson Holliday (SS/2B, Age: 20, L/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #1
Coby Mayo (3B/1B, Age: 22, R/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #30
Connor Norby (2B/OF, Age: 23, R/R) – BAL Prospect Rank: #7
Chayce McDermott (P, Age: 25, RHP) – BAL Prospect Rank: #9
Cade Povich (P, Age: 23, LHP) – BAL Prospect Rank: #10

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Julio Teherán (SP, Age: 33, RHP)
Tucker Davidson (RP, Age: 28, LHP)
Andrew Suárez (RP, Age: 31, LHP)
Michael Pérez (C, Age: 31, L/R)
Kolten Wong (2B, Age: 33, L/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: C Adley Rutschman
Breakout Player: OF Heston Kjerstad
Addition: SP Corbin Burnes
Grade: B+
Lineup Rank: 2nd
Rotation Rank: 2nd
Bullpen Rank: 5th

After a rebuild pushed them back several years, the Orioles entered 2023 way ahead of schedule. They had the most dominant young core in the league a season ago, with Adley Rutschman who is already considered the best catcher in the game, ROY Gunnar Henderson, and a core of other young bats. This led to an AL East title and a 100+ win season for Baltimore, which only continues to raise the hype. A couple more top 100 prospects in Heston Kjerstad and Jordan Westburg should join the lineup from Opening Day. Baseball’s number one prospect Jackson Holliday should also be ready at some point midseason to take over SS, giving Baltimore one of the most stacked lineups we’ve seen in a while.

Many people saw the hitting coming with the amount of top prospects that were on the horizon, but the pitching is what really stood out in 2023. Dean Kremer and Tyler Wells developed into solid middle pieces, while Kyle Bradish received Cy Young votes, and their top prospect Grayson Rodriguez gained some steam in the second half. Former Brewer star Corbin Burnes was acquired to become the team’s ace and replace Bradish who may be headed for TJ Surgery. Yennier Cano and Felix Bautista were the best one-two punch in the game last year, but Bautista will join Bradish on the shelf for the year, and veteran/future HOF Craig Kimbrel was brought in to man the ninth inning. It’s amazing how quickly this team went from rebuilding to a World Series favorite. I like Baltimore’s chances at making a run this year and for the next several seasons.

Boston Red Sox

Manager: Alex Cora
6th year, Career/Team record: 440-370, Playoff record: 17-8 – AGE: 48

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
CF	#16	Jarren Duran	27	L/R	.295 AVG, 8 HR, 40 RBI, 24 SB
3B	#11	Rafael Devers	27	L/R	.271 AVG, 33 HR, 100 RBI, .851 OPS
DH	#7	Masataka Yoshida	30	L/R	.289 AVG, 15 HR, 72 RBI, .783 OPS
1B	#36	Triston Casas	28	R/R	.263 AVG, 24 HR, 65 RBI, .856 OPS
SS	#10	Trevor Story	31	R/R	.203 AVG, 3 HR, 14 RBI, 10 SB
LF	#17	Tyler O’Neill	28	R/R	.231 AVG, 9 HR, 21 RBI, 5 SB – (STL)
C	#12	Connor Wong	27	R/R	.235 AVG, 9 HR, 36 RBI, .673 OPS
RF	#52	Wilyer Abreu (R)	24	L/L	.316 AVG, 2 HR, 14 RBI, .862 OPS
2B	#5	Vaughn Grissom	23	R/R	.280 AVG, 0 HR, 9 RBI, .659 OPS – (ATL)

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#3	Reese McGuire	28	L/R	.267 AVG, 1 HR, 16 RBI, 2 SB
1B/OF	#29	Bobby Dalbec	28	R/R	10/49, 1 HR, 1 RBI, .570 OPS
UTIL	#19	Pablo Reyes	30	R/R	.287 AVG, 2 HR, 20 RBI, 7 SB
OF	#30	Rob Refsnyder	32	R/R	.248 AVG, 1 HR, 28 RBI, .682 OPS

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#66	Brayan Bello	24	RHP	12-11, 4.24 ERA, 132 Ks, 1.34 WHIP
SP	#37	Nick Pivetta	31	RHP	10-9, 4.04 ERA, 183 Ks, 1.12 WHIP
SP	#48	Chase Anderson	36	RHP	1-6, 5.42 ERA, 64 Ks, 1.42 WHIP – (COL/TB)
SP	#89	Tanner Houck	27	RHP	6-10, 5.01 ERA, 99 Ks, 1.37 WHIP
SP	#22	Garrett Whitlock	27	RHP	5-5, 5.15 ERA, 72 Ks, 1.33 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#79	Kenley Jansen	36	RHP	29 SVs, 3.63 ERA, 52 Ks, 1.28 WHIP
SU	#55	Chris Martin	37	RHP	3 SVs, 1.05 ERA, 46 Ks, 1.03 WHIP
RP	#25	Josh Winckowski	25	RHP	3 SVs, 2.88 ERA, 82 Ks, 1.42 WHIP
RP	#83	Brennan Bernardino	32	LHP	50.2 IP, 3.20 ERA, 58 Ks, 1.30 WHIP
RP	#44	Isaiah Campbell	26	RHP	1 SV, 2.83 ERA, 33 Ks, 1.22 WHIP – (SEA)
RP	#72	Chris Murphy	25	LHP	1 SV, 4.91 ERA, 49 Ks, 1.41 WHIP
LNG	#64	Cooper Criswell	27	RHP	33 IP, 5.73 ERA, 27 Ks, 1.55 WHIP – (TB)
LNG	#50	Kutter Crawford	27	RHP	6-8, 4.04 ERA, 135 Ks, 1.11 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	R/L	Injury
SP	#54	Lucas Giolito	29	RHP	Elbow surgery Likely to miss entire season
CP	#31	Liam Hendriks	35	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Will miss the entire season

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Joe Jacques – #78 (RP, Age: 28, LHP)
Greg Weissert – #57 (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Brandon Walter – #75 (RP, Age: 27, LHP)
Zack Kelly – #76 (RP, Age: 28, RHP)
Tyler Heineman – #32 (C, Age: 32, S/R)
Romy Gonzalez – #23 (INF, Age: 27, R/R)
Enmanuel Valdez – #47 (INF, Age: 25, L/R)
Ceddanne Rafaeala – #43 (OF, Age: 23, R/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #76

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Marcelo Mayer (SS, Age: 21, L/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #15
Nick Yorke (2B, Age: 21, R/R) – BOS Prospect Rank: #8
Richard Fitts (P, Age: 24, RHP) – BOS Prospect Rank: #12

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Lucas Luetge (RP, Age: 37, LHP)
Roberto Pérez (C, Age: 35, R/R)
Eddy Alvarez (INF, Age: 34, L/R)
Dalton Guthrie (OF, Age: 28, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: 3B Rafael Devers
Breakout Player: SP Brayan Bello
Addition: SP Lucas Giolito
Grade: C-
Lineup Rank: 10th
Rotation Rank: 13th
Bullpen Rank: 14th

It’s a bit of a head scratcher to predict what Boston has been doing over the past couple of seasons, as they always seem to be half rebuilding/half buying. This offseason was no different as the team shopped some of their top stars, but also signed and missed out on some veterans. Rafael Devers was chosen to be the piece to build around, with Masataka Yoshida and Triston Casas providing power in the middle of the lineup. Gold Glove and power hitting outfielder Tyler O’Neill was added from St. Louis. Wilyer Abreu should see full-time duties in RF as one of the team’s more promising young prospects. Vaughn Grissom will also get a big shot for a full time spot after yo-yoing from AAA to the majors in Atlanta over the past two seasons.

Pitching is definitely the area that will be a struggle, as the rotation will be decimated without long-time ace Chris Sale. Brayan Bello had a good 2023 and will be at the top end, as well as newly signed Lucas Giolito and veteran Nick Pivetta. Youngsters Tanner Houck, Garrett Whitlock, Kutter Crawford, and Josh Winckowski will fight it out for the final two rotation spots. Kenley Jansen and veteran Chris Martin will man the back end of the bullpen, at least for the time being until a trade with Jansen, whom is disgruntled at his role, can be worked out. Overall the Red Sox are not going to compete much and should be seen as the weakest team in AL East. Breakout seasons from several young pieces will be needed to be in the Wild Card race.

New York Yankees

Manager: Aaron Boone
7th year, Career/Team record: 509-361, Playoff record: 14-17 – AGE: 51

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
3B	#26	D.J. LeMahieu	35	R/R	.243 AVG, 15 HR, 44 RBI, .718 OPS
RF	#99	Aaron Judge	31	R/R	.267 AVG, 37 HR, 75 RBI, 1.019 OPS
LF	#22	Juan Soto	25	L/L	.275 AVG, 35 HR, 109 RBI, .930 OPS – (SD)
2B	#25	Gleyber Torres	27	R/R	.273 AVG, 25 HR, 68 RBI, 13 SB
1B	#48	Anthony Rizzo	34	L/L	.244 AVG, 12 HR, 41 RBI, .706 OPS
DH	#27	Giancarlo Stanton	34	R/R	.191 AVG, 24 HR, 60 RBI, .695 OPS
C	#39	Jose Trevino	31	R/R	.210 AVG, 4 HR, 15 RBI, .570 OPS
CF	#24	Alex Verdugo	27	L/L	.264 AVG, 13 HR, 54 RBI, .745 OPS – (BOS)
SS	#11	Anthony Volpe	22	R/R	.209 AVG, 21 HR, 60 RBI, 24 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#88	Austin Wells (R)	24	L/R	.229 AVG, 4 HR, 13 RBI, .742 OPS
UTIL	#95	Oswaldo Cabrera	24	S/R	.211 AVG, 5 HR, 29 RBI, 8 SB
INF	#91	Oswald Peraza	23	R/R	.191 AVG, 2 HR, 14 RBI, 4 SB
OF	#12	Trent Grisham	27	L/L	.198 AVG, 13 HR, 50 RBI, 15 SB – (SD)

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#55	Carlos Rodón	31	LHP	3-8, 6.85 ERA, 64 Ks, 1.45 WHIP
SP	#0	Marcus Stroman	32	RHP	10-9, 3.95 ERA, 119 Ks, 1.26 WHIP – (CHC)
SP	#65	Nestor Cortes	29	LHP	5-2, 4.97 ERA, 67 Ks, 1.25 WHIP
SP	#36	Clarke Schmidt	28	RHP	9-9, 4.64 ERA, 149 Ks, 1.35 WHIP
SP	#30	Luke Weaver	30	RHP	3-6, 6.40 ERA, 109 Ks, 1.58 WHIP – (CIN/SEA/NYY)

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#35	Clay Holmes	30	RHP	24 SVs, 2.86 ERA, 71 Ks, 1.17 WHIP
SU	#41	Tommy Kahnle	34	RHP	2 SVs, 2.66 ERA, 48 Ks, 1.11 WHIP
RP	#43	Jonathan Loaisiga	29	RHP	17.2 IP, 3.06 ERA, 6 Ks, 0.85 WHIP
RP	#97	Ron Marinaccio	28	RHP	2 SVs, 3.99 ERA, 56 Ks, 1.31 WHIP
RP	#34	Nick Ramirez	34	LHP	1 SV, 2.66 ERA, 28 Ks, 1.23 WHIP
RP	#71	Ian Hamilton	28	RHP	2 SVs, 2.64 ERA, 69 Ks, 1.22 WHIP
RP	#72	Cody Poteet	29	RHP	DNP – AAA – (MIA)
LNG	#64	Caleb Ferguson	27	LHP	3 SVs, 3.43 ERA, 70 Ks, 1.44 WHIP – (LAD)

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
OF	#89	Jasson Domínguez (R)	21	S/R	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in July
SP	#45	Gerrit Cole	33	RHP	Elbow inflammation Potential return in May
RP	#59	Scott Effross	30	RHP	Back surgery/TJ Surgery Potential return in July
RP	#56	Lou Trivino	32	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in August

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Luis Gil – #81 (SP, Age: 25, RHP)
McKinley Moore – #87 (RP, Age: 25, RHP)
Victor González – #47 (RP, Age: 28, LHP)
Cody Morris – #82 (RP, Age: 27, RHP)
Ben Rortvedt – #38 (C, Age: 26, L/R)
Jahmai Jones – #85 (UTIL, Age: 26, R/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Spencer Jones (OF, Age: 22, L/L) – MLB Prospect Rank: #84
Chase Hampton (P, Age: 22, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #92
Will Warren (P, Age: 24, RHP) – NYY Prospect Rank: #8
Clayton Beeter (P, Age: 25, RHP) – NYY Prospect Rank: #14

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Nick Burdi (RP, Age: 31, RHP)
Yerry De Los Santos (RP, Age: 26, RHP)
Anthony Misiewicz (RP, Age: 29, LHP)
Duane Underwood Jr. (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Luis Torrens (C, Age: 27, R/R)
Kevin Smith (INF, Age: 27, R/R)
Greg Allen (OF, Age: 31, S/R)
Oscar González (OF, Age: 26, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: RF Aaron Judge
Breakout Player: C Austin Wells
Addition: LF Juan Soto
Grade: B+
Lineup Rank: 3rd
Rotation Rank: 1st
Bullpen Rank: 8th

After what was their most disappointing year in a long time, and their first playoff miss since 2016, the Yankees made a couple of splashes this offseason to bolster their roster. Manager Aaron Boone was retained for his seventh season, a tenure that has given Yankees fans mixed feelings. Juan Soto was the splash of the offseason, as the Yanks acquired the star LF from the Padres in the final year of his rookie deal. And as free agency looms at season’s end, the Yanks will look to get a hige 2024 out of him if that ends up being his only year in pinstripes. Aaron Judge will look to stay healthier and veteran Anthony Rizzo, Gleyber Torres, D.J. LeMahieu, and Giancarlo Stanton need to step up big time in bounce back years. This lineup has the potential to be lethal, but it’s tough to truly predict dominance with the inconsistencies and injuries the lineup has faced.

The pitching rotation will look to be the teams strong suit, with reigning Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole as the ace, Carlos Rodon looking for a bounce back year, and Marcus Stroman entering as a free agent signing. The bullpen will be questionable with Clay Holmes remaining the closer after an up-and-down season, and several young pieces relied upon to pitch big time innings. A healthy Tommy Kahnle and Jonathan Loaisiga are difference makers in this core, two guys who have struggled with injuries throughout their careers. On paper, and without injuries, this team will be a real force in the AL but so much will rely on how they bounce back with their veterans. The Orioles are young and hungry, the Astros are still great, and the Rangers are the reigning champs. The AL won’t be a cake walk

Tampa Bay Rays

Manager: Kevin Cash
10th year, Career/Team record: 739-617, Playoff record: 15-19 – AGE: 46

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
1B	#2	Yandy Díaz	32	R/R	.330 AVG, 22 HR, 78 RBI, .932 OPS
2B	#8	Brandon Lowe	29	L/R	.231 AVG, 21 HR, 68 RBI, .771 OPS
LF	#56	Randy Arozarena	28	R/R	.254 AVG, 23 HR, 83 RBI, 22 SB
3B	#17	Isaac Paredes	25	R/R	.250 AVG, 31 HR, 98 RBI, .840 OPS
RF	#15	Josh Lowe	26	L/R	.292 AVG, 20 HR, 83 RBI, 32 SB
DH	#43	Harold Ramírez	29	R/R	.313 AVG, 12 HR, 68 RBI, .813 OPS
CF	#22	José Siri	28	R/R	.222 AVG, 25 HR, 56 RBI, 12 SB
C	#50	René Pinto	27	R/R	.252 AVG, 6 HR, 16 RBI, .723 OPS
SS	#13	Junior Caminero (R)	20	R/R	8/34, 1 HR, 7 RBI, .631 OPS

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#	Francisco Mejía	28	S/R	.227 AVG, 5 HR, 19 RBI, .658 OPS
UTIL	#6	Taylor Walls	27	S/R	.201 AVG, 8 HR, 36 RBI, 22 SB
SS/2B	#10	Amed Rosario	28	R/R	.263 AVG, 6 HR, 58 RBI, .709 OPS – (CLE/LAD)
INF	#7	José Caballero	27	R/R	.221 AVG, 4 HR, 26 RBI, 26 SB – (SEA)

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#24	Zach Eflin	29	RHP	16-8, 3.50 ERA, 186 Ks, 1.02 WHIP
SP	#34	Aaron Civale	28	RHP	7-5, 3.46 ERA, 116 Ks, 1.16 WHIP – (CLE/TB)
SP	#44	Ryan Pepiot	26	RHP	2-1, 2.14 ERA, 38 Ks, 0.76 WHIP – (LAD)
SP	#45	Taj Bradley	22	RHP	5-8, 5.59 ERA, 129 Ks, 1.39 WHIP
SP	#52	Zack Littell	28	RHP	3-6, 4.10 ERA, 74 Ks, 1.18 WHIP – (BOS/TB)

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#29	Pete Fairbanks	30	RHP	25 SVs, 2.58 ERA, 68 Ks, 1.01 WHIP
SU	#88	Phil Maton	30	RHP	1 SV, 3.00 ERA, 74 Ks, 1.12 WHIP – (HOU)
RP	#47	Jason Adam	32	RHP	12 SVs, 2.98 ERA, 69 Ks, 1.01 WHIP
RP	#38	Colin Poche	30	LHP	1 SV, 2.23 ERA, 61 Ks, 1.09 WHIP
RP	#48	Chris Devenski	33	RHP	42.1 IP, 4.46 ERA, 42 Ks, 1.11 WHIP – (LAA/TB)
RP	#49	Kevin Kelly	26	RHP	1 SV, 3.09 ERA, 56 Ks, 1.01 WHIP
RP	#14	Tyler Alexander	29	LHP	44 IP, 4.50 ERA, 44 Ks, 1.11 WHIP – (DET)
LNG	#64	Shawn Armstrong	33	RHP	52 IP, 1.38 ERA, 54 Ks, 0.90 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SS	#5	Wander Franco	22	S/R	Legal issues No timetable to return
SP	#18	Shane McClanahan	26	LHP	Tommy John Surgery Will miss the entire season
SP	#59	Jeffrey Springs	31	LHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in July
SP	#11	Shane Baz	24	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in June
SP	#57	Drew Rasmussen	28	RHP	Elbow surgery Potential return in August

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Jonathan Aranda – #62 (INF, Age: 25, L/R)
Osleivis Basabe – #37 (INF, Age: 23, R/R)
Curtis Mead – #25 (3B/2B, Age: 23, R/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #55
Richie Palacios – #1 (OF, Age: 26, L/R)
Jonny DeLuca – #21 (OF, Age: 25, R/R)
Garrett Cleavinger – #60 (RP, Age: 29, LHP)
Manuel Rodríguez – #39 (RP, Age: 27, RHP)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Austin Shenton (3B/1B, Age: 26, L/R) – TB Prospect Rank: #8
Mason Montgomery (P, Age: 23, LHP) – TB Prospect Rank: #9

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Erasmo Ramirez (RP, Age: 33, RHP)
Edwin Uceta (RP, Age: 26, RHP)
Burch Smith (RP, Age: 34, RHP)
Rob Brantly (C, Age: 34, L/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: LF Randy Arozarena
Breakout Player: SP Ryan Pepiot
Addition: SP Ryan Pepiot
Grade: B-
Lineup Rank: 6th
Rotation Rank: 8th
Bullpen Rank: 1st

In typical Tampa Bay fashion, the team pieced together a stellar 2023 season with the bats in a lineup that doesn’t feature much star power. Yandy Diaz won the AL batting title, while Diaz, Brandon Lowe, Randy Arozarena, Isaac Paredes, Josh Lowe, and Jose Siri all eclipsed 20 homers. Despite the not so promising future of Wander Franco, the infield is full of young pieces that will duke it out for playing time. Paredes and Lowe have earned spots, but Amed Rosario, Taylor Walls, and top prospects Junior Caminero and Curtis Mead will fight for time at SS and 3B. The OF of Arozarena, Siri, and Josh Lowe was one of the best power hitting cores and should remain the same in 2024.

The pitching rotation shifted away from it’s “opener” tactic with all of the young arms they have produced. Shane McClanahan, Shane Baz, Drew Rasmussen, and Jeffrey Springs will all miss big chunks of the year due to injury. Zach Eflin has become the clear cut ace, with Aaron Civale joining the team and former Dodger top prospect Ryan Pepiot. Pete Fairbanks should see time as the lead “closer by committee” with Jason Adam, Phil Maton, and Colin Poche slated to get late inning reps. This cluster of young and moldable pieces is exactly what Rays baseball is. They are a team clearly capable of winning 90+ games as we often see. They won’t be an easy out, even in a tough division with Baltimore and the Yankees. A Wild Card run is most likely in the cards though.

Toronto Blue Jays

Manager: John Schneider
3rd year, Career/Team record: 135-101, Playoff record: 0-4 – AGE: 44

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
RF	#4	George Springer	34	R/R	.258 AVG, 21 HR, 72 RBI, 20 SB
SS	#11	Bo Bichette	25	R/R	.306 AVG, 20 HR, 73 RBI, .814 OPS
1B	#27	Vladimir Guerrero Jr.	24	R/R	.264 AVG, 26 HR, 94 RBI, .788 OPS
DH	#2	Justin Turner	39	R/R	.276 AVG, 23 HR, 96 RBI, .800 OPS – (BOS)
LF	#25	Daulton Varsho	27	L/R	.220 AVG, 20 HR, 61 RBI, 16 SB
C	#30	Alejandro Kirk	25	R/R	.250 AVG, 8 HR, 43 RBI, .692 OPS
3B	#7	Isiah Kiner-Falefa	28	R/R	.242 AVG, 6 HR, 37 RBI, 14 SB – (NYY)
2B	#36	Davis Schneider (R)	25	R/R	.276 AVG, 8 HR, 20 RBI, 1.008 OPS
CF	#39	Kevin Kiermaier	33	L/R	.265 AVG, 8 HR, 36 RBI, 14 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#9	Danny Jansen	28	R/R	.228 AVG, 17 HR, 53 RBI, .786 OPS
UTIL	#8	Cavan Biggio	28	L/R	.235 AVG, 9 HR, 40 RBI, .710 OPS
INF	#28	Ernie Clement	28	R/R	19/50, 1 HR, 10 RBI, .885 OPS
OF/1B	#38	Nathan Lukes (R)	29	L/R	5/26, 0 HR, 2 RBI, .598 OPS

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#34	Kevin Gausman	33	RHP	12-9, 3.16 ERA, 237 Ks, 1.18 WHIP
SP	#17	José Berríos	29	RHP	11-12, 3.65 ERA, 184 Ks, 1.19 WHIP
SP	#40	Chris Bassitt	35	RHP	16-8, 3.60 ERA, 186 Ks, 1.18 WHIP
SP	#16	Yusei Kikuchi	32	LHP	11-6, 3.86 ERA, 181 Ks, 1.27 WHIP
SP	#6	Alek Manoah	26	RHP	3-9, 5.87 ERA, 79 Ks, 1.74 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#68	Jordan Romano	30	RHP	36 SVs, 2.90 ERA, 72 Ks, 1.22 WHIP
SU	#50	Erik Swanson	30	RHP	4 SVs, 2.97 ERA, 75 Ks, 1.10 WHIP
RP	#93	Yimi Garcia	33	RHP	3 SVs, 4.09 ERA, 79 Ks, 1.24 WHIP
RP	#58	Tim Mayza	32	LHP	1 SV, 1.52 ERA, 53 Ks, 1.22 WHIP
RP	#57	Chad Green	32	RHP	12 IP, 5.25 ERA, 16 Ks, 1.33 WHIP
RP	#29	Yariel Rodríguez (R)	26	RHP	Played in NPB
RP	#92	Génesis Cabrera	27	LHP	55.2 IP, 4.04 ERA, 58 Ks, 1.31 WHIP – (STL/TOR)
LNG	#33	Trevor Richards	30	RHP	72.2 IP, 4.95 ERA, 105 Ks, 1.35 WHIP

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Bowden Francis – #44 (RP, Age: 27, RHP)
Nate Pearson – #24 (RP, Age: 28, RHP)
Zach Pop – #56 (RP, Age: 27, RHP)
Mitch White – #45 (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Spencer Horwitz – #48 (1B, Age: 26, L/R) – TOR Prospect Rank: #16

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Ricky Tiedemann (P, Age: 21, LHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #29
Orelvis Martinez (INF, Age: 22, R/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #89
Leo Jimenez (SS/2B, Age: 22, R/R) – TOR Prospect Rank: #5
Addison Barger (UTIL, Age: 24, L/R) – TOR Prospect Rank: #6
Damiano Palmegiani (3B/1B, Age: 24, R/R) – TOR Prospect Rank: #14

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Paolo Espino (RP, Age: 37, RHP)
Brian Serven (C, Age: 28, R/R)
Daniel Vogelbach (DH, Age: 31, L/R)
Joey Votto (1B, Age: 40, L/R)
Eduardo Escobar (3B/2B, Age: 35, S/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: SS Bo Bichette
Breakout Player: RP Yariel Rodriguez
Addition: 3B/DH Justin Turner
Grade: B
Lineup Rank: 5th
Rotation Rank: 7th
Bullpen Rank: 6th

The Blue Jays have seemed to have the team on paper to make a sneaky run in the AL, but they are yet to be able to make that push. Some inconstency has come around their lineup while the rotation has been hit or miss. Bo Bichette and Vlad Jr. are the superstars, and even Vlad will look to get back to his 2021 form. George Springer and newly signed Justin Turner will be the depth at the top of the order. The team lost both Whit Merrifield and Matt Chapman to free agency and will look to plug the holes with young depth. Davis Schneider was a breakout bat in his rookie year in 2023 and will see time as the main 2B this season. IKF was also signed to be a utility man and mainly take over 3B for Chapman.

The rotation still looks solid with Kevin Gausman as the ace, a guy who has implemented himself as a top starter in the league. Chris Bassitt is always consistently good, and both Jose Berrios and Alek Manoah will look for a lot more consistency. The bullpen has a few intriguing pieces with Jordan Romano once again being the closer, and arms like Chad Green, Yimi Garcia, Tim Mayza, and more giving veteran innings. Yariel Rodriguez was one of the more intriguing prospects on the free agent market, and Toronto landed him on a 5-year deal that could result in him joining the rotation. Once again I think Toronto will be a top team in the AL and be a playoff contender, it’s just tough to say that they will be much better than their track record shows. They didn’t get any better this offseason and now face some mammoths in the AL East.

Chicago White Sox

Manager: Pedro Grifol
2nd year, Career/Team record: 61-101 – AGE: 54

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
LF	#23	Andrew Benintendi	29	L/L	.262 AVG, 5 HR, 45 RBI, 13 SB
CF	#88	Luis Robert Jr.	26	R/R	.264 AVG, 38 HR, 80 RBI, 20 SB
DH	#74	Eloy Jiménez	27	R/R	.272 AVG, 18 HR, 64 RBI, .758 OPS
1B	#25	Andrew Vaughn	25	R/R	.258 AVG, 21 HR, 80 RBI, .743 OPS
RF	#32	Gavin Sheets	27	L/L	.203 AVG, 10 HR, 43 RBI, .599 OPS
3B	#10	Yoan Moncada	28	S/R	.260 AVG, 11 HR, 40 RBI, .730 OPS
SS	#29	Paul DeJong	30	R/R	.207 AVG, 14 HR, 38 RBI, 4 SB – (STL/TOR/SF)
2B	#8	Nicky Lopez	28	L/R	.231 AVG, 1 HR, 25 RBI, 6 SB – (KC/ATL)
C	#15	Martín Maldonado	37	R/R	.191 AVG, 15 HR, 36 RBI, .606 OPS – (HOU)

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#33	Max Stassi	32	R/R	DNP – Personal issues – (LAA)
3B/2B	#18	Mike Moustakas	35	L/R	.247 AVG, 12 HR, 48 RBI, .685 OPS – (COL/LAA)
OF	#7	Dominic Fletcher (R)	26	L/L	.301 AVG, 2 HR, 14 RBI, .791 OPS – (ARI)
OF	#22	Oscar Colás	25	L/L	.216 AVG, 5 HR, 19 RBI, 4 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#34	Michael Kopech	27	RHP	5-12, 5.43 ERA, 134 Ks, 1.59 WHIP
SP	#20	Erick Fedde	31	RHP	Played in NPB
SP	#47	Touki Toussaint	27	RHP	4-7, 4.97 ERA, 85 Ks, 1.45 WHIP – (CLE/CWS)
SP	#40	Michael Soroka	26	RHP	2-2, 6.40 ERA, 29 Ks, 1.48 WHIP – (ATL)
SP	#51	Jared Shuster	25	LHP	4-3, 5.81 ERA, 30 Ks, 1.50 WHIP – (ATL)

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#45	Garrett Crochet	24	LHP	12.2 IP, 3.55 ERA, 12 Ks, 1.97 WHIP
SU	#46	Corey Knebel	32	RHP	DNP – Capsule tear – (PHI)
RP	#54	Tim Hill	34	LHP	44.1 IP, 5.48 ERA, 26 Ks, 1.65 WHIP – (SD)
RP	#36	Steven Wilson	29	RHP	53 IP, 3.91 ERA, 57 Ks, 1.17 WHIP – (SD)
RP	#57	Tanner Banks	32	LHP	1 SV, 4.43 ERA, 51 Ks, 1.23 WHIP
RP	#67	Sammy Peralta	25	LHP	20 IP, 4.05 ERA, 18 Ks, 1.50 WHIP
RP	#64	Deivi García	24	RHP	1 SV, 2.40 ERA, 10 Ks, 1.40 WHIP – (NYY/CWS)
RP	#60	Jesse Chavez	40	RHP	1 SV, 1.56 ERA, 39 Ks, 1.10 WHIP – (ATL)

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
RP	#59	John Brebbia	33	RHP	Calf strain Potential return in May
RP	#62	Jesse Scholtens	30	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Will miss the entire season
RP	#58	Jimmy Lambert	29	RHP	Shoulder soreness Potential return in May
RP	#63	Matt Foster	29	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in June
RP	#65	Davis Martin	27	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in July

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Chris Flexen – #77 (SP, Age: 29, RHP)
Alex Speas – #70 (RP, Age: 25, RHP) – CWS Prospect Rank: #28
Korey Lee – #26 (C, Age: 25, R/R)
Lenyn Sosa – #50 (INF, Age: 24, R/R)
Braden Shewmake – #17 (INF, Age: 26, L/R)
Peyton Burdick – #38 (OF, Age: 27, R/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Colson Montgomery (SS, Age: 22, L/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #9
Drew Thorpe (P, Age: 23, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #85
Nick Nastrini (P, Age: 24, RHP) – CWS Prospect Rank: #8
Jairo Iriarte (P, Age: 22, RHP) – CWS Prospect Rank: #9

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Joe Barlow (RP, Age: 28, RHP)
Chad Kuhl (SP, Age: 31, RHP)
Dominic Leone (RP, Age: 32, RHP)
Bryan Shaw (RP, Age: 36, RHP)
Jake Cousins (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Carlos Pérez (C, Age: 27, R/R)
Danny Mendick (UTIL, Age: 30, R/R)
Zach Remillard (INF, Age: 30, R/R)
Kevin Pillar (OF, Age: 35, R/R)
Rafael Ortega (OF, Age: 32, L/R)
Brett Phillips (OF, Age: 29, L/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: CF Luis Robert Jr.
Breakout Player: SP Erick Fedde
Addition: SP Michael Soroka
Grade: D+
Lineup Rank: 12th
Rotation Rank: 15th
Bullpen Rank: 13th

The White Sox enter the new year as one of the most down in the dumps teams in baseball. They dealt away practically everyone not named Cease, Robert, and Jimenez that had any form of trade value at last year’s deadline. This opens the door for many scenarios, and the top 6 in the lineup will practically stay the same. Paul DeJong was added as a bridge SS from Tim Anderson to top prospect Colson Montgomery’s eventual arrival. A few veterans in Martin Maldonado and Max Stassi were added to man the backstop, while several other vets have shots of making the team. These include Mike Moustakas, Kevin Pillar, Danny Mendick, and more.

The pitching will be what needs some work in this rebuild, as the rotation will rely on Dylan Cease and Michael Kopech to carry them, both coming off of bad 2023 campaigns. Mike Soroka was added with a new and fresh start, along with Erick Fedde who they hope found new life after a year in Japan. It seems like this will be the perfect time for young flamethrower Garrett Crochet to take over closer duties. Veterans like Jesse Chavez, Corey Knebel, Dominic Leone and Bryan Shaw all have shots of making the team in hopes to flip them at the deadline. No one will expect the White Sox to do very much this year. I suppose anything is possible in this weak division, but Chicago will have a tough time staying afloat.

Cleveland Guardians

Manager: Stephen Vogt
1st year – AGE: 39

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
LF	#38	Steven Kwan	26	L/L	.268 AVG, 5 HR, 54 RBI, 21 SB
2B	#0	Andrés Giménez	25	L/R	.251 AVG, 15 HR, 62 RBI, 30 SB
3B	#11	José Ramirez	31	S/R	.282 AVG, 24 HR, 80 RBI, 28 SB
1B	#22	Josh Naylor	26	L/L	.308 AVG, 17 HR, 97 RBI, .842 OPS
SS	#13	Gabriel Arias	24	R/R	.210 AVG, 10 HR, 26 RBI, .628 OPS
DH	#17	Will Brennan	26	L/L	.266 AVG, 5 HR, 41 RBI, 13 SB
C	#23	Bo Naylor	24	L/R	.237 AVG, 11 HR, 32 RBI, .809 OPS
RF	#10	Ramón Laureano	29	R/R	.224 AVG, 9 HR, 35 RBI, 12 SB – (OAK/CLE)
CF	#7	Myles Straw	29	R/R	.238 AVG, 1 HR, 29 RBI, 20 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#27	Austin Hedges	31	R/R	.184 AVG, 1 HR, 16 RBI, 1 SB – (PIT/TEX)
UTIL	#2	Tyler Freeman	24	R/R	.242 AVG, 4 HR, 18 RBI, 5 SB
INF	#4	Brayan Rocchio (R)	23	S/R	.247 AVG, 0 HR, 8 RBI, .600 OPS
OF	#90	Estevan Florial	26	L/R	.230 AVG, 0 HR, 8 RBI, 3 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#57	Shane Bieber	28	RHP	6-6, 3.80 ERA, 107 Ks, 1.23 WHIP
SP	#28	Tanner Bibee	24	RHP	10-4, 2.98 ERA, 141 Ks, 1.18 WHIP
SP	#24	Triston McKenzie	26	RHP	16 IP, 5.03 ERA, 16 Ks, 1.56 WHIP
SP	#41	Logan Allen	25	LHP	7-8, 3.81 ERA, 119 Ks, 1.40 WHIP
SP	#32	Gavin Williams	24	RHP	3-5, 3.29 ERA, 81 Ks, 1.26 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#48	Emmanuel Clase	25	RHP	44 SVs, 3.22 ERA, 64 Ks, 1.16 WHIP
SU	#58	Scott Barlow	31	RHP	13 SVs, 4.37 ERA, 79 Ks, 1.40 WHIP – (KC/SD)
RP	#31	Sam Hentges	27	LHP	52.1 IP, 3.61 ERA, 56 Ks, 1.36 WHIP
RP	#49	Eli Morgan	27	RHP	1 SV, 4.01 ERA, 75 Ks, 1.44 WHIP
RP	#52	Nick Sandlin	27	RHP	60 IP, 3.75 ERA, 66 Ks, 1.03 WHIP
RP	#99	James Karinchak	28	RHP	39 IP, 4.15 ERA, 52 Ks, 1.36 WHIP
LNG	#33	Hunter Gaddis	25	RHP	42 IP, 4.50 ERA, 24 Ks, 1.31 WHIP
LNG	#44	Xzavion Curry	25	RHP	95 IP, 4.07 ERA, 67 Ks, 1.35 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURY	Age	B/T	Injury
RP	#37	Trevor Stephan	28	RHP	Elbow injury Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Ben Lively – #39 (SP, Age: 31, RHP)
Tim Herrin – #29 (RP, Age: 27, LHP)
David Fry – #6 (C, Age: 28, R/R)
Jose Tena – #8 (INF, Age: 22, L/R) – CLE Prospect Rank: #24

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Kyle Manzardo (1B, Age: 23, L/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #59
Daniel Espino (P, Age: 23, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #100
Juan Brito (INF, Age: 22, S/R) – CLE Prospect Rank: #7
George Valera (OF, Age: 23, L/L) – CLE Prospect Rank: #8
Angel Martinez (INF, Age: 22, S/R) – CLE Prospect Rank: #10
Joey Cantillo (P, Age: 24, LHP) – CLE Prospect Rank: #11

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Jaime Barria (RP, Age: 27, RHP)
Tyler Beede (RP, Age: 30, RHP)
Carlos Carrasco (SP, Age: 37, RHP)
Anthony Gose (RP, Age: 33, LHP)
Adam Oller (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Dom Nuñez (C, Age: 29, L/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: 3B Jose Ramirez
Breakout Player: SS Gabriel Arias
Addition: RP Scott Barlow
Grade: B-
Lineup Rank: 9th
Rotation Rank: 6th
Bullpen Rank: 2nd

The Guardians had, in my mind, an extremely disappointing year in 2023 after making the playoffs a year before. The expectations around them are not very high but I think 2024 could be a bounce back year. Terry Francona retired after a Hall of Fame career as manager, and recently retired catcher Stephen Vogt will take over manager duties. The top of the order remains consistently solid with Kwan, Gimenez, Ramirez, and Naylor. Gabriel Arias should take over SS duties after Amed Rosario left in free agency, and top prospect Brayan Rocchio will slot in as a flex backup infielder.

The rotation and bullpen are now fully healthy and should shoulder a ton of the success that Cleveland can have this year. Shane Bieber and Triston McKenzie missed a lot of time last year and are both now fully healthy. Tanner Bibee broke out as a star young arm, with Gavin Williams and Logan Allen implementing themselves as rotation pieces. Emmanuel Clase returns as one of the most dominant closers in the league. Scott Barlow was signed in free agency to be the 8th inning man for Clase, and the team will rely on more consistent years from James Karinchak, Sam Hentges, and Nick Sandlin. Overall, Cleveland is just as capable of winning the AL Central as anyone else, and I think they’ll be strongly in the mix. Realistically it’ll be them and the Twins in competition to win it, barring a potential breakout from Detroit or Kansas City.

Detroit Tigers

Manager: A.J. Hinch
4th year in DET, Career record: 772-704, Team record: 202-252, Playoff record: 28-22 – AGE: 49

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
RF	#8	Matt Vierling	27	R/R	.261 AVG, 10 HR, 44 RBI, .717 OPS
CF	#31	Riley Greene	23	L/L	.288 AVG, 11 HR, 37 RBI, .796 OPS
1B	#20	Spencer Torkelson	24	R/R	.233 AVG, 31 HR, 94 RBI, .758 OPS
DH	#30	Kerry Carpenter	26	L/R	.278 AVG, 20 HR, 64 RBI, .811 OPS
SS	#28	Javier Báez	31	R/R	.222 AVG, 9 HR, 59 RBI, 12 SB
LF	#21	Mark Canha	35	R/R	.262 AVG, 11 HR, 62 RBI, .755 OPS – (NYM/MIL)
3B	#13	Gio Urshela	32	R/R	.299 AVG, 2 HR, 24 RBI, .703 OPS – (LAA)
C	#34	Jake Rogers	28	R/R	.221 AVG, 21 HR, 49 RBI, .730 OPS
2B	#33	Colt Keith (R)	22	L/R	MLB Prospect Rank: #22

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#15	Carson Kelly	29	R/R	.206 AVG, 2 HR, 13 RBI, .565 OPS – (ARI/DET)
INF	#77	Andy Ibañez	30	R/R	.264 AVG, 11 HR, 41 RBI, .744 OPS
OF	#60	Akil Baddoo	25	L/L	.218 AVG, 11 HR, 34 RBI, 14 SB
UTIL	#39	Zach McKinstry	28	L/R	.231 AVG, 9 HR, 35 RBI, 16 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#29	Tarik Skubal	27	LHP	7-3, 2.80 ERA, 102 Ks, 0.90 WHIP
SP	#12	Casey Mize	26	RHP	10 IP, 5.40 ERA, 4 Ks, 1.50 WHIP
SP	#45	Jack Flaherty	28	RHP	8-9, 4.99 ERA, 148 Ks, 1.58 WHIP – (STL/BAL)
SP	#18	Kenta Maeda	35	RHP	6-8, 4.23 ERA, 117 Ks, 1.17 WHIP – (MIN)
SP	#25	Matt Manning	26	RHP	5-4, 3.58 ERA, 50 Ks, 1.04 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#55	Alex Lange	28	RHP	26 SVs, 3.68 ERA, 79 Ks, 1.33 WHIP
SU	#68	Jason Foley	28	RHP	7 SVs, 2.61 ERA, 55 Ks, 1.16 WHIP
RP	#17	Andrew Chafin	33	LHP	8 SVs, 4.73 ERA, 63 Ks, 1.42 WHIP – (MIL/ARI)
RP	#19	Will Vest	28	RHP	2 SVs, 2.98 ERA, 56 Ks, 1.10 WHIP
RP	#87	Tyler Holton	27	LHP	1 SV, 2.11 ERA, 74 Ks, 0.87 WHIP
RP	#7	Shelby Miller	33	RHP	1 SV, 1.71 ERA, 42 Ks, 0.90 WHIP – (LAD)
RP	#4	Beau Brieske	25	RHP	2 SVs, 3.60 ERA, 31 Ks, 1.37 WHIP
LNG	#49	Alex Faedo	28	RHP	2-5, 4.45 ERA, 58 Ks, 1.05 WHIP

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Joey Wentz – #43 (SP, Age: 26, LHP)
Reese Olson – #40 (SP, Age: 24, RHP)
Miguel Diaz – #58 (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Mason Englert – #53 (RP, Age: 24, RHP)
Brendan White – #52 (RP, Age: 25, RHP)
Buddy Kennedy – #70 (INF, Age: 25, R/R)
Ryan Kreidler – #32 (SS, Age: 26, R/R)
Parker Meadows – #22 (OF, Age: 24, L/R) – DET Prospect Rank: #6

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Jace Jung (2B/3B, Age: 23, L/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #60
Ty Madden (P, Age: 24, RHP) – DET Prospect Rank: #5
Justyn Henry-Malloy (P, Age: 24, RHP) – DET Prospect Rank: #8
Keider Montero (P, Age: 23, RHP) – DET Prospect Rank: #9
Wilmer Flores (P, Age: 23, RHP) – DET Prospect Rank: #10
Justice Bigbie (OF, Age: 25, R/R) – DET Prospect Rank: #13

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Trey Wingenter (RP, Age: 30, RHP)
Andrew Vasquez (RP, Age: 30, LHP)
Anthony Bemboom (C, Age: 34, L/R)
Keston Hiura (2B/1B, Age: 27, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: SP Tarik Skubal
Breakout Player: 2B Colt Keith
Addition: SP Jack Flaherty
Grade: C
Lineup Rank: 14th
Rotation Rank: 9th
Bullpen Rank: 7th

It seems like possibly the tides could be turning for the lowly Tigers, a team who hasn’t seen contention in over a decade. Star and franchise icon Miguel Cabrera called it a career after this year, and this begins the true movement to the future. Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson are the young stars they will build around, with Matt Vierling and Kerry Carpenter looking like solid surprises, and veterans in Javier Baez, Gio Urshela, and Mark Canha. Sure, they will definitely want to get more of what they paid for in Baez, but this lineup is definitely looking a little more presentable than in years past. Maybe this sparks some veterans to step up?

The rotation added two veteran arms in free agency in Jack Flaherty and Kenta Maeda, two former all-stars with potential to provide solid outings. Tarik Skubal developed into the ace they thought he could be in 2023, while Casey Mize will return from Tommy John surgery. This has all the makings of being one of the league’s sneakier rotations. The bullpen saw solid seasons from new closer Alex Lange, and homegrown arms Foley, Vest, and Holton. Shelby Miller has somewhat revived his career as a reliever and will become the veteran anchor alongside Andrew Chafin. Detroit benefits big time from playing in the weakest division in the game, and in my opinion, two teams have chances to be complete surprises because of it. Both the Tigers and Royals knew that the division is in reach for anyone, and they added veterans to help tilt their odds. Both of them have a chance to completely shock baseball fans and potentially win this weak division. I’m not going to predict that, but I’d be ill advised not to mention it.

Kansas City Royals

Manager: Matt Quatraro
2nd year, Career/Team record: 56-106 – AGE: 50

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
3B	#11	Maikel Garcia	24	R/R	.272 AVG, 4 HR, 50 RBI, 23 SB
SS	#7	Bobby Witt Jr.	23	R/R	.276 AVG, 30 HR, 96 RBI, 49 SB
C	#13	Salvador Perez	33	R/R	.255 AVG, 23 HR, 80 RBI, .714 OPS
1B	#9	Vinnie Pasquantino	26	L/L	.247 AVG, 9 HR, 26 RBI, .762 OPS
RF	#16	Hunter Renfroe	32	R/R	.233 AVG, 20 HR, 60 RBI, .713 OPS – (LAA/CIN)
LF	#1	MJ Melendez	25	L/R	.235 AVG, 16 HR, 56 RBI, .713 OPS
DH	#17	Nelson Velázquez	25	R/R	.235 AVG, 17 HR, 34 RBI, .888 OPS – (CHC/KC)
CF	#6	Drew Waters	25	S/R	.228 AVG, 8 HR, 32 RBI, 16 SB
2B	#26	Adam Frazier	32	L/R	.240 AVG, 13 HR, 60 RBI, 11 SB – (BAL)

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#14	Austin Nola	34	R/R	.146 AVG, 1 HR, 8 RBI, .452 OPS – (SD)
UTIL	#2	Garrett Hampson	29	R/R	.276 AVG, 3 HR, 23 RBI, .729 OPS – (MIA)
INF	#19	Michael Massey	25	L/R	.229 AVG, 15 HR, 55 RBI, 6 SB
OF	#28	Kyle Isbel	27	L/R	.240 AVG, 5 HR, 34 RBI, 7 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#52	Michael Wacha	32	RHP	14-4, 3.22 ERA, 124 Ks, 1.16 WHIP – (SD)
SP	#51	Brady Singer	27	RHP	8-11, 5.52 ERA, 133 Ks, 1.45 WHIP
SP	#67	Seth Lugo	34	RHP	8-7, 3.57 ERA, 140 Ks, 1.20 WHIP – (SD)
SP	#24	Jordan Lyles	33	RHP	6-17, 6.28 ERA, 120 Ks, 1.24 WHIP
SP	#41	Daniel Lynch	27	LHP	3-4, 4.64 ERA, 34 Ks, 1.26 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#31	Will Smith	34	LHP	22 SVs, 4.40 ERA, 55 Ks, 1.06 WHIP – (TEX)
SU	#46	John Schreiber	30	RHP	1 SV, 3.86 ERA, 53 Ks, 1.41 WHIP – (BOS)
RP	#35	Chris Stratton	33	RHP	1 SV, 3.92 ERA, 81 Ks, 1.14 WHIP – (STL/TEX)
RP	#63	Nick Anderson	33	RHP	1 SV, 3.06 ERA, 36 Ks, 1.10 WHIP – (ATL)
RP	#66	James McArthur (R)	27	RHP	4 SVs, 4.63 ERA, 23 Ks, 0.94 WHIP
RP	#38	Josh Taylor	31	LHP	17.2 IP, 8.15 ERA, 26 Ks, 1.75 WHIP
RP	#61	Ángel Zerpa	24	LHP	42.2 IP, 4.85 ERA, 36 Ks, 1.27 WHIP
LNG	#43	Carlos Hernández	26	RHP	4 SVs, 5.27 ERA, 77 Ks, 1.33 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#50	Kris Bubic	26	LHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in June
SP	#30	Kyle Wright	28	RHP	Shoulder surgery Likely to miss entire season
RP	#21	Tyler Duffey	33	RHP	Surgery for cancerous mole Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Alec Marsh – #48 (SP, Age: 25, RHP)
Taylor Hearn – #54 (RP, Age: 29, LHP)
Jake Brentz – #59 (RP, Age: 29, LHP)
John McMillon – #58 (RP, Age: 26, RHP) – KC Prospect Rank: #18
Anthony Veneziano – #69 (RP, Age: 26, LHP) – KC Prospect Rank: #14
Freddy Fermin – #34 (C, Age: 28, R/R)
Nick Loftin – #12 (INF, Age: 25, R/R) – KC Prospect Rank: #2
Nick Pratto – #32 (1B/OF, Age: 25, L/L)
Tyler Gentry – #27 (OF, Age: 25, R/R) – KC Prospect Rank: #10
Dairon Blanco – #44 (OF, Age: 30, R/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Mason Barnett (P, Age: 23, RHP) – KC Prospect Rank: #6

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Luis Cessa (P, Age: 32, RHP)
Sam Long (RP, Age: 28, LHP)
Dan Altavilla (RP, Age: 31, RHP)
Mike Brosseau (UTIL, Age: 30, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: SS Bobby Witt Jr.
Breakout Player: CF Drew Waters
Addition: SP Michael Wacha
Grade: C
Lineup Rank: 13th
Rotation Rank: 12th
Bullpen Rank: 12th

Similar to the Tigers, the Royals have an intriguing young core that could make some splashes. Bobby Witt Jr. has become one of the game’s flashiest young players, and KC decided to commit to him on an 11-year, $288.7m deal this offseason. Maikel Garcia and Nelson Velazquez were two big surprises that the team will continue to ride, while the return of Vinnie Pasquantino will be huge to join Salvy in the middle of the lineup. Veterans Hunter Renfroe, Adam Frazier, Garrett Hampson, and Austin Nola were also signed for depth.

The rotation was one of the worst we have seen in recent memory in 2023, featuring horrible years from Zack Greinke, Jordan Lyles, Brady Singer, and more. Well Lyles and Singer remain, and the goal will be to get those two back on track. Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo were signed to assure some stability in that area of the team, two moves that I thought were fantastic. Kyle Wright was also added as a move that will help in 2025 as a young top of the rotation arm. The bullpen also needed a huge upgrade, and in doing so, Will Smith, Chris Stratton, Nick Anderson, and John Schreiber were added to lead the late innings. Any mix of McArthur, Zerpa, Hearns, Taylor, Brentz, and McMillon will also see appearances out of the pen and be relied upon. Like I said earlier, the Royals and Tigers have a chance to make some pop this summer and catapult themselves in the rebuild. Again though, it is tough to take them over the more quality choices in Minnesota and Cleveland.

Minnesota Twins

Manager: Rocco Baldelli
6th year, Career/Team record: 375-333, Playoff record: 3-8 – AGE: 42

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
2B	#47	Edouard Julien	24	L/R	.263 AVG, 16 HR, 37 RBI, .839 OPS
SS	#4	Carlos Correa	29	R/R	.230 AVG, 18 HR, 60 RBI, .711 OPS
RF	#26	Max Kepler	31	L/L	.260 AVG, 24 HR, 66 RBI, .816 OPS
CF	#25	Byron Buxton	30	R/R	.207 AVG, 17 HR, 42 RBI, 9 SB
3B	#23	Royce Lewis	24	R/R	.309 AVG, 15 HR, 52 RBI, .921 OPS
DH	#19	Alex Kirillof	26	L/L	.270 AVG, 11 HR, 41 RBI, .793 OPS
1B	#30	Carlos Santana	37	S/R	.240 AVG, 23 HR, 86 RBI, .747 OPS – (PIT/MIL)
C	#27	Ryan Jeffers	26	R/R	.276 AVG, 14 HR, 43 RBI, .858 OPS
LF	#38	Matt Wallner	26	L/R	.249 AVG, 14 HR, 41 RBI, .877 OPS

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#8	Christian Vázquez	33	R/R	.223 AVG, 6 HR, 32 RBI, .598 OPS
UTIL	#12	Kyle Farmer	33	R/R	.253 AVG, 11 HR, 46 RBI, .719 OPS
OF	#13	Manuel Margot	29	R/R	.264 AVG, 4 HR, 38 RBI, 9 SB – (TB)
UTIL	#50	Willi Castro	26	S/R	.257 AVG, 9 HR, 34 RBI, 33 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#49	Pablo López	28	RHP	11-8, 3.66 ERA, 234 Ks, 1.15 WHIP
SP	#41	Joe Ryan	27	RHP	11-10, 4.51 ERA, 197 Ks, 1.17 WHIP
SP	#17	Bailey Ober	28	RHP	8-6, 3.43 ERA, 146 Ks, 1.07 WHIP
SP	#20	Chris Paddack	28	RHP	5 IP, 5.40 ERA, 8 Ks, 1.40 WHIP
SP	#37	Louie Varland	26	RHP	4-3, 4.63 ERA, 71 Ks, 1.22 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#59	Jhoan Durán	26	RHP	27 SVs, 2.45 ERA, 84 Ks, 1.14 WHIP
SU	#22	Griffin Jax	29	RHP	4 SVs, 3.86 ERA, 68 Ks, 1.18 WHIP
RP	#48	Justin Topa	33	RHP	3 SVs, 2.61 ERA, 61 Ks, 1.14 WHIP – (SEA)
RP	#61	Brock Stewart	32	RHP	1 SV, 0.65 ERA, 39 Ks, 1.08 WHIP
RP	#16	Steven Okert	32	LHP	58.2 IP, 4.45 ERA, 73 Ks, 1.26 WHIP – (MIA)
RP	#63	Josh Staumont	30	RHP	20 IP, 5.40 ERA, 24 Ks, 1.45 WHIP – (KC)
RP	#32	Jay Jackson	36	RHP	29.2 IP, 2.12 ERA, 27 Ks, 0.91 WHIP – (TOR)
LNG	#44	Cole Sands	26	RHP	21.2 IP, 3.74 ERA, 21 Ks, 1.52 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#21	Anthony DeSclafani	33	RHP	Pectoral strain Potential return in May
RP	#56	Caleb Thielbar	37	LHP	Hamstring strain Potential return in May
RP	#57	Zack Weiss	31	RHP	Shoulder strain Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Jorge Alcala – #66 (RP, Age: 28, RHP)
Kody Funderburk – #55 (RP, Age: 27, LHP) – MIN Prospect Rank: #21
Brent Headrick – #53 (RP, Age: 26, LHP)
Simeon Woods Richardson – #78 (RP, Age: 23, RHP) – MIN Prospect Rank: #24
José Miranda – #64 (1B/3B, Age: 25, R/R)
Trevor Larnach – #9 (OF, Age: 27, L/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Brooks Lee (SS, Age: 23, S/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #18
David Festa (P, Age: 24, RHP) – MIN Prospect Rank: #5
Matt Canterino (P, Age: 26, RHP) – MIN Prospect Rank: #13
Austin Martin (INF, Age: 24, R/R) – MIN Prospect Rank: #15

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Jeff Brigham (RP, Age: 32, RHP)
Randy Dobnak (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Niko Goodrum (UTIL, Age: 32, S/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: SP Pablo Lopez
Breakout Player: 3B Royce Lewis
Addition: 1B Carlos Santana
Grade: C+
Lineup Rank: 8th
Rotation Rank: 10th
Bullpen Rank: 11th

After a year that relinquished their AL Central crown to the Guardians, Minnesota bounced back by winning the division again in 2023. Nothing really amounted from it though, and the Twins continue their streak of regular season dominance and postseason defeat. Entering the new season, the lineup will look relatively similar, with the hopes that stars Carlos Correa and Byron Buxton remain healthy. Royce Lewis broke out in his first full year, and will take over everyday 3B duties while Edouard Julien mans 2B. Carlos Santana was signed to take over 1B, and both Kyle Farmer and Manuel Margot will slot in as depth pieces. This lineup has several options and a ton of power, returning nine guys who slashed over a .700 OPS last year.

The pitching took a major hit as the team lost both Sonny Gray and Kenta Maeda in free agency. Pablo Lopez now becomes the ace with Bailey Ober and Joe Ryan being relied on more. Chris Paddack will also return from injury and Anthony DeSclafani will give depth as a long man/5th starter when he returns from injury. Jhoan Duran has become one of the more exciting young closers in baseball. Overall though the bullpen and rotation don’t contain very much depth, and will look at a few newcomers to step up for them. All in all I’m not overly impressed with this Twins team, but again, I usually am not before they have very solid seasons year after year. The Central will be easy to win, but the difference between Minnesota, Cleveland, Detroit, and Kansas City is not too huge.

Houston Astros

Manager: Joe Espada
1st year – AGE: 48

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
2B	#27	José Altuve	33	R/R	.311 AVG, 17 HR, 51 RBI, .915 OPS
3B	#2	Alex Bregman	29	R/R	.262 AVG, 25 HR, 98 RBI, .804 OPS
DH	#44	Yordan Álvarez	26	L/R	.293 AVG, 31 HR, 97 RBI, .990 OPS
RF	#30	Kyle Tucker	27	L/R	.284 AVG, 29 HR, 112 RBI, 30 SB
1B	#79	José Abreu	37	R/R	.237 AVG, 18 HR, 90 RBI, .680 OPS
SS	#3	Jeremy Peña	26	R/R	.263 AVG, 10 HR, 52 RBI, 13 SB
CF	#20	Chas McCormick	28	R/L	.273 AVG, 22 HR, 70 RBI, 19 SB
C	#21	Yainer Díaz	25	R/R	.282 AVG, 23 HR, 60 RBI, .846 OPS
LF	#9	Corey Julks	28	R/R	.245 AVG, 6 HR, 33 RBI, 15 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#17	Victor Caratini	30	S/R	.259 AVG, 7 HR, 25 RBI, .711 OPS – (MIL)
UTIL	#14	Mauricio Dubón	29	R/R	.278 AVG, 10 HR, 46 RBI, 7 SB
1B/OF	#28	Jon Singleton	32	L/L	.165 AVG, 2 HR, 12 RBI, .530 OPS – (MIL/HOU)
OF	#6	Jake Meyers	27	R/L	.227 AVG, 10 HR, 33 RBI, 5 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#59	Framber Valdez	30	LHP	12-11, 3.45 ERA, 200 Ks, 1.13 WHIP
SP	#65	José Urquidy	28	RHP	3-3, 5.29 ERA, 45 Ks, 1.43 WHIP
SP	#53	Cristian Javier	26	RHP	10-5, 4.56 ERA, 159 Ks, 1.27 WHIP
SP	#58	Hunter Brown	25	RHP	11-13, 5.09 ERA, 178 Ks, 1.36 WHIP
SP	#68	J.P. France	28	RHP	11-6, 3.83 ERA, 101 Ks, 1.36 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#71	Josh Hader	29	LHP	33 SVs, 1.28 ERA, 85 Ks, 1.10 WHIP – (SD)
SU	#55	Ryan Pressly	35	RHP	31 SVs, 3.58 ERA, 74 Ks, 1.07 WHIP
RP	#52	Bryan Abreu	26	RHP	5 SVs, 1.75 ERA, 100 Ks, 1.04 WHIP
RP	#47	Rafael Montero	33	RHP	1 SV, 5.08 ERA, 79 Ks, 1.53 WHIP
RP	#54	Dylan Coleman	27	RHP	18.1 IP, 8.84 ERA, 21 Ks, 2.02 WHIP – (KC)
RP	#61	Seth Martinez	29	RHP	1 SV, 5.23 ERA, 45 Ks, 1.49 WHIP
RP	#62	Bennett Sousa	28	LHP	9 IP, 4.00 ERA, 10 Ks, 0.89 WHIP – (MIL/HOU)
LNG	#64	Brandon Bielak	27	RHP	5-6, 3.83 ERA, 62 Ks, 1.53 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#35	Justin Verlander	41	RHP	Shoulder injury Potential return in May
SP	#77	Luis García	27	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in July
SP	#43	Lance McCullers Jr.	30	RHP	Elbow surgery Potential return in June
RP	#31	Kendall Graveman	33	RHP	Shoulder surgery Likely to miss entire season

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Ronel Blanco – #56 (SP, Age: 30, RHP)
Forrest Whitley – #60 (SP, Age: 26, RHP)
Parker Mushinski – #67 (RP, Age: 28, LHP)
Oliver Ortega – #63 (RP, Age: 27, RHP)
César Salazar – #18 (C, Age: 27, L/R)
Grae Kessinger – #16 (INF, Age: 26, R/R)
David Hensley – #11 (UTIL, Age: 27, R/R)
Trey Cabbage – #38 (1B, Age: 26, L/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Spencer Arighetti (P, Age: 24, RHP) – HOU Prospect Rank: #3
Joey Loperfido (UTIL, Age: 24, L/R) – HOU Prospect Rank: #6
Colton Gordon (P, Age: 25, LHP) – HOU Prospect Rank: #10
Will Wagner (2B/3B, Age: 25, L/R) – HOU Prospect Rank: #15

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Joel Kuhnel (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Wander Suero (RP, Age: 32, RHP)
Dixon Machado (INF, Age: 32, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: 2B Jose Altuve
Breakout Player: C Yainer Diaz
Addition: CP Josh Hader
Grade: B+
Lineup Rank: 4th
Rotation Rank: 5th
Bullpen Rank: 3rd

The 2022 champs have seen a lot of change this offseason, with Dusty Baker deciding to retire, turning things over to bench coach Joe Espada to become manager. Espada has been knocking on the door for several jobs over the last few years, and will now try to wrangle together another winner against a ticking clock of this core. Jose Altuve was extended to essentially finish his career with Houston, leaving the door wide open for Alex Bregman to likely leave after this season. Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Tucker are two of the best power hitters in the game, and Chas McCormick and Yainer Diaz broke out as clear starters last season.

The rotation will somehow have to piece things together until the returns of Justin Verlander, Lance McCullers, and Luis Garcia at some point this season. Framber Valdez has been the clear ace, and the team saw good outings from Hunter Brown and J.P. France who will join the rotation to start. The teams biggest move though was signing star closer Josh Hader to the second biggest reliever contract in history. This move creates a monster of Hader, Pressly, Abreu, and Montero in the back of that bullpen, arguably the best core in the league. Overall I like the way Houston is looking, but being in a division with the reigning champion Rangers, as well as the Mariners will make things tough for the ‘Stros. Never count them out though, we’ve learned that all too well.

Los Angeles Angels

Manager: Ron Washington
1st year in LAA, Career record: 664-611, Playoff record: 18-16 – AGE: 72

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
LF	#3	Taylor Ward	30	R/R	.253 AVG, 14 HR, 47 RBI, .756 OPS
CF	#27	Mike Trout	32	R/R	.263 AVG, 18 HR, 44 RBI, .858 OPS
DH	#23	Brandon Drury	31	R/R	.262 AVG, 26 HR, 83 RBI, .803 OPS
C	#14	Logan O’Hoppe	24	R/R	.236 AVG, 14 HR, 29 RBI, .796 OPS
1B	#18	Nolan Schanuel (R)	22	L/R	.275 AVG, 1 HR, 6 RBI, .732 OPS
3B	#6	Anthony Rendon	33	R/R	.236 AVG, 2 HR, 22 RBI, .678 OPS
SS	#9	Zach Neto	23	R/R	.225 AVG, 9 HR, 34 RBI, 5 SB
RF	#16	Mickey Moniak	25	L/R	.280 AVG, 14 HR, 45 RBI, .802 OPS
2B	#2	Luis Rengifo	27	S/R	.264 AVG, 16 HR, 51 RBI, .783 OPS

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#21	Matt Thaiss	28	L/R	.214 AVG, 9 HR, 31 RBI, .659 OPS
INF	#38	Michael Stefanic	28	R/R	.290 AVG, 0 HR, 6 RBI, .735 OPS
OF	#12	Aaron Hicks	34	S/R	.253 AVG, 8 HR, 36 RBI, .735 OPS – (NYY/BAL)
OF	#10	Jake Marisnick	33	R/R	.237 AVG, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 2 SB – (CWS/DET/LAD)

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#48	Reid Detmers	24	LHP	4-10, 4.48 ERA, 168 Ks, 1.35 WHIP
SP	#31	Tyler Anderson	34	LHP	6-6, 5.43 ERA, 119 Ks, 1.49 WHIP
SP	#47	Griffin Canning	27	RHP	7-8, 4.32 ERA, 139 Ks, 1.24 WHIP
SP	#43	Patrick Sandoval	27	LHP	7-13, 4.11 ERA, 128 Ks, 1.51 WHIP
SP	#63	Chance Silseth	23	RHP	4-1, 3.96 ERA, 56 Ks, 1.28 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#24	Robert Stephenson	31	RHP	1 SV, 3.10 ERA, 77 Ks, 0.88 WHIP – (PIT/TB)
SU	#53	Carlos Estévez	31	RHP	31 SVs, 3.09 ERA, 78 Ks, 1.49 WHIP
RP	#55	Matt Moore	34	LHP	52.2 IP, 2.56 ERA, 60 Ks, 1.16 WHIP – (CLE/MIA/LAA)
RP	#60	Andrew Wantz	28	RHP	39.1 IP, 3.89 ERA, 33 Ks, 1.09 WHIP
RP	#67	José Cisnero	34	RHP	2 SVs, 5.31 ERA, 70 Ks, 1.48 WHIP – (DET)
RP	#90	Adam Cimber	33	RHP	1 SV, 7.40 ERA, 12 Ks, 1.55 WHIP – (TOR)
RP	#66	Luis García	37	RHP	59.2 IP, 4.07 ERA, 53 Ks, 1.39 WHIP – (SD)
LNG	#44	Ben Joyce (R)	23	RHP	10 IP, 5.40 ERA, 10 Ks, 1.80 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
RP	#65	José Quijada	28	LHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in July
RP	#40	Sam Bachman	24	RHP	Shoulder surgery Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
José Suárez – #54 (SP, Age: 26, LHP)
Jose Soriano – #59 (SP, Age: 25, RHP)
Guillermo Zuniga – #49 (RP, Age: 25, RHP)
Zach Plesac – #34 (SP, Age: 29, RHP)
Jimmy Herget – #46 (RP, Age: 30, RHP)
Kyren Paris – #19 (INF, Age: 22, R/R) – LAA Prospect Rank: #4
Livan Soto – #73 (INF, Age: 23, L/R)
Jo Adell – #7 (OF, Age: 24, R/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Jack Kochanowicz (P, Age: 23, RHP) – LAA Prospect Rank: #10

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Carson Fulmer (RP, Age: 30, RHP)
Adam Kolarek (RP, Age: 35, LHP)
Drew Pomeranz (RP, Age: 35, LHP)
Hunter Strickland (RP, Age: 35, RHP)
Chad Wallach (C, Age: 32, R/R)
Ehire Adrianza (INF, Age: 34, S/R)
Hunter Dozier (1B/3B, Age: 32, R/R)
Miguel Sano (1B, Age: 30, R/R)
Evan White (1B, Age: 27, R/L)
Willie Calhoun (OF, Age: 29, L/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: CF Mike Trout
Breakout Player: SS Zach Neto
Addition: RP Robert Stephenson
Grade: C-
Lineup Rank: 11th
Rotation Rank: 11th
Bullpen Rank: 10th

There’s no doubt the Angels took the biggest blow this offseason after losing star and generational talent Shohei Ohtani to the Dodgers. It was a move that didn’t shock many, but will set back the Halos even further after not being much of a threat to begin with. Mike Trout remains firm on his devotion to the club, while other veterans like Anthony Rendon seem to be treating his $30m salary as a 9-5 job. The club brings in Ron Washington, a stern baseball lifer that has two World Series’ appearances, and will look to get this team’s head screwed on. Their lineup remains similar (besides Shohei), with youngsters Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel being relied on to take big steps. Veterans like Aaron Hicks, Jake Marisnick, and even Hunter Dozier could add some depth to a lineup that isn’t marvelous.

The pitching has always been the sore spot for the Angels, and the team prioritized upgrading the bullpen over rotation this offseason. Reid Detmers, Patrick Sandoval, and Griffin Canning will be key starters, with Tyler Anderson looking to bounce back on his big contract. The bullpen added a few solid arms with Robert Stephenson stepping into the closer role, and veterans Matt Moore, Jose Cisnero, Adam Cimber, and Luis Garcia joining. It will be a tough season for the Angels in my opinion, and there isn’t much hope for a playoff run of any sort. On top of this, the farm system isn’t anticipating any saviors any time soon, so the future doesn’t look much better than the present. It’s a shame, but the Angels may be in one of the worst positions of any team in baseball.

Oakland Athletics

Manager: Mark Kotsay
3rd year, Career/Team record: 110-214 – AGE: 48

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
CF	#1	Esteury Ruiz	25	R/R	.254 AVG, 5 HR, 47 RBI, 67 SB
2B	#20	Zach Gelof	24	R/R	.267 AVG, 14 HR, 32 RBI, .840 OPS
DH	#25	Brent Rooker	29	R/R	.246 AVG, 30 HR, 69 RBI, .817 OPS
LF	#15	Seth Brown	31	L/L	.222 AVG, 14 HR, 52 RBI, .692 OPS
3B		J.D. Davis	30	R/R	.248 AVG, 18 HR, 69 RBI, .738 OPS – (SF)
1B	#49	Ryan Noda	27	L/L	.229 AVG, 16 HR, 54 RBI, .770 OPS
C	#23	Shea Langeliers	26	R/R	.205 AVG, 22 HR, 63 RBI, .681 OPS
SS	#6	Aledmys Díaz	33	R/R	.229 AVG, 4 HR, 24 RBI, .616 OPS
RF	#33	J.J. Bleday	26	L/L	.195 AVG, 10 HR, 27 RBI, .666 OPS

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#21	Tyler Soderstrom	22	L/R	.160 AVG, 3 HR, 7 RBI, .472 OPS
UTIL	#31	Abraham Toro	27	S/R	8/18, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 1.302 OPS – (MIL)
LF/3B	#22	Miguel Andújar	29	R/R	.250 AVG, 4 HR, 18 RBI, .776 OPS – (PIT)
OF	#2	Lawrence Butler	23	L/R	.211 AVG, 4 HR, 10 RBI, .582 OPS

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#57	Alex Wood	33	LHP	5-5, 4.33 ERA, 74 Ks, 1.43 WHIP – (SF)
SP	#58	Paul Blackburn	30	RHP	4-7, 4.43 ERA, 104 Ks, 1.54 WHIP
SP	#19	Mason Miller (R)	25	RHP	0-3, 3.78 ERA, 38 Ks, 1.20 WHIP
SP	#38	J.P. Sears	28	LHP	5-14, 4.54 ERA, 161 Ks, 1.26 WHIP
SP	#36	Ross Stripling	34	RHP	0-5, 5.36 ERA, 70 Ks, 1.35 WHIP – (SF)

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#56	Dany Jiménez	30	RHP	1 SV, 3.47 ERA, 21 Ks, 1.07 WHIP
SU	#17	Trevor Gott	31	RHP	1 SV, 4.19 ERA, 62 Ks, 1.41 WHIP – (SEA/NYM)
RP	#61	Zach Jackson	29	RHP	1 SV, 2.50 ERA, 23 Ks, 1.56 WHIP
RP	#16	Sean Newcomb	30	LHP	15 IP, 3.00 ERA, 17 Ks, 1.13 WHIP
RP	#54	Scott Alexander	34	LHP	1 SV, 4.66 ERA, 31 Ks, 1.37 WHIP – (SF)
RP	#70	Lucas Erceg	28	RHP	55 IP, 4.75 ERA, 68 Ks, 1.58 WHIP
RP	#47	Michael Kelly	31	RHP	16.2 IP, 3.78 ERA, 16 Ks, 1.32 WHIP – (CLE)
LNG	#39	Kyle Muller	26	LHP	1-5, 7.60 ERA, 56 Ks, 1.96 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#30	Ken Waldichuk	26	LHP	UCL sprain Potential return in June
SP	#46	Luis Medina	24	RHP	Sprained MCL Potential return in June
RP	#62	Freddy Tarnok (R)	25	RHP	Hip soreness Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Osvaldo Bido – #45 (SP, Age: 28, RHP)
Hogan Harris – #63 (SP, Age: 27, LHP)
Adrián Martinez – #55 (SP, Age: 27, RHP)
Joe Boyle – #35 (SP, Age: 24, RHP) – OAK Prospect Rank: #10
Joey Estes – #68 (SP, Age: 22, RHP) – OAK Prospect Rank: #13
Angel Felipe – #53 (RP, Age: 26, RHP)
Nick Allen – #25 (INF, Age: 25, R/R)
Jordan Diaz – #13 (INF, Age: 23, R/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Denzel Clarke (OF, Age: 23, R/R) – OAK Prospect Rank: #4
Darell Hernaiz (SS, Age: 22, R/R) – OAK Prospect Rank: #5
Max Muncy (SS, Age: 21, R/R) – OAK Prospect Rank: #8
Brett Harris (3B, Age: 25, R/R) – OAK Prospect Rank: #11

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Carlos Pérez (C, Age: 33, R/R)
Hoy Park (OF, Age: 28, L/R)
Daz Cameron (OF, Age: 27, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: OF Brent Rooker
Breakout Player: OF Lawrence Butler
Addition: SP Alex Wood
Grade: D-
Lineup Rank: 15th
Rotation Rank: 14th
Bullpen Rank: 15th

What has been a dismal past two years in Oakland won’t be getting any better in 2024, with the team slated to return a similar crew from a year ago. The biggest story around the franchise is where they will be playing in 2025, with their Oakland contract expiring, a potential Las Vegas contract a few years away, and a gap in between the two. The lineup is full of replacement players, with the likes of Zach Gelof, Ryan Noda, and Aledmys Diaz looking to be starters again. Former top prospects Shea Langeliers and J.J. Bleday will try to give the team some hope in development. The two pieces though that do seem solid are Esteury Ruiz and Brent Rooker, one speedster and one power bat that will inevitably be trade pieces in all likelihood.

The rotation brings in a couple of veterans in Alex Wood and Ross Stripling who are coming off down years in 2023. J.P. Sears and Mason Miller looked good at times and will be relied on as rotation staples this season. The closer role will be up for grabs with anyone from Dany Jimenez to Trevor Gott or Sean Newcomb being able to pitch the ninth. The A’s are looking at another season at the bottom of the league, and things probably won’t start evening out until their home is permanent and their young pieces perform like even serviceable major leaguers.

Seattle Mariners

Manager: Scott Servais
9th year, Career/Team record: 616-578, Playoff record: 2-3 – AGE: 56

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
SS	#3	J.P. Crawford	29	L/R	.266 AVG, 19 HR, 65 RBI, .818 OPS
CF	#44	Julio Rodríguez	23	R/R	.275 AVG, 32 HR, 103 RBI, 37 SB
2B	#7	Jorge Polanco	30	S/R	.255 AVG, 14 HR, 48 RBI, .789 OPS – (MIN)
C	#29	Cal Raleigh	27	S/R	.232 AVG, 30 HR, 75 RBI, .762 OPS
1B	#23	Ty France	29	R/R	.250 AVG, 12 HR, 58 RBI, .703 OPS
RF	#20	Luke Raley	29	L/R	.249 AVG, 19 HR, 49 RBI, .824 OPS – (TB)
DH	#18	Mitch Garver	33	R/R	.270 AVG, 19 HR, 50 RBI, .870 OPS – (TEX)
LF	#17	Mitch Haniger	33	R/R	.209 AVG, 6 HR, 28 RBI, .631 OPS – (SF)
3B	#16	Luis Urías	26	R/R	.194 AVG, 3 HR, 18 RBI, .636 OPS – (MIL/BOS)

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#33	Seby Zavala	30	R/R	.171 AVG, 7 HR, 18 RBI, .545 OPS – (CWS/ARI)
UTIL	#25	Dylan Moore	31	R/R	.207 AVG, 7 HR, 19 RBI, .731 OPS
INF	#4	Josh Rojas	29	L/R	.245 AVG, 4 HR, 40 RBI, 12 SB – (ARI/SEA)
OF	#8	Dominic Canzone	26	L/R	.220 AVG, 6 HR, 21 RBI, .657 OPS – (ARI/SEA)

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#68	George Kirby	26	RHP	13-10, 3.35 ERA, 172 Ks, 1.04 WHIP
SP	#58	Luis Castillo	31	RHP	14-9, 3.34 ERA, 219 Ks, 1.10 WHIP
SP	#36	Logan Gilbert	26	RHP	13-7, 3.73 ERA, 189 Ks, 1.08 WHIP
SP	#50	Bryce Miller	25	RHP	8-7, 4.32 ERA, 119 Ks, 1.14 WHIP
SP	#22	Bryan Woo	24	RHP	4-5, 4.21 ERA, 93 Ks, 1.21 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#75	Andrés Muñoz	25	RHP	13 SVs, 2.94 ERA, 67 Ks, 1.27 WHIP
SU	#55	Gabe Speier	28	LHP	1 SV, 3.79 ERA, 64 Ks, 1.06 WHIP
RP	#45	Ryne Stanek	32	RHP	50.2 IP, 4.09 ERA, 51 Ks, 1.24 WHIP – (HOU)
RP	#0	Gregory Santos	24	RHP	5 SVs, 3.39 ERA, 66 Ks, 1.30 WHIP – (CWS)
RP	#46	Trent Thornton	30	RHP	31.1 IP, 2.01 ERA, 27 Ks, 1.15 WHIP – (TOR/SEA)
RP	#52	Collin Snider	28	RHP	1 SV, 4.87 ERA, 11 Ks, 1.82 WHIP – (KC)
RP	#60	Tayler Saucedo	30	LHP	1 SV, 3.59 ERA, 43 Ks, 1.34 WHIP
LNG	#30	Austin Voth	31	RHP	34.2 IP, 5.19 ERA, 34 Ks, 1.56 WHIP – (BAL)

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
RP	#37	Jackson Kowar	27	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Likely to miss entire season
RP	#47	Matt Brash	25	RHP	Elbow injury Potential return in May
RP	#41	Eduard Bazardo	28	RHP	Undisclosed injury Potential return TBD

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Emerson Hancock – #62 (SP, Age: 24, RHP) – SEA Prospect Rank: #11
Ty Adcock – #70 (RP, Age: 27, RHP) – SEA Prospect Rank: #22
Cody Bolton – #67 (RP, Age: 25, RHP)
Carlos Vargas – #54 (RP, Age: 24, RHP)
Samad Taylor – #12 (INF, Age: 25, R/R)
Sam Haggerty – #0 (UTIL, Age: 29, S/R)
Cade Marlowe – #2 (OF, Age: 26, L/R)
Taylor Trammell – #5 (OF, Age: 26, L/L)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Tyler Locklear (1B, Age: 23, R/R) – SEA Prospect Rank: #8
Jonatan Clase (OF, Age: 21, S/R) – SEA Prospect Rank: #10
Ryan Bliss (2B/SS, Age: 24, R/R) – SEA Prospect Rank: #12

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Heath Hembree (RP, Age: 35, RHP)
Trevor Kelley (RP, Age: 31, RHP)
Joey Krehbiel (RP, Age: 31, RHP)
Cory Abbott (RP, Age: 28, RHP)
Michael Chavis (2B/1B, Age: 28, R/R)
Cole Tucker (SS, Age: 27, S/R)
Nick Solak (2B/OF, Age: 29, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: CF Julio Rodriguez
Breakout Player: OF Dominic Canzone
Addition: 2B Jorge Polanco
Grade: B
Lineup Rank: 7th
Rotation Rank: 3rd
Bullpen Rank: 9th

The Mariners narrowly missed out on the playoffs in back-to-back seasons after a rough start to 2023. Now they will look to avenge their tough fate in a division that contains the last two World Series champs. Julio Rodriguez remains the anchor and many moves were made to shake up the lineup. Teoscar Hernandez left in free agency and Eugenio Suarez was traded, while a haul was dealt out for Twins’ star 2B Jorge Polanco. Luke Raley and Mitch Garver were power bats brought in to add to a slashing middle of the lineup beside Cal Raleigh and Ty France. This lineup is definitely a little bit deeper than last year, but it’s tough to tell if it’s truly better.

The rotation will be led by the threesome of Kirby, Castillo, and Gilbert who all had superb 2023 campaigns. Bryce Miller and Bryan Woo were two rookies who had great debuts and have guaranteed spots to start 2024 in the rotation. Dominant setup man Matt Brash will be sidelined to start the year, and newly acquired Ryne Stanek and Gregory Santos will be relied on to be anchors besides Andres Munoz. I don’t think Seattle is in the same class as the Rangers or Astros, but they are definitely a fighter for a Wild Card spot in 2024. It’s a little worrisome though, as I’m not sure the team really improved the roster compared to the Astros and Rangers who keep evolving.

Texas Rangers

Manager: Bruce Bochy
2nd year in TEX, Career record: 2,093-2,101, Team record: 90-72, Playoff record: 57-37 – AGE: 69

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
2B	#2	Marcus Semien	33	R/R	.276 AVG, 29 HR, 100 RBI, .826 OPS
SS	#5	Corey Seager	29	L/R	.327 AVG, 33 HR, 96 RBI, 1.013 OPS
1B	#30	Nathaniel Lowe	28	L/R	.262 AVG, 17 HR, 82 RBI, .775 OPS
DH	#53	Adolis García	31	R/R	.245 AVG, 39 HR, 107 RBI, .836 OPS
3B	#6	Josh Jung	26	R/R	.266 AVG, 23 HR, 70 RBI, .781 OPS
LF	#32	Evan Carter (R)	21	L/R	.306 AVG, 5 HR, 12 RBI, 1.058 OPS
RF	#82	Wyatt Langford (R)	22	R/R	MLB Prospect Rank: #6
C	#28	Jonah Heim	28	S/R	.258 AVG, 18 HR, 95 RBI, .755 OPS
CF	#3	Leody Taveras	25	S/R	.266 AVG, 14 HR, 67 RBI, 14 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#12	Andrew Knizner	29	R/R	.241 AVG, 10 HR, 31 RBI, .712 OPS – (STL)
INF	#20	Ezequiel Durán	24	R/R	.276 AVG, 14 HR, 46 RBI, .768 OPS
UTIL	#8	Josh Smith	26	L/R	.185 AVG, 6 HR, 15 RBI, .633 OPS
OF	#16	Travis Jankowski	32	L/R	.263 AVG, 1 HR, 30 RBI, 19 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#17	Nathan Eovaldi	34	RHP	12-5, 3.63 ERA, 132 Ks, 1.14 WHIP
SP	#22	Jon Gray	32	RHP	9-8, 4.12 ERA, 142 Ks, 1.29 WHIP
SP	#33	Dane Dunning	29	RHP	12-7, 3.70 ERA, 140 Ks, 1.26 WHIP
SP	#44	Andrew Heaney	32	LHP	10-6, 4.15 ERA, 151 Ks, 1.38 WHIP
SP	#23	Michael Lorenzen	32	RHP	9-9, 4.18 ERA, 111 Ks, 1.21 WHIP – (DET/PHI)

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#25	José Leclerc	30	RHP	4 SVs, 2.68 ERA, 67 Ks, 1.14 WHIP
SU	#37	David Robertson	38	RHP	18 SVs, 3.03 ERA, 78 Ks, 1.19 WHIP – (NYM/MIA)
RP	#39	Kirby Yates	36	RHP	5 SVs, 3.28 ERA, 80 Ks, 1.19 WHIP – (ATL)
RP	#46	Brock Burke	27	LHP	59.2 IP, 4.37 ERA, 52 Ks, 1.22 WHIP
RP	#66	Josh Sborz	30	RHP	52.1 IP, 5.50 ERA, 66 Ks, 1.15 WHIP
RP	#49	Austin Pruitt	34	RHP	48.1 IP, 2.98 ERA, 30 Ks, 1.16 WHIP – (OAK)
RP	#72	Jonathan Hernández	27	RHP	31.2 IP, 5.40 ERA, 34 Ks, 1.58 WHIP
LNG	#57	Yerry Rodríguez	26	RHP	13.2 IP, 7.90 ERA, 15 Ks, 1.90 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#48	Jacob deGrom	35	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in August
SP	#31	Max Scherzer	39	RHP	Back surgery Potential return in June
SP	#51	Tyler Mahle	29	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in September

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Owen White – #43 (SP, Age: 24, RHP)
Cody Bradford – #61 (SP, Age: 26, LHP
Grant Anderson – #65 (RP, Age: 26, RHP)
Jake Latz – #67 (RP, Age: 27, LHP)
Sam Huff – #55 (C, Age: 26, R/R)
Jose Barrero – #19 (INF, Age: 26, R/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Justin Foscue (2B/3B, Age: 25, R/R) – TEX Prospect Rank: #5
Dustin Harris (OF, Age: 24, L/R) – TEX Prospect Rank: #11

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Danny Duffy (SP, Age: 35, LHP)
José Ureña (SP, Age: 32, RHP)
Shane Greene (RP, Age: 35, RHP)
Diego Castillo (RP, Age: 30, RHP)
Chasen Shreve (RP, Age: 33, LHP)
Blake Taylor (RP, Age: 28, LHP)
Andrew Knapp (C, Age: 32, S/R)
Matt Duffy (3B, Age: 33, R/R)
Jared Walsh (1B, Age: 30, L/L)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: SS Corey Seager
Breakout Player: OF Wyatt Langford
Addition: RP David Robertson
Grade: A-
Lineup Rank: 1st
Rotation Rank: 4th
Bullpen Rank: 4th

Coming off of a franchise changing season, the Rangers were able to hoist their first World Series crown in franchise history. Hard work in the last few offseason’s were the culprit, with Corey Seager and Marcus Semien being signed to lead the offense, and Jacob deGrom and legendary manager Bruce Bochy also being brought in. On the offense, not only did Seager and Semien lead the way, but they also saw breakouts from rookie Josh Jung and youngsters Jonah Heim and Nate Lowe. Evan Carter bursted onto the scene in his call-up as the league’s 5th best prospect. He will be joined by the 6th best prospect Wyatt Langford who has torn up the minor leagues since being drafted last year. Not a single move had to be made to help the lineup this offseason.

The rotation will see the loss of Jordan Montgomery and both Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom to injuries. The latter two will be key additions when they return later in the season, and Tyler Mahle was added for depth after he recovers from Tommy John. Eovaldi, Gray, and Heaney will hold down the rotation, with Cody Bradford being looked at to be the 5th option. A closer by committee will most likely also be the case, with Jose Leclerc, Kirby Yates, and David Robertson getting looks. Even though they didn’t win the division last year, there’s no doubt that this team is better than Houston at this point and should be the favorites to win the West. And they’ll only get more dangerous when their vets return.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

MVP: Mookie Betts, LAD
CY YOUNG: Zack Wheeler, PHI
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, LAD
COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Chris Sale, ATL
MANAGER OF THE YEAR: Craig Counsell, CHC

Atlanta Braves

Manager: Brian Snitker
9th year, Career/Team record: 646-509, Playoff record: 24-21 – AGE: 68

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
RF	#13	Ronald Acuña Jr.	26	R/R	.337 AVG, 41 HR, 106 RBI, 73 SB
2B	#1	Ozzie Albies	27	S/R	.280 AVG, 33 HR, 109 RBI, .849 OPS
3B	#27	Austin Riley	26	R/R	.281 AVG, 37 HR, 97 RBI, .861 OPS
1B	#28	Matt Olson	29	L/R	.283 AVG, 54 HR, 139 RBI, .993 OPS
DH	#20	Marcell Ozuna	33	R/R	.274 AVG, 40 HR, 100 RBI, .905 OPS
C	#12	Sean Murphy	29	R/R	.251 AVG, 21 HR, 68 RBI, .844 OPS
CF	#23	Michael Harris II	23	L/L	.293 AVG, 18 HR, 57 RBI, 20 SB
SS	#11	Orlando Arcia	29	R/R	.264 AVG, 17 HR, 65 RBI, .741 OPS
LF	#24	Jarred Kelenic	24	L/L	.253 AVG, 11 HR, 49 RBI, 13 SB – (SEA)

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#16	Travis d’Arnaud	35	R/R	.225 AVG, 11 HR, 39 RBI, .685 OPS
INF	#15	Luis Guillorme	29	L/R	.224 AVG, 1 HR, 9 RBI, .615 OPS – (NYM)
OF	#14	Adam Duvall	35	R/R	.247 AVG, 21 HR, 58 RBI, .834 OPS – (BOS)
OF	#73	Forrest Wall (R)	28	L/R	6/13, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 5 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#54	Max Fried	30	LHP	8-1, 2.55 ERA, 80 Ks, 1.13 WHIP
SP	#99	Spencer Strider	25	RHP	20-5, 3.86 ERA, 281 Ks, 1.09 WHIP
SP	#51	Chris Sale	34	LHP	6-5, 4.30 ERA, 125 Ks, 1.13 WHIP – (BOS)
SP	#50	Charlie Morton	40	RHP	14-12, 3.64 ERA, 183 Ks, 1.43 WHIP
SP	#40	Reynaldo López	30	RHP	6 SVs, 3.27 ERA, 83 Ks, 1.27 WHIP – (CWS/LAA/CLE)

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#26	Raisel Iglesias	34	RHP	33 SVs, 2.75 ERA, 68 Ks, 1.19 WHIP
SU	#33	A.J. Minter	30	LHP	10 SVs, 3.76 ERA, 82 Ks, 1.19 WHIP
RP	#77	Joe Jimenez	29	RHP	56.1 IP, 3.04 ERA, 73 Ks, 1.15 WHIP
RP	#68	Tyler Matzek	33	LHP	1 SV, 3.50 ERA, 36 Ks, 1.26 WHIP
RP	#49	Aaron Bummer	30	LHP	58.1 IP, 6.79 ERA, 78 Ks, 1.53 WHIP – (CWS)
RP	#38	Pierce Johnson	32	RHP	13 SVs, 4.02 ERA, 90 Ks, 1.48 WHIP – (COL/ATL)
RP	#52	Dylan Lee	29	LHP	23.2 IP, 4.18 ERA, 24 Ks, 1.35 WHIP
LNG	#53	Jackson Stephens	29	RHP	12 IP, 3.00 ERA, 11 Ks, 1.50 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#48	Ian Anderson	25	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in June
RP	#56	Penn Murfee	29	RHP	Elbow surgery Potential return in August

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Bryce Elder – #55 (SP, Age: 24, RHP)
A.J. Smith-Shawver – #32 (SP, Age: 21, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #69
Huascar Ynoa – #19 (SP, Age: 25, RHP)
Dylan Dodd – #46 (SP, Age: 25, LHP) – ATL Prospect Rank: #15
Darius Vines – #61 (RP, Age: 25, RHP – ATL Prospect Rank: #14
Allan Winans – #59 (SP, Age: 28, RHP) – ATL Prospect Rank: #25
Ray Kerr – #58 (RP, Age: 29, LHP)
Ángel Perdomo – (RP, Age: 29, LHP)
J.P. Martínez – #67 (OF, Age: 28, L/L)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Hurston Waldrep (P, Age: 22, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #90
Drake Baldwin (C, Age: 22, L/R) – ATL Prospect Rank: #11

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Ken Giles (RP, Age: 33, RHP)
Chadwick Tromp (C, Age: 29, R/R)
Phillip Evans (UTIL, Age: 31, R/R)
David Fletcher (2B/OF, Age: 29, R/R)
Andrew Velazquez (INF, Age: 29, S/R)
Luke Williams (INF, Age: 27, R/R)
Leury García (OF, Age: 33, S/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: RF Ronald Acuña Jr.
Breakout Player: LF Jarred Kelenic
Addition: SP Chris Sale
Grade: A-
Lineup Rank: 1st
Rotation Rank: 1st
Bullpen Rank: 2nd

The Braves enter the new season locked in to avenge back-to-back playoff let downs after historic seasons. This team has put a chokehold on the greatest lineup in the game, and there isn’t any debating it. Matt Olson exploded for 54 bombs, Ozuna resurged, Albies and Riley hit over 30 homers, and Acuna became the first ever 40/70 player while winning MVP. Everyone will return including an old friend in Adam Duvall and Jarred Kelenic who will look to finally live up to his potential.

The rotation brought in a new face in veteran Chris Sale, a perennial all-star that is finally healthy for the first time in several years. We don’t know how long that health will last, but the team has plenty of ammunition outside of him. Spencer Strider and Max Fried are the 200+ strikeout 1-2 punch, with veteran Charlie Morton back and newly signed Reynaldo Lopez stealing the fifth starter spot. Top prospect A.J. Smith-Shawver could see a full-time role at some point as well. The bullpen will rely on the solid arms it has developed, with Matzek, Minter, and Lee being heavily relied on guys. There wasn’t much work that needed to be done this offseason and the Braves will immediately be a favorite for over 100 wins again. Getting it done in October is another story and is pretty much a crap shoot.

Miami Marlins

Manager: Skip Schumaker
2nd year, Career/Team record: 84-78, Playoff record: 0-2 – AGE: 44

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
CF	#2	Jazz Chisholm Jr.	26	L/R	.250 AVG, 19 HR, 51 RBI, 22 SB
SS	#7	Tim Anderson	30	R/R	.245 AVG, 1 HR, 25 RBI, 13 SB – (CWS)
2B	#3	Luis Arráez	26	L/R	.354 AVG, 10 HR, 69 RBI, .861 OPS
3B	#36	Jake Burger	27	R/R	.250 AVG, 34 HR, 80 RBI, .828 OPS – (CWS/MIA)
1B	#9	Josh Bell	31	S/R	.247 AVG, 22 HR, 74 RBI, .744 OPS – (CLE/MIA)
LF	#14	Bryan De La Cruz	27	R/R	.257 AVG, 19 HR, 78 RBI, .715 OPS
C	#4	Nick Fortes	27	R/R	.204 AVG, 6 HR, 26 RBI, 4 SB
DH	#12	Jesús Sánchez	26	L/R	.253 AVG, 14 HR, 52 RBI, .777 OPS
RF	#17	Vidal Bruján	26	S/R	.171 AVG, 0 HR, 6 RBI, 3 SB – (TB)

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C/1B	#25	Christian Bethancourt	32	R/R	.225 AVG, 11 HR, 33 RBI, .635 OPS – (TB)
UTIL	#5	Jon Berti	34	R/R	.294 AVG, 7 HR, 33 RBI, 16 SB
OF	#24	Avisaíl García	32	R/R	.185 AVG, 3 HR, 12 RBI, 2 SB
CF/2B	#1	Nick Gordon	28	L/R	.176 AVG, 2 HR, 7 RBI, .503 OPS – (MIN)

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#44	Jesús Luzardo	26	LHP	10-10, 3.63 ERA, 208 Ks, 1.22 WHIP
SP	#39	Eury Pérez	20	RHP	5-6, 3.15 ERA, 108 Ks, 1.13 WHIP
SP	#29	Braxton Garrett	26	LHP	9-7, 3.66 ERA, 156 Ks, 1.15 WHIP
SP	#28	Trevor Rogers	26	LHP	1-2, 4.00 ERA, 19 Ks, 1.22 WHIP
SP	#35	A.J. Puk	28	LHP	15 SVs, 3.97 ERA, 78 Ks, 1.18 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#66	Tanner Scott	29	LHP	12 SVs, 2.31 ERA, 104 Ks, 0.99 WHIP
SU	#37	Anthony Bender	29	RHP	DNP – Tommy John Surgery
RP	#43	Andrew Nardi	25	LHP	3 SVs, 2.67 ERA, 73 Ks, 1.15 WHIP
RP	#84	J.T. Chargois	33	RHP	1 SV, 3.61 ERA, 35 Ks, 1.25 WHIP
RP	#31	Huascar Brazoban	34	RHP	58.2 IP, 4.14 ERA, 65 Ks, 1.43 WHIP
RP	#62	George Soriano	24	RHP	1 SV, 3.81 ERA, 52 Ks, 1.33 WHIP
RP	#45	Sixto Sánchez	25	RHP	DNP – Pitched in AAA
LNG	#60	Ryan Weathers	24	LHP	1-8, 6.55 ERA, 43 Ks, 1.68 WHIP – (SD/MIA)

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#22	Sandy Alcántara	28	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Likely to miss entire season
SP	#27	Edward Cabrera	25	RHP	Shoulder impingement Potential return in May
RP	#53	Calvin Faucher	28	RHP	Shoulder impingement Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Max Meyer – #23 (SP, Age: 25, RHP) – MIA Prospect Rank: #3
Bryan Hoeing – #78 (SP, Age: 27, RHP)
Vladimir Gutierrez – #92 (SP, Age: 28, RHP)
Josh Simpson – #65 (RP, Age: 26, LHP) – MIA Prospect Rank: #25
Declan Cronin – #51 (RP, Age: 26, RHP)
Jacob Amaya – #67 (INF, Age: 25, R/R) – MIA Prospect Rank: #9
Jonah Bride – #41 (UTIL, Age: 28, R/R)
Dane Myers – #54 (OF, Age: 28, R/R) – MIA Prospect Rank: #14

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Victor Mesa Jr. (OF, Age: 22, L/L) – MIA Prospect Rank: #4

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Matt Andriese (RP, Age: 34, RHP)
Yonny Chirinos (RP, Age: 30, RHP)
Devin Smeltzer (RP, Age: 28, LHP)
Curt Casali (C, Age: 35, R/R)
Trey Mancini (1B/OF, Age: 32, R/R)
Jonathan Davis (OF, Age: 31, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: 2B Luis Arráez
Breakout Player: SP A.J. Puk
Addition: SS Tim Anderson
Grade: C
Lineup Rank: 12th
Rotation Rank: 7th
Bullpen Rank: 13th

The Marlins surprised a lot of people in year 1 of the Skip Schumaker era, going 84-78 and sneaking into the playoffs. Heading into the new year though, it’s tough to imagine they repeat as they didn’t make any significant moves to get better or worse. Jorge Soler left in free agency, but Tim Anderson was added to the top of a lineup with Jazz Chisholm and Luis Arraez. Josh Bell and Jake Burger were huge power bats that were added at last year’s deadline and will have big roles in 2024. The hope is for Bryan De La Cruz and Jesus Sanchez to take some steps forward as trustworthy everyday OF’s.

The rotation took a couple of blows with 2022 Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara going down for the season and top prospect Max Meyer battling through injuries of his own. Jesus Luzardo has become the team’s ace and A.J. Puk will be brought into the rotation to try to become a dominant starter. Eury Perez also has a ton of promise as a young rookie who eased his way up and down from the minors last year. The bullpen saw a new closer with Tanner Scott having a dominant year, and the return of Anthony Bender looming. Sixto Sanchez is a dark horse to have a good size; a former top prospect who hasn’t thrown a major league pitch since 2020. Miami will definitely take some steps back this year and I see them more in the 75-77 win range. I think 4th in the NL East is realistic.

New York Mets

Manager: Carlos Mendoza
1st year – AGE: 44

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
LF	#9	Brandon Nimmo	30	L/R	.274 AVG, 24 HR, 68 RBI, .829 OPS
SS	#12	Francisco Lindor	30	S/R	.254 AVG, 31 HR, 98 RBI, 31 SB
1B	#20	Pete Alonso	29	R/R	.217 AVG, 46 HR, 118 RBI, .821 OPS
DH	#28	J.D. Martinez	36	R/R	.271 AVG, 33 HR, 103 RBI, .893 OPS – (LAD)
2B	#1	Jeff McNeil	31	L/R	.270 AVG, 10 HR, 55 RBI, 10 SB
C	#4	Francisco Álvarez	22	R/R	.209 AVG, 25 HR, 63 RBI, .721 OPS
RF	#6	Starling Marte	35	R/R	.248 AVG, 5 HR, 28 RBI, 24 SB
3B	#22	Brett Baty	24	L/R	.212 AVG, 9 HR, 34 RBI, .598 OPS
CF	#44	Harrison Bader	29	R/R	.232 AVG, 7 HR, 40 RBI, 20 SB – (NYY/CIN)

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#2	Omar Narváez	32	L/R	.211 AVG, 2 HR, 7 RBI, .580 OPS
INF	#13	Joey Wendle	33	L/R	.212 AVG, 2 HR, 20 RBI, 7 SB – (MIA)
OF	#29	D.J. Stewart	30	L/R	.238 AVG, 11 HR, 26 RBI, .822 OPS
OF	#15	Tyrone Taylor	30	R/R	.234 AVG, 10 HR, 35 RBI, 9 SB – (MIL)

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#62	José Quintana	35	LHP	3-6, 3.57 ERA, 60 Ks, 1.31 WHIP
SP	#40	Luis Severino	30	RHP	4-8, 6.65 ERA, 79 Ks, 1.65 WHIP – (NYY)
SP	#59	Sean Manaea	32	LHP	7-6, 4.44 ERA, 128 Ks, 1.24 WHIP – (SF)
SP	#35	Adrian Houser	31	RHP	8-5, 4.12 ERA, 96 Ks, 1.39 WHIP – (MIL)
SP	#38	Tylor Megill	28	RHP	9-8, 4.70 ERA, 105 Ks, 1.58 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#39	Edwin Díaz	29	RHP	DNP – Torn Achilles
SU	#0	Adam Ottavino	38	RHP	12 SVs, 3.21 ERA, 62 Ks, 1.22 WHIP
RP	#25	Brooks Raley	35	LHP	3 SVs, 2.80 ERA, 61 Ks, 1.26 WHIP
RP	#30	Jake Diekman	37	LHP	56.2 IP, 3.34 ERA, 64 Ks, 1.32 WHIP – (CWS/TB)
RP	#52	Jorge López	31	RHP	3 SVs, 5.95 ERA, 49 Ks, 1.51 WHIP – (MIN/MIA/BAL)
RP	#33	Drew Smith	30	RHP	3 SVs, 4.15 ERA, 60 Ks, 1.40 WHIP
RP	#71	Sean Reid-Foley	28	RHP	7.2 IP, 3.52 ERA, 16 Ks, 1.30 WHIP
LNG	#51	Michael Tonkin	34	RHP	1 SV, 4.28 ERA, 75 Ks, 1.09 WHIP – (ATL)

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#34	Kodai Senga	31	RHP	Shoulder injury Potential return in June
SP	#23	David Peterson	28	LHP	Hip surgery Potential return in June
RP	#32	Max Kranick	26	RHP	Hamstring strain Potential return in May
INF	#10	Ronny Mauricio	23	L/R	Torn ACL Likely to miss entire season

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Joey Lucchesi – #47 (SP, Age: 30, LHP)
José Buttó – #70 (SP, Age: 26, RHP)
Shintaro Fujinami – #19 (RP, Age: 30, RHP)
Grant Hartwig – #56 (RP, Age: 26, RHP)
Josh Walker – #91 (RP, Age: 29, LHP)
Yohan Ramírez – #46 (RP, Age: 28, RHP)
Zack Short – #74 (INF, Age: 28, R/R)
Mark Vientos – #27 (3B/OF, Age: 24, R/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Jett Williams (SS/OF, Age: 20, R/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #45
Drew Gilbert (OF, Age: 23, L/L) – MLB Prospect Rank: #53
Luisangel Acuña (SS/2B, Age: 22, R/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #66
Christian Scott (P, Age: 24, RHP) – NYM Prospect Rank: #5
Blade Tidwell (P, Age: 22, RHP) – NYM Prospect Rank: #10
Mike Vasil (P, Age: 24, RHP) – NYM Prospect Rank: #11
Dominic Hamel (P, Age: 25, RHP) – NYM Prospect Rank: #14

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Cole Sulser (RP, Age: 34, RHP)
Tomás Nido (C, Age: 30, R/R)
Ji-Man Choi (1B, Age: 32, L/R)
Luke Voit (1B, Age: 33, R/R)
José Iglesias (SS, Age: 34, R/R)
Yolmer Sánchez (2B, Age: 31, S/R)
Ben Gamel (OF, Age: 31, L/L)
Trayce Thompson (OF, Age: 33, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: 1B Pete Alonso
Breakout Player: C Francisco Álvarez
Addition: DH J.D. Martinez
Grade: B-
Lineup Rank: 5th
Rotation Rank: 9th
Bullpen Rank: 4th

After a 2022 season that put them back on the scene as contenders, 2023 couldn’t be anything more than a disaster. The team decided to rehaul, dealing out every veteran with value for prospects, and veteran manager Buck Showalter was let go under new PBO David Stearns. Long-time Yankee bench coach Carlos Mendoza now takes over a team in a bit of a gap year as they await their young prospects and the stacked 2025 free agent class. Pete Alonso is entering his walk year and will be poised to bounce back, with other veterans in Jeff McNeil, Starling Marte, and Harrison Bader needing to show more consistency. Brett Baty will have every opportunity to prove himself as a young piece worth keeping. The late addition of all-star slugger J.D. Martinez will also give some extra life to the middle of the order.

The rotation is where things take a turn for the worst as Kodai Senga will miss the beginning of the season, throwing some players into the fire. Jose Quintana is now the ace and veterans Luis Severino, Sean Manaea, and Adrian Houser will look to hold down the rotation. The bullpen will still be good, with Edwin Diaz set to return and several solid veterans being added to work in the middle innings. I don’t anticipate a big year for the Mets and I don’t think anyone else does either. What I do think, is that they can be an above .500 team that makes a Wild Card push if all goes right. They still are returning the lineup that led them to 101 wins in 2022, and if healthy, should be able to get them over 81.

Philadelphia Phillies

Manager: Rob Thomson
3rd year, Career/Team record: 155-118, Playoff record: 19-11 – AGE: 60

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
DH	#12	Kyle Schwarber	31	L/R	.197 AVG, 47 HR, 104 RBI, .817 OPS
SS	#7	Trea Turner	30	R/R	.266 AVG, 26 HR, 76 RBI, 30 SB
1B	#3	Bryce Harper	31	L/R	.293 AVG, 21 HR, 72 RBI, .900 OPS
RF	#8	Nick Castellanos	32	R/R	.272 AVG, 29 HR, 106 RBI, 11 SB
C	#10	J.T. Realmuto	33	R/R	.252 AVG, 20 HR, 63 RBI, 16 SB
2B	#5	Bryson Stott	26	L/R	.280 AVG, 15 HR, 62 RBI, 31 SB
3B	#28	Alec Bohm	27	R/R	.274 AVG, 20 HR, 97 RBI, .765 OPS
LF	#9	Whit Merrifield	35	R/R	.272 AVG, 11 HR, 67 RBI, 26 SB – (TOR)
CF	#16	Brandon Marsh	26	L/R	.277 AVG, 12 HR, 60 RBI, .829 OPS

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#21	Garrett Stubbs	30	L/R	.204 AVG, 1 HR, 12 RBI, .557 OPS
INF	#33	Edmundo Sosa	28	R/R	.251 AVG, 10 HR, 30 RBI, .719 OPS
OF	#18	Johan Rojas	23	R/R	.302 AVG, 2 HR, 23 RBI, 14 SB
OF	#19	Cristian Pache	25	R/R	.238 AVG, 2 HR, 11 RBI, .736 OPS

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#45	Zack Wheeler	33	RHP	13-6, 3.61 ERA, 212 Ks, 1.08 WHIP
SP	#27	Aaron Nola	30	RHP	12-9, 4.46 ERA, 202 Ks, 1.15 WHIP
SP	#99	Taijuan Walker	31	RHP	15-6, 4.38 ERA, 138 Ks, 1.31 WHIP
SP	#22	Spencer Turnbull	31	RHP	1-4, 7.26 ERA, 24 Ks, 1.68 WHIP – (DET)
SP	#55	Ranger Suárez	28	LHP	4-6, 4.18 ERA, 119 Ks, 1.42 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#46	José Alvarado	28	LHP	10 SVs, 1.74 ERA, 64 Ks, 1.16 WHIP
SU	#30	Gregory Soto	29	LHP	3 SVs, 4.62 ERA, 65 Ks, 1.14 WHIP
RP	#58	Seranthony Dominguez	29	RHP	2 SVs, 3.78 ERA, 48 Ks, 1.40 WHIP
RP	#75	Connor Brogdon	29	RHP	29 IP, 4.03 ERA, 26 Ks, 1.45 WHIP
RP	#23	Jeff Hoffman	31	RHP	1 SV, 2.41 ERA, 69 Ks, 0.92 WHIP
RP	#50	Orion Kerkering (R)	22	RHP	3 IP, 0.00 ERA, 6 Ks, 1.33 WHIP
RP	#54	Dylan Covey	32	RHP	43 IP, 3.77 ERA, 30 Ks, 1.51 WHIP – (LAD/PHI)
LNG	#25	Matt Strahm	32	LHP	2 SVs, 3.29 ERA, 108 Ks, 1.02 WHIP

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Cristopher Sánchez – #61 (SP, Age: 27, LHP)
Kolby Allard – #43 (SP, Age: 26, LHP)
Yunior Marte – #43 (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Luis Ortiz – #56 (RP, Age: 28, RHP)
Michael Rucker – #39 (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Nick Nelson – #57 (RP, Age: 28, RHP)
Rafael Marchán – #13 (C, Age: 25, S/R)
Rodolfo Castro – #29 (UTIL, Age: 24, S/R)
Kody Clemens – #2 (INF, Age: 27, L/R)
Darick Hall – #24 (1B, Age: 28, L/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Mick Abel (P, Age: 22, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #49
Griff McGarry (P, Age: 24, RHP) – PHI Prospect Rank: #11
Carlos De La Cruz (OF, Age: 24, R/R) – PHI Prospect Rank: #13

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
José Ruiz (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Cam Gallagher (C, Age: 31, R/R)
Aramis Garcia (C, Age: 31, R/R)
Scott Kingery (UTIL, Age: 29, R/R)
David Dahl (OF, Age: 30, L/R)
Jordan Luplow (OF, Age: 30, R/R)
Cal Stevenson (OF, Age: 27, L/L)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: SS Trea Turner
Breakout Player: RP Orion Kerkering
Addition: 2B/OF Whit Merrifield
Grade: B+
Lineup Rank: 3rd
Rotation Rank: 4th
Bullpen Rank: 7th

While being extremely active on the market and ambitious to win, the Phillies will look to climb the mountain yet again and make it back to the World Series. The core of Schwarber, Harper, Castellanos, and Turner all return, with Bryce Harper taking over 1B full-time now. Veteran utility man Whit Merrifield was added and should see time in the corner outfield beside Marsh and Castellanos. The breakout of rookie Johan Rojas will make the OF a competitive core while he gets yo-yo’ed from the minors to the bigs. This lineup still remains lethal but is known to go cold at times.

Their two aces were locked up long-term with both Zach Wheeler and Aaron Nola signing contracts that should end their careers in Philly. Spencer Turnbull was added after being let go by Detroit, a player with high upside and low risk on a short deal. The back of the bullpen let Craig Kimbrel walk after a mediocre year in 2023, leading way for Jose Alvarado and Gregory Soto to be the ninth inning men. Young flame thrower Orion Kerkering was a huge call up for their playoff run and will be looked at as a solid reliever and their potential closer of the future. The Phillies are in a class just outside of the Braves and Dodgers atop the NL. They probably will need to be a Wild Card team again, but this hasn’t proven too detrimental to their runs in the past.

Washington Nationals

Manager: Dave Martinez
7th year, Career/Team record: 392-478, Playoff record: 12-5 – AGE: 59

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
SS	#5	C.J. Abrams	23	L/R	.245 AVG, 18 HR, 64 RBI, 47 SB
CF	#28	Lane Thomas	28	R/R	.268 AVG, 28 HR, 86 RBI, 20 SB
1B	#45	Joey Meneses	31	R/R	.275 AVG, 13 HR, 89 RBI, .722 OPS
LF	#24	Joey Gallo	30	L/R	.177 AVG, 21 HR, 40 RBI, .741 OPS – (MIN)
C	#20	Keibert Ruiz	25	S/R	.260 AVG, 18 HR, 67 RBI, .717 OPS
RF	#36	Stone Garrett	28	R/R	.269 AVG, 9 HR, 40 RBI, .801 OPS
DH	#6	Jesse Winker	30	L/L	.199 AVG, 1 HR, 23 RBI, .567 OPS – (MIL)
2B	#2	Luis Garcia Jr.	23	L/R	.266 AVG, 9 HR, 50 RBI, 9 SB
3B	#13	Nick Senzel	28	R/R	.236 AVG, 13 HR, 42 RBI, 6 SB – (CIN)

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#15	Riley Adams	27	R/R	.273 AVG, 4 HR, 21 RBI, .807 OPS
UTIL	#14	Ildemaro Vargas	32	S/R	.252 AVG, 4 HR, 31 RBI, .666 OPS
OF	#16	Victor Robles	26	R/R	.299 AVG, 0 HR, 8 RBI, 8 SB
OF	#17	Alex Call	29	R/R	.200 AVG, 8 HR, 38 RBI, 9 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#40	Josiah Gray	26	RHP	8-13, 3.91 ERA, 143 Ks, 1.46 WHIP
SP	#1	MacKenzie Gore	25	LHP	7-10, 4.42 ERA, 151 Ks, 1.40 WHIP
SP	#46	Patrick Corbin	34	LHP	10-15, 5.20 ERA, 124 Ks, 1.48 WHIP
SP	#32	Trevor Williams	31	RHP	6-10, 5.55 ERA, 111 Ks, 1.60 WHIP
SP	#27	Jake Irvin	27	RHP	3-7, 4.61 ERA, 99 Ks, 1.42 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#67	Kyle Finnegan	32	RHP	28 SVs, 3.76 ERA, 63 Ks, 1.30 WHIP
SU	#73	Hunter Harvey	29	RHP	10 SVs, 2.82 ERA, 67 Ks, 0.94 WHIP
RP	#44	Dylan Floro	33	RHP	7 SVs, 4.76 ERA, 58 Ks, 1.58 WHIP – (MIA/MIN)
RP	#71	Mason Thompson	26	RHP	1 SV, 5.50 ERA, 44 Ks, 1.56 WHIP
RP	#61	Robert Garcia	27	LHP	32 IP, 3.66 ERA, 33 Ks, 1.19 WHIP – (MIA/WSH)
RP	#51	Jordan Weems	31	RHP	54.2 IP, 3.62 ERA, 60 Ks, 1.21 WHIP
RP	#47	Jose Ferrer	24	LHP	34 IP, 5.03 ERA, 25 Ks, 1.47 WHIP
RP	#21	Tanner Rainey	31	RHP	1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1 K, 2.00 WHIP

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Cade Cavalli – #9 (SP, Age: 25, RHP) – WSH Prospect Rank: #4
Joan Adon – #60 (SP, Age: 25, RHP)
Jackson Rutledge – #79 (RP, Age: 25, RHP) – WSH Prospect Rank: #15
Thaddeus Ward – #68 (RP, Age: 27, RHP)
Drew Millas – #81 (C, Age: 26, S/R) – WSH Prospect Rank: #20
Jake Alu – #39 (INF, Age: 27, L/R)
Jacob Young – #30 (OF, Age: 24, R/R) – WSH Prospect Rank: #18

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Dylan Crews (OF, Age: 22, R/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #7
James Wood (OF, Age: 21, L/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #14
D.J. Herz (P, Age: 23, LHP) – WSH Prospect Rank: #12
Nasim Nuñez (INF, Age: 23, S/R) – WSH Prospect Rank: #19

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Zach Davies (SP, Age: 31, RHP)
Jacob Barnes (RP, Age: 33, RHP)
Richard Bleier (RP, Age: 36, LHP)
Robert Gsellman (RP, Age: 30, RHP)
Derek Law (RP, Age: 33, RHP)
Lewin Díaz (1B, Age: 27, L/L)
Juan Yepez (1B/OF, Age: 26, R/R)
Eddie Rosario (OF, Age: 32, L/R)
Travis Blankenhorn (UTIL, Age: 27, L/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: C Keibert Ruiz
Breakout Player: OF James Wood
Addition: RP Dylan Floro
Grade: D
Lineup Rank: 14th
Rotation Rank: 13th
Bullpen Rank: 14th

The Nationals enter the new season deep into their rebuild with some reinforcements ready to take place. Keibert Ruiz and C.J. Abrams have established themselves as the young pieces to build around, while both had fantastic 2023 seasons. Guys like Lane Thomas, Joey Meneses, and Stone Garrett have been solid surprises as well, providing solid complimentary bats. The team awaits the call ups of top prospects James Wood and Dylan Crews, two MLB top 15 prospects who will take over outfield duties alongside Thomas. Veterans Joey Gallo and Jesse Winker were also added to try to right the ships and bring their careers back to all-star levels.

The rotation is slowly but surely beginning to come together, led by former top prospects Josiah Gray and MacKenzie Gore who both had very positive 2023 seasons. Patrick Corbin still remains on his lucrative contract and the team still carries some baggage with Stephen Strasburg. Although the former World Series winner announced his retirement at the end of last season, he still remains under contract and Washington held out hope he would report to Spring Training as a mentor, despite not physically being able to pitch ever again. It’s a weird scenario that was swept under the rug across most MLB reporters this spring. Regardless this team is still in the developing stages of their young core and shouldn’t be seen as a true competitor just yet. Something could be building, but in a tough NL, they remain a 65-70 win team at best.

Chicago Cubs

Manager: Craig Counsell
1st year in CHC, Career record: 707-625, Playoff record: 7-12 – AGE: 53

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
2B	#2	Nico Hoerner	26	R/R	.283 AVG, 9 HR, 68 RBI, 43 SB
SS	#7	Dansby Swanson	30	R/R	.244 AVG, 22 HR, 80 RBI, 9 SB
LF	#8	Ian Happ	29	S/R	.248 AVG, 21 HR, 84 RBI, 14 SB
CF	#24	Cody Bellinger	28	L/L	.307 AVG, 26 HR, 97 RBI, 20 SB
DH	#5	Christopher Morel	24	R/R	.247 AVG, 26 HR, 70 RBI, .821 OPS
RF	#27	Seiya Suzuki	29	R/R	.285 AVG, 20 HR, 74 RBI, .842 OPS
3B	#16	Patrick Wisdom	32	R/R	.205 AVG, 23 HR, 46 RBI, .789 OPS
1B	#29	Michael Busch (R)	26	L/R	.167 AVG, 2 HR, 7 RBI, .539 OPS – (LAD)
C	#15	Yan Gomes	36	R/R	.267 AVG, 10 HR, 63 RBI, .723 OPS

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#9	Miguel Amaya	25	R/R	.214 AVG, 5 HR, 18 RBI, .688 OPS
INF	#1	Nick Madrigal	27	R/R	.263 AVG, 2 HR, 28 RBI, 10 SB
UTIL	#20	Miles Mastrobuoni	28	L/R	.241 AVG, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 13 SB
OF	#40	Mike Tauchman	33	L/L	.252 AVG, 8 HR, 48 RBI, .739 OPS

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#35	Justin Steele	28	LHP	16-5, 3.06 ERA, 176 Ks, 1.17 WHIP
SP	#28	Kyle Hendricks	34	RHP	6-8, 3.74 ERA, 93 Ks, 1.20 WHIP
SP	#18	Shōta Imanaga (R)	30	LHP	Played in NPB
SP	#36	Jordan Wicks (R)	24	LHP	4-1, 4.41 ERA, 24 Ks, 1.27 WHIP
SP	#72	Javier Assad	26	RHP	5-3, 3.05 ERA, 94 Ks, 1.23 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#73	Adbert Alzolay	29	RHP	22 SVs, 2.67 ERA, 67 Ks, 1.02 WHIP
SU	#51	Héctor Neris	34	RHP	2 SVs, 1.71 ERA, 77 Ks, 1.05 WHIP – (HOU)
RP	#74	José Cuas	29	RHP	1 SV, 3.99 ERA, 71 Ks, 1.50 WHIP – (KC/CHC)
RP	#66	Julian Merryweather	32	RHP	2 SVs, 3.38 ERA, 98 Ks, 1.31 WHIP
RP	#25	Yency Almonte	29	RHP	48 IP, 5.06 ERA, 49 Ks, 1.40 WHIP – (LAD)
RP	#38	Mark Leiter Jr.	33	RHP	4 SVs, 3.50 ERA, 77 Ks, 1.12 WHIP
RP	#43	Luke Little (R)	23	LHP	6.2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 12 Ks, 1.35 WHIP
LNG	#11	Drew Smyly	34	LHP	11-11, 5.00 ERA, 141 Ks, 1.43 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#50	Jameson Taillon	32	RHP	Back injury Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Hayden Wesneski – #19 (SP, Age: 26, RHP)
Caleb Killian – #45 (SP, Age: 26, RHP)
Keegan Thompson – #71 (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Daniel Palencia – #48 (RP, Age: 24, RHP)
Matt Mervis – #22 (1B, Age: 25, L/R) – CHC Prospect Rank: #15
Pete Crow-Armstrong – #52 (OF, Age: 22, L/L) – MLB Prospect Rank: #16
Alex Canario – #4 (OF, Age: 23, R/R) – CHC Prospect Rank: #12

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Cade Horton (P, Age: 22, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #26
Owen Caissie (OF, Age: 21, L/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #47
Ben Brown (P, Age: 24, RHP) – CHC Prospect Rank: #11

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Carl Edwards Jr. (RP, Age: 32, RHP)
Colten Brewer (RP, Age: 31, RHP)
Brad Wieck (RP, Age: 32, LHP)
Jorge Alfaro (C, Age: 30, R/R)
Garrett Cooper (1B/OF, Age: 33, R/R)
David Peralta (OF, Age: 36, L/L)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: CF Cody Bellinger
Breakout Player: SP Shota Imanaga
Addition: SP Shota Imanaga
Grade: B-
Lineup Rank: 10th
Rotation Rank: 8th
Bullpen Rank: 12th

The Cubs attacked this offseason with the same mindset as last year, acquire veterans while also embracing the youth movement. Craig Counsell was brought in in a shocking move that pushed David Ross out as manager of the team. After having a resurgent year in 2023, Cody Bellinger was brought back for at least one more year and rejoins the outfield with Seiya Suzuki and Ian Happ. Dansby Swanson has become the team captain at short stop while Nico Hoerner and Patrick Wisdom round out a solid infield. The team will await the arrival of Pete Crow-Armstrong, their top prospect who got a cup of coffee in the majors last year.

The rotation saw the emergence of a young ace in Justin Steele while veteran Kyle Hendricks was retained to end his career as a Cub. Marcus Stroman left in free agency but will be replaced by star Japanese lefty Shota Imanaga. Adbert Alzolay stepped up big time as the closer a year ago and looks to be the lead ninth inning man to start this season. The bullpen also added veteran Hector Neris who has closer experience, along with Jose Cuas and Julian Merryweather in the back end. The NL Central is very wide open and competitive this year, with practically 4 of the 5 teams having legitimate shots to win the division. My hunch is that the Cubs take the crown, with their solid mix of productive veterans and top prospects on the verge of coming up.

Cincinnati Reds

Manager: David Bell
6th year, Career/Team record: 333-375, Playoff record: 0-2 – AGE: 51

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
2B	#6	Jonathan India	27	R/R	.244 AVG, 17 HR, 61 RBI, 14 SB
SS	#44	Elly De La Cruz	22	S/R	.235 AVG, 13 HR, 44 RBI, 35 SB
1B	#7	Spencer Steer	26	R/R	.271 AVG, 23 HR, 86 RBI, .820 OPS
C	#37	Tyler Stephenson	27	R/R	.243 AVG, 13 HR, 56 RBI, .696 OPS
3B	#3	Jeimer Candelario	30	S/R	.251 AVG, 22 HR, 70 RBI, .807 OPS – (WSH/CHC)
DH	#33	Christian Encarnacion-Strand	24	R/R	.270 AVG, 13 HR, 37 RBI, .805 OPS
LF	#30	Will Benson	25	L/L	.275 AVG, 11 HR, 31 RBI, 19 SB
RF	#27	Jake Fraley	28	L/L	.256 AVG, 15 HR, 65 RBI, 21 SB
CF	#17	Stuart Fairchild	28	R/R	.228 AVG, 5 HR, 28 RBI, 10 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#22	Luke Maile	33	R/R	.235 AVG, 6 HR, 25 RBI, .699 OPS
INF	#4	Santiago Espinal	29	R/R	.248 AVG, 2 HR, 25 RBI, .644 OPS – (TOR)
OF	#23	Nick Martini	33	L/L	.264 AVG, 6 HR, 16 RBI, .912 OPS
OF	#66	Bubba Thompson	25	R/R	.170 AVG, 0 HR, 4 RBI, 4 SB – (TEX)

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#21	Hunter Greene	24	RHP	4-7, 4.82 ERA, 152 Ks, 1.42 WHIP
SP	#51	Graham Ashcraft	26	RHP	7-9, 4.76 ERA, 111 Ks, 1.37 WHIP
SP	#47	Frankie Montas	31	RHP	1.1 IP, 0.00 ERA, 1 K, 2.25 WHIP – (NYY)
SP	#28	Nick Martinez	33	RHP	1 SV, 3.43 ERA, 106 Ks, 1.26 WHIP – (SD)
SP	#41	Andrew Abbott	24	LHP	8-6, 3.87 ERA, 120 Ks, 1.32 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#43	Alexis Díaz	27	RHP	37 SVs, 3.07 ERA, 86 Ks, 1.19 WHIP
SU	#15	Emilio Pagán	32	RHP	1 SV, 2.99 ERA, 65 Ks, 0.95 WHIP – (MIN)
RP	#39	Lucas Sims	29	RHP	3 SVs, 3.10 ERA, 72 Ks, 1.18 WHIP
RP	#32	Justin Wilson	36	LHP	DNP – Injured – MIL
RP	#46	Buck Farmer	33	RHP	3 SVs, 4.20 ERA, 70 Ks, 1.16 WHIP
RP	#63	Fernando Cruz	33	RHP	66 IP, 4.91 ERA, 98 Ks, 1.21 WHIP
RP	#70	Tejay Antone	30	RHP	5.2 IP, 1.59 ERA, 7 Ks, 0.88 WHIP
LNG	#31	Brent Suter	34	LHP	69.1 IP, 3.38 ERA, 55 Ks, 1.30 WHIP – (COL)

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SS	#9	Matt McLain	24	R/R	Shoulder injury Potential return in May
SS	#16	Noelvi Marte (R)	22	R/R	PED Suspension First 80 games of season
CF	#29	T.J. Friedl	28	L/L	Broken wrist Potential return in June
SP	#55	Brandon Williamson	25	LHP	Shoulder soreness Potential return in May
RP	#50	Sam Moll	32	LHP	Shoulder injury Potential return in May
RP	#48	Alex Young	30	LHP	Back injury Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Nick Lodolo – #40 (SP, Age: 26, LHP)
Connor Phillips – #34 (SP, Age: 22, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #70
Lyon Richardson – #72 (SP, Age: 24, RHP) – CIN Prospect Rank: #14
Carson Spiers – #68 (SP, Age: 26, RHP
Ian Gibaut – #79 (RP, Age: 30, RHP)
Casey Legumina – #65 (RP, Age: 26, RHP)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Rhett Lowder (P, Age: 22, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #34
Blake Dunn (OF, Age: 25, R/R) – CIN Prospect Rank: #11

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Justin Bruihl (RP, Age: 26, LHP)
Tony Santillan (RP, Age: 26, RHP)
Austin Wynns (C, Age: 33, R/R)
Mike Ford (1B, Age: 31, L/R)
Mark Mathias (UTIL, Age: 29, R/R)
Erik González (INF, Age: 32, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: C Tyler Stephenson
Breakout Player: SP Nick Martinez
Addition: 3B/1B Jeimer Candelario
Grade: C+
Lineup Rank: 8th
Rotation Rank: 11th
Bullpen Rank: 9th

The Reds made an all out push a year ago, introducing their new young prospects while finishing above .500 at 82-80. Now with a path wide open to win the division, Cincy may seem to some as the clear favorite to win the NL Central crown. They will start the season with their young core healthy. Elly De La Cruz will man SS, Christian Encarnacion-Strand should see time as a DH and 3B, Spencer Steer will replace Joey Votto as the team’s 1B, and Jonathan India remains at 2B. When Matt McLain returns from injury he should be the everyday SS, while top prospect Noelvi Marte will miss half the season due to a positive PED test. Veteran Jeimer Candelario will see time all around the diamond, especially at his main position at 3B.

Hunter Greene and Graham Ashcraft enter as the top dogs of the rotation with Nick Lodolo and Connor Phillips looking for starts as well. Veterans Frankie Montas and Nick Martinez were signed to give some experience to a rotation that was led by practically only young prospects over the past couple of years. Andrew Abbott also had a solid 2023 season and will be in the mix with several others for rotation spots, barring injuries. Alexis Diaz has become the team’s lead closer, following in his brother Edwin’s footsteps. I like this Reds team a lot, but I do feel like there will be some growing pains. The young pieces will all need to gel together, and sure something like what happened to the Orioles last year is possible, but not extremely likely. They will be neck and neck with the Cubs and Cardinals atop the division all season though, with plenty of back and forth division leads.

Milwaukee Brewers

Manager: Pat Murphy
1st year in MIL, Career record: 42-54 – AGE: 65

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
LF	#22	Christian Yelich	32	L/R	.278 AVG, 19 HR, 76 RBI, 28 SB
C	#24	William Contreras	26	R/R	.291 AVG, 17 HR, 78 RBI, .828 OPS
SS	#27	Willy Adames	28	R/R	.217 AVG, 24 HR, 80 RBI, .717 OPS
1B	#12	Rhys Hoskins	31	R/R	DNP – Torn ACL – PHI
DH	#99	Gary Sánchez	31	R/R	.217 AVG, 19 HR, 47 RBI, .780 OPS – (NYM/SD)
CF	#11	Jackson Chourio (R)	20	R/R	MLB Prospect Rank: #2
RF	#10	Sal Frelick	23	L/R	.246 AVG, 3 HR, 24 RBI, 7 SB
3B	#3	Joey Ortiz (R)	25	R/R	7/33, 0 HR, 4 RBI, .448 OPS – (BAL)
2B	#2	Brice Turang	24	L/R	.218 AVG, 6 HR, 34 RBI, 26 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#13	Eric Haase	31	R/R	.201 AVG, 4 HR, 26 RBI, 4 SB – (DET/CLE)
UTIL	#14	Andruw Monasterio	26	R/R	.259 AVG, 3 HR, 27 RBI, 7 SB
OF/1B	#9	Jake Bauers	28	L/L	.202 AVG, 12 HR, 30 RBI, .693 OPS – (NYY)
OF	#5	Garrett Mitchell	25	L/R	.246 AVG, 3 HR, 7 RBI, .761 OPS

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#51	Freddy Peralta	27	RHP	12-10, 3.86 ERA, 210 Ks, 1.12 WHIP
SP	#48	Colin Rea	33	RHP	6-6, 4.55 ERA, 110 Ks, 1.19 WHIP
SP	#37	DL Hall	25	LHP	3-0, 3.26 ERA, 23 Ks, 1.19 WHIP – (BAL)
SP	#35	Jakob Junis	31	RHP	1 SV, 3.87 ERA, 96 Ks, 1.29 WHIP – (SF)
SP	#41	Joe Ross	30	RHP	DNP – Played in AAA – SF

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#45	Abner Uribe	23	RHP	1 SV, 1.76 ERA, 39 Ks, 1.17 WHIP
SU	#31	Joel Payamps	29	RHP	3 SVs, 2.55 ERA, 77 Ks, 1.05 WHIP
RP	#55	Hoby Milner	33	LHP	64.1 IP, 1.82 ERA, 59 Ks, 0.96 WHIP
RP	#59	Elvis Peguero	27	RHP	1 SV, 3.38 ERA, 54 Ks, 1.22 WHIP
RP	#32	Taylor Clarke	30	RHP	3 SVs, 5.95 ERA, 65 Ks, 1.61 WHIP – (KC)
RP	#29	Trevor Megill	30	RHP	34.2 IP, 3.63 ERA, 52 Ks, 1.36 WHIP
RP	#50	J.B. Bukauskas	27	RHP	7 IP, 1.29 ERA, 7 Ks, 1.29 WHIP – (SEA/MIL)
LNG	#46	Bryse Wilson	26	RHP	3 SVs, 2.58 ERA, 61 Ks, 1.07 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#53	Brandon Woodruff	31	RHP	Shoulder surgery Likely to miss entire season
SP	#20	Wade Miley	37	LHP	Groin injury Potential return in May
CP	#38	Devin Williams	29	RHP	Back fractures Potential return in July

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Aaron Ashby – #26 (SP, Age: 25, LHP)
Janson Junk – #56 (SP, Age: 28, RHP)
Thyago Vieira – #49 (RP, Age: 31, RHP)
Bryan Hudson – #78 (RP, Age: 26, LHP)
Owen Miller – #6 (INF, Age: 27, R/R)
Blake Perkins – #16 (OF, Age: 27, S/R)
Joey Wiemer – #28 (OF, Age: 25, R/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Jeferson Quero (C, Age: 21, R/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #35
Tyler Black (3B/1B, Age: 23, L/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #46
Robert Gasser (P, Age: 24, LHP) – MIL Prospect Rank: #6
Carlos Rodriguez (P, Age: 22, RHP – MIL Prospect Rank: #8

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Rob Zastryzny (RP, Age: 32, LHP)
Christian Arroyo (UTIL, Age: 28, R/R)
Yonny Hernández (INF, Age: 25, S/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: CP Devin Williams
Breakout Player: OF Jackson Chourio
Addition: 1B Rhys Hoskins
Grade: C-
Lineup Rank: 13th
Rotation Rank: 14th
Bullpen Rank: 11th

After the departure of manager Craig Counsell, the Brewers have seemed to enter a rebuild with several pieces being offloaded. Star ace Corbin Burnes was dealt to the Orioles on an expiring contract and the offense looks to be headed in a young direction. Christian Yelich still remains on his long-term deal, and Willy Adames has an expiring contract that he will play out and potentially get traded at the deadline. Veteran power hitters Rhys Hoskins and Gary Sanchez were brought in to assure the middle of the order has some type of power around the young pieces. The outfield will be wide open for prospects Sal Frelick, Garrett Mitchell, Blake Perkins and Jackson Chourio to spend plenty of time and eventually take over alongside Yelich.

The rotation is going to be pieced together all year long by whoever can prove their worth, with Freddy Peralta being the only real staple as the ace. DL Hall who was acquired in the Burnes trade, will begin in the rotation with Colin Rea and Jakob Junis, two arms that had solid 2023 seasons. Joe Ross also returns after a year spent in the minors and he will try to revive his career with one of the rotation spots. Star closer Devin Williams is slated to miss significant time, paving the way for youngsters Abner Uribe and Joel Payamps to aid the back end of the bullpen. No one will anticipate the Brewers being any bit of a real threat even in a division that is so wide open for the taking.

Pittsburgh Pirates

Manager: Derek Shelton
5th year, Career/Team record: 218-328 – AGE: 53

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
SS	#15	Oneil Cruz	25	L/R	8/32, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 3 SB
LF	#10	Bryan Reynolds	29	S/R	.263 AVG, 24 HR, 84 RBI, 12 SB
DH	#22	Andrew McCutchen	37	R/R	.256 AVG, 12 HR, 43 RBI, 11 SB
3B	#13	Ke’Bryan Hayes	27	R/R	.271 AVG, 15 HR, 61 RBI, 10 SB
1B	#44	Rowdy Tellez	29	L/L	.215 AVG, 13 HR, 47 RBI, .667 OPS – (MIL)
C	#32	Henry Davis	24	R/R	.213 AVG, 7 HR, 24 RBI, .653 OPS
CF	#65	Jack Suwinski	25	L/L	.224 AVG, 26 HR, 74 RBI, .793 OPS
2B	#19	Jared Triolo	26	R/R	.298 AVG, 3 HR, 21 RBI, .785 OPS
RF	#38	Edward Olivares	28	R/R	.263 AVG, 12 HR, 36 RBI, 11 SB – (KC)

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#55	Jason Delay	29	R/R	.251 AVG, 1 HR, 18 RBI, .666 OPS
3B/1B	#18	Jake Lamb	33	L/R	.216 AVG, 2 HR, 5 RBI, .612 OPS – (LAA)
OF	#93	Michael A. Taylor	32	R/R	.220 AVG, 21 HR, 51 RBI, 13 SB – (MIN)
OF/1B	#2	Connor Joe	31	R/R	.247 AVG, 11 HR, 42 RBI, .760 OPS

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#23	Mitch Keller	27	RHP	13-9, 4.21 ERA, 210 Ks, 1.25 WHIP
SP	#54	Martín Pérez	32	LHP	10-4, 4.45 ERA, 93 Ks, 1.40 WHIP – (TEX)
SP	#27	Marco Gonzales	32	LHP	4-1, 5.22 ERA, 34 Ks, 1.46 WHIP – (SEA)
SP	#48	Luis Ortiz	25	RHP	5-5, 4.78 ERA, 59 Ks, 1.70 WHIP
SP	#59	Roansy Contreras	24	RHP	3-7, 6.59 ERA, 55 Ks, 1.57 WHIP

POS.	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#51	David Bednar	29	RHP	39 SVs, 2.00 ERA, 80 Ks, 1.10 WHIP
SU	#45	Aroldis Chapman	36	LHP	6 SVs, 3.09 ERA, 103 Ks, 1.25 WHIP – (KC/TEX)
RP	#43	Ryan Borucki	29	LHP	40.1 IP, 2.45 ERA, 33 Ks, 0.74 WHIP
RP	#35	Colin Holderman	28	RHP	2 SVs, 3.86 ERA, 58 Ks, 1.34 WHIP
RP	#50	Carmen Mlodzinski	25	RHP	1 SV, 2.25 ERA, 34 Ks, 1.28 WHIP
RP	#64	Quinn Priester	23	RHP	3-3, 7.74 ERA, 36 Ks, 1.70 WHIP
LNG	#28	Josh Fleming	27	LHP	51.2 IP, 4.70 ERA, 25 Ks, 1.45 WHIP – (TB)
LNG	#26	Bailey Falter	26	LHP	2-9, 5.36 ERA, 60 Ks, 1.41 WHIP – (PHI/PIT)

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
C	#6	Yasmani Grandal	35	S/R	Foot injury Potential return in May
C	#5	Endy Rodríguez	23	S/R	Elbow surgery Likely to miss entire season
SP	#24	Johan Oviedo	26	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Likely to miss entire season
SP	#34	J.T. Brubaker	30	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in June
RP	#36	Dauri Moreta	27	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Likely to miss entire season

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Jose Hernandez – #61 (RP, Age: 26, LHP)
Colin Selby – #52 (RP, Age: 26, RHP)
Kyle Nicolas – #62 (RP, Age: 25, RHP)
Ali Sánchez – #14 (C, Age: 27, R/R)
Ji-Hwan Bae – #3 (INF, Age: 24, L/R)
Nick Gonzales – #39 (INF, Age: 24, R/R)
Liover Peguero – #31 (SS, Age: 23, R/R)
Canaan Smith-Njigba – #0 (OF, Age: 25, L/R)
Josh Palacios – #77 (OF, Age: 28, L/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Paul Skenes (P, Age: 21, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #3
Jared Jones (P, Age: 22, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #62
Anthony Solometo (P, Age: 21, LHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #82
Braxton Ashcraft (P, Age: 24, RHP) – PIT Prospect Rank: #7
Mike Burrows (P, Age: 24, RHP) – PIT Prospect Rank: #11

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Domingo Germán (SP, Age: 31, RHP)
Brent Honeywell (SP, Age: 28, RHP)
Wily Peralta (RP, Age: 34, RHP)
Sergio Alcántara (UTIL, Age: 27, S/R)
Billy McKinney (OF, Age: 29, L/L)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: SP Mitch Keller
Breakout Player: C Henry Davis
Addition: RP Aroldis Chapman
Grade: C
Lineup Rank: 11th
Rotation Rank: 12th
Bullpen Rank: 5th

In what seems like a rebuild that will never end, the Pirates had a very solid 2023 season and look to build on it for the future. Young pieces in Ke’Bryan Hayes and Jack Suwinski have become solid everyday players while team leader Bryan Reynolds was locked up long-term. Oneil Cruz will return after missing all but 9 games due to injury and top prospect Henry Davis will try to build on positives from a shaky rookie year. Franchise legend Andrew McCutchen was again signed to a 1-year deal to ultimately end his career in Pittsburgh. A couple of interesting veterans in Rowdy Tellez and Michael A. Taylor will provide some depth to the young core.

The main storyline around the pitching core will be the eventual debut of top prospect Paul Skenes, who shined in Spring Training. The hope is for him and Mitch Keller to headline the top of the rotation for years to come. Luis Ortiz and Roansy Contreras were a couple of solid young starters a year ago and newly acquired Bailey Falter and Josh Fleming will also fight for rotation spots. David Bednar remains one of the games best closers and Aroldis Chapman was signed to join him in the back end. Pittsburgh has the potential to be a sneaky competitor this year and I do like their chances. I’m not entirely convinced they’re ready to compete just yet, but the young core is beginning to come together.

St. Louis Cardinals

Manager: Oliver Marmol
3rd year, Career/Team record: 164-160, Playoff record: 0-2 – AGE: 37

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
CF	#19	Tommy Edman	28	S/R	.248 AVG, 13 HR, 47 RBI, 27 SB
2B	#33	Brendan Donovan	27	L/R	.284 AVG, 11 HR, 34 RBI, .787 OPS
1B	#46	Paul Goldschmidt	36	R/R	.268 AVG, 25 HR, 80 RBI, .810 OPS
3B	#28	Nolan Arenado	32	R/R	.266 AVG, 26 HR, 93 RBI, .774 OPS
C	#40	Willson Contreras	31	R/R	.264 AVG, 20 HR, 67 RBI, .826 OPS
LF	#16	Nolan Gorman	23	L/R	.236 AVG, 27 HR, 76 RBI, .805 OPS
RF	#18	Jordan Walker	21	R/R	.276 AVG, 16 HR, 51 RBI, .787 OPS
DH	#13	Matt Carpenter	38	L/R	.176 AVG, 5 HR, 31 RBI, .641 OPS – (SD)
SS	#0	Masyn Winn (R)	22	R/R	.172 AVG, 2 HR, 12 RBI, 2 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#48	Iván Herrera	23	R/R	11/37, 0 HR, 4 RBI, .760 OPS
SS	#35	Brandon Crawford	37	L/R	.194 AVG, 7 HR, 38 RBI, 3 SB – (SF)
OF	#3	Dylan Carlson	25	S/L	.219 AVG, 5 HR, 27 RBI, .651 OPS
OF/1B	#41	Alec Burleson	25	L/L	.244 AVG, 8 HR, 36 RBI, .691 OPS

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#39	Miles Mikolas	35	RHP	9-13, 4.78 ERA, 137 Ks, 1.32 WHIP
SP	#31	Lance Lynn	36	RHP	13-11, 5.73 ERA, 191 Ks, 1.39 WHIP – (CWS/LAD)
SP	#44	Kyle Gibson	36	RHP	15-9, 4.73 ERA, 157 Ks, 1.32 WHIP – (BAL)
SP	#52	Matthew Liberatore	24	LHP	3-6, 5.25 ERA, 46 Ks, 1.48 WHIP
SP	#32	Steven Matz	32	LHP	4-7, 3.86 ERA, 98 Ks, 1.33 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#56	Ryan Helsley	29	RHP	14 SVs, 2.45 ERA, 52 Ks, 1.06 WHIP
SU	#65	Giovanny Gallegos	32	RHP	10 SVs, 4.42 ERA, 59 Ks, 1.20 WHIP
RP	#27	Andrew Kittredge	34	RHP	1 SV, 3.09 ERA, 10 Ks, 1.20 WHIP – (TB)
RP	#47	John King	29	LHP	37.1 IP, 3.62 ERA, 20 Ks, 1.47 WHIP
RP	#53	Andre Pallante	25	RHP	68 IP, 4.76 ERA, 43 Ks, 1.56 WHIP
RP	#38	Ryan Tepera	36	RHP	10.2 IP, 7.59 ERA, 11 Ks, 2.06 WHIP – (LAA/STL)
RP	#59	JoJo Romero	27	LHP	3 SVs, 3.68 ERA, 42 Ks, 1.06 WHIP
LNG	#57	Zack Thompson	26	LHP	66.1 IP, 4.48 ERA, 72 Ks, 1.42 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
CF	#21	Lars Nootbaar	26	L/R	Fractured ribs Potential return in May
SP	#54	Sonny Gray	34	RHP	Hamstring strain Potential return in May
RP	#93	Keynan Middleton	30	RHP	Forearm strain Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Drew Rom – #38 (SP, Age: 24, LHP) – STL Prospect Rank: #29
Nick Robertson – #29 (RP, Age: 25, RHP)
Riley O’Brien – #55 (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Luken Baker – #26 (1B/OF, Age: 27, R/R)
Alfonso Rivas – #22 (1B/3B, Age: 27, L/L)
José Fermín – #15 (INF, Age: 25, R/R)
Michael Siani – #63 (OF, Age: 24, L/L)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Tink Hence (P, Age: 21, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #64
Tekoah Roby (P, Age: 22, RHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #99
Victor Scott (OF, Age: 23, L/L) – STL Prospect Rank: #4
Thomas Saggese (INF, Age: 21, R/R) – STL Prospect Rank: #5
Gordon Graceffo (P, Age: 24, RHP) – STL Prospect Rank: #9
Sem Robberse (P, Age: 22, RHP) – STL Prospect Rank: #13
Michael McGreevy (P, Age: 23, RHP) – STL Prospect Rank: #15
Pedro Pagés (C, Age: 25, R/R) – STL Prospect Rank: #16

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Packy Naughton (RP, Age: 28, LHP)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: 3B Nolan Arenado
Breakout Player: RF Jordan Walker
Addition: SP Sonny Gray
Grade: C+
Lineup Rank: 7th
Rotation Rank: 10th
Bullpen Rank: 10th

In 2023 the Cardinals saw a very uncharacteristically down year that had them well under .500. One of the main culprits to this was their rotation, and they took it upon themselves to add plenty of veteran arms. Offensively, they will be headlined by a young core with Masyn Winn set to take over SS duties and Jordan Walker slated to be a regular in the outfield this year. Goldschmidt, Arenado, and Contreras are still the high paid veterans, but the rest of the team will be full of utility pieced. Tommy Edman, Brendan Donovan, and Nolan Gorman can all practically play anywhere and they will all see time at various positions. Several top prospects are also knocking on the door, making for an array of positional battles.

As said earlier, the rotation has been well adjusted to add several veterans in hopes of containing more consistency. Sonny Gray, Lance Lynn, and Kyle Gibson were all signed to sure up the top of the starters with Miles Mikolas, Steven Matz, Matthew Liberatore, and Zack Thompson in the mix. Top 100 prospects Tink Hence and Tekoah Roby should both debut this year as well and create more possibilities in the rotation and bullpen. Giovanny Gallegos and Ryan Helsley should see a mix of time as the closer once again. After a down year, it’s tough to imagine St. Louis not bouncing back and having a much better year. This division is so wide open as well so a title is definitely in the mix. I’m not very sold on them over Chicago or Cincinnati though, but they will inevitably be a Wild Card threat.

Arizona Diamondbacks

Manager: Torey Lovullo
8th year, Career/Team record: 495-537, Playoff record: 11-10 – AGE: 58

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
SS	#2	Geraldo Perdomo	24	S/R	.246 AVG, 6 HR, 47 RBI, 16 SB
2B	#4	Ketel Marte	30	S/R	.276 AVG, 25 HR, 82 RBI, .844 OPS
LF	#7	Corbin Carroll	23	L/L	.285 AVG, 25 HR, 76 RBI, 54 SB
1B	#53	Christian Walker	32	R/R	.258 AVG, 33 HR, 103 RBI, .830 OPS
DH	#3	Joc Pederson	31	L/L	.235 AVG, 15 HR, 51 RBI, .764 OPS – (SF)
RF	#12	Lourdes Gurriel Jr.	30	R/R	.261 AVG, 24 HR, 82 RBI, .772 OPS
3B	#28	Eugenio Suárez	32	R/R	.232 AVG, 22 HR, 96 RBI, .714 OPS – (SEA)
C	#14	Gabriel Moreno	24	R/R	.284 AVG, 7 HR, 50 RBI, 6 SB
CF	#5	Alek Thomas	23	L/L	.230 AVG, 9 HR, 39 RBI, 9 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#11	Jose Herrera	27	S/R	.208 AVG, 0 HR, 7 RBI, .553 OPS
UTIL	#6	Jace Peterson	33	L/R	.211 AVG, 6 HR, 37 RBI, 15 SB – (OAK/ARI)
OF	#15	Randal Grichuk	32	R/R	.267 AVG, 16 HR, 44 RBI, .779 OPS – (COL/LAA)
OF	#31	Jake McCarthy	26	L/L	.243 AVG, 2 HR, 16 RBI, 26 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#23	Zac Gallen	28	RHP	17-9, 3.47 ERA, 220 Ks, 1.12 WHIP
SP	#29	Merrill Kelly	35	RHP	12-8, 3.29 ERA, 187 Ks, 1.19 WHIP
SP	#32	Brandon Pfaadt	25	RHP	3-9, 5.72 ERA, 94 Ks, 1.41 WHIP
SP	#47	Tommy Henry	26	LHP	5-4, 4.15 ERA, 64 Ks, 1.36 WHIP
SP	#19	Ryne Nelson	26	RHP	8-8, 5.31 ERA, 96 Ks, 1.42 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#38	Paul Sewald	33	RHP	34 SVs, 3.12 ERA, 80 Ks, 1.15 WHIP – (SEA/ARI)
SU	#37	Kevin Ginkel	29	RHP	4 SVs, 2.48 ERA, 70 Ks, 0.98 WHIP
RP	#30	Scott McGough	34	RHP	9 SVs, 4.73 ERA, 86 Ks, 1.28 WHIP
RP	#35	Joe Mantiply	33	LHP	39 IP, 4.62 ERA, 28 Ks, 1.13 WHIP
RP	#50	Miguel Castro	29	RHP	7 SVs, 4.31 ERA, 60 Ks, 1.18 WHIP
RP	#81	Ryan Thompson	31	RHP	1 SV, 3.82 ERA, 21 Ks, 0.91 WHIP – (TB/ARI)
RP	#65	Luis Frías	25	RHP	31 IP, 4.06 ERA, 26 Ks, 1.52 WHIP
RP	#24	Kyle Nelson	27	LHP	56 IP, 4.18 ERA, 67 Ks, 1.30 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#57	Eduardo Rodríguez	30	LHP	Lat strain Potential return in May
RP	#99	Drey Jameson	26	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Likely to miss entire season

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Bryce Jarvis – #40 (SP, Age: 26, RHP) – ARI Prospect Rank: #30
Corbin Martin – #25 (SP, Age: 28, RHP)
Slade Cecconi – #43 (SP, Age: 24, RHP) – ARI Prospect Rank: #18
Justin Martinez – #63 (RP, Age: 22, RHP) – ARI Prospect Rank: #27
Peter Strzelecki – #33 (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Andrew Saalfrank – #27 (RP, Age: 26, LHP) – ARI Prospect Rank: #26
Jordan Lawlar – #10 (SS, Age: 21, R/R) – MLB Prospect Rank: #11
Emmanuel Rivera – #13 (INF, Age: 27, R/R)
Pavin Smith – #26 (OF/1B, Age: 28, L/L)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Yu-Min Lin (P, Age: 20, LHP) – ARI Prospect Rank: #4
Cristian Mena (P, Age: 21, RHP) – ARI Prospect Rank: #11
Jorge Barrosa (OF, Age: 23, S/L) – ARI Prospect Rank: #12
Deyvison De Los Santos (3B/1B, Age: 20, R/R) – ARI Prospect Rank: #14

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Brandon Hughes (SP, Age: 28, LHP)
Humberto Castellanos (SP, Age: 26, RHP)
Logan Allen (SP, Age: 26, LHP)
Tucker Barnhart (C, Age: 33, L/R)
Kevin Newman (INF, Age: 30, R/R)
Albert Almora Jr. (OF, Age: 30, R/R)
Kyle Garlick (OF, Age: 32, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: LF Corbin Carroll
Breakout Player: SS Jordan Lawlar
Addition: SP Eduardo Rodriguez
Grade: B+
Lineup Rank: 4th
Rotation Rank: 3rd
Bullpen Rank: 6th

The Diamondbacks quickly jumped from rebuilders to title contenders in 2023 after sneaking in as a Wild Card and ultimately making it to their second World Series in franchise history. Although they ultimately lost to the Rangers, this shines a strong light on the future that is being developed in Arizona. Corbin Carroll bursted onto the scene as one of the premier young outfielders, winning ROY and being named an all-star. Ketel Marte had a great bounce back season and Christian Walker eclipsed 100 RBI’s. The offense stayed active this offseason by adding power hitting 3B Eugenio Suarez, Joc Pederson, and Randal Grichuk. And with top prospect Jordan Lawlar on the horizon, this has quickly become one of the best lineups in the game.

The rotation only improved as well with Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly returning as the headliners. Eduardo Rodriguez was signed on a multi-year deal to add a dynamic third option to the rotation. Last year’s rookies Brandon Pfaadt, Tommy Henry, and Ryne Nelson all pitched big innings in their playoff run and will be solid additional rotation pieces. Paul Sewald remains the closer after being acquired from Seattle, while Joe Mantiply and Scott McGough round out the back end. This team should bounce back with an even better regular season and are undoubtedly a huge threat to make it back out of the NL. The Dodgers will be tough to top in the division, but Arizona has the second place edge over Giants and Padres.

Colorado Rockies

Manager: Bud Black
8th year in COL, Career record: 1,125-1,269, Team record: 476-556, Playoff record: 1-4 – AGE: 66

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
DH	#19	Charlie Blackmon	37	L/L	.279 AVG, 8 HR, 40 RBI, .803 OPS
SS	#14	Ezequiel Tovar	22	R/R	.253 AVG, 15 HR, 73 RBI, 11 SB
3B	#24	Ryan McMahon	29	L/R	.240 AVG, 23 HR, 70 RBI, .753 OPS
C	#35	Elias Díaz	33	R/R	.267 AVG, 14 HR, 72 RBI, .725 OPS
RF	#23	Kris Bryant	32	R/R	.233 AVG, 10 HR, 31 RBI, .680 OPS
LF	#22	Nolan Jones	25	L/R	.297 AVG, 20 HR, 62 RBI, .931 OPS
2B	#7	Brendan Rodgers	27	R/R	.258 AVG, 4 HR, 20 RBI, .700 OPS
1B	#44	Elehuris Montero	25	R/R	.243 AVG, 11 HR, 39 RBI, .716 OPS
CF	#9	Brenton Doyle	25	R/R	.203 AVG, 10 HR, 48 RBI, 22 SB

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#25	Jacob Stallings	34	R/R	.191 AVG, 3 HR, 20 RBI, .565 OPS – (MIA)
UTIL	#30	Harold Castro	30	L/R	.252 AVG, 1 HR, 31 RBI, .589 OPS
OF/1B	#4	Michael Toglia	25	S/L	.163 AVG, 4 HR, 9 RBI, .507 OPS
OF	#12	Sean Bouchard	27	R/R	12/38, 4 HR, 7 RBI, 1.056 OPS

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#21	Kyle Freeland	30	LHP	6-14, 5.03 ERA, 94 Ks, 1.47 WHIP
SP	#26	Austin Gomber	30	LHP	9-9, 5.50 ERA, 87 Ks, 1.49 WHIP
SP	#47	Cal Quantrill	29	RHP	4-7, 5.24 ERA, 58 Ks, 1.46 WHIP – (CLE)
SP	#32	Dakota Hudson	29	RHP	6-3, 4.98 ERA, 45 Ks, 1.50 WHIP – (STL)
SP	#18	Ryan Feltner	27	RHP	2-4, 5.82 ERA, 38 Ks, 1.68 WHIP

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#61	Justin Lawrence	29	RHP	11 SVs, 3.72 ERA, 78 Ks, 1.35 WHIP
SU	#40	Tyler Kinley	33	RHP	5 SVs, 6.06 ERA, 17 Ks, 1.65 WHIP
RP	#59	Jake Bird	28	RHP	89.1 IP, 4.33 ERA, 77 Ks, 1.35 WHIP
RP	#46	Nick Mears	27	RHP	19.1 IP, 3.72 ERA, 21 Ks, 1.45 WHIP
RP	#38	Victor Vodnik (R)	24	RHP	8.2 IP, 8.31 ERA, 12 Ks, 2.08 WHIP
RP	#43	Anthony Molina (R)	22	RHP	COL Prospect Rank: #27
RP	#68	Jalen Beeks	30	LHP	1 SV, 5.95 ERA, 47 Ks, 1.49 WHIP – (TB)
LNG	#20	Peter Lambert	26	RHP	87.1 IP, 5.36 ERA, 71 Ks, 1.39 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#49	Antonio Senzatela	29	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Likely to miss entire season
SP	#48	Germán Márquez	29	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in September
SP	#58	Lucas Gilbreath	28	LHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in July
RP	#52	Daniel Bard	38	RHP	Knee surgery Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Noah Davis – #63 (SP, Age: 26, RHP)
Gavin Hollowell – #64 (RP, Age: 26, RHP)
Evan Justice – #56 (RP, Age: 25, LHP)
Hunter Goodman – #15 (INF, Age: 24, R/R) – COL Prospect Rank: #12
Jake Cave – #60 (OF, Age: 31, L/L)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Yanquiel Fernandez (OF, Age: 21, L/L) – MLB Prospect Rank: #72
Sterlin Thompson (OF/2B, Age: 22, L/R) – COL Prospect Rank: #5
Zac Veen (OF, Age: 22, L/R) – COL Prospect Rank: #6
Drew Romo (C, Age: 22, S/R) – COL Prospect Rank: #9

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
John Curtiss (RP, Age: 30, RHP)
Matt Koch (RP, Age: 33, RHP)
Ty Blach (RP, Age: 33, LHP)
Alan Trejo (UTIL, Age: 27, R/R)
Bradley Zimmer (OF, Age: 31, L/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: C Elias Díaz
Breakout Player: LF/1B Nolan Jones
Addition: SP Cal Quantrill
Grade: D-
Lineup Rank: 15th
Rotation Rank: 15th
Bullpen Rank: 15th

There isn’t too much to be said about the Rockies abysmal 2023 season besides the fact that things won’t get much better a year later. In typical Colorado fashion, no moves were made this offseason as the lineup keeps their inconsistent core with the head scratching contract of Kris Bryant. KB will look to bounce back as he has not had a great start to his Rockies tenure. Young prospects Ezequiel Tovar, Nolan Jones, Elehuris Montero, and Brenton Doyle are shining a light on the future of the offense.

As the offense tends to come easy for the Rockies, the rotation and pitching in general remains putrid. Their two best arms will be sidelined for the entire season in Antonio Senzatela and German Marquez. They did add two former solid starters in Cal Quantrill and Dakota Hudson to hopefully spark some life into a rotation filled with 5+ ERA’s. Justin Lawrence has ben their best piece in the bullpen and he should continue to see the main duties of a closer role. Colorado will probably be at the bottom of the league again this year, and I don’t see much hope for them competing any time soon. As I say every year, something needs to be done about their playing conditions or they will never have good pitching no matter who they bring in.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Manager: Dave Roberts
9th year, Career/Team record: 754-443, Playoff record: 45-39 – AGE: 51

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
SS	#50	Mookie Betts	31	R/R	.307 AVG, 39 HR, 107 RBI, .987 OPS
1B	#5	Freddie Freeman	34	L/R	.331 AVG, 29 HR, 102 RBI, .977 OPS
DH	#17	Shohei Ohtani	29	L/R	.304 AVG, 44 HR, 95 RBI, 1.066 OPS 10-5, 3.14 ERA, 167 Ks, 1.06 WHIP – (LAA)
C	#16	Will Smith	28	R/R	.261 AVG, 19 HR, 76 RBI, .797 OPS
LF	#37	Teoscar Hernández	31	R/R	.258 AVG, 26 HR, 93 RBI, .740 OPS – (SEA)
3B	#13	Max Muncy	33	L/R	.212 AVG, 36 HR, 105 RBI, .808 OPS
CF	#33	James Outman	26	L/R	.248 AVG, 23 HR, 70 RBI, 16 SB
2B	#9	Gavin Lux	26	L/R	DNP – Torn ACL
RF	#23	Jason Heyward	34	L/L	.269 AVG, 15 HR, 40 RBI, .813 OPS

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#15	Austin Barnes	34	R/R	.180 AVG, 2 HR, 11 RBI, 2 SB
UTIL	#3	Chris Taylor	33	R/R	.237 AVG, 15 HR, 56 RBI, 16 SB
SS	#11	Miguel Rojas	35	R/R	.236 AVG, 5 HR, 31 RBI, 8 SB
UTIL	#8	Kiké Hernández	32	R/R	.237 AVG, 11 HR, 61 RBI, 4 SB – (BOS/LAD)

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#31	Tyler Glasnow	30	RHP	10-7, 3.53 ERA, 162 Ks, 1.08 WHIP – (TB)
SP	#18	Yoshinobu Yamamoto (R)	25	RHP	Played in NPB
SP	#28	Bobby Miller	24	RHP	11-4, 3.76 ERA, 119 Ks, 1.10 WHIP
SP	#71	Gavin Stone (R)	25	RHP	1-1, 9.00 ERA, 22 Ks, 1.90 WHIP
SP	#65	James Paxton	35	LHP	7-5, 4.50 ERA, 101 Ks, 1.31 WHIP – (BOS)

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#59	Evan Phillips	29	RHP	24 SVs, 2.05 ERA, 66 Ks, 0.83 WHIP
SU	#40	Daniel Hudson	37	RHP	3 IP, 1 SV, 0.00 ERA, 5 Ks
RP	#99	Joe Kelly	35	RHP	1 SV, 4.12 ERA, 60 Ks, 1.19 WHIP – (CWS/LAD)
RP	#51	Alex Vesia	27	LHP	1 SV, 4.35 ERA, 64 Ks, 1.39 WHIP
RP	#57	Ryan Brasier	36	RHP	2 SVs, 3.02 ERA, 56 Ks, 1.02 WHIP – (BOS/LAD)
RP	#56	Ryan Yarbrough	32	LHP	2 SVs, 4.52 ERA, 67 Ks, 1.23 WHIP – (KC/LAD)
RP	#63	Kyle Hurt (R)	25	RHP	2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 3 Ks, 0.00 WHIP
LNG	#78	Michael Grove	27	RHP	2-3, 6.13 ERA, 73 Ks, 1.48 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#22	Clayton Kershaw	36	LHP	Shoulder surgery Potential return in June
SP	#21	Walker Buehler	29	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in May
SP	#80	Emmet Sheehan	24	RHP	Forearm injury Potential return in May
SP	#26	Tony Gonsolin	29	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Likely to miss entire season
SP	#85	Dustin May	26	RHP	Elbow surgery Potential return in August
RP	#49	Blake Treinen	35	RHP	Rib injury Potential return in May
RP	#48	Brusdar Graterol	25	RHP	Shoulder inflammation Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
J.P. Feyereisen – #45 (RP, Age: 31, RHP)
Matt Gage – #95 (RP, Age: 31, LHP)
Gus Varland – #58 (RP, Age: 27, RHP)
Miguel Vargas – #27 (INF, Age: 24, R/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Andy Pages (OF, Age: 23, R/R) – LAD Prospect Rank: #3
River Ryan (P, Age: 25, RHP) – LAD Prospect Rank: #5
Landon Knack (P, Age: 26, RHP) – LAD Prospect Rank: #14

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: DH/SP Shohei Ohtani
Breakout Player: SP Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Addition: DH/SP Shohei Ohtani
Grade: A
Lineup Rank: 2nd
Rotation Rank: 2nd
Bullpen Rank: 1st

The Dodgers enter the new season in yet again an embarrassment of riches after landing the two top free agents on the market. On top of their already stacked core, Shohei Ohtani will enter a lineup headlined by future Hall-of-Famers Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman. Betts will take over duties at SS this year in a move that the team has been wanting to pull for a while. Teoscar Hernandez was also added on a 1-year deal to add pop to the middle of the order alongside staples Will Smith and Max Muncy.

Star Japanese phenom Yoshinobu Yamamoto was signed to become the team’s ace for the next 10-years while all-star Tyler Glasnow was also added. Add this to a core that awaits returns of Clayton Kershaw, Dustin May, and Walker Buehler, with young top prospects Bobby Miller and Emmett Sheehan, oh and the fact that Ohtani will return to pitching in 2025. Yeah it’s pretty ridiculous the type of talent this team has accumulated. The bullpen brings back veterans Daniel Hudson and Joe Kelly with Evan Phillips taking over as the lead closer. If healthy, this team is one of the most stacked rosters we’ve ever seen and should be the favorite to win it all. This is an easy 100+ win team, but once again October is always a crap shoot.

San Diego Padres

Manager: Mike Shildt
1st year in SD, Career record: 252-199, Playoff record: 4-9 – AGE: 55

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
SS	#7	Ha-Seong Kim	28	R/R	.260 AVG, 17 HR, 60 RBI, 38 SB
RF	#23	Fernando Tatis Jr.	25	R/R	.257 AVG, 25 HR, 78 RBI, 29 SB
2B	#2	Xander Bogaerts	31	R/R	.285 AVG, 19 HR, 58 RBI, 19 SB
DH	#13	Manny Machado	31	R/R	.258 AVG, 30 HR, 91 RBI, .781 OPS
1B	#9	Jake Cronenworth	30	L/R	.229 AVG, 10 HR, 48 RBI, 6 SB
CF	#3	Jackson Merrill (R)	20	L/R	MLB Prospect Rank: #12
3B	#5	Eguy Rosario	24	R/R	9/36, 2 HR, 6 RBI, .770 OPS
C	#12	Luis Campusano	25	R/R	.319 AVG, 7 HR, 30 RBI, .847 OPS
LF	#10	Jurickson Profar	31	S/R	.242 AVG, 9 HR, 46 RBI, .689 OPS – (COL/SD)

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#20	Kyle Higashioka	33	R/R	.236 AVG, 10 HR, 34 RBI, .687 OPS – (NYY)
UTIL	#14	Tyler Wade	29	L/R	.255 AVG, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 4 SB – (OAK)
UTIL	#22	Graham Pauley (R)	23	L/R	SD Prospect Rank: #8
OF	#28	José Azócar	27	R/R	.231 AVG, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 8 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#11	Yu Darvish	37	RHP	8-10, 4.56 ERA, 141 Ks, 1.30 WHIP
SP	#84	Dylan Cease	28	RHP	7-9, 4.58 ERA, 214 Ks, 1.42 WHIP – (CWS)
SP	#44	Joe Musgrove	31	RHP	10-3, 3.05 ERA, 97 Ks, 1.14 WHIP
SP	#76	Jhony Brito	26	RHP	9-7, 4.28 ERA, 72 Ks, 1.22 WHIP – (NYY)
SP	#98	Randy Vásquez (R)	25	RHP	2-2, 2.87 ERA, 33 Ks, 1.27 WHIP – (NYY)

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#75	Robert Suárez	33	RHP	27.2 IP, 4.23 ERA, 24 Ks, 0.90 WHIP
SU	#58	Wandy Peralta	32	LHP	4 SVs, 2.83 ERA, 51 Ks, 1.22 WHIP – (NYY)
RP	#1	Yuki Matsui (R)	28	LHP	Played in NPB
RP	#62	Enyel De Los Santos	28	RHP	65.2 IP, 3.29 ERA, 62 Ks, 1.14 WHIP – (CLE)
RP	#61	Matt Waldron	27	RHP	1-3, 4.35 ERA, 31 Ks, 1.23 WHIP
RP	#32	Stephen Kolek (R)	26	RHP	SD Prospect Rank: #20
LNG	#34	Michael King	28	RHP	6 SVs, 2.75 ERA, 127 Ks, 1.15 WHIP – (NYY)
LNG	#50	Adrian Morejón	25	LHP	9 IP, 7.00 ERA, 8 Ks, 2.11 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
RP	#77	Luis Patiño	24	RHP	Elbow inflammation Potential return in May
INF	#16	Tucupita Marcano	24	L/R	Torn ACL Potential return in May

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Logan Gillaspie – #71 (RP, Age: 26, RHP)
Woo-Suk Go – #21 (RP, Age: 25, RHP)
Jeremiah Estrada – #56 (RP, Age: 25, RHP)
Alek Jacob – #37 (RP, Age: 25, RHP)
Brett Sullivan – #29 (C, Age: 30, L/R)
Matthew Batten – #17 (INF, Age: 28, R/R)

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Jakob Marsee (OF, Age: 22, L/L) – SD Prospect Rank: #9
Ryan Bergert (P, Age: 24, RHP) – SD Prospect Rank: #10

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: 3B Manny Machado
Breakout Player: OF Jackson Merrill
Addition: SP Dylan Cease
Grade: B
Lineup Rank: 6th
Rotation Rank: 6th
Bullpen Rank: 8th

The Padres had to embrace reality this offseason after a down year in 2023 that saw them finish under .500. They ended up trading away Juan Soto for a haul of prospects, as his contract is set to expire and money was spent elsewhere for the Padres. The core still remains with Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, and Fernando Tatis Jr. on lucrative long-term deals. We’ll get to see the debut of top prospect Jackson Merrill as he’s set to take over CF duties with the departure of Trent Grisham. Luis Campusano will finally be able to man the backstop full-time this year after sharing with a cast of characters.

The rotation saw the loss of Cy Young winner Blake Snell in free agency, and will roll with Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove atop the rotation. White Sox star Dylan Cease was acquired in a trade, leading him to new surroundings in hopes of a bounce back season. Josh Hader also exited in free agency, leading way for Robert Suarez to become the main closer for San Diego. Veterans Wandy Peralta and Enyel De Los Santos were also added to aid the bullpen. The Padres will definitely be better than last year and should be in the mix for a Wild Card, but strangely enough they’re probably a 4th place team. With the improved Giants, the stacked Dodgers, and the D-Backs, this will be one tough division to make it out of.

San Francisco Giants

Manager: Bob Melvin
1st year in SF, Career record: 1,517-1,425, Playoff record: 16-23 – AGE: 62

POS.	NO.	LINEUP	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
1B	#31	LaMonte Wade Jr.	30	L/L	.256 AVG, 17 HR, 45 RBI, .790 OPS
2B	#39	Thairo Estrada	28	R/R	.271 AVG, 14 HR, 49 RBI, 23 SB
3B	#26	Matt Chapman	30	R/R	.240 AVG, 17 HR, 54 RBI, .755 OPS – (TOR)
DH	#2	Jorge Soler	32	R/R	.250 AVG, 36 HR, 75 RBI, .853 OPS – (MIA)
RF	#8	Michael Conforto	31	L/R	.239 AVG, 15 HR, 58 RBI, .718 OPS
LF	#51	Jung Hoo Lee (R)	25	L/R	Played in NPB
SS	#37	Marco Luciano (R)	22	R/R	9/39, 0 HR, 0 RBI, 1 SB
C	#14	Patrick Bailey	24	S/R	.233 AVG, 7 HR, 48 RBI, .644 OPS
CF	#5	Mike Yastrzemski	33	L/L	.233 AVG, 15 HR, 43 RBI, .775 OPS

POS.	NO.	BENCH	Age	B/T	2023 Season Stats
C	#19	Tom Murphy	32	R/R	.290 AVG, 8 HR, 17 RBI, .873 OPS – (SEA)
INF	#41	Wilmer Flores	32	R/R	.284 AVG, 23 HR, 60 RBI, .863 OPS
OF	#13	Austin Slater	31	R/R	.270 AVG, 5 HR, 20 RBI, .748 OPS
OF	#29	Luis Matos	22	R/R	.250 AVG, 2 HR, 14 RBI, 3 SB

–	NO.	ROTATION	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
SP	#7	Blake Snell	31	LHP	14-9, 2.25 ERA, 234 Ks, 1.19 WHIP – (SD)
SP	#62	Logan Webb	27	RHP	11-13, 3.25 ERA, 194 Ks, 1.07 WHIP
SP	#12	Jordan Hicks	27	RHP	3-9, 3.29 ERA, 81 Ks, 1.36 WHIP – (STL/TOR)
SP	#45	Kyle Harrison (R)	22	LHP	1-1, 4.15 ERA, 35 Ks, 1.15 WHIP
SP	#82	Mason Black (R)	24	RHP	SF Prospect Rank: #8

–	NO.	BULLPEN	Age	R/L	2023 Season Stats
CP	#75	Camilo Doval	26	RHP	39 SVs, 2.93 ERA, 87 Ks, 1.14 WHIP
SU	#33	Taylor Rogers	33	LHP	2 SVs, 3.83 ERA, 64 Ks, 1.24 WHIP
RP	#71	Tyler Rogers	33	RHP	2 SVs, 3.04 ERA, 60 Ks, 1.15 WHIP
RP	#77	Luke Jackson	32	RHP	33.1 IP, 2.97 ERA, 43 Ks, 1.23 WHIP
RP	#74	Ryan Walker	28	RHP	1 SV, 3.23 ERA, 78 Ks, 1.39 WHIP
RP	#56	Daulton Jefferies	28	RHP	DNP – Tommy John Surgery – OAK
RP	#89	Landen Roupp (R)	25	RHP	SF Prospect Rank: #12
LNG	#67	Keaton Winn (R)	26	RHP	1 SV, 4.68 ERA, 35 Ks, 1.04 WHIP

POS.	NO.	INJURED LIST	Age	B/T	Injury
SP	#38	Alex Cobb	36	RHP	Hip surgery Potential return in June
SP	#23	Robbie Ray	32	LHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in July
RP	#64	Sean Hjelle	26	RHP	UCL tear Potential return in May
RP	#63	Ethan Small	27	LHP	Oblique strain Potential return in May
RP	#57	Austin Warren	28	RHP	Tommy John Surgery Potential return in September
RP	#43	Tristan Beck	27	RHP	Vascular surgery Potential return in June

DEPTH PIECES/AAA STARTERS:
Joey Bart – #1 (C, Age: 27, R/R)
Blake Sabol – #61 (C/OF, Age: 26, L/R)
Cooper Hummel – #1 (UTIL, Age: 29, S/R)
Otto Lopez – #54 (INF, Age: 25, R/R)
Casey Schmitt – #10 (SS, Age: 25, R/R)
David Villar – #32 (3B/1B, Age: 27, R/R)
Brett Wisely – #0 (INF, Age: 24, L/R)
Tyler Fitzgerald – #49 (INF, Age: 26, R/R) – SF Prospect Rank: #21
Heliot Ramos – #17 (OF, Age: 24, R/R)
Wade Meckler – #53 (OF, Age: 23, L/R) – SF Prospect Rank: #18

TOP PROSPECTS WHO COULD MAKE THEIR DEBUTS IN 2024:
Carson Whisenhunt (P, Age: 23, LHP) – MLB Prospect Rank: #83

NOTABLE NON-ROSTER INVITES:
Spencer Howard (SP, Age: 27, RHP)
Cody Stashak (RP, Age: 29, RHP)
Nick Ahmed (SS, Age: 34, R/R)

PAUL’S THOUGHTS:
MVP: SP Blake Snell
Breakout Player: SP Kyle Harrison
Addition: SP Blake Snell
Grade: B
Lineup Rank: 9th
Rotation Rank: 5th
Bullpen Rank: 3rd

After moving on from Gabe Kapler, the Giants brought in Bob Melvin to try to right the ship for a team that is close to the cusp. A couple of big-time bats were added in Jorge Soler and Matt Chapman, two guys that will give depth at much needed positions and finally provide some power to a team that has lacked a 30+ homerun guy for a while. Thairo Estrada has become a solid everyday 2B and Marco Luciano will now take over SS duties with Brandon Crawford leaving for St. Louis. Top Japanese prospect Jung Hoo Lee was also signed to add some more power. Wilmer Flores and LaMonte Wade should once again see a platoon at 1B and some DH opportunities if Soler gets stuck in LF.

The rotation upgraded big time by signing new ace Blake Snell to add to the top of the rotation with Logan Webb. Jordan Hicks was signed with every intention to mold him into a starter, which was an experiment he had difficulty sticking with in St. Louis. Veterans Alex Cobb and Robbie Ray will both return by mid-season for what could be a solid playoff run. The bullpen is headlined by young flamethrower Camilo Doval, with the Rogers brothers and Luke Jackson supporting him. I think this Giants team will be strong in the mix for a Wild Card spot with Philly, Mets, D-Backs, Reds, and Padres. They may not be a World Series contender, but their core is coming along nicely.

2024 MLB Season Preview

Standings

Playoffs

Team Projections

MVP: Corey Seager, TEX
CY YOUNG: George Kirby, SEA
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Wyatt Langford, TEX
COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Casey Mize, DET
MANAGER OF THE YEAR: Stephen Vogt, CLE

Baltimore Orioles

Boston Red Sox

New York Yankees

Tampa Bay Rays

Toronto Blue Jays

Chicago White Sox

Cleveland Guardians

Detroit Tigers

Kansas City Royals

Minnesota Twins

Houston Astros

Los Angeles Angels

Oakland Athletics

Seattle Mariners

Texas Rangers

MVP: Mookie Betts, LAD
CY YOUNG: Zack Wheeler, PHI
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, LAD
COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Chris Sale, ATL
MANAGER OF THE YEAR: Craig Counsell, CHC

Atlanta Braves

Miami Marlins

New York Mets

Philadelphia Phillies

Washington Nationals

Chicago Cubs

Cincinnati Reds

Milwaukee Brewers

Pittsburgh Pirates

St. Louis Cardinals

Arizona Diamondbacks

Colorado Rockies

Los Angeles Dodgers

San Diego Padres

San Francisco Giants

Published by The Sports World According to Paul

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Standings

Playoffs

Team Projections

MVP: Corey Seager, TEXCY YOUNG: George Kirby, SEAROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Wyatt Langford, TEXCOMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Casey Mize, DETMANAGER OF THE YEAR: Stephen Vogt, CLE

Baltimore Orioles

Boston Red Sox

New York Yankees

Tampa Bay Rays

Toronto Blue Jays

Chicago White Sox

Cleveland Guardians

Detroit Tigers

Kansas City Royals

Minnesota Twins

Houston Astros

Los Angeles Angels

Oakland Athletics

Seattle Mariners

Texas Rangers

MVP: Mookie Betts, LADCY YOUNG: Zack Wheeler, PHIROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, LADCOMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Chris Sale, ATLMANAGER OF THE YEAR: Craig Counsell, CHC

Atlanta Braves

Miami Marlins

New York Mets

Philadelphia Phillies

Washington Nationals

Chicago Cubs

Cincinnati Reds

Milwaukee Brewers

Pittsburgh Pirates

St. Louis Cardinals

Arizona Diamondbacks

Colorado Rockies

Los Angeles Dodgers

San Diego Padres

San Francisco Giants

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MVP: Corey Seager, TEX
CY YOUNG: George Kirby, SEA
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Wyatt Langford, TEX
COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Casey Mize, DET
MANAGER OF THE YEAR: Stephen Vogt, CLE

MVP: Mookie Betts, LAD
CY YOUNG: Zack Wheeler, PHI
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, LAD
COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Chris Sale, ATL
MANAGER OF THE YEAR: Craig Counsell, CHC