 |
| Bryce Harper and the Nationals will be celebrating in 2015 |
NL East
1. Washington Nationals
The NL East is basically the Nationals and everyone else. The Nationals boast one of the best lineups in baseball along with arguably the best pitching staff in baseball. The only thing standing in the way of a title for the Nationals is their bullpen anchored by closer Drew Storen who has blown some big games in the past.
Player to watch: Bryce Harper. Harper is severely underrated among casual baseball fans because of all the hype he had coming in but Harper has quietly been one of the most effective players in baseball consistently getting on base at around a .350 clip. People often forget that Harper is only 22 years old because it feels like he's been in the league forever. I think this is the year Harper puts it all together and puts himself in the NL MVP conversation.
2. New York Mets
The Mets are slowly improving but have too weak of a lineup/bench to get past the Wild Card round at best. Their pitching staff is looking really deep and scary though heading into this year and into the future with Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom going 1-2 in the rotation with reinforcements like Noah Syndergaard coming soon.
Player to watch: Matt Harvey. This is an easy one because Harvey was one of those pitchers where you had to watch every one of his starts back in 2013 before he got hurt and had to get Tommy John's Surgery. I think the best course of action for the Mets in 2015 is to make sure Harvey is right going into 2016 because the sky is the limit for the Mets if Harvey is pitching like he did before his injury.
3. Miami Marlins
The Marlins made some interesting moves this offseason bringing in leadoff man Dee Gordon, power bat Michael Morse, utility guy Martin Prado, and pitcher Mat Latos. This team is really going to go as far as Giancarlo Stanton can take them though and with Jose Fernandez expected to get back into the rotation in the middle of the season, if the Marlins are able to tread ground until then, they could easily sneak into one of the Wild Card spots.
Player to watch: Dee Gordon. Gordon might be the x-factor for the Marlins this season. He's always had all the potential in the world coming up through the Dodgers farm system but didn't really put it all together until last season when he hit .289 and got on base at a .330 clip. And getting on base is really important for Gordon because he's one of the top 2 biggest steal threats in the league along with Billy Hamilton stealing 54 bases last season. If Gordon puts up similar numbers this season and gets on base for RBI opportunities from Yelich, Stanton, and Ozuna; the Marlins could be a scary team in 2015.
4. Atlanta Braves
The Braves went "all-out" this offseason after firing general manager Frank Wren, shipping off Jason Heyward to the Cardinals among others. The Braves seem to be cutting payroll and getting ready to put what they hope is a good product on the field in 2017 when their new stadium opens. In the meantime though, the Braves are going to be a bad team in 2015 mainly because they're going to struggle to get on base. Outside of Freddie Freeman and Nick Markakis, the Braves are filled with a group of crappy hitters that don't draw walks. And even if the Braves had any chance at making the playoffs this season, it would surely be ruined by one of the worst managers in baseball, Fredi Gonzalez, who somehow escaped last season with a job. The Braves will be sort of intriguing to watch in 2015 because of the young arms in their rotation led by Julio Teheran, Alex Wood, and Shelby Miller and they also have the best closer in baseball for the little opportunities they'll need him for this year, what a waste of Craig Kimbrel's talents.
Player to watch: Shelby Miller. In one of the most shocking moves of the offseason, the Braves shipped Jason Heyward off to the St. Louis Cardinals before the last year of his deal and got Shelby Miller in return. Miller has always been a pitcher with a ton of talent but has never been able to put it fully together. From watching Miller from afar, it seemed like his problems always seemed to be one big inning and he also seemed to never get along with his old manager Mike Matheny. Maybe a chance of scenery will do him well and help him reach his potential.
5. Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies are an absolute mess right now and it's a disgrace that general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. has a job. The Phillies are just a maddening organization right now and remind me of the Cubs from 2009 to the day Jim Hendry got fired. A team with old, declining talent on their major league roster, no farm system, and really no direction at all. If there's an organization out there that can make you feel somewhat sorry for Philadelphia sports fans, it's this Phillies organization.
Player to watch: Cole Hamels. Honestly, there's no player I want to watch on this Phillies team but I'll choose Cole Hamels here because it'll be interesting to see what the Phillies do with him as the season progresses. I hope for Hamels' sake that he's on another team before August arrives because he (and Chase Utley) don't deserve this. The Cubs claimed him off waivers last August so there might be a match there especially with how deep the Cubs farm system is but Amaro Jr. doesn't seem to want to trade him unless the package is beyond ridiculous.
NL Central
1. Pittsburgh Pirates
After being a wasteland of talent for decades, Pirates fans finally have a team and organization worth cheering about. The Pirates have probably the best outfield in baseball led by Andrew McCutchen, Gregory Polanco, and Starling Marte. The Pirates rotation is intriguing as well led by Francisco Liriano who had a down-year last year compared to what he did in 2013. I think this could be the year that Gerrit Cole puts it together and puts himself in the Cy Young conversation. The one thing that is scaring me about picking this Pirates team to win the NL Central is the loss of pitch-framing extraordinaire Russell Martin to the Blue Jays although Francisco Cervelli could easily be a solid catcher himself.
Player to watch: Gregory Polanco. Polanco got off to such a hot start in his first few Major League games when he was called up last year and then hit a major rookie wall. If the Pirates want to have any plans of playing deep into October in 2015, they need Gregory Polanco to be close to the player he was in his first week of Major League action.
2. St. Louis Cardinals*
The Cardinals will make the playoffs again in 2015 but there are cracks starting to show that could become bigger heading into next year. Adam Wainwright is getting older and has had a history of injury problems and Yadier Molina is getting older and showed some signs of decline last season. But with an organization like the Cardinals that hasn't seen many down-years, these holes will probably be patched up pretty quickly. All you have to do is look to this offseason where after the death of Oscar Tavreas, the Cardinals had a hole at RF and went out and acquired Jason Heyward from the Atlanta Braves for Shelby Miller. The Cardinals will go as Wainwright and Michael Wacha go in 2015, both coming off some injury concerns. If both pitchers are healthy and at the top of their games, the Cardinals will make the playoffs pretty easily and are a big threat to win the World Series. If one or both pitchers get hurt, the Cardinals probably have no chance at a World Series although a little #PixieDust might help that.
Player to watch: Jason Heyward. Heyward had so much hype coming into the league after being drafted from his hometown team and hitting his first Major League home run in his first Major League at-bat off Carlos Zambrano on Opening Day but he really has never lived up to his hitting potential. He's always been a great fielder, among the best in baseball but you're always expecting more from Heyward at the plate. I think a change of scenery is going to do Heyward really well and he's going to have a big year in 2015 and will probably finish top 8 in NL MVP voting.
3. Chicago Cubs
The Cubs are probably the hardest team to gauge in 2015 because there's so many young players and new faces coming in. First off, you have arguably the best manager in baseball in Joe Maddon (although it's hard to argue against Bruce Bochy at this point) and the best prospect in baseball in Kris Bryant coming in (or in about two weeks). You also have a group of talent coming back that are only going to continue to get better. Jorge Soler made a great first impression last year in his first trip to the big leagues and might just be the scariest prospect the Cubs have. Anthony Rizzo had a huge bounce-back year last season and I think he's going to have a monster year this year. The Cubs also brought in some talent in leadoff man Dexter Fowler and catcher Miguel Montero who are both upgrades at their respective positions. The Cubs rotation, led by Jon Lester, should be really solid this season. Jake Arrieta had a huge break-out season in 2014 and while it's probably going to be hard for him to top what he did last year or even match it, he should still be a big part of the Cubs rotation for years to come. Kyle Hendricks is an intriguing piece who had a lot of success in his starts at the end of last season. Hendricks isn't a guy that's going to overpower anyone but he's a smart guy (Dartmouth grad) that can out-smart a hitter and put up solid numbers. Closer Hector Rondon is a guy that not enough people are talking about nationally. Rondon struggled with some bad luck early last year but in the second half of last year Rondon saw an increase in velocity and put up some stellar numbers.
Player to watch: Travis Wood. Could have gone with any of the Cubs young guys but I think Travis Wood is the biggest x-factor for the Cubs in 2015. Wood was an All Star in 2013 for the Cubs and put up impressive numbers but completely tanked in 2014 putting up numbers that rivaled Edwin Jackson. If Travis Wood can put up a year anywhere close to what he did in 2013, I think the Cubs are a playoff team.
4. Milwaukee Brewers
The Brewers were the surprise team in baseball for most of 2014 until they flamed out late in the year. They're led by Carlos Gomez, who has become a bonafide star for the Brewers both in the field and at the plate as well as Jonathan Lucroy who was the best catcher in baseball last year and had a case at winning NL MVP. The problem with this Brewers team is their rotation is incredibly weak and doesn't overpower anyone. Jean Segura was a breakout star in 2013 but really fell incredibly hard back to reality in 2014 and was one of the biggest disappointments in baseball.
Player to watch: Ryan Braun. Braun had an extremely poor year last year for his standards only getting on base at a .324 clip and only hitting 19 home runs. Braun did deal with some injuries last season so this could be the root of his problems but if the Brewers want to go anywhere in 2015, they need Braun to return to his MVP level.
5. Cincinnati Reds
The Reds are a franchise headed in the wrong direction after having success before 2014. Dusty Baker is what he is, he's not a great manager, in fact he's not really a good manager, but firing him after 2013 has turned out to be a huge mistake especially when they replaced him with someone much worse. The Reds are filled with overpriced pieces that aren't getting any younger and eventually it's going to start to get to the time where they need to start to clean house and rebuild again.
Player to watch: Johnny Cueto. It's going to be incredibly interesting to see what the Reds so with Johnny Cueto, who is a free agent after this season. If the Reds get terribly far behind in the playoff race, the best course of action is going to be to trade him before they lose him. Cueto has quietly turned into one of the best pitchers in baseball over the last few years and should attract a pretty good deal for the Reds.
NL West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers will win the National League West this season and should do so rather easily. There's two things that might hold them back from winning a World Series though in 2015. 1) Their bullpen once again is extremely weak outside of Kenley Jansen, who will miss the first month of the year. 2) Don Mattingly is one of the worst managers in baseball and has no clue how to make adjustments, use his bench, and use his bullpen. Outside of these weaknesses, the Dodgers are a powerhouse boasting one of the best lineups in baseball and one of the top 5 best pitching staffs led by Clayton Kershaw.
Player to watch: Joc Pederson. One guy I'm extremely excited to see this season is Pederson who had an amazing Spring, overshadowed by fellow prospect Kris Bryant. Pederson is going to be playing center field for the Dodgers for years to come as he's a five-tool player that has all the potential to be a superstar.
2. San Diego Padres*
The Padres made a ton of noise this offseason and are going to be incredibly interesting to follow in 2015. Adding Matt Kemp, Justin Upton, Wil Meyers, and Derek Norris turn the Padres from one of the more boring teams in baseball to watch to one of the more exciting. The Padres also have one of the best pitching staffs in baseball led by James Shields and Andrew Cashner. There's a lot of moving parts on this Padres team but I think Bud Black, who I think is the most underrated manager in baseball, can handle it and the Padres will be back in the playoffs in 2015.
Player to watch: Jedd Gyorko. Gyorko had a really disappointing 2014 and the Padres would love to see him bounce-back in 2015 and put up 2013 numbers where he hit 23 home runs (in an extremely park to do so) and played pretty solid defense. If the Padres can get 2013 Gyorko, they'll definitely be a playoff team in 2015.
3. San Francisco Giants
Three titles in six years is nothing to scoff at, the Giants have the best organization in baseball right now. I'm not buying the Giants in 2015 though, I think they lost too much and didn't add enough. I think Casey McGhee will turn out to be a 2014 fluke in 2015 and the Giants picked him up to replace Pablo Sandoval. I also think Tim Hudson is in for a sharp decline this year. Luckily for Giants fans, 2016 is an even year which means they'll probably #PixieDustWest their way into another title.
Player to watch: Matt Cain. Cain was one of the best pitchers in baseball as recently as 2013 but since this point, Cain has hasn't been even close to the same pitcher. If Cain can regain some of his 2013 form, him and Madison Bumgarner could put the Giants into the Wild Card game and give them a chance at their fourth title in seven years.
4. Colorado Rockies
The Rockies are filled with offensive talent but their problem will continue to boil down to injuries to their superstar hitters Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez. Even if those two are fully healthy in 2015, the Rockies lack any kind of starting pitching talent and probably have the worst starting rotation in baseball. Kyle Kendrick will be starting Opening Day this year for the Rockies. Yeah...case in point.
Player to watch: Charlie Blackmon. Blackmon was one of the biggest surprises in baseball for most of the year last season but fell apart in the 2nd half of the season. If Blackmon ends up being the player that he was for the first half of last season, the Rockies have themselves a pretty nice piece going forward.
5. Arizona Diamondbacks
Kevin Towers left the Arizona Diamondbacks in a mess with his gritty approach. I think the Diamondbacks are no doubt in a better place now than they were with Towers although there is a ton of work that needs to be done.
Player to watch: Archie Bradley. Him, Paul Goldschmidt, and AJ Pollock are the three big pieces the Diamondbacks have going forward. Bradley had himself a really good Spring and unexpectedly has been named to the starting rotation after the Diamondbacks traded away Trevor Cahill.
NL Wild Card
Cardinals over Padres
NLDS
Nationals over Cardinals
Dodgers over Pirates
NLCSNationals over Dodgers
NL MVPGiancarlo Stanton, Miami Marlins
NL Cy Young
Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers
NL Rookie of the Year
Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs
NL Manager of the Year
Bud Black, San Diego Padres
