MLB Editorials Articles - Page 153

The Seattle Mariners are coming off an impressive and inspiring 2022 season wherein they finally snapped their 21-year postseason drought. The main reason is the impeccable showing of Rookie of the Year, MVP candidate Julio Rodriguez, and the trade deadline acquisition of ace pitcher Luis Castillo. Youngsters like Cal Raleigh and Logan Gilbert will take […]

Though much of their roster appears set for the 2023 MLB season, the New York Mets do have several position battles to settle during spring training. Two of these position battles were expected, one is a minor surprise and another is a late development. Let’s examine the Mets position battles to watch in spring training. […]

Are there any position battles for the best team in baseball? Most of the reigning World Series champion Houston Astros are already locked as starters, such as Jose Altuve, Yordan Alvarez, and Alex Bregman. Losing impeccable ace Justin Verlander to the New York Mets will be tough for Houston, but their roster is still one […]

The New York Yankees are coming off a terrible end to their 2022 campaign as they were swept by the 2022 World Series Champions Houston Astros. They could not find a rhythm for the whole series, and Houston had an answer for everything manager Aaron Boone threw at them. It was their third ALCS loss […]

Team Australia sent shockwaves across the sport Wednesday night as they took down Team South Korea in Pool B play in the 2023 World Baseball Classic to the tune of an 8-7 score. It was a thrilling game that started slow offensively before turning into a back-and-forth affair, ending with Australia sealing the deal by […]

The Detroit Tigers head into the 2023 season with a few safe bets on their roster. Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez will be the team’s Opening Day starter, barring a massive surprise. Tigers fans will also see a lot of Miguel Cabrera this season as the designated hitter. Cabrera is calling it a career after 2023, and […]

The Atlanta Braves are set at the majority of their positions. They have stars such as Austin Riley, Matt Olson, and Ozzie Albies locking down the infield. Meanwhile, Ronald Acuna Jr and Michael Harris will lead the charge in the outfield. However, Atlanta has uncertainty at one premier position following a specific free agency departure. […]

The 2023 World Baseball Classic features a plethora of talented ballclubs and right in the mix with the best is Team Japan. They’ve won the tournament twice in their history, in 2006 and 2009, and should find themselves in the quarterfinals at the very least this time around. Headlined by Los Angeles Angels two-way star […]

The World Baseball Classic is an event that is growing in stature. Team Puerto Rico is likely to have one of the stronger teams, even with Carlos Correa deciding not to participate. This year’s version of the event will be the fifth championship and the first since 2017 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. […]

The Boston Red Sox are entering the 2023 season in a transitional period. They have watched most of the members of their 2018 World Series squad leave town, and after a wildly disappointing 2022 campaign, nobody really knows what direction this team is heading in. They have some talented players on their roster, but it […]

The World Baseball Classic seemed little more than an afterthought in the United States in its first few editions, but for many baseball-loving countries, it has been welcomed with open arms. That is especially true for the Dominican Republic, and this year’s team will be one of the favorites to come away with the championship. […]

For the first time in six years, we’re back. The 2023 World Baseball Classic will take place from March 8-21, with the tournament being played in Japan, Taiwan, and the US. Speaking of the States, Team USA is of course one of the favorites to win it all after taking home the ultimate prize in […]

The Los Angeles Dodgers entered 2022 Spring Training with a mostly set roster. In 2023, however, there is much more uncertainty. The Gavin Lax injury opened up the shortstop conversation, while Cody Bellinger’s departure has led to questions in centerfield. There are other unanswered questions on the roster as well. Without further ado, let’s take […]

The Texas Rangers will be one of the more interesting teams to follow during the 2023 season. They added a number of players in free agency, including arguably the best pitcher in baseball in Jacob deGrom. However, they still have a long way to go in order to compete with the Houston Astros in the […]

The Minnesota Twins are looking for a bounce back season of their own in 2023. After starting out the 2022 campaign on a high note, everything came crashing down following the All-Star break. The Cleveland Guardians ultimately won the American League Central last season. If Minnesota wants to compete with the Guardians and Chicago White […]

Expectations for the Colorado Rockies are not high in 2023, as many projections have them finishing in last place in the National League West. It is a competitive division with the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres both hopeful for a World Series title. The San Francisco Giants are a step below, but no […]

The Cincinnati Reds had a very disappointing season in 2022. After recording their first full winning season since 2013, the Reds bottomed out and finished with more than 100 losses. The team saw a few players take a step back. And in the offseason, they took chances on players in need of a rebound in […]

The Detroit Tigers enter the 2023 season without a ton of expectation. It’s a far cry from where they were this time last season, where many had them pegged as a potential playoff contender. The Tigers are not a playoff contender for the 2023 season. Detroit did next to nothing to meaningfully improve their league-worst […]

The Oakland Athletics sold off a lot of their star players after the 2021 season. And the results of that fire sale were clear to see in 2022, as the team finished with 102 losses. Perhaps the managerial change had some effect. Bob Melvin departed the team to become the manager of the San Diego […]

The Chicago Cubs are coming off back-to-back losing season, but the team has made several moves in the offseason to turn that situation around. While they bear little resemblance to the team that won the 2016 World Series, general manager Jed Hoyer has legitimate hope that the Cubs can become a winning team once again […]

The Baltimore Orioles are looking to build on their surprising 2022 campaign in which they won 83 games, but they will need contributions from some key players to do so. The Orioles made some low-risk high-reward additions, but some fans were left disappointed at the lack of spending this offseason. There was thought that with […]

The Tampa Bay Rays didn’t finish their 2022 campaign the way they wanted to, as they were swept out of the playoffs in the Wild Card round by the Cleveland Guardians. Both squads had a similar formula, focusing on defense and pitching because their lineups weren’t very strong, but Cleveland was ultimately able to get […]

The Milwaukee Brewers were one of the legitimate contenders for a playoff berth until the latter part of the season. They held the NL Central lead for a long juncture of the season before the St. Louis Cardinals went on a fantastic run and grabbed the NL Central title from them. The pitching led by […]

The San Francisco Giants had one of the most intriguing offseasons in the MLB this year. Players like Carlos Rodon, Brandon Belt, and Evan Longoria have departed from San Francisco, so it opened up cap space for them to sign big-name free agents. Thus, they chased Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa but failed to capitalize […]

The Los Angeles Dodgers were previously preparing to start Gavin Lux at shortstop in 2023. However, the 25-year old suffered a torn ACL in a recent Spring Training game and will miss the season as a result. Miguel Rojas is expected to take over shortstop duties with Chris Taylor filling in on occasion. Rojas is […]

The Seattle Mariners had the longest playoff drought among all the organizations in the four major American sports. Twenty years of missing the postseason were tough to swallow for their rabid fanbase, so they were ecstatic when they clinched a spot in 2022. Unfortunately, they faced the 2022 World Series champion Houston Astros in the […]

The Los Angeles Angels are trying to snap their playoff drought, having last made a postseason appearance in 2014. Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani will lead the charge, but they need others to step up around them. As talented as Trout and Ohtani both are, they can’t carry the Halos to the playoffs on their […]

The Cleveland Guardians are the epitome of a gritty and underrated bunch that made some noise in the 2022 MLB season. Who would have thought the Guardians may have won the blockbuster trade involving Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco? MLB pundits believed it was a rebuilding move for the Guardians, but the impeccable play of […]

The Houston Astros continued their dominance in the MLB as they claimed their second World Series crown with this current iteration of the Astros. Superstar rookie Jeremy Peña led the charge in the postseason, capturing both the ALCS and World Series MVP in his inaugural season. Despite the struggles of Jose Altuve, it did not […]

The Chicago White Sox massively underachieved last season, meaning there are plenty of players who need to perform more like the back of their baseball cards in 2023. While many White Sox fans will immediately point the finger at catcher Yasmani Grandal- which is perfectly understandable- there are other players, like Lucas Giolito, who need […]

The San Diego Padres have added a ton of stars in recent years, and now Manny Machado, Juan Soto, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Xander Bogaerts form a great foundation for a dangerous lineup. Despite all of the talent that the Padres have, they are still trying to win the National League West over the Los […]

The Boston Red Sox didn’t exactly have the campaign they were hoping to have in 2022. After making it all the way to the ALCS in 2021, the Sox completely fell apart in 2022. They struggled with injuries, regression to the mean, and a front office that had seemingly no desire to build off of […]

Not many New York Mets underperformed last season. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t some players who are looking to rebound from subpar performances. We’ll examine which Mets players need to bounce back in the 2023 MLB season. The bigger concern for the Mets might be regression from some of their star players. Starling Marte, […]

The Philadelphia Phillies enjoyed a magical 2022 season. Despite narrowly clinching a playoff berth via the Wild Card, they went on to upset the entire National League and reach the World Series. It was a tremendous postseason effort that has Phillies fans excited for the 2023 campaign. Bryce Harper is expected to miss the first-half […]

The St. Louis Cardinals are looking to win the NL Central and make a deep playoff run in 2023. Superstars such as Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado will lead the way, but St. Louis would benefit from rebound performances from impactful players. The Cardinals’ will need all hands on deck throughout the year to make […]

The New York Yankees enter the 2023 season looking to get over the postseason hump. New York has advanced to the playoffs in six straight years- and six straight years they’ve been eliminated without reaching the World Series. In order to take that next step, the Yankees will need bounce back seasons from certain players […]

The Atlanta Braves are fresh off an NL East title and have high aspirations heading into 2023. They will need their young players to step up following the departure of Dansby Swanson. However, Atlanta also could use rebound performances from already established players. Without further ado, let’s take a look at three Braves players who […]

The Toronto Blue Jays went full choke mode in the 2022 postseason after an impressive campaign. Heading into 2023, this is still a team that is considered a legitimate World Series contender in the American League, with no shortage of talent both on the mound and at the plate. However, their rotation in particular was […]

The Los Angeles Dodgers have undergone a number of roster changes since the 2022 season. One of their primary storylines during this past offseason revolved around departing stars like Trea Turner and Cody Bellinger. Although some fans are worried about the ball club, Los Angeles still has plenty of talent and will remain confident heading […]