The start of the MLB season is closing in on us, so here are my official 2018 Preseason Power Rankings:
30. Miami Marlins
Last year, the Marlins had a great lineup but a terrible rotation. After gutting the entire roster (including NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton), rookie GM Derek Jeter has his work cut out for him. This team would be lucky to win 65 games.
29. Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays are another team that decided to scrape down their lineup by getting rid of six of their top seven home run hitters, all-star Evan Longoria included. Tampa Bay did add Carlos Gomez this offseason and is led by steady right-hander Chris Archer, but a thin lineup and rotation will likely keep this team from winning 70 games.
28. Detroit Tigers
After dealing Justin Verlander, Detroit will find itself tanking in a bit of a rebuild year. The rotation will be spearheaded by budding star Michael Fulmer, and the middle of the lineup is still fearsome with Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera, but the Tigers have a subpar bullpen and underwhelming surrounding cast.
27. Pittsburgh Pirates
After letting go of two mainstays on their roster in Andrew McCutchen and Gerrit Cole, the Pirates seem to have little intention of competing in 2018. They failed to contend in 2017 with McCutchen and Cole, I can’t see them figuring it out this season.
26. Kansas City Royals
The Royals are an absolute ghost of their former back-to-back AL pennant selves after losing Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, and Lorenzo Cain. Kansas City’s rotation is in question without Jason Vargas, but they could benefit from an extremely weak division. However, I don’t see it happening in 2018.
25. Oakland Athletics
The A’s have struggled mightily for three seasons now, and things shouldn’t change much this year. Without Sonny Gray, Oakland’s rotation is suspect and the bullpen lacks big names, so look for the Athletics to find themselves crawling towards a 70 win season.
24. Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati remains fairly unchanged from last year, with Joey Votto as their best player by a large margin. But the Reds haven’t competed for awhile now; it seems like the rebuild has been in effect since 2015 and won’t pay off soon.
23. Chicago White Sox
While I’m a big fan of Jose Abreu and Yoan Moncada, Chicago has been absent from the playoffs for 10 years, and the White Sox lack talent in the rotation and bullpen. Don’t expect a winning season this year.
22. San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres have a good young core and a strong middle of the order (featuring Wil Myers and Eric Hosmer), but this team’s rotation remains an unknown, and they don’t have enough to put together a good season in 2018.
21. Philadelphia Phillies
Upon acquiring Carlos Santana, the Phillies now have a potentially dynamic middle of the order bat but an otherwise unexciting roster. They’ll need a good year out of shortstop J.P. Crawford and some overachieving pitching in order to join the 70+ win club.
20. New York Mets
The Mets could surprise people this year; they’ve got a powerful lineup with Yoenis Cespedes, Jay Bruce, Todd Frazier, and Adrian Gonzalez. Additionally, New York has a potentially elite rotation down the line, but the Mets weren’t able to figure it out last year, and their downfall this season could be a combination of a struggling bullpen and an injury-prone roster.
19. Atlanta Braves
Will Dansby Swanson break out this year? If so, the Atlanta Braves might just sneak out of their rebuild a few years early. Their bullpen was fourth-worst in the league last year and they haven’t made any changes, so don’t bet on contention in 2018 for Atlanta.
18. Texas Rangers
One of the big stories of this offseason was the Rangers losing Yu Darvish to free agency. Without Darvish, Texas’ rotation is one of the worst in the league. The bullpen was second-worst in the league, and the lineup is old and shaky behind Joey Gallo. I wouldn’t expect much from the Rangers, but they could surprise a few people with an experienced roster.
17. Baltimore Orioles
The Orioles don’t have much behind Manny Machado, who’s making the move to shortstop this year, and their rotation is extremely weak. I don’t expect them to improve much on their 75-87 record last year, but I also don’t expect them to get any worse.
16. Toronto Blue Jays
Jose Bautista needs to return in free agency and have a bounce-back year in order for the Blue Jays to actually scare anybody this season. Their lineup is star-studded with Bautista, Tulo, and Donaldson, but they severely underachieved last season. Losing Bautista could be a big hit and their rotation behind Marcus Stroman is worrisome.
15. Arizona Diamondbacks
The Diamondbacks lost a large part of their offense in J.D. Martinez, so someone besides Paul Goldschmidt will need to pick up the slack in this lineup. Arizona’s Zack Greinke returned to form last season after a disappointing first year and should come back even stronger this season. I don’t expect the Diamondbacks to produce a ton of runs, but they could surprise me.
14. San Francisco Giants
Well, it’s an even year for the Giants (World Series Champs in 2010, 2012, 2014), so if recent history means anything, my power ranking will be 13 spots too low for San Francisco. The lineup is now bolstered by (aging) stars Andrew McCutchen and Evan Longoria, along with Buster Posey and Hunter Pence. The rotation is solid with Bumgarner, Cueto, and (timidly) Samardzija, but San Fran significantly underperformed last season––only mustering up 64 wins. Look for a better team this year, but don’t set your hopes too high.
13. Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners own the largest playoff drought in American pro sports, but they look like they’re on the bubble of becoming a solid team. Adding Dee Gordon helps the lineup, and the mix of Jean Segura, Robinson Cano, Nelson Cruz, and Kyle Seager create a scary middle of the order. Their pitching could be an issue behind James Paxton and King Felix, and their bullpen is middling, but don’t be shocked by a Mariners Wild Card team come October.
12. St. Louis Cardinals
One question: who is going to close games for the Cardinals? Their closer right now looks like Luke Gregerson, who posted a 4.57 ERA last year. Their rotation is consistent and would need to be a crutch if they’re going to make a run this year.
11. Minnesota Twins
Byron Buxton is the Twins’ present and future and is a cut from the same cloth as the rest of the lineup; Minnesota is a scrappy offensive team that quietly wins games behind the Indians in the AL Central. Their rotation isn’t great, and a lack of experienced arms down the stretch could do damage to any sort of playoff run they muster up. However, don’t be surprised by a Wild Card appearance from the Twins this season.
10. Los Angeles Angels
The Angels are one of those sneaky teams I’m very high on. LA has combined the best player in baseball with one of the most exciting foreign prospects in Shohei Ohtani, and they added Justin Upton and Ian Kinsler to the mix, so I’m excited to see what this Angels team can do. I expect a bounce-back year and a possible Wild Card spot behind the Astros in the AL West.
9. Milwaukee Brewers
The Brewers are basically the New Orleans Saints of the MLB right now: all offense and no defense. Their lineup could be one of the scariest in baseball with Eric Thames, Lorenzo Cain (from the Royals), Travis Shaw, Ryan Braun, and Christian Yelich (from the Marlins). However, their starting rotation is suspect to say the least. I’m high on the Brewers and hope they overperform their outlook for 2018.
8. Colorado Rockies
You could make a compelling argument that the Rockies’ duo of Charlie Blackmon and Nolan Arenado is the best one-two punch in baseball right now. The Rockies have plenty of talent and invested $106 million into their bullpen this offseason, which will be headlined by Wade Davis. This is a good team, but if they don’t figure it out this year, I expect they never will. That said, the Rockies are a serious threat for a deep playoff run.
7. Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers are a team that I think people are a little too high on. Some are calling Los Angeles World Series favorites, but this team is a bit too shaky come October to get over the hump. However, I do believe the Dodgers have one of the most talented rosters in baseball behind Kershaw, Jansen, Bellinger, and Puig, but will this talent be enough to hoist them past their recent postseason struggles?
6. Cleveland Indians
I doubt losing Carlos Santana will hurt Cleveland too much this season, but it’s possible they’ll be missing his power bat. The Indians still have one of the best rotations and bullpens in baseball, so they’ll need Lindor and Jose Ramirez to have great seasons (along with a rebound year out of Edwin Encarnacion).
5. Washington Nationals
This year is likely Washington’s last shot at winning a World Series for a while, as Bryce Harper will probably leave next season. It’s not all bad though for Nats fans; this team is poised for a deep playoff run. They’ll need similar run production to last year and consistency from a very solid rotation, but their bullpen was seventh worst last year and could be their downfall in the playoffs.
4. Chicago Cubs
The Cubs have an extremely talented, young, and versatile lineup. After bringing home a World Series trophy in 2016, look for this team to be right in the mix as World Series favorites in the NL this year. Their already solid rotation became top-tier this offseason after adding Yu Darvish to the mix. They’ll need a better year from a slimmed-down Kyle Schwarber and for Jon Lester to perform, but I like the Chicago Cubs out of the NL as World Series favorites.
3. Boston Red Sox
The addition of slugger J.D. Martinez makes last year’s powerless offense into a legitimately scary hitting team. Boston has all the pieces, but it needs to capitalize on the production from its young stars in order to get to the World Series. The Red Sox need bounce-back years from Hanley Ramirez and David Price and another great season from Drew Pomeranz for a legitimate chance at the pennant.
2. New York Yankees
New York’s lineup is a pitcher’s nightmare: Judge, Stanton, Sanchez, Gardner, and Gregorious are all intimidating at the plate. The Yankees were first in the MLB last year in home runs and added Giancarlo Stanton, the MLB’s individual home run leader and NL MVP. Just let that sink in. New York looks to be just about ready to make it back to the World Series if its rotation can hold up through October.
1. Houston Astros
Just as last year, The Houston Astros are the favorites to win it all this year, and for good reason. Without losing anyone from their roster besides Carlos Beltran (a non-factor in last year’s playoffs) and adding Gerrit Cole to fortify the rotation, the Astros are strong candidates to make it back to the ALCS. They have an offense that led in almost every statistical category last season, and a good young core in Altuve, Springer, Correa, and Bregman. They’ll have a full season out of Justin Verlander this year and are the favorites to repeat.
(Photo via The Ledge)
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