Okay. So. Here's how the Red Sox are gonna win the AL East this year.
I know, I know, I'm a Yankee fan, so I should think the Yankees are gonna win the East. Not with this offseason we're not. I've resigned myself to the fact that we might not even make the playoffs this year. I'd love to be proven wrong, but with the Rays, Jays and Sox all looking great, and us still...making the same mistakes, I'm not impressed so far.
So the Red Sox. On paper, they didn't do as much as someone like Toronto. They fixed the back half of their rotation by getting Rich Hill, Michael Wacha and James Paxton, they cemented their bullpen by getting Jake Diekman and locking up Hansel Robles, and their only real offensive addition was getting a shortstop from Denver to play 2nd base for them. Yes, Story is nice and all, but he's got a learning curve ahead of him, and both Paxton and Hill are risky signings.
But. The Red Sox were close last year. I still think they should have beaten the Astros and made it to a World Series. Even without Mookie Betts, who I thought was gonna bring them a dynasty, the core of Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers, J.D. Martinez, Alex Verdugo and Enrique Hernandez is DEADLY, and this team should be heading back into things for the next few years. Especially if Tanner Houck sprouts some wings as a starter this year.
And with Trevor Story? Not only is that a defensive step up over Christian Arroyo, but that's 25+ homers if he's healthy the whole year. Meaning you can expect Story, Martinez, Devers, Bobby Dalbec and maybe even Bogaerts to hit 25 or more if they're healthy the whole time. Even if you're Toronto, can you imagine going up against that? With Ryu on the downslope and Berrios still struggling? Good grief.
But really, the difference between the Red Sox getting Story and the Jays getting Chapman and company is that the Red Sox are there and are already the best, and the Blue Jays are using these contracts to become the best. So, if this goes according to potential, the Red Sox should take first easily. But...you still have the Rays, Blue Jays and Yankees, perhaps KNOWING THAT, ready to take them down when they can.
So...I'm thinking it'll be Boston's year. But it's also April.
Coming Tomorrow- The Mets wanted to go into this season with deGrom and Scherzer. One might be injured again. So is the other one...enough?
I feel like it'll be a battle between the Sox and Jays... with the Rays sneaking into the mix like they always do. Then again... if everything is clicking for the Yankees, they could win the East.
ReplyDelete