I expect the Bosox to come out of the box strong ( not saying much compared to last year). The offense will be fine, and the top 3 starters are looking good. The problems will start when the first losing streak kicks in and this Bobby V shit will start. I never understood why you would hire Cherington to be your "long term" G.M, then go out and hire a cocky manager for a 2yr deal...This in istself will become a problem( actually already has). Ben is thinking long term, while Bobby V is coaching for his job..Not a good mix in my opinion. They already are disagreeing on Iglesias and Bard. Unless the Sox can start hot( which I think they will) AND SUSTAIN that, ( which is highly doubtful), they could become a good fade....especially when they turn on Valentine...
Pirates,
Some people are optimistic about their chances, I disagree. They will be terrible..
They picked up a couple of washed up has beens in Bedard and Aj Burnett.. Karstens is pretty good but inconsistent and Correia gives up too many HRs. McDonald and
Morton let a lot of baserunners on. So do Bedard and AJI dont like the rotation, some thing it will improve.. I dont.
Lineup has no pop, Im a big McCutchen fan but he cant do it by himself. Will Alvarez ever become what hes suppose to be? Presley Walker and Jones are good hitters.. Rest of lineup will have low avgs. I think Pirates will have the lowest SLG% of any team in MLB..
BP well they have a very closer in Hanrahan, he and McCutchen are the only two guys I even like on the team. The BP isnt very good, it could surprise and be middle of the road but it wont be anything great.
Pirates will win 75 games if they are lucky..Cards,Reds and Brewers are the real teams in this division. Those who are expecting your first over .500 season in many years, keep on waiting.
Very spot on. Pirates have done nothing to improve this year, and nothing to build off of last year. Oh ya, they did raise ticket prices!
Burnett & Bedard were good a decade ago, LOL.
The Pirates built that new stadium 11 years ago already with a short porch in RF, and they have NEVER stacked their lineup with left handed power hitters. Heck, they havent even had 2-3 lefties in the lineup that could go yard!
The Bucs showed some promise last year, mainly because their starting rotation pitched way over its head in the first half. They regressed to the norm in the 2H and the wheels fell off!
Its a shame too, bc Ive said for years the Pirates are getting close. They are loaded with top notch pitching in the minors. If they wouldve finally spent some serious coin this year and added 1-2 power guys to mix in with Cutch, Walker, Tabata, Presley, and Alvarez, the Pirates may have had something. Instead, they follow the same path they have for the past decade and add a few cheap average/ below average over the hill free agents in Clint Barmes, Beckett, Bedard, Barajas, and Casey McGhee!!!
They shouldve pooled all that money and signed Prince Fielder! Same ole same ole in the Steel city.
