First stage of research for the new season, awaiting some prices but
BaseballFollowing on from the success of the 2014 selections which won just under £1000 for Tft, two for the new season
MLB Pre-season training begins this week
My knowledge is much better in the AL than the NL because the teams and divisions i know are American league, which is extremely competitive but lacks a dominant team
1. Chicago White Sox(disclaimer, i have been a fan for over 20 years and follow them closely)
They have been rebuilding for several years, and last year their payroll fell to 18th in the MLB as they ditched expensive contracts and veteran players left
This gave them the firepower to recruit heavily this off-season
Already the team had a top pitcher in Chris Sale, and they recruited Samardzija. With top draft pick Rodon to come the pitching is going to be much improved. Add Quintana and you have 4 of the 5 man rotation there and ready, and looking extremely promising
"a deal that would send Jeff Samardzija to the South Side -- a trade that would solve Chicago's starting rotation problem, shake up the AL Central and set in motion one of the most impressive offseason makeovers of recent winters."
that is from:
http://www.si.com/mlb/2015/01/30/white-sox-offseason-rick-hahn-jeff-samardzija-david-robertsonwhich summarises it better than i could do
They re-tooled their bullpen with relievers and closers, notably Robertson who closed for the Yankees last season
They recruited in infield and outfield, notably via Melky Cabrera for left field
"No team, though, has improved itself more since the end of last season than the White Sox. Having added a top of the rotation starter in his prime (Samardzija), an elite closer (Robertson), an underrated lefty reliever (Zach Duke), an All-Star outfielder (Cabrera), and a grizzled slugger who’s a perfect fit for their ballpark (Adam LaRoche), the White Sox are positioned for a run in 2015, and for the foreseeable future. Asked what AL team has upgraded its roster the most, a rival AL executive said, “I think the White Sox. And in that division, where the Tigers may be taking a step back a little, there’s an opportunity.”"
Finished 18 games behind in the AL Central last season but adding these new pieces to a roster including last year's rookie of the year Abreu they should be right up there, hitting deeper through the otrder, pitching depth and better defense
Little of this is factored into prices. Part of this will be their division, much like for the Royals last year it contains the powerful Tigers . Part of this is summarised i n the article above
"The leap from a 73-win season to a postseason appearance is a big one. And early projections are skeptical that the White Sox can even get to .500: Baseball Prospectus’ PECOTA peg them as a 78-win club."
However all of the above (better hitting depth, better pitching depth and some defense) should put them right in the hunt for the division and merely not making the mistakes that lost them games last year in my opinion will get them from 73 to well north of 80 wins needing around 90 to scoop, and from there who knows
"Confident enough that a case could be made for the White Sox jumping from 63 wins in 2013 to 73 wins in '14 to the playoffs this season.
"I don't want to sit here and read the future." White Sox ace Chris Sale told MLB.com prior to last weekend's SoxFest activities. "But Rick put us in the position to do that. That's what all this is about, is winning a championship."
"What's coming into my mind is we were in a difficult spot the last two years, and we've been pulled out of that spot, and now the playing field has been leveled off a whole lot more," White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper said. "We're a better-looking team.""
2. Boston Red Sox2014 was a down year, finishing way behind the Orioles in the AL East and finishing last after winning the WS the year before
The Boston Red Sox moved quickly in November to sign the best two free agent position players available in Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez. The Red Sox were terrible run production last season, tying for 11th among the AL's 15 teams with 3.91 runs per game and getting the two biggest free agent bats is the attempt to put some pop into the line up
Injuries affected Boston's big hitters last season too. Pedroia, Napoli and Ortiz, if healthy should add to the new signings and produce one of the most powerful lineups in baseball.
The starting rotation lost Jon Lester but added Justin Masterson, Rick Porcello and Wade Miley. young starting pitchers with potential
They are probably one top of the rotation pitcher short of a side that can run at the title, but that is easily fixable via trade if they are looking to be in contention at mid-season especially as this is one of the big market big payroll teams that has shown before it will invest if they are in the hunt
RecommendationsMy aim is to have a book of the two teams, weighted towards the White Sox
phase 1 Biggest bets on the division
phase 2 smaller bets on the American league
phase 3 smaller again bets on the World Series
- I am waiting for
divisional pricesHoping the White Sox will be around 7/2 third favourites behind Tigers and Royals
Hoping the Red Sox price allows something to go at. It is the most competitive division year in year out with the Yankees, Rays etc so i won't be taking anything too short
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American league outrighthttp://www.oddschecker.com/baseball/mlb/american-league/winnerRed Sox 11/2 White Sox 14/1
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World Serieshttp://www.oddschecker.com/baseball/mlb/world-series/winnerRed Sox 16-1 White Sox 40-1
As a big market high profile big spending team there is less juice in the Red Sox price.
I will update as the markets form properly
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