Post by Zigmo-Whitesox on Mar 10, 2024 9:16:03 GMT -5
The defending champs look to hold off the improved Orioles and a retooled Blue Jays while New York and Tampa Bay continue to develop.
1) Boston Red Sox
2031: 97-65, 1st Place AL East
Who They Were: A strong team to start the year the Red Sox were holding a decent lead in the division but decided to step things up a few notches bringing in Sergio Navarro and Chris Donelson to buff the rotation and Luis Morales to man CF. This combined with very strong play from their catcher Daniel Flores and Rookie sensation John Lacy made them one of the most talented and dangerous teams in the PBA. They would cruise through the toughest of the AL squads in the playoffs beating the Mariners and then the Royals 4-1 in each series and then win a game 7 contest against the dodgers to capture the PBA championship.
Offseason Review: Boston has lost a bit of their firepower from the 2031 squad sending John Lacy to Detroit and losing Bobby Witt Jr., Luis Villareal and playoff star Ralph Porter to free agency. However Joe Taylor who suffered a season ending injury midway though last year returns healthy and should make up for some of these losses should he stay healthy.
On The Farm: Following the flurry of trades last season the Boston farm has been decimated. #54 Eddie Wilson arrived from Detroit and had a stong 2.38 ERA in his first year in A- ball. #88 Chris Layton a 2027 7th round draft pick has performed well the last two years putting up a 2.76 ERA in 192 innings of work in 2031 in AAA. Bostons draft was able to remain intact and they actually added a second 1st round pick from detroit and a 4th rounder from KC.
Best Case Scenario: A repeat PBA championship for Mike Ball
Worst Case Scenario: The team exits the playoffs early
Key Questions: Why did you decide to move Lacy was it a sell high move or something else?
Who is someone who gets overshadowed perhaps on this loaded squad that is key to your success this year?
2) Baltimore Orioles
2031: 79-83, 3rd Place AL East.
Who They Were: The Orioles had a down year by their standards failing to top 87 wins for the first time in 7 years. They really struggled putting the ball in play hitting just .255 as a team which is the lowest mark for them since the PBA started. This combined with some hit and miss pitching led to their demise. Star pitcher? Mike Taylor posted a 6.20 ERA and starters Larry Price(6.25), Erik Bowers(4.85) and Thomas Burbank(4.64) were all pretty bad while Time Longo(3.61), Sam Carlson(3.60), and Luis Ortega(3.29) were all pretty good.
Offseason Review: Baltimore brought in some big names to bolster their offense in Mike Fitzgerald and Jimmy Torres. They also acquired Nate Capriglione from Toronto in an effort to stabilize their pitching staff. Fitzgerald was the big catch here as he sometimes single handedly it seems pushed the padres offense along last year in a very pitcher friendly park. The transition to Baltimore could lead to some very eye popping numbers for him and this author could easily see him in the MVP area along the lines of a Roderick Dalton in Camden Yards lefties hit with a 1.13 PF HR rate in Baltimore vs just a .810 HR rate in SD. Capriglione has had pretty good stuff but with a career 4.42 ERA and an ERA well over 5 the last few years at 34 he is going to need to Ponce De Leon really screwed up and the fountain of youth was actually located in Baltimore all along. (They have a weird thing with water in Baltimore I guess www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/09/19/orioles-bird-bath/ )
On The Farm: This is not the best of farms but there is still #44 1B Jorge Moreno who destroyed rookie ball with a 1.219 OPS in 147 ABs last season. He projects to have plenty of power down the line. Tommy Birdsong checks in at #108 as well. He should be ready for the bigs soon and showcases three above average offerings. Baltimore does not draft in the top 3 rounds this year however they were active in the international market and have some nice raw prospects there.
Best Case Scenario: The team hits the cover off the ball and the pitching doesn't implode. A deep playoff run and division championship could be in play.
Worse Case Scenario: The pitching lets them down and Baltimore barely misses the playoffs. Regardless the squad will be improved from last years team.
Key Questions: Your staff wasn’t very good last year. Do you expect improvement this year?
Wil you look to add to this years squad with a lot of talent still available in FA?
3) Toronto Blue Jays
2031: 84-78, 2nd place in AL East.
Who They Were: Toronto really hit the ball hard recording 239 HRs on the season and put up the 7th most war(28) in line with Milwaukee and ahead of playoff teams Chicago, Texas, New York. They probably were a bit unlucky there but were bolstered by a huge season from utility man Matt Aceto(40 HRS 4.9 WAR). The offense was there but the pitching would let them down with a 4.35 ERA. With the exodus of Capriglione the main culprit to the pitching woes (5.72 ERA in 168 innings) this could improve.
Offseason Review: The jays added 2b slugger Arturo Reineri and Andres Jimenez to bolster the infield as well as stud reliever Anyelo Luna to bolster the bullpen and any living breathing human to replace Capriglione in the rotation. They lose Matt Aceto, Miguel Hiraldo, and Taylor Walls to FA. Vlad Guerrero Jr also heads to Texas via waivers. This largely seems like a push before considering Gaustao Couraca. The super talented left fielder seems ready to take an additional step this season after starting 60 games last year. He would hit 18 bombs in limited action in the majors and a total of 45 across three levels in 2031. with continued development a 45 bomb major league campaign is not out of the cards for the slugger with massive power.
On The Farm: #13 Fred Ramsey, #50 Isaiah Harris and #78 Ryan Goodman all are at or near the big league level and Ramsey especially looks to be a future star if he continues his promising development. He sports 5 above average pitches and has done well progressing up through AA in 2031. #113 Mike Robles also looks pretty promising as an outfielder with contact, power and speed.
Best Case Scenario: Pretty similar to Baltimore I can see either one finishing 1st- 3rd with second or third being likely and the pieces in place to make a run in the playoffs.
Worst Case Scenario: The team needs underperforms again and finishes with 81 wins.
Key Questions: Your bullpen looks really really solid are you happy with the pitching staff? How soon do we get to see Fred Ramsey?
Over under on 40 bombs for Couraca this year?
Extra question lol. You have a bit of room financially are you looking to acquire any more pieces to aid the squad?
4) New York Yankees
2031: 68-94, Last Place AL East
Who They Were: Not a lot of things went right for NY in 2031 the pitching was pretty bad and the hitting while there were some bright spots was unimpressive. They dealt star LF Angelo Santiago to Seattle bringing in Nate McClure which certainly hurt them some production wise. Dutch Kroll had another strong year putting up 3.1 WAR and potential Star Justin Campbell arrived on the big league squad. The team will hope that Campbell can take a large step forward this year as his potential is quite high however at 24 the big steps need to happen sooner than later. Skyler Nash as a player with a ton of upside as well, he sported a 4.93 ERA in his rookie campaign. Largely there is talent in the rotation here and some better luck and development should see quite a bit of improvement.
Offseason Review: New York was largely quiet this offseason just making minor moves to bolster it's squad and will look for internal improvements to bring better results this season.
On The Farm: It’s a farm with no top 100 prospects but some promising young players in 19 year olds #117 Brett O'Bryan and Steef Boom. Time will tell what they have here. They have their entire draft still available to them and pick #8 this year so some high end talent should help to infuse the farm.
Best Case Scenario: If the Yankees can see improvements from some of their young players like Campbell and Nash and better years from their starters they could finish at near .500.
Worst Case Scenario: The young guys can't get it going and the rotation doesn't improve leading to a top five draft pick.
Key Questions: You gave up quite a bit to bring in McClure the ratings say he should really punish righties are you expecting big things from the 25 year old this season?
What does a successful year look like to you this season? If Campbell and Nash reach their potential would you consider that a win as you look to the future? You have some big money coming off the books in a couple years it seems that the yankees could rise quite a bit in the future should dev go right this year.
5) Tampa Bay Rays
2031: 73-89, 4th Place AL East
Who They Were: Tampa Bay pitched and played decent defense as has been the case under GM Jimmy Wood. The offense was pretty bad however finishing in the bottom portion of the league with 624 runs. Juan Vega was a bright spot for them with a .987 ops but only started 84 games for the Rays. And Fernando Tatis Jr. had a great year with the glove earning his second gold glove and putting up 3.5 WAR before being sent to Texas at the deadline. Tampa had a very strong bullpen and decent starting pitching last season. With 4 of their 6 starters turning in ERAs at or below 4.25 it was a successful season for the Rays.
Offseason Review: Tampa Bay Let Vega walk and also gone is Nick Gordon. Offensively this could lead to a step in the wrong direction it will depend on when star two way player Ben Rivera arrives. When you think of two way players you often would think RF but Rivera is a 1b with a 1 arm?(Weird). The rays went out and grabbed youngster Jason Partridge in the offseason. Partridge has seen his share of struggles however the talent is there and with a change of scenery he should get every chance to improve. Outside of Partridge Tampa has been largely quiet this offseason but for a team building up it's core that isn't awful if the tiching holds up.
On The Farm: Tampa Bay has some star potential guys in the farm in #18 Ben Rivera, #138 Alex Yanez and #39 Dave Gill. They also have a tri of decent arms in #75 Roberto Rodriguez, #86 Adam DiBattista, and #115 Tony Herrera. The farm is coming along quite well and Tampa currently has the 13th best farm according to OSA.
Best Case Scenario: Tampa Bay’s could win 75 games and beat out the yankees for fourth in division.
Worst Case Scenario: Could easily be a 100 loss year and top 5 draft pick.
Key Questions: Which of your young players are you highest on?
You have a little bit of money below budget. Any plans on what you want to do with the extra budget room?
