You are here: Home / Search for "label/2009%20Diamond%20Hoggers%20Season%20Previews"

New York Mets 2009 Season Preview

March 21, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the New York Mets. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

They are the New York Mets, and they should be the class of the National League. They’ve made a habit of choking away playoff berths with heavily loaded rosters the past couple seasons, but they won’t be in a position to blow it in the last week this year. This team is as good of a bet to represent the NL in the World Series as anyone, in our highly respected opinion. When they come to your town, they’re the team that everyone is interested in seeing play.

They have the thunder in the lineup so that your lead is never safe, and once they have a lead the game is over by the 7th or 8th inning due to additions they’ve made in the bullpen. Lets talk about the bullpen. They added perhaps the finest closer in the game to replace Billy meltdown Wagner in Francisco Rodriguez. They added another former closer and nasty man in JJ Putz. They’ve said goodbye to Duaner Sanchez, but they still have Pedro Feliciano (tough lefty), Shawn Green, Carlos Muniz, and Freddy Garcia. Garcia may eventually be in the rotation if an injury or ineffective starter rares their ugly head.

There is a ton to like about the rotation. The ace is unquestionably Johan Santana. Vegas likes his chances to be a Cy Young winner. So do we now that he’s had a year to learn NL hitter tendencies. John Maine reminds us of a replacement player a little bit doesn’t he? Rick Reed with a little bit more of an arm? He’ll be the #2 and he’s a tough gamer. Oliver Perez has been retained as the #3 starter and he is a candidate to really breakout as well as Mike Pelfrey the #4 starter. It’s now or never for Pelfrey, or what you see is what you get. We think he’s going to throw really well this season. The #5 starter is lefty Tim Redding.

Then comes the thunderous lineup. No one knows how new Citi Field will play or how the ball will fly there, but we feel it will be slightly easier on hitters then old Shea was.

Rumor has it that Jerry Manuel is planning on hitting Luis Castillo leadoff so Jose Reyes can hit 3rd. Good move. Also rumored is that Castillo lost a bunch of weight and is back in the shape that he was when he had a 35 game hitting streak for the Marlins and was one of the most exciting players in the game. The middle of the order will be the home of David Wright, Carlos Delgado, and Carlos Beltran. If they can stay healthy they’ll do what they’re paid at a premium for and that is putting up really spectacular offensive numbers. Daniel Murphy and Ryan Church are the corner outfielders. Brian Schneider is a decent hitting catcher.

If their division wasn’t so tough, they have that makeup of a 100 win team. Instead, they’ll win around 93-95. From there its up to Jerry Manuel and the starpower. Mr. Met will be smiling a lot in 2009.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, New York Mets

Washington Nationals 2009 Season Preview

March 21, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the Washington Nationals. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

The Washington Nationals are summed up in one word: moribund. They need picked up and it’s most likely not going to happen this year. When it does you’ll be able to color everyone in and out of baseball surprised. They should be better however. They aren’t completely helpless still.

The big addition was the former object of our affection, Adam Dunn. Dunn will be the centerpiece in the lineup and in the cleanup spot in the order night in and night out like he always should of been. The order will start with Christian Guzman who jumpstarted his dying career last year with a very impressive season. We think he’s unlikely to do it again but still should settle in as a solid everyday guy. Lastings Milledge should hit second and is likely to begin making a household name if he can avoid problems that brash guys in his mold (like Milton Bradley) did early on in their highly hyped careers. The third hitter in the lineup will be Mr. National himself Ryan Zimmerman (pictured). The third baseman is a good hitter who got the winning hit in the first game at the Nationals new park. He will struggle to put up huge numbers in that park as all players will but he can flat out hit and a .300 season is on the horizon.

After Dunn, either Josh Willingham or Nick Johnson will hit 5th and 6th. Willingham was added to an already crowded outfield because of uncertainty in Austin Kearns. Adding to that uncertainty for Kearns is the fact that many Nationals fans think the guy is done as a player and that Elijah Dukes will beat him out for the rightfield spot. Also still lurking is Wily Mo Pena. Pena is probably destined to be a pinch hitter and spot starter his entire career and he’ll sprinkle in a 25 homer season somewhere again. The catcher is Jesus Flores and he’ll round out the bottom of the lineup with the second baseman Anderson Hernandez. Both of them are relative unknowns at this point. We’ll see.

The Nats cut ties with Odalis Perez, though he was one of their more effective pitchers last year. John Lannan, Scott Olsen, Daniel Cabrera, Collin Balester, and Jordan Zimmermann are the guys most likely to begin the season as the rotation but it could be subject to change shortly thereafter. Matt Chico could be one of the guys who finds his way back into the rotation, even though he’s horrible. The ceiling for any of those guys is at best a #2 starter in this league on most teams. They’ll be helped by their ballpark though.

The closer is Joel Hanrahan. He’s extremely ordinary and you’re looking at a 25 save season at best for the guy if he can hold onto the job all year. They’d be wise to give the job to John Rauch who is their most solid reliever. From there they have Saul Rivera, Jesus Colome, Steven Shell and Jason Bergmann as guys who could contribute.

Nationals fans are just hoping for a 75 win season. That tells you a lot about this team. You’re looking at a sure fire last place team in the NL East. The Nationals fans should look forward to Adam Dunn trying to hit 40 dingers for the 6th straight year and the continued emergence of Ryan Zimmerman and maybe even Elijah Dukes. That’s about as good as it gets for this franchise for now.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, Washington Nationals

Philadelphia Phillies 2009 Season Preview

March 20, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the World Champion Philadelphia Phillies. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

We would like to contend that the best team did not win the World Championship last season. The Phillies were not better then the Milwaukee Brewers who they defeated quickly in the first round of the playoffs. They were not better then the Rays on paper either, even though we picked the Phillies to win it in 5 games correctly. The reason they won it; and we saw this coming, was that they simply got hotter then any other team left to play and when that happens in the postseason it is hard to stop the downhill snowball.

So Phillie nation is now ecstatic heading into the season and suddenly a crop of loud and newfound Phils fans are popping up everywhere. You didn’t know your brother-in-law was a Phillies fan? Come on! He’s been there since the Mike Schmidt days, of course.

The roster from 2008 has remained intact, except for Raul Ibanez replacing Pat Burrell in left field. The starting lineup now includes Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Pedro Feliz, Raul Ibanez, Shane Victorino, and Jayson Werth.

Utley is a guy who could be a darkhorse to lead the entire national league in home runs in 2009. Everyone is talking about Howard, Fielder, Pujols as frontrunners for that title but Utley just shows up and hits and he has now entered his prime.

That core lineup should be together for a while, and they play really well together. This team is once again the frontrunner in that division because of their dynamic lineup, among other reasons. Jimmy Rollins and Shane Victorino are exactly what every manager in the big leagues dream about being able to trot out at leadoff and 2 hole every night. The headaches they cause for pitchers are nightly. Then you get to the thunder in the lineup.

The rotation is a good one, but perhaps not as strong as some think. Cole Hamels is a legitimate ace with Cy Young stuff. Brett Myers, Jamie Moyer, and Joe Blanton seem ordinary but they’re all gamers as evidenced by their postseason performances. Moyer could be nearing the end (rightfully so) and Blanton and Myers are not anything special. The fifth spot is still in debate with the top contenders being J.A. Happ, Carlos Carrasco, and Kyle Kendrick. Happ and Kendrick are the most likely candidates, while according to Phillies officials, Carrasco needs a bit more seasoning.

Brad Lidge has always been the subject of our torture and teasing ever since Albert Pujols ruined his life with that grand slam in the playoffs in Houston. Last season, he laughed at us and didn’t blow a save. That’ll teach us to mock guys drafting Lidge in fantasy drafts. From there the Phillies build a bullpen around their closer with capable arms such as J.C. Romero (lefty specialist), Ryan Madson, Scott Eyre, Chad Durbin, Clay Condrey, and likely Carrasco or Happ.

A primate could manage this team to 90 wins easily. Literally, they could. Charlie Manuel is not a strong manager but this team was talented enough to get him his one title. Although we don’t like their odds to repeat, they might just have enough of the psychological edge over the Mets and Marlins to win the division again. Their rotation (unless they add someone around the deadline) is just good enough to eventually get them beat in October. They’re unlikely to get that white hot again to roll through the rest of the senior circuit. This will still be a fun year for Phillies fans that sees them play well enough to get back to the postseason.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, Philadelphia Phillies

Atlanta Braves 2009 Season Preview

March 20, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the Atlanta Braves. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

The Braves 2008 turned disasterous due to their inept play on the road last year. They lost 55 games on the road last season (and their troubles seemed to start in Cincinnati) . One might wonder when thinking deeper if that is a possible sign that skipper Bobby Cox’s words are no longer working in the clubhouse; this is going to be a very telling year for Cox. It could be his final year — which no one is really talking about at this point.
The Braves are aligned with their usual amout of adequate talent in the lineup. Some believe that Josh Anderson will win the centerfield job and hit leadoff. Anderson is nothing special, and if he isn’t able to hold down the leadoff spot then it will probably be Kelly Johnson. The Braves have a young shortstop who should be a household name in a short time in Yunel Escobar. From there, everyone knows about Chipper Jones who had one of his finest seasons in his career last year. Chipper is always going to hit, and still probably has a few good years left at the plate. He has a decent shot at carving out a Hall of Fame career if he can be productive for a few more seasons.
Brian Mccann (pictured above) is one of the headliners in this lineup. Mccann will be a perennial All Star every season and should remain one of the finest offensive backstops in the game for the forseeable future.
From there the Braves are depending heavily on two question marks that may determine their fate offensively in 2009. Jeff Francoeur is trying to rebound from a disappointing season in 2008 that saw him get sent to the minor leagues. It was never supposed to be that way for Frenchy, so Braves fans will be paying close attention to how he opens up his 2009 campaign. He’ll most likely hit 5th and be the lynchpin in the lineup that he was always supposed to be.
The Braves lost out on a number of free agents this offseason but it wasn’t from lack of effort in attempting to sign them. The one guy they came away with was the veteran Garret Anderson. If Anderson is at his best he’ll hit 6th and be in left field on most nights. If he can’t stay healthy expect Matt Diaz to get a lot of starts out in the pasture. Anderson is a good hitter but one thing we see is possibly to many lefties in this lineup. A good lefty starter or arm out of the bullpen might be able to really isolate what they can do offensively.
The bottom of the lineup will be rounded out by Kelly Johnson and Casey Kotchman.
Atlanta’s rotation is no longer what they’re known for, but if two young upstart arms can continue progressing, they’ll be closer to getting back to that old reputation. The ace is going to be Derek Lowe by definition. They overpaid for Lowe in the offseason but he was coming off some solid years and his sinker is still devastating to hitters. He should continue to eat innings and have success in that big ballpark.
The really intriguing guy is Jair Jurrjens. Jurrjens has an electric arm and a lot of movement on his pitch arsenal. Jurrjens was the Braves most consistent starter in 2008. He completed 188 1/3 innings, and didn’t go at least five innings only three times (two of those pitched into the fifth inning). Jurrjens is a guy who could come out of nowhere and win near 20 games. There is a lot to like about this young pitcher.
The 3 starter is Javier Vazquez. Vazquez, dating back to his Montreal days as a youngster; has always been the bridesmaid and never really the bride. The ship has sailed on him being a frontline starter but teams could do a lot worse as far as a middle of the rotation starter goes. He was acquired from the White Sox.
The newcomer to the rotation should be Kenshin Kawakami. As most Asian imports are, he is an unknown commodity and relative wildcard. What you’ll get from him in the major leagues is anyone’s guess. Kawakami has an average fastball in the low 90s, exceptional cutter, and a slow curve. He compiled a 112-72 record and 3.22 ERA with 1,328 strikeouts in 11 seasons for the Chunichi Dragons. He should be the 4th starter.
The 5th starter is up in the air at press time but Tom Glavine is back on a 1-year deal with the Braves and if Glavine can’t fulfill this role then it might be Jorge Campillo. Campillo had some success last season starting for the Bravos.
The bullpen has some usual suspects, and the closer is Mike Gonzalez. Gonzalez isn’t anything special but as a lefty he is pretty valuable. The Braves also have Rafael Soriano, who should serve as the setup man and until Jay Bruce hit one to the moon off him to end a game last year, he was their closer. Pete Moylan is a situational specialist and will be back. Manny Acosta has a good young arm and should log some middle relief innings. If he can impress he might be a future closer candidate. Buddy Carlyle, Jeff Ridgway and Blaine Boyer round out this group.
Overall, the Braves are going to be a middle of the pack team in 2009. This comes from the fact they are in a tough division that will find them out-gunned on most nights. At best, Cox proves he still has it as a manager and squeezes ten more wins out of these guys then they’re really worth. That would be about 88 wins and good enough to probably have them in 2nd place in their division and making a run for the Wild Card, best case scenario.
Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, Atlanta Braves

Florida Marlins 2009 Season Preview

March 19, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the Florida Marlins. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

Every few years the upstart Florida Marlins make an improbable run to the World Series after being left for dead by their fans, their owner, and the rest of the world. Talent wins out over all of those things, and the Marlins win that World Series and then shortly thereafter trade away that young star talent that got them the rings and start over again by finding more young talent with their superscouts in the minor leagues. Rinse. Wash. Repeat.

We’re back at that window where the Marlins can start thinking about making a run again. They’ve stockpiled the young talent and they’re headlined by one of the biggest stud players in all of baseball, shortstop Hanley Ramirez. Every baseball fan should have a chance to see this kid play to be able to say they’ve done it. When it’s all said and done, they’re going to be electing him into Cooperstown because of the things he can do. There are few players in the game today who based on talent alone are sure fire future Hall of Famers. We’re comfortable with saying Ramirez is that kind of player.

Cue the young talent. Cameron Maybin is said to be a young Ken Griffey Jr. clone, and he’ll be leading off and in centerfield. Did you know that his first career hit was a homerun off Roger Clemens? He’s going to look like a rookie at times but he’ll show some superstar qualities in the same breath. He reminds us of a third long lost Upton brother in a lot of ways.

From there, Jeremy Hermida will be in right field. Good power, and hitting in front of Ramirez won’t hurt his numbers. Hermida should be ready to have his best year ever. Ramirez sandwiches Hermida and Dan Uggla, who is a gem in the rough. Uggla has 35 homer power and should be a lock for 100 RBI this year, which are tremendous numbers for a second baseman. From there you have Cody Ross, a nice player in Jorge Cantu, catcher John Baker and first baseman Gaby Sanchez.

The bench is comprised of some nice names as well. Dallas Mcpherson was a highly touted prospect. Wes Helms can hit with some pop off the bench. Alfredo Amezaga and Mike Rabelo will get some active duty as spot starters and Luis Gonzalez is the token veteran making what is probably his last stop in Miami.

People aren’t that high on their rotation generally, but they never pitch as badly as expected. They always seem to get that performance from a guy who has been pegged as a recycled arm, dating back to the Charlie Hough days. A lot of the disinterest in the starting rotation comes from the fact the ace is Ricky Nolasco. He is nothing spectacular. His arm is not electric. He just collects outs and is good at it. Josh Johnson returns from an injury riddled season where in 2007 he was making a push to become one of the finer young arms in the game. Anibal Sanchez has struggled with his own injury problems and will be the third starter. Andrew Miller and Chris Volstad are flamethrowers in the 4 and 5 spots, and expect one these highly regarded youngsters to emerge as a frontline starter by the end of 2009.

The bullpen has a bunch of relative unknowns. The closer is Matt Lindstrom, he’ll be set-up by newcomers Leo Nunez and Scott Proctor. Everyone knows who Scott Proctor is. Kensing, Pinto, and Tankersley are all younger guys who’ve have had control problems in their MLB careers. Overall the pen is a patchwork mess that isn’t going to be a strength at any point. The pitching staff is nothing to write home about and could hold back a tremendous group of young hitters.

This team isn’t going to win it all this year, but they’re going to be in the mix in one of the better divisions in baseball. They’re going to be very tough to beat when they get hot and their energy level and hunger should be easy to see on most nights, something you won’t see from a veteran team. They’re a ways away, but don’t doubt yourself that in a short time this team will make an almost overnight run to the top once again. The question is how soon can it be?

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, Florida Marlins

Los Angeles Dodgers 2009 Season Preview

March 18, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the Los Angeles Dodgers. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

We really like James Loney. Wanna know a secret? If you haven’t gotten to know James Loney by now, you will know the name soon. A lot of the talk about this Dodgers team will automatically gravitate towards Manny Ramirez, but its about to go in a different direction. Loney is 25 years old and is about to become the face of this franchise. For the next decade, he’s going to be a guy who gets between 180-210 hits and hits 20 dingers while driving in around 90-100. This upcoming season, he’s going to contend for the batting title and we’d like to pick him to win it.
It’s not like people shouldn’t already know who he is, he was the 19th overall pick in the 2002 baseball draft. But people don’t realize that the guy has under the radar value. This guy is soon to be a legit star in all of baseball. We don’t know if that is because he’s a quiet star in the loud city, or because of Manny Ramirez, or Dodger fans are too concentrated on their jalapeno and hot dog combination or what.
Or it could be because Loney is just a really nice player on a really nice overall team. These Dodgers really do look loaded when you step back and take a look at them. Rafael Furcal leads off, and if he’s healthy he’s one of the truly dynamic lea doff men in all of baseball. Russell Martin is a guy who will be in the top of the order and he’s a fine young backstop with some pop. Then the thunder starts.

Manny Ramirez is back, and while he won’t hit near .400 again, he’ll definitely do some damage. Manny could roll out of bed and hit .300 with 30 homers in the National League. He’ll do slightly more then that. If he stays healthy, he could lead the league in homers even at his age. If he wants to.

Then you’ve got Andre Ethier. Once again, a nice player. He hit .305 last season with 20 home runs. Not a guy we’re real high on but you can’t argue that he’s just pretty good at the major league level. The Dodgers then have one of our favorite players in the game at third base. Casey Blake. The guy is scrappy. Every spring he came to Cleveland with a new arrival to take his job and every year he ended up playing in 150 games and helping the team to a few extra victories. He’s blood and sweat and scrap. Not enough Casey Blakes exist in this game anymore.
Then you get into another young player with almost limitless potential. There is a reason the Dodgers have never traded away Matt Kemp. Maybe that reason is because they believe that he could reach some individuals expectations as a future MVP type guy. Kemp can do it all, which includes hitting video game tape measure shots, robbing home runs, throwing guys out from the track in center field, and generally just being a force altogether. Expect his best season yet.
Blake Dewitt is nothing special but at second base he will definitely round out the bottom of the order for this team.

The starting pitching is pretty solid and is led by new ace Chad Billingsley. Derek Lowe and Brad Penny departed this offseason, leaving Hiroki Kuroda (9-10, 3.73 ERA) as the No. 2 starter. Then you’ve got phenom Clayton Kershaw as the number three. Randy Wolf and Jason Schmidt should round out the rotation.

Jonathan Broxton will be the closer with the only other notable arm in the pen being Guillermo Mota.

Everyone knows about skipper Joe Torre doing his thing and winning baseball games. These guys are heavily talented and should be the favorite to win the NL West. Some might wonder why the we picked the Giants to beat them out for the division crown, and we even wonder that, but the bottom line is it is a gut feeling and nothing more. You are simply looking at a very good ballclub for 2009.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, James Loney, Los Angeles Dodgers

Milwaukee Brewers 2009 Season Preview

March 13, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the Milwaukee Brewers. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

The Brewers went for broke in 2008 and ended up getting ran over by a team just playing better baseball at the point that they met. The Phillies were just on one of those rolls, but we actually thought the Brewers were the more talented ballclub.

We really like a lot about this Brewers organization. Other then thinking Prince Fielder is an entertaining character and a great young power hitter, they’ve got Ryan Braun. This is the year we most likely find out who is Batman and who is the sidekick between the two of them. The Brewers have made it a bit more clear that they’re going to build around Braun by giving him the big long-term deal, but they also made a surprising move keeping Fielder on a multi-year deal after trade rumors surfaced around Fielder in the offseason. They’re in a wait and see with Fielder. If he can have a huge year like he did in 2007, you’ll most likely hear talks of that huge extension he desires. If he has a good but not spectacular year like he did last season you will probably hear about the Brewers trading him in 2010.

The Brewers said goodbyes to CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets, two ace types. They’re going to make Yovani Gallardo the ace of this staff and he has dominating stuff at times. Gallardo has struggled staying healthy (as Sheets always seemed to do) but if healthy he could evolve into one of the front-line starters in all of the NL. From there the Brewers trot out Manny Parra as their #2, a lefty with a live arm but shaky command. Dave Bush has settled in as a middle of the rotation innings eater but will probably never be spectacular. Jeff Suppan will be the #4 starter and he isn’t anything special but has veteran grit and on certain days he can shut down a team based on knowledge and guile. The 5th starter will be either Seth Mcclung or Carlos Villanueva, both of whom used to be relievers.

The big addition in the offseason for the Brew-crew was Trevor Hoffman. Hoffman brings his 554 saves to Milwaukee, and is coming off a season in which he had a 3.77 ERA in just over 45 innings of work. He’ll be 42 in October, but he’s one of those old closer types who could literally pitch until the age of 50. From there the Brewers add some electric arms but guys who haven’t had a ton of success in the big leagues. Jorge Julio is trying to hang onto a big league career. David Riske is the setup man. Todd Coffey comes over from Cincinnati; have fun with that. Mitch Stetter should be the token lefty out of the pen.

They’re trotting out the same lineup as last year. Rickie Weeks, J.J. Hardy, Braun, Fielder, Corey Hart, Mike Cameron, Billy Hall, and Jason Kendall. That isn’t bad. Their weak point won’t be their ability to score runs. They’ve got enough thunder to intimidate with the heart of the order alone. Mike Lamb should see a reasonable amount of time coming off the bench. If J.J. Hardy doesn’t return to form, look for Alcides Escobar to get a push as a shortstop prospect.

Overall, this team is a lot of fun and good for baseball when they win; but they just don’t have nearly enough starting pitching. Last year they should have probably won it all on paper. In 2007 they were easily good enough to make the playoffs. In 2009, they’re going to be chasing the two longtime staple teams in the NL Central.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, Milwaukee Brewers

San Francisco Giants 2009 Season Preview

March 12, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the San Francisco Giants. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

Ladies and Gentleman, meet your 2009 darkhorse for the National League. Many people will laugh at this but they’re going to win the NL West and they’re going to scrap their way to more 2-1 victories then any team in baseball. All of the variables are in place for this team to breakout all at once. These variables of course include their player personnel, their ballpark, their division, and the fact that we just have that gut feeling.

Everyone knows about 2008 NL Cy Young Tim Lincecum. He’ll make a run at that award again this year. Matt Cain is going to become a very dependable #2 and he’ll have numbers that are sub-spectacular. Randy Johnson has made it clear that he’s pitching to prove he’s not finished and not for just 300 victories (which he should reach this season). Barry Zito isn’t nearly as bad as he’s been so far in the bay, he’s going to rebound as well. Then for the 5th spot you’ve Noah Lowry or Johnathan Sanchez, take your pick. Either guy is a higher end 5th starter if they produce at the levels that they should.

The fact that they made a serious run at Manny Ramirez tells us that they know they’re not as far from reaching the top as many outsiders might think. Major league front offices usually know more then we fans do. That was a telling sign that they think an elite player might get them over the hump. When they open up hot behind strong and fresh pitching and a mixture of good speed and fielding, they’ll go get an elite player that will be available in June or July who was not this past offseason.

The one area they lack is power, evidenced by their usual cleanup hitter catcher Bengie Molina. It doesn’t really matter because their home park isn’t known for being a big home run park anyways. With the team they have in place right now, you have to realize that it favors them to have a park that helps their pitchers. As we said, look for this team to win a ton of 3-2 ballgames, where speed and defense make the difference.

The main part of that speed is Freddy Lewis, an outfielder who could go out and steal 70 bases this year. The guy is going to be a star, and we’ve thought that since we first saw him a couple of seasons ago.

They have some of the most elite prospects in baseball. It happens when you struggle to win for a few years and now it’s time to reap the benefits of that. A Double-A trio of Madison Bumgarner, Timothy Alderson and especially Buster Posey could be great additions for the stretch run.

Pablo Sandoval is going to break out and hit between .280 and .300 with a surprising 25-30 home runs and approach 100 RBI. The addition of Edgar Renteria gives them one of the most capable 2-hole hitters in the game and great defense at the shortstop addition. Renteria plays everyday and also has enough speed to still cause problems on the basepaths. The leadoff hitter will be Randy Winn to start the season most likely but look for Lewis to eventually take this role. Winn is another guy who steals big bases during clutch situations and has some pop. Aaron Rowand can hit a little bit, and he’ll be in the center of that lineup in the 3-hole. Kevin Frandsen and Travis Ishikawa round out the bottom of the lineup. They’re scrappy just like the rest of this team.

Rich Aurilia, Juan Uribe, and Dave Roberts are perfect bench guys. More speed, more versatililty, and more experience then most benches around the big leagues.

Our favorite part of this team is Bruce Bochy, who knows all about winning with less. This team isn’t a lot different then that cinderella squad he took to the World Series in San Diego in 1998. While they won’t have an MVP in their lineup, Bochy can get this team to win 90 games. He’s a great manager who adjusts well in-game and knows when to hook a pitcher or go with his guy and play out a guy about ready to enter a hot streak. Brian Sabean will do his job as the GM seeming to add the perfect guy at the right time who fits in well from a chemistry standpoint.

So let us be the first to say it, the Giants are headed back to the playoffs. When midnight hits if the slipper fits it could go a bit further then that. At least for 2009, Giants fans are in for a treat.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, San Francisco Giants

Colorado Rockies 2009 Season Preview

March 11, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the Colorado Rockies. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

Gone are Matt Holliday, Wily Taveras, and Brian Fuentes. The Rockies are depending on new hope that the continued improvement of their young talent, not to mention the infusion of more, will give them room to better themselves over the next few years, helping them avoid the standstill an overreliance on veterans might bring.

Colorado still has two longtime veterans in Todd Helton and Garrett Atkins. Longtime prospect Ian Stewart will spell Helton off the bench and if he shows anything in the way of the power he is supposed to have he might make Helton available come July.

The outfield contains a couple of non-interesting players in Ryan Spilboroughs and Seth Smith. One guy who will be in that outfield is Carlos Gonzalez, the centerpiece in the Matt Holliday deal acquired from the A’s.

The two guys in the lineup to get excited about are Troy Tulowitzki (pictured) and Chris Ianetta. The Rockies organization feels that each are going to be excellent big leaugers. Tulowitzki was on the verge of becoming a superstar when he had an injury derail his 2008 campaign. Clint Barmes should hold off Jeff Baker to be the starting second baseman. Barmes has good power and while getting little to no recognition, might end up being one of those guys who is solid throughout his entire career. He is a darkhorse to put up numbers in that lineup.

The bullpen is a strong point for the Rockies, perhaps even stronger then their hitting which always does a passable job at Coors Field. Manny Corpas will try to hold off Huston Street for the closer’s job. Corpas was unreal two years ago when the Rockies went to the World Series and then took a step back last year, losing the job and getting it back during the season. Taylor Bucholz gives the Rockies perhaps the most underrated setup man in baseball with his 2.17 ERA and 0.95 WHIP.

The starting rotation has a ceiling on it, and will probably always be that way. They only have the chance for a limited amout of success because of their home park. Aaron Cook is the staff ace and was an All-Star selection last season but got hit all over the park in the second half of the season. Jeff Francis might be lost for all of 2009 with a pending shoulder surgery. Jason Marquis brings what he brings, which is a guy who can shut you out on any given day but also give up 9 runs in a ballgame in 2 and 2/3. Ubaldo Jimenez is a 23 year old hopeful with good stuff that should be the #3 or #4 starter. From there look for Jason Hirsh and Franklin Morales to get some starts. Jorge De La Rosa is another guy who will just hang around the AAA level, just good enough to get to the majors and get released shortly thereafter because he’ll be out of options.

You have to like Clint Hurdle. We remember reading an article on Clint Hurdle in Sports Illustrated when he took this team to the World Series. He is the ultimate players’ manager. He is a friend to his players and they undoubtedly love playing for the guy. He was supposed to be a superstar player but partying and late nights made him a bust for the Royals. He’s a candidate for a guy whose life could have a movie made about it, but he’ll need a few more cinderella runs as a manager. We don’t think the Rockies have enough firepower this season to be better then a 3rd place team at best who unloads every valuable veteran they have towards the trade deadline.

Don’t expect the Rockies to finish .500 or do much to shake up the NL West. This year is more about building around their youngsters and guys like Atkins and Helton will be moved for more youngsters that can be there when this team is ready to make another run. The ship has sailed on any large hopes for this group at the present time.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, Colorado Rockies, Troy Tulowitzki

San Diego Padres 2009 Season Preview

March 10, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the San Diego Padres. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

As you comb over the Padres roster you realize they don’t have a lot to be excited about except for maybe future star Chase Headley (pictured above). Everyone knows about Jake Peavy but a lot of people in baseball circles feel that the best may have already passed for Peavy; and maybe San Diego recognizes this as they were pretty open about listening to offers on him in the offseason. A power pitcher like Peavy isn’t really long for the game. That isn’t to say that he can’t still be a great pitcher after his fastball fades but at tops you can only expect another year, maybe three at maximum for Peavy to be dominant. After that he’s merely going to be servicable in all likelihood.

The Padres have seemed able to re-tap the potential of outfielder Jody Gerut. He’ll be the leadoff hitter. Adrian Gonzalez might be developing into a top of the line talent in this league, and would be a threat to lead the league in homers if he played in a more hitter friendly home park. Kevin Kouzmanoff is either going to start to become a very good player and improve a bit on what he’s done so far in the league or what you see is what you get this year with Kouzmanoff.

Heath Bell is the new closer and the man who made all-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman available/expendable after 2008. Bell should settle in and be a solid and effective closer for not only this year but the next several years in San Diego.

Starting pitcher Chris Young posted a 3.72 ERA last season with around a strike out per inning. Look for Young to return to the numbers that he held in Texas with an ERA back over 4. Rounding out the rotation should be Kevin Correia, Josh Greer, and yes folks; they signed Mark Prior.

Veteran additions include Cliff Floyd and David Eckstein. Brian Giles, Scott Hairston, and shortstop Luis Rodriguez will round out the rest of the lineup.

We’re not overly impressed with Bud Black as a manager. This could be his time to get some notoriety as a bad start by these guys and he could end up the first guy canned in baseball. GM Kevin Towers needs to assemble more talent and he knows it; which is why Peavy could have been had for a package of super prospects.

Look for the Padres to fall into subpar play this season and Peavy to get dealt. The right hander’s value will only raise around the deadline. This team is about to enter a full re-build and guys like Giles, Peavy, Hairston, even Prior and Floyd if they play well; aren’t long for the city of San Diego. It’s all about the future.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, San Diego Padres

Arizona Diamondbacks 2009 Season Preview

March 9, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the Arizona Diamondbacks. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

Last season the Arizona Diamondbacks jumped out to a torrid start that had everyone believing they were the favorite to win the World Series, or at least represent the National League in the fall classic. They began the season 20-8 and Brandon Webb won his first 9 starts. It went downhill from there, and quickly. They ended up acquiring Adam Dunn in an attempt to push them past the Dodgers in the NL West, which failed. They ended up finishing 2 games behind the Dodgers and 2 games above .500 at 82-80.

When you take a close look at the Diamondbacks roster, you can understand why they struggled last year. They’re sprinkled with young players and ordinary players. They have few stars.

There is a chance that guys like Justin Upton, Chris Young, and Conor Jackson could soon be considered stars. We could see any one of them having a breakout year in 2009 or soon thereafter. Brandon Webb is one of the top starting pitchers in the NL and is a threat to win the Cy Young every year. Danny Haren is a pretty good #2 as well.

From there, you’ll hear Diamondback fans talk about guys like third baseman Mark Reynolds, left fielder Eric Byrnes, and shortstop Stephen Drew. Young phenom Max Scherzer isn’t all that impressive for what we’ve seen, but he will be in the rotation trying to establish himself as a big league horse.

Gone is Dunn and Randy Johnson, while additions like Tom Gordon and Jon Garland are hopeful to strengthen the pitching staff. They also had closer Brandon Lyon exit via free agency and the closer will now be Chad Qualls. We can almost guaruntee you Qualls will not last the season as the closer. He has nothing out of the ordinary, making him the perfect closer for these Dbacks.

The bullpen isn’t too shabby in addition to Qualls. Tom Gordon, Tony Pena, Jon Rauch, and Scot Schoeneweis are all solid guys who will log innings and record outs.

If the Diamondbacks get youngsters like Upton, Young, and Jackson to have big offensive years all together this season and stay healthy in the pitching department they could win around 85 ballgames, but probably not too many more. If not, they’re about where they were at last season, as they did little to improve their very ordinary roster.

Upton should be fun to watch grow up. He’s going to be a future star in this game. Nothing better then young talent, right? Also seeing manager Bob Melvin’s stoneface look when something goes wrong is worth the price of admission in itself.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, Arizona DiamondBacks

Chicago Cubs 2009 Season Preview

March 8, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the Chicago Cubs. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

The Chicago Cubs enter 2009 entirely loaded and primed for a World Series run. You should see an abundance of trendy picks for the Cubs to represent the National League in the World Series and many baseball traditionalists will act like it is some kind of given birthright that the boys from Waveland and Sheffield Ave end up playing for that beautiful trophy.

But you aren’t going to see as many as you might expect. Every year you see less of that. You wanna know why? Because everyone knows that the Cubs will unevitably find a way to choke it away. They are the antithesis of ‘jinx’. They are almost as cursed as the Cleveland Browns franchise. They can get to the new neighborhood of success, they can even bring their moving boxes to the doorsteps; but just as they’re ready to answer that ring of the doorbell and receive their welcome cakes and brownies they’re asked to leave because they fuck it up.

They have the best pitching staff on paper in the National League perhaps. They might have lost Kerry Wood but they added Aaron Heilman, who would be a nice addition to about 30 other teams. Jeff Samardzija looks to be a guy who will be a longtime effective bullpen arm in the mold of a Turk Wendell. They also added fireballer Kevin Gregg. Carlos Marmol is as nasty as a pitcher can be. Then when talking starters you’ve got Carlos Zambrano in his prime, Rich Harden, Ryan Dempster, Sean Marshall, and a promising youngster named Chad Gaudin.

It’s the same old core guys in the lineup. They mix power with scrap with the best of em’. Derek Lee and Aramis Ramirez will play in 155 games and put up numbers like they always do. Alfonso Soriano could still have a huge year. Mike Fontenot and Ryan Theriot bring the ‘scrap’ we mentioned. They added a guy in Aaron Miles that was born to play in the NL Central division. Geovany Soto may soon be the finest backstop in the league, coming off a Rookie of the Year award.

Where you might really see the thunder in the lineup comes from the outfield. One is a new addition, Milton Bradley. Bradley is coming off a career year in Texas where everything finally seemed to click and he realized that amazing potential that teams have been trying to tap since he was an Expos farm hand. Bradley has the potential to put up big time numbers this summer in Wrigley if he can stay healthy. We also think you can expect big things from the over rated but talented Kosuke Fukudome. He didn’t do all that much in his ‘rookie’ season last year. This season he is going to bring it and we predict he’ll hit .300 with twice as many homers and near 100 RBI. He’ll become the centerpiece of the Cubbie lineup.

And one more thing about the Cubs that maybe you will know what we’re talking about. Have you ever noticed that the Cubs very large fan base contains every stoner who has ever walked the earth? Why is that? If a person is partial to pot, they’re most likely a Cubbies fan! Doesn’t matter their age, doesn’t matter their background. If they own a one hitter then they own a blue Cubbies hat! They might not know the players, they might still think that Jim Riggleman is the skipper, but God damnit if they don’t support the Cubs!

For instance, our high school baseball coach. Not an outright dope guy, but he was a little squirrely. Definitely tried pot in his college days. He loved the Cubs and loved Sammy! Old freshman college teammate who was a closet stoner, sure enough; he loved his Cubs. Several guys in our fraternity could give two shits about baseball but when the season rolled around they’d smoke a bowl with the Cubs game on in the background! Former roomate from the Chi, he loved his Cubs loyally. He also usually had a dime bag on him!

If you are a Cubs fan and you are reading this, you know you’ve tried it! It’s okay. So fire up your mini ‘one-ie’ and day dream about how it will end in tragedy for your Cubbies in 2009. Should be a good time, mayn.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, Chicago Cubs, jinxes

Houston Astros 2009 Season Preview

March 7, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the Houston Astros. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

Every person who follows sports has that one team in which they hate and love to root against. A lot of my peers choose for that team to be the Michigan Wolverines. Since I began dating a Jersey Girl who is a Giants fan I’ve met some folks who are that way about the Philadelphia Eagles. For me, that one team who I’d like to own a Voodoo doll in representation of is the Houston Astros.

Last year the Astros were the league’s most silent good team, finishing 86-75 and in third place in the NL Central. They were in the race until the last week of the season. Their manager Cecil Cooper took over with 31 games to go in 2007, and in his first full year as skipper he won 86 ballgames with a team that dealt with a lot of adversity.

The headliner is Lance Berkman. For years he has been the biggest Reds killer and all things in the NL Central for that matter. Berkman inherited this trait from Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio; they were known as the Killer B’s. That’s a nickname I got real sick of hearing.

Other then Berkman, the Astros have a stable of fine players that make this team go. Carlos Lee, Miguel Tejada, Michael Bourn, Wandy Rodriguez, Brandon Backe, Kazuo Matsui, Jose Valverde, and Hunter Pence are all core guys that will be depended upon heavily to make this team a winner in 2009. Pence is the young gun in the outfield whom after a huge rookie season took a step back in the all too familiar sophomore slump last season.

Lets not forget the biggest ass kicker of them all. Roy O. He simply doesn’t lose to the Cincinnati Reds. Like, ever. If you ever have the urge to bet your life on something, liquidate everything you own the night before Oswalt faces the Redlegs. Bet it all the next day on the righthander wearing #44. Thank me later. Honestly they’re saying Oswalt took a step back last season because why? He went 17-10 and and his ERA climbed to a whole 3.54 while allowing 199 hits in 207 innings. He might be 31 but I think he has a shot at getting to 250 wins in his career. He is a legend and will continue to be the staff ace for the next few seasons including the upcoming.

My honest opinion of this group is they lack the firepower to hang with the likes of the Cubs and the winning nature of the Cardinals and Tony LaRusa; but they’ll be right there as always because thats what the Astros do. They overachieve. If Cecil Cooper doesn’t keep these guys winning he’ll be replaced just as Phil Garner was after taking them to the World Series just several years earlier. Drayton McLane owns the Houston Astros. He’s #301 on the Forbes 400 list. You don’t get there by accepting a losing attitude.

Which is why I’ll probably continue hating the Astros with a passion.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, Houston Astros, Lance Berkman

Pittsbugh Pirates 2009 Season Preview

March 5, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Leading up to the start of the 2009 Regular Season, Diamond Hoggers will preview each of MLB’s 30 teams. Today’s team is the Pittsburgh Pirates. Stay tuned as Diamond Hoggers will preview every team division by division until the start of the regular season.

The Pirates have been the doormat of the National League and perhaps Major League Baseball for well over a decade now. At the end of the 90′s we remember saying the same thing about the Pirates, and feeling like maybe the next year they’d go cinderella and snap out of their almost full decade of futility. Well now they’ve added a decade onto that and have little to show for it.

The manager is John Russell, and the General Manager is Neal Huntington. They’ve got their work cut out for them. The one player in Pittsburgh who could end up being a star like they haven’t seen in a while is Nate Mclouth. He could also (after signing a big extension) end up going the way of Andy Van Slyke and being quite ordinary. He’s the guy we see as the headliner and he had a very nice year last season.

Then you got to the nucleus of guys that can pull this team out of the muck. Andy LaRoche, Brandon Moss, Craig Hansen, Matt Capps, Freddy Sanchez, and Ryan Doumit. They’re the only hope for this team or we’re going to be saying the same kinds of things when 2019 rolls around.

Thus is the way of a young and under-budgeted franchise in the game today. They can only enjoy winning when their group of core young guys go out and all have career years together. If the window passes and those young players go from young to middle-aged without the winning occurring, then they’re getting dealt somewhere and the cycle starts over. It happens in every city comparable to Pittsburgh around the big leagues.

Just as it was good for baseball in 2008 when the Rays took the sport by storm and played cinderella, it could be good for baseball for the Pirates to surprise and be competitive. While it’s in their favor that they are members of the NL Central, it’s probably not going to happen. They don’t have the big guns that the Rays had, even with a stable of really nice players. Out of the guys mentioned above, one of them will end up having a big time season that surprises and maybe finishes in the top 20 offensive seasons. Something memorable.

Plus they’ve got Ian Snell (who led the NL in innings pitched last season) and Jack Wilson. Wasn’t Wilson just born to be a Pirate? He’ll be a Pirate for life. Everyone in the world is going to want to say these guys are going to finish 5th or 6th in the division this year. Something tells me that is the smart money obviously. But then there’s something that says these guys are due to do something big and finish a surprising 3rd. This just might be that year. Then again we been saying that since the late 90′s, like we told you.

Filed Under: 2009 Diamond Hoggers Season Previews, Nate Mclouth, Pittsburgh Pirates
« Older Posts
Newer Posts »