{"id":1487,"date":"2023-04-01T11:19:30","date_gmt":"2023-04-01T18:19:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/?p=1487"},"modified":"2023-04-01T11:19:30","modified_gmt":"2023-04-01T18:19:30","slug":"2023-season-preview-part-iii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/?p=1487","title":{"rendered":"2023 Season Preview:  Part III"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a id=\"Wu7xh-a_QGBQ8BAZAm76RA\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1243678451\" target=\"_blank\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>\/\/ <![CDATA[\nwindow.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'Wu7xh-a_QGBQ8BAZAm76RA',sig:'0NI4xBE6JM0O30Mkb2B5MYT0GPYGa4Z5HHI5SknqXAc=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'1243678451',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});\n\/\/ ]]><\/script><script src=\"\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\nWith a couple days in the books, we&#8217;re already seeing what a difference the new MLB rules are making on the game.\u00a0 Most obvious is the shortening of the length of games due to the pitch clock.\u00a0 From a fantasy perspective, the biggest change is probably the increase in stolen bases due to pickoff attempt limits and slightly shorter distances between bases caused by the increased base size.\u00a0 It is probably still a bit too early to predict *exactly* what this means from a fantasy perspective though.\u00a0 Will stolen bases simply increase across the board such that no particular type of roster benefits disproportionately?\u00a0 It will probably cause some funky PAR numbers to pop up though since the threshold for being an above average stolen base contributor had been at a historic low prior to this season.\u00a0 Anyway, that&#8217;s an analysis that can be done at another time when we have more data.<\/p>\n<p>If you were wondering why I only covered a pair of teams in each of the first two preview sections, it is because I kind of had to plan the whole series around today&#8217;s trio of teams who are all projected to finish with the exact same number of points.\u00a0 So it would not have made sense to split them up.\u00a0 The 56 standings points each are projected to accumulate is pretty much where the similarities end among these teams though.\u00a0 One is expected to have the best offense in the league, paired with the worst pitching staff.\u00a0 Another is pegged to have one of the best pitching staffs, but with a near bottom offense.\u00a0 And then there is the third team that is quite balanced in both parts of the game.\u00a0 Here are the three teams projected to tie for fourth place.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Charlie&#8217;s Thunder Choppers<\/h2>\n<p>Category &#8211; Projected Rank (2022 Rank)<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Batting Average &#8211; 6th (9th)<\/li>\n<li>Home Runs &#8211; 10th (8th)<\/li>\n<li>Runs Batted In &#8211;\u00a010th (8th)<\/li>\n<li>Runs Scored &#8211; 9th (6th)<\/li>\n<li>Stolen Bases &#8211; 4th (8th)<\/li>\n<li>Earned Run Average &#8211; 2nd (1st)<\/li>\n<li>WHIP Ratio &#8211; 4th (3rd)<\/li>\n<li>Wins &#8211;\u00a04th (3rd)<\/li>\n<li>Saves &#8211; 3rd (2nd)<\/li>\n<li>Strike Outs &#8211; 2nd (1st)<\/li>\n<li>Total Batting Points &#8211; 9th-T (9th)<\/li>\n<li>Total Pitching Points &#8211;\u00a02nd (1st)<\/li>\n<li>Total Points &#8211; 4th-T (5th)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Summary:<\/p>\n<p>Last year, the Choppers had far and away the best pitching staff in the league.\u00a0 However, their offense really dragged them down and prevented them from giving the Moonshiners a serious threat down the stretch.\u00a0 These projections paint a similar picture, although the Choppers did solidify their lineup with some very talented young players who could break out and smash these numbers.\u00a0 It is a little hard to imagine a team with sluggers like Pete Alonso and Kyle Schwarber finishing dead last in home runs.\u00a0 They are the only two on the team slated for more than 25 homers though.\u00a0 The infield consists of a litany of young players with breakout potential:\u00a0 Ke&#8217;Bryan Hayes, Alec Bohm, Vaughn Grissom, Triston Casas, Nico Hoerner and CJ Abrams.\u00a0 First round draft pick Adley Rutschman joins Alejandro Kirk to give the Choppers one of the best catching tandems in the league.\u00a0 The outfield is where they are a bit thin on impact players, besides defending NL home run champion Schwarber.\u00a0 Steven Kwan and Lars Nootbaar are the newcomers to this group who will try to add a spark.\u00a0 The pitching staff remains the strength and is mostly unchanged from last year&#8217;s pitching point leading group.\u00a0 Reigning DTBL Rookie of the Year winner Dylan Cease, Brandon Woodruff and Shane Bieber all carry projections that would put them in the conversation for the Cy Young award this season.\u00a0 Even though he&#8217;s been an elite pitcher for quite some time now, Bieber seems to fly under the radar in discussions about the top pitchers in baseball.\u00a0 He actually has the highest PAR projection of this trio.\u00a0 Blake Snell and Logan Gilbert round out the rotation and they added Nick Lodolo to give themselves a solid depth piece as well.\u00a0 Snell&#8217;s return to elite form last season was quite a boon to the Choppers staff.\u00a0 Gilbert being their fifth highest projected PAR starter is pretty envious.\u00a0 The bullpen is very strong too.\u00a0 With Edwin Diaz out for the season, Emmanual Clase is pretty much in a class by himself among relievers who can dominate not only in saves, but ERA, WHIP and strikeouts as well.\u00a0 Jordan Romano is about as steady as they come too.\u00a0 Trevor May has a shot at getting saves with the A&#8217;s.\u00a0 Brusdar Graterol has the stuff to enter the closer conversation for the Dodgers at some point.\u00a0 The last couple seasons, the Choppers have put themselves into title contention.\u00a0 This year, they hope to finally end their near-quarter century title drought.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Kevin&#8217;s Kings<\/h2>\n<p>Category &#8211; Projected Rank (2022 Rank)<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Batting Average &#8211; 7th (5th)<\/li>\n<li>Home Runs &#8211; 6th (1st)<\/li>\n<li>Runs Batted In &#8211; 3rd (1st)<\/li>\n<li>Runs Scored &#8211; 2nd (1st)<\/li>\n<li>Stolen Bases &#8211;\u00a09th (5th)<\/li>\n<li>Earned Run Average &#8211; 3rd (8th)<\/li>\n<li>WHIP Ratio &#8211; 5th (8th)<\/li>\n<li>Wins &#8211; 6th (6th)<\/li>\n<li>Saves &#8211; 5th (4th)<\/li>\n<li>Strike Outs &#8211; 8th (6th)<\/li>\n<li>Total Batting Points &#8211; 5th-T (1st)<\/li>\n<li>Total Pitching Points &#8211; 4th (6th-T)<\/li>\n<li>Total Points &#8211; 4th-T (2nd)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Summary:<\/p>\n<p>On paper, the Kings look like one of the most balanced teams in the league.\u00a0 They are one of only two to have batting and pitching point projections in the top half of the league.\u00a0 They don&#8217;t have a glaring weakness.\u00a0 The problem is, they also don&#8217;t appear to be particularly strong in any area.\u00a0 The batting projections are actually a bit troubling for a squad that led the league in batting points a season ago.\u00a0 Also troubling is the fact that these numbers were compiled before they lost Rhys Hoskins for the season with a torn ACL.\u00a0 The good news is they do have capable corner infielders to attempt to fill that void with Matt Olson, Austin Riley and newcomer first round pick Gunnar Henderson.\u00a0 Marcus Semien continues to be one of the most productive middle infielders in the game.\u00a0 Carlos Correa had a wild offseason of free agent drama, but in the end he&#8217;s back in Minnesota and anchoring the shortstop position for the Kings as well.\u00a0 Will Smith and Sean Murphy return to provide stability and solid production behind the dish for the Kings.\u00a0 The outfield has a bunch of new additions in Andrew Benintendi, Miguel Vargas and Michael Conforto, but the main guys out there are the returning trio of Mookie Betts, Randy Arozarena and Tyler O&#8217;Neill.\u00a0 Arozarena is someone who could be capable of carrying an offense if he is allowed to run wild this season.\u00a0 Same goes for Betts, although his stolen base production has been tailing off in recent years.\u00a0 The Kings almost completely rebuilt their pitching staff.\u00a0 Max Scherzer and Zack Wheeler are the only healthy holdovers from last season&#8217;s rotation.\u00a0 They remain the Kings co-aces.\u00a0 They&#8217;ll need some help from a couple of the newcomers though.\u00a0 The new additions include George Kirby, Nestor Cortes and Drew Rasmussen, none of whom were household names before last year.\u00a0 The Kings bullpen could be decent, but it is hard to feel confident about that at the moment.\u00a0 Camilo Doval appears to be the only sure thing closer in the group.\u00a0 Paul Sewald and Pete Fairbanks could be in line for plenty of saves too though.\u00a0 The Kings are strong enough in all areas to remain a title contender.\u00a0 It&#8217;s just not clear if they have enough elite level talent to push them over the top.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Marc&#8217;s Mavericks<\/h2>\n<p>Category &#8211; Projected Rank (2022 Rank)<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Batting Average &#8211; 2nd (1st)<\/li>\n<li>Home Runs &#8211;\u00a01st (3rd)<\/li>\n<li>Runs Batted In &#8211;\u00a01st (7th)<\/li>\n<li>Runs Scored &#8211; 1st (8th)<\/li>\n<li>Stolen Bases &#8211; 10th (10th)<\/li>\n<li>Earned Run Average &#8211; 10th (3rd)<\/li>\n<li>WHIP Ratio &#8211; 9th (4th)<\/li>\n<li>Wins &#8211; 3rd (10th)<\/li>\n<li>Saves &#8211; 10th (10th)<\/li>\n<li>Strike Outs &#8211; 7th (10th)<\/li>\n<li>Total Batting Points &#8211; 1st (5th-T)<\/li>\n<li>Total Pitching Points &#8211; 10th (9th)<\/li>\n<li>Total Points &#8211; 4th-T (9th)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Summary:<\/p>\n<p>For the first time in three years, the Mavericks are not the pre-season predicted champion.\u00a0 Perhaps that is just as well as they have fallen short of expectations every season since winning the league in 2017.\u00a0 Last year was an especially disappointing season as they had the worst finish in franchise history, falling all the way to ninth place.\u00a0 Unless everything that can go wrong does again, we probably won&#8217;t see a repeat of that.\u00a0 This is an absolutely loaded roster on the hitting side, which creates a pretty high floor, even though the pitching staff is full of question marks.\u00a0 Pretty much the lone bright spot for the Mavericks last season was Aaron Judge who won the league MVP and broke the AL home run record with 62 bombs.\u00a0 He&#8217;s back along with the rest of the league&#8217;s best outfield.\u00a0 Mike Trout, Juan Soto, Eloy Jimenez and Nick Castellanos are all looking to bounce back from disappointing and\/or injury plagued seasons.\u00a0 Second overall draft pick Bobby Witt Jr gives the Mavericks infield a significant boost and immediately becomes their top stolen base threat.\u00a0 Manny Machado continues to be the dependable anchor of the infield.\u00a0 First baseman Nate Lowe had a nice breakout campaign in &#8217;22.\u00a0 He&#8217;s joined at first base by second round pick Vinnie Pasquantino.\u00a0 In addition to the outfielders mentioned above, another guy looking to stay healthy and go back to being one of the premier players at his position is second baseman Ozzie Albies.\u00a0 As long as they aren&#8217;t ravaged by injuries like they were a year ago, expect the Mavericks to have the best offense in the league.\u00a0 The pitching staff is another matter though.\u00a0 The Dodgers pair of Julio Urias and Clayton Kershaw are the only safe bets to provide great numbers from the rotation.\u00a0 Pablo Lopez is a pretty solid #3 option though.\u00a0 The rest of the starters fall into at least one of these two categories: returning from injury or looking to regain lost form.\u00a0 This group includes Chris Sale, Jack Flaherty, Freddy Peralta, Tony Gonsolin and Michael Kopech.\u00a0 So the good news is they have plenty of options.\u00a0 It remains to be seen which of these guys will step up in 2023.\u00a0 The bullpen is a complete wild card.\u00a0 The Mavericks finished the draft with just one healthy reliever in Alexis Diaz.\u00a0 They hope to add Liam Hendriks as a reliable closer at some point as he is currently battling back from cancer.\u00a0 Hunter Brown is an intriguing bullpen piece as a decent bet to hold down a rotation spot for the Astros for parts of the season.\u00a0 The Mavericks don&#8217;t have their typical rosy outlook heading into this season, but they are close to a lock to put last season behind them and be a competitive team this year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Embed from Getty Images With a couple days in the books, we&#8217;re already seeing what a difference the new MLB rules are making on the game.\u00a0 Most obvious is the shortening of the length of games due to the pitch clock.\u00a0 From a fantasy perspective, the biggest change is probably the increase in stolen bases [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,9,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1487","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-choppers","category-kings","category-mavericks"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1487","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1487"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1487\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1490,"href":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1487\/revisions\/1490"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1487"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1487"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dreamteambaseball.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1487"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}