Can Vlad Jr. dethrone Judge as the king of the racetracks?
No advanced statistical forecast predicts thatAaron Richter will still be able to hit 62 home runs. But nobody expected that last year either. This was an anomaly and another example of extended stats being limited. But it’s true that after a season of 39 homers, 62 is a lot.
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In fact, Fangraphs, a website that has become the go-to place for statistical forecasting, predicts that no hitter will hit more than 50 home runs this year. Favorite is Judge at 45, followed by Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Schwarber at 40.
According to fangraphs, only 17 players hit more than 30 home runs. It seems little. Last year it was 20.
About 35 are expected Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Last year he turned 32 and last year 48. It wasn’t lucky. Vlad Jr. has what it takes to be the king of the racetrack.
27, 33, and 37: How many homers Jordan Alvarez hit in his first three years in the majors. A safe bet that he could therefore reach 40+ if he continues to be comfortable. Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani and Pete Alonso also have to be considered, but I think Judge, Alvarez and Vlad Jr. have an exciting three-way battle on the horizon.
Is baseball becoming a family sport again?
Baseball has been THE American pastime for 150 years. That’s how he’s always described in the US. It’s less and less true. And a major reason is that there’s no point in taking your family to baseball for a 3:30 game.
The major leagues have therefore instituted a number of regulations to reduce the speed of the game, including a timer to force pitchers and batsmen to go faster between pitches. Results, games during the training camp lasted less than 2:40.
We expected chaos early in the season, but most pitchers are already enjoying it and hitters are adjusting. Everyone seems to have understood that we need to think a little bit more about the fans. Most purists don’t care. The end of Special Defense will also bring more shows, as many good left-handed power hitters may die out and be reborn this season.
Increasing bases should have a small impact on an increase in stolen bases. Also, the new rules will hopefully bring back more strategy baseball with steal attempts, runs and hits.
Teams rely heavily on home runs, which also leads to lots of strikeouts, lots of timeouts, and little action. The return to strategic baseball would allow baseball to inject a little energy. It would also be possible to avoid somewhat more common situations where we invite a friend over to baseball and he says to us, “Nothing happens in baseball.”
How many Quebecers play in Major League Baseball?
Never before has Quebec seen such a prosperous period for infielders. Abraham Toro should see action with the Milwaukee Brewers, as should Otto Lopez with the Toronto Blue Jays. Young Édouard Julien, a prospect for the Minnesota Twins, could make his major league debut in 2023 after resplendent in Canada’s uniform at the recent World Baseball Classic. Finally, the name of Charles Leblanc no longer appears in the lineup of the Miami Marlins’ 40-man squad, but things could turn in his favor within the Florida organization next season.
How Many Quebecers Will Play in Major League Baseball This Season? Two three four ?
Toro, Lopez and Leblanc all played in the big leagues last season. In more recent memory, we have to go back to the 2007 season to list three Quebecers established in Major League Baseball at the same time with pitcher Éric Gagné and receivers Pierre-Luc Laforest and Russell Martin.
Over the years, Quebec has been increasingly recognized for developing players on the hill and behind the plate. More than 60 years ago, in 1962, four Quebec pitchers were in Major League Baseball at the same time. While Claude Raymond and Ron Piché established themselves with the Milwaukee Braves, Georges Maranda (Minnesota Twins) and Raymond Daviault (New York Mets) were also busy at work. It was also the time of Lachine native position player Tim Harkness.
By the way, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., big star of the Blue Jays, was born in 1999 in Montreal. However, the one who just celebrated his 24th birthday grew up mostly in the Dominican Republic.
The minor leagues feature pitchers Cédric DeGrandpré with the Atlanta Braves and Nathan Landry with the Boston Red Sox, who were drafted in 2022. Also there are Eric Cerantola and Miguel Cienfuegos, among others, continuing their careers with the Kansas City Royals and San Diego Padres, respectively. The Blue Jays are backing youngsters Jean-Christophe Masson and Nicolas Deschamps, the Tampa Bay Rays are backing Conor Angel, while Anthony Quirion is returning to the Philadelphia Phillies after a successful winter in Australia.
What will be the surprises of each division?
In the east of the National, the surprise will be bad. It’ll be the Phillies. After an incredible end to the season and a magical run in the playoffs last year, Philadelphia will not make the playoffs this year. Bryce Harper has to miss half the season, several overpaid players don’t give enough and the rotation doesn’t have enough depth.
In Central, the Pirates will pull off a feat by being one of the 20 teams in baseball history to have lost more than 110 games. This has happened twice with the Tigers since the early 2000s.
In the west, the Diamondbacks will outperform the Giants and fight for a playoff spot after years of rebuilding.
On the American side, in the east, the Red Sox will finish last and things will heat up in Boston. Marbles, beers and overpriced hot dogs will bother fans at Fenway Park more and potentially make the season very long.
In Central, the White Sox will dominate with the arrival of a new manager. It’s not really this new coach that will improve the team, but the fact that the players will understand that it’s their fault that the team has been underperforming for a number of years.
And out west, will the Angels finally find success and fight for a playoff spot? Ohtani and Trout don’t change anything if the club doesn’t have good starters. However, the arrival of Tyler Anderson from the Dodgers allows the Angels to have a solid trio with Ohtani and Sandoval. It will take a better sequence to get to the next level, but there is hope.
The Cy Young has a mustache?
Good luck if you can predict who will win the Cy Young this year. It’s unpredictable. Everyone knew Justin Verlander was going to be good last year. But having the best season of his career at 39 and winning the Cy Young? NO. Sandy Alcantara is solid, but predicting him a Cy Young and 14 wins playing with the poor Marlins? Neither. It has to be done. It’s over to see the same pitchers win the Cy Young year after year. The last to do so was a man with a mustache in the early 2000s: Randy Johnson. He won 4 in a row.
The favorites according to Vegas bettors are Jacob deGroom and Gerrit Cole in the American and Sandy Alcantata and Corbin Burnes in the National.
Indeed, among Americans, betting on deGrom is not daring. When he’s in good shape, he’s the best. My pick, however, is Ray’s left-hander Shane McClanahan. The thugs look so crazy against him. He’s just two seasons behind the tie and at 25 he’s in danger of getting a Cy Young at some point. I’m going there this year. Last year he averaged 2.54 throws in the American East. It’s breathtaking.
In the National, our pick ends with Spencer Strider, the 5th bettor pick. This personable Braves mustache guy who looks more like your mailman than a major league pitcher is stunning. In 130 innings, he hit 202 in his rookie year last year.