Innholdsfortegnelse for 2022 Baseball i Athlon Sports Football Bundle

As I sit down to write this letter, Major League Baseball has ground to a halt thanks to the first lockout since the 1994-95 work stoppage that did grave damage to the National Pastime. I hope that as you read it, the two sides have come to some agreement and that the games will go on as scheduled. There’s so much to look forward to if the two sides can hammer out some compromises on their points of disagreement and get to the business of playing baseball. Once MLB gets out of its own way, its future looks as bright as it ever has. The grand old game has an array of assets that has to be the envy of every other pro sports league. First, the veterans. The wily…

“We expected him to hit a homer. You just don’t see 20 major leaguers stop and watch one guy hit in a random at-bat in June. But we watched because he was up. The eyes that are on him, the pressure that’s on him day in and day out, to continue to do what he’s doing is beyond incredible.” — Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield, to Sporting News. The Royals gathered around a TV to watch an Ohtani at-bat during a rain delay. “Um, I mean, it’s unreal. I don’t know how else to say it. He hits the crap out of the ball and throws the crap out of the ball as well. I don’t think people can grasp how insane what he’s doing is. It’s unbelievable.” — Angels…

Baseball is entering a golden age featuring some spectacular young talent that is poised to carry the game into a new phase of popularity (provided that there’s a peaceful solution to MLB’s labor problems). At 29, Yankees slugger Aaron Judge is now an elder statesman who can clearly see that the future of the game is in good hands. “How can you not grow the game around these young stars?” Judge told the Associated Press. “I can’t imagine being in the league at 20 years old, 21, 22. That’s so tremendous. It’s such an accomplishment to do what they do up here. Growing the game around those guys that are going to be in this league for 10, 15 years is the right way to go. You’re going to have…

2021 Record: 100–62 • Home: 52–29 • Road: 48–33 The Rays have made the playoffs for three straight seasons, won two straight American League East titles and are coming offa season in which they won a franchise-record 100 games. And, given a core of talented young players who are improving and more who are coming, they think they can do even better in 2022 and the years ahead given their promising trajectory. “Up,” manager Kevin Cash says. “Maybe straight up. I mean, it’s a pretty exciting time to be a Tampa Bay Ray.” The Rays won’t look the same in 2022 — they never do from year to year, seemingly challenging themselves to find ways to tweak and churn the roster with dual focus on the present and future —…

2021 Record: 80–82 • Home: 40–41 • Road: 40–41 In case you forgot, the Cleveland Indians are no more. In July, they officially became the Cleveland Guardians after being called the Indians since 1915. The people in charge of the renamed ballclub feel that the Guardians should be able to challenge for the AL Central title in 2022 even though their streak of eight straight winning seasons came to an end in 2021. To support that optimism, the Guardians need a return to health by the starting rotation. Last year, Shane Bieber, Aaron Civale and Zach Plesac, the top three starters, missed big chunks of the season on the injured list as Cleveland finished second in the division at 80–82. While Bieber, Civale and Plesac were injured, new arms emerged.…

2021 Record: 73–89 • Home: 38–43 • Road: 35–46 From worst to first is a common theme in sports. From first to worst, not so much. That’s what the Twins did in 2021. After two years of ruling the AL Central, they slid to the bottom of the division in a nightmare 2021 season. The question is, are they going to stay there in 2022? Much will depend on the pitching staff. No. 1 starter José Berríos was traded, Michael Pineda filed for free agency and Kenta Maeda is lost for the season with Tommy John surgery. In the bullpen, they used 29 different pitchers. Out of their top three closers, Alex Colomé walked via free agency, Hansel Robles was traded and Taylor Rogers missed much of the year with…

2021 Record: 86–76 • Home: 43–38 • Road: 43–38 The one good thing that can be said of the A’s as they go into a rebuild, or a semi-rebuild, is that top baseball men Billy Beane and David Forst have walked this path before. They know the pitfalls, and they know that teams don’t take a straight line back to the top. Rather, they get better or worse by fits and starts. For all of that, with most of their rotation back and with enough hitters returning, Beane and Forst could say this isn’t really a rebuild. But it is. The A’s enter 2022 without popular and player-centric manager Bob Melvin (now with the Padres) and many of the players who drove the semi-success of 2021’s 86-win season. Much of…

NATIONAL LEAGUE PREDICTIONS NL East 1. New York Mets 2. Atlanta Braves* 3. Philadelphia Phillies 4. Miami Marlins 5. Washington Nationals NL Central 1. St. Louis Cardinals 2. Milwaukee Brewers 3. Chicago Cubs 4. Cincinnati Reds 5. Pittsburgh Pirates NL West 1. Los Angeles Dodgers 2. San Diego Padres* 3. San Francisco Giants 4. Arizona Diamondbacks 5. Colorado Rockies *Wild Card NLCS Los Angeles Dodgers over New York Mets World Series Los Angeles Dodgers over Houston Astros NL MVP 1. Fernando Tatís Jr., SS, San Diego Padres 2. Juan Soto, OF, Washington Nationals 3. Ronald Acuña Jr., OF, Atlanta Braves 4. Mookie Betts, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers 5. Bryce Harper, OF, Philadelphia Phillies 6. Trea Turner, SS, Los Angeles Dodgers 7. Christian Yelich, OF, Milwaukee Brewers 8. Nolan Arenado, 3B,…

2021 Record: 77–85 • Home: 47–34 • Road: 30–51 The Mets are built to win now. After a series of stumbles in his first season, owner Steve Cohen has a new GM, a new manager, a new ace and a new leadoff man — all trying to reach the same expectations of winning big, and quickly. This is an older roster, but the Mets hope to follow the San Francisco Giants’ 2021 example of getting the most out of talented veterans by having enough depth to spread around the workload. Anything less than a deep run into October would be a massive letdown in Flushing. ROTATION For the money the Mets are paying Max Scherzer and Jacob de- Grom (more than $76 million combined), they should be getting a sure…

2021 Record: 71–91 • Home: 39–42 • Road: 32–49 When did the 2021 season begin for the Cubs? Maybe it was Dec. 2, 2020, when the team non-tendered Kyle Schwarber. Or two days later, when longtime TV play-by-play announcer Len Kasper was hired to work in the radio booth for the White Sox. Or the end of that month, when the team traded Yu Darvish to the Padres for Zach Davies and three prospects. The rest of the teardown occurred at the trade deadline, with Anthony Rizzo, Javier Báez, Kris Bryant and Craig Kimbrel all dealt for prospects. The six straight winning seasons starting in 2015 are a memory. This will be a rebuilding year, with a surprisingly old club (five likely Opening Day position starters and four starting pitchers…

2021 Record: 61–101 • Home: 37–44 • Road: 24–57 The Pittsburgh Pirates head into the second year of a major rebuild that has produced plenty of losses at the major league level. Ben Cherington took over as general manager in November 2019 and watched the Pirates go 19–41 during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season for the worst record in the major leagues. He began tearing apart the roster that winter and into last season, when the Pirates were 61–101. They finished last in the National League Central for a third straight year. The Pirates have restocked their organization with young talent, and many analysts rate their farm system among the best in the game. However, the Pirates are likely to struggle at the major league level again in 2022. ROTATION The…

2021 Record: 74–87 • Home: 48–33 • Road: 26–54 The Rockies have endured three straight losing seasons and are trying to rise in what has become a very formidable NL West. It won’t be easy. Despite playing half their games at Coors Field, the Rockies need more power and an overall offensive boost. And they must transform an iffy bullpen into a more dependable unit. ROTATION This is the strength of the team, although weakened to some degree by the loss of free agent Jon Gray. Germán Márquez, lefthander Kyle Freeland, Antonio Senzatela and lefthander Austin Gomber will fill the first four slots. Márquez has excellent stuff and is durable, but his tempo sometimes quickens, causing his command to waiver. Freeland finished strong, allowing three or fewer runs in 15…

2021 Record: 107–55 • Home: 54–27 • Road: 53–28 The Giants began the 2021 season with little fanfare in a division that was supposed to be dominated by behemoths in Los Angeles and San Diego. All manager Gabe Kapler’s team did was obliterate every projection system, win a franchise-record 107 games and stop the Dodgers’ eight-year streak of NL West titles — and because the Dodgers won 106 games, the epic division race went down to the last game of the regular season. Although it stung to lose to their archrivals in a controversial NLDS Game 5, the Giants enter this season with plenty of belief and momentum. But they’ll have to replace their unofficial soul and franchise catcher, Buster Posey, after he announced his surprising retirement. ROTATION The Giants…

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C Daniel Susac, Arizona 1B Caden Grice, Clemson 2B Jace Jung, Texas Tech SS Brooks Lee, Cal Poly 3B Austin Knight, Charlotte OF Enrique Bradfield Jr., Vanderbilt OF Jacob Berry, LSU OF Brock Jones, Stanford OF Gavin Cross, Virginia Tech DH Dylan Crews, LSU UTIL Paul Skenes, Air Force SP Parker Messick, Florida State SP Peyton Pallette, Arkansas SP Sam Highfill, NC State SP Andrew Taylor, Central Michigan RP Landon Sims, Mississippi State RP Devereaux Harrison, Long Beach State RP Patrick Reilly, Vanderbilt…

1. Julio Rodríguez, OF, Mariners R/R • 6-3 • 180 • Age: 21 Acquired: Signed out of the Dominican Republic, 2017 Welcome the soon-to-be-face of the Mariners organization. Rodríguez manages to combine plus power with near top-of-the-scale hitting ability as well as surprising speed. He is a career .331 hitter in the minors who posts exit velocities that hint at 30-plus home run power as well. 2. Bobby Witt Jr., SS, Royals R/R • 6-1 • 200 • Age: 21 Acquired: First-round pick, 2019 Witt is the cornerstone of the Royals’ latest rebuilding effort. Between his power, speed and positional value, he has a solid shot to be the best player in the Royals lineup in 2023, and maybe as early as 2022. He may eventually outgrow shortstop, but even…

2021 Record: 91–71 • Home: 47–33 • Road: 44–38 Falling one agonizing game short of the postseason in 2021 provided the Toronto Blue Jays with a winter’s worth of motivation in pursuit of World Series contention this summer. Some expected normalcy following consecutive seasons marked by pandemic displacement should help on that end, as an emotional homecoming last July 30 after 670 days away nearly ended with a storybook finish. Continued growth of budding superstars Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette, a deep rotation led by José Berríos and Kevin Gausman and an impact-laden roster headlined by George Springer all give the Blue Jays a legitimate shot at not only making the playoffs, but also doing some damage in October should they qualify. ROTATION The club’s starting staff has gone…

2021 Record: 77–85 • Home: 42–39 • Road: 35–46 Arebuild that sometimes seemed interminable finally appeared to have turned a corner in 2021, when the Tigers, following an 8–19 April, went 69–66 the rest of the way, fueled by a young core constructed out of the wreckage of 2017-20. The Tigers, at long last, appeared ready to make their move in 2022. Less than 24 hours after the end of the World Series, the Tigers traded for esteemed catcher Tucker Barnhart, then flung $217 million at free agent pitcher Eduardo Rodríguez and infielder Javier Báez — the latter of whom, at six years and $140 million, represented Detroit’s biggest free agent expenditure since Prince Fielder a decade earlier. If the Tigers are going to challenge the White Sox for supremacy…

2021 Record: 95–67 • Home: 51–30 • Road: 44–37 After seven months of abuse from across the sport, the Astros won the American League pennant for the third time in five years but fell two wins shy of a redemptive World Series title. Their window to claim another championship did not slam shut, though. Eight of their nine everyday position players return for 2022 along with a blossoming young core of starting pitching. Filling Carlos Correa’s gaping hole at shortstop is mandatory, but the return of Justin Verlander atop the rotation gives Houston one of the AL’s deepest pitching staffs. ROTATION Re-signing Verlander to a two-year, $50 million contract afforded the team a surplus of seven starters and will create spring training competition. Verlander and Lance McCullers Jr. will form…

2021 Record: 90–72 • Home: 46–35 • Road: 44–37 After a three-year rebuilding process labeled a “step back” by now-president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto, the Mariners enter the 2022 season with the expectation of earning a playoff spot, whether it is under the current postseason format or the proposed expanded format. After last season’s overachieving squad finished 90–72 while competing for a postseason spot until the final day of the regular season, expectations, both internally and externally, have been elevated. The concept of rebuilding is over. The focus is now on winning, returning to the postseason for the first time since 2001 and ending the longest current playoff drought in professional sports. ROTATION What do you do when your starting rotation lacks swing-and-miss capability? You add Robbie Ray, the…

2021 Record: 88–73 • Home: 42–38 • Road: 46–35 The defending World Series champions … wait, can we hear that again? The defending World Series champions return to Truist Park with most of the same cast that lifted the championship trophy at the end of the 2021 season. It was a magical run, but on Opening Day, none of that matters anymore. What does matter is that Atlanta returns a great deal of the same talent to the field, though with one very tall exception in Freddie Freeman, who may have played his last game with a script “A” on his hat. Still, even without Freeman, Atlanta has a young, dynamic team and plays in a division that doesn’t have an obvious heir to the crown that Atlanta has now…

2021 Record: 82–80 • Home: 47–34 • Road: 35–46 Even with the National League MVP, the Cy Young runner-up and a top-five payroll, the Phillies couldn’t stop their postseason drought from reaching a decade in 2021. The bullpen was bad, and the defense was worse, as another season of Bryce Harper’s and Zack Wheeler’s prime elapsed with only individual accolades. In a division that features the World Series champion Braves and the headlinegrabbing Mets, the Phillies still have significant needs in their lineup and bullpen. How management fills them leading up to Opening Day will determine the team’s fate. As the Phillies learned in 2021, Harper and Wheeler can’t do it alone. ROTATION If they could ever make the playoffs, the Phillies might be a dangerous club in a short…

2021 Record: 83–79 • Home: 44–37 • Road: 39–42 On the morning of August 28, the Reds were 71–59 and in second place in the National League Central. They had the fourth-best record in the league and a 1.5-game lead over the Padres for the second wild card. They subsequently got run over by a 17-consecutive-win freight train coming out of St. Louis. But that glosses over the Reds’ 12–20 record over the rest of the season, the fifth-worst mark in all of baseball. After the season ended, the Reds traded catcher Tucker Barnhart to the Tigers to avoid exercising a $7.5 million option for 2022. Nick Castellanos opted out of his contract, choosing free agency rather than two years at $34 million in Cincinnati. And the team bought out…

2021 Record: 90–72 • Home: 45–36 • Road: 45–36 Energized by a franchise-record 17-game winning streak, the emergence of Tyler O’Neill as a power source and a pitcher-catcher battery defying the gravity of age, the Cardinals sensed a swell of momentum carrying them into 2022. One sudden, jarring decision left them searching for how to get it back. The Cardinals’ front office abruptly fired manager Mike Shildt when meetings revealed a personality clash that had become irreparable. Shildt revived the Cardinals’ fundamental style and steered them to three consecutive playoff berths, and then, on the eve of an extension — gone. New manager Oliver Marmol inherits a team designed to contend while it blends one of its best eras with its next era. As Yadier Molina and Adam Wainwright, two…

2021 Record: 106–56 • Home: 58–23 • Road: 48–33 For eight seasons, the Los Angeles Dodgers dominated the NL West, winning an average of 96 games in full seasons and winning the division each year from 2013 through 2020 by an average of 8.5 games. But all that winning produced just one championship — the “bubble” title won following the 60-game pandemic schedule in 2020. The San Francisco Giants shocked baseball by winning 107 games last season and put an end to the Dodgers’ run of division titles. The Dodgers beat the Giants in a historic Division Series matchup between the two rivals, but the effort left the Dodgers depleted and diminished, and they lost to the Atlanta Braves in the National League Championship Series. The off season didn’t treat…

Building a sustainable winner in keeper and dynasty formats requires a strong base of knowledge about emerging prospects, and it was awfully challenging for anyone to feel comfortable in their evaluations going into last year. We’re still dealing with the residual effects of the canceled 2020 minor league season on the developmental trajectories of the next batch of quality young players, and dynasty values are accordingly still more volatile than ideal. This list attempts to distill what we do know into a guide for acquiring and valuing prospects. These rankings heavily weigh scouting reports, with additional consideration given to proximity to the majors and performance to date. Since the goal — always — is to find The Next Big Thing, a player’s ceiling is typically prioritized over his floor, with…

Shohei Ohtani’s 2021 MVP season was one of the greatest and most memorable in recent memory. Or in MLB history, for that matter. We’ve seen two-way players before, but there’s never been a player quite like Ohtani — capable of crushing 450-plus-foot homers and throwing 100 mph. We sped past the Babe Ruth and “Bullet Joe” Rogan comparisons by the end of April. It was clear that this was a season unlike any other. Ohtani himself made an attempt at a comparison, citing his countryman Ichiro Suzuki as a player he looked up to. “Growing up, I watched Ichiro, and he won MVP, and it got me wanting to play in the big leagues someday,” Ohtani told MLB.com through interpreter Ippei Mizuhara. “Hopefully, I can be that kind of figure…

Vlad Guerrero Jr. is already on a Hall of Fame course highly similar to the one traveled by his father. Vlad Sr. earned entry to Cooperstown in 2018 after an often-spectacular 16-year career, and Jr. is following in his sizable footsteps three years into a career that took a quantum leap in 2021. Here’s a quick comparison of their 162-game career averages. Granted, Vlad Jr. has a small sample size to work with at this point in his career, but the parallels are striking.…

José Berríos, RHP Twins (Rd. 1 – Supplemental) Papa Juan XXIII (PR) HS A two-time All-Star, Berríos won 14 games twice with the Twins and has been a sturdy, reliable starter throughout his six MLB seasons. Minnesota traded him to the Blue Jays in 2021, and he compiled a 3.52 ERA and led the AL with 32 starts. Mitch Haniger, OF Brewers (Rd. 1 – Supplemental) Cal Poly After seeing what Haniger did in 2021, the Diamondbacks (who acquired him from Milwaukee in 2014) must have been furious with the decision to trade him to Seattle in 2016. In 2021, Haniger mashed 39 homers, knocked in 100 runs and had 23 doubles. He was an All-Star in 2018, when he hit 26 homers and had 38 doubles. Joey Gallo, 3B…

AMERICAN LEAGUE PREDICTIONS AL East 1. Toronto Blue Jays 2. New York Yankees* 3. Tampa Bay Rays* 4. Boston Red Sox 5. Baltimore Orioles AL Central 1. Chicago White Sox 2. Detroit Tigers 3. Cleveland Guardians 4. Minnesota Twins 5. Kansas City Royals AL West 1. Houston Astros 2. Los Angeles Angels 3. Seattle Mariners 4. Oakland Athletics 5. Texas Rangers *Wild Card ALCS Houston Astros over Toronto Blue Jays World Series Los Angeles Dodgers over Houston Astros AL MVP 1. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 3B, Toronto Blue Jays 2. Mike Trout, OF, Los Angeles Angels 3. Shohei Ohtani, DH/SP, Los Angeles Angels 4. Aaron Judge, OF, New York Yankees 5. Wander Franco, SS, Tampa Bay Rays 6. Alex Bregman, 3B, Houson Astros 7. Rafael Devers, 3B, Boston Red Sox 8.…

2021 Record: 92–70 • Home: 46–35 • Road: 46–35 Every year, the Yankees have dreams of a deep October run, complete with a joyous hoisting of a World Series trophy. Lately, though, every winter seems to feature this refrain, or something similar, from owner Hal Steinbrenner: “We need to get better. Period.” That the Yankees have been both contenders and disappointments in recent years speaks to the immense pressure that they are under as they pursue their first title since 2009. The 2022 season might bring the most heat of all, since some of their young stars have sputtered and the 2021 offense cratered. Health, another recent Yankee bugaboo, always impacts contention, too. ROTATION Starters were a strength last season (3.91 ERA, the Yanks’ third lowest since 1984), and there’s…

2021 Record: 93–69 • Home: 53–28 • Road: 40–41 Contention windows typically last four to six seasons. Any celebration of the first back-to-back playoff appearances in White Sox history was tempered by consecutive first-round exits. The Sox move into Year 3 of their window with a strong everyday lineup, formidable starting pitching and the best closer in the American League. But they must fill holes in right field and at second base as well as the back of the rotation and bullpen to close the gap with the AL’s best. As he begins his second season, manager Tony La Russa pledges to improve the team’s defense and competitive edge down the stretch. ROTATION The White Sox boasted the best group of starters in the American League for five months, but…

2021 Record: 74–88 • Home: 39–42 • Road: 35–46 Kansas City’s young stash of talented arms already has arrived in the big leagues — minus potential ace Asa Lacy, a 2023 rotation candidate, and Jonathan Bowlan, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery. This will be the year Kansas City’s stash of positional talent — shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., first baseman Nick Pratto and catcher MJ Melendez — catches up. Don’t expect all three to break camp with Kansas City, which has improved its win percentage three straight seasons and will try to surge above .500 for the first time since winning the World Series in 2015. A lot would have to go right for the Royals to contend in the AL Central, but it’s not far-fetched to think Mike…

2021 Record: 77–85 • Home: 40–42 • Road: 37–43 The Los Angeles Angels were bit players in a once-in-a-lifetime show last season, providing the backdrop for Shohei Ohtani’s historic two-way performance. The unanimous AL MVP in 2021, Ohtani finished third in the AL with 46 home runs (many of the moon-shot variety) and second in OPS (.965), and his at-bats were must-see viewing. At the same time, he started 23 games as a pitcher, going 9–2 with a 3.18 ERA while striking out 156 in 130.1 innings. “Shohei’s season was nothing short of electric,” says teammate Mike Trout, reduced to spectator for much of the season due to a calf injury. “At times, I felt like I was back in Little League.” The Angels as a whole, however, were far…

2021 Record: 60–102 • Home: 36–45 • Road: 24–57 The Rangers are tired of losing. The 2021 season, which ended with 102 losses, was the team’s fifth consecutive losing season, the longest streak since they arrived in Texas. But they are doing something about it. In the week before the Dec. 1 lockout, the Rangers invested $561 million in free agents, a record for any team in a single off season, with the promise of more to come. They may not be a contender in 2022, but they will be significantly better. And they are on the rise with one of the deepest minor league systems in the game, a brand-new money-making stadium and a renewed commitment to winning. ROTATION Though the Rangers added veteran Jon Gray on a four-year,…

2021 Record: 67–95 • Home: 42–39 • Road: 25–56 After reaching the playoffs for the first time in 17 years during 2020’s shortened season, the Miami Marlins hoped to ride that momentum and provide an encore in 2021. Instead, extended absences by members of the rotation and lineup put them in an early hole en route to a 95-loss campaign. The 2022 season will mark Year 5 of Bruce Sherman’s and Derek Jeter’s ownership group, and everyone in the organization knows it’s time to see consistent results at the big-league level. The farm system remains one of the best, and the solid starting pitching should only get better as the arms continue to develop and mature. The offense, on the other hand, continues to lag behind. During the early stages…

2021 Record: 65–97 • Home: 35–46 • Road: 30–51 Anine-year stretch of perennial contention (eight first- or second-place finishes) and occasional coronation (2019 World Series title) came to a crash-landing for the Nationals in 2021, when the front office faced its sobering reality head-on by selling off premium pieces Max Scherzer and Trea Turner, as well as six other veterans. The result was a brutal, 97-loss season that brings the Nationals to something of a crossroads in 2022. Th ey say they’re not in a full rebuild — not when the roster still includes the likes of Juan Soto, Stephen Strasburg and Patrick Corbin, plus the infusion of young talent acquired at the trade deadline — but they could be in for a tough year. As for the long-term future,…

2021 Record: 95–67 • Home: 45–36 • Road: 50–31 The script has finally flipped in Milwaukee. After decades of futility developing arms in the Brew City, the Brewers can officially be called a pitching-rich organization. It’s a label that has a nice ring to it, and for a small-market team in particular. Riding a pitching staff featuring the killer trio of Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff and Freddy Peralta, lesser-known starters Adrian Houser and Eric Lauer and a bullpen featuring maybe the best 1-2 back-end punch in closer Josh Hader and setup man Devin Williams, Milwaukee is in terrific position to repeat as NL Central champion and extend its franchise record of postseason appearances to five. But the Brewers shouldn’t be ordering up the champagne again just yet. Christian Yelich has…

2021 Record: 52–110 • Home: 32–49 • Road: 20–61 The Diamondbacks were two games over .500 and two games out of the NL West lead a month into 2021 before hitting a wall. An 8–50 stretch ensued. Injuries hurt, as did the lack of identifiable progress on a rebuild that began with the trades of Paul Goldschmidt and Zack Greinke the previous two seasons. The D-backs have pieces in Madison Bumgarner, Zac Gallen and Ketel Marte, but the unforgiving NL West makes for a tough climb. ROTATION The Diamondbacks’ best vision of their rotation was on display in a doubleheader in Atlanta last April 25, when Bumgarner threw a seven-inning no-hitter in the second game after Gallen threw a one-hitter in the opener. But both later missed six weeks with…

2021 Record: 79–83 • Home: 45–36 • Road: 34–47 Change is inevitable when expectations are unmet, and it’s probably not a stretch to say that the Padres are coming off one of the most disappointing seasons in baseball history. Billed as a twin titan to rival the Dodgers in the NL West, they held first place as late as May 30 and appeared to have at least a wild card spot locked up in mid-August when they were a comfortable 18 games over .500. But injuries and instability undid hopes to keep pace with the Dodgers and upstart Giants, and the Padres spiraled all the way to a 12–34 record to end the season. They should return at full strength; their roster, led by Fernando Tatís Jr., remains brimming with…