1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,080 Today's episode of Mound Visit is brought to you by Baseline Boosters. 2 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:08,400 Feeling a bit flat when the action heats up? Baseline Boosters has the perfect pick me up, 3 00:00:08,400 --> 00:00:13,280 one little fan tab, and you'll be back on your feet, ready to ride out all 9 endings, even for 4 00:00:13,280 --> 00:00:18,160 extras. No slumping in the stands for you, will keep your energy right where it needs to be. 5 00:00:18,160 --> 00:00:23,680 Use promo code MoundPop for 30% off because every fan deserves to stay in the game till the end. 6 00:00:23,680 --> 00:00:29,360 Swing by BaselineBoosters.com, boost your fandom today. Thanks for listening to this episode, 7 00:00:29,360 --> 00:00:43,680 let's jump right into it. Welcome back beautiful people, it is another Thursday and another 8 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:47,600 episode. This time, following up on our last episode, if you haven't listened to it, 9 00:00:47,600 --> 00:00:53,920 go listen to it. This is my predictions for the 2025 MLB season. I'm going to go division by division, 10 00:00:53,920 --> 00:00:58,000 I'm going to go through the three wild card teams from each league, and then we're going to come 11 00:00:58,000 --> 00:01:03,360 together and have a World Series favorite. Kenji talked about his last time, he had a couple of 12 00:01:03,360 --> 00:01:07,200 crazy picks, I'm not going to air him out on here, you're going to have to go back and listen to it. 13 00:01:07,200 --> 00:01:14,240 But this episode is my time to talk, he's going to react to it, and I'm thoroughly excited. We've 14 00:01:14,240 --> 00:01:18,240 been talking about this the last couple of days, we're stoked for this episode, this is a fun little 15 00:01:18,240 --> 00:01:24,640 thing. Kenji, what are your thoughts? Do you have any revisions to make from your last selections? 16 00:01:24,640 --> 00:01:30,640 Do you still stand by them? I'm proud of the picks I made. I don't think you should be. 17 00:01:32,320 --> 00:01:39,760 I've been thinking about the Astros, and I can't remember if last year I was low on them, 18 00:01:39,760 --> 00:01:45,840 or if I was high on them. Because if I was low on them, I was right for about a third of the season, 19 00:01:46,400 --> 00:01:53,040 and very wrong for the two thirds of the season. And I thought to myself, can I afford, 20 00:01:53,040 --> 00:02:00,960 of course I can afford to do it, but it's smart for me to rule out a team, a dynasty for the past 21 00:02:00,960 --> 00:02:06,320 10 years. And I have been thinking about the Astros, but besides that, I'm proud of what I 22 00:02:06,320 --> 00:02:12,160 put out there. I would just say everybody get ready to read a horrendous list of full of wrongs. 23 00:02:14,160 --> 00:02:18,640 Not really, but hear a horrendous list from Gabe about who's going to make the playoffs today. 24 00:02:18,640 --> 00:02:25,120 It's not that hard to predict the playoffs. It's just the wild cards that are really hard. 25 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:32,160 Yeah, I feel pretty good about this list. From a very top down perspective, I feel good about 26 00:02:32,160 --> 00:02:36,960 the six teams in each league that I have making it in general. I feel like these guys make sense. 27 00:02:36,960 --> 00:02:41,440 I can talk myself into every one of them. It's just the order that gets a little hairy sometimes, 28 00:02:41,440 --> 00:02:46,160 and I think that's where I'm going to get a little bit of a reaction. I try not to let my bias affect 29 00:02:46,160 --> 00:02:51,520 me, but you'll probably see a little bias here. We're all a little biased here. It's sports. 30 00:02:51,520 --> 00:02:55,520 Sports is personal. Yeah. I mean, we had the Kansas City Royals winning the AL Central. 31 00:02:56,560 --> 00:03:00,320 So that was the last episode. Hey, hey, hey. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. I said I wasn't going to air out 32 00:03:00,320 --> 00:03:07,520 your picks, but I did. I'm sorry. Hey, okay. Well, let's hear it. Who are you going to start off 33 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:14,640 with today? We always start out in the East, the American League East. I'm pretty sure everybody 34 00:03:14,640 --> 00:03:20,960 can predict who I have there, but we'll get there in a second. I'm going to go with the AL West, 35 00:03:20,960 --> 00:03:28,400 and this one is basically what we talked about last time when you spoke. I have the Texas Rangers 36 00:03:28,400 --> 00:03:34,080 winning the AL West. I do think Houston is a really interesting team, but when it came down to it, 37 00:03:34,080 --> 00:03:40,960 I looked at their lineup. I just didn't like the lineup. I didn't. I like Jordan Alvarez. I do. I 38 00:03:40,960 --> 00:03:46,000 like Esauk Parades. I like him a lot. I like Christian Walker. I like bringing him in, 39 00:03:46,000 --> 00:03:50,480 but you lose a bunch of playoff pedigree. They've got this transition with Altuva moving to the 40 00:03:50,480 --> 00:03:55,840 outfield. I'm just not sold, honestly, that the Astros can do what they've been doing. And listen, 41 00:03:55,840 --> 00:03:59,440 this is probably going to bite me in the butt. You can clip it because they're probably going 42 00:03:59,440 --> 00:04:04,480 to go and do what the Astros always do, which is they're a dynasty at this point. They always 43 00:04:04,480 --> 00:04:08,800 make the playoffs. Besides last year, they had what? Seven years in a row they were in the 44 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:13,760 championship series. It's tough to count the Astros out, but I think last year we saw the beginning 45 00:04:13,760 --> 00:04:18,960 of this kind of fall off for them. And the more I look at the Rangers roster, a healthy year of 46 00:04:18,960 --> 00:04:23,680 de Grom, of all these back, they've got some guys in the rotation that need to prove it. They've got 47 00:04:23,680 --> 00:04:28,160 a bunch of young guys lying in the weight. I really like Texas. I love their lineup. I think 48 00:04:28,160 --> 00:04:33,520 they've got the pop to win the division. That's my pick. Is this the easiest division you think? 49 00:04:33,520 --> 00:04:43,040 I know, because I think if you tell me in September and you're like, the Astros are three 50 00:04:43,040 --> 00:04:47,680 games up on Texas, I'm not shocked at all. I don't think I would be surprised in the slightest. 51 00:04:48,320 --> 00:04:52,160 I mean, if you told me that the Mariners were making a run at it, I don't think I would be 52 00:04:52,160 --> 00:04:59,920 surprised in the slightest because Mariners have a great rotation. So I think it's open, but not a 53 00:04:59,920 --> 00:05:10,000 ton. I think that's a weird way to describe it, but that's kind of how I feel. Okay. I think, 54 00:05:10,000 --> 00:05:15,200 I mean, it's the same one that I had, so I got nothing to say about it. I think it's the worst 55 00:05:15,200 --> 00:05:25,280 division in baseball, but it could be also contend for one of the top ones if a few moves are made 56 00:05:25,280 --> 00:05:29,600 and people break out. But yeah, I think the Rangers are a great pick and they definitely do 57 00:05:29,600 --> 00:05:36,800 have the most complete roster and the most complete players and the most depth, in my opinion. 58 00:05:36,800 --> 00:05:41,360 I totally agree. So Texas Rangers win the AL West. I think it's a good pick. I don't know 59 00:05:41,360 --> 00:05:45,840 if they're favored officially from Fandl or DraftKings, but I feel good about the Rangers. 60 00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:52,880 Moving along to the Central, the AL Mid, I have the Minnesota Twins winning the Central. 61 00:05:54,080 --> 00:05:58,080 I know, listen, this might be a little offensive to Kenji and his Kansas City Royals lore, but 62 00:05:58,080 --> 00:06:02,160 I like Minnesota. They didn't do much in the off season, but they had a bunch of young guys 63 00:06:02,160 --> 00:06:07,760 come up last year. They had Rooks Lee. They had the third baseman, Miranda. They got, of course, 64 00:06:07,760 --> 00:06:12,480 Carlos Correa. They still have their core of other players. I really like their rotation, 65 00:06:12,480 --> 00:06:17,600 Bailey Ober, Joe Ryan, Pablo Lopez. I still think Joanne Duran on the back end is really good. 66 00:06:17,600 --> 00:06:23,120 And in a division that I think is kind of up for grabs, I like Minnesota. I think Cleveland's 67 00:06:23,120 --> 00:06:30,880 gotten us a hair worse. Kansas City really didn't do much to make me vault them up in the rankings. 68 00:06:32,000 --> 00:06:36,320 I think Minnesota has proved it. I like them to win the Central. I think they're like, 69 00:06:36,320 --> 00:06:42,480 they're probably capped in my opinion though, like an 88, 89 win team. That's, I think, 70 00:06:42,480 --> 00:06:47,760 their ceiling. But I think the ceiling for a lot of the other AL Central teams is below that. That's 71 00:06:47,760 --> 00:06:54,400 why I have the twins winning the Central. Thoughts? I honestly, like if I wasn't a Royals fan, 72 00:06:54,400 --> 00:06:57,840 I would have picked twins. I mean, I have the twins making the playoffs, I'm pretty sure next year. 73 00:06:58,560 --> 00:07:04,480 And when you look at their lineup, it's hard to argue against it, right? I mean, I'll just read 74 00:07:04,480 --> 00:07:10,000 off like their projected lineup. They got Matt Wallner, who I've heard great things about. I 75 00:07:10,000 --> 00:07:17,040 heard he mashes, mashes balls. He projected a lead off, which is kind of strange to me. 76 00:07:17,040 --> 00:07:22,880 I got Matt Wallner, Carlos Correa, who is like a Luis Arias when he stays healthy with a bit more 77 00:07:22,880 --> 00:07:30,000 pop. Byron Buxton, who can't stay healthy, but when he does, he looks great. Last year, honestly, 78 00:07:30,000 --> 00:07:35,360 he stayed healthy for the majority of it and he's a great player. Trevor Larnick, also I think he's 79 00:07:35,360 --> 00:07:41,600 a bat first guy, isn't he? I can't remember him playing much last year. Yeah, I don't know too 80 00:07:41,600 --> 00:07:45,440 much about Trevor Larnick, yeah, but he's in cleanup form. Right. So that means something, 81 00:07:45,440 --> 00:07:49,440 right? Because we have Royce Lewis behind him, who has the potential to be probably like one of the 82 00:07:49,440 --> 00:07:56,240 best players in baseball when he's hitting well. Will Castro, guy can play anywhere, good speed, 83 00:07:56,240 --> 00:08:02,000 good defense. Ryan Jeffers had a lot of pop at the beginning of last year, really helped them out. 84 00:08:02,000 --> 00:08:07,920 Kai France at first base, who knows? He was in Seattle, was in Cincinnati, who knows how he's 85 00:08:07,920 --> 00:08:11,440 going to do this year? And then Brooksley, who splashed last year. And then they're, they're, 86 00:08:11,440 --> 00:08:16,080 he kind of right off their, their starters for next year. They're great. We talked about their 87 00:08:16,080 --> 00:08:21,760 bullpen a lot here. Also, I think it's a great pick. Yeah, I'm going to call out Griffin Jacks, 88 00:08:21,760 --> 00:08:25,280 like kind of an underrated pick. I like Brock Stewart there in that bullpen as well. Oriole 89 00:08:25,280 --> 00:08:30,480 legend Danny Coulombe back there. I really like their bullpen. I think if they can score a decent 90 00:08:30,480 --> 00:08:35,680 number of runs a game, they're going to win a lot of games. Simeon Woods Richardson and Chris Paddock 91 00:08:35,680 --> 00:08:39,360 being the back end of the bullpen. Simeon Woods Richardson, formerly a big prospect for the Blue 92 00:08:39,360 --> 00:08:45,840 Jays. And I like him. We'll kind of see what happens with Simeon. But I mean, he's a good four. 93 00:08:46,400 --> 00:08:50,640 Again, I really like their top three. I think it's a tough team to face in a playoff series. 94 00:08:50,640 --> 00:08:55,440 I think you're going, wow, if they score four runs in a playoff game, like you're in trouble, 95 00:08:55,440 --> 00:08:59,200 because that's a really good pitching staff. So I like the twins. I got them winning the central. 96 00:09:00,320 --> 00:09:08,800 Awesome. Awesome. Now I'm going to move to the American league East. Yeah. Yeah. And you can't 97 00:09:08,800 --> 00:09:15,120 see my video, but I have an O's hat on right now. Well, interesting. Interesting. Why is that? 98 00:09:15,120 --> 00:09:21,120 And that's who I've got winning the American league East. Please state your case about that. 99 00:09:22,880 --> 00:09:28,880 I have the O's winning the, yeah. Yeah. Go ahead. Everybody in the audience wants to know how you 100 00:09:28,880 --> 00:09:34,160 have them winning that. I have the O's winning the East because they're only going to go as far as 101 00:09:34,160 --> 00:09:37,200 their young core develops. And I think their young core is going to take them pretty far. 102 00:09:37,200 --> 00:09:41,680 Okay. I think Gunnar Henderson is going to continue to be one of the best 103 00:09:41,680 --> 00:09:46,080 top five players in baseball. I don't think like, like that's a non-negotiable. I think. 104 00:09:46,080 --> 00:09:48,400 Top five. Top five. 105 00:09:51,200 --> 00:09:53,680 Give me your top five baseball players and then we'll be right now. 106 00:09:55,360 --> 00:10:01,520 Hold on. Top five? Top five best young players, I guess. I'll, I'll, I'll amend my statement to 107 00:10:01,520 --> 00:10:06,800 best young players. I won't say the top five. I can accept that. But top five best young players. 108 00:10:06,800 --> 00:10:11,360 I think Gunnar continues to do what he's going to do. I think Adley Rutchman has a bounce back 109 00:10:11,360 --> 00:10:15,360 season. I think he learned a lot in that second half and whatever it was, injury, whatever, 110 00:10:15,360 --> 00:10:19,440 he's going to be back. I think he'll be playing well. Like Jordan Westberg, 111 00:10:19,440 --> 00:10:24,800 Tauser and Holliday to all take a step forward. I think that's the biggest key to the O's this season. 112 00:10:24,800 --> 00:10:27,920 If they get their young core to take a step up, then they're going to be in great shape. 113 00:10:28,640 --> 00:10:34,560 I think if Holliday does like half of what he did last year, or not half, double what he did last 114 00:10:34,560 --> 00:10:38,800 year, the O's are going to be in phenomenal shape. He did nothing last year. He used half what 115 00:10:38,800 --> 00:10:44,720 Holliday did last year. They're going to be in the dump. And Kirstad too. I think Kirstad is an 116 00:10:44,720 --> 00:10:48,320 underrated piece of this. He's going to be in the middle of that lineup against Riteys especially. 117 00:10:48,320 --> 00:10:54,400 He's got wicked power. I like the young core to take him. If Tyler O'Neill stays kind of consistent 118 00:10:54,400 --> 00:10:58,640 with how much he's been playing, I also like him with enough pop from the right side. They're 119 00:10:58,640 --> 00:11:02,720 bringing in that wall in right field. Mountcastle is going to have a bounce back season. Mullins 120 00:11:02,720 --> 00:11:07,920 becomes a free agent at the end of the year. So he's going to have a good season. I feel good 121 00:11:07,920 --> 00:11:13,600 about the young core. I do. And everybody's going to say, oh, well, Gabe, as I scroll down the page 122 00:11:13,600 --> 00:11:19,760 to the rotation, well, Gabe, they lost Corbin Burns. What are they going to do? And you can't 123 00:11:19,760 --> 00:11:24,080 replace Corbin Burns in the aggregate. You can't. I'd like to put that out there. You can't recreate 124 00:11:24,080 --> 00:11:30,400 him with other players and statistics. You can't do it. However, Grayson Rodriguez has the stuff to 125 00:11:30,400 --> 00:11:35,840 be a number one pitcher. Hasn't put it together yet, but he can. He's only 25. Zach Efflin is a 126 00:11:35,840 --> 00:11:40,720 veteran anchoring right next to Grayson at the top of that rotation. He now gets a full year to kind 127 00:11:40,720 --> 00:11:45,040 of full off season to prepare. He knows where he's going to be. He gets to work with Grayson. They 128 00:11:45,040 --> 00:11:50,320 bring in Sagano. And if there's one thing we know, it's that older Japanese pitchers that can command 129 00:11:50,320 --> 00:11:55,360 the baseball can have success in the big leagues. Look no further than Shotzi Minaga last year. 130 00:11:55,360 --> 00:11:59,360 If you can command the baseball, you can throw strikes, you can deceive the hitter, you can be 131 00:11:59,360 --> 00:12:04,320 successful to some level. And I'm not saying Tomoyuki is going to go be an amazing pitcher in 132 00:12:04,320 --> 00:12:09,920 the big leagues, but I think he can be serviceable as like a four or a five. Is that a question mark? 133 00:12:09,920 --> 00:12:16,720 No. And the question marks, I mean, Dean Kramer, we need him, he needs to step up at least like 134 00:12:17,600 --> 00:12:21,840 another notch, right? It was kind of, Dean Kramer started that game three against the Rangers a 135 00:12:21,840 --> 00:12:25,120 couple of years ago, and that was kind of a joke. It was like, really? Dean Kramer is our guy, 136 00:12:25,120 --> 00:12:29,280 but he's a serviceable and he'll be starter. He makes most of his starts, he pitches well, 137 00:12:29,280 --> 00:12:34,800 gives us five solid innings. I like Dean Kramer. And then Charlie Morton, 41 year old Charlie 138 00:12:34,800 --> 00:12:39,520 Morton. I don't really know how to feel about this, honestly. How much did you guys sign him for again? 139 00:12:40,080 --> 00:12:43,600 Like 15 million or something with the kind of like the average pitchers. 140 00:12:43,600 --> 00:12:48,640 Isn't that, does that ever blow your mind that he signed, I think before Verlander and Scherzer 141 00:12:48,640 --> 00:12:52,480 for the same amount of money? I'm pretty sure he signed before them. Like does that blow your mind? 142 00:12:52,480 --> 00:12:59,680 Like that's crazy. I don't hate it. Like I said, I like Morton because he's got kind of the, 143 00:12:59,680 --> 00:13:02,640 if you look at the shape of his breaking ball, it's similar to that of Rodriguez. 144 00:13:03,440 --> 00:13:07,920 And I like that about him. I like that he's kind of a five, six pitch guy. I like that he can, 145 00:13:07,920 --> 00:13:12,240 there's so many young dudes in this road, in this, on this team and in the rotation. 146 00:13:12,240 --> 00:13:18,080 Underrated part of the starting pitching staff, Kyle Bradish and Tyler Wells will return during 147 00:13:18,080 --> 00:13:23,680 the season from Tommy John surgery. Kyle Bradish started game one for us two years ago. Bradish 148 00:13:23,680 --> 00:13:28,880 can be a one right alongside Grayson. So I think if they can hang around until Bradish comes back, 149 00:13:28,880 --> 00:13:32,960 then you were looking at Bradish, Grayson, Efflin, and you're like, okay, that's a legitimate top 150 00:13:32,960 --> 00:13:39,440 three. And I like that. If I'm an Oriole fan, I am an Oriole fan. I like the bullpen. I think 151 00:13:39,440 --> 00:13:45,040 people underrate, you know, how they always had a losing record in one run games last year. They did 152 00:13:45,040 --> 00:13:50,400 point blank. And that was because the backend of their bullpen was so horrendous, horrendous. 153 00:13:51,040 --> 00:13:57,760 Craig Kimball, Craig Kimball closing games for the season was, it was just a tire fire. He was a 154 00:13:57,760 --> 00:14:03,600 disaster getting Felix Bautista back healthy for 162 will do wonders for this team. And I think 155 00:14:03,600 --> 00:14:07,280 people are like, well, you lose Kimball, you lose Santander, where are you going to make it up? 156 00:14:07,280 --> 00:14:13,360 I think the sole edition of having Bautista as an anchor in the backend will help actually quite 157 00:14:13,360 --> 00:14:20,240 a bit. I like the additions of Andrew Kichrig. I like that Keegan Aiken, sorry, not Aiken, 158 00:14:20,240 --> 00:14:24,560 Serenity Dominguez and Gregory Soto get a full year to kind of prepare to be in that staff. 159 00:14:25,120 --> 00:14:31,280 I like them as kind of setup pieces as role players. We'll see how they pan out. But I like them. 160 00:14:31,280 --> 00:14:36,320 Albert Suarez is kind of a long guy. He's amazing in his role last year. And then if I'm looking at 161 00:14:36,320 --> 00:14:41,600 the bench, he was very clutch for you guys last year. He was. I like Jorge Mateo coming off the 162 00:14:41,600 --> 00:14:46,160 bench when he's back healthy. I like him as a utility guy when he goes and he's stealing bags, 163 00:14:46,160 --> 00:14:50,640 the whole rest of the team, you know, gets picked up a notch when he's playing well. So I like Mateo 164 00:14:50,640 --> 00:14:55,680 a lot. That's kind of that. That's my take on the O's. I know it's long winded. I have them winning 165 00:14:55,680 --> 00:15:00,080 the East. It was never going to be anybody else that I was going to pick to win the East. I do 166 00:15:00,080 --> 00:15:04,640 think the Red Sox. You just can't. Yes, I do think the Red Sox and Yankees are very strong and you're 167 00:15:04,640 --> 00:15:09,840 going to see me pick talk about them in a minute. But I have the O's winning the American League. I 168 00:15:09,840 --> 00:15:15,600 think it's going to be a really tight division. I think the O's get like 95, 94 wins and then 169 00:15:16,240 --> 00:15:20,080 and then they finish only a game or two ahead of the teams I'm going to talk about in a minute. 170 00:15:21,440 --> 00:15:28,000 OK, so since this is partially a Royals and Dodger and Baltimore Orioles podcast, 171 00:15:28,720 --> 00:15:33,680 we talk about these players, I'm going to ask you who are your two X-Factors for Baltimore this year? 172 00:15:33,680 --> 00:15:37,760 Because you know, let's have a couple names, right? But I want to know who you think it really 173 00:15:37,760 --> 00:15:41,920 solely depends on. I mean, you've kind of touched about this before, but let me hear like your two 174 00:15:41,920 --> 00:15:51,520 X-Factors that are going to actually take the O's back to winning that division to what it was 175 00:15:51,520 --> 00:15:56,640 or from what it was last year. Great question. Grayson Rodriguez and 176 00:15:59,760 --> 00:16:07,040 any of the young guys, dude, any Jackson Holliday. It's not Adley? You said so many times. 177 00:16:07,040 --> 00:16:12,240 Yeah, I think Adley takes them. Yeah, I think Adley bounces back. So you're right. Yes, 178 00:16:12,240 --> 00:16:16,400 it does hinge on Adley. So you're absolutely right. I think it's Rodriguez and Adley. 179 00:16:16,400 --> 00:16:20,000 If I had to do a humble plug, I think Holliday having a bounce back would be huge. I think 180 00:16:20,000 --> 00:16:25,200 Mullens being better than what he's been would be huge. But you're absolutely right. Two X-Factors, 181 00:16:25,200 --> 00:16:30,480 one pitcher, one hitter, Grayson Rodriguez, because they need him to be the guy. They need him to be 182 00:16:30,480 --> 00:16:35,520 the guy. Yeah. And Rutchman has to get back to what he was because if Rutchman's getting on base, 183 00:16:35,520 --> 00:16:40,160 if he's slapping the ball the other way, those are in good shape. So I hope that answers your question. 184 00:16:40,960 --> 00:16:49,440 It did. I appreciate it. All righty then. American League wild card. Now, this is when I had a little 185 00:16:49,440 --> 00:16:56,240 bit of fun. Wait till you see my AL wild card three. AL wild card one, I have the Boston Red Sox 186 00:16:56,240 --> 00:17:03,120 as the first wild card winner. OK, OK. I like them a lot. I like their lineup a lot. I really like 187 00:17:03,120 --> 00:17:08,400 their rotation. The back of the bullpen still worries me a little bit, but I do. I'm a fan of 188 00:17:08,400 --> 00:17:12,400 Roldis Chapman. I think he's solid there on the back end. I don't know what Liam Hendricks is 189 00:17:12,400 --> 00:17:17,840 going to give them, but I like Chapman and I really like that rotation. So if Crochet can stay healthy, 190 00:17:17,840 --> 00:17:22,480 if they can keep those arms healthy, I think the Red Sox are in phenomenal shape. If you tell me 191 00:17:22,480 --> 00:17:28,080 that the Red Sox win the division and flip flop the O's with them, I don't have a problem with 192 00:17:28,080 --> 00:17:33,600 that. I just was never going to pick anybody else besides the O's to win the division. Good point. 193 00:17:33,600 --> 00:17:37,680 That's kind of my take on Boston. Like I said, we've talked about this at length. The top four or 194 00:17:37,680 --> 00:17:43,520 five in their lineup is elite and their rotation is elite. So end of story. That's kind of how I 195 00:17:43,520 --> 00:17:49,120 feel. Boston's in good shape. They've got a great young core kind of just waiting in the wings. 196 00:17:49,120 --> 00:17:57,280 That's how I feel. I can't really complain. I think it's the best pick, especially if the O's 197 00:17:57,280 --> 00:18:03,040 are already going to win a division in your head. And I think Boston definitely is that team. 198 00:18:03,040 --> 00:18:08,000 But what gives Boston the edge over the Inks? Because the Inks have the second or the third 199 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:13,600 best player in baseball, Aaron Judge. They have Garrett Cole, who is a generational talent when 200 00:18:13,600 --> 00:18:20,960 it comes to pitching. They have Max Freed, when he's pitching healthy, he is filthy. They got a 201 00:18:20,960 --> 00:18:29,120 great back of the bullpen with Devin Williams and Weeby Boy. And they got just a great amount of 202 00:18:29,120 --> 00:18:33,120 other players. And so what gives Boston the edge to you over the Inks? 203 00:18:33,920 --> 00:18:36,560 I like their lineup. I will say they just came from the World Series. 204 00:18:36,560 --> 00:18:42,560 I like their lineup and their rotation better. I do. I mean, the Yankees lineup is, to be honest 205 00:18:42,560 --> 00:18:48,160 with you, is a little scary to me, like in a bad way. Like I look at that lineup and I think there's 206 00:18:48,160 --> 00:18:54,800 a case where the Yankees could have, if Stanton misses, like on opening day. Now, bear with me for 207 00:18:54,800 --> 00:18:59,680 a second. Opening day, I think, I don't know where the Yankees are playing. They're probably at home. 208 00:18:59,680 --> 00:19:05,760 But opening day, I think that there could be a legitimate case that the Yankees have the fourth 209 00:19:05,760 --> 00:19:10,400 best lineup in the AL East that they put out there on opening day. Wow, really? 210 00:19:11,120 --> 00:19:15,440 I do. I think that, I mean, I don't have Toronto making the playoffs. Spoiler alert. Sorry. 211 00:19:15,440 --> 00:19:20,720 But Toronto has a really good, you know, you could argue Toronto has a good top three, four players. 212 00:19:21,360 --> 00:19:27,200 That's true. They'll have Bichette, Vlad, St. Ander somewhere in that lineup. I think that the Red 213 00:19:27,200 --> 00:19:31,920 Sox have an amazing group. You've got Duran, you have Devers, you have Bregman, you have Casas. 214 00:19:31,920 --> 00:19:38,880 The O's have Gunnar, Adley, Westberg, Mountcad, however you want to finesse those guys. But then 215 00:19:38,880 --> 00:19:46,000 I look at the Yankees and I'm going Dominguez, Bellinger, Judge. And especially if Stanton's out, 216 00:19:46,000 --> 00:19:50,880 I just, I don't know, man. Like you look at some of the rankings and projected stats for these 217 00:19:50,880 --> 00:19:55,760 Yankees hitters and I think they had Bellinger hitting 18 homers this year. They had Goldschmidt 218 00:19:55,760 --> 00:20:00,000 hitting like just over 20. That's what they said. That's what they had. I just don't know. 219 00:20:01,760 --> 00:20:04,720 I just look at that lineup and I think it's hinging on a bunch of old guys. 220 00:20:04,720 --> 00:20:09,600 And like, I don't know how much more they're going to get out of Volpi. Dominguez clearly has 221 00:20:09,600 --> 00:20:14,800 his fair share of issues in left field. Now I'm hating on the Yankees. I'm a Yankee hater. We know 222 00:20:14,800 --> 00:20:20,720 this. However, I do have them as the second wild card team. I do. Because I think they make it, 223 00:20:20,720 --> 00:20:26,000 because they do have a strong rotation and they do have a phenomenal back end of the bullpen. So I do 224 00:20:26,000 --> 00:20:29,840 think that they will make the playoffs. I think they have to go on the road to Boston, but I do 225 00:20:29,840 --> 00:20:36,720 think they make the playoffs. That's kind of my take on the Yankees. It's not a World Series 226 00:20:36,720 --> 00:20:42,720 contender, but it's a good team. Maybe they add something at the deadline. Maybe they get a 227 00:20:42,720 --> 00:20:47,200 Renaissance out of Goldschmidt or Bellinger, but that's how I feel. Oh, they will. Trust me. Paul 228 00:20:47,200 --> 00:20:53,680 Goldschmidt out there. Hey, I was wrong on every first baseman last year. I said Anthony Arizo. I 229 00:20:53,680 --> 00:21:02,400 said Spencer Torkelson. And I said Tristan Kassas, all going to break out or bounce back. You did. 230 00:21:02,400 --> 00:21:07,200 Anthony Arizo, I think was the worst first baseman in baseball last year. Tristan Kassas got hurt, 231 00:21:07,200 --> 00:21:12,320 although he started off great, got hurt and missed pretty much the whole season. And Spencer Torkelson 232 00:21:12,320 --> 00:21:20,080 forgot how to hit and was in the AAA and now is a bench player. So I was very wrong, but I will say 233 00:21:20,080 --> 00:21:25,200 Paul Goldschmidt, I think deserves the benefit of the doubt. I think he's going to have a great 234 00:21:25,200 --> 00:21:30,800 year and I think Goldie, I think Belly will have a great year as well. But we'll see. I'm excited to 235 00:21:30,800 --> 00:21:38,000 see, but who's your third wild card team? No, hold on. Before I get there, I pulled up the Yankees 236 00:21:38,000 --> 00:21:41,840 projected opening day roster. Stanton's not going to be ready for opening day, we know, so we can 237 00:21:41,840 --> 00:21:48,720 take him out. But they have Jazz, Judge, Bellinger, Wells, Goldschmidt, Volpe, Dominguez, 238 00:21:48,720 --> 00:21:59,040 Carrera. I don't know, man. I don't know. I mean, it just doesn't. I'm a biased Oriole fan. Okay. 239 00:21:59,040 --> 00:22:03,280 Yeah, I look at it and I think the Red Sox lineup is better than this. The O's lineup is better than 240 00:22:03,280 --> 00:22:08,800 this. That's how I feel when I look at this. And I don't have the Blue Jays pulled up. But I think 241 00:22:08,800 --> 00:22:14,400 you could argue that the Blue Jays could have a competitive top of the order just like they do. 242 00:22:14,400 --> 00:22:21,520 Like Yankees hinge on a lot of young guys popping or old guys finding lightning in a bottle. 243 00:22:22,480 --> 00:22:30,080 Okay. Okay. It's true. It's true. There is a lot hinging on risky players. But I guess that's what 244 00:22:30,080 --> 00:22:36,880 makes the Yankees kind of interesting this year. I like Jazz. I like Jazz Chisholm. I do. He kind 245 00:22:36,880 --> 00:22:42,400 of wasn't what I thought. Well, when he was in Miami, I thought he was kind of like an, I don't 246 00:22:42,400 --> 00:22:46,960 even know, an upper tier player. When he got traded to New York, he didn't quite perform to that 247 00:22:46,960 --> 00:22:52,720 standard. Maybe he goes back up there. He played better. I don't know. Maybe he goes back up there 248 00:22:53,360 --> 00:23:00,720 now that he's had a full off season. But he was on the fast track to Major League Superstar. 249 00:23:01,280 --> 00:23:07,840 And then it never felt like he was on the cover of the show. He's got all these, like Miami was 250 00:23:07,840 --> 00:23:13,440 making the playoffs. Like he's carrying Miami to the playoffs. It just doesn't, I don't know. Maybe 251 00:23:13,440 --> 00:23:18,000 Jazz pops off, has a good year. They could make me eat my words. A lot of times Yankees do, 252 00:23:18,560 --> 00:23:24,880 but that's how I feel. Okay. Okay. Well, now that we spent the entire show on the Yanks in Baltimore, 253 00:23:24,880 --> 00:23:29,680 who's your third wild-call spot? I'm going to sit in my water for a second before I say this. 254 00:23:29,680 --> 00:23:36,080 I'm going to catch your breath. Are you ready for this? Let's, let's hear it. 255 00:23:37,680 --> 00:23:42,240 I have the Seattle Mariners. I hate you. The wild card is the third team. 256 00:23:42,240 --> 00:23:49,120 You're insane. I like them. You're ridiculous. You're ridiculous. Over the Royals, the Tigers, 257 00:23:50,800 --> 00:23:57,040 the Astros. I do. That's crazy, dude. I do. Do you know who's on offense? 258 00:23:57,040 --> 00:24:02,560 Nobody. I looked at their lineup and that's when I made the call. I looked at the team. 259 00:24:02,560 --> 00:24:10,880 I like a man. Like I do. Please explain to me. Me and God are going to try and understand your 260 00:24:10,880 --> 00:24:14,240 reasoning here. You're getting your money's worth if you're listening to me talk. I'm 261 00:24:14,240 --> 00:24:20,960 airing it out today. I like the lineup or sorry, not the lineup. I love, I love the rotation. I 262 00:24:20,960 --> 00:24:25,760 absolutely love the pitching staff. And that's, that's true with every everything in Seattle, 263 00:24:25,760 --> 00:24:32,160 but the, I think the lineup is serviceable. Julio Rodriguez bounce back season this year. 264 00:24:32,160 --> 00:24:37,680 Bucket Julio is going to be the superstar. Everybody thinks he is Julio has to be in a row. 265 00:24:37,680 --> 00:24:43,760 He has to be the guy. I like Julio to be the guy. Cal Raleigh phenomenal season last year. He's 28. 266 00:24:43,760 --> 00:24:48,080 He's getting better. He's a switch hitting third. He's going to bat third in order. I like Cal Raleigh 267 00:24:48,080 --> 00:24:56,000 quite a bit. Big dumper. I'm a big fan of the big dumper. Randy Rose Arena, who again, had a down 268 00:24:56,000 --> 00:25:01,680 year last year, but it's a full off season to now prepare to be the starting left fielder in Seattle. 269 00:25:01,680 --> 00:25:07,200 He's got the playoff Moxie. He's got this swagger. I think that that team needs a lot of swagger. 270 00:25:07,200 --> 00:25:11,520 Julio kind of feels like the spark plug all the time and you can't rely on him to be the spark plug 271 00:25:11,520 --> 00:25:16,000 all the time. I think Randy can provide some of that. I like Randy a lot in that order. 272 00:25:16,000 --> 00:25:20,880 It kind of goes again. We know their lineup is not strong. It gets a little hairy after that with 273 00:25:20,880 --> 00:25:26,320 like Luke Raleigh, Mitch Hanniger, JP Crawford. Please tell me who those people are. Mitch 274 00:25:26,320 --> 00:25:31,200 Hanniger is a right handed bat. He's been he's 34. Luke Raleigh is 30. They got him from the 275 00:25:31,200 --> 00:25:36,240 Rays. He has a little bit of pop. Jorge Polanco. I like bringing him back. He's a switch hitter at 276 00:25:36,240 --> 00:25:40,080 the bottom of the order. And then on their bench, they've got like the Kanzoni kid. They got Mitch 277 00:25:40,080 --> 00:25:46,320 Garver. But really, everybody's laughing when I'm talking about the lineup because the lineup is not 278 00:25:46,320 --> 00:25:51,120 strong. I will be the first to admit that the lineup is not strong. I don't think the lineup is 279 00:25:51,120 --> 00:25:58,000 strong in Detroit or Kansas City though, for that matter. Whoa, whoa, Kansas City. They have Bobby 280 00:25:58,000 --> 00:26:02,080 Whitman. What else do they have? They got Salvi Perez. She put up 100 RBIs last year. You have 281 00:26:02,080 --> 00:26:10,480 Vinny Pasquino. 100 RBIs last year. Old ass Salvador Perez. Sorry. Okay. But the real kicker 282 00:26:10,480 --> 00:26:15,120 with this team is you look at the rotation and you realize how good it is. How phenomenal their 283 00:26:15,120 --> 00:26:21,680 pitching staff is. Logan Gilbert, Luis Castillo, George Kirby, Bryce Miller, Brian Wu. Phenomenal. 284 00:26:21,680 --> 00:26:29,120 Phenomenal. That bullpen is good. The back end is fantastic with Andres Munoz. They'll be in every 285 00:26:29,120 --> 00:26:34,480 gate. It's can they score a few runs to give themselves a chance to win because they'll be in 286 00:26:34,480 --> 00:26:39,760 every game. And the Mariners, this is a really risky pick because the Mariners for years have 287 00:26:39,760 --> 00:26:48,720 bitten their fans in the back. They are known to disappoint. But I think because the expectations 288 00:26:48,720 --> 00:26:55,920 are so low and because the motivation is higher because they didn't do much in the off season 289 00:26:55,920 --> 00:27:01,360 because everybody's counting them out already. I think Julio and Randy and that pitching staff 290 00:27:01,360 --> 00:27:07,040 go and they say, why not us? And I like that because they're the third wild card team. They'll 291 00:27:07,040 --> 00:27:10,800 sneak in at the end. It'll be like the last week of the season they're playing for it. I like 292 00:27:10,800 --> 00:27:18,640 Seattle to do it. I mean, I could be convinced. I mean, if it's Kansas City, sure. If it's Detroit, 293 00:27:18,640 --> 00:27:24,960 I could see it. If it's Houston, I could see it. But I had to give something crazy going Seattle. 294 00:27:24,960 --> 00:27:30,160 Third wild card team. But I feel like Seattle. I mean, you look at last year and there were 295 00:27:30,160 --> 00:27:35,920 strictly teams who were just pitching only and they can only make it so far. It's great to have 296 00:27:35,920 --> 00:27:41,120 five great starters, but in the playoffs you use three of them. You got to score runs in the playoffs. 297 00:27:42,400 --> 00:27:47,840 I agree. And I don't know in the last two years they've been so close. But Julio Rodriguez gets 298 00:27:47,840 --> 00:27:55,680 hot right before the end of the year. And that's great. But I mean, Jorge Polanco isn't going to 299 00:27:55,680 --> 00:28:00,080 solve your problems. He's like the one guy they signed this off season. I don't know. It's just 300 00:28:00,800 --> 00:28:05,520 the back half of our lineup is just gross. I get it. I totally understand. I think Colt 301 00:28:05,520 --> 00:28:09,680 Nemberson is going to be a fine prospect. And I don't know if he comes up this year, but he's 302 00:28:09,680 --> 00:28:13,600 going to be a great middle infielder. I don't know if they were to move Crawford to third. 303 00:28:13,600 --> 00:28:21,040 You get Dylan Moore out of there. They just cut him. Yeah. I don't know what they're going to do. 304 00:28:21,040 --> 00:28:26,160 I just love their pitching staff and I'm buying Seattle stock. It's probably the wrong thing to 305 00:28:26,160 --> 00:28:32,880 do, but I'm buying Mariner stock because they have the pitching staff to do it. When they say, 306 00:28:32,880 --> 00:28:37,120 what do you need in baseball to be successful pitching, pitching and more pitching, they have 307 00:28:37,120 --> 00:28:43,680 it. They have it in droves. So it's like, guys, just score four runs a game, just score five runs 308 00:28:43,680 --> 00:28:49,760 a game and you're going to win more often than not. And I don't know. Their division is not easy. 309 00:28:49,760 --> 00:28:55,360 Oakland, sorry. The athletics are going to be better. Texas is going to be better. Who knows 310 00:28:55,360 --> 00:29:01,440 what Houston is going to bring. So their division is not necessarily easy, but I got Seattle. 311 00:29:01,440 --> 00:29:08,240 Okay. How much time have we spent in the AL? I'm talking too much, man. I feel like we've been here 312 00:29:08,240 --> 00:29:17,280 forever. Do we need to do this a part time series? I'm talking too much. I'll go a little bit faster 313 00:29:17,280 --> 00:29:21,680 for the national league. We'll go a little bit faster with the national league. We'll start with 314 00:29:21,680 --> 00:29:27,280 the national league west. This should be, no, we'll say that for that. Actually, no. The west? This is 315 00:29:27,280 --> 00:29:34,400 the Dodgers. Okay. Yeah. Okay. This is the Dodgers. Why the Dodgers? Because they spend 316 00:29:34,400 --> 00:29:39,760 $70 million more in the next closest team because they've got a number one starter pitching in their 317 00:29:39,760 --> 00:29:47,520 fifth spot in their rotation because Tony Gonsolin, who would be like top two guy on 318 00:29:47,520 --> 00:29:53,840 any other rotation is like fighting for a rotation spot for them because Dustin May, who's in the 319 00:29:53,840 --> 00:29:58,720 same spot is fighting for a rotation spot because they signed Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates to go at 320 00:29:58,720 --> 00:30:02,480 the back end of the bullpen because they've got the best top three in the order in the history of 321 00:30:02,480 --> 00:30:07,040 baseball potentially. Like the Dodgers are fantastic. The Dodgers win the division. End of story. 322 00:30:07,840 --> 00:30:10,880 Okay. All right. We'll go to the national league central. Who you got there? 323 00:30:11,840 --> 00:30:18,720 I got another crazy one for you. What's that? Cincinnati Reds. I knew it. Cincinnati Reds. I 324 00:30:18,720 --> 00:30:26,320 looked at the rotation. I like it. I like their lineup. I'm buying some red stock. I'm buying 325 00:30:26,320 --> 00:30:30,080 some red stock. Elie De La Cruz is popping off in spring training. It means absolutely nothing, 326 00:30:30,080 --> 00:30:34,960 but Matt McLean is back this year. Spencer Steer doesn't have as much pressure on him. 327 00:30:34,960 --> 00:30:41,040 I really like Austin Hayes as an addition to that outfield. I really do. Like in the right system, 328 00:30:41,040 --> 00:30:45,280 Hayes was an all star. He started the all star game in 2023. Hayes is legitimately good big 329 00:30:45,280 --> 00:30:49,840 leaguer. He just was forced out of Baltimore and then he got traded to Philly where he was fighting 330 00:30:49,840 --> 00:30:55,520 for playing time anyway. He gets regular playing time. I like Hayes a lot in Cincinnati. Gavin Lux 331 00:30:55,520 --> 00:30:59,840 goes over to that squad. He's going to be a good bottom of the order serviceable bat. And we know 332 00:30:59,840 --> 00:31:05,840 that they have good prospects. We know that they have the Noel Di Marte kid. We know that they have 333 00:31:05,840 --> 00:31:11,680 Elie De La Cruz. We know that they've got Christian Encarnacion on strand. They've got so much talent 334 00:31:11,680 --> 00:31:15,360 just sitting in that infield and they just don't know what to do. They have to trade it. 335 00:31:16,000 --> 00:31:20,720 They have to use it. They have a ton of talent. I guarantee you that Lubebob trade was about to 336 00:31:20,720 --> 00:31:28,640 happen. Probably had CES or Noel Di Marte or Spencer Steer mixed in there somewhere because, 337 00:31:28,640 --> 00:31:34,960 or maybe one of their outfielders, they have what? Jake Fraley and whoever the other guy is. 338 00:31:34,960 --> 00:31:40,560 They have Fraley. They have Friedl. Fridel. There you go. And Hayes. Yeah. Like the Reds could really, 339 00:31:40,560 --> 00:31:46,320 if they play this right, because set themselves up for so much success in the future, they just 340 00:31:46,320 --> 00:31:54,160 can't hog these prospects and waste them. I agree. I understand what you're saying with the Reds. 341 00:31:54,720 --> 00:32:00,000 They're a fun team. I'm buying, I'm drinking the Reds juice. I mean, look at the rotation. I think 342 00:32:00,000 --> 00:32:04,880 Brady Singer is a really good addition. I do. Ending's luncher, man. Yeah. I like Hunter Green 343 00:32:04,880 --> 00:32:09,440 a lot. He's the ace. He's the guy. Brady Singer is your number two. Andrew Abbott is your number 344 00:32:09,440 --> 00:32:14,960 three. Who's a good starter by no means is Andrew Abbott a bad starter. That guy's got a surprising 345 00:32:14,960 --> 00:32:22,640 belly. You've seen that before? I haven't seen his belly. Why? Why did you, why do you know that? 346 00:32:23,440 --> 00:32:27,520 It's all, dude, they were broadcasting it last year, like zooming in his stomachs and like 347 00:32:27,520 --> 00:32:32,240 for a starting pitcher who's younger than he is. That's crazy. He's got kind of a belly. 348 00:32:32,240 --> 00:32:39,520 It's kind of funny. Anyway, Nick Martinez is your fourth guy. Whatever. Nick Lodolo, high end, 349 00:32:39,520 --> 00:32:46,720 a lot of potential, tons of potential, he's oozing with potential. I need Nick Lodolo to be healthy 350 00:32:46,720 --> 00:32:51,120 and have a good season. And then of course, I mean that bullpen Scott Barlow, who is long time 351 00:32:51,120 --> 00:32:56,240 Kansas City Royal and then Alexis Diaz on the back end. Alexis Diaz is great. He's fantastic. 352 00:32:56,240 --> 00:33:05,120 So I'm drinking the Reds Kool-Aid. Give it to me. All right. Okay. Then we'll go to the East 353 00:33:05,120 --> 00:33:10,800 National League East. Now this is arguably one of the best divisions, if not the best division 354 00:33:10,800 --> 00:33:19,200 in baseball. Who you got? The Phillies. Okay. I like that. I did not expect that from you. I 355 00:33:19,200 --> 00:33:22,880 got to be honest. I thought you were going to go Mets or Braves. I can't do the Mets. I don't like 356 00:33:22,880 --> 00:33:27,680 the rotation and I like the Braves, but I just think the Phillies have the pedigree for it. 357 00:33:29,280 --> 00:33:34,560 The Phillies didn't do much in the off season, but I like that young core. They've still got a couple 358 00:33:34,560 --> 00:33:39,920 guys under 30, but they've got a lot of aging players too. I think like Trey Turner, Harper, 359 00:33:39,920 --> 00:33:44,240 Schwaber, this is like a, like do you still have it? You think this is it for them? I think this is 360 00:33:44,240 --> 00:33:48,160 the end of their window. And this is maybe not this year, but like the next two years, this is 361 00:33:48,160 --> 00:33:53,280 the end of their window. I feel like this is the last year they have a really good chance to push 362 00:33:53,280 --> 00:33:58,960 it until I think cause Nick Castellanos, I don't think can stay next year. I think they're going 363 00:33:58,960 --> 00:34:02,960 to have too much money and they're just going to need to get a culture shift. They need to get a 364 00:34:02,960 --> 00:34:09,520 bunch of more young guys in there. So I kind of do think this is it for the Phillies. And yeah, 365 00:34:09,520 --> 00:34:14,640 sorry. Go ahead. I just meant to ask you that question. Yeah. No, I think they're older, 366 00:34:14,640 --> 00:34:18,880 but I mean, I still think that they have the talent to be successful. I think Harper's still 367 00:34:18,880 --> 00:34:26,000 great. Turner, Schwaber, Castellanos, Raul Mutu. Like they have to do something. They're old. They 368 00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:32,320 have to do something. But I like Alec Bohm and Brandon Marsh are under 30. They got to make 369 00:34:32,320 --> 00:34:37,040 something happen. Stott's under 30. They got to make something happen. I love their rotation. 370 00:34:37,040 --> 00:34:46,080 Hazel's, Lazzardo is there five. That's fantastic. They do lose Carlos Estavez in free agency to your 371 00:34:46,080 --> 00:34:52,560 Kansas City Royals, but I still like the backend. I mean, they got Joe Ross, Tywan Walker, Jose 372 00:34:52,560 --> 00:34:59,040 Alvarado, Kirk Haring, Strom and Romano. I like all those pieces. Romano at his best is an all-star 373 00:34:59,040 --> 00:35:04,240 closer and Strom we saw what he could do last year. Alvarado like they got dudes there in Philly. And 374 00:35:04,240 --> 00:35:08,160 I think this is like the last big year for them because I do think the Braves are coming and the 375 00:35:08,160 --> 00:35:12,880 Mets are coming. So I have the Phillies winning it because they like put the pedal to the metal. 376 00:35:12,880 --> 00:35:18,720 This is their time to do it. So Phillies won the end at least. I love it. I think they need to make 377 00:35:18,720 --> 00:35:24,240 a mid-season trade for another reliever because it seemed like their bullpen is what has blown a lot 378 00:35:24,240 --> 00:35:28,160 of big games in the last couple of years of the playoffs. I mean, look at Estavez. I know Alvarado 379 00:35:28,160 --> 00:35:33,760 had a huge bomb that he let off. Strom a hoard last year, I think in the playoffs. The only thing I 380 00:35:33,760 --> 00:35:38,960 remember about the Phillies last year was their bullpen sucked. So I think they needed before they 381 00:35:38,960 --> 00:35:44,640 tried deadline, picks up that bullpen, get some more guys. If Stott's not playing up today, 382 00:35:44,640 --> 00:35:48,320 could he play pretty bad last year, get that figured out? But besides that, I agree with you. 383 00:35:48,320 --> 00:35:54,720 They really do have what it takes to win that division. Yeah. I like Philly. And a wild card one. 384 00:35:56,000 --> 00:36:02,480 Arizona. Okay. Okay. I love it. I love it. Arizona man. That line up or not even that line up or 385 00:36:02,480 --> 00:36:08,320 that rotation, that roster is awesome. That roster is incredible. And they're overshadowed 386 00:36:08,320 --> 00:36:12,400 because the Dodgers are in their division and the Dodgers have the best roster ever assembled. 387 00:36:12,400 --> 00:36:18,800 But that Diamondbacks team is really, really good. They get Corbin Burns, of course. I mean, 388 00:36:19,440 --> 00:36:24,160 he's their number one. He's amazing. Wild, but they got him. Zach Galin on a contract year, 389 00:36:24,160 --> 00:36:29,440 he's going to have a great season. He's a guy who's going to go prove it that he deserves to make big 390 00:36:29,440 --> 00:36:34,240 money. I love Zach Galin. I like the other pieces in that rotation. They're kind of like force. I 391 00:36:34,240 --> 00:36:39,040 mean, there was a big deal last spring training was Jordan Montgomery signs. They're late and 392 00:36:40,560 --> 00:36:44,240 he is fighting for a spot, but he's probably not going to get one at this point because they 393 00:36:44,240 --> 00:36:48,320 got a lot of pieces in that rotation. I like the rotation a lot. And Wander Rodriguez is like a 394 00:36:48,320 --> 00:36:54,080 three or four for them. He was seen as a top guy a couple of years ago for Detroit and he got hurt 395 00:36:54,080 --> 00:37:01,360 last year. But I mean, I would love to take him as a three or four any day in any rotation. 396 00:37:01,360 --> 00:37:06,560 Yeah, I love him. I like Mero Kelly coming back full season. Brandon Flott kind of like a year 397 00:37:06,560 --> 00:37:14,240 removed from his playoff starts. I like him. They have AJ Puck who sticks around in the bullpen. 398 00:37:14,240 --> 00:37:18,800 Justin Martinez, who is their big time closer. Kevin Ginkle, big time setup man. They signed 399 00:37:18,800 --> 00:37:24,160 Kendall Graveman who's been known to he has some juice left in the tank. And Jordan Montgomery is 400 00:37:24,160 --> 00:37:29,440 their long reliever who two years ago he was pitching like massive. He was the ace for the 401 00:37:29,440 --> 00:37:33,680 Rangers. Yeah, he was pitching huge games. And then you go to their lineup and you're like, 402 00:37:33,680 --> 00:37:37,840 this is a really good team. Corbin Carroll, Katel Marte. They bring in Josh Naylor, 403 00:37:37,840 --> 00:37:43,760 Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Jake McCarthy, Gino Suarez, Pavin Smith, Gabby Marino, Coraldo Perdomo, 404 00:37:43,760 --> 00:37:49,120 who they just signed to a massive extension. They got dudes. The Diamondbacks have dudes. 405 00:37:49,120 --> 00:37:54,080 They're the number one wildcard team. They got guys who played their roles and they don't play 406 00:37:55,840 --> 00:37:58,960 bigger than themselves, you know, because like we talked about last time, like they have guys, 407 00:37:58,960 --> 00:38:02,640 but they're not like crazy names like the Dodgers or the Padres, you could say, 408 00:38:02,640 --> 00:38:07,040 but they got players who can do their job and do it well and play as a team. And that's what makes 409 00:38:07,040 --> 00:38:10,640 the Diamondbacks so awesome. And that's why they made the World Series on a couple of years ago 410 00:38:10,640 --> 00:38:14,720 is because they played as a team. They had an identity and they got hot and they believe in 411 00:38:14,720 --> 00:38:20,160 each other. And so absolutely Diamondbacks completely deserve that number one spot. 412 00:38:20,160 --> 00:38:25,680 Yeah. So D-backs are number one. I have the Atlanta Braves as wildcard number two. 413 00:38:25,680 --> 00:38:30,960 Okay. They'll get Acuna back mid season. They'll get Strider back mid season. They bring in Jurek 414 00:38:30,960 --> 00:38:36,720 and Profar. I think all their young guys continue to get better. Michael Harris, Austin Riley does 415 00:38:36,720 --> 00:38:42,160 it again. And they bring in Brian Day-Lakruz, who is just kind of a serviceable outfielder. 416 00:38:42,880 --> 00:38:49,680 The one question mark for the Braves for me is Chris Sale's health. Phenomenal last year, 417 00:38:49,680 --> 00:38:55,280 but if you look at it in the scope of his last few seasons, it's kind of this one-off where you're 418 00:38:55,280 --> 00:39:00,480 like, how, like he just doesn't pitch that much in the last five years. He just doesn't throw that 419 00:39:00,480 --> 00:39:04,560 much. So you're kind of worried that maybe the health is a concern this year because he pitched 420 00:39:04,560 --> 00:39:09,360 a full season last year. It's like when you're playing blackjack and you hit a couple hands in 421 00:39:09,360 --> 00:39:13,280 a row and you're like, well, at some point, like the deck's going to flip and I'm going to start 422 00:39:13,280 --> 00:39:18,480 losing. That's kind of how it feels with Chris Sale. But if he's healthy, he's great. They have 423 00:39:18,480 --> 00:39:22,960 Renato Lopez again. Hopefully he stays healthy. Spencer Schwellenbach really showed something 424 00:39:22,960 --> 00:39:29,440 last year. Dog. I like him quite a bit. Fantasy sleeper, by the way. Ian Anderson will come back. 425 00:39:29,440 --> 00:39:34,080 Grant Holmes, they have a really good back end to the bullpen. Acuna will come back. 426 00:39:34,080 --> 00:39:39,920 He's a, he's one of the best players in baseball when healthy. I like the brace. I like them a lot. 427 00:39:39,920 --> 00:39:44,400 And honestly, as I'm going through this, I think I like their roster better than Philly, 428 00:39:44,400 --> 00:39:48,960 but I think Philly just has that extra to them this year where they have to get it done. I think 429 00:39:48,960 --> 00:39:53,760 they can add it to, I think they come out of the gate faster than the Braves do. And I think that's 430 00:39:53,760 --> 00:40:00,640 what sets them apart when you get to September and October. I like it. I got nothing to say. I'm a, 431 00:40:00,640 --> 00:40:05,040 I said the Braves were going to win the division just because of their roster. So good. I do worry 432 00:40:05,040 --> 00:40:11,280 about, I don't know much about their bullpen. Cause I'm not a big bullpen guy, especially not 433 00:40:11,280 --> 00:40:16,880 for the Braves, but I mean, it's the Braves. So I believe in them, but who's number three, 434 00:40:16,880 --> 00:40:21,200 please tell me it's the Rockies. Please give me a case for how the Rockies are going to make 435 00:40:21,200 --> 00:40:27,200 the wild card number three for the national league. No Rockies. And this one is, it's kind of, 436 00:40:27,200 --> 00:40:33,520 it's not that surprising, but it's a good San Diego Padres make it as a card team. I like them. 437 00:40:33,520 --> 00:40:38,720 I think they had their stuff in the off season, whatever, but they still have an incredible young 438 00:40:38,720 --> 00:40:43,120 core. They still have a couple of the best players in all of baseball. Their rotation is still 439 00:40:43,120 --> 00:40:48,000 incredibly strong, still have a solid back end of the bullpen. They still have Ethan Solis, 440 00:40:48,000 --> 00:40:52,640 the 18 year old catcher coming up through the system. I still really like them. I don't like 441 00:40:52,640 --> 00:40:58,400 him as much as Arizona and the Dodgers, of course, but I still really like it. I mean, if you, I got 442 00:40:58,400 --> 00:41:04,480 their lineup up Arise, Tatis, Merrill Machado. That's phenomenal. That's fantastic. Top four. 443 00:41:06,160 --> 00:41:10,080 Then you go what? Vanderbilt after that. Yeah, you get Xander behind him. Elias Diaz, 444 00:41:10,080 --> 00:41:15,200 who was an all star with the Rockies. They have Jake Cronenworth. You have Jason Hayward, 445 00:41:15,200 --> 00:41:19,840 who they brought in. All of them can be like serviceable big leaders. 446 00:41:19,840 --> 00:41:24,880 Just got to play, just got to do your job. Like Bill Belichick said, just got to do your job. 447 00:41:24,880 --> 00:41:28,880 For those back end players, like they're stars in the beginning. They got great pitching. They got 448 00:41:28,880 --> 00:41:34,560 great back and bullpen. Just do your job. Don't play it ahead of your, what did Inga used to say? 449 00:41:34,560 --> 00:41:39,280 Don't play or play within yourselves or something like that. I don't know. Yeah, definitely. 450 00:41:39,280 --> 00:41:45,600 Play within themselves, they're a great team. Yeah, they're a great team. Now that's the picture as I 451 00:41:45,600 --> 00:41:52,160 have it. I'll read them off one time and then I'll go World Series. So, ALE East, Baltimore Orioles, 452 00:41:52,160 --> 00:41:59,040 ALE Central, Minnesota Twins, ALE West, Texas Rangers, ALE Wildcard, 1, 2, and 3, Red Sox, 453 00:41:59,040 --> 00:42:06,400 Yankees, Mariners, NL East, Phillies, NL Central Reds, NL West Dodgers, Wildcards for the National 454 00:42:06,400 --> 00:42:16,320 League, D-backs, Braves, Padres. Now, in this fantasy scenario, I have, let me think about this. 455 00:42:22,960 --> 00:42:26,240 This is crazy. I can't believe I want to say what I want to say. 456 00:42:27,280 --> 00:42:28,640 I'm afraid of what you're going to say. 457 00:42:28,640 --> 00:42:36,960 And you shouldn't say it. Don't say it. I have the Arizona Diamondbacks beating the Boston Red Sox 458 00:42:36,960 --> 00:42:46,000 in the World Series. Wow. Really? Yeah. So it looks like you and me are both putting it down that 459 00:42:46,000 --> 00:42:50,240 the Boston Red Sox are going to make it to the World Series next year. Oh, I forgot you put it down. 460 00:42:50,240 --> 00:42:55,760 Plus $2,200. I need to change that. Plus $2,200. Damn it. I need to change that. That can't be 461 00:42:55,760 --> 00:43:01,760 right. We're going to be walking out next year as a rich man. 462 00:43:12,800 --> 00:43:16,720 I look at it and that's what I think happens. I don't know what else to tell you. I can't blame 463 00:43:16,720 --> 00:43:21,520 you. I can't blame you. They're such as in the playoffs, the Boston. Boston has what you want. 464 00:43:21,520 --> 00:43:31,600 A great top three. Great lineup. I like Arizona to come out of the National League. I do. It 465 00:43:31,600 --> 00:43:36,240 could flip flop between Red Sox and O's for me coming out of the AO. I said it. I said it. 466 00:43:36,240 --> 00:43:42,480 He said it. He said it. Walk away, drop the mic. Those are my books. That was Gabe's list 467 00:43:42,480 --> 00:43:46,400 for who's going to make the playoffs and who's going to be in the World Series next year. 468 00:43:46,400 --> 00:43:54,960 For those of you who have stuck with us to this point, please let us know somehow whether, I 469 00:43:54,960 --> 00:43:58,960 don't know where all this stuff reaches. I don't know if they can even comment anywhere or maybe 470 00:43:58,960 --> 00:44:04,560 even send Gabe a DM of who you think has the better list. Just let us know. Just make us feel 471 00:44:04,560 --> 00:44:09,760 better by DMing Gabe. Comment on Spotify if you listen on there or comment anywhere else you can. 472 00:44:09,760 --> 00:44:13,680 Send me a freaking email. Let us know. Let us know. 473 00:44:13,680 --> 00:44:19,040 Let us know. Tell us how delusional we are. 474 00:44:19,040 --> 00:44:22,320 Tell me that Gabe's picks are way better than Kenji's. Tell me that. 475 00:44:23,440 --> 00:44:27,760 Yeah. Okay. Yeah. I know they're paying 20 bucks to do that. But thank you for tuning in. 476 00:44:27,760 --> 00:44:35,200 We had a great time doing this. This was awesome. This is great. Hopefully next week we'll think of 477 00:44:35,200 --> 00:44:42,160 some more interesting content to throw out for you guys. We will. No, that's such a bad promotion. 478 00:44:42,160 --> 00:44:48,080 Sorry, sorry. We are going to have some amazing content next for you guys next week. Maybe next 479 00:44:48,080 --> 00:44:53,440 week we'll think of something. You better be tuned in and be on high alert for that podcast 480 00:44:53,440 --> 00:45:00,240 notification drop to be coming out. You betcha. Short form content coming soon. Thanks CJ and your 481 00:45:00,240 --> 00:45:08,240 sister. Word. Word. Word. That's all I got. That's all I got. Thank you people. 482 00:45:08,240 --> 00:45:11,760 Thank you. We'll see you on Saturday.