THESE NEW YORK YANKEES ARE MUCH MORE THAN A FEW SLUGGERS...
PITCHING SHOULD BE THE DIFFERENCE OVER THE BOSOX IN THE AL EAST
The New York Yankees are a safe bet to lead Major League Baseball in home runs this season. Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez should combine for at least 125 HRs all by themselves.
The big boppers will sell the tickets and drive the TV ratings but the relatively underrated pitching staff is why I’m picking the Yankees to beat out Boston in the American League East and push Houston to the limit in the AL Championship Series.
Here is my 2018 American League forecast. The season starts Thursday.
EAST
New York Yankees – 100-62 record. Few if any rookie managers have been blessed with rosters as talented as this one. That’s the weakness? Now all Aaron Boone needs to do to keep his job is win the AL pennant and maybe the World Series.
The Yankees will score runs in bunches. The starting rotation of Luis Severino, Masahiro Tanaka, Sonny Gray, Jordan Montgomery and CC Sabathia is solid. They have baseball’s best bullpen.Hot prospects Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar are waiting in the wings.
Note: They’re no longer the Bronx Bankers or Bankees (estimated player payroll of $167 million ranks seventh in baseball).
Boston – 96-66. Baseball’s top player payroll for this season is an estimated $223 million. The lineup needed a power boost and J.D. Martinez should provide it. Love the quadruple B’s: Mookie Betts, Andrew Benintendi, Xander Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley Jr. Can sparkplug Dustin Pedroia stay healthy and how much does he have left? Can’t match the pitching depth of the Yankees.
Toronto – 83-79. The lineup has lost some pop and the starting rotation lacks quality depth. The NHL Maple Leafs are better than the Blue Jays for a change.
Baltimore – 72-90. The most overrated team in baseball? Rely too much on power. Not much speed and too little pitching. Will third baseman-turned-shortstop Manny Machado be moved at the trade deadline?
Tampa Bay – 67-95. Classy veteran third baseman Evan Longoria finally got a break. He’s gone. It will be easier for the penny-pinching Rays to try to balance the books now.
CENTRAL
Cleveland – 96-66. The infield is terrific, especially the left side with Francisco Lindor and Jose Ramirez. A deep bullpen supports strong starters Carlos Carrasco and Corey Kluber. The outfield is merely OK unless Michael Brantlley regains his top form. How much pop will new first baseman Yonder Alonso supply?
I’m not as sold on the Indians as many people are.
Minnesota –89-73. The young Twins are on the upgrade. A terrific offseason with the additions of Logan Morrison, starting pitchers Jake Odorizzi and Lance Lynn, and a revamped bullpen that has to be an improvement. It looks like dynamic center fielder Byron Buxton is on the verge of stardom.
Chicago White Sox – 73-89. The rest of the AL Central is very weak but the White Sox have the best young talent on the way up.
Kansas City -- 70-92. The Royals were good for a long time. They’re not good now.
Detroit – 62-100. The Tigers probably won’t be a playoff team again for many years. Poor Miguel Cabrera. Cashing big checks will take some pain off playing out the string on a rebuilding loser.
WEST
Houston – 101-61. The Astros have no weaknesses and adding ace Justin Verlander for a full season improves the chances for the first repeat world champion since the 1999-2000 Yankees. The heart of the team is the 2B-SS duo of Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa.
I don’t expect the Astros to fall victim to the Fat Cat Syndrome that undermined the 2015 champion Chicago Cubs last season.
Los Angeles Angels – 90-72. Mike Trout’s supporting cast is getting better. Ian Kinsler, Zack Cozart and pitcher/hitter Shohei Ohtani will make this a more entertaining team. How much does statuesque future first-ballot Hall of Famer Albert Pujols have left?
Seattle – 85-77. The Mariners have been underachievers for years. Why expect anything more now? Robinson Cano is a very good player but not exactly an all-out hustling sparkplug. Is he a future Hall of Famer?
Texas – 70-92. The Rangers have a decent lineup but a lousy pitching staff.
Oakland – 64-98. The A’s have some power but not much else. Thin pitching and a porous defense should produce a fourth consecutive last-place season.
Bob’s World Series pick – Washington over Houston.
BROWNS GETTING SOME BOVADA LOVE...SCANT RESPECT FOR THE BILLS
The latest Bovada odds on winning Super Bowl 33 were posted in Las Vegas this week and the big surprise is that four teams have higher odds than the Cleveland Browns (1-15 in 2016 and 0-16 in 2017).
The Browns appear to have upgraded their roster this offseason and now have five picks in the first two rounds of the 2018 Draft (1-4-33-35-64 overall) with the chance to add one or two more.
Odds to win SB 33: 5-to-1 – Patriots
17-to-2 – Eagles
9-to-1 – Vikings (up from 12-to-1 since adding QB Kirk Cousins)
12-to-1 – Steelers
14-to-1 – Packers-Panthers-49ers (honest)
18-to-1 – Saints
20-to-1 – Falcons
22-to-1 – Jaguars-Raiders
25-to-1 – Broncos-Seahawks
28-to-1 – Cowboys
33-to-1 – Chargers-Chiefs-Panthers
50-to-1 – Buccaneers-Colts-Giants-Lions-Titans
60-to-1 – Colts
66-to-1 – Bills (not much respect for a 2017 playoff team)-Browns-Cardinals-Redskins
70-to-1 – Dolphins
80-to-1 – Bears
90-to-1 – Bengals
100-to-1 – Jets. They aren’t good but I don’t think they’ll be close to the worst team in the NFL.
IF WILLIANS ASTUBILLO IS A RED WING, THE FANS FIGURE TO LIKE HIM...A LOT
Willians Astudillo may or may not make Rochester’s Opening Day roster next Friday, but if he does – and stays the entire season – he figures to be a huge fan favorite.
Astudillo is, to put it mildly, one of the most interesting players in pro baseball.
He’s listed at 5-foot-9, 225 pounds. He’s probably shorter and heavier. He’s like a small version of Bartolo Colon.
He’s listed as a catcher-first baseman-third baseman-designated hitter.
He is baseball’s most prominent contact hitter. Her loves to swing the bat and he almost always hits the ball.
In 2,154 career trips to the plate – all in the minor leagues – the 26-year-old right-handed hitter has struck out only 67 times. He has walked 75 times. He is a career .311 hitter (615-for-1,979).
In 2010 winter ball in his native Venezuela, he batted .361 with only 2 strikeouts in 220 official at-bats.
Last season, in 36 games for Reno (Pacific Coast League), he batted .342 (41-for-128), with 4 walks and a whopping 5 strikeouts.
He had Tommy John elbow surgery and sat out the entire 2013 season but be still can throw. In fact, another of his unique qualities is the ability as a catcher to pick off runners at first base without looking. He pitched two scoreless innings in a game with Reno last year.
He was invited to his first major-league camp this spring and appeared in 19 games with Minnesota, mostly as a designated hitter.
Admittedly, I’d like to see him play for the Red Wings this season. Wouldn’t you?
HOW DID LaMARRE BEAT OUT ZACK GRANITE?
Journeyman outfielder Ryan LaMarre was a non-roster invitee to the major-league spring-training camp of the Minnesota Twins after signing a minor-league contract to play for the Rochester Red Wings this season. He was not expected to make the Twins.
But the 29-year-old right-handed hitter was the surprise of Minnesota’s training camp. In 23 games, he batted a team-leading .475 (19-for-40), with 4 doubles, 1 triple, 2 HRs and 10 RBI.
Meanwhile, 2017 International League All-Star center fielder Zack Granite hit .140 for Minnesota this spring and was assigned to Rochester yesterday. He batted .338 (96-for-313) in 71 games with the Red Wings last season. He probably won’t be here long if he gets off to a decent start.
This is LaMarre’s ninth pro season and the first time he made a big-league Opening Day roster.
In 29 major-league games in brief stints with Cincinnati, Boston and Oakland, he batted .054 (2-for-37).
With Pawtucket in 2016, he batted .303 with 15 doubles, 190 HRs, 41 RBI and 17 stolen bases in 86 games.
THE RAMS GOT VERY GOOD IN A HURRY
The Los Angeles Rams won’t surprise anyone this NFL season.
In 2016, the Rams were 4-12 and outscored by 170 points (394 to 224).
In 2017, under first-year coach Sean McVay, the Rams were 11-5 and outscored opponents by 149 points (478-329).
Quite a turnaround.
Since last season, they’ve added stellar cornerbacks Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters, and nose tackle Ndamukong Suh (to team up inside with NFL Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald). Offensive coordinator Wade Phillips with have fun with his new toys.
The explosive offense is led by quarterback Jared Goff, running back Todd Gurley III and wide receivers Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp, the surprising third-round pick who made Sammy Watkins expendable.
A lot of folks will be giving the Rams a big chance to dethrone NFC kingpin Philadelphia.
The Rams had 10 straight losing seasons from 2007 through 2016 (combined record 42-101-1).
If you’re a Bills fan, it is fair to wonder how the Rams got so much better so much quicker.
McDAVID TOPS 100 POINTS AGAIN
Edmonton’s Connor McDavid now has an NHL-leading 102 points (40 goals + 62 assists) after one goal and two assists in a 7-3 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets Tuesday night. It is the second straight 100-point season of his three-year career. He turned 21 in January.
McDavid was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2015 NHL entry draft. Buffalo’s Jack Eichel, a very good consolation prize as the No. 2 overall pick in 2015, is 2 ½ months older than McDavid.
I’ve always compared McDavid to the second coming of Wayne Gretzky and Eichel to Mark Messier (we can hope).
Their NHL career scoring lines:
McDavid – 204 games...86 goals...164 assists...250 points.
Eichel – 203 games...72 goals...97 assists...169 points.
McDavid’s Oilers have been better than Eichel’s Sabres.
YOU CAN CHECK OUT SU PRIZE RECRUIT DARIUS BAZLEY WEDNESDAY NIGHT
Syracuse University’s much-heralded incoming 6-foot-9 forward Darius Bazley will be on display Wednesday night in the McDonalds All-American Game in Atlanta (7 p.m., on ESPN).
Bazley will be an instant starter at SU and a likely one-and-done player.
Of the 24 McDonalds All-Americans playing in this game, four are headed to Duke.
A NEW RADIO VOICE FOR THE BUFFALO BISONS
Former Buffalo Bisons batboy Pat Malacaro, now 34, is the team’s new radio play-by-play broadcaster.
Malacaro replaces Ben Wagner, who spent 11 seasons with the Bisons before recently joining the Toronto Blue Jays broadcasting crew.
Wagner was preceded by Pete Weber (1985 through 1995) and Jim Rosenhaus (1996 through 2006).
ON THIS DATE IN SPORTS...
March 28 – 189 years ago (1891), the first world weightlifting championship was held...68 years ago (1950), CCNY became the first men’s college basketball team to win the NCAA and NIT basketball championships in the same year...55 years ago (1963), the AFL New York Titans became the New York Jets.
March 29 – 99 years ago (1919), Montreal and Seattle split two games and the Stanley Cup was not awarded because of a flu epidemic...52 years ago (1966), Muhammad Ali beat George Chuvalo in 15 rounds for the heavyweight boxing title...34 years ago (1984), the Baltimore Colts moved to Indianapolis...24 years ago (1994), coach Jimmy Johnson quit the Dallas Cowboys.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO...
Wednesday, March 28
Justin Jackson (23)...Derek Carr (27)...Geno Atkins (30)...Chris Long (33)...Mark Melancon (33)...Stan Wawrinka (33)...Luke Walton (38)...Keith Tkachuk (46)...Wesley Person (47)...Jason Garrett (52)...Jeff Beukeboom (53)...Byron Scott (57)...Glenn Davis (57)...John Anderson (61)...Harvey Glance (61)...Rick Barry (74)...Jerry Sloan (76)...Kevin Loughery (78). Lady Gaga (32) and Reba McEntire (63) are invited to the birthday party.
Thursday, March 29
Matt Olson (24)...Ryan Kalil (33)...Justin Tuck (35)...Jennifer Capriati (42)...Alex Ochoa (46)...Brian Jordan (51)...Billy Beane (56)...Kurt Thomas (62)...Earl Campbell (63)...Joe Ehrmann (69)...Walt Frazier (73)...Denny McLain (74)...Duane Rupp (80).