Five storylines for the new season
MAD VILLAINY
The late-90s, early-2000s New York Yankees were villains because they won more than anyone else. The contemporary Houston Astros, however, are an entirely different story. The baseball world was flipped on its head when The Athletic published its bombshell report that the Astros illegally stole signs in 2017 and 2018. MLB conducted its investigation and handed out its punishments. Manager AJ Hinch and GM Jeff Luhnow were suspended, then subsequently fired. Houston was also fined and lost draft picks, but no players were suspended. A large contingent deemed the punishment too light and called for the 2017 title to be vacated. Countless players have ripped the Astros. Some pitchers have contemplated intentionally hitting Houston players. Even with all this madness, the Astros still project to be one of baseball’s best teams. But make no mistake: The Astros just became arguably the biggest villains in league history, making the aforementioned Yankees look like choir boys.
CITY OF STARS
This past decade was not kind to the Dodgers. They won the second-most regular-season games and won the NL West seven straight times, but never got the big one. Part of their inability to get over the hump has been the front office’s unwillingness to go all in, but that mentality finally shifted. The Dodgers made a big trade, acquiring 2018 AL MVP Mookie Betts and David Price from the Boston Red Sox. Amazingly enough, they acquired Betts without giving up Gavin Lux or Dustin May, their two top prospects who are expected to contribute in 2020. There are few teams in league history that have amassed as much talent as the contemporary Dodgers. Their lineup features two, in-their-prime MVPS and is arguably the best in the game. Betts will be a free agent after this season, so if the Dodgers are going to finally win a World Series, this is the year.
WHO’S GOT NEXT?
Now this is going to be fun. After last season’s doldrum of an offseason, several teams put forth the capital to improve and vault themselves into contention. The result? A season where more than half the teams in the league could realistically make the playoffs. In the AL Central, the White Sox backed up the Brinks truck, signing free agents Yasmani Grandal, Dallas Keuchel and Edwin Encarnación as well as Luis Robert, MLB Pipeline’s No. 3 prospect, to a six-year, $50 million deal. In the AL West, the Angels signed Anthony Rendon and have emerged as a threat for a wild-card spot. The two divisions worth especially paying attention to are the NL Central and East, as both divisions boast four teams each that could conceivably make the postseason. The Reds added Nicholas Castellanos, Mike Moustakas, Shogo Akiyama and Wade Miley. The Phillies inked Zack Wheeler and Didi Gregorius. Don’t forget about the Diamondbacks in the NL West. They added Madison Bumgarner and Starling Marte after winning 85 games last season. Aside from the Dodgers and Yankees, there are no real locks to win the division, which should make for some entertaining baseball down the stretch.
END OF THE LOOGY
Inside Oracle Park reads a quote by infamous owner Bill Veeck: “Baseball is the only thing besides the paper clip that hasn’t changed.” That’s no longer the case. There have been moves made in recent seasons, such as eliminating takeout slides and home plate collisions, reducing mound visits and the introduction of replay. While not inconsequential, strategic freedom has remained untouched. That is, until now. Major League Baseball rolled out a set of new rules ahead of the 2020 season, the most consequential being the “three batter minimum” for pitchers, the goal being to shave time off games. This rule will probably fall short of reducing the length of games, but its implications will be felt by a now endangered group of pitchers known as LOOGYS, or left-handed one out guys. Typically, these southpaws will be brought in to face lefthanded hitters, get them out, then be removed from the game. With this new rule, LOOGYS would basically be eliminated. Not only does this rule endanger the longevity of current LOOGYS, but eradicates the next generation, should this rule remain in place.
NEW ROSTER MOVES
MLB instituted new roster rules ahead of the 2020 season and, while subtle, it will be interesting to see how teams navigate around these rules. Pre-september and postseason rosters expand from 25 to 26 with a maximum of 13 pitchers. In September, rosters shrink from 40 to 28 with a maximum of 14 pitchers. MLB also introduced the Twoway Player Designation. If a player has totaled at least 20 innings pitched and at least 20 starts as a position player, with at least three plate appearances in each game, a player will be considered a Two-way and not count as a pitcher. Due to the restrictions of position players pitching (a team must be losing or winning by more than six runs when he enters), players who want to become Two-ways will essentially have to throw 20 innings while designated as a pitcher, then start 20 games while designated as a position player. For players such as Brendan Mckay and Jared Walsh, the need to fulfill both the 20 inning/20 game qualification may make it difficult to earn Two-way roster status despite their reputation as two-way players.