Monday, August 15, 2016

NL West Season 36 Previews

NL WEST
Seattle Strikers(Owner ghutton9-30th season)
Season 35/ 83-79(Division Champ)

ghutton9's take-The offense in Seattle is below average as usual. They have some good contact hitters and decent batting eyes, but not much power outside of Keith Williamson. The team will hit for a low average which is usually the case in Seattle, but this season will be worse. The defense is the strength of the team. Buckley is a more than serviceable shortstop and Henley will be a great 2b. Glen Witt has amazing range in center but a below average glove. This is a top 5 defense and maybe top 2. The rotation is below average. They lack an ace and it is made up of mid to bottom rotation starters. The bullpen is about average. This team is not looking like a contender and isn't planning on it either. Last season was a bit of luck and I don't see them competing again for a few seasons. 70 wins is the likely total for the Strikers.


Albuquerque Komodo Dragons(Owner csudak-17th season)
Season 35/ 76-86

Owners thoughts-Predicting 83 wins. I think the hitting will be slightly above average. Losing Hartzell hurts, but I think I'll still score a good amount of runs. Pitching will be average to slightly below average. I have a few good arms but not enough depth. I'm stuck in between right now, but hoping to get lucky.

ghutton9's take-I disagree with Casey's take on the hitting. I see a well below average offense. They won't hit very well and the batting eyes aren't good enough for a solid obp. Pizzaro is a good hitter with power but they don't have much else and they really lack power. They do have good speed though. The thing is that this team plays in a very hitter friendly park and will likely end up closer to league average than what they appear. They do have a great fielding team though. Albert Rodriguez and Andres Oliva are really good options at shortstop. They have a gold glove caliber centerfielder with Scooter Dickerson. I think they could be a top 5 defense. The rotation looks solid. Sizemore is the ace and he works well in that role. Ernesto Ozuna is another top starter for them, but he lacks good stamina. The have good mid to back rotation starters as well. The bullpen hurts them though. They lack good late inning guys to close the door. I think it's a below average pitching staff altogether. This team should challenge for the division title this season. It's not a strong division and they could win it with 85 wins.


Oklahoma City Prairie Dogs(Owner brentcnb-24th season)
Season 35/ 74-88

ghutton9's take-In what seems to be the calling card of the division, OKC also has a below average offense. They lack guys that can get on base enough and they don't have much power. Jin-Chi Yamamoto is their top offensive player and he'll hit for power and a decent obp, but he's all they have. The defense is below average. Pete O'Brien is a below average shortstop but he won't hurt them too bad. The thing is that they lack a real centerfielder and other positions are missing good gloves as well. The rotation is weak and it amazes me that their best starter is used as a setup man. Erik Zaun has much more value as a starter getting 160 innings a season than a reliever getting 130. I guess with the rotation made up of mid to back end starters they prefer to have someone pitching every other game to bail them out. Geraldo Molina is another reliver that fits that role. Those 2 turn the below average bullpen into an above average group. The pitching staff together is below average though. I don't really see this team contending this season. I think they'll end up closer to 65 wins.


San Francisco Journey(Owner downboy-1st season)
Season 35/ 69-93

ghutton9's take-The Journey also have a below average offense. The lineup is built around Blaine Moore, who is a good hitter, but they don't have much else. The could join the other 3 NL West teams near the bottom of the league rankings in offense. The defense doesn't look very good either. They don't have a good glove at shortstop or centerfield. The rotation is made up of back end starters. The are likely to struggle this season. The bullpen isn't much better but they do have a couple good arms there. It's a bottom of the league pitching staff when you figure the defense into the equation. This team is rebuilding and likely expect to finish at the bottom of the division.


Prediction
1. Albuquerque
2. Seattle
3. Oklahoma City
4. San Francisco

No comments:

Post a Comment