Even if Ohtani goes to the Netherlands, there may be less competition from the Phillies in 2024.
During the 2023 winter meetings, Phillies manager Rob Thomson spoke to reporters about what he hopes to see from the club on opening day in 2024.
The Dodgers’ $700 million deal with Shohei Ohtani shocked the sports world, but it also shook up the National League, which was poised to be one of the top two or three teams in the next few years. There was no effect. anyway. The 2023 season briefly appeared on their radar last season.
The Dodgers won 100 games without a starting pitcher and ranked second in baseball in scoring, until their loss to the Diamondbacks caught up with the pitching shortage. The Braves and Dodgers enter the season with the least chance of winning the National League pennant, followed by the Phillies. There is currently a wide gap between the Phillies, the estimated third-best team in the league, and the second-place clubs, which include the D-backs, Cubs, Cardinals, Brewers, Padres and Mets.
The Mets, who entered 2023 with the highest salary in major league history, fell well short of expectations and fired Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, but they don’t seem to be a threat heading into the season, which is a big change from the previous year. . The 2024 National League East will be 2-2, with the Mets rebuilding their system, the Nationals rebuilding, and the Marlins looking for more young players as Sandy Alcantara will miss the season due to Tommy John surgery. It is expected to be a head-to-head race.
The makeup of the division could be a factor in the Phillies’ decision to not be as aggressive this offseason as they were in past winters. Part of that is because the Phils occupy eight of the nine day-to-day positions, part of it is the huge salaries and number of stars they signed, and part of it is because they It’s an expectation that you already have. It’s about the talent to get back into the playoffs and knowing how bad baseball is going to be in October. Think of it this way. Cody Bellinger is the best free agent.
If you put him in the Phillies’ lineup (which they don’t), would it have a big impact on their ability to win as many regular season games as the Braves or Dodgers? Arguably, they’re still third behind the Braves and Dodgers, even though regular season wins haven’t exactly correlated with postseason success since MLB moved to its current format. Perhaps their next big move will be closer to the trade deadline when they have a better idea of what’s holding them back.
Look at the rest of the teams in the league and you’ll see why there’s such a gap after the Phils. The Brewers won 92 games before the season, but they did little in the offseason, losing Brandon Woodruff and potentially trading Corbin Burnes and Willie Adams. It doesn’t seem to be in spending mode at the moment. The Padres traded away their best hitter, Juan Soto, and now have one of the weakest 6-7-8-9 lineups in the majors, with three starting pitchers and no bullpen.
The Cardinals have added innings, but not necessarily quality, unless you think Sonny Gray could be No. 1 or reach 190 innings for the first time in a decade. Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson will hold out, but their respective ERAs could be above 5.00. Paul Goldschmidt is 36 years old and Nolan Arenado is 32 years old, and they are showing signs of decline, especially defensively, and are no longer the undisputed best players. The Cubs probably still need some additions, but they lost Bellinger, Marcus Stroman and Jamar Candelario. They have a decent team and are only good against average defenses on the field.
Power is modest, no hitters have a high batting average, the rotation is incomplete, and the bullpen is mediocre. They reportedly have interest in Rays right-hander Tyler Glasnow, Guardians first baseman Josh Naylor and free agent Reece Hoskins. Looking to the future and looking to build on this year, the Diamondbacks made a big move by signing 30-year-old left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez to a four-year, $80 million contract.
The biggest advantage the Phillies were thought to have heading into the 2023 NLCS was their pitching staff behind Arizona’s two best players, Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly. You remember. Brandon Puffert and the Arizona bullpen then shut out the Phils in Games 3, 4, and 7.
Rodriguez strengthened his defense, a necessary move since success in baseball rarely happens in a straight line. There’s an element of luck in every postseason, and Arizona is more likely to fall back than get back to the World Series. The same could be said about the Phillies after losing to the Astros in 2022, and the reaction in 2023 was even more impressive before their eventual collapse. Most of these players feel like they’ve been playing nonstop for two full years.
There are several other players who could make a difference: Bellinger, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, and Josh Hader. Glasnow and Dylan cease operating in the commercial market. Unless the National League teams add three teams, all predictions and sports betting systems will likely have the same tier: Braves, Dodgers… spread…. Phyllis…rupture… Another wave followed.
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