To me the rotation is a ticking time bomb with the Yankees and Dodgers both having superior rotations. Cole, Sevarino, Tanaka, Paxton (when healthy). Also German and Happ are not junk. Dodgers. Kershaw and Buehler are every bit as good as Greinke and JV or can be. Really would like another established number 2 in our rotation. Guess I got spoiled with JV and Cole at the top.
A lot could change in the next 5 months. To the upside, if McCullers stays healthy and Urquidy and Whitley hit their ceiling, the rotation will be stellar. And even in the downside scenario where age, injuries, and inconsistency ravage the rotation, there should be a MoR or ToR guy available who they can add at the deadline.
Some of you are vastly underrating Greinke. 2019 stats... Cole 20-5, 2.50 ERA, 212 IP, .895 WHIP, 6.8 WAR Greinke 18-5, 2.93 ERA, 208.2 IP, .982 WHIP, 6.4 WAR Remember.. Greinke racked up 10 wins pitching for the Dbacks without a monster offense before being traded here where he went 8-1 in 10 starts. I expect him to have 18-22 wins and an era around 3.00. He will be fine. I do not see any number 2 that would start in front of Greinke being available for trade. The young guys need to step up. Greinke isn't the concern.
Look at the stats of Paxton and then tell me he's better than LMJ. Both guys put up similar numbers, and are usually incapable of going deep into games. Tanaka has been a league average starter for the last 3 seasons, he's nothing special. Severino is coming back from injury and Paxton is currently injured The Dodgers lost a guy who had a lower ERA than Cole, and Kershaw has been on a downward trajectory for 4 years now. All 3 teams have question marks, but should still be really good.
https://nypost.com/2020/02/10/mlb-plotting-playoff-expansion-with-reality-tv-twist/ In this concept, the team with the best record in each league would receive a bye to avoid the wild-card round and go directly to the Division Series. The two other division winners and the wild card with the next best record would each host all three games in a best-of-three wild-card round. So the bottom three wild cards would have no first-round home games. The division winner with the second-best record in a league would then get the first pick of its opponent from those lower three wild cards, then the other division winner would pick, leaving the last two wild cards to play each other. To use the AL last season as an example, the Astros with the best record would have received the bye. The Yankees, with the second-best record, would have had the choice to pick from among the Rays, Indians and Red Sox. The Twins would then pick next as the other division winner, and then the A’s with the best wild-card record would play the team not chosen by the Yankees or Twins. The plan is to have this all play out on a show on the Sunday night the regular season ends and have representatives picking teams on live TV — think the NCAA selection show, but just with the teams making the selections. The rights to that show is part of the enticement to potential TV partners. Fox’s new deal with MLB to remain exclusive broadcaster of the World Series, two Division Series and a League Championship Series runs through 2028. But MLB’s deals with ESPN and Turner run through 2021. So MLB can time expanded playoffs as a lure for new deals with one of those networks — remember that ESPN can offer network television with ABC, as well — both networks or neither at a time when streaming powerhouses such as Amazon, DAZN, etc. could also enter bidding. Any change in playoff format must be collectively bargained with the union; the CBA — like the TV deals with ESPN and Turner — expires after next season. In theory, though, additional playoff teams should provide elements that the union has been wanting. More playoff openings would motivate more teams to try, which should mean less tanking. MLB is also hoping that more playoff openings drives greater fan interest. In 2019, attendance was down for a seventh straight year. Many factors have led to the dip, but clearly one is so many teams surrendering playoff objectives before or during seasons. MLB wants to have as many regular-season games matter as possible. In this format, there is a great benefit to finishing with the best record in a league and avoiding the first round, so teams will keep playing hard to the end to get that. There are great advantages to winning a division because you get to play that first round exclusively at home and pick your opponent. And there is an advantage to having the top wild-card record because you get the first round at home. Also, there would be no more tiebreaker 163rd games. To make the regular-season more meaningful, the team that won the season series against its opponent would benefit whether that is to have the top seed or to simply be the final wild card. Thus, if two teams finish as the fourth wild card and both have 84 wins, then the team that won the season series will get into the playoffs.
yeah I’m not worried about how Houston currently matches up with NY: Verlander can hold his own with Cole. Greinke is better than Tanaka. If McCullers is healthy he’s as good as Severino. It isn’t until you get to the 4th starter and assume Paxton is healthy that there’s a mismatch, and even that requires assuming Urquidy and Whitley do not hit their ceiling. If the mismatch is against whoever is going in game 4 or 5, that’s a non-issue.
As somewhat of a purist, I don’t like this, but the game needs to evolve if it wants to stay relevant. I think that will be a popular move for most people.
Stop making sense. I think a lot of people's lack of confidence in Greinke is because he doesn't hit the high 90s.
So...why do you think folks lack faith in Greinke being a very good number two? (By the way...i was agreeing with you)
It makes no logical sense, but I really think people are still subconsciously still down on Greinke because he gave up 5 runs in his first start. I think the "oh he's not as good as we thought" reaction has stuck for some reason, even though he was phenomenal for us last year.
I know. I agree with you. I was just being dumb. He's a command pitcher similar to how Keuchel is. If he's on he can be dominant, but the few times he is off it can be BP fastballs over and over again and get real ugly.
LOL at this. While it makes sense in theory, no team is going to want to select its opponent and give the other team some stupid bulletin board material. And 3-game series are going to lead to endless ridiculous upsets knocking out top teams randomly.
Paxton over his career has stayed healthy about as well as Correa Tanaka isn't nearly as good as people think he is when they hear his name I'll worry about the Dodgers rotation if we make it back to the Series and they are the team we are lining up to beat
