Forget about that groundhog. Nationals pitchers and catchers report to spring training in 15 days, which means spring in the sports world is just around the corner.
Bud Selig is no longer commissioner
Sure, Rob Manfred may have made an early misstep in his tenure as MLB’s top dog. But his heart was (we think) in the right place. Unfortunately, he inherited a couple major messes left behind by his predecessor. Perhaps he can regain the public’s goodwill by solving them. Speaking of which …
(AP Photos/Steve Ruark)
AP Photos/Steve Ruark
The MASN debacle
This thing has been going on since 2012, and only looks to be getting more contentious. But with the matter being decided by the courts, there’s a least reason to hope it could be getting closer to a solution (unlike the A’s/Giants territorial dispute). Baseball needs to get a handle on the mess before it starts leaking over to other parts of the game such as …
(AP Photos/Alex Brandon)
AP Photos/Alex Brandon
The All-Star Game coming to D.C.
According the The Washington Post’s Tom Boswell, the 2018 Midsummer Classic is a foregone conclusion to land in the nation’s capital. Considering that the 2016 game appeared headed for Baltimore until a sudden change of heart landed it in San Diego, this would be an extra slap in the face from MLB to the Orioles and owner Peter Angelos.
Is that the reason for the delayed announcement? Is this going to turn into a full-fledged sideshow for the next few years? Stay tuned! Meanwhile, let’s get back to the game on the field.
(Getty Images/Rob Carr)
Getty Images/Rob Carr
Mad Max and the super rotation
Nationals GM Mike Rizzo pulled the trigger on the biggest free agent pitcher signing ever, inking Max Scherzer for the next seven years. That gives Washington an embarrassment of riches in the starting rotation, which they could either keep intact or use to trade to upgrade other areas of the club. They could even wait until spring training begins (or, really, until July 31) to see whether another team is suddenly desperate for an arm to make a deal.
(AP Photos/Evan Vucci)
AP Photos/Evan Vucci
Jayson Werth, post-surgery and jail
Jayson Werth has had a tumultuous offseason, starting with his refusal to talk to reporters, moving to a late surgery on his shoulder and culminating in a five-day jail sentence he began serving last weekend. With Opening Day already in doubt, how will the Nats’ enigmatic, bearded leader emerge? How will he adjust to a move to left field? Only time will tell.
(AP Photos/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
AP Photos/Marcio Jose Sanchez
Bartolo Colon is still pitching
Speaking of time, many marvel at the ability of 37-year-old Tom Brady to remain in peak physical condition and at the top of his game. Bartolo Colon can’t be accused of the former, yet his ability to remain an effective major league starter in his 40s has been truly impressive. Since missing the 2010 season to injury, Colon has averaged 13 wins and a 3.54 ERA with a better than four-to-one strikeout to walk rate in his aged 38-41 seasons. He’ll be back again this year, pitching for the Mets in the second of a two-year deal.
(SBNation.com)
SBNation.com
Michael Morse’s return to the NL East
All the Nats fans who have missed Michael Morse since he left after the 2012 season will get more opportunities to see him this year, albeit in another uniform. The Marlins make the trip to D.C. three times (10 total games) in 2015, including for seven of Washington’s final 20 home contests. That could be compelling, as you’ll see in the next slide…
(Getty Images/Thearon W. Henderson)
Getty Images/Thearon W. Henderson
The Miami Marlins: The new division rival?
The New York Mets will certainly be intriguing, but no team is as fascinating on paper going into 2015 as the Miami Marlins. After inking superstar Giancarlo Stanton to a 13-year megadeal, Miami went out and backed up that move by either signing or trading for Dee Gordon, Mat Latos, David Phelps, Martin Prado, Ichiro Suzuki and the aforementioned Morse. They are reportedly still pursuing All-Star free-agent starter James Shields. And they’ll get wunderkind hurler Jose Fernandez back sometime around the All-Star break. Will they compete for a playoff spot? If everything goes right, might they even contend with the Nats for the division title? Those seven games (plus three more in Miami Sept. 11-13) will go a long way toward answering both questions.
(AP Photos/J. Pat Carter)
AP Photos/J. Pat Carter
The Atlanta Braves’ self-induced collapse
One thing is for certain — the Atlanta Braves will not be a good baseball team. They made sure of that this offseason, trading away Jason Heyward, Justin Upton and Evan Gattis, thereby stripping their offense and selling it for parts. They got back project starter Shelby Miller and high risk-reward hurler Mike Foltynewicz, who may pan out long-term, and signed Nick Markakis. They may be good in 2017, when they open their new ballpark, far away from actual Atlanta. But there’s a reason that Washington’s main division competition the past three years is projected to lose almost 90 games this year.
(AP Photos/H. Rumph Jr.)
AP Photos/H. Rumph Jr.
The Pirates’ and Royals’ attempt to sustain success
Two of baseball’s most recently beleaguered franchises, Pittsburgh and Kansas City, have both ended their postseason droughts. But with the departure of key free agents, both could be in for a letdown and a return back under .500 in 2015. Can the small-market darlings find a way to compete, or will the momentum gained be just as quickly lost again?
(AP Photos/Colin E. Braley)
AP Photos/Colin E. Braley
The Chicago Cubs and the Back to the Future II prediction
Of the many bizarre possibilities this season presents, this might be the most fun. After over a century without a title, the Cubs have been terrible recently. But they have an enormous wave of position player talent hitting the big leagues this year to go along with free agent pitcher Jon Lester and top manager Joe Maddon’s relocations to Chicago’s north side. That has been enough to revive memories of the Back to the Future II prediction of a Cubs World Title in 2015. Of course, that was in a best-of-nine, five-game sweep of Miami. While those parameters may not be possible, long-suffering Cubs fans would certainly settle for the title.
(AP Photos/Paul Beaty)
AP Photos/Paul Beaty
The Dodgers’ super front office
When the Dodgers were bought by Magic Johnson’s ownership group in 2012, they began to increase spending on the field, the payroll skyrocketing north of $200 million. Now, they’ve overhauled the decision-makers in charge of the baseball personnel, swiping top executives Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zahidi from the Tampa Bay Rays and Oakland Athletics, respectively. After a handful of offseason moves, Baseball Prospectus projects LA to be baseball’s best regular-season team. Will they live up to the hype? And will Dodgers do what the recent Rays and A’s have not, and win the whole thing?
(AP Photos/Nick Ut)
AP Photos/Nick Ut
The wide-open AL East
Long the division run by the Yankees and Red Sox with everyone else struggling to keep pace, the AL East is as wide open as it has ever been in recent memory. Can the Red Sox continue their bizarre worst-to-first-to-worst-to-first trend? Will a healthy Orioles squad be able to repeat? Are the Yankees due for a bounce-back year? Have the Blue Jays finally put the pieces together? Could the Rays sneak in under the radar again? There are cogent arguments to be made that any of the five teams can make the postseason, and possibly win the division.
(AP Photos/Rob Carr)
AP Photos/Rob Carr
A-Rod’s return
Don’t worry, we didn’t forget about this one, even though baseball probably wishes everyone would. Alex Rodriguez’s suspension has been served and he is still under contract with the Yankees, meaning he will be back in pinstripes come Opening Day, barring another bizarre twist in his already absurd tale. The plan is reportedly to use him as the designated hitter, with Chase Headley having signed a multi-year free-agent contract to man the hot corner. Nobody knows how this one will play out, but it will be almost certainly be entertaining.
(AP Photos/Kevin C. Cox)
AP Photos/Kevin C. Cox
Baseball is nearly back
People will be throwing and catching baseballs again in two weeks. No, it’s not Opening Day. It’s not even the beginning of real games. But the pitcher and catcher report date means baseball activities are taking place somewhere warmer than here, figuratively signifying the end of the hot stove season and the beginning of actual, real baseball. And that should warm everyone’s heart, no matter how cold and bitter the offseason (and the winter) has left it.
(AP Photo/David Goldman)
WASHINGTON — The groundhog saw his stupid shadow Monday, thereby predicting six more weeks of winter. But guess what? According to Wikipedia, the most reliable source on the interwebs*, the range for the marmota monax stretches only across the eastern and Midwestern United States and into northwest Canada, only reaching as far south as the northern tips of Alabama, Georgia and South Carolina.
That means Florida, where Washington Nationals pitchers and catchers will report for spring training in 15 days, is officially a groundhog-free zone. Spring will arrive in Viera on Feb. 18, arbitrary rodent reactions notwithstanding.
With that in mind, here are 15 reasons to be excited about the 2015 baseball season.
