7/28/2019 NL Central Preview

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Major League Baseball

USATODAY Sports’ PaulWhiteand Ted Berg lookattheNational LeagueCentral, inorder ofprojected finish:NL Central preview 

u Whythey’reenthused:Theywonthedivisionlast yearwithout JoeyVotto at fullstrength.They

addedShin-SooChoo to upgradetheoffense. Theirpitching optionsareso good they couldhavemovedAroldis Chapman to therotation orlefthimasthecloser— andhadstrongoptionsat eitherspothedidn’tfill. He’ll closeagain,partofadeepbullpenwithJonathanBrox-ton, SeanMarshalland SamLeCure.They thinkthey shouldhavebeatentheSan FranciscoGiants in theplayoffslast year, andnowthey’re abetterteam.

u Whythey’reworried:TheReds areconvinced Choowill beanimpactbat, buthe’shardlya proto-typical leadoff hitter andcenterfield isnot hisidealposition.There’s not a lot ofspeed intheoutfield,especially if RyanLudwickis theleft fielder.

uKidin play: J.J.Hoover’s strongspring hasmanagementconvincedthehard-throwingright-handeracquired last year from theAtlantaBravesis ready.

uFollowthisguy:@DatDudeBPOneof theleague’smostengagingTweeters,BrandonPhillipsmightjust showupatyourLittleLeaguegame ifyou askhimnicely.

u Theendgame: They’re strongenoughin allareasto winthedivi-sion, but thecompetition isn’tlikelytolet themrun awaywith it.

1. CincinnatiReds

ByJakeRoth,USATODAYSports

Cincinnati’sShin-SooChoo

u Whythey’reenthused:Theythinkthey’ve reached thepoint thatadding keyveterans toanemerging

groupofyoungplayers providesawinningcombination.ThePiratesthink catcher RussellMartinwillbea stronginfluenceonthe pitchingstaff.ProspectsGerrit Coleand JamesonTaillon.Colealmost cer-tainly will be inthe rotationbymidseason.

u Whythey’reworried:Theygambledwhenthey tradedcloser JoelHanrahanand turnedthe joboverto JasonGrilli.Consecutivepoorfinisheslurk. Theearly-seasonschedule is loaded, soa quickstartis crucial.

uKidin play:Colewasupsetwhenhewassent to theminors.He’ll bebackwithhis powerarsenal

soon.uFollowthisguy:@Lunch

boxhero45. Travis Snider shares hisconsiderableculinaryexploitssocially.

u Theendgame: It’s finally timetoendthe 20-year streakofsub-.500 seasons and,with a bitof goodfortune,hangwiththe division’spowers.

2. PittsburghPirates

u Whythey’reenthused:Thelast-minute signingofpitcherKyleLohse providesenergy going intotheseason andgivesbalanceto ateam concernedit mighthave tolive offits offense. TheRyanBraun-AramisRamirez combo in themid-dle oftheorder isgood formorethan 200RBI, especially ifNori Aokicontinuesproducing fromtheleadoff spot.

u Whythey’reworried:Bullpenuncertaintywon’t go away. Theoffensewill take anearlyhitwithfirstbasemanCoreyHart outuntil

Maywithanotherknee injury.uKidin play:HiramBurgos

caughttheireyepitchingfor PuertoRico in theWorldBaseballClassic(0.69ERAin 13 innings). Hewillstart theseason atClass AAA.

uFollowthisguy:@JohnAxford. TheCanadianpicked14of 15Oscarwinners this year.

u Theendgame:Notenough inany phase tostaynear the top of thedivision forthe longhaul.

4. MilwaukeeBrewersu Whythey’reenthused:First

basemanAnthonyRizzoand short-stop Starlin Castroare lockedin ascore piecesof thebuildingproject. JeffSamardzijacan solidifyhis spot,especially now that he’ll begintheseasonat thetop of therotation.They sawenoughofprospectsJorgeSoler andJavierBaez incamp torealizemoreoffense is comingsoon.

u Whythey’reworried:No. 1starterMatt Garza isoutfor aboutamonth. RotationmateScottBakerstillis recovering fromTommyJohn

elbowsurgery,andthirdbasemanIan Stewart isoutwitha thighmuscle problem.

uKidin play:Solergotplenty of hype forsigningafter leaving Cuba,but itwasBaezwhomadethebigger impression.He’sa combina-tion ofpowerandpurehittingabilitywhocould push Castrosoon.

uFollowthisguy:@EJ36Veter-an starter EdwinJacksoninteractswith hismanyformerteammates.

u Theendgame:Theircover isgonewith theHoustonAstrosoff totheAmericanLeague.Now, fifth intheNL Central alsomeans lastplace.

5. ChicagoCubs

ByMattKartozian,USATODAYSports

Chicago’sStarlinCastro

u Whythey’re enthused:Thekeyyoung players on theroster are

wellaheadof the curve after a 2011WorldSeriesvictoryanda playoff runlast year.AllenCraig,DavidFreeseand Jon Jayhavegrownupquickly andtakeheat offveteransMattHolliday, Carlos Beltran andYadierMolina.Craigcouldbe readytoemergeas the team’snextim-pact player. It’s asdeep andbal-anced a lineupas any intheNL.Megaprospect OscarTaveras couldhelp now if they could find room intheoutfield.

u Whythey’reworried:Pitchingis intransition.Theygot throughnearlyall of 2012without ChrisCarpenter, buthealth issueslikelyendedhiscareer andKyleLohseis

gone.uKidin play:ShelbyMiller’s

opportunityhascomeattheperfecttime.ManagerMikeMathenythinksthe2009No. 1 pickhascompiledtheexperienceandmatu-rity tobe ready.Steppingup asmorethanjust a No. 5 starterwouldbea boost.

uFollowthisguy:@carlos-beltran15.Enigmaticand oftenmotivational tweetsfrom oneof baseball’smost underratedplayers.

u Theendgame: Theycontendbecause think theyshould. Therecentrun ofmagicendedwith a3-1lead in last year’sNLCS.Theodds could finally catchupwith

them.

3. St. LouisCardinals

BySteveMitchell,USATODAYSports

St. Louis’ ShelbyMiller

For moreon the newbaseball season, go tobaseball.usatoday.com