By Thursday night, eight teams had punched their ticket to baseball’s divisional series, where dreams of hoisting a World Series banner will continue at bubbles in Southern California and Texas. However, in the aftermath of Wild Card Series mayhem lies eight other franchises who saw their seasons abruptly end, with October hope being replaced by a winter of uncertainty. Now, front offices will look towards the offseason to target that one player to push them over the top in 2021.
Toronto Blue Jays: LHP James Paxton
The Blue Jays were one of 2020’s feel-good stories, reaching the postseason as the American League’s 8th and final seed with a collection of young stars and solid role players. However, the team was dispatched with relative ease in two games by their AL East rivals. the Tampa Bay Rays. Although the offense showed plenty of promise, the pitching staff did not (17th in ERA). In addition, the Jays’ 32-28 record exceeded their expected total by three games, suggesting the team may be due for some regression in 2020.
To counteract any potential downturn next season, general manager Ross Atkins should look to add another solid arm behind staff ace Hyun-Jin Ryu. Look no further than James Paxton; although the lefty has obvious injury history, there is no denying his talent. With an impressive 3.58 career ERA and 9.9 K/9 rate, the current Yankee could give Toronto an immediate number two starter behind Ryu, with any deal made coming with a discount due to past injuries.
Cleveland Indians: OF Brett Gardner
For Indians fans, grabbing an ex-Yankee would be a painful reminder of the club’s sweep at the hands of the Bombers this past week. While it was actually the Tribe’s pitching that caused their early elimination, the lineup has been a clear liability this season outside of Jose Ramirez. No positions emphasize this more than at corner outfield, where Jordan Luplow and Tyler Naquin combined for a miserable WAR of -0.8 in 2020.
Brett Gardner would represent an ideal short-term solution for Cleveland, bringing his well-rounded game and veteran presence to a clubhouse lacking in impact players. The career pinstriper had a down year, but a healthy .354 OBP suggests that he still has plenty to offer. If the Tribe are still hoping to remain competitive post-Lindor, and if ownership is still against spending big money, a low-risk signing such as Gardner would make sense.
Chicago White Sox: OF Nelson Cruz
The Chicago White Sox lost a heartbreaking Game 3 to the Oakland A’s, ending an exhilarating season for the South Siders. Now, a team oozing with future potential attempts to keep the momentum going into next season, poised to take control of an AL Central that seems ripe for the picking. To further ensure divisional success, why not poach your rivals best hitter?
While the prospect of Cruz leaving Minnesota seems unlikely, it certainly would be worth it for Chicago. Edwin Encarnacion struggled mightily in the designated hitter spot this season, while Cruz continued to mash for the Twins. Although the White Sox were baseball’s fifth best offense, a major hole at DH rests in the middle of the lineup, and the hitting knowledge Nelly could pass down to young hitters such as Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert may prove to be invaluable. The 40-year old slugger just may be what takes the Sox from nice story to serious threat in the Junior Circuit.
Minnesota Twins: RHP Shane Greene
The Twins are a difficult team to assess. After a 100-win 2019 season, there were high hopes for an even better 2020. Such a reality was quickly squashed when the underdog Astros swept Minny in shocking fashion, despite solid starting efforts from Kenta Maeda and Jose Berrios. Aside from those two, just about everything went wrong for the Twins, with the offense scoring a combined two runs and scoring six of their seven off Minnesota relievers.
While many will rightfully look to the team’s anemic lineup, the Twins have plenty of proven hitters that can turn it around. The bigger problem may be the bullpen, where Taylor Rodgers had a mediocre season (4.05 ERA) closing out games. Shane Greene of the Braves is an ideal fit. Operating out of a setup role this year, the 31-year old also has experience as a closer from his time in Detroit. However, manager Rocco Baldelli wants to utilize him, a player of Greene’s caliber can immediately shorten games and gives Minnesota a clear bullpen advantage over the rest of the AL Central.
Milwaukee Brewers: INF Tommy LaStella
Despite reaching the postseason, the Brewers never spent a day over .500 this season, and it showed when they were swept at the hands of the Los Angeles Dodgers. The team’s pitching, both this season and that series, held up fairly well. The offense, however, plummeted, mainly due to former MVP Christian Yelich struggling to hit above the Mendoza Line all year. However, other spots in the lineup also had their share of struggles, evidenced by the team scoring the 4th-fewest runs per game.
With middling production across the infield, Tommy LaStella may be the cure to much of what ails the Crew. A former All Star, LaStella has been one of the biggest reasons the Oakland A’s have stayed in the postseason race even without team leader Matt Chapman. The former Cub has the ability to play first, second, and third base, which could prove valuable to a Milwaukee team that has more than one position to fill. As a ‘super utility’ man over the age of 30, LaStella is in line for a nice payday, but nothing too expensive for a small market club. Milwaukee should look to bring him into the fold for next season.
St. Louis Cardinals: OF George Springer
The St. Louis Cardinals overcame a COVID-impacted schedule and took a promising 1-0 series lead against the San Diego Padres, only to blow Game 2 and get shut out of Game 3. Now, the club has to attempt to fix a bullpen that collapsed and an offense that struggled to generate any kind of power, with only three players hitting more than five home runs. While former Card Marcell Ozuna makes sense, the franchise may opt to go for a more proven postseason performer. The player that President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak should turn to is George Springer.
Springer, a three-time All Star, turned it on to end the season, slugging fourteen home runs, a pace that would have surpassed his career high of 39 in 2019. Houston may be more focused on saving money for young stars such as Carlos Correa and Yordan Alvarez, allowing their star outfielder to test the open market. While Springer obviously would bring a middle-of-the-order bat to Busch Stadium, he also possesses a strong October track record. The 2017 World Series MVP has hit 15 home runs in 52 postseason games, coupled with a solid .264 batting average and .353 OBP.
Chicago Cubs: OF Marcell Ozuna
After another early postseason exit, this time at the hands of the plucky Miami Marlins, Cubs President Theo Epstien will have plenty of big decisions to make this offseason. Biggest among them will be how to upgrade an offense that could only muster one run in two games versus the Fish. It has become clear that outfielder Kyle Schwarber’s sub-par contact and fielding skills cannot be ignored, despite his massive power potential. In addition, the team’s core looked lost at times this year, especially the left side of the infield, where Javier Baez and Kris Bryant are attempting to justify a big payday for their next contract.
Despite the Baez and Bryant concerns, the team should have some money to spend this year with Jon Lester’s $25 million dollar team option unlikely to be picked up. The front office should look to woo Marcell Ozuna, perhaps the most talented hitter to hit free agency. He was a major part of what made the Braves baseball’s second-best offense, clubbing an NL-leading 18 home runs in addition to a stellar .338 batting average. Although he isn’t likely to replicate those numbers over the course of a full season, Ozuna has the potential to take this Chicago lineup to the next level while providing protection for the team’s underperforming stars.
Cincinnati Reds: C J.T. Realmuto
After a high-priced offseason, the Reds were a trendy dark horse pick in the National League. While they barely made the postseason as a 7 seed, the team was poised for October success with an intimidating starting trio of Trevor Bauer, Luis Castillo, and Sonny Gray. However, the team’s offense failed to score a single run in 22 innings of play, despite terrific performances from their aces. Baseball’s most homer-reliant team looked lost at the plate, clearly missing a reliable hitter who could bring home the multitude of Reds runners in scoring position versus Atlanta.
Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto may have a claim to being the best player on the open market, let alone catcher. The former Gold Glove and Silver Slugger is one of the game’s most well-rounded players, and he is a solid .262 career hitter with runners in scoring position. That would be a nice upgrade for a team that hit just .231 in similar situations during the 2020 season. In addition, glove-first backstop Tucker Barnhart had a rough year behind the plate, batting a meager .204. If the Reds want to be a serious contender in a vulnerable NL Central come 2021, they should be prepared to enter the J.T. Realmuto sweepstakes.
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