Two years in the JLB and two trips to the playoffs.
The Dude stepped in and won 206 games in 2017 and 208 in 2018. It’s been a strong start.
This season will undoubtedly be one of the biggest tests for him. The competition in the National League is back to level it was four years ago when five teams finished with much-better-than .500 records.
That included my squad that finished fifth with a 209-204 mark. That record was the same I posted last season to earn the No. 2 seed.
For the Dude, it was an interesting draft that started strong and went green after that.
ONE LUCKY DUDE
Sitting at pick No. 7 in the first round, the Dude had to be thinking about a different player than Michael Brantley.
There was no way that a .300-hitting bat in the draft would drop seven spots.
Hell, that bat shouldn’t have even made it to the draft, but that’s another story.
I bet the Dude couldn’t click DRAFT quick enough when it came to him.
Yes, Brantley has had some unfortunate injuries here and there, but last season was a great year for him. He played in 143 games, batted .309 with 17 homers and 76 RBIs.
Inserting him into that potent Houston lineup is only going to make him better.
Injury concern aside, you have to draft him. The reward is too high and outweighs the risk easily.
I just wish he would have fell to me.
For the Dude, it’s even more exciting considering the fact that he has Alex Bregman to go with Brantley. I’ve said it before on my podcast and on MLB Network Radio, if Mike Trout were to go away on a vacation this summer and forget baseball, Bregman would win the MVP.
There is just pure talent there, and with Correa struggling with injuries once again, there’s a chance for some shortstop appearances for Bregman.
Dude will be counting from Day 1. All he needs is 20 games there to have Bregman be his shortstop for 2020, and with starting third baseman Rafael Devers on roster, that would be on awesome feat.
Some would say he’d be one lucky dude.
OBVIOUSLY YOU’RE NOT A FARM DIRECTOR
Down on the farm, there’s a lot for the Dude to tend to.
Eleven minor league prospects are on this roster, including the six who reside in green.
That leaves five on the active roster and at some point, the Dude will be faced with some decisions.
Forrest Whitley and Mitch Keller are expected to be up in the majors soon, so that will free some space, but still, he is going to be sitting on those off-day Thursdays looking at little options to start and wonder what if he had five more major leaguers to plug in?
He’ll definitely enjoy the call-up of Whitley and Keller, but pitching is a bit thin behind Gerrit Cole, Patrick Corbin and Jameson Taillon, who quietly had a strong 2018 going 14-10 with 179 strikeouts and a 3.20 ERA in 32 starts.
I definitely missed that success last year.
Behind those three, however, the are a lot of questions marks.
That’s where he might find himself pushing off some of those extra minors to field a few extra options when it comes to competing with the rest of the pitching staffs in the National League.
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