ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS
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The Diamondbacks went on a well-publicized spending spree in the offseason, and
bought themselves some decent pitching in the process. They’ll need it, because
the offense is saddled with ancient players at key positions. New left fielder
Luis Gonzalez will have trouble duplicating his decent 1998, and one
of the few youngsters in the lineup, Tony Batista, probably won’t
slug .500 again. Newly acquired Steve Finley may hit as well as he
did last year, but that’s not exactly an endorsement. Meanwhile, it is
tough to believe that third baseman Matt Williams and right fielder
Bernard Gilkey will be as terrible as they were last year. Look for
Williams to regain some of his power, and Gilkey to best last year’s .233
BA. Neither of these players will likely be league average; the only
Arizona hitters who look to have a chance of that are C Kelly
Stinnett, who will make people forget about Jorge Fabregas in a
hurry, and heralded first baseman Travis Lee, who should lead the
team’s offense this year.I thought Omar Daal was better than most people did, but I don’t
think he’s this good. His performance last year was among the league’s
best (146 H in 162.2 IP, 2.88 ERA), and look for him to backslide a bit.
Newly signed ace Randy Johnson won’t have any trouble matching his
numbers in Seattle last year, but may not live up to his otherworldly
performance in Houston down the stretch. A guy with closer Gregg
Olson’s recent medical history shouldn’t be counted on for much; he
pitched well last season, but a repeat is far from a certainty. One guy who
could really bust out is middle man Amaury Telemaco, who is probably
best suited to multiple innings per appearance. With Arizona’s stacked
rotation, he’s got no chance of starting, but he’s got great stuff, and
could be one of the better long relievers in the league if used correctly.
COLORADO ROCKIES
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Fonzie Bichette and Vinny Castilla should be feeling pretty
good this spring, and not just because they play for a team whose home park
appears to be uniquely suited to their talents: they’ve finally got a real
leadoff hitter to bat behind, which means they should pile up RBIs. Center
fielder Darryl Hamilton gives the Rockies their first legit glove
merchant, and he loved the thin air in his tryout last year. He’s a much
better fit for this team than Ellis Burks, and should have a fine
season. It’s tough to say that the vastly overrated but consistent Bichette
or Castilla are going to lose ground, and Todd Helton should just get
better, but I’m still not convinced Larry Walker is a legitimate
.360 hitter, even on Planet Coors.The Blake Street Bomb Squad will again give up tons of runs in 1999, and of
course it isn’t all their fault. Look for lottery winner Brian
Bohanon to put up the worst raw numbers in the league, as he reverts to
form in an extremely hostile environment. Pedro Astacio really isn’t
quite this bad, and he should improve on his horrendous 1998.
LOS ANGELES DODGERS
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Expect the go-go top-of-the-order duo of Eric Young and Devon
White to lose a bit at the plate in 1999; both played better than
expected in 1998, and both are getting on in years. From the
"obvious" file comes the news that third baseman/super hero
Adrian Beltre can’t help but improve on the performance the Dodgers
got from third base in 1998; look for him to end the season as one of the
best third basemen in the league.On the other side of the ball, Jeff Kubenka is an excellent reliever
waiting for his chance. Look for him to make the squad and trash opposing
hitters all season. Antonio Osuna didn’t pitch badly in 1998, but he
can do better–and probably will–in 1999. This looks to be an intimidating
crew, but if there’s a guy who might not match his previous performance, it
could be new ace Kevin Brown or fairly new closer Jeff Shaw.
Both were great again in 1998, and either could have a worse relative
season and still be great in 1999. Ramon Martinez is a serious
question due to his gimpy throwing shoulder; don’t count on him for
anything this year.
SAN DIEGO PADRES
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Tony Gwynn didn’t have a particularly strong year last season while
the team was being carried by Greg Vaughn’s home run heroics. Now
that Vaughn is gone, the Pads need Gwynn to hit like he did in 1997 for
them to make a run at the title. I don’t think it’s gonna happen. Import
Reggie Sanders hasn’t been healthy since he was in grade school, but
he’ll almost certainly hit better than he did last year. New full-time
center fielder Ruben Rivera will make fans forget about
Finley, and George Arias will be a reasonable fill-in for Ken
Caminiti‘s faltering defense and chronic injuries. Keep a careful eye on
leadoff hitter Quilvio Veras; he is recovering from surgery on both
shoulders in the offseason. He should come back as good as ever, and the
news is that he’s healing up faster than was first expected.The pitching staff is in for a big letdown following last season’s heroics.
Andy Ashby was on his way to his best season in 1998 before he injured
himself, and he should be back strong in 1999. Unfortunately, Woody
Williams is no Joey Hamilton. Though Hamilton’s been disappointing, he was
great down the stretch last season, and the Padres won’t get that from the
older, more frail Williams. Trevor Hoffman was good even for Hoffman last
year, and probably won’t be able to repeat. The same can be said of middle
reliever Donne Wall and, to a lesser degree, setup man Dan Miceli.
SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
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If you think Jeff Kent is a better player than Barry Bonds,
you’re probably one of those people who think Roscoe P. Coltrane was the
best driver the Hazzard County Sheriff’s Department had to offer. Look
again; Cletis was both more consistent and less likely to wreck his car.
Put that in baseball terms, and you’ve got Bonds and Kent. That’s not to
slight Jeff Kent, who is a fine second baseman and a solid offensive
player, but don’t expect him to go .359/.555 this year. Marvin
Benard was Scrappy-Doo to Bonds’ Scooby in the outfield, and that’s not
going to happen again either.Robb Nen had the season of his life in 1998, when he was arguably
the best reliever in the league. He’ll have his hands full trying to repeat
that this year. Shawn Estes was extremely flammable after a good
season in 1997, but he’s young and has good stuff. He’ll likely avoid the
long ball and keep the walks down better than he did last year, and should
reclaim his status as the Giants "ace."
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