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Burning Questions Entering spring training, inquiring minds want to know
The crack of the bat. The sound of mitts popping. It can only mean one thing -- spring training. Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci weighs in with the most important questions facing each club. AL EAST New York Yankees: Can Rondell White possibly stay healthy for a full season, and if so, can you imagine his numbers in the middle of this lineup? Will age in the starting rotation catch up to New York and open a door for Brandon Claussen? Boston Red Sox: Is there a player who means more to his franchise's chances than Pedro Martinez? Will Nomar Garciaparra put his wrist troubles behind him? Do Joe Kerrigan and Dan Duquette last the season? Toronto Blue Jays: Can GM J.P. Ricciardi put the youthful Jays on the fast track to being the next coming of the A's? Is Felipe Lopez the next great young shortstop in the AL? Does anybody want Raul Mondesi? Baltimore Orioles: Will pitchers Josh Towers and Jason Johnson hold up better over the second half this time around? Is there any reason to believe this team, which had the worst slugging percentage in baseball last year, will generate any more power? Can Scott Erickson make a major contribution? Tampa Bay Devil Rays: Will Ben Grieve (11 dingers) get outhomered again by Frank Menechino (12)? Is Toby Hall the best hitter in the lineup and a star in the making? Can GM Chuck Lamar keep his job if he has yet another 60-something win season? AL CENTRAL Cleveland Indians: Will Cleveland score 150 fewer runs after exchanging Marty Cordova, Kenny Lofton, Juan Gonzalez and Roberto Alomar for Brady Anderson, Milton Bradley, Matt Lawton and Ricky Gutierrez? Is Danys Baez a 15-game winner? Minnesota Twins: Can Joe Mays possibly put up another year like he did last season? Does this team have the best pitching in the division? Is Christian Guzman one of the most underrated players in the league? Chicago White Sox: Is Mark Buehrle the next Andy Pettitte or the next Dave Fleming? When healthy, is Frank Thomas an automatic MVP candidate? Come September (or even October), will there be a true stopper in the rotation? Detroit Tigers: Has hard-throwing closer Matt Anderson at last found his niche? Can slick-fielding Omar Infante hit enough to nail down the job at shortstop? Why should the pitching staff be so bad (5.01 ERA, next-to-last in the AL in 2001) with a home park that is supposed to be pitcher-friendly? Kansas City Royals: Why in the world would they spend money on Chuck Knoblauch, who has become a poor offensive player, as a corner outfielder? Isn't it about time manager Tony Muser showed more results than attitude? Doesn't Kansas City's major league-worst 11-24 record in one-run games last year mean it's due to win five to 10 more games this season? AL WEST Seattle Mariners: Is Freddy Garcia a young workhorse or due to break down after his heavy lifting in 2001? Is this the breakout year for Joel Piniero and/or Ryan Anderson? Is Bret Boone the next Brady Anderson or Ryne Sandberg? Oakland Athletics: Can Carlos Pena pick up some of the sock provided by the departed Jason Giambi? Isn't it Barry Zito's turn to win 20 now that Tim Hudson and Mark Mulder have done it? Do you think Jeremy Giambi will ever go into home plate standing again? Anaheim Angels: Now that we know Ramon Ortiz is 29, isn't it about time he stepped up and pitched like an ace? Don't you think Darin Erstad, nearly traded to the White Sox, will bounce back with a big year? Uh, hello, didn't you used to be Tim Salmon? Texas Rangers: Forget the Fear Factor voyeurism they encourage -- can Carl Everett and John Rocker still play? Can Chan Ho Park pitch outside of Dodger Stadium? Is this the season people start talking about Rafael Palmeiro as a Hall of Famer? NL EAST Atlanta Braves: Was Gary Sheffield the most crucial pickup of the winter? Would anybody be surprised if Jason Marquis wins 15 games? Don't you think the world will know about infielder Wilson Betemit before the year is out? Why isn't Andruw Jones as good as he should be? Philadelphia Phillies: Is Robert Person for real, or is Brandon Duckworth about to emerge as the ace of the staff? Will Scott Rolen still be in Philadelphia on August 1? Can Mike Lieberthal, the second-best catcher in the National League, be as good as new after tearing up his knee last year? New York Mets: Is Jeff D'Amico the sleeper in a pedestrian starting rotation? Is Mo Vaughn a lock for 100 RBIs and the reason for a monster season from Mike Piazza? Shouldn't Edgardo Alfonzo be much better? Florida Marlins: Don't you want to see what Josh Beckett can do with 30 starts? Can this team show more maturity and grind all season? Can Jeff Torborg's rah-rah approach work as well with this team as it did the 1990 White Sox? Montreal Expos: If a team folds and nobody is there to hear it, does it make a sound? Is Javier Vazquez the best pitcher nobody knows? How on earth could this team possibly make any trades this year? For what, the future? NL CENTRAL Houston Astros: How badly do Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio (one extra-base hit in 100 combined at-bats) need a decent postseason? Does anybody in the NL have a better starting five than Houston (when healthy, that is)? Shouldn't Richard Hidalgo hit 30 home runs by accident? St. Louis Cardinals: Is this the year J.D. Drew stays healthy and becomes an MVP candidate? Whatever happened to Edgar Renteria? Would anybody be surprised if this team won it all? Chicago Cubs: Can Juan Cruz, Kerry Wood and Carlos Zambrano combine for 40 wins? Is it time for Corey Patterson to live up to the hype? Will Bobby Hill become the starter at second base? Don't you figure on Sammy Sosa taking a run at 70? Milwaukee Brewers: Is Eric Young an upgrade over Ron Belliard? Will Chad Fox become the closer? Will Nick Neugebauer and Ben Sheets overcome the "Curse of Teddy Higuera" and actually be a homegrown Brewers pitcher who gets through a season healthy? Is Richie Sexson your next home run champion? Cincinnati Reds: Adam Dunn can't miss, right? Is the NL's easiest pitching staff to hit against in '01 any better this year? Can the Reds (12 outfielders, seven third basemen, six shortstops last year) get healthy and stable? Pittsburgh Pirates: Can Lloyd McClendon find at-bats for Craig Wilson? Is Jason Kendall, who is paid like Jorge Posada but hits like Damian Miller, vastly overrated or due for a big season? Can GM Dave Littlefield dump Pat Meares, Kevin Young or Derek Bell on anybody? NL WEST Arizona Diamondbacks: Anybody want to bet against Randy Johnson, 38, and Curt Schilling, 35, having big years, even after throwing 596 combined innings last year? Is Rick Helling a better fit than David Wells, anyway? Is there enough offense if Luis Gonzalez doesn't have another off-the-charts season? San Francisco Giants: Don't you figure Barry Bonds for 60 home runs, minimum? And how head-spinning is that notion? Is this the year we hear from Kurt Ainsworth? Can Livan Hernandez possibly be as bad as he was last year? Los Angeles Dodgers: Is Kazuhisa Ishii as good as advertised? As impressive as manager Jim Tracy is, can he win carrying the relatively weak bats of Tom Goodwin, Marquis Grissom, Alex Cora/Cesar Izturis and Eric Karros? Isn't a healthy Adrian Beltre due for a breakout season? San Diego Padres: Can Sean Burroughs and Ramon Vazquez make it an all-rookie left side of the infield? Is pitcher Dennis Tankersley ready to break through? Isn't Bruce Bochy one of the most underrated managers in baseball? Colorado Rockies: Can Scott Elarton revive his career in Colorado, of all places? Shouldn't the Rockies be worried about Mike Hampton's 5.10 ERA on the road last year? Will Juan Pierre get recognition as one of the best leadoff hitters in the game? Sports Illustrated senior writer Tom Verducci covers the baseball beat for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. |
