Expectations
A deep playoff run once again, with championship contention.
Best Case
Everyone behind Walter Johnson in the rotation takes a step forward: Bert Blyleven becomes a legitimate #2, Dizzy Trout becomes more consistent, Elmer Brown makes the transition from the bullpen successfully, and first round pick Walter Ball steps right in, making the choice when Joséito Muñoz returns from injury a difficult one. Even without Gavvy Cravath (lost to free agency), the Sea Dogs should score quite a few runs, especially if Rogers Hornsby can prove a permanent solution (at least for a couple of years) at 2B.
Worst Case
None of that happens in the rotation, Hornsby and Gil Hodges show the effects of age, and the OF ends up regressing towards absolute mediocrity (which really comes down to how much you think Bobby Murcer, Harry Hooper, and supersub Gary Pettis overperformed last season).
Key Questions
- How will the Sea Dogs compensate for the loss of Cravath?
- Who joins the OF?
Trade Bait
Yes: the Sea Dogs still need to resolve the situation behind the plate, and trading either Joe Mauer or (more likely) Iván Rodríguez seems likely. Moving people on could also resolve the Buddy Bell/Adrián Beltré situation as well as provide Pettis an everyday opportunity elsewhere.
Well that was interesting. The Sea Dogs essentially turned Beltré, Rodríguez, and some useful prospects into Paul Molitor, Vladimir Guerrero, and Ken Griffey, Jr.
Roster Evaluation
| POS | Elite | Strong | Solid | Meh | Weak | Unknown |
| C | Mauer | Lee | ||||
| 1B | Hrbek | Hodges | ||||
| 2B | Hornsby | Molitor | ||||
| 3B | Bell | |||||
| SS | Fregosi | |||||
| LF/ RF | Murcer | Hooper | Burroughs | |||
| CF | Pettis | Griffey, Jr | ||||
| SP | Johnson | Blyleven | Trout Pérez | Koosman | Miller | Ball |
| End | Hoffman | Brown | Melancon | Santana | ||
| RP | Williams |
There’s clearly potential here–the players likely to regress (Murcer, Kent Hrbek, Hornsby) are balanced by newcomers Griffey, Jr and Molitor, both of whom are strong favorites to improve. But, like so many teams, they’ll go as far as the pitching will take them.
Talent Ratings
| WBL | Minors | |
| Raw Power | IF Rogers Hornsby | IF Miguel Sanó |
| Batting Eye | IF Rogers Hornsby | IF Eddie Yost |
| Contact | OF Ken Griffey, Jr | OF Bubba Morton |
| Running Speed | OF Gary Pettis | OF Alex Diaz OF Hugh Duffy OF Otis Nixon OF Howie Shanks |
| Base Stealing | OF Gary Pettis | OF Otis Nixon |
| IF Defense | 3B Buddy Bell | IF Lee Tannehill |
| OF Defense | OF Gary Pettis | OF Charlie Jamieson |
| Stuff | SP Walter Johnson | P Harry Harper |
| Control | SP Bert Blyleven | P Bob Porterfield |
| Velocity | RP Trevor Hoffman | P Heath Hembree |
Best In The Minors
| Rank | Age | POS | Name |
| 1 (16) | 20 | OF | Vladimir Guerrero |
| 2 (20) | 20 | OF | Hugh Duffy |
| 3 (23) | 22 | OF | Chuck Klein |
| 4 (40) | 26 | IF | Hughie Jennings |
| 5 (124) | 25 | P | Walter Ball |
| 6 (137) | 23 | P | Dylan Bundy |
| 7 (138) | 18 | P | Harry Harper |
What a weird system. Their top end is probably the strongest quartet in the game, Ball is in the opening day rotation, and then the entire system falls off the cliff.
| Most | Least | |
| Age | IF Jeff Cirillo, 35 OF Bubba Morton, 35 P Bob Porterfield, 35 | P Harry Harper, 18 |
| Height | OF Walt Bond, 6’7″ | OF Nemo Leibold, 5’6″ IF Howdy Caton, 5’6″ |
| OPS | IF Freddie Freeman, 1.130 (—) | IF Elvis Andrus, .558 (AAA/AA) |
| HR | IF Freddie Freeman, 47 (—) | IF Elvis Andrus, 1 (AAA/AA) |
| SB | OF Harry Hooper, 38 (WBL) | Many with 0 |
| WAR | IF Freddie Freeman, 6.2 (—) | IF Bobby Wine, -1.6 (—) |
| W | Walter Johnson, 14 (WBL) | Pascual Pérez, 3 (WBL/AAA) Colby Lewis, 3 (AAA) |
| SV | Johan Santana, 23 (WBL) | |
| ERA | Joseito Muñoz, 2.80 (WBL/AAA) | Mike Trombley, 6.56 (—) |
| WAR | Walter Johnson, 4.7 (WBL) | Mike Trombley, -0.5 (—) |