By Andrew Marcus
Sportswriter for Montgomery Media
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Follow me on Twitter @amarcus515 |
To help pass the time between now and the start of the 2012 Major League Baseball season I am going to be examining a different team every day. Starting with the Astros, working toward the Phillies. I will give you my projected starters, breakout and bust players, each team's X-Factor and top prospect.
PROJECTED LINEUP
CF Michael Bourn
LF Martin Prado
C Brian McCann
2B Dan Uggla
3B Chipper Jones
1B Freddie Freeman
RF Jason Heyward
SS Tyler Pastornicky
P Tommy Hanson
PROJECTED ROTATION
Tommy Hanson
Jair Jurrjens
Brandon Beachy
Mike Minor
Randall Delgado
**Tim Hudson (out until May after back surgery)
PROJECTED BULLPEN
Closer - Craig Kimbrel
Set-up - Jonny Venters
Closer - Craig Kimbrel
Set-up - Jonny Venters
Top Prospect - Julio Teheran (RHP)
Breakout
Jason Heyward - He has bulked up and slimmed down. He has tried to cut his swing down and become more selective. Heyward is still a work in progress and there is no telling when he will figure it out, but I am positive he will. It may be May or August, but sometime this season the 22 year-old will put it all together and become one of more feared hitters in baseball like we all thought he would be.
Bust
Jason Heyward - He has bulked up and slimmed down. He has tried to cut his swing down and become more selective. Heyward is still a work in progress and there is no telling when he will figure it out, but I am positive he will. It may be May or August, but sometime this season the 22 year-old will put it all together and become one of more feared hitters in baseball like we all thought he would be.
Bust
Brandon Beachy - Beachy was pretty impressive in his 25 starts last year striking out 169 batters and finishing with a 7-3 record. But now that the National League has tape of the 25 year-old rightie I can see him regressing a little bit in his second full season. Maybe not enough to get pulled from the rotation but his ERA of 3.68 from a season good most likely is headed north.
X-FACTOR
Jason Heyward - Even with Tim Hudson out for a month Atlanta has enough pitching depth to sustain success. However, the offense is not so lucky. The Braves still lack run producers and should still be middle in the pack in runs scored. Unless Jason Heyward figures out how to get his swing back. If Heyward is hitting third by June because he figured out his looping left handed swing, the Braves could become very dangerous.
Jason Heyward - Even with Tim Hudson out for a month Atlanta has enough pitching depth to sustain success. However, the offense is not so lucky. The Braves still lack run producers and should still be middle in the pack in runs scored. Unless Jason Heyward figures out how to get his swing back. If Heyward is hitting third by June because he figured out his looping left handed swing, the Braves could become very dangerous.
LAST YEAR'S RECORD: 89-73
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| 2012 is the farewell tour for Chipper Jones |
PROJECTED FINISH: 1st in the National League East
***THANKS FOR READING MY TEAM BY TEAM OUTLOOKS TO HELP PASS THE TIME
***THANKS FOR READING MY TEAM BY TEAM OUTLOOKS TO HELP PASS THE TIME
Check back tomorrow for the Los Angeles Angels
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