The Kansas City Royals, in their own weird way, might be baseball’s ultimate small market team. Free agency signings are a rarity. Player development and small budgets are king. If that’s enough to clinch a playoff berth in the oh-so-soft-and-Midwestern AL Central, wonderful! Casseroles and keggers for everybody! Royals ownership must have celebrated accordingly last year, even … [Read more...] about ESNY’s MLB Preview 2025: Will Kansas City Royals ascend to their throne?
ESNY’s MLB Preview 2025: Chicago White Sox have nowhere to go
My preseason take on the Chicago White Sox last year was worse than my picking Michigan State in my 2016 March Madness Bracket. Every possible positive outcome just didn’t happen. A team that I thought could rally to a low-seeded Wild Card berth…did not. The White Sox didn’t even stumble or trip out of the starting gate. They didn’t even start running until over a month into … [Read more...] about ESNY’s MLB Preview 2025: Chicago White Sox have nowhere to go
ESNY’s MLB Preview 2025: Are the Chicago Cubs charging back?
The NL Central will be competitive in 2025 and the Chicago Cubs, ten years after breaking their World Series curse, are primed to strike. It was a quietly interesting offseason for the Northsiders. The Cubbies won 83 games and tied for second with the rival St. Louis Cardinals. Their pitching staff ranked 10th in baseball with a 3.78 staff ERA, compensating for a meager 101 … [Read more...] about ESNY’s MLB Preview 2025: Are the Chicago Cubs charging back?
ESNY’s MLB Preview 2025: The Minnesota Twins teardown is coming
The Minnesota Twins are Forrest Gump’s box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get from them any given season. One year, they’ll be sub-.500 and out of the playoffs by mid-June. Another, they might hold onto first place for dear life before their eventual Division Series exit, usually at the hands of the Yankees. In some rare cases, they’ll rally late and steal the … [Read more...] about ESNY’s MLB Preview 2025: The Minnesota Twins teardown is coming
ESNY’s MLB Preview 2025: The playoff-ready Pittsburgh Pirates
One year after finishing last in the NL Central, the next Pittsburgh Pirates breakthrough may be coming. The Buccos, despite finishing last and 17 games out of first in 2024, still won 76 games. They weren’t a good team, but certainly weren’t awful. They matched their win total from 2023, their highest since 2018. But more importantly, the 2024 season finally saw the Pirates’ … [Read more...] about ESNY’s MLB Preview 2025: The playoff-ready Pittsburgh Pirates