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The MLB Daily Dish is a daily feature we're running here at MLBDD and rounds up roster-impacting news, rumors, and analysis. Have feedback or have something that should be shared? Hit us at @mlbdailydish on Twitter.
Good morning baseball fans!
USA Today released their 2016 standing projections, and the two teams that played in the World Series last year miss the cut.
The White Sox had an interesting offseason and one that has them in the hunt for the AL Central title.
As for the Depth Charts projections, sure the White Sox are pegged for third in the AL Central. But only six games separate first from fifth in the projections. The Indians are projected to finish first at 84 wins and the Twins are projected to finish last at 78 wins. That's such a close division that a matter of luck could make a substantial difference. Why shouldn't it be the team with Sale and Frazier?
Teams are very quick to adapt new strategies in this ever-changing stats era of baseball.
Dave Cameron of Fangraphs ranked his top transactions of the offseason.
Mark Brown of Camden Chat says signing Yovani Gallardo may not that bad after all.
There are a lot of ifs and maybes up there, and none of them address the obvious counterpoint that, if the Orioles can't really afford to be paying $15+ million for average-ish performance, the best way to avoid having to do that is to draft and develop their own pitchers, which they won't be able to do if they're doing stuff like giving up the #14 pick to sign Gallardo.
That's a problem for the Orioles of 2019 and beyond, though. The need for what Gallardo could provide in the meantime with even a middle ground outcome is great. The future Orioles can't be ignored entirely or the franchise will be in peril. Still, the present Orioles shouldn't be ignored either. The Orioles have been good recently and should do what they can to keep being good while their best players are still under contract.
The Cardinals plan to spend big on International prospects, and here are some targets that they could go after.
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Today in Baseball History: In 1989, Orel Hershiser becomes the first player in MLB history to sign a deal with an AAV of $3 million when he signed a three-year, $7.9 million contract with the Dodgers.