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USATSI

At long last, the offseason is coming to an end and spring training is about to begin. MLB teams will begin reporting to spring training camps in Arizona and Florida on Wednesday, and all 30 clubs will be up and running by Friday. Cactus League and Grapefruit League games begin next weekend. I can't wait. Real baseball is right around the corner.

With spring training on the horizon, let's take a look at each team's biggest question heading into camp. Come with us, won't you?


Did they make enough bullpen improvements? By some measures, the Diamondbacks had the very worst bullpen in baseball last season. They led the majors with 41 bullpen losses, were toward the top of the list in blown saves and had among the worst ERA and FIP figures in baseball. Lefty Joe Mantiply was a revelation in 2022 while righty Kevin Ginkel posted close to 30 solid innings and they're both coming back. Mark Melancon is also back coming off a pretty bad year and heading toward his age-38 season, but there's always the chance he returns to 2021 form. Were external additions Andrew ChafinMiguel Castro, Scott McGough and Cole Sulser enough to bolster the group as a whole? It should be noted that better work from the rotation -- especially past Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly -- can offer residual positives for the bullpen such as more rest for the top arms and less use for the lesser ones. Regardless of the journey, the D-Backs need the end result in 2023 to include better relief pitching.

How will Grissom fare as the everyday shortstop? The Braves let Dansby Swanson walk in free agency this past offseason, saying goodbye to one of the biggest fixtures for Atlanta the past three seasons. For real. He started all 60 games in 2020, 158 games in 2021 and 161 last season. He's been productive on offense, but his status as a stud defender at one of the most important positions is what the Braves will miss most -- in addition to the durability, of course. Vaughn Grissom, 22, looks to be taking over. There are few questions about his bat, especially long-term, but he has huge shoes to fill defensively in 2023 as the Braves look to win another title.

Has Kyle Gibson mastered his new slider? Late last season, Gibson changed the grip on his slider and turned it into more of a sweeper with big horizontal break rather than the shorter slider that broke downward he featured most of his career. The sweeper is all the rage these days and it a serious generator of swings and misses. A veteran pitcher making a significant adjustment is worth tracking in spring training. Gibson could prove to be a bargain on a one-year, $10 million contract if he's able to master that sweeper and use it effectively.

How does Chris Sale look? Injuries, some fluky (broken finger on a comebacker, broken wrist in a bicycle accident) and some serious (Tommy John surgery), have limited Sale to 48 1/3 big league innings since 2019. He hasn't been healthy and dominant in the same season since 2018. The Red Sox have a high-variance roster -- things could go great or things could go horribly -- and Sale is very much a part of that. Boston has almost no path to contention without Sale staying on the field and performing well, and spring training will be our first look at him in a healthy state in quite some time.

Can they generate enough offense? The pitching staff looks decent enough, especially when teamed with what looks like a very good defense. The offense last year was 11th in the NL in runs and 10th in OPS and that was with the since-departed Contreras. It's possible to squint our way to seeing a good-enough offense, but there are questions all over the place. What kind of bat will Cody Bellinger bring? Will Dansby Swanson keep hitting like he did in 2022 or revert to where he was several other seasons? Will Seiya Suzuki take a big step forward in his second season stateside? If those guys aren't the middle-order hitters, you're looking at relying on Ian Happ and then someone from the Trey Mancini/Eric Hosmer/Patrick Wisdom group to help produce behind 2022 breakout Nico Hoerner. Maybe rookie Matt Mervis makes noise, but, again, there are questions.

Does Lucas Giolito look like his old self? For a team with designs on contending for the World Series, the White Sox have an awful lot of questions. Who will replace the leadership void with José Abreu gone? Who plays second base and right field? Who fills in as the No. 5 starter? Giolito is the team's biggest question though. He had a difficult 2022 that saw him lose velocity, get fewer swings and misses, and give up more hard contact. The White Sox need the 2019-21 version of Giolito to contend in the AL Central and Giolito needs to show his 2019-21 form to set himself up for a big free agent payday next offseason.

How will their young, potential aces fare? Right-hander Hunter Greene stands 6-foot-5 and has a blazing fastball. He was the second overall pick in the 2017 draft and showed flashes of brilliance last season. Lefty Nick Lodolo is 6-foot-6, was the seventh overall pick in 2019 and has flashed similar upside. Instead of manipulating their service time in an otherwise lost season in 2022, the Reds had Greene throw 125 2/3 innings while Lodolo spun 103 1/3 innings. Both should be able to add 25-ish innings of work while the Reds look toward 2024 and beyond. The proverbial sky is the limit, so it'll be fun to see the season unfolds for both. It's possible we'll be talking about the Reds having a bona fide pair of aces as soon as 2024.

Will they give out any extensions? The Guardians signed three players (Emmanuel Clase, José Ramírez, Myles Straw) to long-term contract extensions last spring and they have several extension candidates on the roster now, including Shane Bieber, Steven Kwan, and Amed Rosario. Rosario is a year away from free agency, Bieber two, and Kwan five. Cleveland's farm system is loaded with shortstops, so they may be willing to let Rosario play out the season, and Bieber figures to command a nine-figure deal. Extending him may be difficult, if not impossible, but it's worth trying.

Can Kris Bryant hit a home run in Coors Field? OK, so it's a bit tongue-in-cheek, but the Rockies haven't given any indication this offseason that we should take their chances of contention seriously for the time being. The pitching staff is utterly dreadful and, believe it or not, the offense ranked 10th in the NL in runs scored. The marquee player is Kris Bryant and injuries limited him to just 42 games in his first Rockies season. He hit .306 with a .376 slugging percentage and doubled 12 times in 160 at-bats. He homered five times, but all came on the road. It's a small sample (99 home at-bats), sure, but going into last season the odds of zero Bryant homers in Coors Field would have been absurd. Surely he gets one quickly this year, right? Right?

Has Spencer Torkelson made any adjustments? I know I'm not alone when I say I was shocked by how bad Torkelson, the No. 1 pick in the 2020 draft, was last season. He slashed .203/.285/.319 in over 400 plate appearances and had to be demoted to Triple-A at midseason. Torkelson is not quite a bat-only player, but as a first baseman, he needs to hit and hit a lot to be worth a roster spot. It's worth paying attention to Torkelson this spring to see whether he's tweaked his swing or batting stance in any way. After the year he had, you have to think he went to work this offseason to figure things out.

Is Michael Brantley healthy? The reigning World Series champions let AL Cy Young winner Justin Verlander leave as a free agent, yet you can make the case they're even better now because of their additions on offense (José Abreu, namely). Brantley suffered a shoulder injury last June and missed the postseason after having season-ending surgery in August, but is expected to be ready for Opening Day. Whenever Brantley returns, he and Abreu will give Houston a fearsome top six atop the lineup. Last year the Astros showed they don't necessarily need a healthy Brantley to win a championship, but having a healthy Brantley certainly ups their odds.

Is it time to lighten Salvador Perez's workload? Perez has been absolutely workhorse behind the plate since making his MLB debut in August 2011. He ranks second among all catchers in innings since 2013, behind only Yadier Molina, and that's despite missing the entire 2019 season with Tommy John surgery. Perez turns 33 in May and Kansas City owes him $64 million over the next three seasons. With catcher prospect MJ Melendez arriving in the bigs last year, it might be time to cut back on Perez's workload behind the plate, and give him more DH starts to keep his bat productive as he enters his mid-30s. We'll see whether the Royals given any indication that will happen this spring.

How healthy is Anthony Rendon? Hip and wrist surgeries have limited Rendon to 105 games the last two seasons, which saw him author a .235/.328/.381 slash line. The Angels have done good work adding infield depth this offseason (Brandon Drury, Gio Urshela, etc.), though it's hard to see how they can reach the postseason -- in what might be their final season with Shohei Ohtani -- with Rendon being something less than above average. Some pop in the bat and easy movements in the field would be a welcome sight this spring.

Will the lineup be too top-heavy? They won 111 games last season while leading the league in runs, on-base percentage and OPS. They also lost Trea and Justin Turner to free agency and while Cody Bellinger hasn't hit for a few years, he was a presence with potential. There's still plenty of ability here, starting with two MVP-caliber players in Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman. Will Smith will be a very productive offensive catcher. Then come the questions. Will Max Muncy and/or Chris Taylor bounce back? How much does J.D. Martinez have left in the tank? Can Gavin Lux have a breakout season? How about Miguel Vargas? What will Trayce Thompson give? This is still a very talented team, but it looks like there's the chance for a decent step back in terms of putting runs on the scoreboard.

Can they score enough runs? The Marlins have the reigning Cy Young winner in Sandy Alcantara and the pitching staff as a whole is deep enough that they didn't mind parting with the talented Pablo López in a trade. They desperately need more offense this season. Last year, the Marlins were dead last in the NL in runs and slugging while ranking 14th in on-base percentage. There were certainly injury issues, notably to Jazz Chisholm , Jorge Soler and Avisaíl García. They added AL batting champ Luis Arraez in the López trade. Let's say there's full health for the former three while Arraez replicates his 2022 season. Would that be enough to boost the Marlins to the point of contention? Maybe. Maybe not. Regardless, they must hit more in order to be taken seriously.

Is there still a chance for prime Christian Yelich to return? The Brewers only missed the playoffs by a game last year and they were sixth in both ERA and runs scored. The pitching should still be strong. The offense could be inconsistent last season with a low batting average and high-strikeout total while leaning on home runs. It definitely wasn't bad, but you know what could take it to a high level? Christian Yelich was the MVP in 2018 and runner-up in 2019. He's still only 31 years old. It's entirely possible MVP-caliber Yelich is in the rearview for good, maybe even likely, but he's not too old for a bounce-back, especially with his natural ability. Maybe this is more of an "X-factor" than a question, but it's worth consideration.

How's Carlos Correa's ankle? I know I'm not alone when I say I'm sick of hearing about Correa's ankle, but it derailed contracts with the Giants and Mets , so now it'll be under scrutiny. Is Correa favoring it at all? Is he running well and moving gracefully in the field? Is there any indication at all the ankle is an issue? I'm more interested to see how the Twins sort through their four lefty hitting corner outfielders (Joey Gallo, Max Kepler, Trevor Larnach, Matt Wallner) this spring, but after this offseason, yeah, we kind of have to go with Correa.

Can the rotation limit injuries? The Mets just let Jacob deGrom walk in free agency, but it's entirely possible injuries could derail the rotation this season. Sure, we could say that about nearly any team, but there seems a bit more risk to high-level performers here than most. Max Scherzer is 38 years old and was limited to 23 starts last year. AL Cy Young winner Justin Verlander was fully healthy last year, but he is 40 years old, had Tommy John surgery in the recent past and worked deep into the postseason. We recently learned there were some concerns regarding Kodai Senga, too. Carlos Carrasco is 35 and José Quintana is 34. Maybe all five get through the season unscathed, but the odds are against it.

Who will win the shortstop job? The Yankees are planning to hold an "open competition" at shortstop this offseason with incumbent Isiah Kiner-Falefa trying to hold off top prospects Oswald Peraza and Anthony Volpe. The Yankees called Peraza up last September, though he started only 16 of his 33 games on the active roster, and six came after the Yankees clinched the AL East. Give the Yankees a truth serum and I think they'd tell they regret not playing Peraza more last year, particularly since Kiner-Falefa got benched in October. My money's on Peraza winning the shortstop job, but I also think Volpe is going to make a major run at it.

Which young starters get rotation spots? There are only two locks for the Athletics' rotation right now: Shintaro Fujinami and Drew Rucinski, their two low-cost free agent signings. Paul Blackburn (finger) and James Kaprielian (shoulder) are coming off injuries, though both are expected to be ready for Opening Day. If true, that leaves one rotation spot for youngsters Kyle Muller, JP Sears, Freddy Tarnok, Ken Waldichuk, and others. This is in no way a problem -- all those young pitchers will get opportunities this season -- though I'm curious to see which one stands out in spring training and wins a rotation spot.

Can they survive the Harper injury? Bryce Harper had Tommy John surgery in late November and is going to miss a big part of the season, so others need to pick up the slack. The Trea Turner signing should help, as long as he hits like he's capable. The middle of the order in Kyle Schwarber, Rhys Hoskins and J.T. Realmuto obviously needs to produce. The Phillies got some production from the bottom third of the lineup in the playoffs and a full season of Brandon Marsh along with year two from Bryson Stott could help matters. Alec Bohm still has breakout potential. How about Nick Castellanos, though? From 2021 to 2022, he lost more than 40 points on his average, nearly 60 from his on-base percentage and almost 200 from his slugging. He went from 34 homers to 13. His last home run, including the playoffs, was Aug. 27. A big first half from Castellanos really helps mitigate the Harper loss. Then all eyes are on how quickly Bryce can return.

How long does Reynolds last? Star center fielder Bryan Reynolds wasn't nearly as good in 2022 as in his stellar 2021 season, but he's a mid-prime player with superstar potential and we now know he wants to be traded. He's 28 years old and three seasons away from free agency, so the Pirates should be able to get a healthy return for him. Whatever prospect package they can acquire could team with the likes of Ke'Bryan Hayes, Oneil Cruz and the next wave of prospects to contend here in the future.

How will the rotation hold up? The Cardinals' calling card for years has been their run prevention, but they are now venturing into a season without stalwart catcher Yadier Molina. The staff ERA with Molina last season was 3.52 compared to 3.99 when he didn't catch. They've replaced Molina with Willson Contreras, who will be tasked with dealing with an unpredictable rotation. Adam Wainwright is 41 and wasn't good in his last 11 starts. Jack Flaherty has flashed ace upside, but also injury woes and inconsistency. Will Steven Matz produce much? Can Jordan Montgomery put together a well-above-average season? That leave Miles Mikolas and while he's probably reliable, it's unlikely he throws like an ace.

Are they ready? The Padres haven't won the division since 2006. They just went to the NLCS last season after toppling the mighty Mets and Dodgers. They are spending like an organization ready to be taken seriously on a year-in, year-out basis. They have a veteran superstar in Manny Machado. They have a super-duper star in Juan Soto (who actually had a down year in 2022 and likely bounces back). They have a star shortstop in Xander Bogaerts, who signed as a free agent after leaving Boston. And the most talented player might be Fernando Tatis Jr., who still has a few games of his PED suspension remaining. The rotation has three potential All-Stars and the bullpen has at least two that fit that bill, including one who is capable of being the best reliever in baseball, Josh Hader. They have all the pieces to win the NL West, the NL and the World Series. So, again, the question is: Are they ready?

How much production can the new outfielders provide? The Giants missed out on their big offseason target in Aaron Judge, and then there was the whole Carlos Correa thing. They did land two outfielders with prior All-Star recognition who could possibly give the offense a big boost. The first, Mitch Haniger, can hit. In his five-plus years with the Mariners , he had a 126 OPS+ with 162-game averages of 33 doubles, 33 home runs and 94 RBI. He went for 39 homers and 100 RBI in 2021. He also has a history littered with injury and managed just 57 games last season. That's still 57 more than Michael Conforto played last year, of course. Conforto, the second offseason addition, also has big potential in that bat (33 HR, 92 RBI in 2019 with a career 124 OPS+). He's younger than Haniger and has fewer injuries on his resume, but there are still questions. Full seasons from both would mean a pretty decent Giants lineup. If not, it's pretty boring.

Is Jarred Kelenic figuring it out? For most players, spring training performance doesn't matter. The samples are small, the quality of the competition varies so much, etc. For Kelenic though, it feels like this spring matters. The former tippy top prospect has had a brutal go of it in his various big league stints (.168/.251/.338 in 558 plate appearances) and it's not for a lack of effort. Kelenic has tinkered with his swing several times these last few years. He is currently penciled in as the starting left fielder and gosh, getting Kelenic on track would do wonders for the Mariners and their contention efforts. Any signs of progress in camp will be welcome.

Is Brandon Lowe healthy? Injuries, most notably a nagging back issue, limited Lowe to 65 games last season, during which he hit an underwhelming .221/.308/.383. This is a player who hit 39 home runs in 2021 and this is a Rays team that a) scored no more than one run in nine of their final 16 regular season games, b) scored one run total in 24 innings in the Wild Card Series, and c) did not add to the offense this winter. Lowe can be a significant offensive contributor. Back trouble also has a way of lingering. A healthy Lowe who is taking his usual hacks and moving well in the field would be good news for a Tampa team that needs as much lineup help as it can get.

Who wins the left field job? Rangers left fielders hit an untenable .186/.253/.256 last season -- the average left fielder hit .250/.322/.403 in 2022 -- but, to their credit, Texas was 12th in runs scored. That's not that bad. Left field is an obvious area of improvement though, and given how much the team invested in its rotation this offseason, you can bet the Rangers want someone to emerge and really run with the job. Clint Frazier, Mark Mathias, Josh Smith, Bubba Thompson, and even natural infielder Ezequiel Duran will compete for the left field position this spring.

How healthy is Brandon Belt? Belt had right knee surgery in September, his third surgery on the knee since 2018, yet the Blue Jays gave him a one-year contract because they badly needed lefty bats to diversify their lineup. Also, the Blue Jays renovated Rogers Centre this offseason and created their own version of a short porch in right field, something that would play directly into Belt's strengths. Belt figures to spend most of his time at DH and having him healthy could make a real difference for a Blue Jays team that has had its eye on the AL East title for a few years now, but has not yet broken through.

Which players will build up good trade value before the deadline? The Nats were the worst team in baseball last season at 55-107 and things don't look a ton better for 2023. They do have a few pieces that could be part of the next contender, but there's more building to be done. Maybe Jeimer Candelario, on a one-year deal, he hits more like 2020-21 instead of last season. Corey Dickerson is also on a one-year deal and he can be a valuable lefty bat (he's been traded in season twice). If Dom Smith has a breakout season, would the Nats deal him? Trevor Williams and multiple bullpen arms could also qualify. Of course, the pie-in-the-sky dream is Patrick Corbin throwing even league average and ... nah.