With spring training underway, America’s favorite sport is on the horizon. With wild new contracts and blockbuster trades, this season is shaping up to be one to remember. Because of these trades and a big free agency, there will be teams that were not great last and will have strong improvements to their lineup.
Free agency this offseason made way for one of the biggest contracts in sports history, let alone baseball. The move was Juan Soto signing with the Mets for a record-breaking $800,000,000. Soto is currently coming off of an outstanding year with the Mets cross-town rival, the New York Yankees. Another big pickup this season was the Red Sox getting former World Series champion Alex Bregman. Bregman was signed to the Red Sox for a three-year $120,000,000 contract. Two ace’s that were picked up during the offseason is Corbin Burnes to the Diamondbacks and Garrett Crochet going to the Red Sox.
My top favorite teams to win the World Series go as follows: At my third spot, I have the Boston Red Sox. The Sox had a great run last year as they were looking to get a wildcard spot in the AL division, but they had a post-all-star break collapse as they were not even close to making the playoffs last year due to a surplus amount of injuries. If their additions perform as expected and if they get lucky with injuries, then they might have a real shot at winning it all. Sophomore Luke Hamilton is also very hopeful for the Red Sox this year as he commented on the future of the Red Sox by saying, “I think they have a great shot at the championship this year if our bullpen pitches well.”
At my second spot, I have the New York Yankees. Despite them losing Juan Soto to the Mets, their organization has already been built up to still be a contender in the playoffs. One of the reasons they fell short last year is because of how badly Aaron Judge played in the playoffs. If Judge fixes his playoff slump, then they will win the World Series without a doubt. Yankee fan Will Jones was asked about the state of Aaron Judge in the playoffs and commented, “In the playoffs, he is the worst hitter I have ever seen.”
In my number one spot, I have the reigning champions from last year, the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers have not seemed to have taken a step back from last year and look to have the same road to the playoffs. An upside for them this year is that Shohei Ohtani might be pitching more often this year too.
