Here is James Kannengieser’s Opening Day Roster Projection for mid-February…
He notes that Eamus, Murphy and Hu make the team over Luis Castillo, who is cast by the wayside. Also, that Nickeas makes the team because of Ronny Paulino’s PED suspension.
On paper, the players in the field look pretty good. If Thole and Davis have good seasons, Bay and Beltran bounce back and everyone else plays to expectations, that’s a pretty nice lineup.
The pitching is a little suspect. Dickey, Pelfrey and Niese all could be great and rolling the dice with Capuano and Young could pay off. Hopefully the pitchers that will be used as depth for the inevitable injuries can hold up in the meantime. And we will all patiently await the return of Johan Santana.
The bullpen, though, is the weakest point of all this. I’m far from confident in Buchholz, Tankersley, Acosta or Misch. Guys like Tim Byrdak and Pedro Beato also have a shot to make the team, but Kannengieser’s current picks make sense.
As always, it’ll be interesting to see how the team shakes out. Does Sandy Alderson have the cajones to cut Castillo entirely? Who will make the team for the bench? How does the bullpen shape up? Spring Training should be fun.
What do you think of Kannengieser’s projected lineup?