Minnesota Twins:
Interesting position you find yourselves in Minnesota.
The Twins are one of those teams you never know what to expect. On one hand, Joe Ryan could be competing for the AL Cy Young award and Byron Buxton for the MVP. On the other, Byron Buxton is out for the season with a devastating injury (knock on wood) and Joe Ryan can’t deal with the pressure of being their ace resulting in the absence of Pablo Lopez gets heightened.
Bringing in journeyman Josh Bell can have tremendous benefits and taking a flyer on back-to-back World Series champion Anthony Banda absolutely improves their bullpen situation. Their farm system isn’t something to be overly excited about although Walker Jenkins is a name to follow.
They finally decided to get rid of disgruntled manager Rocco Baldelli who was adamant in making the team consistently mediocre. In comes in Derek Shelton who was the experience needed to turn this ship around.
Expect the Twins to be feisty, but nothing more.
Baltimore Orioles:
That’s more like it.
After a disappointing 2025 showing, the Orioles look to return to their 2023-2024 form when they won 101 & 91 games respectively. Their core includes Jackson Holiday, Adley Rutschman, Colton Cowser and MVP candidate Gunnar Henderson. However, let’s address the “Polar Bear” in the room.
David Rubenstein took out his checkbook after bringing in Pete Alonso for 5 years at a premium. A fantastic addition that completes the O’s already dynamic lineup. Adding onto that, they gave up on Grayson Rodriguez and in return got Taylor Ward who was the potential to be an All-Star this year after his breakout season last year.
Their starting pitching is somewhat concerning, but if they are holding a lead towards the later innings, good luck going through Ryan Helsley, Yeiner Cano & Felix Bautista.
Watch out for those pesky orange birds.
Prediction: BAL 2-1
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