63.3- Five to Watch, 2063 Edition

[chicoruiz]

What kind of team will the Gamblers be in 2063? I don't know, and neither do you. Stop asking me questions like that...

Oh, I expect we'll be middle-of-the pack. Whether we're better or worse than that depends on a lot of things; let's look at five guys who will make a big difference one way or the other...

1. P Kent Johnson- Which Kent Johnson are we going to get? The 15-11, 3.80 guy from 2061? Or the 11-13, 6.05 guy from last season? He'll start out in the rotation, but he'll probably just get six weeks or so to show his stuff.

2. P Angel Medina- I have a number of pitchers who are kind of at the cusp of being ready, but maybe not quite there yet. "Funky Cold" is the closest one, so he's getting the first crack at a starting job. There's no reason he can't get the job done, but I've seen these guys trip over their own two feet far too often to rank him as a sure thing.

3. C Abid Kakakhel- I picked him up for a song in free agency, and I'm going to try him as the regular catcher. I had a nice year a few years ago using Hollis O'Hara behind the plate; Abid is basically the same defense-and-framing-forward guy that Hollis was. He hit .300 in Mexico City a couple of years ago, so it's not like he's a total nonentity at the plate.

4. LF Wilson Prieto- Wilson was one of the hottest names in free agency a year ago; I bid on him but Brooklyn beat me out. I was able to acquire him in Shoeless's liquidation sale, and I'm moving him from center to left, in hopes that he'll regain some of his luster.

5. CF Vandika Zadoyan- This is the big one. Looking at his scouting report, there's no way he should be as bad in center field as he was last season. I mean, I can see him being below average, but not to the extent he was in 2062. Maybe having Prieto, a better defender in LF than he had next to him last year, will help. Or maybe he'll hit enough to force his way into a RF platoon. Or maybe I'll just hold my nose and live with it this year; it's not like I'm bursting with alternatives.

In truth, if there are 27 guys on my team, there are 27 question marks. The answers start today. Let's play some ball...

[RonCo]

Prieto will be much, much happier in CF. Or at least the fans who have to watch him will be.

[shoeless.db]

I see Prieto hit like he’s still on the Robins in week one. No worries, we’re coming to town to light that bat on fire.

[woods]

I just watched Johnson shut down my Swamp Foxes, and Prieto hit two homers in a game against me. I didn't enjoy it.