Cubs emerge as great favorites at the Central de la Nacional
Cubs are favorites of their division due to a series of movements that made its management and the passivity of its rivals
After two decades of enmity with the team, the Dominican Sammy Sosa He returned to the cave wearing the shirt with his mythical number 21, gardener Pete Crow-Armstrong is hitting as the 1998 Sosa during the spring training and the Chicago Cubs are favorites to win the central division of the National League for the first time in a long time.
Chicago, who has not won a postseason game since 2017 – a year after conquering its first world series in more than a century – and does not reach the promised land since the season cut by the Coronavirus in 2020, it is not a favorite due to the presence of Sosa, who made the peace with the organization and was invited to the preparation camp, but to a series of movements that made its management already the astonishment of its rivals.
“I think there is a tremendous atmosphere. You feel good vibes, like when I played,” Sosa told Digital AM850 From the Cubs training camp in Arizona.
“The Cubs have many good players and, until now, everyone looks healthy,” added the ninth greatest home run in history, with 609, and the only one with three seasons of 60 or more, all with the Chicago uniform.
Since the end of last season, when they repeated the 2023 mark (83-79), the Cubs added to the star gardener Kyle Tucker and the launchers Matthew Boyd, Ryan Pressley and Eli Morgan. Tucker, Crow-Armstrong, the 2b Nico Hoerner, the SS Dansby Swanson, the 1B Michael Busch, the designated hitter Japanese Seiya Suzuki and his compatriot and pitcher opener Shota Imanaga are among the best major leagues (MLB), according to a preseason analysis that the colleague made Buster Olney in AM850.
Justin Steele and Jameson Taillon escort Imanaga, who was already appointed opening of the inaugural day against Los Angeles Dodgers, on March 18, in Tokyo, Japan. Steele will open the second game of the Japanese miniseries, which would probably leave Tailon as the main candidate for the first game in the United States, on Thursday, March 27, against the Arizona Diamondbacks in Phoenix.
The manager Craig Counsellwho has guided his clubs to positive brands in seven consecutive complete seasons, is also one of the best in the industry. Counsell enters his second season with Chicago, after signing a five -year contract and more than $ 40 million, which made him the best paid pilot of the MLB.
The divisional leaders of the two previous tournaments, the Milwaukee Brewers, lost two of their best players, the Dominican Torpedo Wily Adames (signed in the free agency by the San Francisco Giants) and to the Statonidic closure Devin Williams (changed to the New York Yankees) and did not add any larger piece.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have a candidate for the Cy Young award in the law Paul Skenes and an aspiring the most valuable player in the Dominican gardener Oneil Cruz, but they are still a bit far from the top. The same could be said of the Cincinnati Reds, whose torpedo, the Dominican Elly de la Cruz, comes from pasteing 25 home runs and stealing 67 bases … at 22.
The St. Louis Cardinals have spent all winter trying to move the winner of 10 gold gloves, Nolan Arenado, instead of strengthening their weaknesses.
AM850 BET It has the CUBs as the most likely winner of the Central Division (EVEN), above Milwaukee (+300), Reds (+400), Pirates (+800) and Cardinals (+800). The Baseball Prospectus projection pecota model places Chicago in around 91.3 victories, which would give it its first flag in a normal season since 2017. Milwaukee (79.1), Pittsburg (78.1), Cardinals (77.7) and Reds (74.4) appear quite far from the Cubs.
According to AM850 BETChicago is seventh among the main candidates to represent the old circuit in the 2025 World Series, behind the Dodgers, the Atlanta Braves, the New York Mets, the Philadelphia Phillies, the San Diego Padres and the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The great mystery of the Cubs is their bullpen. Last season, the relay had effectiveness of 3.81 and wasted 26 of 64 rescue opportunities, including 18 of 40 in the first half of the season.
That is why the acquisition of Pressly, who is projected to be the closer of a staff that includes Porter Hodge, Tyson Miller, Ryan Brasier, Nate Pearson and Caleb Thielbar, among others.
