[Spindel]

COLORADO ROCKIES
Current Record: 34-42
The Rockies lineup, powered by Casey "The Rabbit" Maurer, looks to keep Colorado among the leagues elite in the upcoming 2045 season. With anchors such as Maurer and Mike "Super-Mike" Grant, it certainly isnt out of the question. This lineup should be good enough to win some games for the Rockies, and while they have a few holes in the order, it shouldnt make much of a difference. On defense, their outfield has spectacular range and average arms, and their infield is solid at just about every position. The Rockies pitching staff looks to be good enough to win games, but its lack of depth might come back to hurt them. While their starting rotation is led by Pedro "Champagne" Zavala, it lacks depth. The same can be said about their bullpen, where a lack of quality relievers might come back to haunt them.

Final Grades
Lineup: B+
Defense: A
Rotation: A-
Bullpen: B
2045 First Round Pick: LF/RF Mayogue Brady

WASHINGTON NATIONALS
Current Record: 39-38
While this Nationals team might not be filled from head to toe with good contact hitters, it has its fair share of power hitters. Legendary shortstop Johnny Rollins will be batting third in his 10th year with Washington, and will solidify this potentially dangerous National's lineup. On the defensive side of the ball, Washington is hovering around the average mark. With the exception of Sidney Moser, the Nationals outfield has below average range with below average arms, a combination which can be dangerous. Outside of that however, their defense is good enough to pass, but isnt anything to get too excited about. Similarly, their pitching staff is probably enough to get a decent job done, but should be drastically improved. It has no clear number 1 starter, and appears to be made up of pitchers who would be a number 3, 4, or 5 pitcher in most other staffs. Their bullpen lacks control, and doesnt appear to have enough stuff or movement to make up for it, while 22 year old closer Joel Aguayo is likely to be troubled with control throughout the year.

Final Grades
Lineup: B
Defense: B-
Rotation: C
Bullpen: C-
2045 First Round Pick: 3B/SS Josh Starks

SAN DIEGO PADRES
Current Record: 27-49
This Padre lineup has good contact throughout, but its extra-base hits will be limited due to a lack of gap power. Led by Ron "The Radar" Dater, it should be able to piece together some runs, but it wont overwhelm its opposition. On defense, the Padres outfield has amazing range and great arms, while the infield is pretty average. San Diego's starting staff, led by Rayner "Ronnie" Daal and Manny "Farm Boy" Farmer, looks to dominate opposing hitters, and with a strong 3 starters and a decent two others, it might just do that. As for their bullpen.. well.. not so much. The bullpen lacks a shutdown reliever, and the Padres will need to rely on their starters going the whole 9 yards to ensure the victory.

Final Grades
Lineup: C+
Defense: B
Rotation: B+
Bullpen: C-
2045 First Round Pick: C/3B Noah Sims Jr.

Cleveland Indians
Current Record: 23-53
The Indians finished 3rd last season just 1 game behind the White Sox, but unless there is some miracle, they cannot hope to repeat their minor success. The loss of several important players – Chappell, Fuentez, Baillarge and Ramirez – and the inaction of the front office to replace them should hurt Cleveland significantly.

The 3 starters that are on the team are not bad - Frankie Oliveras and Bob Bytheway would fit in well in most other rotations. However, there is only one other starter on the Major League roster, and there is no one of notice in the minors to be place in the other 2 spots. This means taking from an already beleaguered bullpen. The result – not pretty. LaCock is the only reliever of any talent on the roster. Therefore there is no alternative, but to give the Indians a failing grade in both these aspects of the game – until they can come with two other starters.
The lineup, even after having lost 3 key starters, is still excellent. Almost every position is filled with a player who can handle the bat capably, and is an asset to the team. Yet still, there are questions – why is there no catcher on the 25 man roster, for example? The defense for the most part is below average. The only real defensive asset – 1B Kishouri Michio – might be forced to play catcher.

The outlook for the Indians doesn’t look good, unless some drastic measures are made on the pitching side.

Final Grades:
Lineup: B
Defense: D+
Rotation: F
Bullpen: F
2045 First Round Pick: SP Chris Chainé