Camila Sosa
The 2022 MLB campaign is about to begin, and in this article the teams that, despite having a roster full of stars, could end up registering disappointing performances that would take them out of any possibility of qualifying for the post-season are analyzed.
It is extremely difficult to predict a team’s failure when it has several MVP-level players. However, this is an extremely complex sport as a whole where many factors have to come together so that a team can have real aspirations of reaching the World Series.
5.- Chicago White Sox
The Chicago White Sox keep the pillars that led them to win the American League Central Division in 2021. But their potential failure in 2022 stems from the fact that they will have to compete with teams that strengthened excellently during the off-season. In the case of the Minnesota Twins, they added Carlos Correa, Gary Sánchez and Gio Urshela. And, as for the Detroit Tigers, they acquired Javier Báez and Eduardo Rodríguez.
4.- San Diego Padres
In the case of the Padres, their chances of offering a real fight to the powerful Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West Division dropped considerably due to the shoulder injury of Fernando Tatís Jr. that will keep him out of action for much of the regular round.
If Manny Machado remains at a high level and the starting pitching (led by Joe Musgrove and Yu Darvish) responds well, the Californian team could win a good number of games, but it will be difficult for them to get into the post-season, even as one of the wild cards.
3.- New York Yankees
Many expected New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman to succeed in signing one of the top free agents available heading into the 2022 campaign. In the end, that didn’t happen, but they did add Josh Donaldson along with the return of Anthony Rizzo.
When it comes to hitting, the team has one of the most fearsome lineups in all of MLB, but the starting pitching appears to lack the depth needed to win the World Series for the first time since 2009.
2.- Los Angeles Angels
To have two recent American League MVP candidates, Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout, is enough to give you hope for a return to the post-season. But, let’s not forget that pitching is the most important thing in baseball when it comes to a team being able to be considered a contender, and that is a department that still generates a lot of doubts for the Los Angeles Angels.
However, the arrival of Noah Syndergaard generates a lot of expectation when it comes to forming a luxury duo with Ohtani in the rotation, although it will be key that he can stay healthy throughout the campaign.
1.- New York Mets
On paper, the New York Mets own the best starting pitching duo with Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer, although the specter of injuries could appear due to the fact that we are talking about two veteran pitchers who have already suffered physical problems in recent seasons. Regarding deGrom, he looked very good in the preseason, but we can’t forget that he barely logged 15 starts last season.
As for offense, the New York team looks strong with Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso leading the way along with the return of veteran Robinson Cano, who will likely assume the DH role during the 2022 regular round. With such a solid team in every department, it will be a failure if the Mets don’t make it to the National League Championship Series at least, where they could meet the Los Angeles Dodgers.
