2021 MLB Season Preview: Team-by-Team Capsules

1. Oakland Athletics

Half full: The A’s shopped in bulk for seasoned pros with World Series experience, trading for shortstop Elvis Andrus and signing closer Trevor Rosenthal, the setup man Sergio Romo and first baseman Mitch Moreland in late February. They’ll fortify a team seeking its fourth playoff appearance in a row and hoping that starters Jesus Luzardo and A.J. Puk — highly touted lefties who lived and trained together over the winter — blossom into aces.

Half empty: First baseman Matt Olson and third baseman Matt Chapman both hit 36 home runs while winning a Gold Glove in 2019. Last season, though, Olson hit just .195 and Chapman needed surgery to repair a torn right hip labrum. Can they resume their upward trajectory — and can Andrus be a viable hitter again? In the last three seasons, his on-base percentage is a meager .306.

11: Playoff appearances in the 2000s for the A’s, more than every other A.L. team except the Yankees (17).

2. Houston Astros* (wild card)

Half full: The Astros lost their best player from 2020, George Springer, but welcome back designated hitter Yordan Alvarez, the 2019 A.L. rookie of the year, who had knee surgery last summer and played just two games. A finger injury to lefty Framber Valdez was not as serious as first feared, and as an added bonus, it motivated the Astros to sign Jake Odorizzi, an All-Star for the Twins in 2019. Valdez’s eventual return will deepen the group.

Half empty: The ace starter Justin Verlander will probably miss the season as he recovers from Tommy John surgery, the untested Myles Straw takes over for Springer in center, and while the Astros looked strong in October, mainstays like Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman and Yuli Gurriel — who combined to hit .230 last season — must prove that their struggles were a collective fluke. Oh, and they’ll be playing with fans in the stands this season, so reminders of the 2017 sign-stealing scandal could shadow them on the road.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/29/sports/baseball/mlb-team-capsules.html