Team-building (Part 2)
I asked you to put on your GM hat...with a twist
Earlier this month, I asked you to help me build the ultimate 26-man roster among players who will be active in Major League Baseball in 2024.
But there was a twist.
The roster had to include the following…
A starting 9 with one player at each of the 8 defensive positions plus a designated hitter.
5 starting pitchers.
8 relief pitchers.
4 bench players (a second catcher and some combination of 3 infielders or outfielders, at least one of each).
And the catch was that you could only select one player per team.
So you can have Gerrit Cole as your Yankee. Or Aaron Judge. Or Juan Soto. But you cannot have more than one of them.
You can have Shohei Ohtani as your Dodger. Or Freddie Freeman. Or Mookie Betts. But you cannot have more than one of them.
I told you I’d pass along my picks in a few days. Well, after much deliberation, here they are…
STARTING 9
1B-Bryce Harper (PHI)
2B-Luis Arraez (MIA)
SS-Francisco Lindor (NYM)
3B-Nolan Arenado (STL)
LF-Adolis Garcia (TEX)
CF-Aaron Judge (NYY)
RF-Ronald Acuña Jr. (ATL)
C-Adley Rutschman (BAL)
DH-Shohei Ohtani (LAD)
Francisco Lindor. (Photo courtesy of Getty Images.)
Bench (3 INF/OF, 1 C)
Rafael Devers, INF (BOS)
Ha-Seong Kim (SD)
Luis Robert, OF (CWS)
Salvador Perez, C (KC)
Starting Pitcher-Zac Gallen (ARI)
Starting Pitcher-Justin Steele (CHC)
Starting Pitcher-Framber Valdez (HOU)
Starting Pitcher-Kevin Gausman (TOR)
Starting Pitcher-Logan Webb (SF)
Reliever-Pete Fairbanks (TB)
Reliever-Kyle Finnegan (WAS)
Reliever-Jhoan Duran (MIN)
Reliever-David Bednar (PIT)
Reliever-Matt Brash (SEA)
Reliever-Emmanuel Clase (CLE)
Reliever-Alexis Diaz (CIN)
Reliever-Devin Williams (MIL)
I think I could win some games with those 26.
The 4 teams from which I didn’t include a player are the Angels, the Athletics, the Rockies and the Tigers although there were players from at least a couple of those teams that did merit consideration.
There were a lot of tough calls, which I mostly found between multiple players on the same team even more than multiple players at a single position. For example, obvious ones like which Dodger to include (Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts or Shohei Ohtani) or which Yankee to include (Gerrit Cole, Aaron Judge or Juan Soto).
Cole was the single hardest player to leave off of my 26-man roster. But I couldn’t deny Judge a spot, and Cole’s health concerns made it an easier call.
We recently learned Brewers closer Devin Williams may miss 3 months with back issues, but I’ll live with him on my IL to begin the year as there was no other Brewer and no other reliever from the 4 teams I didn’t include who felt more valuable to me than half a season of Williams.
I originally had the Cubs’ Dansby Swanson at shortstop, but replaced him with starter Justin Steele, opening up shortstop for the Mets’ Francisco Lindor. When I first began playing around with this idea earlier in the offseason, I had Juan Soto representing San Diego. His trade to the Yankees opened up an outfield spot that I gave to Adolis Garcia of the Rangers after considering his teammate Jonah Heim as my back-up catcher, or the Rays’ Randy Arozarena and a few others for that outfield spot. Not picking Arozarena, enabled me to choose Tampa Bay closer Pete Fairbanks. I thought about young Kansas City phenom Bobby Witt Jr. at shortstop (even before his new contract), but opted for his veteran Royals teammate Salvador Perez as my #2 option behind the plate. Speaking of young megastars, I wanted to put Arizona’s Corbin Carroll in my outfield, but ultimately chose fellow D-Back Zac Gallen to help anchor my rotation. At one point, I had JT Realmuto as my #1 catcher, but decided to instead go with his Phillies teammate Bryce Harper as my first baseman
There were countless tough calls like that and a lot of dominos that fell in the process.
At the end of the day, there were any number of players who could have been substituted in, but I found this to be a fun exercise while passing the time waiting for Opening Day.
While you’re here…
Your feedback is always appreciated. Hit the “LIKE” button below if you enjoyed this post.
Learn more about one-on-one play-by-play coaching from Glenn Geffner via Zoom at GlennGeffner.com.
