The COVID-19 pandemic has ripped sports out of our daily lives for the better part of 3 months now. But, after a lot of speculation, negotiations, and whining in the media, owners and the MLBPA have finally come to a resolution to bring baseball back.
The MLB will be returning with the shortest season we have ever seen - 60 games. It will be a dog fight till the end, with every game having meaning so much more. The teams with the star power, experience, and health will be best positioned to make a run at the postseason.
So how do the D'backs fare?
When it comes to star power, D'backs are lead by their two superstars in Ketel Marte and Madison Bumgarner. Marte has turned into the best second basemen in the MLB, finishing 4th in MVP voting last season. Bumgarner is a 3-time World Series champ, arguably the greatest competitor of the last couple decades.
Those two mixed with guys like, Starling Marte, Eduardo Escobar, Archie Bradley, David Peralta and many more, the D'backs have the talent to compete. Across the diamond, they have above-average or potential all-stars at every position, except maybe shortstop. The pitching staff is filled with young guys who won't have to worry about over throwing in only a 60-game season.
The experience might be the biggest area of concern for the team. They don't have many guys who are battle tested in big games, except for one guy - Madison Bumgarner. I already called Bumgarner arguably the greatest competitor of the last 20 seasons, but he may also be the greatest postseason pitcher ever. In 36-innings in the World Series, Bumgarner has only given up 1-earned run along with a career 2.11 postseason ERA.
Bumgarner simply gets better when the moment gets bigger. His fierce competitiveness is contagious. Those are the kind of intangibles that spread to the whole team and affects everybody. Go google the speech Chris Sale gave the Red Sox when they were losing to the Dodgers in the World Series. He stoked a fire in his teammates, and I think Bumgarner can do the same.
The final element to this equation is health. Some teams have already lost players to season ending injuries or they have players who will start the season on the injured list. D'backs are fortunate to have their team fully healthy as MLB gets ready to return.
After a long time off and only a couple of weeks of exhibition games, we might see some soft tissue injuries to start the season. Players are used to the ebbs and flows of a long MLB season, but their is no time to waste with this shortened year. We might see someone pull a hammy as they try to beat out a ground ball.
The combination of this extended time off and the level of competition the players are going to jump into when the season return could be risky. In a normal season, you could break a leg, miss a 100 games, and still return. In this shortened season, a hang-nail could be season ending. The teams with the blessings from the injury Gods will prosper.
From star power to experience and health, the D'backs have all the elements to make a run all the way to the World Series. 2020 has shown us that anything is possible.
