Many MLB Teams Hoping to Cash in on a Championship

Many MLB Teams Hoping to Cash in on a Championship

By Daniel Holzhauer

 

With the Toronto Blue Jays acquiring Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey and the Washington Nationals stealing Rafael Soriano away from the New York Yankees, it has become clear that the race for the 2013 World Series is wide open and several teams are going all-in.

 

The Los Angeles Dodgers have pushed the most chips into the middle of the table with over $200 million in payroll, but it's the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim that have three-of-a-kind in Albert Pujols, Mike Trout and Josh Hamilton. The Atlanta Braves made moves to secure a pair of Uptons, yet none of the aforementioned teams were even at last year's final table.

 

Reigning NL MVP Buster Posey led the San Francisco Giants to a second World Series title when he overcame Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera and the Detroit Tigers. Both teams are full of superstars and it will be hard not to predict them to repeat as division champions.

 

"We all start with a clean slate," Posey told the San Jose Mercury News, "Each year, you come in with the same hunger and know you've got a long road ahead. That's what we're here to do."

 

The Tigers reshuffled the deck last year when they acquired Prince Fielder to compliment Cabrera and their ace-in-the-hole Justin Verlander.  But they struggled early last season and were forced to chase down the Chicago White Sox in the final week of the season.

 

The surprise Washington Nationals, who have MLB's biggest bankroll in owner Ted Lerner, tore through the National League a year earlier than most expected, but issues at closer and the gamble they took on shutting down Stephen Strasburg made their season go bust. In 2013, they expect neither to be an issue.

 

“I think we'll have a better, more consistent team. I think it will be one year older, one year more experienced, one year more mature,” Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told MLB.com. “I think there is an opportunity to be better than we were last year.”

 

And let’s not forget the wildcard, or four, that will be tossed into the deck. Nobody expected the Baltimore Orioles to make the playoffs in 2012 and even fewer people expected the Oakland Athletics to win the AL West.

 

The St. Louis Cardinals were left for dead without Pujols and they almost shocked the world once again. If baseball has taught us anything, don’t be in a rush to fold your hand because you never know what the next turn may bring.