Tolkiens Welt » ?Along with throwing for 344 yar

With free agency underway, the offseason is about to pick up steam. What are the big questions facing all 30 teams? Weve already covered the AL East, NL East,?AL Central,?NL Central?and AL West, and now were moving on to the National League West.Should they corral expenses or go for it financially?2016 record: 91-71Justin Turner, Kenley Jansen and Rich Hill are free agents, so why dont the big-money Dodgers just sign all of them at top dollar if they like them so much?Its the age-old question.If you really want to win, as some fans believe, you should just throw as much money as you can at the problem until it is solved. Yet if sustained success is the goal, development and nurturing young and talented prospects probably needs to come first. Once those young players show they are ready to deliver, then it would be time to spend money to fill any remaining holes.It is the way the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians are doing it. Both teams have established young cores and then attacked needs around that. The Houston Astros are another organization doing it the same way.All indications suggest the Dodgers are not going to continue to spend freely, and it is not because they dont want to win it all next year. They want to be in a position to win it multiple times for a long stretch.So the idea that Turner, Jansen and Hill all return seems to be a long shot. Its not impossible, but the money that it would take to bring them back does not fit with the strategy that seems to be developing.The challenge is that the Dodgers do not have an obvious replacement at third base, closer and No. 2 starter.Expect the Dodgers to have talented players in those three spots next season, with at least one of those players returning. Yet in developing the 2017 roster, the front office is likely to be more creative about it than just opening up the checkbook. -- Doug PadillaSo whos it going to be, Kenley Jansen or Aroldis Chapman?2016 record: 87-75We all know what happened: After owning the majors best record at the All-Star break -- yes, better than the Cubs -- they plummeted to 30-42 in the second half. The bullpen drew the brunt of the criticism, although the offense declined from 4.71 runs per game to 4.04. The Giants lost 12 games they were leading after seven innings and nine they led after eight, and we all know what happened in the ninth inning of Game 4 of the NL Division Series.The longtime trio of Santiago Casilla, Sergio Romo and Javier Lopez enters free agency, clearing up $20.5 million in payroll. Angel Pagan and Jake Peavy also come off the books, although other players are due increases. Still, the Giants should have $20-plus million to spend.Obviously, signing Jansen would have double value: Adding an elite closer while subtracting him from your division rival. But he and Chapman could end up getting close to $20 million per season, and the Giants may want to spend some of that money on an outfielder instead (Yoenis Cespedes would look nice in left field). Mark Melancon would be a cheaper option, although without the same dominance and more of a risk. -- David SchoenfieldAre they ready to make a push for contention?2016 record: 75-87The Rockies went 75-87, which for them qualifies as a good season. It was their best record since 2010, but also a sixth straight losing campaign. They actually got a game over .500 in early August before a late fade resulted in general manager Jeff Bridich firing Walt Weiss and hiring former Padres skipper Bud Black as the new manager.Black has a good reputation in baseball circles, but in nine seasons with the Padres he finished over .500 just twice and never made the playoffs, so its hard to even argue that he got the most out of the talent on hand. The one thing he was consistently pretty good at was building bullpens, and thats where the Rockies need a lot of help after finishing with an MLB-worst 5.13 bullpen ERA.Now, some of the advanced metrics say the pen wasnt as bad as the 5.13 ERA indicates -- it had a 4.35 FIP and ranked 21st in FanGraphs WAR. Still, its been a long time since the Rockies had a good pen, and because their starters rarely compile a lot of innings, they need a deep core of relievers.Id like to see the Rockies find a real first baseman. Theyve basically been faking the position for a decade now. Here is their annual ranking among the 30 teams in wins above average at first base. Other than 2014, when Justin Morneau won a batting title, its been a sorry lot for the most part:2016: 24 2015: 26 2014: 8 2013: 28 2012: 23 2011: 11 2010: 25 2009: 14 2008: 19 2007: 4Theres been talk of Carlos Gonzalez playing first base, but that just opens up a gaping hole in the outfield (let alone if they shop Charlie Blackmon for pitching help). The Rockies always overrate their offense. How about adding Edwin Encarnacion?in Coors Field? -- David SchoenfieldHow much of a difference will the return of A.J. Pollock make?2016 record: 69-93Lets offer one kind word to the old regime of Tony La Russa and Dave Stewart -- if A.J. Pollock doesnt fracture his elbow in spring training, Mike Hazen might not be the general manager this winter. Losing Pollock hurt the Snakes offense last year, but it may well have killed the D-backs on defense. From 2015 to 2016, Arizona dropped from plus-60 defensive runs saved to minus-18 -- a nearly eight-win swing on defensive value alone.Maybe putting all of that on Pollocks absence is a stretch, but were talking about losing a premium glove (plus-14 DRS in 2015, which helped him earn a Gold Glove) on a team saddled with dubious defenders like Yasmany Tomas and Jake Lamb. The D-backs delivered a .665 defensive efficiency, which wasnt just the worst in the NL last year, but among the worst team marks in MLB in any year since 1969. Robbie Rays NL-worst .355 BABIP or Shelby Millers career-worst .343 BABIP werent functions of bad luck on balls in play -- theyre symptoms of a porous defense in an already tough park for pitchers.Now Hazen has to determine how much a fully functioning Pollock might change the outlook on everything else hes inherited. A stronger defense will help make Ray, Miller, Archie Bradley and Patrick Corbin look good lined up behind Zack Greinke in the rotation. That might leave Hazen to ponder simpler winter shopping needs, like picking up a closer, and deciding whether or not moving Jean Segura back to shortstop would free them to pursue moving infield parts like Justin Turner or Luis Valbuena, or even go after a bat-first second baseman like Neil Walker. If those sound like the moves a contender might make, dont be shocked -- getting Pollock back as one of the best players in the league could help Hazen look very good, very fast. -- Christina KahrlCan they conjure up a starting rotation?2016 record: 68-94Thats the nuts-and-bolts issue for the Padres to sort out over the winter. Sure, you could also say they need a better closer than Brandon Maurer or somebody who can play shortstop, but sure-thing solutions are rare, expensive and probably outside the Padres reach, even with their considerable payroll flexibility. They could use a starting outfielder, but they may end up picking from among their current crew of Hunter Renfroe, Manuel Margot, Oswaldo Arcia, Travis Jankowski and Alex Dickerson.The other problem is that to stock their staff after their slow-motion teardown, they dont have much left to trade with -- assuming theres any trust left in the industry after general manager A.J. Preller got caught dealing damaged goods to both the Red Sox and Marlins last season, earning a rare front-office suspension.The best starter they have left, Tyson Ross, will have to show hes recovered from an Oct. 13 surgery on his shoulder to alleviate thoracic outlet syndrome after effectively losing the 2016 season to the injury. Hes only Padres property for one more year before free agency, and should they shop him, you can expect any interested party to be wary. After that, you get into hoping Colin Rea and Jarred Cosart are healthy, and wondering if theyll send Luis Perdomo down after letting last winters Rule 5 find take a beating in the big leagues.The one thing the Padres should have after trading away almost everyone of note is some money, plus Petcos reputation as a great place to pitch. So you can expect a number of veterans ready to accept a short-term deal equally receptive to any offer the Padres might make. This winters market is overstocked on middling starters looking for a new lease on life. A guy like Scott Feldman?might fit that profile; you might even get Jake Peavy or Andrew Cashner back in San Diego. -- Christina Kahrl Glenn Anderson Rangers Jersey . Clarke was injured while practicing on the Doha Golf Club range after the pro-am on Tuesday. The Northern Irishman arrived at the course on Wednesday hoping to start, but after hitting a few balls on the practice putting green Clarke advised officials he was not fit to play. Wayne Gretzky Jersey . -- Patrick Reed got an early start in golf. http://www.rangershockeyonlineshop.com/kevin-shattenkirk-hockey-jersey/ . There are surprises among the Vezina candidates, but most of the others are standard top-tier performers, even if the two Hart Trophy runners-ups have never been quite as good as they have been through the first half of the season. Pavel Buchnevich Rangers Jersey . The 19-year-old Olsen played 34 games with the Kelowna Rockets of the WHL this season. In that time, hes recorded 17 goals and 17 assists with 36 penalty minutes. Rod Gilbert Jersey . The team said Saturday that Lopez was hurt during its 121-120 overtime loss at Philadelphia on Friday. The Nets said they would issue another update next week after consultation with their doctors. Max Akin had a huge homecoming game on the field last weekend, but it wasnt what he did during the game that grabbed headlines.?Along with throwing for 344 yards and five scores in the 40-12 win, the quarterback from Fossil Ridge High School near Fort Worth, Texas, was crowned homecoming king at halftime.But instead of accepting the honor, Akin passed the crown on to his friend, K.L. Norwood, who has cerebral palsy.?I think it shouldve gone to the person who positively uplifts the school and everybody around him, Akin said, via the website of ABC TV affiliate WFAA, and that person is K.L., for sure.What @CMaxAkin did last nighht was just amazing, you are a sweet guy Max?? pic.dddddddddddd.twitter.com/RUSzAKMO9C- Nikki (@Nicoleruv_03) September 10, 2016Nothing like Ridge Nation! pic.twitter.com/RotjgrKk9d- Tony Baccarini (@frhsfootball) September 10, 2016Homecoming dance was a blast ?? pic.twitter.com/GLdghscWR1- KL Basketball !! #14 (@Oldkid14) September 11, 2016Akin said he didnt know the right time to do it, but he knew his friend wanted that crown more than anything.It was absolutely terrific, K.L. said.h/t USA Today ' ' '