By: Abby Altman

It has been 146 days since the last pitch of the 2022 MLB season was thrown. Nick Castellanos of the Phillies flew out to right fielder Kyle Tucker of the Astros to give Houston the 2022 World Series title.

A lot has happened in the off season since the last game was played, with teams gaining and losing star players left and right. The offseason was chaos for many teams and athletes, and that will most likely show in the start of the 2023 season.

One of the best examples for the chaos seen this offseason is through Carlos Correa.

After the 2022 season, Correa announced he would be opting out of his 3-year contract with the Minnesota Twins. On December 14th, Correa reached an agreement with the San Francisco Giants, for 13 years/$350 million.

This appeared to be a done deal, and Correa was going to be a Giant. On December 20th, however, San Francisco canceled Correas introductory press conference, mere hours before it was scheduled to begin. Fans were given no explanation.

On December 21st, while most fans were asleep, Correa reached an agreement with the New York Mets, for 12 years/ $315 million. Again, this seemed like a done deal, and Correa was going to become a Met.

On December 24th, Correa’s introductory press conference was postponed, due to reported concerns with his physical. Correa showed few issues physically last season.

When the Giants and the Mets both passed on Correa, Minnesota took this time to step up, and bring him back home.

On January 10th, Correa and the Minnesota Twins reached an agreement for 6 years/ $200 million.

If that timeline of a star shortstop essentially joining 3 different teams all to end up with the same team as last season doesn’t give you a good idea of what this season will look like, I’m not sure what will.

At the end of last years regular season, the top 10 teams in the power rankings were:

1. Dodgers
2. Astros
3. Braves
4. Yankees
5. Mets
6. Cardinals
7. Blue Jays
8. Guardians
9. Mariners
10. Padres

The Philadelphia Phillies were ranked 12th, and still managed to play in the World Series, beating the Cardinals, Padres, and Braves to get there.

Since then, more than 150 free agents have signed new contracts, nearly 70 trades have been made, and 5 teams have hired new managers.

Opening day for the 2023 season took place on March 30th, and was an excellent look into what the upcoming season has in store for fans.

Here are my predictions for the top 10 teams this season, and the World Series matchup to end the season:

1. Toronto Blue Jays

2022 record: 92-70

2023 predicted record: 103-59

2.  New York Yankees

2022 record: 99-63

2023 predicted record: 100-62

3.  Houston Astros

2022 record: 106-56

2023 predicted record: 100-62

4.  Los Angeles Dodgers

2022 record: 111-51

2023 predicted record: 98-64

5.  New York Mets

2022 record: 101-61

2023 predicted record: 96-66

6. Atlanta Braves

2022 record: 101-61

2023 predicted record: 95-67

7.  San Diego Padres

2022 record: 89-73

2023 predicted record: 92-70

8.   Philadelphia Phillies

2022 record: 87-75

2023 predicted record: 90-72

9.  Cleveland Guardians

2022 record: 92-70

2023 predicted record: 90-72

10.  Baltimore Orioles

2022 record: 83-79

2023 predicted record: 88-74

The Houston Astros will come very close to back-to-back World Series titles. Uncomfortably close for many fans, who have had a strong disliking for the team since 2019, when the cheating scandal was uncovered.

However, I believe the New York Mets will make it through the playoffs, and beat the Astros in 6 for the 2023 World Series title.

By: Abby Altman

What started off as a slow offseason for the Minnesota Twins has turned productive, with re-signings and free agents showing up left and right. 

The Twins had a disappointing 2022 season, taking 3rd in the AL Central and missing the playoffs. Lots of pressure sat on the front office, as there was a lot that needed to be done in order to keep Minnesota in the conversation for the 2023 season. 

The most important order of business to many fans was re-signing shortstop Carlos Correa. Correa signed with the Twins before the 2022 season for a 3-year deal with opt-out options after each year. After the 2022 season, Correa opted out of his contract with Minnesota and agreed to terms with the San Francisco Giants. 

San Francisco found issues with Correa’s physical, and suspended his introductory press conference. Shortly after this, in a surprising overnight move, Correa agreed to a new set of terms with the New York Mets. 

Once again, however, the team found issues with Correa’s physical, and his official signing was postponed yet again. The exact issue both teams found on the physical is unknown, but it was related to an ankle surgery Correa had as a prospect. 

After New York and San Francisco postponed signing with Correa, the Minnesota Twins finally stepped up and brought Correa back. Minnesota and Correa agreed to a 6-year/$200 million contract. Correa passed his physical with Minnesota, becoming the highest paid player in Twins history. 

With the addition of Correa, combined with SS Royce Lewis and SS prospect Brooks Lee, the Twins’ infield is looking strong and sharp. 

Another infield move the Twins made was trading Luis Arraez. Arraez has had a huge impact on the Twins’ lineup over the last few years, winning the AL batting title in 2022. On January 21st, Minnesota traded Arraez to the Miami Marlins in exchange for RHP Pablo López, as well as 2 prospects, 1 infielder and 1 outfielder. 

Trading Arraez made many fans unhappy, as he was not only an incredibly talented player but also a key teammate to have in the locker room. The trade, however unhappy it made fans, is seen by many as a success on Minnesota’s part. The Twins needed pitching, and a Correa-Lewis-Brooks infield is hopefully strong enough without Arraez. 

For pitching, Minnesota acquired López in the Arraez trade. They also agreed to terms with RHP Chris Paddack for a 3 year extension, and agreed to terms with RHPs Jorge Alcalá, Jorge López, Tyler Mahle, and Emilio Pagán, and LHP Caleb Thielbar on one-year contracts. Kenta Maeda will also make his return after receiving Tommy John surgery in the 2021 season. 

The Twins opening day rotation is expected to include Joe Ryan, Kenta Maeda, Pablo López, Sonny Gray, and Tyler Mahle. Other pitchers including Bailey Ober and Louie Varland will be on standby if/when injury strikes again. 

Minnesota has been fairly quiet when it comes to building up the bullpen. The club’s president of baseball operations Derek Falvey says that “If we were to do anything at this point, it would likely be to add depth in the middle. We’ll keep an open mind, but [relief pitching is] not a priority.” 

After the 2022 trade deadline, Minnesota acquired Jorge López from Baltimore, but López is going to be trying to recover from a rough finish to his 2022 season. 

Other relievers likely to be in the club’s bullpen include Caleb Thielbar, Emilio Pagán, Jorge Alcalá, Trevor Megill, Johan Durán, Griffin Jax, and Jovani Moran. 

Last year, the Twins’ bullpen was 15th in the league in combined ERA, dead center in the MLB. 

Minnesota, however, did trade 2 pitching prospects in exchange for star defensive outfielder Michael A. Taylor. The Twins also signed free agent OF Joey Gallo this offseason.  These outfield additions bring many possibilities to light, including using injury prone Byron Buxton as a DH more frequently. 

It is unknown what Minnesota will do with their large cast of outfielders, but it is a strong group defensively. 

On offense, however, Minnesota’s ability is unknown. Luis Arraez was by far the team’s best offensive weapon, and now the team relies heavily on power hitting more than they will with on base percentage.  

Minnesota’s outfield has the potential to be one of the best in the league. Byron Buxton, Max Kepler, Joey Gallo, Michael A. Taylor, Nick Gordon, and Gilberto Celestino all have the potential to start at one point or another in Minnesota’s outfield. The right combination of players and injuries could put Minnesota’s defense far above the rest of the league. 

Other moves made by the Twins include trading Gio Urshella for Alejandro Hidalgo, a young pitcher from the Los Angeles Angels. The Twins moved on from Urshela as they appear confident in José Miranda’s abilities at 3rd base, and building up the starting pitching rotation is a priority. 

Hidalgo will likely spend some time in the minors before he begins to impact the Twins rotation. 

Behind the plate, the Twins made just 1 move that should hopefully be enough to hold down the catcher’s position. Christian Vasquez and Minnesota agreed to a 3-year, $30 million deal in one of the most important positions that Minnesota lacked last season. 

Minnesota has signed several young pitchers, so having an experienced, successful catcher behind the plate is a strong, underappreciated move made by the Twins front office. 

The Minnesota Twins’ front office has been busy, and seems to know exactly what they want out of this offseason. Whether or not this will be enough to make them contenders this season is yet to be seen, but these moves seem to put the Twins in a position for an upgrade from 2022. 

By: Abby Altman

*Note: This article was originally written May 20th, so obviously things have happened since

In 2021, the starting shortstop for the Minnesota Twins was Andrelton Simmons. Simmons was a previous gold glove winner, but his bat was nothing exciting, and he often brought down the Twins lineup in important games. 

In 2022, the Twins now face a complete opposite issue. 

After the MLB lockout, the Twins signed All-Star shortstop Carlos Correa from the Houston Astros for 3 years, with an opt-out option after each year. Correa, excluding a brief stint on the 10 day-IL (as of mid May), was batting .255, with a .721 OPS. Correa’s glove has been exceptional at shortstop, and he has been a very valuable addition to the team. 

While Correa was on the IL, someone needed to fill in at the shortstop position. This is where the Twins brought in rookie shortstop Royce Lewis from AAA. Lewis was the number 1 overall draft pick in 2017. In the 11 games Lewis played with the Twins, he hit .308, with 4 doubles, 2 home runs, one of which was a grand slam, 11 RBI, and 12 runs scored. 

Lewis still has a lot to learn in the big leagues, and that showed in the few mistakes he made at shortstop in his big league appearance. 

Many fans are upset, however, that the Twins sent Lewis back to St. Paul and AAA upon the return of Correa. 

The Twins organization stated that Lewis would be spending time at other positions, as well as shortstop while he was in AAA, to see where Lewis would fit in the Twins lineup, without having to bench Correa. 

“We’re going to move him around the field a little bit, to get him a little bit of exposure at some different spots,” Baldelli said, via The Athletic. “The last thing we would want to do is start sending him all around the field to play in places where he’s literally never played a game…But he was fantastic for us.”

In his professional baseball career, Lewis has played 308 games at shortstop, 13 games at third base, 6 games in center field, and 5 games at second base. 

There are not many places where the Twins are looking to replace the current fielder. Jorge Polanco has been heating up at the plate and holding second base steady. 

Luis Arraez is in the most similar situation as Lewis defensively. Arraez has played third base, first base, second base, shortstop and left field since he joined the Twins. Lewis replacing Arraez is not a solution on anybody’s roster, however, as Arraez has been batting .354, with only 7 strikeouts in 113 at bats. 

In his first at bat back in AAA, Lewis blasted a home run, showing once again that he does belong in the major leagues. 

Since Correas’ return from the IL, he has batted .300 in the 6 games he played in. Lewis down in AAA has been batting .346 in his last 7 games. 

After an apparent leg injury for right fielder Max Kepler, Lewis was once again called up to the big leagues, this time as a center fielder.  Lewis played just 1 game at center field in his time in Saint Paul. 

This center field debut did not last long. In the top of the 3rd inning, Emmanuel Rivera flew out sharply to deep center field. Lewis made the leaping catch at the wall, but this resulted in Lewis crashing into the wall, and leaving the game early with apparent “right knee soreness”. 

The last 2 years, Lewis has been plagued with injuries, most prominent including an ACL tear on the same knee he was experiencing soreness in. More tests will be run to evaluate the degree of Lewis’s condition. 

Less worrisome, but still concerning, Carlos Correa has contracted COVID and finds himself on the COVID IL.