Repeating as World Series champion is a killer.
No team has done it since the Yankees had their three-year run in 1998-2000, and no National League team has done it since Cincinnati’s Big Red Machine in 1975-76.
The Giants have a legitimate chance, though, because they return the arms that stole the show last October. Nevertheless, they face a major challenge even making it to the playoffs in arguably baseball’s most improved division.
The Padres’ decision to trade first baseman Adrian Gonzalez rather than lose him to free agency makes for the only significant subtraction in the NL West, where the Rockies, Dodgers and possibly even the stripped-down Padres figure as possible 90-game winners.
Almost nobody saw the Giants coming a year ago. Matt Cain emerged from Tim Lincecum’s shadow with a scoreless postseason and catcher Buster Posey established himself as the new Carlton Fisk. Manager Bruce Bochy masterfully handled a lineup that seemed to change on a daily basis, succeeding despite the troubles of the hyped Pablo Sandoval.
Can lightning strike twice?
“We certainly believe in ourselves and what we’re capable of doing,” Bochy says. “We’re not going to get caught (up) into what the expectations or the predictions are. Last year, I don’t know when we were the favorites, ever. We found a way to get it done. We’re fine with that.”
Look out for the Rockies. Colorado is poised to stay on the second-half roll it got on behind Troy Tulowitzki and Carlos Gonzalez, who are game-changers against even the best pitching.
Dodgers GM Ned Colletti creatively restocked his team despite the ugly McCourt divorce and questions about the team’s ownership and financing. By re-signing Ted Lilly and adding Jon Garland, he gave rookie manager Don Mattingly a deep starting rotation that will contribute to a lot of 3-2 and 2-1 games when the Dodgers play the rival Giants.
