Super Bowl 50 is complete. The Denver Broncos are celebrating a 24-10 victory against the Carolina Panthers. This all means, of course, that baseball spring training is the next big event.
The Orioles' first workout for pitchers and catchers is Feb. 19. The Nationals start a day later. Both teams' pitchers and catchers report on Feb. 18.
The Orioles' biggest questions are pitching and right field. The Nationals' new manager, Dusty Baker, will have five new bullpen pitchers and a rotation that has Tanner Roark and Joe Ross at the back.
But every team in the National League East and American League East has questions:
Atlanta: The Braves could be on their way to losing 95 games as they enter their second year of rebuilding. Julio Teheran is the only proven starter, although they have a list of prospects. Freddie Freeman hit .276 with 18 home runs and 66 RBIs last season, but who is going to support Freeman in the Braves lineup? Former Oriole Nick Markakis hit .296 with three home runs last season. Third baseman Adonis Garcia and outfielder Cameron Maybin were the second-best power hitters on the team with 10 home runs each. Maybin has been replaced in center field by Ender Inciarte, who hit .303 with six home runs for Arizona last season. The Braves finished last in runs, 573, last season in the NL.
Boston: The Red Sox added three pitchers - starter David Price and relievers Carson Smith and Craig Kimbrel - but will third baseman Pablo Sandoval (.245 last season) and first baseman Hanley Ramirez (.249) hit like corner infielders are supposed to hit? And with Rusney Castillo, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Mookie Betts, from left to right in the outfield, will the Red Sox regret not having more experience? Castillo hit .253, Bradley .249 and Betts .291 with 18 home runs last season.
Miami: The Marlins and new manager Don Mattingly are all about handling expectations. Last year, they were the trendy pick to win the NL East. They started slow and faded quickly. They had trouble scoring runs, ranking 14th in the NL, so this year, new batting coach Barry Bonds has work to do. Their bullpen has power arms. Giancarlo Stanton's health is key and so is a bounceback season for centerfielder Marcell Ozuna. Stanton hit 27 home runs in 74 games last season. Ozuna hit .254 with 10 home runs. And, of course, how many innings does ace pitcher Jose Fernandez have in his arm?
New York Mets: The Mets have the strongest rotation in the NL, but is Yoenis Cespedes going to carry the offense as he did last season when the Mets won the NL East? And how will the young pitching handle the hangover of playing the World Series? Manager Terry Collins says he'll be watching his young arms closely in spring training.
New York Yankees: The Yankees' Aroldis Chapman, who averages 15.7 strikeouts per nine innings, completes a lights-out bullpen that also has Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller. The bullpen is strong, but do the Yankees have enough starting pitching and can they score enough runs, given the creaking bodies of Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira and Carlos Beltran? Rodriguez is 40, Beltran 38 and Teixeira 35.
Philadelphia: The Phillies won two National League pennants and a World Series from 2007 to 2011, but most of those players - from Jimmy Rollins to Chase Utley to Cole Hamels - are a distant memory. The Phillies have traded all their big-name players, with the exception of Ryan Howard. The Braves aren't the only team in the division rebuilding.
Tampa Bay: With Matt Moore, Drew Smyly and Alex Cobb returning from injuries, the Rays rotation, which had the lowest ERA (3.63) in the league last season, will be even stronger. But the Rays' 644 runs ranked second-to-last in the AL last season. The question: How much will left fielder Corey Dickerson, who hit .304 with 10 home runs for Colorado last season, and former Oriole Steve Pearce help Evan Longoria and the Rays offense?
Toronto: The Blue Jays last season won the AL East for the first time since 1993 and lefty Price was a big reason why. But now that Price has moved to Boston, can the Blue Jays count on 24-year-old Marcus Stroman, a pitcher with a Pedro Martinez-like build and never-ending determination, to lead the rotation? Last season, Stroman tore his left ACL and the Blue Jays said it was "far-fetched'' that he could pitch in 2015. He came back and won all four starts in September with a 1.67 ERA, including the division clincher against the Orioles at Camden Yards. He then pitched three games in the postseason.
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