2017 Preview: Boston Red Sox - MLB

Between now and Opening Day, HardballTalk will take a look at each of baseball’s 30 teams, asking the key questions, the not-so-key questions, and generally breaking down their chances for the 2017 season. Next up: The Boston Red Sox.

David Ortiz is retired, present only in Lego brick form down at Red Sox camp. His are certainly some big shoes to fill: he led the Sox in homers, RBI, on-base percentage and slugging percentage, after all. His would be a devastating loss for almost any team and the Sox will certainly miss him, but let us not pretend they’re hurting offensively. Indeed, there is strong reason to believe that the Red Sox will be baseball’s best offense in 2017, just as they were in 2016 with Big Papi. Or at the very least close to it.

Dustin Pedroia and Hanley Ramirez are still around and both showed in 2016 that they still have plenty left in the tank. Mookie Betts broke out as one of baseball’s best players and Xander Bogaerts and Jackie Bradley Jr. were both All-Stars at premium defensive positions. While left field was a problem for the Sox all season long in 2016, baseball’s top prospect and Rookie of the Year candidate Andrew Benintendi will break camp with the club and will almost certainly offer an improvement. Mitch Moreland wasn’t the sexiest free agent pickup in baseball this past winter, but he’s a gold glove first baseman with some pop who can help replace at least some of the left-handed power which will be lost by Ortiz’s absence.

The biggest question for the Red Sox as far as position players go is what they can expect to get from third baseman Pablo Sandoval. So far so good, as Sandoval reported to camp in excellent shape and has looked as solid as Sandoval can feasibly look on defense. His left-handed swing is reported to be in fine shape while his right-handed swing is still a work in progress. The Sox are certainly hoping he can be an everyday player again and not the left-handed side of a third base platoon, but if he even comes close to being a solid, everyday player again, their third base situation should improve over what they got in 2016.

As Red Sox camp opened, there was a good deal of talk about the club courting Matt Wieters or, at the very least, there being a wide open catching competition. In the past two weeks, however, that competition seems to have ended before it began. Sandy Leon will be the starter and Christian Vazquez will back him up. Blake Swihart, whose 2016 saw him work in the outfield and was ended by injury, will start at Triple-A, barring injury to either Leon of Vazquez.

Overall, it’s a great offensive core, led by a guy who was an MVP candidate at 23. That’s the sort of thing that will help John Farrell sleep well at night. Obviously, though, the biggest offseason news for the Red Sox involved their rotation. Welcome Chris Sale.

If Sale looks unhappy, it may be because someone told him that David Price is getting an MRI for elbow soreness. We don’t know what’s going to happen there, but let’s assume for a second that it’s a big nothingburger and that Price will be fine. If so, the 1-2-3 of Sale, Price and 2016 Cy Young winner Rick Porcello may be the strongest 1-2-3 in the league. Knuckleballer Steven Wright — who posted an ERA+ of 137 last season — is a solid as all get-out #4 and Eduardo Rodriguez, Drew Pomeranz or some combination will slot in at #5. That’ll play. The Sox hope to God that they don’t have a problem with Price — if he’s out for an extended period it totally changes the complexion of the rotation — but Sale and Porcello at the top would still make for a solid rotation.

The bullpen has a new look for 2017. Last year the relief corps was shaky early before stabilizing as the season wore on. There are still old faces here — Craig Kimbrel will still close — but gone are Koji Uehara, Junichi Tazawa and occasional bullpen resident Clay Buchholz. In comes Tyler Thornburg from Milwaukee. He’ll join Joe Kelly, who looked strong late in the season, as a setup man and could close if Kimbrel falters. Matt Barnes will figure in late as well. To the extent they don’t get starts, guys like Eduardo Rodriguez, Drew Pomeranz and Steven Wright could see some relief work as well. Bullpens can be tricky and unpredictable, but on paper this looks like a more solid group than the Sox had heading into 2016. A lot depends on Kimbrel regaining his old form.

However that shakes out, the Sox look to be among the strongest teams in the American League and should be considered the favorites in their division. And that’s my PREDICTION: FIRST PLACE, AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST.

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CARSON CITY, Nev. — A bill introduced in the Nevada Legislature would give the Oakland Athletics up to $380 million for a potential 30,000 seat, $1.5 billion retractable roof stadium on the Las Vegas Strip.

The bulk of the public funding would come from $180 million in transferable tax credits from the state and $120 million in county bonds, which can vary based on interest rate returns. Clark County also would contribute $25 million in credit toward infrastructure costs.

The A’s have been looking for a home to replace Oakland Coliseum, where the team has played since arriving from Kansas City for the 1968 season. The team had sought to build a stadium in Fremont, San Jose and finally the Oakland waterfront, all ideas that never materialized.

The plan in the Nevada Legislature won’t directly raise taxes. It can move forward with a simply majority vote in the Senate and Assembly. Lawmakers have a little more than a week to consider the proposal before they adjourn June 5, though it could be voted on if a special session is called.

The Athletics have agreed to use land on the southern end of the Las Vegas Strip, where the Tropicana Las Vegas casino resort sits. Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao has said he is disappointed the team didn’t negotiate with Oakland as a “true partner.”

Las Vegas would be the fourth home for a franchise that started as the Philadelphia Athletics from 1901-54. It would become the smallest TV market in Major League Baseball and the smallest market to be home to three major professional sports franchises.

The team and Las Vegas are hoping to draw from the nearly 40 million tourists who visit the city annually to help fill the stadium. The 30,000-seat capacity would make it the smallest MLB stadium.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said a vote on the Oakland Athletics’ prospective move to Las Vegas could take place when owners meet June 13-15 in New York.

The plan faces an uncertain path in the Nevada Legislature. Democratic leaders said financing bills, including for the A’s, may not go through if Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo vetoes the five budget bills, which he has threatened to do as many of his priorities have stalled or faded in the Democratic-controlled Legislature.

Under the bill, the Clark County Board of Commissioners would create a homelessness prevention and assistance fund along the stadium’s area in coordination with MLB and the Nevada Resort Association. There, they would manage funds for services, including emergency rental and utility assistance, job training, rehabilitation and counseling services for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

The lease agreement with the Las Vegas Stadium Authority would be up for renewal after 30 years.

Nevada’s legislative leadership is reviewing the proposal, Democratic state Assembly Speaker Steve Yeager said in a statement.

“No commitment will be made until we have both evaluated the official proposal and received input from interested parties, including impacted community members,” Yeager said.