Author: jwyllys7@gmail.com (Jared Wyllys)

The Brewers held the first-place spot in their division for almost all of the first half of the 2017 season, and to make a more serious run at the NL Central they’ll need prospects such as Lewis Brinson to make an impact. And the Angels made one of the biggest splashes of the offseason in signing Shohei Ohtani, who seems bound for success however they use him.

The Cardinals need their pitching staff to be strong to return to the postseason after missing out the past two seasons, and in Alex Reyes they have a solid candidate to make that happen. Meanwhile, the Rays were part of a three-team deal a year ago that brought them Mallex Smith, a quality hitter and base runner who could lead off and play left field for them for years to come.

It’s possible that the now-depleted Marlins might slightly redeem themselves after their sell-off, thanks to the Marcell Ozuna trade that yielded them a young pitcher filled with potential. And it’s possible that the Royals have an outfielder who could be a steady presence in their lineup for years to come.

The teams in the middle of the pack in baseball don’t have the luxury of recent success to celebrate or an active rebuild to pin hopes on, but both the Pirates and Mariners have young outfielders who could make their mark next season regardless.

The Braves’ Ozzie Albies has one of the higher ceilings of the young prospects going into 2018. Meanwhile, the Rangers’ Willie Calhoun could be a staple of their outfield for several years to come.

Brandon Morrow last handled ninth-inning duties with regularity close to a decade ago, when he earned 16 saves between the 2008 and 2009 seasons in Seattle.

Sometimes, changing teams and getting a spot in the lineup every day is all a player needs to break out.

For the Mets, they have who might be their first baseman of the future in Dominic Smith, and in Baltimore, Austin Hays could round out a quality outfield and provide an impact bat to go with Adam Jones and Manny Machado.

The Reds are stuck at the bottom of a deep division, and the the Athletics often seem to be in a perpetual rebuild, never shy to sell off talent for prospects, but eventually they have to see results those exchanges.

The Phillies and White Sox will need a few of their blue-chip prospects to shine in 2018, but the difference could come from a pair of slightly off-the-radar pieces.