Preview/Prediction

As we get set to kick off the MLB season, now is as good a time as any to play some over/under on what to expect statistically from some of the game's biggest stars in 2015.

Over/under 40 home runs for Giancarlo Stanton?

Over/under 20 wins for Madison Bumgarner?

Earlier this week, we looked at poor souls who were victimized by bad luck during the 2014 Major League Baseball season and who are therefore due for good luck in 2015.

'Twas a happy discussion, as forecasting good luck is cheerful work. Certainly much more cheerful than forecasting bad luck, anyway.

There is an overwhelming hope that the 2015 Chicago Cubs will be a competitive group. That hope comes from the fact the team made several savvy offseason moves and its prospects are finally ready to make an impact at the big league level.

In just over two weeks, the season will open at Wrigley Field and the Cubs will take on the rival St Louis Cardinals. You better believe the atmosphere is going to be the most electric it's been in Wrigleyville in several years.

When the Los Angeles Dodgers began spring training two weeks ago, most positions featured clear-cut starters who would not be facing much job competition leading up to Opening Day.

The exception—and biggest question mark facing the organization as it prepared to defend its National League West division crown—focused on the opening in center field.

Despite a rash of injuries around the game, baseball's rumor mill has been relatively quiet as we creep closer to Opening Day.

Part of that can be attributed to the exorbitant, ridiculous asking prices by some teams for their established pieces (I'm looking in your direction, Philadelphia), but by and large, more teams than ever before seem to be embracing the idea of "next man up."

We've been trained to ignore most of the on-field action during spring training, as success (or failure) during baseball's exhibition season doesn't necessarily foretell of the same once Opening Day rolls around.

It happens every year.

From minor league journeymen to discarded prospects, there are always pitchers who emerge out of relative anonymity to become surprise rotation weapons. Last year, the likes of Matt Shoemaker and Collin McHugh fit that description, and in 2015 there promises to be a few low-profile arms who step up in a big way.

The Diamondbacks have started well this spring despite tempered expectations in 2015. Entering Saturday, Arizona sported a 6-4 record and is one of only seven National League teams with a positive run differential (+4).

The Washington Nationals' mostly solidified and entirely stacked roster is very low on drama this spring when it comes to position battles. 

Entering camp, the Nats had eight position players locked into everyday roles and five veteran starting pitchers plugged into the rotation.

The Atlanta Braves weren't very good at scoring runs in 2014. They averaged only 3.54 runs per game, which was the second-fewest in MLB and the organization's worst offensive showing since 1988.