To see if we can generate some more interaction, we’ll be running Fanpost Fridays, at least through spring training - if the response is good, these will then continue once the regular season starts up. The aim is to pose a question, and have people answer it in the form of a Fanpost. Well-formed ones will then be promoted to the front page and featured on the site over the weekend, and you may even find yourself in Google News. Please also read and, as appropriate, recommend any submitted Fanposts.
The issue: Who will be on the Opening Day roster?
Let’s start off with the possible candidates, broken down by position - in a format helpfully suitable for copy-pasting into your answer! The first block in each section are the 40-man candidates, the second are the non-roster invitees. So if you add anyone from the second groups to your Opening Day roster, remember to say which of the current 40-man squad will be DFA’d to make room for them...
# Name B/T Ht Wt DOB Pitchers 70 Anthony Banda L/L 6'2" 190lbs 8/10/93 33 Jake Barrett R/R 6'2" 240lbs 7/22/91 61 Silvino Bracho R/R 5'10" 190lbs 7/17/92 25 Archie Bradley R/R 6'4" 225lbs 8/10/92 36 Enrique Burgos R/R 6'4" 250lbs 11/23/90 40 Andrew Chafin R/L 6'2" 225lbs 6/17/90 46 Patrick Corbin L/L 6'3" 210lbs 7/19/89 48 Randall Delgado R/R 6'4" 220lbs 2/9/90 52 Zack Godley R/R 6'3" 240lbs 4/21/90 21 Zack Greinke R/R 6'2" 200lbs 10/21/83 32 Steve Hathaway L/L 6'1" 185lbs 9/13/90 53 Tyler Jones R/R 6'4" 240lbs 9/5/89 55 Matt Koch L/R 6'3" 215lbs 11/2/90 50 Evan Marshall R/R 6'2" 225lbs 4/18/90 26 Shelby Miller R/R 6'3" 225lbs 10/10/90 38 Robbie Ray L/L 6'2" 195lbs 10/1/91 56 Fernando Rodney R/R 5'11" 230lbs 3/18/77 68 Jimmie Sherfy R/R 6'0" 175lbs 12/27/91 34 Braden Shipley R/R 6'1" 190lbs 2/22/92 99 Taijuan Walker R/R 6'4" 235lbs 8/13/92 58 Erik Davis R/R 6'3" 205lbs 10/8/86 59 Jorge De La Rosa L/L 6'1" 215lbs 4/5/81 12 Rubby De La Rosa R/R 6'0" 210lbs 3/4/89 67 Miller Diaz R/R 6'1" 230lbs 6/22/92 75 Frank Duncan R/R 6'4" 215lbs 1/30/92 72 Daniel Gibson R/L 6'3" 215lbs 10/16/91 60 J.J. Hoover R/R 6'3" 240lbs 8/13/87 45 Kevin Jepsen R/R 6'3" 235lbs 7/26/84 65 Joey Krehbiel R/R 6'2" 185lbs 12/20/92 15 Brian Matusz L/L 6'5" 190lbs 2/11/87 63 Jared Miller L/L 6'7" 240lbs 8/21/93 64 Yuhei Nakaushiro L/L 6'0" 160lbs 9/17/89 47 Keyvius Sampson R/R 6'2" 225lbs 1/6/91 62 Josh Taylor L/L 6'5" 225lbs 3/2/93 54 Tom Wilhelmsen R/R 6'6" 220lbs 12/16/83 Catchers 28 Oscar Hernandez R/R 6'1" 230lbs 7/9/93 10 Chris Herrmann L/R 6'0" 200lbs 11/24/87 8 Chris Iannetta R/R 6'0" 230lbs 4/8/83 2 Jeff Mathis R/R 6'0" 205lbs 3/31/83 37 Hank Conger S/R 6'2" 220lbs 1/29/88 29 Josh Thole L/R 6'1" 205lbs 10/28/86 Infield 13 Nick Ahmed R/R 6'2" 195lbs 3/15/90 3 Daniel Descalso L/R 5'10" 190lbs 10/19/86 27 Brandon Drury R/R 6'2" 210lbs 8/21/92 44 Paul Goldschmidt R/R 6'3" 225lbs 9/10/87 22 Jake Lamb L/R 6'3" 215lbs 10/9/90 74 Domingo Leyba S/R 5'11" 160lbs 9/11/95 71 Dawel Lugo R/R 6'0" 190lbs 12/31/94 4 Ketel Marte S/R 6'1" 165lbs 10/12/93 16 Chris Owings R/R 5'10" 185lbs 8/12/91 76 Jack Reinheimer R/R 6'1" 185lbs 7/19/92 73 Ildemaro Vargas S/R 6'0" 170lbs 7/16/91 14 Kristopher Negron R/R 6'0" 190lbs 2/1/86 Outfield 19 Socrates Brito L/L 6'2" 205lbs 9/6/92 41 Jeremy Hazelbaker L/R 6'3" 190lbs 8/14/87 6 David Peralta L/L 6'1" 210lbs 8/14/87 11 A.J. Pollock R/R 6'1" 195lbs 12/5/87 24 Yasmany Tomas R/R 6'2" 250lbs 11/14/90 31 Oswaldo Arcia L/R 6'0" 225lbs 5/9/91 5 Gregor Blanco L/L 5'11" 175lbs 12/24/83 66 Reymond Fuentes L/L 6'0" 160lbs 2/12/91 30 Jason Pridie L/R 6'1" 205lbs 10/9/83
As well as a list of the actual players, I’d love to hear reasons for your choices and how you decided the various position battles. Over the past week, we’ve looked at a number of the questions which will need to be answered by the team over Spring Training. As a reminder, here they are:
- Figuring out the bullpen
- The 5th starter
- Setting a shortstop
- Meet the Manager
- Catching on
- The fourth outfield man
If you feel there are other topics of significance that you addressed, be sure to bring those up too. It’ll be interesting to see who ends up getting the closest to Torey Lovullo’s actual 25-man roster on Opening Day...
Writing a Fanpost
Note: comments will be locked on this post. So the only way to respond is to write a fanpost, in which you set out your position and explain it. Get started by clicking here! This will then take you into the editor. In many ways, it isn’t all that different from posting a comment - you get some more flexibility with regard to formatting, and it’s a spiffier editor, but you can simply write away if you want. You do need to come up with at least 150 words. And yes, repeating “Shelby Miller sux” 50 times will result in a firm, disapproving stare from the SnakePit authorities. Do not go there.
Protip: You may want to write it up in Notepad or whatever, then copy and paste it over. Or if you are writing directly into the editor, be careful with the backspace button. If your mouse is outside the body and you hit backspace, it will take you back a page and you may lose any work that has not been auto saved. Just trust me on this one.
Useful link: Extra Fanpost help guide