2024 Aries Preview
I’ve always wondered if baseball players born under Aries are influenced by the fact that MLB’s Opening Day almost always falls during Aries season. Historically, the Rams have been one of the most successful Fantasy Astrology signs, and they’ve got another strong team here in 2024, according to MLB.com’s rankings of the top 300 fantasy players. Here’s my position-by-position preview of Aries heading into the 2024 Fantasy Astrology Baseball League season.
Rankings from MLB.com’s top 300, as of Valentine’s Day.
While batting in the middle of an absoluetly stacked Dodgers lineup, Will Smith (73) will probably enjoy the most consistent RBI opportunities of any catcher in the league. Aries also includes two of the cornerstones of the only lineup that could challenge Los Angeles pound for pound: Matt Olson (14) and Austin Riley (18) of the Braves. The corner infield for the Rams is embarrassingly deep, with Christian Walker (79) behind Olson at first, and both Nolan Arenado (84) and Alex Bregman (87) battling for the BACKUP third base job.
Second baseman Luis Arraez (140) has won two batting titles in a row, one in each league. The Marlins infielder has a huge leg up in the rankings over Jeff McNeil (251), who will nonetheless likely earn a starting spot due to the outfield eligibility he earned with the Mets. The Aries shortstop role is in the hands of Cardinals rookie Masyn Winn, who has shown some good power/speed numbers in the minors. Also of note is minor league shortstop Jackson Merrill (unranked as of Valentine’s Day, but who jumped onto the list at 284 as of Daylight Savings), although San Diego will put him in the outfield for his debut season.
It's possible that Brandon Nimmo (152) loses center field eligibility after this season, if Harrison Bader is able to stay healthy for the Mets. But even if that happens, Chas McCormick (156) is around to pick up the slack as outfield captain. Without McNeil in the other corner spot, this Aries outfield picture is fairly bleak, with Sal Frelick (271) the only other ranked option. However, a breakout by the aforementioned Merrill or Cubs rookie Pete Crow-Armstrong could brighten the outlook for the future.
Rankings from Lindy’s magazine, by position.
It's certainly not good news that the top-ranked Aries pitcher as of Valentine’s Day – Eury Perez (81) – is experiencing some ominous elbow inflammation… but the Aries rotation has the depth to handle some injuries. Rays ace Zach Eflin (88) and Dodgers graduating rookie Bobby Miller (85) will battle it out for the start on Opening Day. Meanwhile, Mitch Keller (168) should be the ace of the Pirates. And that still leaves two pitchers ranked within MLB’s top 200 to round out the rotation: Cristian Javier (170) and Chris Sale (187).
The depth on this sign is rivaled only by Gemini and Scorpio (and Leo, spoiler alert), with an entire rotation’s worth of pitchers ranked within the top 300, as of Valentine’s Day. However, many of those options have injury issues themselves. Kenta Maeda (258) looks to be on track with the Tigers, but Eduardo Rodriguez (207) had to leave his most recent Spring Training start early. Taj Bradley (279) and Edward Cabrera (287) are facing long absences. Frankie Montas (289) is looking to bounce back from an injury-ruined 2023. And both Brandon Williamson and Anthony DeSclafani will start the season on the injured list.
Thankfully, the Aries bullpen has some strong options to pick up the slack. If Edwin Diaz (46) can return from the freak knee injury that ended his 2023 season before it began, he and Josh Hader (54) will form the most dynamic 1-2 bullpen punch in the game. If either of them falters, Clay Holmes (128) is around to pick up saves for the Yankees. Other unranked names to keep in mind: David Robertson has a long career as a closer. Kevin Ginkel is the primary D-Backs setup man. And Joel Payamps could get some saves for the Brewers during Devin Williams’s injury absence.