2024 Leo Preview
No sign but Scorpio has won more Fantasy Astrology League points titles than Leo, going back to the mid 1940s. However, plenty of pitching injuries and a mediocre lineup will keep the Lions from being serious contenders for the Fire Division in 2024, according to MLB.com’s rankings of the top 300 fantasy players. Here’s my position-by-position preview of Leo heading into the 2024 Fantasy Astrology Baseball League season.
Rankings from MLB.com’s top 300, as of Valentine’s Day.
Tyler Stephenson (264) is a fine hitter, but he’s the kind of player you’ll find on the roster of a fantasy manager who waited until their last pick for a catcher. Yandy Diaz (103) on the other hand, has plenty of star power, as the reigning AL batting champion. Among dedicated second basemen, Brandon Drury (221) is the best, but the rankings point to an infield alignment that doesn’t include the Angels slugger at all.
At third base, Alec Bohm (166) should provide good counting stats as a contact hitter in a stacked Phillies lineup. Leo’s top infielder Matt McLain (49) split his 2023 rookie season between both middle infield spots for the Reds. It appeared that trend would continue into this season, but a shoulder injury puts that on hold. Instead, another graduating rookie, Ezequiel Tovar (179) of the Rockies will play opposite Drury to start the season.
The outfield, specifically center field, is where the Lions really shine. Reigning NL Rookie of the Year Corbin Carroll (4) played all over the outfield for the D-Backs, and he has MVP potential. White Sox slugger Luis Robert Jr. (30) is the best option in actual center field, although whoever is in charge of the player ratings on MLB The Show 24 believes that Mike Trout (63) is still worth a perfect 99. DH will be filled by a combination of Seiya Suzuki (114), Ian Happ (143), and J.D. Martinez (178)… but NOT TJ Friedl (131 as of Valentine’s Day), who is facing a lengthy injury absence.
Rankings from Lindy’s magazine, by position.
Leader of the NL Champion Arizona rotation, Zac Gallen (38) is a legitimate ace who could carry most fantasy staffs. Imagine my disappointment when I opened up my new copy of MLB The Show 24, and did NOT see Yoshinobu Yamamoto (48) in the player pool. Thankfully, the technical rookie (although an accomplished ace in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball) will be racking up real life fantasy points with the Dodgers. With Yu Darvish (188) taking the ball for the Padres Opening Day, Leo has two of the four pitchers who started in the Korea Series.
Beyond those four, injury questions begin to arise. Max Scherzer (261) succumbed to the injury that he tried to pitch through in last year’s World Series, and will be out for the first months of the season. The Dodgers are slow-playing Walker Buehler’s (118) return from Tommy John Surgery, so he won’t make his debut until later in the year. Hunter Greene (148) is one of the hardest throwers in the sport, but he has had trouble staying healthy his whole career.
Cleveland graduating rookie Gavin Williams (172) and promising Marlins hurler Braxton Garrett (192) will both start the season on the injured list. Triston McKenzie (234) is not currently injured, but he missed most of 2023. Giants rookie Kyle Harrison (275) and new Tampa Bay Ray Ryan Pepiot (230) have big prospect pedigrees, but are untested. And Reese Olson (281) also snuck into MLB’s top 300. So the starting pitching depth is there.
Not so in the bullpen. Not a single Leo reliever was ranked within the aforementioned top 300. I guess Pepiot technically had more relief appearances than starts in 2023, but he’s definitely rotation bound this season. The same is true of unranked options Nick Martinez and Javier Assad, on the Reds and Cubs, respectively. The best bet to actually sniff save opportunities is Rays setup man Jason Adam, although he’s firmly number two on the depth chart. The likes of Andrew Nardi, Chris Stratton, Giovanny Gallegos, and Wandy Peralta ensure that there will be warm bodies to throw when the starter gets tired, but the picture is fairly bleak.