Our early look at 2022 Potential Keeper Rosters continues with the Maltese Falcons, Mission Viejo Maulers, Mt. Diablo Devils and Burlingame Blue Ducks. Each of these Franchises missed the Playoffs in 2021 and will look to get back on track this season.
For a full look at the 2022 Projected Keeper Rosters, visit the 2022 RDBL Draft Spreadsheet.
Maltese Falcons
Spring Training will play a critical role in the formation of the Falcons Roster and Farm System as Gavin Lux, Nick Madrigal, Trevor Larnach, Nolan Gorman, Triston Casas, Heliot Ramos, Jeter Downs and Brent Honeywell have all spent time either in the big leagues or at Triple-A giving GM Gary Falzon and Assistant GM Erik Nielsen arguably the most experience group of prospects in the RDBL. While Lux is a safe bet to be activated, other in the above group can certainly put the pressure on the Falcons Front Office with big Spring Training performances.
The Falcons appear confident in Ranger Suarez (2FA/$5) following his breakout year and currently have him penciled in between star Zack Wheeler (2/$25) and Tyler Mahle (2/$8) atop the rotation. One name to watch is Michael Lorenzen (2FA/$5) who recently signed a one-year, $7 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels and is projected to get a long look as a starting pitcher after pitching exclusively out of the bullpen in 2021. That could give the Falcons the opportunity to hold Lorenzen in the RP role for their Keeper Roster.
Andrew Benintendi (2/$10) is certainly in the picture for the club's 2022 plans but could also serve as a potential trade candidate. The outfielder posted a solid .276/.324/.442 line across 493 at-bats last season. He will likely battle multi-positional threat Josh Rojas (2FA/$5) for one of the final roster spots.
Mission Viejo Maulers
GM Chris Ferraro has a bit of a logjam at catcher, an advantageous position for a club looking for additional veteran assets heading into 2022. The club holds the rights to Daulton Varsho (2/$7) and Alejandro Kirk (2/$1) on Major League deals while elite prospect Keibert Ruiz (Minors) appears ready to take over the starting spot in Washington.
The health of the starting staff looks to be the key to the 2022 season for the Maulers as the club is counting on the return of Justin Verlander (2/$5) and Mike Clevinger (2/$10) after missing 2021 due to Tommy John surgery.
Dustin May (2/$14) was one of the hottest names in Auction last season but lost his season after just 23.0 innings due to Tommy John. He is expected to miss much of the 2022 Regular Season, likely leading to his release but the Maulers are strong bets to seek a reunion either in Auction or leveraging the new Reserve Draft rules that allow for the option of retaining a player for a third season at $15.
Kyle Lewis (2/$36) is another likely release following a knee injury that limited him to just 136 at-bats last season. Lewis also stands as a potential reunion candidate, though a heavy discount on his contract is expected in Auction.
The Maulers took a leap of faith with their acquisition of Ronald Acuña (3R/$5) as he recovers from a torn ACL. Entering the final season of team control, the club is hopeful Acuña can return to the field by early May at the latest after dealing away 2021 Waiver Claim of the Year Cedric Mullins and Reliever of the Year Mark Melancon in return.
The club looks poised to finally pull the activation trigger of shortstop Willy Adames (Minors) who has 1,501 big league at-bats without an official point in the RDBL. Adames could be joined in the middle infield by fellow activation candidate Nico Hoerner (Minors) who was acquired from the Maltese Falcons at last season's deadline.
Mt. Diablo Devils
The Devils are currently projected to have one of the largest cap space numbers in the RDBL giving GM Jason Watson a number of options this off-season. The club is expected to activate Wander Franco and Cal Quantrill while Jesus Sanchez, James Kaprielian, Luis Patiño, Nick Lodolo and Deivi Garcia could all make pushes for the Opening Day roster as well.
The club will face a difficult choice on Alec Bohm (2R/$3) who suffered through a rough sophomore campaign by slashing .247/.305/.342 in 380 at-bats. His numbers led to a late season demotion back to Triple-A leaving his starting spot in Philadelphia up in the air heading into 2022.
The Front Office will be counting on Adam Wainwright (2/$4), Luis Garcia (2FA/$5) and Cal Quantrill (Minors) carrying over their unexpectedly strong seasons in 2021. Wainwright finished the season ranked fourth in scoring with 563.0 points due to a 3.05 ERA and 1.06 WHIP in 206 1/3 innings at age 40. Garcia emerged as a dependable option, posting a 3.30 ERA in 155 innings.
The club was encouraged with the final outings from Blake Snell (2/$45) but a quick release is likely due to his oversized contract after posting just 258.0 points with a 4.20 ERA in 27 outings.
The likely addition of the DH in the National League could be a strong boost to Avisail Garcia (2/$9) who just signed a four year, $53 million deal with the Miami Marlins. A Keeper regardless of the ruling, Garcia would vault to a 500 at-bat candidate and potential 400 point player which would be a welcome sight for Watson's club.
While Watson would like to remain patient with their emerging Farm System, the club recognizes they are already one season in on young star Bo Bichette's contract adding some pressure to compete by 2023. Bichette ranked 3rd among shortstops with 467.5 points while hitting 29 home runs and 30 doubles.
Burlingame Blue Ducks
The long awaited activation of catcher Joey Bart (Minors) appears to have arrived as the Ducks are planning on the Giants backstop being active on Opening Day.
Outside of activation Alek Manoah (Minors) and carryover Framber Valdez (2FA/$5), the Ducks could go in a number of different directions to fill out their pitching staff. Cristian Javier (2FA/$5), Andrew Heaney (3/$4), Justin Dunn (2FA/$5), Michael Pineda (2/$1) and potential activation Reid Detmers (Minors) could all be options behind their top two starters.
The club faces a tough decision on outfielder Ramon Laureano (3/$1) who provides strong value on his contract but will miss roughly the first month of the season as he concludes a PED suspension that will carryover from last season.
A major bounceback from Paul Goldschmidt (2/$35) has the Ducks optimistic about their offense core as the slugger is joined by Whit Merrifield (3/$38), Kris Bryant (2/$24) and Gleyber Torres (3R/$5) to lead the group of hitters.
The Ducks spent just $43 on their starting rotation in 2021, the second lowest mark in the RDBL. The results weren't pretty as the Ducks ranked last in pitcher scoring while posting a 4.26 ERA and just 46 quality starts, the second lowest mark in the league. That could impact Walsh's pursuit of a top of the rotation starter this off-season.
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