2024 MLB Division Previews: NL Central
Milwaukee Brewers
2023 - 92-70, 1st place, lost WCS to Diamondbacks
Offseason - signed OF prospect Jackson Chourio to 8-year contract, signed 1B Rhys Hoskins, hired Pat Murphy as manager
2024 Outlook - The Brewers are expected to take a step back this season after trading away their ace pitcher, Corbin Burnes, to the Orioles. Bradon Woodruff isn’t expected to pitch this season due to injury, and thier All Star closer Devin Williams will also be out for at least two month with a back injury. Their former manager, Craig Counsell, left to join their division rival, Cubs, in the offseason. One exciting thing to watch will be the play of top prospect Jackson Chourio, who just signed a long term contract in the offseason. Past that, there isn’t much on this team to give you hope they’ll be able to compete this season, especially with a lot of other teams in this division getting better.
Over/Under Wins Prediction - 76.5 - Under. That seems like a pretty fair line so I don’t expect them to be too far under that number but there’s not going to be a whole lot of optimism for the Brew Crew in 2024.
Chicago Cubs
2023 - 83-79, missed postseason
Offseason - hired Craig Counsell as manager, re-signed OF Cody Bellinger, signed SP Shota Imanaga
2024 Outlook - After just missing out of the postseason in 2023, the Cubs are looking to find their way back playing baseball in October in 2024. They changed leadership with the firing of David Ross and bringing in former Brewers skipper, Craig Counsell, as manager. They re-sgined Cody Bellinger after his great comeback season in Chicago and also signed prized Japanese pitcher, Shota Imanaga, to a 4-year contract. Starting pitcher Justin Steele had a breakout season in 2023 and they’ll need him to be the ace of this staff. The Cubs lineup has a good mix of veterans and young talent that should be competing for a division championship in 2024.
Over/Under Wins Prediction - 84.5 - Over. I think the Cubs will build on the success of last season and end their postseason drought.
Cincinnati Reds
2023 - 82-80, missed postseason
Offseason - nothing of note
2024 Outlook - The Reds played meaningful baseball late into the summer in 2023, something the fan base has been starving for for a while. The breakout debut of Elly De La Cruz brought some swagger back to Cincy. There’s a ton of young talent on this team - Hunter Greene, Jemier Candelario, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Matt McClain, and Jonathan India. The question is will they take a step forward and win enough to make the postseason. This is a very winnable division and for that reason there’s real hope the Reds could be playing October baseball in 2024. They’re gonna have to pitch better than they have and hope they can win as a team as well as they can play individually.
Over/Under Wins Prediction - 82.5 - Over. The Reds continue to improve and develop their young talent and will snag a wild card spot.
Pittsburgh Pirates
2023 - 76-86, missed postseason
Offseason - signed 1B Rowdy Tellez, resigned OF Andrew McCutchen, signed RP Aroldis Chapman, signed SP Mitch Keller to 5-year extension
2024 Outlook - After a very good start that has whispers of October baseball again in Pittsburgh, the Pirates came back down to earth and finished with another losing season. However, it was a step in the right direction and they will be looking to continue that upward trend in 2024. Oniel Cruz will be back healthy and will join Bryan Reynolds and Ke’Bryan Hayes as the young core of this team. They locked down their ace, Mitch Keller, to a long term contract. Past Keller, the rotation is looking a bit thin. They’ll need massive improvements there before they are considered a contender for this division.
Over/Under Wins Prediction - 73.5 - Under. As much as I would like to be optimistic about the Pirates, I think they are still a couple years away from being a winning team. I think they overachieved a ton last season and will fall back a bit in 2024.
St. Louis Cardinals
2023 - 71-91, missed postseason
Offseason - signed SP Sonny Gray, singed SP Kyle Gibson, signed SP Lance Lynn, signed SS Brandon Crawford
2024 Outlook - Last year was a disaster for the Cardinals. After expecting to contend for the division, the red birds never got going last year and finished dead last in a bad division. A big issue was their pitching and they went out and signed a few veteran arms, most notably, Sonny Gray, to help fix that issue. Looking at the roster heading into this year, they should be a lot better. They still have two of the best hitters in the game in Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado. Jordan Walker had a nice breakthrough season in 2023 and will add some young talent to this veteran-heavy lineup. If the pitching stays healthy, St. Louis should be a favorite to win the division in 2024.
Over/Under Wins Prediction - 84.5 - Over. The Cardinals will be back to their winning ways in 2024. A lot of things went wrong for them last year, I don’t expect that to happen again.