The Ball Girls had a rough year in 2006. Team McManus-Fites suffered through a rash of injuries to starters like Albert Pujols and Manny Ramirez. In 2007, however, this could be a team on the rise. A huge trade right before the protected list deadline has filled the holes they needed to fill.DON'T NEEDS
IF: The Ball Girls are loaded around the diamond. Let's see: Pujols, Kendrick, Jeter, Atkins, & Hernandez. That's quite an around-the-horn team. The only real question mark is youngster Kendrick and whether he is as good as he showed in the minors. I say yes.
OF: If healthy, the trio of Ramirez, Ordonez, and Adam Dunn is as solid as any. That's a big IF though since Manny & Maggs have both missed considerable time in the past. Dunn is a workhorse.
SP: Webb, Beckett, Mussina, Schmidt, and Contreras. That's a pretty decent starting 5. Again, if healthy, they should be solid all year.
NEEDS
RP: Who doesn't need closers in Smokey Louis? Gordon and Jones, however, are Old & Older. The Girls will definitely need to upgrade here and draft some insurance.
DH: Perhaps the Achilles Heel of this team is a lack of depth demonstrated by the Girls having no DH. Translation: a major injury to a core position player could prove fatal unless they draft some quality depth. Bill Hall was jettisoned in the offseason because of a contract dispute with upper management thus leaving the Girls thin in this area.
PROGNOSTICATION
Look for the Ball Girls to draft RP and OF in the first couple rounds. The trade which brought Dunn & Beckett to the Girls may be the move which puts the Ball Girls back in the Series. If this team can draft well, plug the few holes they have, and stay healthy, look for the Girls to make a run at a second title.
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