Baseball is back. The 2022 season is expected to begin on April 7. Thankfully, it’s going to be a 162-game regular season. Moreover, several exciting things could happen during the regular season.
First of all, three great pitchers could reach 200 wins in 2022. 3-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer already earned 190 wins so far in his career. Last year, Scherzer had 15 wins. If he can replicate his performance, it shouldn’t be that difficult for him to record 10 wins this year. Another 3-time Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw will return to the Dodgers in 2022. It will be his 15th season with the Dodgers and he needs 15 wins to join the 200-win club. However, due to injury, Kershaw only made 22 starts and earned 10 wins last year. Staying healthy is the top priority for him. Additionally, Adam Wainwright will pitch for the Cardinals for the 17th season. He had 17 wins in 2021 and he will need 16 wins in his final season to join the 200-win club.
Meanwhile, Madison Bumgarner already threw 1948 strikeouts so far. Last year, he struck out 124 batters and it might not be too hard for him to reach 2000 strikeouts this year.
At the same time, some hitters are also reaching important milestones. Miguel Cabrera needs 13 hits to join the 3000-hit club. We might be able to see the future Hall of Famer reach this milestone in April. And, Nelson Cruz signed a 1-year contract with the Nationals. He’s already 41 years old, however, age doesn’t seem to be a big issue for him. In 2021, he was hitting .265/.334/.497 and he had 136 hits. Cruz will need 87 hits to join the 2000-hit club. Moreover, Elvis Andrus will need 136 hits to reach 2000 hits. However, Andrus had 121 hits last year and it might be challenging for him to reach 2000 hits.
Finally, it’s possible to see 4 players join the 1000-RBI club. Yadier Molina confirmed that the 2022 season would be his final season. In his final season, he needs 2 RBI to reach 1000 RBI and it’s possible to see Molina reach this milestone in the first week of the regular season. In the meantime, Molina’s teammate Paul Goldschmidt needs 73 RBI to join the 1000-RBI club. Goldschmidt was hitting .294/.365/.514 with 31 home runs and 99 RBI last year. If he can hit as he did last season, collecting 73 RBI will not be a big problem. Furthermore, the 2020 NL MVP Freddie Freeman just signed a 6-year deal with the Dodgers and he needs 59 RBI to reach 1000 RBI. At the same time, the 2013 NL MVP Andrew McCutchen just joined the Brewers and he will need to collect 67 RBI to join the 1000-RBI club. McCutchen collected 80 RBI in the Phillies uniform last year.
It’s great that MLB and the MLBPA reached an agreement on a new CBA. And, the Opening Day will come soon. Yadier Molina needs 2 RBI to reach 1000 RBI. Will he reach this milestone on Opening Day? Additionally, Miguel Cabrera failed to join the 3000-hit club last year, but as one of the best hitters in his generation, there’s little doubt that he’ll be the 33rd player to join this great club.
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