The FOX Saturday Baseball lineup for 2024 features three exciting games between teams with serious postseason aspirations. The Phillies will host the Braves, the Astros and Yankees will face off in Houston, and the Padres will welcome the Giants. The FOX Sports MLB experts, Rowan Kavner and Deesha Thosar, discuss the potential October glory of these teams and the likelihood of superstar Juan Soto landing with the Yankees after his walk year in New York.
The first topic the experts tackle is which quintet is more reliable for 2024: the Astros’ group of Yordan Álvarez, José Altuve, Kyle Tucker, Alex Bregman, and Justin Verlander, or the Yankees’ group of Juan Soto, Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Anthony Rizzo, and Gerrit Cole. Thosar leans towards the Astros’ group due to their track record of success, while Kavner highlights the consistency of the Astros’ offensive quartet.
The experts also discuss which of the Giants or Padres, after eventful offseasons, is the more legitimate NL contender. Kavner leans towards the Padres, citing their strong performance last year despite some bad luck, while Thosar believes the Giants have the edge with a potentially dominant pitching staff and a dangerous offense.
The rivalry between the Phillies and Braves is also examined, with the question of whether the Phillies are in the Braves’ heads after two consecutive playoff series upsets. Thosar believes the Braves are the superior team and will likely outperform the Phillies in the regular season and playoffs, while Kavner suggests that the Phillies’ recent success over the Braves may have an impact on their psyche.
The impact of acquisitions Dylan Cease and Blake Snell for the upcoming season is discussed, with Kavner favoring Snell due to his Cy Young caliber performance and Thosar also leaning towards Snell for his potential impact on the Giants’ pitching staff.
The experts make their initial predictions on where Juan Soto will sign next winter, with both agreeing that he may end up staying in New York with either the Yankees or the Mets. They also discuss the best current rivalry in baseball, with both experts highlighting the intense matchups between the Rangers and Astros as a standout rivalry to watch in the upcoming season.
