Cowboys from Hell Preseason 2015

For the second straight year, the Cowboys from Hell posted the second best regular season record. 2014 also saw them finish 3rd in the playoffs—their highest finish in years. Despite this, 2014 was a disappointing season for the Cowboys from Hell. The team was falling apart at the seams by year's end. Losses of Jose Fernandez, Matt Moore, and eventually Yu Darvish weighed heavy on the pitching-centric Cowboys.

Manager Jeff Varnum strayed from his usual patience-laden tactics and traded his top prospects for major league talent throughout the year. 5 of the organizations top 10 prospects from last year's list no longer don the CFH uniform. The additions of Darvish, Huston Street and Jose Reyes were welcome, but other trades were clear misses and the franchise fell short of the desired mark. Heading into 2015, Varnum is licking the wounds from a second half that saw his team limp into the playoffs and the stocks of the prospects he dealt rise through the roof.

But with each new season comes a renewed hope, and 2015 is no different. Todd Frazier and Josh Harrison—two of the squad's top offensive performers last year—are ready to slot in at multiple positions, providing valuable lineup flexibility. Yasiel Puig and Matt Carpenter project to continue their solid performances, and scenery changes for the two longest tenured players, Miguel Montero and Howie Kendrick, forebode improved numbers.

Chris Sale and Madison Bumgarner still anchor the top pitching staff in the league, complemented by lights out closers Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Jansen. With news that Darvish will miss the 2015 season, these players will be heavily relied upon to continue their success while the team awaits Fernandez and Moore to return from Tommy John surgery.

For the farm system, Varnum sought value picks, adding MLB draftees Monte Harrison and Spencer Adams with back to back picks in the 2nd round—his first picks of this year's supplemental draft. Somehow, Adams is the only pitcher in the squad's minor leagues. Varnum is hoping that his 2nd and 3rd rounders pan out, because the next draft will likely see him in the same situation. Another championship would render this problem negligible. And that is what Varnum has his sights set for.