2017 MLB Preview: The Odyssey Starts Again

By Alex Hale, @ThatCLESportGuy

When you walk outside right now, the temperature isn’t freezing cold, but it isn’t blazing hot.  It’s that temperature right in the middle and you can smell that it is finally Spring.  That can only mean one thing, it’s Baseball season once again.  We had an unforgettable 2016 season that saw the Chicago Cubs finally end their 108 year drought beating the upstart Cleveland Indians for the World Series crown.  It would be tough to top last year, but 2017 looks like it could do that and then some and we’re going to break down what I think is going to happen this season.  Like last year we’re going to do this division by division giving out our projections for the 2017 season.  We’ll also be projecting who I think is going to win your major awards along with my dark horse picks.  So I think it’s time to play ball now!


NL East
1. Washington Nationals
2. New York Mets
3. Florida Marlins
4. Atlanta Braves
5. Philadelphia Phillies

This could be considered as one of the most interesting divisions in all of baseball.  The Washington Nationals clearly are still the favorites for the divisional crown.  One would expect that Bryce Harper to have a bounce back year and regain his MVP form in 2017.  On top of that, they still have a dominant front end of the rotation.  What concerns me is their bullpen especially with the fact that they failed to address the closer spot in the offseason.  This would make one thing that might be a target for them at the deadline.  When it comes to the Mets, everything really comes down to the dominance of their starting rotation.  We all know Noah Syndergaard and Jacob DeGrom will carry them, but it’s the continued development of Steven Matz that will truly carry the Mets back to the World Series.  While I have some concerns about their offense, Yoenis Cespedes is a major force in the lineup that has always balanced out everything.  The Marlins head into the year with a heavy heart still grieving over the tragic loss of Jose Fernandez.  The Marlins have a potentially potent offense led by Giancarlo Stanton.  The emergence of Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna shows the Marlins have that going for them.  Although the rotation is a mess and their bullpen is about average.  The Braves dived into their rebuild and are slowly starting to turn it around with one of the deepest farm systems in baseball that is finding its way into the Majors now.  Led by top prospect SS Dansby Swanson, the future looks extremely bright in Atlanta especially in their brand new Sun Trust Stadium.  For the fighting Phillies, the franchise is a mess with only a few things to get excited about.  They are mostly consisted of mediocre players and prospects that are talented but not close to major league ready.  With the way the division is trending I would expect the Phillies near the bottom of the division for the foreseeable future.


NL Central
1. Chicago Cubs
2. St. Louis Cardinals
3. Pittsburgh Pirates
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. Cincinnati Reds

The NL Central might be the most talented division in Major League Baseball.  While it’s a true statement, it’s telling that the Cubs are just on a completely different level as a team.  Stacked with talent all over the lineup and with NL MVP Kris Bryant leading the way and Kyle Schwarber expected to play a full season now, they should run away with the division.  The Cardinals always find a way to compete near the top of the standings, although they aren’t as good as they’ve been in previous years.  Their lineup is very well balanced and should be able to put up a lot of runs.  Their rotation seems to be a concern as it isn’t the same as what it was 4-5 years ago, plus they lost prized prospect SP Alex Reyes who was supposed to make a huge rookie impact in their rotation this year.  In the steel city, the Pirates are heading towards a crossroads.  Without question the Pirates have the talent to make a run, but are they in a position to do it in 2017?  They have Gerrit Cole as the ace of their staff and finally are starting to see the results of SP Jameson Taillon and Tyler Glasnow who were prized prospects over the past few years.  Their offense can put up a lot of runs led by Starling Marte, Gregory Polanco and Andrew McCutcheon.  They have a few young players still on the way in 1B Josh Bell who could really provide another big bat for their lineup.  The Pirates will make noise eventually, just maybe in 2018 instead of 2017.  The Brew Crew of Milwaukee have started their rebuilding process and are starting to amass a nice collection of young and promising talent.  For their big league team they still have Ryan Braun, but one would expect them to trade him at the trading deadline.  They could embrace the rebuilding process but they truly can’t do that until they move Ryan Braun.  The Cincinnati Reds are quite possibly the most interesting team in the division as they already have a bad team that definitely needs a complete rebuild.  They have Joey Votto and Adam Duvall as trade pieces, but I don’t foresee them making those moves this year.  The best teams know when it’s time to rebuild.  The Reds don’t seem to have a direction to go in and that’s going to hurt them in the present and the future.


NL West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. San Francisco Giants
3. Colorado Rockies
4. Arizona Diamondbacks
5. San Diego Padres

When it comes to the NL West, it still runs through Dodger Stadium and the Los Angeles Dodgers.  With their deep farm system that continues to develop great talent and almost an unlimited checkbook that can retain and acquire new talent, the Dodgers aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.  Plus they got that Clayton Kershaw guy who I’ve heard is really good.  The Giants have a very strong rotation led by Madison Bumgarner and Johnny Cueto.  They also added a shutdown closer in Mark Melancon to solidify the bullpen.  They have a solid offense, but not one that blows you away.  Without question though, the Giants remain a sleeper for the NL Pennant and will definitely be fighting for the NL West crown or at least the NL Wild Card.  The Rockies are a team that is ready to make a major move in the NL West.  While they lost their big Free Agent acquisition in Ian Desmond for the first few months of the season, he should return and be another big bat in a lineup that features Carlos Gonzalez, Trevor Story, Charlie Blackmon, and Nolan Arenado.  Their pitching staff continues to be a bit of a concern and I’d love for them to enter the Jose Quintana sweepstakes at the Trade Deadline if they’re in the mix.  Down in the desert in Arizona, the Diamondbacks were expected to be a big player last year after major moves.  They now are a team with the hope of making a playoff run, but no real direction.  They have some nice young arms in their rotation that is led by veteran Zack Greinke.  On top of that they have AJ Pollack and Paul Goldschmidt leading their lineup as two of the most under appreciated talents in baseball.  It may mostly be sunny in San Diego, but the future of the franchise looks cloudy.  They are trying to rebuild the franchise, but it doesn’t look like there’s much young talent ready to go right now.  They have depth in the lower levels of the Minor Leagues, but they’re going to be in the basement of the NL West standings for the next 2-3 years.


AL East
1. Boston Red Sox
2. Baltimore Orioles
3. New York Yankees
4. Toronto Blue Jays
5. Tampa Bay Rays

After the addition of Chris Sale, the Boston Red Sox clearly become the favorites in the AL East.  Although they lost David Ortiz this past year due to retirement, they have a very promising young offense led by MVP runner up Mookie Betts who quickly is becoming one of the best players in baseball.  The rest of the division you could easily put it all up in the air.  I would give the slightest edge to the Orioles finishing in second.  The Orioles still have a talented offense, a shutdown bullpen, and I was impressed with the development of Kevin Gausman and Dylan Bundy last year.  If they can get consistency from the rest of their rotation, I could see them once again contending for an AL Wild Card spot.  When it comes to the Yankees I’m really liking what they’re up to.  They have a lot of young talent slowly making its way up their farm system.  The Yankees have a great bullpen to go with a strong top of their starting rotation.  With Gary Sanchez coming back for a second year and Greg Bird coming back from injury their offense looks to have a lot of upside.  The future looks extremely bright in the Bronx.  Toronto lost a major piece of their lineup in Edwin Encarnacion and are betting on guys like Kendrys Morales and Steve Pearce to pick up the slack.  They have a very underrated rotation led by Aaron Sanchez and an okay bullpen.  Unfortunately the rest of the division is much stronger and one would expect after losing Encarnacion for the Blue Jays to take a major step back.  Tampa Bay is the one team you can never predict where they’re going to finish.  They always have the most underrated talent and looking at their roster, they could very well be a major surprise once again.  Anytime you have Chris Archer leading your rotation and Evan Longoria as your clubhouse leader, you will at least have a chance.


AL Central
1. Cleveland Indians
2. Detroit Tigers
3. Kansas City Royals
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Chicago White Sox

Without question this is probably the easiest division to call this year.  After the additions of Edwin Encarnacion and Boone Logan, plus the return of Michael Brantley, the Indians are head and shoulders above everyone else in the American League Central.  With their strong starting rotation and a budding superstar in Francisco Lindor the Indians should run away with the division this year.  The Tigers should be the Indians biggest threat this year with a solid veteran team that has the potential to fight for a Wild Card spot.  With 2016 Cy Young runner up Justin Verlander, plus a lineup lead by a still potent Miguel Cabrera, the Tigers wouldn’t stun me making a playoff push.  The Kansas City Royals enter the year at a crossroads, with the tragedy of losing Yordano Ventura, who was the future of that rotation, the Royals must rely on Danny Duffy to lead the staff along with veterans like Ian Kennedy.  On top of that, the Royals bullpen has been completely redone leaving only Kelvin Herrera as the last piece of their feared 3 headed monster for late in the game.  Add with the fact that part of their core is in the last year of their contracts (Moustakas, Hosmer) it might be time for the Royals to retool for hopefully a quick turn around.  When it comes to the Twins, they went from a potential breakout 2015 season to being the worst team in baseball in 2016.  Their entire pitching staff is suspect and even the lineup has question marks.  While I’m betting on the continued growth of Miguel Sano and hopefully Byron Buxton, the Twins still are a mess and need to figure out what direction they’re going in soon.  As for the White Sox, the rebuild has begun and it’s going to continue throughout the season.  They did an amazing job getting huge hauls for CF Adam Eaton and SP Chris Sale and will be a major player in the AL Central in the future.  With Jose Quintana and David Robertson still on the roster and potential major Trade Deadline pieces, expect a lot of growing pains for the young players and the veterans to be shopped around at the deadline to give the future of the franchise as much playing time as possible.


AL West
1. Texas Rangers
2. Houston Astros
3. Seattle Mariners
4. Los Angeles Angels
5. Oakland A’s

In the AL West, it’s going to be a dogfight between Texas and Houston for the AL West crown.  I really like the front of the Rangers rotation with Yu Darvish and Cole Hamels with their solid bullpen that gives them an edge over the Astros.  On top of that the Rangers have an strong lineup that will cause problems for opponents.  When it comes to the Astros, they really need Dallas Kuechel to rebound and return to his Cy Young form from 2015.  I would say their lineup is one of the best in all of baseball and their bullpen is underrated.  They are a clear favorite for a Wild Card spot.  The Mariners continue to be a curious case as there’s plenty of talent there, but they can’t put it together.  They traded Taijuan Walker to get Jean Segura to bolster the offense.  The Mariners though are not even close to the same level as the Rangers or the Astros to really make a strong run at the playoffs.  The Angels always will win games because they have Mike Trout but they are so erratic and also injury prone with their pitchers you can’t trust them to do much better than 4th place.  Oakland is once again trying to put the pieces together in their rebuilding process.  They have some young exciting talent to build on, but still are 2-3 years away from really making any noise in the AL West.


MLB Playoff Predictions

NL Wild Cards: San Francisco Giants, St. Louis Cardinals
AL Wild Cards: Houston Astros, Detroit Tigers

NL Wild Card Game: San Francisco Giants over St. Louis Cardinals

In a matchup between Madison Bumgarner and Carlos Martinez, the Giants have the clear edge with Bumgarner, who have not forgotten the heartbreak of last year and want to face the Cubs again.  The Cardinals would put up a good fight, but Bumgarner’s clutch ability as a playoff starter will be too much.

AL Wild Card Game: Houston Astros over Detroit Tigers

The Tigers will have the more experienced starter in Justin Verlander here, but Dallas Kuechel will continue a strong bounce back year by going 7 strong innings and the lethal Astros lineup eventually gets to Verlander boosting them past the Tigers 

NL Divisional Series: Chicago Cubs over San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers over Washington Nationals

In rematches from last year’s NL Divisional Round, the same results will come of that this year.  The Cubs offense and strong overall pitching staff will be enough to get by the Giants.  As for the Dodgers, unless the Nationals eventually can fill that closer’s spot sometime during the year, the Dodgers will have no problems taking down the Nationals again.

AL Divisional Series: Houston Astros over Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians over Texas Rangers

Houston’s offense is too much for the Red Sox, especially with the Red Sox rotation a little skeptical after Chris Sale.  Houston wins the series in 5 games backed by Dallas Kuechel winning 2 games.  The Indians take care of the Rangers in 4 games thanks to outstanding pitching and timely hitting by Edwin Encarnacion and Michael Brantley.  Also Jonathan Lucroy admits his mistake to turn down the Indians after the series loss.

NLCS: Los Angeles Dodgers defeat Chicago Cubs
Sweet revenge for the Dodgers in 2017 as the Dodgers really suffered through injuries in 2016 that really effected the Dodgers against the Cubs.  As long as they stay healthy, the Dodgers will be an extremely big threat for the Cubs as long as they can get enough out of their bullpen.  The Cubs are extremely talented, but I think the bitter taste in the Dodgers mouth from 2016 will push them past the Cubs and finally puts Clayton Kershaw into the World Series.

ALCS: Cleveland Indians defeat Houston Astros
This is a matchup nightmare if you’re an Indians fan.  The Astros have a lethal lineup and if they can get just enough pitching can be a matchup nightmare for the Tribe.  This could potentially be a classic 7 game series if the Astros can get the pitching.  As it stands now I would give the Indians the edge over the Astros because of their overall pitching from Rotation to Bullpen.  The Indians should have enough offense as well to counter the Astros lineup as well, putting the Indians back in the World Series

World Series: Cleveland Indians defeat Los Angeles Dodgers
The more I debated over this, the more I kept coming up with the Indians.  History has shown us recently in Baseball that the team with the biggest chip on their shoulder in that season is most likely going to win the World Series.  For the Indians, they match up extremely well with the Dodgers and would cause headaches for them.  As long as the Indians can get to Kershaw once, it’s over.  This isn’t what you call a, “homer” pick, this is going by recent trends of World Series champions and seeing the Indians have made the moves to position themselves to get back here.  The Indians finally win their first World Series in 69 years in 2017.


2017 AWARDS

NL MVP- OF Bryce Harper, Washington Nationals- Last year was a down year for Harper who will need to prove last year’s struggles were a fluke.  Harper is a perfectionist as a player and will strive to be the absolute best he can possibly be.  It also should be mentioned that the Nationals will only go as far as Harper will take them.  While it would be the easy thing to pick Kris Bryant or even Corey Saeger, but I’m going to go with the rebound season for Harper who has all the talent in the world to not just win this award, but be the clear cut MVP in a potential race that looks to be stacked with talent.

NL MVP Darkhorse- 3B Nolan Arenado, Colorado Rockies- The Rockies have looked to be on the rise for the past few years and it’s because of Nolan Arenado.  Arenado is a Gold Glove 3B, but is one of the most productive hitters in baseball.  Most may say that his numbers are inflated because he plays at Coors Field, I disagree.  Arenado is a special hitter who can hit for average and for power and most importantly just knows how to drive in runs.  If the Rockies take that next step, it will be in part to this guy and would definitely be in strong consideration of the MVP.

AL MVP- OF Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox- Last year I was considering Mookie Betts as my dark horse and honestly I feel he should’ve been the MVP last year.  Mookie has quickly developed into one of the most gifted players in the American League.  He can do it all and potentially could be the next 40-40 player.  On top of that he showed last year during the regular season he has that clutch gene to take over for David Ortiz.  The Red Sox will rely on Betts to fill that void and take the next step and the way he’s developed, I’m not questioning how good he’s going to be.

AL MVP Darkhorse- SS Francisco Lindor, Cleveland Indians- The Cleveland Indians haven’t had an MVP winner in 64 years the last being 3B Al Rosen (although Albert Belle should’ve won in 1995), that might change in 2017.  Francisco Lindor has turned into one of the faces of the game itself with his talent with his glove and bat, but more importantly his energy and love for the game.  Frankie is going to take his game to another level in 2017 and be the leader of the Indians in every aspect of the game.


NL Cy Young- SP Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers- Okay…IF he stays healthy, should I really pick anyone else?  Nope…next!

NL Cy Young Darkhorse- SP Carlos Martinez, St. Louis Cardinals- We all talk about the Max Scherzer’s, the Clayton Kershaw’s, the Madison Bumgarner’s and even the Gerrit Cole’s.  Carlos Martinez seems to be a quiet rising star in the pack with dominant stuff that has gotten him a 30-16 record over the past 2 seasons.  If the Cardinals are going to even make the Wild Card game, Martinez is going to have to become a Cy Young candidate this year.

AL Cy Young- SP Chris Sale, Boston Red Sox- If Chris Sale had pitched the whole year, there probably was a good chance even on the White Sox he would run away with the Cy Young.  As long as he stays healthy, with the Red Sox he could almost be a lock for 20 wins, 2.50 ERA and 200 Ks which would almost certainly get him a Cy Young.

AL Cy Young Darkhorse- SP Danny Salazar, Cleveland Indians- Salazar was my dark horse pick last year and if it wasn’t for his mid-season struggles and injury, people don’t realize how locked in he was for a time.  Salazar can be downright dominant as a starter and is finally mastering how to utilize his outstanding changeup to get guys out.  As long as he can stay healthy all year, with his stuff, I ain’t doubting what he could do.

NL Rookie of the Year- SS Dansby Swanson, Atlanta Braves- Swanson is going to get the playing time in Atlanta and showed in September why he was such a coveted prospect.  I really cannot see anyone else catching this guy.  A 5 tool talent at a prime position, Swanson will establish himself as the future of the Braves this year.

NL Rookie of the Year Darkhorse- CF Lewis Brinson, Milwaukee Brewers- Much like Swanson, Brinson is going to get a lot of playing time this year on a rebuilding Milwaukee team.  Brinson compared to Swanson might have the higher ceiling for what he’s capable of.  He has more power than Swanson and I’d say he slightly edges him in baserunning.  The question is he’s dominated the minors and we’ve seen nothing in the majors, unlike Swanson.  Will Brinson put it all together to give Swanson a run for his money?

AL Rookie of the Year- 2B Yoan Moncada, Chicago White Sox- Without question this is my pick.  Okay we could go with Andrew Beninendi of the Red Sox, but Moncada is going to be a star and the White Sox are going to roll with him in the majors to help get a head start on their rebuild.  Moncada has been touted as the most talented prospect in baseball who can do it all.  Some are already proclaiming him as one of baseball’s biggest future stars.  The White Sox will give him the time in the majors immediately and I don’t see him letting them down.  The upside and pure talent easily puts him past everyone else.

AL Rookie of the Year Darkhorse- OF Bradley Zimmer, Cleveland Indians- Although Zimmer was sent down to the Minors to begin the year, Zimmer has 5 tool ability and if he gets a June call-up I won’t be stunned if he tore up the Majors from what I saw in Spring Training.  The big question would be if there is already a Rookie of the Year standout by the time he arrives.  That’s never a given and a lot of things have to fall into place, but Zimmer has a great opportunity if the cards fall his way.


In 2016 we truly learned anything was possible in the game of baseball and that it truly is a 6 month journey to determine a World Champion.  What 2017 promises to be is a season where the fans will remember why Baseball is the greatest sport of them all.  The game finally has some fresh faces on teams that normally aren’t your typical teams with the icons of the game.  The game always changes, but the moments never go away.  For those who say they will wait until the All-Star Break, you’re missing out because this year I wouldn’t miss a single day in what promises to be a memorable year in baseball.

2016 MLB Preview: The Baseball Season Awakens #OpeningDay

By Alex Hale, @DaSportsGenius7

Finally, the cold of the Winter has gone away, well for the most part, and finally Baseball Regular Season has arrived. 

That means it’s time for everyone to look into their crystal balls and try to predict the MLB Regular Season Standing and also our predictions on Award winners.  Now I’m not going to go into all 30 MLB teams in depth and explain my standings.  Instead I’m going to show everyone my standings and give a brief explanation of how I’ve come to this conclusion.  As for the awards, I’m going to give you my prediction on who will win the award and for fun, we’re going to add my dark horse candidate to win those awards.  Now in past years, I’ve been off on my predictions so before you read on please remember, nobody is perfect with these.  I also follow my own rules of picking teams, learning from past years mistakes like, buying the hype on a team without closer examination (Cleveland in 2015, Oakland in 2014).  So with that said, let's get into my MLB Season Preview.


Regular Season Projections

NL East
1, New York Mets
2. Washington Nationals
3. Miami Marlins
4. Atlanta Braves
5. Philadelphia Phillies

Probably the easiest division to call in my personal opinion in terms of the standings.  The Phillies are about 2 years away from even being relevant again.  Their rotation is young, inexperienced, and the experienced starters are overrated.  They traded their young closer Ken Giles for prospects, setting their bullpen back again.  Maikel Franco might be the lone bright spot on this team as the 3B debuted last year, hitting .280 with 14 HRs and 50 RBIs in only 304 At-bats, and has killed Spring Training this year.  Jon Hart has done a masterful job rebuilding the Atlanta Braves, acquiring SS Dansby Swanson among others for SP Shelby Miller.  They already have a lot of young talented pitchers, now adding the 2015 MLB Draft #1 pick who could debut this season gives Braves fans, regardless of record a ton of hope for the future.  The Marlins hired Don Mattingly to turn this team around and although they acquired a few talents this offseason, they need another year before they can make a run at the divisional title.  That is IF the Marlins decide not to trade Jose Fernandez or Marcell Ozuna at all.  The Marlins have a great core and with Don Mattingly leading the way, he could take this core in a year to be a threat in the NL.  The Nationals have a great rotation, although Stephen Strasburg is bound to be the most sought after Free Agent next year.  With Bryce Harper leading the offense, the Nationals should make some noise, but unless Lucas Giolito debuts at some point soon and dominates, they don’t have the rotation depth to compete with the Mets.  The Mets are the defending NL Champs and should be in position to at least attempt to defend their crown.  Bringing back Yoenis Cespedes on basically what will be a 1 year deal was smart.  Cespedes gave them the bat they needed and having him back will do wonders.  I also love acquiring 2B Neil Walker from Pittsburgh, which is a huge upgrade to Daniel Murphy.  The Mets should run away with the division.

NL Central
1. St. Louis Cardinals
2. Chicago Cubs
3. Pittsburgh Pirates
4. Milwaukee Brewers
5. Cincinnati Reds

For the Top 3 spots in this division, it’s going to be an all-out race to the finish.  For the Cincinnati Reds, this is the start of their new rebuild.  After trading Aroldis Chapman and Todd Frazier this offseason, the Reds are going with a big time youth movement and I expect with Jay Bruce in the last year of his contract to be traded eventually.  I wouldn’t rule out Devin Mesoraco, Homer Bailey, and even Joey Votto to be dealt at some point as well.  The Brewers plan has confused me, they traded a young Khris Davis for prospects before dealing Ryan Braun and Jonathan Lucroy.  They have a young rotation and bullpen, but their offense can still do some damage to teams.  I do expect at least Lucroy gone in July.  The Pirates surprised me by trading hometown favorite Neil Walker to the Mets for Jon Niese.  Niese wasn’t really the starter they needed and in order for the Pirates to win the division need SP prospects Tyler Glasgow and Jameson Taillon to finally make their long awaited impacts in the Majors.  The offense and bullpen is there to win, the rotation still is a question mark outside of Gerrit Cole.  I love the core that the Cubs have and think they could make a run at the World Series.  I think it’s the youth and quick success of the Cubs that might do them in for the divisional crown.  Jake Arrieta was dominant in the second half last year.  Can he along with Jon Lester dominate hitters for a whole year again?  How will Kris Bryant and Kyle Schwarber follow up their rookie years?  A lot of big questions, but if the Cubs can live up to the hype, the 108 year drought might be ending.  The Cardinals had a few injuries last year, but the Cardinals have players returning from injuries and always have more youngsters debuting.  Stephen Piscotty and Randall Grischuk led the new wave of young Cardinal bats and SP Marco Gonzales should make an impact at some point this year to bolster already a good rotation.  On top of that, the Cardinals might arguably have the most underrated bullpen in baseball.  Those little things give the Cardinals an edge on the Divisional crown over everyone else.



NL West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
2. Arizona Diamondbacks
3. San Francisco Giants
4. San Diego Padres
5. Colorado Rockies

The NL West will be very much like the Wild Wild West, especially at the fight for the divisional crown.  The Rockies once again are in a rebuilding position and while they have a lot of great offensive pieces (Charlie Blackmon, Carlos Gonzalez, Nolan Arenado), they don’t have the arms to make a lot of noise.  I expect at the deadline Carlos Gonzalez to be dealt at the deadline.  The Padres much like a lot of teams are trying to rebuild, yet retool their team for right now.  The Padres have some good pitching that if they chose to rebuild completely would gain a lot of buzz from other teams.  One of those arms (Cashner/Ross) will be gone eventually.  If the Padres want to make a run it will rely on a fully healthy Matt Kemp and a rejuvenated Wil Myers.  The San Francisco Giants added Jeff Samardzija and Johnny Cueto to form a great rotation on the Bay Area, while their offense doesn’t have any big time names other than Buster Posey, this is that “every other year” for the Giants.  Can they shock they world yet again?  The pitching is there to do it.  One of my rules for these predictions is to never pick the “Offseason Winner”, so this is why Arizona is my 2nd place finisher.  Without question the balance of hitting and pitching is there, yet their bullpen leaves a little bit to be desired.  With Paul Goldschmidt leading the offense, and Zack Greinke and Shelby Miller leading the rotation, the Diamondbacks could be the team that bucks the trend of the Offseason winner is a regular season loser.  But with the late Spring injury of AJ Pollack, the Diamondbacks took a huge blow.  The Dodgers have almost everything you could want, except they don’t get the job done in October.  Even without Greinke, the Dodgers added Japanese sensation Kenta Maeda and Scott Kazmir to fill the void.  Even without that, the Dodgers have Brandon McCarthy and Hyun-jin Ryu returning from injury.  On top of everything one name to remember on the rotation, Julio Urias.  If the Dodgers prospect debuts in 2016, he could emerge as the next lefty sensation.  What will carry the Dodgers is Yasiel Puig and the continued emergence of SS Corey Saeger.  The Dodgers have the balance that will top any of the competition in their division to take home the crown.

AL East
1. Toronto Blue Jays
2. Boston Red Sox
3. Tampa Bay Rays
4. Baltimore Orioles
5. New York Yankees

This is the one division where ANYTHING can happen.  Unlike other divisions, there is not one real standout team.  The Yankees haven’t fully embraced rebuilding and try to retool with their young prospects getting ready to debut in the next 2 years.  The Yankees have the bullpen, but can their lineup and rotation hold it together for 162 games?  The Orioles are built with no real pitching staff, and outstanding lineup and two really good relievers.  Without a real ace, the Orioles will continue to be a mediocre pitching team wasting great years of offense.  The Rays are young and talented, their rotation might be the best in the division, and their offense could surprise people this year.  With enough bullpen help, they could make a run at the Division title.  The Red Sox spent big money on David Price and have some nice young talent, but is the rotation behind Price enough to win the division, let alone the Wild Card?  I doubt so.  The Blue Jays have the best offense in the American League by far and it offsets their rotation having to rely on youngsters Marcus Stroman and Aaron Sanchez to start at the top of the rotation.  The Jays bullpen is solid and playing in this division might give them a chance to have the best regular season record in the AL.



AL Central
1. Kansas City Royals
2. Cleveland Indians
3. Detroit Tigers
4. Minnesota Twins
5. Chicago White Sox

Much like the AL East, the AL Central could be won by any team in this division.  The White Sox never have fully embraced rebuilding and while they have Chris Sale and Jose Abreu, other acquisitions haven’t put them over the top.  Todd Frazier only had 2 good months for the Reds last year and to me is a questionable acquisition.  Robin Ventura will be fired after another bad year and watch the White Sox trade Chris Sale potentially at the Trade Deadline.  The Twins surprised everyone and for myself are 1 year ahead of schedule.  With Miguel Sano and Byron Buxton as their next young duo of potential stars, their offense is better than people think, and their bullpen stacks up with some of the better teams in the league as well.  Their rotation is subpar at best, Phil Hughes and Ervin Santana won’t be enough.  Mike Ilitch did what he does best…spend money.  Jordan Zimmerman was overpaid along with Justin Upton and while they improved their bullpen finally, the Tigers have major potential injury concerns and have no organizational depth to fill those holes.  3-4 injuries could end the Tigers year.  The Indians didn’t necessarily address the offense and are hoping on Tyler Naquin’s rookie year and the continued progress of Francisco Lindor.  The bullpen is solid and the rotation might the Baseball’s best in terms of talent and organizational depth.  Although the Royals lost Ben Zobrist and more importantly Johnny Cueto, you can’t be down after 7 innings versus this team the back end of the bullpen is that good.  All but Zobrist has returned on the offense and it seems Ned Yost gets just enough out of whoever he has starting to win.  You can’t go against the defending World Champs here.

AL West
1. Houston Astros
2, Seattle Mariners
3. Los Angeles Angels
4. Texas Rangers
5. Oakland A’s

This division is the Astros to lose. The Oakland A’s are back in rebuild mode (SURPRISE SURPRISE) and Billy Beane and co. have managed to scrape up another team that could surprise some people offensively (Khris Davis, Stephen Vogt, Marcus Siemen).  But come the Trade Deadline it wouldn’t stun me if RF Josh Riddick, C Stephen Vogt, and Ace SP Sonny Gray are all dealt for this rebuild process.  The Rangers have the offense to make a lot of noise, but they need Yu Darvish back soon.  Cole Hamels was great for Texas and should continue that this year, but the Rangers need to have that 1-2 punch to really compete with the Astros and Mariners going forward.  The Angels have an average starting rotation and a solid bullpen, but the Angels will go as far as their offense will take them.  Mike Trout will obviously be an MVP candidate, but it comes down to guys like Albert Pujols, Kole Calhoun and others to do the rest.  The Mariners were that big offseason winner last year and struggled, but this year under new manager Scott Servais, they will take the next big step.  Their rotation can be deadly if Taijuan Walker can take his strong end to last year into the 2016 season.  The offense needs a little bit more contribution from guys like Robinson Cano this year and if so, they could challenge the Astros.  The Astros are built to win it all this year.  With reigning Rookie of the Year Carlos Correa along with George Springer and a strong rotation led by Cy Young Winner Dallas Kuechel and new closer acquisition Ken Giles, I don’t really expect the Astros to have much of a problem with the division.


MLB Playoff Predictions

NL Wild Cards: Chicago Cubs, Arizona Diamondbacks
AL Wild Cards: Cleveland Indians, Seattle Mariners

NL Wild Card Game: Chicago Cubs over Arizona Diamondbacks
Cubs youth and Jake Arrieta are too much for the Diamondbacks and the Diamondbacks bullpen falters late to blow the game open for the Cubs.

AL Wild Card Game: Cleveland Indians over Seattle Mariners
Indians send out Corey Kluber against Felix Hernandez and the Indians rediscovered patience at the plate shown all throughout 2016 works the pitch count up on Hernandez, makes a few mistakes and is enough for Indians to win.

NL Divisional Series: Cubs defeat Dodgers, Cardinals defeat Mets
Cubs are in top form finally after a strong 2nd Half, sweep Dodgers easily.  In a 5 game epic Divisional series, the Cardinals offense gets to a weakened Mets bullpen in Game 5 to knock off defending NL Champs.

AL Divisional Series: Indians defeat Blue Jays, Astros defeat Royals
Indians rotation is too much for Blue Jays bats and Indians bats do enough to sweep the Blue Jays.  The Royals learn the importance of having an ace as the Astros trounce the Royals early in a quick sweep of the defending World Champions

NLCS: Cubs defeat Cardinals
The classic rivalry goes only 5 games as the Cubs continue on their 2nd Half and Postseason march to the World Series.  The Cardinals older veterans start to show their age as the 5 games series against the Mets exhausted them.  Cubs youth and talent is too much.

ALCS: Astros defeat Indians
In a phenomenal 7 Game Series, the Indians and Astros battle it out and the Astros emerge with the AL Pennant.  The Indians rotation was dominant in its 3 wins, but at the end of the day the offense of the Astros couldn’t be held down every game and in Game 7, Indians SP Carlos Carrasco gives up 3 early runs, Indians offense can’t get back in it against Astros SP Dallas Kuechel, who wins ALCS MVP.

World Series: Astros defeat Cubs in 6
In one of the best World Series match ups in recent years, the red hot Cubs hit a cold spell in Houston going down 0-2 as SS Carlos Correa starts to take his place as the game’s elite.  Returning to Chicago, Kris Bryant carries the Cubs to 2 straight wins, but Dallas Kuechel and Carlos Correa are too much in Game 5.  In Game 6, the Astros send out the 2016 bounce back SP Doug Fister against Cubs SP Jake Arrieta.  Fister goes 8 shutout innings, allowing 5 hits.  Carlos Correa hits a 3-run Home Run in the 5th and Ken Giles slams the door in the 9th, bringing Houston a World Championship.  Carlos Correa is named World Series MVP.



Award Predictions

AL MVP SS Carlos Correa, Houston Astros

This is the popular pick and rightfully so, some could go with Angels OF Mike Trout, but Correa offensively will be the heart and soul of the Astros offense this year.  I can see Correa hitting 35 HRs, driving in 110 RBIs this year.  Correa may not be the defender fellow Rookie SS last year Francisco Lindor is, but Correa provides solid defense and great effort.  For Correa this is the year he can emerge as the next face of the game of baseball (if he wasn’t already).  For the Astros, they will only go as far as Correa can take them.  If they finish in 1st place in the AL West, more than likely Correa will have the MVP year everyone is expecting, including myself.

AL MVP Dark Horse CF Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox

Everyone talks about Correa as the next star of the game, but what about Mookie Betts?  In his first full year with the Red Sox, Betts almost had a 20-20 season and this year he should get that and maybe more.  Like Correa and the Astros, the Red Sox will need Mookie Betts to have an MVP type year if they are to win the AL East.  I don’t think it’s out of the realm of possibility that Betts has a 30-30 season.  If so, Mookie Betts could emerge this year as the American League’s version of Pirates star CF Andrew McCutchen.  If you’re looking for a good dark horse bet for AL MVP, Bet on Betts!


NL MVP 1B Paul Goldschmidt, Arizona Diamondbacks

With AJ Pollack injured for the Diamondbacks for the beginning of the year, the Diamondbacks need Goldschmidt to make a big impact right from the start of the season.  Goldschmidt has normally thrived on bad teams, but the Diamondbacks will rely on his bat to challenge the Dodgers and Giants for the divisional crown.  Most casual Baseball fans will talk about Carlos Correa, Bryce Harper, Miguel Cabrera and Mike Trout as the elite players of the game.  This is the year Goldschmidt emerges as one of the game’s elite.


NL MVP Dark Horse SS Corey Saeger, Los Angeles Dodgers

Saeger is a long shot to win this award, but why couldn’t he?  Saeger showed last year that he not only was ready for the Big Leagues, but he was ready to tear up the Big Leagues.  Saeger can not only hit for average, but he’s an extremely good power hitter.  While the Dodgers have Yasiel Puig and Joc Pederson as other young guys to watch, Saeger is the best of the bunch and could be the National League rival of Astros SS Carlos Correa.  Other than the fact that Saeger is a left handed hitter, Correa and Saeger resemble each other so much as players.  It wouldn’t shock me with the Dodgers plan to start him from day one that Saeger lives up to the hype and by year’s end is in MVP talks.


AL Cy Young SP Chris Sale, Chicago White Sox

You could easily have Sonny Gray, Dallas Keuchel, Corey Kluber or David Price winning the Cy Young award.  But although I’ve got the White Sox finishing last in the AL Central, Chris Sale won’t be the reason why.  I’ll also add if Sale were to be dealt at the trade deadline to a contending AL team it could solidify the award for him.  We all know Chris Sale has the stuff to be a candidate every year for this award.  I expect Sale to have similar numbers to what Felix Hernandez had a few years ago when he won the Cy Young on a last place Seattle team.  It’s always a longshot for a last place team to have a major award winner, but Sale is the type of pitcher who can be the exception to the rule.

AL Cy Young Dark Horse SP Danny Salazar, Cleveland Indians

Expecting Carlos Carrasco as the Dark Horse instead?  Nope I’m standing by my belief I’ve had since last year that Danny Salazar will make the big jump in 2016.  You started to see Salazar last year at the end of the year not just overpower hitters with his fastball, but use his secondary pitches more to get guys out.  Salazar has everything you could want in a pitcher and what scares me if I’m a hitter is that Salazar never really has started really using that changeup until recently.  Now that he knows he’s got that pitch, watch out everybody Danny Salazar is ready to emerge as the Indians 3rd Ace starter.

NL Cy Young SP Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers

Does this really need any explanation?  I think the real question is, why do you pick anyone else?  Moving on…

NL Cy Young Dark Horse SP Shelby Miller, Arizona Diamondbacks

Yeah we talk about the signing of Zack Greinke, but the trade for Shelby Miller could be the real star pitcher at the end of the day.  Miller was a highly prized prospect for the Cardinals and was traded to Atlanta where he seemed to find the consistency he was lacking in St. Louis.  Miller has the pure stuff to shut down any team any night.  The problem Miller had last year was he really didn’t get a ton of wins because he was playing for Atlanta.  On a Diamondbacks team that has a solid offense and if AJ Pollack returns later this year will have a great offense.  Miller could potentially win 17+ games this year and put himself in talks for the Cy Young award.

AL Rookie of the Year CF Tyler Naquin, Cleveland Indians

The popular pick will be Byung-ho Park or AJ Reed, but I’m going off the wall here.  Compared to Park and Reed, Naquin isn’t going to stand out because of one area he’s significantly better at than every other rookie.  But Naquin does everything well, he plays good defense, will hit for a solid average and a few home runs, and also Naquin will steal a lot of bases (depending on where in the order he hits).  The impact Naquin will make for the Indians all year won’t go unnoticed by the National media and when the Indians make the playoffs one of the big reasons will be the emergence of Tyler Naquin as an everyday outfielder for the Indians.

AL Rookie of the Year Dark Horse RF Aaron Judge, New York Yankees

Judge is the next young prospect that is on the verge of arriving in the Bronx.  Judge is a big frame standing in at 6’7’’ 275 lbs., but more importantly Judge has big time power.  While he is set to start the year in AAA, the Yankees are potentially one injury away from calling him up to the big leagues and in Yankee Stadium with his power, Judge can make an immediate impact.  For the Yankees to succeed, not only will a pitcher need to step up, but the youth of the Yankees need to make an impact like they’re expected to.  Highly unlikely he wins the Rookie of the Year but compared to other longshot candidates, Judge looks to be the best bet to shock everyone and steal the award

NL Rookie of the Year SS Corey Saeger, Los Angeles Dodgers

Technically Corey Saeger is still eligible to win this award this year.  I don’t think after my explanation with Saeger as my dark horse pick for the MVP that I need to explain this one.  Saeger is such a unique talent he’s going to tear up the National League this year.

NL Rookie of the Year Dark Horse SP Lucas Giolito, Washington Nationals

The Nationals may have lost Jordan Zimmerman, but if Giolito can make it up to the Nationals this year, he can easily fill the void.  Because of a UCL sprain before the 2012 MLB Draft, Giolito fell to 16th overall although scouts viewed him as talented enough to go #1 overall.  He’s currently viewed as the #3 prospect in baseball and the #1 pitching prospect.  He has an outstanding fastball that sits in the mid-upper 90s and a 12-6 curveball that’s devastating.  If he arrives this year, his talent can immediately take the league by storm.


The MLB regular season, as we all know, is one big roller coaster and a lot of things can happen that change what happens when it’s all said and done.  One thing I will say is to younger fans, enjoy Baseball season.  You cannot predict or even script what can happen throughout a Baseball season. 

This is the greatest season of the year folks and it’s time to get it started once again… IT’S BASEBALL SEASON!