A new MLB season is right around the corner. When thinking about the next six months of baseball, there is much to contemplate.
Hope springs eternal, and every team feels good about the upcoming season now. Some of these are bold, some are to be expected, but here is one prediction for every MLB team.
AL East
Toronto Blue Jays – Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 50 HRs
This may not be going out on much of a limb seeing as Vladdy mashed 48 in his breakout season in 2021. There may not be a player who exudes more joy than the 23-year-old prodigal son.
Boston Red Sox – Trevor Story team HR Leader
Trevor Story was the last of a historically great group of free-agent shortstops to sign, but he could be the most impactful. On a team with many capable power hitters, Story will endear himself to the Fenway faithful in his first year in Beantown.
Baltimore Orioles – John Means Top five in AL ERA
Means has shown great stuff over his first few seasons and is the O’s best pitcher, by far. This is the year he puts it all together and finishes near the top of the leaderboard in a key statistical measure.
Tampa Bay Rays – Wander Franco Top 5 MVP
After being a fixture atop MLB prospect rankings, Franco made his debut last season and didn’t disappoint. The Rays signed him to an 11-year, $182 million contract extension and will get a good early return on their substantial investment.
New York Yankees – Isiah Kiner-Falefa’s best offensive season
In one of the more interesting moves of the offseason, the Yankees traded for Kiner-Falefa and Josh Donaldson. Although he’s won a Gold Glove, Kiner-Falefa has yet to have a season with an OPS+ of 100 or more. He’ll exceed that while providing his usual stalwart glove work.
AL Central
Minnesota Twins – Byron Buxton Career High in games played
Although he’s flashed brilliance at times, Buxton has really struggled to stay on the field. The Twins have seen enough to extend Buxton for seven years to the tune of $100 million. He’ll exceed the 140 games he played in 2017 and establish new career highs across the board.
Kansas City Royals – Bobby Witt Jr. AL Rookie of the Year
Witt Jr. has recently been named the #1 prospect in baseball, per MLB pipeline so he will be one of the favorites to win Rookie of the Year. The way he’s hit the ball in Spring Training suggests he’s ready to take home the hardware.
Bobby Witt Jr. – Kansas City Royals (2)* pic.twitter.com/usNtivcWgC
— MLB HR Videos (@MLBHRVideos) March 24, 2022
Chicago White Sox, Most All-Stars
The White Sox have no shortage of talent either in their lineup or on the mound. With outfielders Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert hoping to play a full slate of games, the south siders will be well-represented in the Mid-Summer Classic.
Cleveland Guardians, Hold on to Jose Ramirez
Much of the speculation around this new/old team is surrounding their best player. After months of rumors and no movement, Cleveland winds up holding onto Ramirez.
Detroit Tigers, Winning record
The Tigers were a better-than-expected 77-85 in 2021. After adding star shortstop Javier Báez to a group of young studs ready to bust out, Motown takes another step forward.
AL West
Texas Rangers, highest win increase
The Rangers sent a clear message to their fans following a 100-loss season in 2021: this is unacceptable. Texas spent big on Marcus Semien and Corey Seager, and the power duo will help turn the Rangers towards respectability.
Houston Astros, Justin Verlander Cy Young Winner
Houston has remained extremely competitive over the last two years despite not having the likely future Hall-of-Famer available. To the surprise of no one, Verlander re-signed and it says here he has one more magical season left in him.
Los Angeles Angels, No MVP this year
After Shohei Ohtani took home the hardware last year, an Angel has won the award four times over the last seven seasons. A player from another team will win the award this season. Bold, I know.
Seattle Mariners – First playoff appearance since 2001
Fresh off the heels of a 90-win season, the M’s have had a great offseason. They signed Robbie Ray and Adam Frazier, then traded for Eugenio Suárez and Jesse Winker. It all adds up to ending the longest playoff drought in MLB.
Oakland Athletics – Hang on to one young pitcher
The exodus is well underway in Oakland. After jettisoning Matt Olson and Matt Chapman, the expectation is that Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea are next out the door. After not receiving the desired offer, the A’s hang on to one of them.
NL East
Atlanta Braves – Matt Olson NL HR leader
Freddie Freeman’s replacement will quickly make himself popular in Braves country. He’s averaged 32 dingers over his last four full seasons, including a career-high 39 in 2021.
Miami Marlins – 10+ wins improvement
The Marlins quietly had a solid hot stove season, bringing in veterans Joey Wendle and Avasaíl Garcia. Those pickups, plus an ascending rotation will have the fish knocking on .500’s door.
New York Mets – Lowest starters ERA
The Mets added Max Scherzer to form a downright terrifying one-two punch atop their staff. They then also added Chris Bassitt to a group that includes Taijuan Walker and Carlos Carrasco. There’s no way this could go wrong. Right?
The top rotation in baseball according to MLB dot com…
— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) March 29, 2022
The New York Mets. ? pic.twitter.com/dLj0n6efpO
Philadelphia Phillies – Most home runs in the NL
By adding Kyle Schwarber and Nick Castellanos to a lineup that has Bryce Harper, J.T. Realmuto, and Rhys Hoskins, Philly is hoping for some major bang for their considerable bucks.
Washington Nationals – Nelson Cruz another 40+ HR season
The DH coming to the National League allowed the Nats to secure the services of Cruz, who turns back the clocks one more time. This latest campaign will put “Boomstick” on the verge of the 500-homer plateau.
NL Central
Milwaukee Brewers – Corbin Burnes back-to-back Cy Youngs
Last season Burnes really emerged as an ace and won the top pitching honor despite throwing just 167 innings. This year, the big righty will be equally impressive and take the trophy once again.
St. Louis Cardinals – Tyler O’Neill Top 5 in MVP voting
O’Neill busted out in 2021 and finished eighth in voting. It’s not hard to envision the kid from Burnaby, B.C. getting a little better and moving up towards the top of the senior circuit.
Pittsburgh Pirates – Ke’Bryan Hayes 40 doubles
In 362 at-bats over 96 games, Hayes doubled 20 times. With another year of development and a full season’s worth of plate appearances doubling that total isn’t unreasonable.
Cincinnati Reds – Joey Votto batting title
Votto has accomplished many things over the span of his illustrious career but hasn’t won a batting title. If he does that in his age-38 season, it may be his most impressive feat.
Chicago Cubs -Seiya Suzuki 30+ homers
As usual with international signings, it’s unknown if the power numbers will translate to the majors. Considering how highly touted Suzuki is, I’m betting that he’ll do just fine.
NL West
Colorado Rockies – Rocktober! (make the playoffs)
The baseball world was shocked when Kris Bryant chose to sign with Colorado. This team is ready to compete. They went 54-53 from June 1st onwards last year, re-signed Ryan McMahon, and traded for Randal Grichuk. I’m convinced I’m the only person who thinks this is going to happen.
Purple looks good on you, @KrisBryant_23. pic.twitter.com/vqN73JuoFg
— MLB (@MLB) March 18, 2022
San Francisco Giants – 100+ wins again
No one saw last season’s 107-win freight train coming. They will have a target on their collective backs, but Manager Gabe Kapler will have his group ready for another sublime season in the sun.
Arizona Diamondbacks – Zac Gallen All-Star
Bright spots were few and far between for Arizona in 2021. However, Gallen has had some good stretches and is ready to show he’s worthy of an all-star selection.
Los Angeles Dodgers – Wild card once more
No team is under more pressure this year than the boys in Dodger blue. Manager Dave Roberts doubled down on those high projections by predicting a World Series victory in 2022. If they do get back to the Fall Classic and win it, they’ll have to do it the hard way.
San Diego Padres – Fernando Tatis Jr. MVP
The Padres stumbled badly down the stretch a season ago, going just 12-34 and finishing below .500. That was despite the superhuman efforts of Tatis Jr., who will be able to stay on the field more often and take home the honor.
