MLB Season Preview

So yesterday I did a preview for the Yankees but I also wanted to do a preview for the entire MLB season. The first game of the season is tomorrow night with the Cubs hosting the Cardinals. Can't wait. I'm just gonna do some standings predictions and talk about each division a little bit, and then follow that up with some playoff predictions. If you read my Yankees preview, you already know who's winning the World Series, but this will be a full playoff prediction.

American League

AL East:

1. New York Yankees (92-70)*

2. Boston Red Sox (91-71)*

3. Baltimore Orioles (84-78)

4. Tampa Bay Rays (81-81)

5. Toronto Blue Jays (78-84)

No one thinks the Yankees will be good, but like I said yesterday I think it all comes together this season for them. The Red Sox have the potential to be scary good, but I don't think everyone on their roster is gonna be as good as everyone thinks they will be. There's no way all of them can be that good, right? Well, that's my hope anyway. Still gonna be a good team. Orioles aren't gonna be as good as last year. Just don't have enough on their roster to make it happen again. The Rays were terrible last year, but I don't think they'll be as bad. Got a couple young guys that can make some things happen for them. The Blue Jays have a couple stars, but they're pretty old as a whole and I don't think they'll have enough pitching to be a contender.

AL Central:

1. Detroit Tigers (90-72)*

2. Chicago White Sox (88-74)

3. Kansas City Royals (87-75)

4. Cleveland Indians (80-82)

5. Minnesota Twins (70-92)

The AL Central is wide open. In my opinion, 4 teams have the potential to win the division. However, I don't think the Tigers are ready to let their recent dominance fall quite yet despite losing Max Scherzer. The White Sox could be really good, but I think they're still a couple players away from winning the division. The Royals reached the World Series last year in surprising fashion, but I don't think they can repeat that success. The Indians could be good but I don't think they have enough pitching besides Corey Kluber. The Twins are young and not good yet.

AL West:

1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (94-68)*

2. Seattle Mariners (90-72)*

3. Houston Astros (82-80)

4. Texas Rangers (78-84)

5. Oakland Athletics (72-90)

The Angels ran away with the division last year at the end of the season, and while the Mariners will be on their tails for the most of the year, I think Mike Trout and the other stars on LA will be able to hold them off and have the best record in the AL for the second year in a row. Seattle will be a really good team though. Good pitching, good hitting, they'll be in the playoffs in my opinion. And so long are the days where you can just write the Astros into last place and it's pretty much a guarantee. The Astros will be a tough team to beat this year. While I don't think they're quite there yet, guys like George Springer who I absolutely love will start moving Houston in the right direction. The Rangers will have Prince Fielder back, but Yu Darvish will likely be out the whole year, so I don't see much improvement from them this year. And the A's, who have finished in the top two in the division the last three seasons, and made the playoffs the last three seasons, will fall off this year. I just don't think they're gonna be a good team this year. Lost some guys, and didn't replace them well enough.

Awards:

MVP: Jacoby Ellsbury, NYY

Cy Young: Masahiro Tanaka, NYY

Rookie of the Year: Rusney Castillo, BOS

National League

NL East:

1. Washington Nationals (100-62)*

2. Miami Marlins (87-75)

3. New York Mets (83-79)

4. Atlanta Braves (77-85)

5. Philadelphia Phillies (68-94

Is there anyone who thinks the Nationals won't win the NL East? I mean they have easily the best rotation in the league, and a pretty sick line-up as well. The Marlins are on the rise but I think they just miss a playoff spot this season. The Mets have a solid, young rotation but I don't think their hitting will be good enough to keep them in contention. The Braves got rid of a lot of good players in the offseason and it'll hurt them quite a bit. And the Phillies just blow.

NL Central:

1. St. Louis Cardinals (96-66)*

2. Pittsburgh Pirates (92-70)*

3. Chicago Cubs (86-76)

4. Milwaukee Brewers (79-83)

5. Cincinnati Reds (75-87)

I think the Cardinals are flying a bit under the radar this offseason with all the buzz around the Cubs, but they're still the team to beat in the Central. The Pirates aren't too far behind them either. Both teams have strong pitching, and a good mix of veteran all stars and young guys to get the job done with the bats. The Cubs are clearly on the rise but I think they're a year away. So much young talent, and they made some good offseason moves like acquiring Jon Lester but this isn't their year yet. The Brewers won't have enough pitching or hitting to win a ton of games. And the Reds are on the downfall and I don't think they'll be good this year.

NL West:

1. San Diego Padres (91-71)*

2. Los Angeles Dodgers (90-72)*

3. Colorado Rockies (85-77)

4. San Francisco Giants (82-80)

5. Arizona Diamondbacks (73-89)

The Padres made a ton of moves this offseason and I think they all pan out. They added a ton of talent and I think they overthrow the Dodgers for the West crown. The Dodgers are still really good though, and they'll be in the playoffs. My Rockies prediction is based on Tulo actually playing a full season (unlikely) and CarGo returning to form. The Giants win the World Series every other year so this isn't their year. And the Diamondbacks just aren't good.

Awards:

MVP: Giancarlo Stanton, MIA

Cy Young: Stephen Strasburg, WAS

Rookie of the Year: Kris Bryant, CHI

Playoff Predictions

American League:

Wild Card: Red Sox over Mariners

ALDS: Red Sox over Angels

ALDS: Yankees over Tigers

ALCS: Yankees over Red Sox

National League:

Wild Card: Pirates over Dodgers

NLDS: Nationals over Pirates

NLDS: Padres over Cardinals

NLCS: Nationals over Padres

World Series: Yankees over Nationals