Some friends and I have done this every year for quite some time. Here's the idea, just pick the order of finish in each MLB division along with some postseason awards and some off-the-wall categories, and there you have it, your MLB predictions.
It's always fun to take a look back in October to see who's the smartest. It can also be depressing to look back three days after the season starts like last season when I picked Manny Ramirez as my AL Comeback Player of the Year. Oops.
Here goes nothing:
NL WEST- Giants, D-Backs, Dodgers, Rockies, Padres
NL CENTRAL- Reds, Cardinals, Brewers, Pirates, Cubs, Astros
NL EAST- Phillies, Nationals, Braves, Marlins, Mets
AL WEST- Rangers, Angels, Mariners, Athletics
AL CENTRAL- Tigers, Indians, Royals, Twins, White Sox
AL EAST- Yankees, Rays, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Orioles
Wildcard Winners
NL- D-Backs over Cardinals
AL- Angels over Rays
Playoff Predictions:
NL Divisional- Giants over Reds
NL Divisional- Phillies over D-Backs
AL Divisional- Rangers over Tigers
AL Divisional- Yankees over Angels
NLCS- Phillies over Giants
ALCS- Rangers over Yankees
World Series- Rangers over Phillies
Postseason Awards
NL MVP- Joey Votto
AL MVP- Ian Kinsler
NL Cy Young- Clayton Kershaw
AL Cy Young- Justin Verlander
NL ROY- Bryce Harper
AL ROY- Matt Moore
NL Manager of Year- Dusty Baker
AL Manager of Year- Ron Washington
NL Comeback Player- Buster Posey
AL Comeback Player- Kendrys Morales
Misc. Predictions
First Manager to get fired- Bobby Valentine
Biggest name to be traded- Alfonso Soriano
Player with most HRs- Joey Bautista
Someone linked to steroids for first time - Albert Pujols
First pitcher to require Tommy John surgery -- Luke Hochevar
Most wins at All-Star break – Tigers
AL All-star game starter – CC Sabathia
NL All-star game starter- Roy Halladay
Closer with most saves -- Brian Wilson
First team to clinch playoff spot- Tigers
How many wins for Mets – 57
BOLD PREDICTION: Not sure if this qualifies as bold, but I'll say Ichiro hits under .280 again.
