MLB season preview, predictions and World Series winner

Opening Day for the MLB season was on Thursday, April 7, below are my predictions for the standings by division and my reason. A few divisions will be tight, however, I am confident in my selections below. If I had enough gas money to get to Vegas I would drive down and put my money where my mouth is. I don’t blame you if you disagree with me, after all, we can’t all be right. 

American League (AL) EAST - Toronto Blue Jays 

Yankee fans love to remind everyone of their 27 World Series rings, and since they won’t be winning the World Series, all their fans will get the chance to broadcast their 27 rings again next year. Four of the five clubs in the AL East finished the 2021 season with a winning percentage above .500, so this division is going to be a close battle. However, the Blue Jays, who picked up six new players for their roster, are my favorites to take first. Starting pitcher Kevin Gausman is one of the players Toronto picked up in the offseason, and he will provide the icing on the cake for an already impressive rotation.

AL CENTRAL - Chicago White Sox

The White Sox dominated the AL Central last season, leaving the second-place team (Cleveland) a whopping 13 games out of first by the time October hit. I suspect this will happen this season as well. Cleveland’s ace Shane Bieber will return this year in full strength and if Jose Ramirez and other prospects on the Guardians perform as hoped, they should have no problem taking second in their division with hopes of a wild card opportunity.

AL WEST - Seattle Mariners

In an ideal world, the Astros would lose every game and stay at the bottom of the American League forever. Unfortunately, life is not fair and in reality, the Astros are a solid team. However, they will lose the division to the Mariners, a team that showed surprising promise at the tail end of last season, barely missing a spot in the playoffs. In the offseason, Seattle has added a pair of All-Stars in Jesse Winker and Adam Frazier while signing reigning AL Cy Young Winner Robbie Ray. The Angels have two of the best players in baseball (Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani) and continue to remind fans of baseball that it takes a village to win a baseball game.

National League (NL) EAST - Atlanta Braves

The Braves managed to win the whole thing last year despite losing one of the league’s best outfielders (Ronald Acuna Jr.) to a torn ACL in the middle of the season. I believe the only serious threat to Atlanta in the National League East will be the Mets. Although finishing below .500 in 2021, they provided a few exciting additions to the roster including three-time Cy Young winning pitcher Max Scherzer and All-Star outfielder Starling Marte.

NL CENTRAL - Milwaukee Brewers

The Brewers are going to win this division. If online gambling was legal in Montana, I would bet on it right now. The Cubs and Cardinals will battle for second place, and with the pick-up of Nolan Arenado, the Cardinals are sitting comfortably to take second. The Pirates should join the Coastal Plain League and play against the Savannah Bananas.

NL WEST

The NL West has three of the best teams in the National League. Although both the Giants and Dodgers finished the 2021 season with winning percentages well above a .600, the Padres are my pick to win the division. The Padres finally have the pitching to back up their bats, and Fernando Tatis Jr. will return just in time to lead San Diego to a World Series win. On another note, I am so confident in the Diamondbacks trailing the rest of the division that if they finish with a winning percentage above .500, I’ll quit writing for the Exponent.