Happy Opening Day, friends! The 2018 season has already kicked off over a week ago, but the excitement begins today for most baseball fans. That’s why I figured it was the perfect time to invite you in to join me in the fun of some predictions for the upcoming year. I’ll give you my predictions for the MLB Standings, fantasy leaders at all 5×5 fantasy categories, the MLB awards races and the MLB playoff results.
It is obvious that Max Scherzer is your best bet to win the NL Cy Young and that the Astros are near-locks to win the AL West. Some of these favorites will win, but we all know the combination of each of them winning is never how the season plays out. Predicting that or essentially a repeat of last year’s standings wouldn’t be any fun either, would it? Rather, think of this my attempt at the perfect bracket. I’m trying to build out a realistic scenario with injuries, trades and volatility in mind. When you are finished, let me know a few of your predictions for the season on Twitter. Thank you for reading and good luck in your fantasy leagues this year!
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Standings
AL East
101-61 Yankees
*93-69 Red Sox
86-76 Rays
69-93 Blue Jays
55-107 Orioles
–The Red Sox and Yankees are clearly the class of this division and each is a legitimate World Series contender. With that said, there is still a difference between the two, as the Yankees have the best bullpen of all-time, more depth in the rotation and a stronger lineup. Were the Rays in the AL Central, they would be the odds-on favorite, but as it is now, they will be hard pressed to make the playoffs as the second wild card.
AL Central
88-74 Twins
*87-75 Indians
71-91 Tigers
70-92 White Sox
67-95 Royals
–The Indians are considered heavy favorites by most, but they did nothing to fix their atrocious lineup and will have to have great fortune in the starting pitcher health department if they want to hold off the surging Twins. Minnesota added to their rotation, bullpen and made serious bounds forward in their lineup while Cleveland was caught standing still. No one else in this division has any hope for a playoff bid.
AL West
99-63 Astros
84-78 Angels
79-83 A’s
77-85 Mariners
69-93 Rangers
–We all know Houston is going to run away with the division but behind them, the Angels and A’s could both compete for the second wild card. Los Angeles may be flying under the radar, much like Oakland did last year. The Angels have several starters that could take a big leap forward from along with some firepower in their offense should things click for a few of Zack Cozart, Albert Pujols, Kole Calhoun or Justin Bour like we’ve seen before. It may all be enough to surpass an A’s team with major question marks in the rotation.
NL East
88-74 Nationals
*87-75 Mets
86-76 Phillies
86-76 Braves
66-96 Marlins
–From top to bottom, the NL Central is the best in baseball, but the NL East has four teams who have at least an outside chance at winning a World Series title this year. They are all close to one another in terms of talent and unfortunately, one to three of them will miss out on the playoffs entirely. The Nationals may be without Bryce Harper, but they added Patrick Corbin plus Victor Robles is ready to roll from the get-go. Having the others behind them isn’t a knock on those teams, as each could win 95+ games if things go their way.
NL Central
93-69 Brewers
*90-72 Cardinals
86-76 Cubs
79-83 Reds
77-85 Pirates
–I’m ready for the hate tweets, Cubs fans. While they’ve got five formerly reliable pitchers, that rotation is a bit of a liability in all reality. The offense is still impressive but with Almora, Heyward and Zobrist starting every day, both the Brewers and Cardinals should score more runs. The Cardinals bullpen should be much better with Andrew Miller, Alex Reyes and potentially even Carlos Martinez joining Jordan Hicks, plus Paul Goldschmidt is a killer upgrade. Milwaukee should repeat as division champs, however, thanks to the NL’s best bullpen, an upstart rotation and power galore in the offense. Don’t sleep on either Cincy or the Pirates making a late-season push for the second wild-card either.
NL West
95-67 Dodgers
87-75 Rockies
80-82 Padres
71-91 Diamondbacks
64-98 Giants
–The Rockies were right on the Dodgers’ tail last season, but that was with virtually ideal health for Colorado and no luck whatsoever in that realm for the Dodgers. The two should see much more separation this year as L.A. has the best roster in the National League. San Diego is getting there with Matt Strahm, Chris Paddack, and plenty more coming in the rotation, but are more than likely still a year or three away from being serious competitors.
Major Trades
Corey Kluber to the Padres for Francisco Mejia, Adrian Morejon and Hunter Renfroe
Madison Bumgarner to the Red Sox for Michael Chavis and Tanner Houck
Robbie Ray to the Angels for Jahmai Jones and Griffin Canning
Khris Davis to the Cubs for Addison Russell and Miguel Amaya
Blake Treinen to the Dodgers for Alex Verdugo and Caleb Ferguson
Leaders
AL Hitters
- BA – Jose Altuve (HOU) – .321 BA
- HR – Giancarlo Stanton (NYY) – 50 HRs
- RBI – J.D. Martinez (BOS) – 127 RBIs
- R – Mike Trout (LAA) – 133 Rs
- SB – Adalberto Mondesi (KCR) – 62 SBs
NL Hitters
- BA – Daniel Murphy (COL) – .349 BA
- HR – Cody Bellinger (LAD) – 52 HRs
- RBI – Marcell Ozuna (STL) – 122 RBIs
- R – Andrew McCutchen (PHI) – 119 Rs
- SB – Trea Turner (WAS) – 55 SBs
AL Pitchers
- ERA – Blake Snell (TBR) – 2.21 ERA
- WHIP – Chris Sale (BOS) – 0.88 WHIP
- W – Justin Verlander (HOU) – 19 Wins
- K – Chris Sale (BOS) – 282 Ks
- SV – Trevor May (MIN) – 42 Saves
NL Pitchers
- ERA – Jack Flaherty (STL) – 2.18 ERA
- WHIP – Jacob deGrom (NYM) – 0.92 WHIP
- W – Walker Buehler (LAD) – 18 Wins
- K – Max Scherzer (WAS) – 260 Ks
- SV – Jordan Hicks (STL) – 40 Saves
Awards
AL MVP
- Mike Trout (LAA) – 36 HR, 101 RBIs, 133 Rs, .315 BA
- Giancarlo Stanton (NYY) – 50 HR, 118 RBIs, 99 Rs, .268 BA
- Alex Bregman (HOU) – 37 HR, 99 RBIs, 107 Rs, .301 BA
- Mookie Betts (BOS) – 28 HR, 124 Rs, 25 SBs, .319 BA
- Miguel Cabrera (DET) – 26 HR, 98 RBIs, 94 Rs, .320 BA
NL MVP
- Cody Bellinger (LAD) – 52 HRs, 118 RBIs, 103 Rs, .282 BA
- Ronald Acuna (ATL) – 36 HRs, 109 Rs, 29 SBs, .299 BA
- Anthony Rendon (WAS) – 28 HRs, 95 RBIs, 114 Rs, .322 BA
- Daniel Murphy (COL) – 22 HRs, 91 RBIs, 99 Rs, .349 BA
- Marcell Ozuna (STL) – 35 HRs, 122 RBIs, 95 Rs, .277 BA
AL Cy Young
- Chris Sale (BOS) – 2.34 ERA, 18 Ws, 282 Ks
- Blake Snell (TBR) – 2.21 ERA, 15 Ws, 221 Ks
- Justin Verlander (HOU) – 2.64 ERA, 19 Ws, 245 Ks
- Gerrit Cole (HOU) – 2.81 ERA, 17 Ws, 238 Ks
- Trevor Bauer (CLE) – 2.65 ERA, 14 Ws, 253 Ks
NL Cy Young
- Walker Buehler (LAD) – 2.28 ERA, 18 Ws, 229 Ks
- Max Scherzer (WAS) – 2.31 ERA, 15 Ws, 260 Ks
- Noah Syndergaard (NYM) – 2.67 ERA, 16 Ws, 246 Ks
- Jack Flaherty (STL) – 2.18 ERA, 14 Ws, 212 Ks
- Jacob deGrom (NYM) – 2.33 ERA, 14 Ws, 220 Ks
AL Rookie of the Year
- Eloy Jimenez (CWS) – 31 HR, 84 RBIs, .291 BA in 503 ABs
- Vlad Guerrero Jr. (TOR) – 22 HR, 70 RBIs, .309 BA in 424 ABs
- Kyle Tucker (HOU) – 19 HR, 68 RBIs, .282 BA in 401 ABs
- Forrest Whitley (HOU) – 2.84 ERA, 10 Ws, 153 Ks in 139 IP
- Brent Honeywell (TBR) – 3.10 ERA, 8 Ws, 140 Ks in 146 IP
NL Rookie of the Year
- Chris Paddack (SD) – 2.77 ERA, 11 Ws, 188 Ks in 165 IP
- Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD) – 20 HRs, 28 SBs, .266 BA in 495 ABs
- Victor Robles (WAS) – 14 HRs, 30 SBs, .271 BA in 523 ABs
- Nick Senzel (CIN) – 16 HRs, 14 SBs, .295 BA in 427 ABs
- Alex Reyes (STL) – 1.60 ERA, 12 SVs, 109 Ks in 82 IP
Playoffs
Wild Card Games
*Mets > Rockies — tiebreaker game, DeGrom outduels Marquez
Red Sox > Indians —
Mets > Cardinals — Syndergaard and Edwin Diaz combine for a shutout
Divisional Round
Yankees > Red Sox in 5 — Stanton and Sanchez combine for 6 homers
Astros > Twins in 3 — Houston blows away the Twins’ mediocre rotation
Dodgers > Mets in 4 — Buehler, Kershaw and Urias all pitch a gem
Brewers > Nationals in 5 — Freddy Peralta wins two games as Milwaukee’s new ace
League Championships
Yankees > Astros in 6 — New York’s bullpen combines for just 4 runs in 31 innings
Brewers > Dodgers in 5 — Milwaukee pours on 41 runs versus LA’s lefty-heavy staff
World Series
Yankees > Brewers in 7 — Domingo German comes up big in Game 7 against the Brewers’ bullpen-game (MVP: Aaron Judge)
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