2015 MLB Predictions
/Opening Day, like the Super Bowl, should be a national holiday. It’s one of my favorite days on the sports calendar and signals the changing of the seasons, from winter to spring. Bob and I broke down the two leagues in our podcasts, starting with the National League and finishing with the American League. Here is who I think will win it all, you can check out Bob's picks here and let me know what you think in the comments below.
National League
NL East- Washington Nationals
After Atlanta traded away most of its core players, the division is relatively weak and the Nationals tower over it. Washington’s rotation is the deepest in the majors with six guys who would be most club’s No. 3 starter: Max Scherzer, Jordan Zimmermann, Stephen Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez and Doug Fister. That means Tanner Roark and his 2.85 ERA/1.09 WHIP are headed to the bullpen until one of those five struggle or get hurt.
But the lineup is strong too. While Washington will be without Jayson Werth, Denard Span and Anthony Rendon in the early goings, Yunel Escobar, Ian Desmond, Bryce Harper, Ryan Zimmerman and Wilson Ramos will be more than enough to carry the load. Add in a solid bullpen, and the Nationals have all the makings of a contender.
Team to watch could be Miami. Had a solid offseason, despite signing Giancarlo Stanton to his mega deal (13/$325M), the Marlins added Dee Gordon and have solid young talent in Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna. Jose Fernandez, if he returns healthy from Tommy John, could be the difference maker as he has the ability to be a legitimate ace.
NL Central- St. Louis Cardinals
Probably the most competitive division. St. Louis is a dynasty in the National League with four-straight NLCS appearances and two World Series appearances (one win). Added Jason Heyward and still has a solid rotation if Michael Wacha and Adam Wainwright can stay healthy. Lance Lynn and John Lackey are solid in the middle with Carlos Martinez taking the five spot in place of Jaime Garcia.
Lineup includes Matt Adams, Kolten Wong , Jhonny Peralta and Matt Holliday with Matt Carpenter setting the table. Bullpen could be an issue, after closer Trevor Rosenthal there isn’t much else.
Cubs are getting a ton of hype, added Jon Lester, have Jake Arrieta and a ton of prospects like Kris Bryant, Jorge Soler and Javier Baez to go with Anthony Rizzo and Starlin Castro. And while they may make strides, I can’t see them finishing above Pittsburgh or St. Louis.
Pirates have a great outfield in Andrew McCutchen, Starling Marte and Gregory Polanco to go with Neil Walker, Josh Harrison. Gerrit Cole and Francisco Liriano anchor a ho-hum rotation. After that it’s A.J. Burnett, Charlie Morton and Vance Worley (ouch!).
Brewers and Reds are likely the bottom two. Milwaukee finished 9-22 after a hot start and lost Yovani Gallardo to Texas. I like Johnny Cueto but it seems like Cincinnati is in a bit of a rebuild.
NL West- Los Angeles Dodgers
Washington may have the deepest rotation, but the Dogers have the best one-two punch in baseball with Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke. The offseason was a bit puzzling, bringing in Howie Kendrick and Jimmy Rollins for Hanley Ramirez (smart move) and Dee Gordon (not sure why the Dodgers traded him). They’ll have to piece together a bullpen for a bit without closer Kenley Jansen, and Hyun-Jin Ryu is also nursing a shoulder injury, but the Dodgers are heavy favorites to win the west for the third-straight year.
San Diego is definitely a sleeper here and I think the Padres will finish second. They added Matt Kemp, Justin Upton, Wil Myers, Derek Norris, Will Middlebrooks and signed James Shields to a solid contract. Oh, and I hyped them up before they added Craig Kimbrel, the league’s best closer.
NL Wild Card Game- San Diego Padres vs. Pittsburgh Pirates
American League
AL East- Toronto Blue Jays
Could be the weakest division in the majors. Boston made headlines going from worst to first back to worst again. They added Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez to a solid offense that has David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia. But where is the pitching? Rick Porcello, Wade Miley, Justin Masterson and Clay Buchholz — where is the ace?
Manny Machado is an intriguing storyline. Baltimore is down Chris Davis for a few games. But again, where is the ace? Chris Tillman, Wei-Yen Chen, Miguel Gonzales, Bud Norris, and Ubaldo Jimenez. I don’t see one. Won the division by 12 games last year, I doubt they will win it so convincingly this time around.
I like Toronto — Added Josh Donaldson and Russell martin along with Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion. Drew Hutchison, R.A. Dickey, Daniel Norris, Mark Buehrle. It would end the longest playoff drought in the majors at 21 years.
This division is so bad, that the Yankees and Tampa Bay have legitimate shots at winning it.
AL Central- Cleveland Indians
The most competitive division in baseball. First there is the four-time defending champions, Detroit. Lost Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander is declining, but David Price is a legit ace.
Can Alfredo Simon or Shane Greene step up? We’ll see.
Bullpen still an issue, but the lineup will be the strength — Rajai Davis, Ian Kinsler is the best table setting combo in baseball. Then Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez, J.D. Martinez, and Yoenis Cespedes is scary. But, Cabrera and V-Mart are showing injury problems already, and could be breaking down.
I think the Tigers finish third.
Cleveland is a sleeping solid team, only finished 5 out of the division last year and 3 out of the wild card. Love the rotation with Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Trevor Bauer, T.J. House, and Zach McCallister/Danny Salazar. Bullpen is probably the best in baseball with Cody Allen anchoring it, had 91 Ks in 69.2 IP with 24 saves (didn’t have the job until mid-May).
Offense is the big question mark, love the Brandon Moss trade and Michael Brantley is the most underrated player in baseball. Jason Kipnis and Carlos Santana have to be consistent this year. And this is finally the year Francisco Lindor makes his major league debut. Jose Ramirez and Lonnie Chisehnall better play well. Then again, Ryan Raburn is the DH, so maybe not.
White Sox will finish second the division. Love what they did in the offseason got a steal in Melky Cabrara, who they added for three years at $42 million. Tack on David Robertson, left handed reliever Zach Duke and the Jeff Samardzija trade to a core of Chris Sale and Jose Abreu and you’ve got all the pieces for a breakout team. Alexei Ramareiz too.
Not sold on Kansas City being a long-term team. Lost James Shields, Billy Butler and Nori Aoki. Will be a factor but I think they got hot and will take a step back to the 80-85 game range. But I love their bullpen — Greg Holland, Wade Davis and Kelvin Herrera. Yordano Ventura and Danny Duffy solid.
AL West- Seattle Mariners
I love the Mariners this year. They finished 1 game out of the Wild Card. Nelson Cruz signing is excellent. Yeah he played in Camden Yards, but only hit 15 of his 40 home runs there. I don’t see the new park hurting his totals and think he’ll hit 30. Also have Robinson Cano, who I think will bounce back, and the most underrated third basemen in the majors — Kyle Seager. Seager has hit 20, 22, and 25 home runs and I’ve got him for 1.30 in fantasy.
Pitching is excellent — Felix Hernandez at the top, Hisashi Iwakuma is a solid No. 2. James Paxton, J.A. Happ, and Taijuan Walker — who has the most upside — aren’t bad. Bullpen is strong with Fernando Rodney and Danny Farquar anchoring it.
But the Angels will be right there, and they certainly won’t lose by 10 games like they won it by last year. Mike Trout is the best player in baseball. Solid rotation if Garrett Richards comes back healthy, Matt Shoemaker is a solid No. 2. But Josh Hamilton has some issues and does Albert Pujols have another solid year in him? Bounced back last year, but for how long?
Sleeper team is Houston — Jose Altuve and George Springer are future stars. Traded for Evan Gattis, Jason Castro and Chris Carter are solid. But I love Houston’s young rotation — Dallas Keuchel and Collin McHugh are pretty solid. Watch out for pitcher Mark Appel and shortstop Carlos Correa — Jed Lowrie holds down the fort for now. Texas and Oakland are garbage.
AL Wild Card Game- Chicago White Sox vs. Houston Astros
Awards
NL Cy Young- Max Scherzer (WAS)
AL Cy Young- Felix Hernandez (SEA)
NL MVP- Andrew McCutchen (PIT)
AL MVP- Mike Trout (LAA)