It is early March, spring training games are underway and opening day is less than a month away. Now comes the fun time to make the early predictions on where the teams will finish when the season ends in regards to the final standings as well as the Wild Card, League Champions and winner of the World Series.
Paul Allen will have his predictions listed in the upcoming April issue of NightMoves and hopefully he will also post them here on AAN. It will be fun at the end of the year to see which one of us came closest with their predictions.
After the first week of the season, I will also make my early predictions for the 2016 award winners for the Cy Young, the Home Run title, MVP, Rookie of the Year, Manager of the Year and Comeback Player of the Year. For now here are my predictions on how the final standings will end up and who will be in the post season and World Series.
MLB DIVISION FINAL STANDINGS 2016
AL EAST
- TAMPA BAY – Best pitching the division, finally have some offense and a superior defense. If they stay injury free this could be 2008 again.
- TORONTO – Loads of offense to score runs, but the pitching may get overworked and could hold them back.
- BOSTON – Yes, they have David Price now, but the rest of the staff is iffy. Offense is pretty solid, but shaky defense will hurt.
- NEW YORK- They are getting older and older, too many questions pitching wise and how much offense can this old group muster?
- BALTIMORE – Like most, the O’s pitching is suspect for the most part. Not sure how much Weiters can add to the offense. Rebuilding time in O town.
AL CENTRAL
- DETROIT – They still have a solid offense and the addition of Zimmerman to the starting staff is big. If Verlander comes back 100% they could lock it up.
- KANSAS CITY – The reigning champs are still to be feared with an all around solid club. However, Detroit just may prove to be too much.
- CHICAGO WHITE SOX – They have added big offense with Todd Frazier, pitching looks stronger. This could be a surprise team.
- MINNESOTA – Here again pitching will tell the story. However, they have a bona fide future star with Byun Park, the Korean slugger and on the rise.
- CLEVELAND – Sorry Terry, you have some excellent pieces, Kluber, Kipnis, Lindor, etc. but still not enough yet. Indians will rebuild for the future.
AL WEST
- HOUSTON –The Astros were no fluke and are the real deal. Correa (future MVP), Altuve. Kuechel, Springer, etc. A very strong team all around.
- TEXAS – The Rangers have the offense, they have a solid defense. Hamels, Darvish will need help pitching wise or else they can’t win it.
- SEATTLE – New manager, new front office, new faces to help King Felix and the rest. They will contend just not strong enough…..yet.
- OAKLAND- Another tough year ahead as the A’s continue to shuffle things around. Some good players, but too many question marks in 2016.
- LOS ANGELES (ANAHEIM) – Sorry, but even with Trout and a healthy Pujols, the Angels just don’t have enough. It will be a long year in Disney country.
AL WILD CARDS – KANSAS CITY & TEXAS
AL CHAMPION – TAMPA BAY
NL EAST
- NEW YORK METS – No fluke here and with the best pitching the NL the Mets should repeat. They have Cespedes back to lead a good offense.
- MIAMI – Mattingly and Barry Bonds are going to make a huge difference in this team. Pitching will be okay, but the offense should be monstrous.
- WASHINGTON – Sorry, I like Dusty Baker, but the game has passed him by and he will not be able to resurrect this listing ship, even with Bryce Harper.
- PHILADEPHIA – Where do we begin? They have more holes than Swiss cheese and the pieces brought in may not even get them to .500.
- ATLANTA- Atlanta fans know it, the Braves, other than Freeman, are in total rebuild mode. This may be one of the Braves worst seasons since the 1980’s.
NL CENTRAL
- CHICAGO CUBS – The Cubs finally have it all from Maddon right on down to the 25th man on the roster. They have offense, pitching, defense and depth.
- PITTSBURGH – The Pirates have made a nice turn around the last couple of years, but still have some holes to fill. It’s bridesmaid time again.
- ST. LOUIS – Question marks with the pitching, the outfield and first base. Still a good ballclub, but time may have finally caught up with them.
- MILWAUKEE – Only because the Reds are in the division is why the Brewers won’t finish last. Other than Braun, there is little to like here.
- CINCINNATI- They unloaded Frazier and Chapman and Jay Bruce could be gone soon. Pitching is a mess, bullpen is questionable. A 100 loss season?
NL WEST
- SAN FRANCISCO – It starts with Bruce Bochy and goes from there. They are solid up and down the roster and the pitching is among the best.
- ARIZONA – This will be the big surprise team of 2016 with 88 wins. Goldschmidt and company provide big offense, Grienke leads a formidable staff.
- LOS ANGELES DODGERS – A huge payroll, a new manager, headaches and problems to solve. Kershaw can’t do it alone and getting 85 wins won’t be easy.
- SAN DIEGO – Another new manager with a lot of problems to solve pitching wise and offensively. Another tough year ahead for the Padres.
- COLORADO – The Rockies have some legit building blocks for the future (Arenado, Blackmon), but the Rockies might be looking at their worst season yet.
NL WILD CARDS – MIAMI & ARIZONA
NL CHAMPS – CHICAGO CUBS
WORLD SERIES – CUBS – RAYS ……………TAMPA BAY RAYS in 7 games.
Just think of the story line with a World Series like this. It is a media and TV network dream! Joe Maddon, the former Rays manager who guided them to the WS in 2008 and the most successful run in their history. Now he is the manager of the Cubs who would be going to their first World Series since 1945!
No, I am not being a “homer” in my selection of the Tampa Bay Rays. I truly believe they can do this in 2016. At any rate, there are my predictions for the upcoming major league season. My other predictions will come the first week in April. I would love to hear back from some of you on your thoughts, predictions, etc.
Art Koch, National Features & DVD Editor, NightMoves Magazine and AAN
