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Humans love making predictions. We love thinking about what the future holds, even if none of us really have a good idea of what that will be. A hundred years ago, people had some very odd thoughts on what life might be like today, but they were probably no worse at predicting the future than we are.
We love sports for their unpredictability. We cheer the underdogs, we remember the upsets, we look bug-eyed at the amazing plays were weren’t expecting. We thought baseball was really predictable last year, and yet none of us correctly picked the Boston Red Sox to win the championship, or even win the pennant. Even in the age of the “superteams”, baseball remains hard to predict.
I collected predictions on the 2019 season from our writing staff as well as over 200 responses from readers like you, and here is what I got - a bunch of answers that will almost certainly be wrong. And that’s just fine by me.
Royals predictions
2019 Royals predictions
Predictions | Best Royals position player | Best Royals pitcher | Royals' record | Standings |
---|---|---|---|---|
Predictions | Best Royals position player | Best Royals pitcher | Royals' record | Standings |
Jesse Anderson | Adalberto Mondesi | Brad Keller | 75-87 | 3rd |
Michael Augustine | Adalberto Mondesi | Brad Keller | 81-81 | 3rd |
Crai Brown | Whit Merrifield | Jakob Junis | 65-97 | 3rd |
Alex Duvall | Adalberto Mondesi | Jakob Junis | 72-90 | 4th |
Ryan Heffernon | Whit Merrifield | Danny Duffy | 71-91 | 4th |
Hokius | Adalberto Mondesi | Kyle Zimmer | 71-91 | 4th |
Josh Keiser | Whit Merrifield | Jakob Junis | 73-89 | 3rd |
Matthew LaMar | Adalberto Mondesi | Kyle Zimmer | 75-87 | 3rd |
Ryan Landreth | Whit Merrifield | Jakob Junis | 70-92 | 3rd |
Bradford Lee | Whit Merrifield | Jakob Junis | 75-87 | 3rd |
David Lesky | Whit Merrifield | Jakob Junis | 71-91 | 4th |
Shaun Newkirk | Whit Merrifield | Jakob Junis | 69-93 | 4th |
Max Rieper | Adalberto Mondesi | Jakob Junis | 72-90 | 4th |
sterlingice | Whit Merrifield | Jakob Junis | 72-90 | 4th |
Reader vote
Royals position player WAR leader: Adalberto Mondesi 47.5%, Whit Merrifield 47%
Royals pitcher WAR leader: Brad Keller 36.1%, Jakob Junis 32.3%, Brad Boxberger 9.9%
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Critical spirits! None of our writers chose the Royals to have a winning record, although they all predict the team to improve considerably. The readers seem to be a lot more bullish on Brad Keller than the writers. No surprise that most seem to think the best player will either be Whit Merrifield or Adalberto Mondesi.
American League predictions
2019 American League predictions
Predictions | AL East | AL Central | AL West | AL Wildcard | AL Wildcard |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Predictions | AL East | AL Central | AL West | AL Wildcard | AL Wildcard |
Jesse Anderson | Boston | Cleveland | Houston | New York | Los Angeles |
Michael Augustine | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Boston | Tampa Bay |
Craig Brown | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Boston | Los Angeles |
Alex Duvall | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Boston | Tampa Bay |
Ryan Heffernon | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Tampa Bay | Boston |
Hokius | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Boston | Tampa Bay |
Josh Keiser | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Boston | Minnesota |
Matthew LaMar | Boston | Cleveland | Houston | New York | Tampa Bay |
Ryan Landreth | Boston | Cleveland | Houston | Tampa Bay | New York |
Bradford Lee | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Boston | Oakland |
David Lesky | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Boston | Minnesota |
Shaun Newkirk | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Boston | Minnesota |
Max Rieper | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Boston | Minnesota |
sterlingice | New York | Cleveland | Houston | Boston | Minnesota |
Reader vote
AL East: Boston 56.4%, New York 41.6%
AL Central: Cleveland 82.2%, Minnesota 8.9%, Kansas City 6.9%
AL West: Houston 86%, Los Angeles 8.5%, Oakland 3.5%
AL Wildcards (two): New York 51%, Boston 39.1%, Los Angeles 30%, Oakland 23.8%, Tampa Bay 15.3%, Houston 9.9%, Seattle 8.4%, Kansas City 5.9%, Minnesota 5.4%, Cleveland 5.4%
The American League seems fairly predictable, although there is some split over who will win the East.
National League predictions
2019 National League predictions
Predictions | NL East | NL Central | NL West | NL Wildcard | NL Wildcard |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Predictions | NL East | NL Central | NL West | NL Wildcard | NL Wildcard |
Jesse Anderson | Washington | Milwaukee | Colorado | Chicago | San Diego |
Michael Augustine | New York | Chicago | Colorado | Atlanta | Washington |
Craig Brown | New York | Chicago | Los Angeles | Milwaukee | Washington |
Alex Duvall | Washington | Chicago | Colorado | Atlanta | Milwaukee |
Ryan Heffernon | Washington | Chicago | Los Angeles | St. Louis | Philadelphia |
Hokius | Philadelphia | St. Louis | San Diego | Atlanta | Chicago |
Josh Keiser | Philadelphia | Chicago | Los Angeles | Atlanta | Washington |
Matthew LaMar | Philadelphia | Chicago | Los Angeles | St. Louis | Arizona |
Ryan Landreth | Philadelphia | Chicago | Colorado | Atlanta | Los Angeles |
Bradford Lee | Atlanta | Milwaukee | Los Angeles | Philadelphia | Chicago |
David Lesky | Washington | St. Louis | Los Angeles | Philadelphia | Milwaukee |
Shaun Newkirk | Washington | Chicago | Los Angeles | St. Louis | Philadelphia |
Max Rieper | Washington | Milwaukee | Colorado | Atlanta | St. Louis |
sterlingice | Philadelphia | Milwaukee | Los Angeles | Washington | Chicago |
Reader vote
NL East: Philadelphia 50.5%, Atlanta 34.5%, Washington 10.5%, New York 4.5%
NL Central: Milwaukee 56.9%, Chicago 24.8%, St. Louis 15.3%, Cincinnati 3%
NL West: Los Angeles 74.1%, Colorado 17.4%, San Diego 4%, Arizona 4%
NL Wild cards (two): St. Louis 32.2%, Atlanta 29.7%, Chicago 27.2%, Colorado 20.8%, Milwaukee 19.3%, Philadelphia 19.3%, Los Angeles 11.4%, San Diego 10.4%, Arizona 7.4%, Washington 6.9%, Cincinnati 5.9%
The Bryce Harper signing seemed to sway readers to pick the Phillies as the only non-repeat division winner.
Award predictions
2019 MLB Award predictions
Predictions | AL MVP | NL MVP | AL Cy Young | NL Cy Young | AL Rookie of the Year | NL Rookie of the Year |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Predictions | AL MVP | NL MVP | AL Cy Young | NL Cy Young | AL Rookie of the Year | NL Rookie of the Year |
Jesse Anderson | Mike Trout, LAA | Anthony Rendon, WSN | Justin Verlander, HOU | Max Scherzer, WSN | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Fernando Tatis, SDP |
Michael Augustine | Mookie Betts, BOS | Ronald Acuna, ATL | Trevor Bauer, CLE | Max Scherzer, WSN | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Fernando Tatis, SDP |
Craig Brown | Mike Trout, LAA | Nolan Arenado, COL | Gerrit Cole, HOU | Noah Syndergaard, NYM | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Victor Robles, WSN |
Alex Duvall | Mike Trout, LAA | Trea Turner, WSN | Gerrit Cole, HOU | Walker Buehler, LAD | Eloy Jimenez, CHW | Touki Toussant, ATL |
Ryan Heffernon | Mike Trout, LAA | Anthony Rendon, WSN | Chris Sale, BOS | Max Scherzer, WSN | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Fernando Tatis, SDP |
Hokius | Mike Trout, LAA | Bryce Harper, PHI | Trevor Bauer, CLE | Aaron Nola, PHI | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Touki Toussant, ATL |
Josh Keiser | Mike Trout, LAA | Nolan Arenado, COL | Chris Sale, BOS | Max Scherzer, WSN | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Victor Robles, WSN |
Matthew LaMar | Mike Trout, LAA | Nolan Arenado, COL | Justin Verlander, HOU | Clayton Kershaw, LAD | Eloy Jimenez, CHW | Fernando Tatis, SDP |
Ryan Landreth | Aaron Judge, NYY | Bryce Harper, PHI | Justin Verlander, HOU | Aaron Nola, PHI | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Fernando Tatis, SDP |
Bradford Lee | Mike Trout, LAA | Nolan Arenado, COL | Chris Sale, BOS | Aaron Nola, PHI | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Fernando Tatis, SDP |
David Lesky | Alex Bregman, HOU | Anthony Rendon, WSN | Jose Berrios, MIN | Max Scherzer, WSN | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Luis Urias, SDP |
Shaun Newkirk | Mike Trout, LAA | Kris Bryant, CHC | Gerrit Cole, HOU | Max Scherzer, WSN | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Chris Paddack, SDP |
Max Rieper | Alex Bregman, HOU | Nolan Arenado, COL | Marcus Stroman, TOR | Stephen Strasburg, WSN | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Francisco Mejia, SDP |
sterlingice | Mike Trout, LAA | Paul Goldschmidt, STL | Chris Sale, BOS | Max Scherzer, WSN | Vladimir Guerrero, TOR | Nick Senzel, CIN |
Reader vote
AL MVP: Mike Trout, LAA 56.9%; Mookie Betts, BOS 7.9%; Aaron Judge, NYY 5.4%; Alex Bregman, HOU 5%; Jose Altuve, HOU 4%; J.D. Martinez, BOS 4%; Francisco Lindor, CLE 3%; Someone else 9.9%
NL MVP: Nolan Arenado, COL 20.3%; Bryce Harper, PHI 15.3%; Paul Goldschmidt, STL 12.9%; Ronald Acuna, ATL 10.4%; Christian Yelich, MIL 8.9%; Manny Machado, SDP 5.4%; Kris Bryant, CHC 4.5%; Someone else 15.3%
AL Cy Young: Chris Sale, BOS 28.4%; Justin Verlander, HOU 12.4%; Gerrit Cole, HOU 9%; Corey Kluber, CLE 6.5%; Blake Snell, TBR 6%; James Paxton, NYY 4.5%; Someone else 28.9%
NL Cy Young: Max Scherzer, WSN 39.8%; Jacob deGrom, NYM 14.4%; Aaron Nola, PHI 10.9%; Noah Syndergaard, NYM 6%; Clayton Kershaw, LAD 4.5%; Stephen Strasburg, WSN 4.5%; Someone else 14.9%
AL Rookie of the Year: Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., TOR 47.8%; Eloy Jimenez, CHW 17.4%; Yusei Kikuchi, SEA 5.5%; Someone else 24.4%
NL Rookie of the Year: Fernando Tatis, Jr. SDP 33.3%; Victor Robles, WSN 20.4%; Francsico Mejia, SDP 10%; Touki Toussant, ATL 7%; Peter Alonso, NYM 5%; Nick Senzel, CIN 4.5%; Someone else 19.4%
All right, who will win the whole shebang?
World Series predictions
2019 World Series predictions
Predictions | World Series |
---|---|
Predictions | World Series |
Jesse Anderson | Red Sox over Nationals |
Michael Augustine | Yankees over Braves |
Craig Brown | Astros over Cubs |
Alex Duvall | Nationals over Astros |
Ryan Heffernon | Yankees over Nationals |
Hokius | Astros over Phillies |
Josh Keiser | Astros over Braves |
Matthew LaMar | Red Sox over Phillies |
Ryan Landreth | Phillies over Rays |
Bradford Lee | Astros over Phillies |
David Lesky | Dodgers over Astros |
Shaun Newkirk | Astros over Nationals |
Max Rieper | Astros over Nationals |
sterlingice | Dodgers over Astros |
Reader vote
American League pennant: Houston 35.7%, New York 30.1%, Boston 22.4%, Kansas City 4.6%, Cleveland 3.1%
National League pennant: Milwaukee 27.9%, Philadelphia 18.9%, Los Angeles, 14.9%, Atlanta 11.9%, St. Louis 8.%, Chicago 7.5%, Washington 4%, Colorado 4%
World Series champion: Houston 22.9%, NY Yankees 20.3%, Boston 16.7%, Milwaukee 16.7%, Philadelphia 4.2%, LA Dodgers 3.6%, Kansas City 3.6%
What are your predictions for the season?