/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72127793/biffalmanac.0.jpg)
On the eve of Opening Day, it’s time for us to measure our powers of prognostication! Last week we asked fans to chime in on their predictions for the season. We had over 400 responses, with predictions on how the Royals will fare this year, who will make the playoffs, who will win major awards, and who will win the whole thing!
Here are the results, plus the picks by our current and former writers. You can see how wrong we were last year. Let’s start with Royals predictions!
2023 Royals predictions
Predictions | Best Royals position player | Best Royals pitcher | Royals' record |
---|---|---|---|
Predictions | Best Royals position player | Best Royals pitcher | Royals' record |
Alex Duvall | Bobby Witt Jr. | Brady Singer | 77-85 |
Preston Farr | Vinnie Pasquantino | Daniel Lynch | 78-84 |
Jeremy Greco | Vinnie Pasquantino | Kris Bubic | 74-88 |
Brian Henry | Bobby Witt Jr. | Brady Singer | 78-84 |
Cullen Jekel | Bobby Witt Jr. | Brady Singer | 71-91 |
Josh Keiser | Bobby Witt Jr. | Brady Singer | 79-83 |
Matthew LaMar | Vinnie Pasquantino | Brady Singer | 75-87 |
Bradford Lee | Bobby Witt Jr. | Brady Singer | 79-83 |
Jacob Milham | Bobby Witt Jr. | Zack Greinke | 67-95 |
Shaun Newkirk | Bobby Witt Jr. | Brady Singer | 72-90 |
Max Rieper | Bobby Witt Jr. | Brady Singer | 72-90 |
Greg Walker | Bobby Witt Jr. | Brady Singer | 70-92 |
Reader vote
Royals wins:
More than 90: 2.0%
85-89: 2.9%
80-84: 20.1%
75-79: 31.0%
70-74: 33.3%
Less than 70: 10.6%
Royals position player WAR leader: Bobby Witt Jr. 45.3%; Vinnie Pasquantino 30.2%; Salvador Perez 10.4%; MJ Melendez 3.6%
Royals pitcher WAR leader: Brady Singer 74.5%; Zack Greinke 9.9%; Brad Keller 3.8%; Scott Barlow 3.6%
Last year over 60 percent of readers predicted the Royals to win at least 80 games. That’s down to less than 25 percent this year. The consensus seems to be that Witt and Singer will be the bright stars on this team.
American League predictions
Predictions | AL East | AL Central | AL West | AL Wildcard | AL Wildcard | AL Wildcard |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Predictions | AL East | AL Central | AL West | AL Wildcard | AL Wildcard | AL Wildcard |
Alex Duvall | Blue Jays | Guardians | Astros | Yankees | Rays | Angels |
Preston Farr | Yankees | White Sox | Mariners | Angels | Astros | Blue Jays |
Jeremy Greco | Yankees | Guardians | Astros | Mariners | Rays | Twins |
Brian Henry | Blue Jays | Guardians | Astros | Yankees | Mariners | Orioles |
Cullen Jekel | Blue Jays | Twins | Astros | Yankees | Angels | Mariners |
Josh Keiser | Blue Jays | Guardians | Astros | Yankees | Mariners | Rangers |
Matthew LaMar | Yankees | Twins | Astros | Rays | Mariners | Angels |
Bradford Lee | Yankees | Guardians | Astros | Rays | Twins | Mariners |
Jacob Milham | Blue Jays | White Sox | Astros | Yankees | Angels | Mariners |
Shaun Newkirk | Yankees | Twins | Astros | Rays | Blue Jays | Guardians |
Max Rieper | Blue Jays | Twins | Astros | Yankees | Mariners | Rays |
Greg Walker | Blue Jays | Guardians | Astros | Mariners | Yankees | Rays |
Reader vote
AL East: Yankees 55.9%; Blue Jays 27.3%; Rays 10.3%; Orioles 4.0%; Red Sox 2.6%
AL Central: Guardians 52.4%; Twins 21.4%; White Sox 20.5%; Royals 5.4%; Tigers 0.2%
AL West: Astros 76.4%; Mariners 12.0%; Angels 8.8%; Rangers 2.1%; Athletics 0.7%
AL Wild Cards: Mariners 42.3%; Rays 40.8%; Blue Jays 39%; Yankees 34.9%; Angels 22.3%; Orioles 19.6%; Twins 17.6%; Astros 17.6%; Guardians 16.4%; Red Sox 14.9%; White Sox 13.3%; Rangers 11%; Royals 7.9%
Fans are predicting all three division winners to repeat! What about the National League?
National League predictions
Predictions | NL East | NL Central | NL West | NL Wildcard | NL Wildcard | NL Wildcard |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Predictions | NL East | NL Central | NL West | NL Wildcard | NL Wildcard | NL Wildcard |
Alex Duvall | Mets | Cardinals | Padres | Braves | Phillies | Dodgers |
Preston Farr | Mets | Cardinals | Dodgers | Padres | Braves | Mets |
Jeremy Greco | Braves | Cardinals | Dodgers | Padres | Cubs | Phillies |
Brian Henry | Braves | Cardinals | Padres | Dodgers | Mets | Phillies |
Cullen Jekel | Braves | Cardinals | Padres | Mets | Phillies | Dodgers |
Josh Keiser | Phillies | Cardinals | Padres | Braves | Mets | Dodgers |
Matthew LaMar | Mets | Brewers | Dodgers | Braves | Padres | Giants |
Bradford Lee | Phillies | Cardinals | Dodgers | Braves | Padres | Giants |
Jacob Milham | Braves | Cardinals | Padres | Dodgers | Mets | Cubs |
Shaun Newkirk | Braves | Cardinals | Padres | Brewers | Dodgers | Mets |
Max Rieper | Braves | Cardinals | Padres | Dodgers | Mets | Phillies |
Greg Walker | Braves | Brewers | Padres | Mets | Cardinals | Dodgers |
Reader vote
NL East: Braves 47.9%; Mets 34.3%; Phillies 16.8%; Nationals 0.7%; Marlins 0.0%
NL Central: Cardinals 78.3%; Brewers 16.1%; Cubs 3.7%; Reds 1.4%; Pirates 0.5%
NL West: Dodgers 54.8%; Padres 42.6%; Giants 1.8%; Diamondbacks 0.5%; Rockies 0.0%
NL Wild Cards: Phillies 50.2%; Mets 47.5%; Padres 44.6%; Braves 41.4%; Dodgers 41.2%; Giants 22.7%; Brewers 19.6%; Cardinals 10.8%; Cubs 5.9%
Again, fans are predicting a repeat of division winners and even Wild Card teams! How about award season?
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 |
Alex Duvall | Shohei Ohtani, LAA | Ronald Acuña Jr., ATL | Jacob deGrom, TEX | Aaron Nola, PHI | Gunnar Henderson, BAL | Corbin Carroll, ARI |
Preston Farr | Mike Trout, LAA | Mookie Betts, LAD | Shane McClanahan, TBR | Corbin Burnes, MIL | Royce Lewis, MIN | Corbin Carroll, ARI |
Jeremy Greco | Shohei Ohtani, LAA | Bryce Harper, PHI | Alek Manoah, TOR | Justin Verlander, NYM | Anthony Volpe, NYY | Jordan Walker, STL |
Brian Henry | Shohei Ohtani, LAA | Trea Turner, PHI | Shohei Ohtani, LAA | Sandy Alcantara, MIA | Gunnar Henderson, BAL | Kodai Senga, NYM |
Cullen Jekel | Shohei Ohtani, LAA | Austin Riley, ATL | Alek Manoah, TOR | Corbin Burnes, MIL | Masataka Yoshida, BOS | Jordan Walker, STL |
Josh Keiser | Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., TOR | Ronald Acuña Jr., ATL | Shane McClanahan, TBR | Corbin Burnes, MIL | Masataka Yoshida, BOS | Corbin Carroll, ARI |
Matthew LaMar | Shohei Ohtani, LAA | Trea Turner, PHI | Dylan Cease, CHW | Corbin Burnes, MIL | Masataka Yoshida, BOS | Kodai Senga, NYM |
Bradford Lee | Shohei Ohtani, LAA | Trea Turner, PHI | Dylan Cease, CHW | Sandy Alcantara, MIA | Gunnar Henderson, BAL | Corbin Carroll, ARI |
Jacob Milham | Shohei Ohtani, LAA | Mookie Betts, LAD | Alek Manoah, TOR | Corbin Burnes, MIL | Gunnar Henderson, BAL | Kodai Senga, NYM |
Shaun Newkirk | Aaron Judge, NYY | Juan Soto, SDP | Shane McClanahan, TBR | Corbin Burnes, MIL | Masataka Yoshida, BOS | Corbin Carroll, ARI |
Max Rieper | Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., TOR | Juan Soto, SDP | Alek Manoah, TOR | Spencer Strider, ATL | Oscar Colas, CHW | Jordan Walker, STL |
Greg Walker | Shohei Ohtani, LAA | Ronald Acuña Jr., ATL | Shane McClanahan, TBR | Corbin Burnes, MIL | Gunnar Henderson, BAL | Kodai Senga, NYM |
Reader vote
AL MVP: Shohei Ohtani, LAA 55.1%; Vladimir Guerrero Jr., TOR 8.5%; Aaron Judge, NYY 7.5%; Julio Rodriguez, SEA 4.6%; Bobby Witt Jr., KCR 4.1%; Yordan Alvarez, HOU 3.4%
NL MVP: Juan Soto, SDP 19.3%; Trea Turner, PHI 19.3%; Ronald Acuña, Jr., ATL 12.6%; Manny Machado, SDP 8.9%; Nolan Areando, STL 7.6%; Fernando Tatis Jr., SDP 5.3%; Freddie Freeman, LAD 5.0%; Mookie Betts, LAD 5.0%; Austin Riley, ATL 3.7%; Paul Goldschmidt, STL 3.2%
AL Cy Young: Shohei Ohtani, LAA 28.9%; Jacob deGrom, TEX 11.2%; Brady Singer, KCR 10.5%; Dylan Cease, CHW 7.3%; Framber Valdez, HOU 6.6%; Shane McClanahan, TBR 6.4%; Alek Manoah, TOR 6.4%; Luis Castillo, SEA 4.3%; Tyler Glasnow, TBR 3.0%
NL Cy Young: Max Scherzer, NYM 18.0%; Sandy Alcantara, MIA 13.2%; Corbin Burnes, MIL 13.0%; Justin Verlander, NYM 11.6%; Max Fried, ATL 8.4%; Julio Urias, LAD 8.4%; Spencer Strider, ATL 7.7%; Aaron Nola, PHI 6.4%; Blake Snell, SDP 5.9%; Brandon Woodruff, MIL 3.4%
AL Rookie of the Year: Gunnar Henderson, BAL 27.0%; Masataka Yoshida, BOS 17.5%; Anthony Volpe, NYY 14.1%; Bo Naylor, CLE 8.8%; Royce Lewis, MIN 8.5%; Grayson Rodriguez, BAL 6.7%; Josh Jung, TEX 5.5%; Triston Casas, BOS 4.1%
NL Rookie of the Year: Jordan Walker, STL 27.9%; Corbin Carroll, ARI 22.6%; Kodai Senga, NYM 10.8%; Francisco Alvarez, NYM 8.8%; Miguel Vargas, LAD 7.8%; Andrew Painter, PHI 6.7%; Ezequiel Tovar, COL 4.8%; Brett Baty, NYM 3.7%
All right, who’s going to win the whole shebang?
World Series prediction
Predictions | World Series |
---|---|
Predictions | World Series |
Alex Duvall | Phillies over Blue Jays |
Preston Farr | Cardinals over Blue Jays |
Jeremy Greco | Padres over Yankees |
Brian Henry | Braves over Blue Jays |
Cullen Jekel | Cardinals over Blue Jays |
Josh Keiser | Padres over Yankees |
Matthew LaMar | Yankees over Mets |
Bradford Lee | Astros over Phillies |
Jacob Milham | Braves over Yankees |
Shaun Newkirk | Padres over Yankees |
Max Rieper | Cardinals over Blue Jays |
Greg Walker | Padres over Mariners |
Reader vote
American League pennant: Astros 32.7%; Yankees 26.4%; Blue Jays 11.9%; Mariners 8.3%; Royals 4.7%
National League pennant: Padres 28.6%; Dodgers 24.3%; Braves 15.4%; Mets 15.4%; Cardinals 7.0%; Phillies 5.4%
World Series champion: Padres 18.4%; Astros 14.5%; Dodgers 14.1%; Yankees 9.5%; Braves 8.2%; Mets 7.5%; Blue Jays 4.8%; Cardinals 4.3%; Phillies 3.4%; Mariners 3.0%
Any other predictions for this season?
Loading comments...