Bronx Pinstripes Writers' 2018 MLB Predictions
We're super excited for the season to start, and we know that you are too! Like basically every other site, we decided to make predictions that will inevitably be hilariously wrong, but are fun nonetheless. Let us know what you think in the comments!
The division winners were unanimous which is to be expected in a Super Team Era like we have now. The only division race that appears to be close is the AL East, but this is a Yankee blog and choosing the Red Sox to win the division would be blasphemous. I think I gagged a little just typing the phrase "Red Sox to win the division." But definitely be wary of the Red Sox - they return basically their whole team from last year, have relievers coming back from injury, and added JD Martinez. They improved and can likely expect some positive regression since every position player had a lower OPS in 2017 than in 2016. Nonetheless, the Yankees have more firepower and we all think they will win 94 - 102 games. Also: very bold move by Ryan picking the Mariners to make the playoffs and end the longest current postseason drought in the major American sports.
Once again, you see complete agreement among the division winners, but the Wild Card teams are more interesting. I count seven teams that our various writers chose to win one of the two wild card spots which likely means that those races will be interesting. One thing to watch for is if the race for the second Wild Card is close, will teams be inclined to have a more active trade deadline or will many teams opt not to sell?
On to the playoffs! ALDS 1 & NLDS 1 represent the top division winner vs. the wild card game winner and ALDS 2 & NLDS 2 represent the 2nd and 3rd division winners. Almost everyone agrees that the Yankees will win the AL pennant and only one of our writers has an NL team winning the World Series. If the Yankees don't win the World Series, these predictions will look bad, but being optimistic the day before the season starts is an amazing feeling.
Water is wet. The sky is blue. Jacoby Ellsbury is on the DL. And Mike Trout will probably have an amazing, MVP caliber season. We can move on. We're definitely all-in on Gary Sanchez for various reasons, and it would be incredible if he makes another leap this season.
Water is wet. The sky is blue. Greg Bird is on the DL (sorry). And Bryce Harper will probably have an amazing season. We can move on.
The field for the Cy Young awards is a bit more diverse - a lot of love for Klubot and Sale but some unexpected love for a few others. The NL field is also fairly wide open and it probably looks like this: Kershaw, Scherzer, (wide gap), all the others. I'm a huge Strasburg fan, and if he can repeat what he did last year he definitely has a shot at his first Cy Young award.
These awards are a bit more obscure, but fun to predict. If the Mariners make the playoffs, then hell yes Scott Servais deserves the Manager of the Year award. That award usually goes to a team that overperformes expectations, and since I'm high on the A's and Rockies compared to most others, I picked them. We have a nice variety in who we think will breakout this year for the Yankees, which shows how many guys can make a leap. Watching a few of these guys breakout would be pretty special.
These are some of the more random and fun ones to guess at. Hopefully we'll know very soon what the emoji for Stanton is! Two of our writers had some fun with their bold predictions, and I can't think of a better way to end this post than to past them below for your enjoyment.
Anonymous Writer 1:
The Yankees, after winning 97 regular season games but not gaining home field advantage in the playoffs, have to play the Astros on the road again in the ALCS. They are right back where they were a year earlier: game 7 in Houston. Down 3 in the 9th inning, Greg Bird steps to the plate with the bases loaded. His mammoth home run to right-center field would give the Yankees a 1-run lead with Chapman warming in the bullpen. Bird’s legend status is cemented before he even gets to first base, but he trips over the bag while breaking his foot (again). Because he cannot walk he has to crawl around the bases but it takes too long so the umpires rule that he is out. This means the game is tied. We go to extra innings but both teams run out of pitchers in the 22nd inning. The Yankees turn to Jacoby Ellsbury, who has secretly been working on a knuckleball all season. Ells pitches a scoreless 2-innings which is enough for the Yankees to scratch a run across and go to the World Series. Despite Ellsbury’s heroism, he is left off the World Series roster but the Yankees still find a way to beat the Dodgers in 7 games.
Brandon Lamando:
The Marlins, struggling to win 50 games, cause owner Derek Jeter to sell the club to none other than Alex Emmanuel Rodriguez. The sale of the team results in the two former teammates becoming best friends once again. Alex tells Jeter, “Listen Jeets, the Yankees are good this year, but can’t win the World Series without you.” Jeter, who was sick of losing at this point, gives Cashman a call, convincing the GM to sign him for the rest of the season in order to win #28. Cashman agrees, and stashes Jeter in the minors until September call ups. Fast forward to game 7 of the Word Series at Dodger Stadium, where Jeter is called on to replace Didi at short. (Didi had to leave the game in order to plan out his elaborate, emoji- filled World Series winning tweet) Holding on to a one run lead, Chapman delivers a 112 mph heater to Yasiel Puig, who hits a high fly ball between short and third, drifting towards the left field bleachers. Jeter runs after the ball, makes the catch, and FLIES INTO THE STANDS. “The Catch 2.0” is born. Ballgame over, World Series over, Yankees win, theeeee Yankees Win.
Those are our predictions! GO YANKEES!!!