My 2017 MLB Predictions

In less than 24 hours, the 2017 MLB regular season will get underway. Those of you who read me when I was at The American Spectator will recall that no year was complete without my annual MLB predictions. I might not be at TAS anymore, but I won't stop this tradition.

As you know the Cleveland Indians faced the Chicago Cubs in the 2016 World Series. I predicted these two teams would meet in the Fall Classic - only that prediction came in 2015.

Will the Cubs, who won their first World Series since 1908, make it back to back titles? Can the Indians win back to back AL pennants and win their first World Series since 1948?

AMERICAN LEAGUE

AL East

Boston Red Sox
New York Yankees*
Toronto Blue Jays*
Baltimore Orioles
Tampa Bay Rays

The Red Sox no longer have Big Papi, but they have a great nucleus with AL MVP runner up Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley, Jr., Xander Bogaerts along with mainstays like Dustin Pedroia and Hanley Ramirez. The addition of Chris Sale to a rotation that includes reigning Cy Young winner Rick Porcello and David Price. The Yankees have a powerful young lineup with the likes of Gary Sanchez, Greg Bird and Aaron Judge along with veterans Jacoby Ellsbury, Brett Gardner and ex-Cardinal Matt Holliday. There are question marks about the Yankees rotation after Masahiro Tanaka, but the return of Aroldis Chapman restores the tandem of Chapman and Dellin Betances. Tyler Clippard might not be Andrew Miller but he should be a strong addition to the bullpen. The Toronto Blue Jays will miss Edwin Encarnacion, but Kendrys Morales should be pick up the slack in a lineup that still has Jose Bautista, Josh Donaldson, Russell Martin and Troy Tulowitzki. The Jays have a solid starting rotation of J.A. Happ, Marco Estrada, Aaron Sanchez, Francisco Liriano and, fresh off his WBC triumph, Marcus Stroman. Closer Roberto Osuna is complimented by veterans Jason Grilli and J.P. Howell. The Baltimore Orioles have an abundance of offense with the likes of Mark Trumbo, Chris Davis, Adam Jones and Manny Machado. But their starting rotation is mediocre at best and can the Orioles really expect Zach Britton to have a perfect season yet again. Can Wellington Castillo make up for the departure of Matt Wieters? The Tampa Bay Rays roster is a bit up in the air with uncertainties in the middle of the infield and the bullpen. But the Rays still have Evan Longoria and a strong starting rotation in Alex Cobb, Jake Odorizzi and Chris Archer. I cannot imagine Archer losing 19 games again, but I can see them bringing up the rear in the AL East.

* - denotes AL Wild Card winners

AL Central

Cleveland Indians
Detroit Tigers
Kansas City Royals
Minnesota Twins
Chicago White Sox

The defending AL champions should only get stronger with the addition of Edwin Encarnacion and the return of a healthy Michael Brantley. It is astonishing the Indians got as far as they did in the post-season without the likes of Yan Gomes, Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar. Add them to a team which includes Corey Kluber, Andrew Miller, Cody Allen, Jason Kipnis, Carlos Santana and Jose Ramirez. The Detroit Tigers retain a solid veteran lineup with Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez, J.D. Martinez, Ian Kinsler and Justin Upton. The return of Alex Avila behind the plate should improve the Tigers pitching and provide reassurance to Justin Verlander, Jordan Zimmermann, Anibal Sanchez and AL Rookie of the Year Michael Fullmer. K-Rod remains a solid closer but the set up situation is a bit uncertain. If the Tigers get off to a slow start don't be surprised if Brad Ausmus is dismissed in favor of hitting coach Lloyd McClendon. A pall was cast on the Kansas City Royals off-season when pitcher Yordano Ventura was killed in an automobile accident. The Royals still have Salvador Perez and Alex Gordon but will Mike Moustakas and Lorenzo Cain be healthy? Can Kelvin Herrera fill the void in the bullpen left by Wade Davis. Jorge Soler should be an interesting addition to the outfield. I don't think the Minnesota Twins will lose 103 games in 2017. Max Kepler, Byron Buxton, Eddie Rosario and Miguel Sano will get better. With Joe Mauer's best days behind him, Brian Dozier is now the team's offensive leader. Tyler Duffey and Kyle Gibson should get better in a rotation with Ervin Santana and Hector Santiago. If Phil Hughes can stay injury free it would be most welcome. Brandon Kintzler should continue to develop as a closer. If he falters perhaps Glen Perkins, who missed most of 2016 season with injury, can step into the breach. The Chicago White Sox are in the midst of rebuilding under new manager Rick Renteria. Chris Sale and Adam Eaton have departed and don't be surprised if they unload Melky Cabrera, Todd Frazier and David Robertson before the All-Star Break. However, it will be great to see Cuban sensation Yoan Moncada play everyday. Moncada and Jose Abreu could make a nice power tandem in what will likely be a long season on the South Side.

AL West

Seattle Mariners
Texas Rangers
Houston Astros
Los Angeles Angels
Oakland A's

The Seattle Mariners have not been in the post-season since 2001. That should change this year. Jean Segura might be the final piece of the puzzle in an offensive core of Robinson Cano, Kyle Seager and Nelson Cruz. The Mariners also added character players like Carlos Ruiz, Jarrod Dyson and Danny Valencia. Yovani Gallardo joins Felix Hernandez and Hisashi Iwakuma in the starting rotation while Edwin Diaz might be the most underrated closer in all of MLB. The Texas Rangers have won back to back AL West titles and will certainly contend with Yu Darvish and Cole Hamels at the top of the rotation, Sam Dyson in the bullpen, Jonathan Lucroy behind the plate and with Adrian Beltre, Elvis Andrus and Mike Napoli returning for his third stint with the Rangers in the core of the lineup. The Houston Astros offense is solid with Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, the catching tandem of Brian McCann and Evan Gattis and the additions of Carlos Beltran and Josh Reddick. But will Dallas Keuchel be in his Cy Young form of 2015 or his mediocre form of 2016? Ken Giles might start the season as the Astros closer, but I doubt he will still be the team's closer in September. The Los Angeles Angels have two time AL MVP Mike Trout and future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols. Andrelton Simmons is a Gold Glove caliber shortstop but their pitching is full of question marks. Can Tyler Skaggs, Andrew Heaney, Matt Shoemaker and Garrett Richards not to mention closer Huston Street stay healthy in 2017? World Series hero Rajai Davis, Matt Joyce and Trevor Plouffe are nice additions to the Oakland A's and should complement Khris Davis and Stephen Vogt, but their starting rotation is anyone's guess after Sonny Gray and Kendall Graveman.

AL MVP - Gary Sanchez, New York Yankees
AL Cy Young Award - Marcus Stroman, Toronto Blue Jays
AL Rookie of the Year - Yoan Moncada, Chicago White Sox
AL Manager of the Year - Scott Servais, Seattle Mariners

NATIONAL LEAUGE

NL East

Washington Nationals
Atlanta Braves**
Miami Marlins**
New York Mets
Philadelphia Phillies

The defending NL East champions have fortified themselves with the additions of Adam Eaton, Adam Lind and Matt Wieters. If Daniel Murphy does not replicate his NL MVP runner up numbers, Bryce Harper should return to his 2015 NL MVP form. Anthony Rendon, Ryan Zimmerman and Jayson Werth round out of the offense. Reigning NL Cy Young winner Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg are at the top of the rotation. It remains to be seen if Blake Treiner will work out as the team's new closer. Look for the Atlanta Braves to surprise especially with the addition of two ageless starters Bartolo Colon and knuckleballer R.A. Dickey. Longtime Red Brandon Phillips will strengthen the one-two punch of Freddie Freeman and Matt Kemp. Look for inspired baseball from the Miami Marlins who had the wind knocked out of them late last season with the sudden death of pitching ace Jose Fernandez. The Marlins outfield of Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna might be the best in MLB. The infield of Justin Bour, Dee Gordon, Adeiny Hechevarria and Martin Prado might be the most underrated in MLB. A.J. Ellis behind the plate is exactly what a young pitching staff needs while Edinson Volquez adds depth to the rotation. Look for a breakthrough year from Tom Koehler. The New York Mets have an embarrassment of riches in their starting rotation but Yoenis Cespedes has little surrounding him in the lineup. The Philadelphia Phillies' Makiel Franco and Odubel Herrera are two of the games most exciting players, but if they are expecting 30 starts from Clay Buchholz they are nuts.

NL Central

Chicago Cubs
St. Louis Cardinals
Pittsburgh Pirates
Cincinnati Reds
Milwaukee Brewers

The defending World Series champions are an All-Star team unto themselves. Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Addison Russell, Javier Baez, Jon Lester & Jake Arrieta, The division is theirs to lose. The St. Louis Cardinals, of course, are no pushovers. With Yadier Molina and Matt Carpenter on the team the Cardinals are always in contention. The addition of ex-Cub Dexter Fowler reinforces that competitive edge. A starting rotation of Adam Wainwright, a healthy Lance Lynn, Carlos Martinez, Michael Wacha and Mike Leake will also keep their opponents honest. If Seung-hwan Oh falters as closer ex-Jay Brett Cecil is an option. The big question mark for the Pittsburgh Pirates is whether 2013 NL MVP Andrew McCutchen can rebound from a mediocre season? Gregory Polanco and Starling Marte can more than pick up the slack. Gerrit Cole is a bonafide ace. It will be interesting to see how Tony Watson fares in the closer's role. The Cincinnati Reds offense is decent with Joey Votto, Adam Duvall, Devin Mesoraco and Billy Hamilton, but their pitching outside of Anthony DeScalfini and Brandon Finnegan is a great unknown. The Milwaukee Brewers are headed for a long season. The addition of Travis Shaw gives Ryan Braun some protection in the lineup but the starting rotation and the bullpen is all very much up in the air.

NL West

Los Angeles Dodgers
San Francisco Giants
Colorado Rockies
Arizona Diamondbacks
San Diego Padres

The Los Angeles Dodgers have won four straight NL West division titles. There is no reason they cannot win five in a row. When you have a team with Clayton Kershaw, Corey Seager, Adrian Gonzalez, Justin Turner and Kenley Jansen the odds are in your favor. Logan Forsythe and Sergio Romo add depth to the infield and bullpen respectively. The three time World Series champion San Francisco Giants cannot be counted out either. Madison Bumgarner, Johnny Cueto Buster Posey, Brandon Crawford and Hunter Pence are nothing at which to scoff. The addition of Mark Melancon to the bullpen makes them doubly tough. The Colorado Rockies can hit with the best of them. Nolan Arenado, Carlos Gonzalez, Trevor Story and NL batting champion DJ LeMahieu. Throw in a resurgent Ian Desmond and the Rockies are going to score some runs. But the Rockies pitching staff will give up every bit as much. As for the Arizona Diamondbacks, a healthy AJ Pollock will augment the offensive production of Paul Goldschmidt and Yosmany Tomas. Zack Greinke is one of baseball's premier pitchers, but for the D'Backs to be competitive Patrick Corbin and Shelby Miller will have to pick up the slack. It's anybody's guess which Fernando Rodney we'll see come out of the bullpen. The San Diego Padres are essentially a work in progress. Trevor Cahill and Clayton Richard were great out of the bullpen for the Cubs. It remains to be seen if they can be credible starters for the Padres. Jered Weaver and Jhoulys Chacin are reclamation projects. The Padres have precious little offense outside of Will Myers.

NL MVP - Freddie Freeman, Atlanta Braves
NL Cy Young Award - Tom Koehler, Miami Marlins
NL Rookie of the Year - Tyler Glasnow, Pittsburgh Pirates
NL Manager of the Year - Brian Snitker, Atlanta Braves

MLB POST-SEASON PREDICTIONS

AMERICAN LEAGUE

AL Wild Card Game - Toronto Blue Jays vs. New York Yankees (Winner: Yankees)

American League Division Series (Best 3 out of 5) - New York Yankees vs. Cleveland Indians
(Yankees in four)

American League Division Series (Best 3 out of 5) - Boston Red Sox vs. Seattle Mariners
(Red Sox in five)

American League Championship Series (Best 4 out of 7) - Boston Red Sox vs. New York Yankees
(Yankees in seven)

ALCS MVP - Gary Sanchez, New York Yankees

NATIONAL LEAGUE

NL Wild Card Game - Miami Marlins vs. Atlanta Braves (Winner: Marlins)

National League Division Series (Best 3 out of 5)  - Miami Marlins vs. Los Angeles Dodgers
(Marlins in five)

National League Division Series (Best 3 out of 5) - Washington Nationals vs. Chicago Cubs
(Cubs in three)

National League Championship Series (Best 4 out of 7) - Miami Marlins vs. Chicago Cubs
(Marlins in seven)

NLCS MVP - Christian Yelich, Miami Marlins

2017 WORLD SERIES - New York Yankees vs. Miami Marlins (Marlins in six)

2017 World Series MVP - Giancarlo Stanton, Miami Marlins

Well, we'll see how I do come October. Until then play ball.