We were all worried that we wouldn't even get a season this year, and now here it is...like, a week behind schedule. All things considered, not too bad.
With the accelerated end to the offseason, the truncated team reshuffling, and the roulette wheel that was Spring Training, there are a lot of stories heading into this season, and several potential outcomes for how things might go. Because of the encouragement to compete rather than sell, I can name 24 out of 30 teams that have made steps to go for it this year. Maybe 25 if you count the Guardians like everyone else seems to be. The time to tank seems to be over, and everyone genuinely seems to be trying their best to bring home a title. Which means we might get some exotic teams in the mix this year, like the Tigers, Marlins, Rockies and Phillies.
As I did last year, I'm gonna make 5 wild predictions for how the season's going to go. These are gonna be big and broad and with a low expectation of success, but last year I did predict Corbin Burnes' NL Cy Young win, and I did predict Jonathan India's NL ROY win, so I'm better at this than most might think.
1. Kris Bryant is going to regret not signing with a better team. This isn't to completely disparage the Rockies, who at least have made strides to keep Ryan McMahon, C.J. Cron, German Marquez and Kyle Freeland intact as many other pieces have left, but...I was not expecting them to pick up Kris Bryant, and it's a decision that still vexes me, especially when Trevor Story was a viable option. Bryant is showing more positional versatility, and could be an outfield anchor this year for the Rockies, but without a lot more sure things in the lineup, I can't say with certainty that he made the right move. I still think he should have listened to his old pal Bryce and taken the 3rd baseman spot in Philly, but that's mostly on regional bias. So I think the Rockies are going to underperform, and Kris Bryant is gonna have to grin and bear it.
2. The Angels will finally make the playoffs this year. I don't know if the Astros will let them win the division, but I think the Angels will be better than they have in years, and will use Trout, Ohtani, Rendon and Adell to actually make something of their talent. Now, with an expanded playoff picture, the Angels could make it in for a few days and then get bounced, but I do think that if their luck turns out alright, they could go on a nice playoff run and finally deliver some results. I am also predicting that Trout will spend the season fully healthy, and that's really one of the only ways they can make a playoff run work.
3. Tony LaRussa is going to step down from managing the White Sox in July. Things have been bubbling under the surface, and between the Yermin incident and several other smaller things, it feels like things are going to come to a head. I genuinely don't think the White Sox can properly compete unless they sever ties with this guy and let an actual new-schooler baseball guy manage the team.
4. Well, last year I predicted the NL Cy Young winner spot on, so I might as well do that again. Walker Buehler's gonna win the NL Cy Young. His fiercest opposition will come from Brandon Woodruff, Logan Webb, and his own teammate Julio Urias. But Buehler will bring it home.
5. This year's World Series will come down to the Boston Red Sox and the San Francisco Giants. This will piss off the 'I wanted people who haven't won in 40 years' crowd, but the 'leave the contract-guzzling teams out of this' crowd will love it, it'll go all 7 games and Kapler's Giants will squeak out a win.
Now, a bit more easier to manage, let's have 5 predictions for April 2022:
1. The Astros will not end this month in 1st, and there will be outcry. 'ARE THE MIGHTY ASTROS DEAD?' 'WHAT'S WRONG WITH JOSE ALTUVE'S SWING'. And then in June or whatever they'll be 5 games over the Mariners and everyone'll be like 'WHY AREN'T THE MARINERS ARE ANGELS CATCHING UP TO THEM?'. I don't expect the Astros to be as good as past teams without a lot of their concrete depth, and without Carlos Correa, but I expect them to be good for a chunk of the season.
2. There will be three unbreakable deadlocks for first in three separate divisions. I'd say the AL East, the NL East and the NL Central. One of them will take another month to fully break up, and I think we all know which one.
3. Seiya Suzuki is going to very quickly become a hero in Chicago. I'm not sure how the team themselves will do, but Suzuki is going to have several multi-hit games, a few power moments, and will be selling tons of jerseys in Illinois in no time.
4. The biggest initial disappointment of the year will be the San Diego Padres. Their lack of offseason work til the very last minute and loss to Tatis will result in a tough couple of series'. Even with C.J. Abrams starting some games, it will look very similar to May 2019, where all the eyes were upon them and nothing was happening.
5. A major MLB star, other than the ones we're already aware of, will miss substantial time due to an injury. So not deGrom, not Tatis, someone we're not thinking about. And I pray to the baseball gods that it's not a Yankee or Phillie.
So, that's some predictions for the first leg of the season. Let's see how wild the 2022 season ends up becoming after all.
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