With pitchers and catchers having reported to camp in Arizona and Florida, it is time for the annual stab at attempting to predict the most unpredictable game there is.  I don’t expect most of these to be right, but this is always a fun exercise. Just promise me you won’t check back here in October.

(Note: Asterisk indicates playoff) 

NL East:

1. Mets*
2. Braves*
3. Nationals
4. Marlins
5. Phillies

NL Central:

1. Cubs*
2. Pirates
3. Cardinals
4. Brewers
5. Reds

NL West:

1. Dodgers*
2. Rockies*
3. Giants
4. Diamondbacks
5. Padres

AL East: 

1. Yankees*
2. Red Sox
3. Orioles
4. Blue Jays
5. Rays

AL Central:

1. Indians*
2. Tigers
3. Royals
4. Twins
5. White Sox

AL West:

1. Rangers*
2. Astros*
3. Mariners*
4. Angels
5. Athletics

NL Wild Card: Braves at Rockies

AL Wild Card: Mariners at Astros

NLCS: Mets vs. Cubs

ALCS: Astros vs. Yankees

World Series: Mets over Astros

NL MVP: Trea Turner, Nationals

AL MVP: Mike Trout, Angels

NL Cy Young: Noah Syndergaard, Mets

AL Cy Young: Yu Darvish, Rangers

NL Rookie of the Year: Dansby Swanson, Braves

AL Rookie of the Year: Andrew Benintendi, Red Sox

NL Comeback Player of the Year: Lucas Duda, Mets

AL Comeback Player of the Year: Michael Brantley, Indians

NL Manager of the Year: Brian Snitker, Braves

AL Manager of the Year: Scott Servais, Mariners

10 Bold Predictions:

1.  The Atlanta Braves and Colorado Rockies will overachieve this season. Atlanta will manage to beat up on the Phillies and Marlins in the NL East, and, in the West, the Rockies will pummel the Padres and D-Backs. The Rockies will be aided tremendously by the continued emergence of Jon Gray and Tyler Chatwood, who will help them compose a legit rotation. The Braves, meanwhile, will gel in their new ballpark, aided by young guns like Dansby Swanson and Ender Inciarte and grizzled vets like Freddie Freeman and Bartolo Colon.
2. The Washington Nationals and San Francisco Giants will underachieve. The Nats, crippled by their lack of any bona fide relievers and aging veterans, will not fare well against the Mets. The Giants, meanwhile, just don’t have the thump of the Giants teams of yore.
3.  The AL East will be a dog fight. The teams will beat up on each other so much that the only postseason team will be the division winners, the New York Yankees.
4. The following big names will be traded come the end of summer:
   • Jhonny Peralta and Trevor Rosenthal from St. Louis to Atlanta
   • Ryan Braun from Milwaukee to the Los Angeles Dodgers (finally)
   • Ichiro Suzuki from Miami to Seattle
   • Khris Davis from Oakland to Cleveland
   • Jake Odorizzi from Tampa Bat to Colorado
   • David Robertson from the Chicago White Sox to Texas
5. The Mets, powered by their incredible depth of rotation and lineup, will defeat the upstart Astros in the World Series.