NL
East
Nationals (88.5)(over)
Mets (85.5)(over)
Phillies (89.5)(under)
Braves (86.5)(under)
Marlins (63.5)(over)I had Harper on my Fantasy team last year because I figured a high profile star in a walk year was primed for a monster season. Nope. His pathetic batting average and so-so power numbers basically doomed me (man, if I'd pick my man Jose Ramirez, I would've finished better and enjoyed my time more!). So I think the Nats will be better without him and the Phillies will be disappointing with him. (Listen, Bryce will suck for a coupla years, then when the next big thing comes along and we've forgotten about Bryce completely, then he'll have his Renaissance and we'll all be gushing over him again) I like the Nats to win the division and the Phillies to finish a shockingly bad 3rd place.
I think the Mets will be pretty good and I can even see them making a late push in September before settling into 2nd place ahead of the Phillies. The pitching is gonna be really good, I think the lineup is gonna be better than you think, too.
Braves shocked me last year, feels like I ought to be ready for them to shock me again. So I'm going under.
The Marlins won't be that bad. I say this with confidence because they're trying to be bad--and they never accomplish their goals!
Central
Cards (88.5) (over)
Cubs (88.5) (over)
Brewers (86.5) (under)
Pirates (77.5) (under)
Reds (79) (under)
The Cards-Cubs rivalry that baseball fans have long told themselves exists seems to finally be coming to fruition. The Cubs are built to dominate, don't understand why they haven't, while the Cards are built to always be pretty good and should be looking to bounce back from a weird year. I like the Cubs to come up big this year with the Cards hot on their heels all season. Should be good stuff!
The Brewers felt like they were moving in the right direction the last coupla years but I think they take a step back this year and find themselves in the wake of a Cubs-Cards boatrace.
The Pirates are backsliding and that's a sad thing to see after a brief period of relevance.
The Reds will suck bad this year, it seems.
West
Dodgers (93.5)
Padres (78.5)
Rockies (84.5)
Diamondbacks (75.5)Giants (73.5)
The Dodgers (like all LA teams) feel like it is their birthright to win the NL pennant every year. After two straight World Series appearances, that feeling is only getting stronger. But I feel like their pitching is not getting stronger and while they should be among the league leaders, I think they'll scuffle in the dog days and this race should be closer then you think.
The Padres are delusional but I think their delusions will be somewhat rewarded and they'll have a shot at winning this division (though I think they'll fail to catch even a Wild Card).
The Rockies' homefield advantage notwithstanding, I think they'll struggle hard all year, with all time bizarre home/road splits.
The D-Backs just never look right to me. I think they'll start poorly but finish strong (playing spoiler to the Padres down the stretch).
The Giants overachieve so much that we forget sometimes how not very good they ought to be.
AL
East
Yankees (96.5) (under)
Red Sox (94.5) (under)
Rays (84.5) (under)
Blue Jays (74.5) (under)
Orioles (59.5) (over)
The Yankees-Red Sox race will be compelling all season long--right into the playoffs. I think the Yankees lineup is a little stronger than the Sox and they'll pull out the division late.
When the Rays first started, they were awful year after year, doing everything wrong. But for the last decade or so, they've become one of those reliably not-bad teams every year. I think they'll be deep in the Yankees-Red Sox shadow but still be not-bad all season long.
The Blue Jays made a run in the last few years but it feels like its time for a full-on re-tool.
The Orioles will bottom out badly this year. Damn shame because Baltimore is a true baseball town.
Central
Indians (90.5) (under)
Twins (84.5) (over)
White Sox (74.5) (under)
Tigers (68.5) (over)
Royals (69.5) (under)
I think my Indians have one more year left of winning the AL Central (but 2020 could be really ugly). Neither the lineup, nor the pitching will be quite as good as recent years but I think they're still good enough to win this division.
The Twins are moving in the right direction, building up from the bottom, but I think it'll take one more year to catch the Indians.
The White Sox felt primed to make a splash in the off-season but bungled their chances and it'll doom them on the field again.
The Tigers and Royals are both moving in the wrong direction and are chasing each other to the bottom.
West
Astros (96.5) (under)
A's (83.5) (over)
Angels (82.5) (over)
Mariners (71.5) (over)Rangers (71) (over)
The Astros are the class of the non-Yankees/Red Sox American League and should dominate this division again.
I think the A's and Angels will duel each other for Wild Card spots, I'll take the A's to secure it late.
The Mariners won't be as bad as they look, I think they're a more savvy organization than they're given credit for (but they won't be very good).
The Rangers are bottoming out. If they draft well, they can get back into it next year.
Playoff predictions
NL
Cards over Mets in play-in
Cubs over Cards, Nats over Dodgers
Cubs over Nats
AL
Red Sox over A's in play-in
Astros over Red Sox, Yankees over Indians
Astros over Yankees
I'll take the Astros over Cubs in 7
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