Happy Opening Day to all who choose to celebrate. With the new season comes new hopes, new dreams, and a 162-game slate that is sure to be full of ups and downs. Just remember, no matter how your team starts, it’s a long season. Like a REALLY FREAKING LONG season. Don’t overreact to an 8-2 start for a pretender. Don’t overreact to a 3-7 start for a contender. Don’t overreact when a .250 career hitter is batting .370 a month into the season. Don’t overreact when an MVP candidate is hitting .210 a few weeks into the season. It’s a long season. In the long haul, things will work themselves out to the mean. They always do. Just enjoy the ride.

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AL Central

Minnesota Twins (88-74)
Cleveland Guardians (85-77)
Chicago White Sox (78-84)
Kansas City Royals (72-90)
Detroit Tigers (67-95)

Minnesota Twins: Health. If the Twins stay healthy, this team has all the tools to be a serious contender and win 94-98 games. The rotation may lack a true ace, but Lopez, Gray, Ryan, Mahle, and Maeda are all above average starters that help form the Twins best starting 5 in over a decade. Jhoan Duran has some of the nastiest stuff you’ll ever see out of the bullpen. He will pitch all over the place between the 7th and 9th innings. Whenever the meat of the order is coming up late in the game, Duran will be on the mound, and the other team won’t be having much fun. Correa and Buxton are both top-3 players at their respective positions, but can Buxton stay healthy? Probably not. Again, 94-98 wins if people stay healthy. I’ll temper my expectations a bit and say 88 wins due to injuries, but this team is by far the most talented in the AL Central.

Cleveland Guardians: Jose Ramirez will be in the MVP conversation. Shane Bieber will be an ace. Emmanuel Clase will be disgusting like always. But 92 wins in 2022 was a fluke. This is a good team, but they aren’t that good. Top to bottom, the Twins are so much more talented. Triston McKenzie starting the year on the shelf is a big blow for this team.

Chicago White Sox: I was a White Sox believer before last season. I thought they would run away with the AL Central. Many injuries and a disastrous campaign from Lucas Giolito later, the Sox finished the season at .500. Fast forward a year and there is no more Jose Abreu. Even if Robert and Jiminez stay healthy, the lineup isn’t anything special. The rotation isn’t great outside of Dylan Cease (who I think will contend for the Cy Young in 2023). The bullpen is very average as All-Star closer Liam Hendriks continues his fight with non-Hodgkins lymphoma. The latest update is that Hendriks is doing very well and may be able to pitch this season. We wish you nothing but the best, Liam! With all that being said, the White Sox have some talent, but not enough to contend.

Kansas City Royals: Bobby Witt Jr. is a future MLB MVP. The kid can simply do it all. He can flash the leather. He can hit for average. He hits for power. He has absolute wheels. This kid is going to be a perennial 30/30 guy. Him, Melendez, and Pasquantino (who burst onto the scene in 2022 and has surpassed Nick Pratto as the Royals future at 1B) offer a very promising future. I expect Salvador Perez to have a great 2023. This team will score some runs, but they are going to struggle to get people out. The Royals have every right to be excited for the future, but there won’t be much success in 2023.

Detroit Tigers: This team sucks. Plain and simple. 2023 is about developing Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson. Torkelson struggled mightily in 2022, but the Tigers have every reason to be nothing but patient with the 2020 first overall pick. Greene and Torkelson could be the 2-3 hitters for years to come in Detroit. Outside of those two, there is very little reason to ever watch a Tigers game in 2023.

AL East

Toronto Blue Jays (95-67)
New York Yankees (92-70)
Baltimore Orioles (86-76)
Tampa Bay Rays (83-79)
Boston Red Sox (75-87)

Toronto Blue Jays: This team was a little bit disappointing in 2022. Vladdy and Bichette didn’t put up anywhere near the numbers that they are capable of. Jose Berrios was downright awful. They just never really seemed to find their rhythm until late in the season, and then you look up and they won 92 games. Vladdy and Bo will be better. They are way too talented not to be. I love the addition of Bassitt as the #3 starter. The Jays have a very solid pitching staff and what should be a top-5 lineup in baseball. This is the best team in the AL East in my opinion.

New York Yankees: Health is already a serious concern, especially among the pitchers. Rodon, Montas, Severino, Kahnle, Trivino, and possibly Bader will all miss Opening Day. When all are healthy, the Yankees have a very solid pitching staff led by perennial Cy Young contender Gerrit Cole. With this many injuries to starting pitchers, however, the first few weeks could be rough for the men in pinstripes. On the offensive side of the ball, the Yankees did NOTHING this offseason to improve from last season. Sure, they brought Judge back, but nobody new came in. Judge single handily carried this offense at times last season, and let’s be honest, Judge isn’t repeating what he did in 2022. A healthy LeMahieu will help. Volpe may help. But I’m just not in love with this lineup.

Baltimore Orioles: The Orioles burst onto the scene in 2022 winning 83 games, and there is absolutely zero reason that they can’t repeat that success in 2023. This lineup is young, fun, and talented. Adley Rutschman is a future superstar, and big-time prospect Gunnar Henderson is set to be the everyday third baseman after getting his feet wet in the bigs last year. Around their two young phenoms, guys like Hays, Mullins, Santander, and Mountcastle form a very respectable lineup. The pitching staff isn’t anything to write home about, but 23-year-old Grayson Rodriguez will be up to solidify the staff sooner rather than later. The #6 prospect in baseball has a career ERA of below 2.50, a whip of below 1 and 13 strikeouts/9 innings in his minor league career. The kid is downright disgusting. The Orioles will be running the AL East in 2-3 years, and I fully expect this core of players to win a World Series within the next 5 years.

Tampa Bay Rays: I have a rule of thumb when it comes to the MLB. Never bet against the Rays. Somehow, someway, the Rays always find a way to be competitive. As far as sheer talent goes, the Rays are nowhere close to the Jays and Yankees, and they are certainly a step below the Orioles. Franco and Arozarena are phenomenal, but this lineup isn’t very good as a whole. McClanahan is a true ace in this league, but the rest of the rotation is nothing to get super excited about. If Tyler Glasnow can get healthy, he could be a formidable second arm, but yet another injury is going to sideline him until at least May. I’m predicting 83 wins for this team. I am breaking my own rule, but I’m not at the same time. On paper, this team shouldn’t win 75 games. Somehow, someway, they will be above .500. If the 2023 Rays find a way into the playoffs in this stacked of a divison, I will be shocked.

Boston Red Sox: It’s going to be another long year at Fenway Park for the Boston fateful. Xander Bogaerts is gone, and now Kike Hernandez will slide over to SS until Trevor Story is able to return, which nobody seems to know when that may be. The pitching staff is very average, and the lineup isn’t much better. Devers is a superstar, but there isn’t really any kind of protection around him. Masataka Yoshida has absolutely raked in Japan, but Japanese guys are complete busts just as often as they are great successes when they make the transition to the bigs. Only time will tell what path Yoshida will take.

AL West

Houston Astros (102-60)
Los Angeles Angels (87-75)
Seattle Mariners (86-76)
Texas Rangers (77-85)
Oakland Athletics (58-104)

Houston Astros: The World Series champs are once again the best team in baseball. Losing Verlander hurts them a bit in the regular season, but he didn’t do much of anything in the postseason a year ago anyways. Valdez and Javier are still a very good top 2 in this Astros rotation. The Altuve injury is a bummer, but this is still a top-5 lineup in baseball even without their All-Star second baseman. The scary part is that this lineup has improved with the offseason addition of Jose Abreu. Incredible lineup. Very good rotation. Dominant bullpen. The Astros will once again win the American League with relative ease.

Los Angeles Angels: This is the year the Angles put it all together. This is the year we get to see Trout in the postseason for the first time since 2014. Rendon is going to stay healthy. Taylor Ward is going to continue to rake. Hunter Renfroe is a criminally underrated hitter. Trout and Ohtani are going to finish 1-2 in the AL MVP voting. Outside of Ohtani, I don’t trust this pitching staff, but this lineup is going to MASH. Ohtani is going to win the Cy Young and MVP. The Angels are going to make the playoffs. I am buying ALL the 2023 Los Angeles Angels stock. Please send someone to check on me when this team is 23-25 in May.

Seattle Mariners: I was not a Mariners believer before last season, and I am still not. This is a good team that will contend for a Wild Card, but nothing more than that. Teoscar Hernandez is a great pickup. I absolutely LOVE Julio Rodriguez, but I’m not high on the rest of the team. I cannot get enough of JULIOOOOOOOOOOO though.

Texas Rangers: How many games will Jacob DeGrom pitch? The Rangers gave the two-time Cy Young winner $185 million this offseason, despite DeGrom being 34 and starting just 26 games over the past two seasons. Simply put, DeGrom is the best pitcher of this generation when he is on the mound, but he hasn’t been out there much the past two years. Texas is hoping that trend will change in 2023. Even if he is able to stay healthy, however, this team isn’t finishing any higher than third in the West. There just isn’t enough in the lineup.

Oakland Athletics: This is the worst team in baseball. There is basically nothing to get excited about. I am, however, looking forward to seeing Esteury Ruiz in an everyday role. Ruiz may be the new fastest man in the league. This guy stole 85 bases in 114 games at AAA in 2022, while also hitting .332.

NL Central

Milwaukee Brewers (89-73)
St. Louis Cardinals (86-76)
Chicago Cubs (77-85)
Cincinnati Reds (65-97)
Pittsburgh Pirates (61-101)

Milwaukee Brewers: The Brewers lineup is good. It’s not great. Jesse Winker was a great pickup. He is a guy I really like to bounce back from a disappointing 2022. The Cardinals lineup is better. Pitching, however, is where the Brewers win this division. Corbin Burnes is the definition of an ace, Woodruff and Peralta are both very good, and Lauer and Miley round out what should be one of the better rotations in baseball. Devin Williams and his devastating change up await to close games out for the Brew Crew.

St. Louis Cardinals: The Yadier Molina era is officially over. For the first time in nearly 20 years, St. Louis has a new man behind the plate. Wilson Contreras might provide more offensively, but St. Louis will sorely miss Yadi’s defensive prowess and his ability to manage a pitching staff. Goldy and Arenado in the middle of the order will always mean the team is in contention, but I am not super high on the pitching. Jack Flaherty could provide a HUGE boost if he stays healthy and is able to be even a sliver of his old self. The last time that Flaherty was healthy, he finished 4th in Cy Young voting.

Chicago Cubs: The Cubbies have a lot of new faces in town in 2023, led by the $177 million acquistion of Dansby Swanson. They also brought in a former MVP in Cody Bellinger and two World Series champs in Trey Mancini and Eric Hosmer. Will this translate to postseason play? Not a chance.

Cincinatti Reds: The Reds are awful, but Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo are a young, very exciting 1/2 punch at the front of the pitching rotation. Those two could be around for a long time to come.

Pittsburgh Pirates: If it weren’t for Oneil Cruz, I’m not sure I’d watch an inning of Pirates baseball this year. I will say, though, I love that they brought McCutchen home for his final season.

NL East

Atlanta Braves (99-63)
Philadelphia Phillies (91-71)
New York Mets (87-75)
Miami Marlins (75-87)
Washington Nationals (59-103)

Atlanta Braves: This is the team to beat in the National League. Outside of the Astros, there is not a more complete team in baseball. There isn’t a weak part of this batting order 1-9. Acuna, Riley, and Olson may get all the headlines, but don’t let that fool you. This lineup will hurt you top to bottom. To go along with an elite lineup, the Braves also sport a fantastic pitching staff. Max Fried is coming off a 14-7, 2.48 era campaign where he finished second to Alcantara in Cy Young voting. Spencer Strider was dominant in his rookie season, striking out batters at a ludicrous rate en route to a runner up finish for ROY, an award that his teammate would win. Charlie Morton is an ageless wonder. Kyle Wright won 21 games in 2022. This division is great, but nobody is touching the Atlanta Braves.

Philadelphia Phillies: The acquisition of Trea Turner was the most substantial move of the offseason. Turner is a top-10 overall player in baseball, in my opinion. This is a guy who plays every single day, is a career .302 hitter who can hit for power and will steal 30 bases a year, all while playing a very steady shortstop. Once Harper returns, the top of the Phillies lineup will be Schwarber, Turner, Realmuto, Harper, and Castellanos. That’s downright disgusting, especially considering that I fully expect Castellanos to bounce back much closer to 2021 form. Nola, Wheeler, and a solid bullpen are more than enough to get this team to 90+ wins. This offense is going to absolutely rake.

New York Mets: I’m just going to be honest. I think Pete Alonso is highly overrated. Lindor is one of the best shortstops in the game, McNeil will slap singles all around the yard, and Starling Marte will do a little bit of everything. Scherzer and Verlander would possibly be the best 1/2 punch in MLB history if the year were 2012. But at 38 and 40 years of age respectively, I think expectations need to be tempered just a little bit. Yes, Verlander is coming off a Cy Young year. In fact, he’s won the Cy Young in his last two full seasons. But it’s something about Houston. Everyone pitches well in an Astros uniform. Verlander’s career was trending very much in the wrong direction when he left Detroit. He then goes to Houston and becomes better than he was in his prime. I don’t get it. He’s also 40. He has to slow down at some point.

Miami Marlins: Sandy Alcantara. That’s all that needs to be said. The dude is unbelievably good. The rest of the Marlins rotation is solid as well, while also being very young. Alcantara is only 27, Jesus Luzardo and Trevor Rogers are both only 25. Edward Cabrera is 24, as is Sixto Sanchez, who is still working his way back to the bigs. Max Meyer is also only 24. He will miss the 2023 season due to Tommy John, but he is another young arm that is sure to figure into the future. In a few years, this might be the best pitching staff in baseball. In 2023, however, the Marlins don’t have enough fire power and they play in what might be the best division in baseball.

Washington Nationals: Remember earlier when I said that Oakland is the worst team in baseball? Well. Washington isn’t far behind. I really like Keibert Ruiz behind the plate and MacKenzie Gore has the chance to develop into a really nice big league arm. Outside of that, there isn’t much here to get excited about.

NL West

San Diego Padres (95-67)
Los Angeles Dodgers (94-68)
San Francisco Giants (79-83)
Arizona Diamondbacks (76-86)
Colorado Rockies (66-96)

San Diego Padres: Last year’s defeat of the Dodgers in 4 games in the NLDS marked the changing of the guard in the NL West. This division now runs through San Diego. I have been a baseball fan my entire life. I have seen some really freaking good lineups. The Dodgers hitting Betts, Freeman, Turner 1-3 was about as good as I had ever seen. Well. The 2023 Padres are about to top that when Tatis returns from suspension. The Padres 1-4 hitters are going to be Fernando Tatis, Juan Soto, Manny Machado, and Xander Bogaerts. That is 4 MVP caliber players in a row. Thankfully for the rest of baseball, this lineup isn’t deep at all. After those first 4, it drops off substantially. But those first 4 to go along with 3 outstanding starters and a great bullpen is enough to win the West. Despite his bizarre struggles last season, Josh Hader is still the best closer in the league.

Los Angeles Dodgers: This Dodgers team has a much different look than it has had in recent years. Miguel Rojas and Miguel Vargas are the new middle infielders, with Max Muncy moving over to third with the departure of Justin Turner. Cody Bellinger is gone, but JD Martinez enters the picture. With Freeman, Betts, Martinez, Muncy, and Will Smith, this will still be a very potent lineup, but not nearly as good as it was a year ago. The pitching will once again be solid, but I don’t think the starting rotation will be as dominant as they were in 2022. This team won 111 games in 2022. They won’t even sniff 100 in 2023.

San Francisco Giants: There isn’t really a whole lot to be said about the Giants. They were exactly .500 last year. The definition of mediocre. 2023 will be more of the same. They are fine. They are not good. They are not bad. They are very average. This team needed to make a splash in free agency, and they desperately tried to. At one point, it was reported that Judge was signing with the Giants, but that report turned out to be false and Judge returned to New York. The Giants had Correa signed, but then backed out after concerns arose about the longevity of his surgically repaired ankle. They missed out on both their guys. And now here they are. About to embark on another year of mediocrity.

Arizona Diamondbacks: The Diamondbacks are one of the teams that I am most excited to watch this season. No, they aren’t going to win a ton of games, but they have some young, very talented players that are going to get an opportunity to play every day. Gabriel Moreno is going to be the starter behind the plate. He’s only 23 and was a career .310 hitter in the minors. Moreno hit .319 in limited MLB action in 2022. Corbin Carroll and Alek Thomas are going to be a fixture in the Arizona outfield for years to come. Both of them are only 22 and are just oozing with potential. Thomas hit .313 in his minors career, while Carroll hit .310 and possesses both power and speed. These three provide every reason to smile if you’re a Diamondbacks fan.

Colorado Rockies: This team isn’t going to score a whole ton of runs and are really going to struggle to get people out. That’s not a recipe for success in baseball.

How do you think your team will fair in 2023? Comment down below!

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Authors: Ryan Macdonald

Published: 3/30/23 at 11:45am EST

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Sources/Works Cited:

Sports Reference LLC. Baseball-Reference.com – Major League Statistics and Information. https://www.baseball-reference.com/. 29 March 2023.