SSS Staff MLB Predictions 2023: NL West, power division

Mar 29, 2023 - 11:02 AM

We repeat the longest byline in South Side Sox history from yesterday’s White Sox-specific festivities, which again means we have the most participants in a season forecast contest ever. Twenty-two of us risked mockery and embarrassment to enter our thoughts on the 2023 baseball season into the permanent record.

There’s a bit more to cover, so let’s get right to it!

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MLB Finishes

It was alluded in yesterday’s piece that a full half of our writers saw the White Sox in the playoffs — and that includes seven division winners. The Guardians, however, do earn the collective staff pick (10 votes), with Minny trailing (five).

Finishing out the AL, the Yankees win the AL East majority (11 votes), with the Blue Jays very popular (nine) and Allie Wesel and Year of the Hamster keeping the Rays faith. The Astros were the clear favorite in the AL West (19 votes), although every other team in the division but the A’s got a vote as division-winner (highlight the bold views of Malachi Hayes, Tommy Barbee and Allie Wesel). That makes the AL West, in some sense, the most-contested division. But not really.

Clear-cut AL Wild Cards are Seattle (17 votes), Tampa (15) and Toronto (11), making the six AL playoff teams very certain.

In the NL Central, St. Louis doubled-up Milwaukee, 14-7, with a lone dissenter in Trooper Galactus, swallowing hard and picking the Cubs. In the East, the choice was nearly a three-way split, with the Mets and Phillies getting eight picks and Atlanta six. The NL West is where everything gets super-spicy — the Dodgers won out, 14-8, over the Padres, but as you’ll see below, those Friars fans are VERY devoted.

The NL Wild Cards shape up as Atlanta (14 votes), Mets (14), Padres (13), but bubble team Philadelphia (12) is also in, either as NL East champ or final Wild Card.

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MLB Best/Worst

Just four teams get votes for best AL record, with Houston getting the nod from 14 of us. Big ups for Allie, who not only sees Seattle as AL West winners, but best in the entire league — she is keeping the faith. The A’s are almost a unanimous AL-worst, but what gives with the Tigers stealing three votes but Kansas City is nowhere to be found!

In the NL, the Dodgers have the edge as NL-best, with 11 votes, and four other teams getting support. For worst, it was also a bigger mix in the NL, as five teams got “support” and the Nationals winning out.

Almost half of those tabbing the Astros as AL-best see them failing to win the pennant; still, with eight votes, Houston is lining up as our consensus pennant-winners. In the NL, rabid Mets backers will not yield; it’s a split whether they take the NL East but with seven votes, the Mets take the pennant.

That said, things turn when it comes to the World Series. It’s an NL year, as 16 voters tab a Senior Circuit club to win it all. And we definitely feel it will be an NL West team, as the Dodgers and Padres both tie at the top, with five votes, as champs.

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MLB Awards

Shohei Ohtani is a clear consensus MVP in the AL, while there is considerable debate in the NL — other than the fact that the winner will be a Padre. Juan Soto and Manny Machado each earn five votes, but overall eight different players get support. Cy Young is a tough fight for both Gerrit Cole (AL) and Corbin Burnes (NL), but they prevail. Rookies? It’s Gunnar Henderson of the Orioles in the AL (with Oscar Colás getting two votes!) and another Corbin winner, this time Carroll of the Dbacks, in the NL.

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So, that’s it! Whew. We also had a podcast about our MLB forecast that included pick chiding, Chop cussing and puppy cameos, please enjoy.

Please also share your predictions in the comments below. Meanwhile ...

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