Predicting the Future of the MLB

Casey Fahrer

The 2019 MLB season has just begun, and many teams are hot out of the gate. Others, not so much. These trends may continue but they could also fall off which is what I am here to talk about. The regular season is a six month warzone that can not be calculated to an exact science, but we can make a few predictions.

First off is which teams will possibly make the biggest improvement since last season. Automatically the Phillies are in this conversation due to trades for Jean Segura and J.T. Realmuto: while they also signed David Robertson, Andrew McCutchen, and Bryce Harper. They could contend for a playoff spot this season which would be a large improvement from a team that was under .500 the season prior. Next up are the Minnesota Twins who had a very underrated offseason. They were able to add Jonathan Schoop, C.J. Cron, Nelson Cruz, and Marwin Gonzalez while also retaining almost their entire roster from 2018. The Twins could have the ability to take advantage of a weak AL Central and make a push for the playoffs.

Second on the list are the teams that could contend to win the World Series in 2019. Since we are in New York, I’ll start with the Yankees. The Bronx Bombers were able to retain key free agents this offseason, and even bring in other players like J.A. Happ, D.J. Lemahieu, and Troy Tulowitzki. Although it is hard to improve on a 100 win season, the Yankees could certainly push past the first round of the playoffs and contend for a title. The next team I want to mention are the Cardinals. This may come as a surprise, and they probably will not win the whole thing, but the Cardinals are a very solid ballclub. No notable players are left in free agency, but they acquired Paul Goldschmidt and Andrew Miller. The Cardinals always find a way to end up above .500 but this season, they could reach a playoff spot, either as a wildcard team, or a division champion. Either way, the Cardinals have lots of playoff experience that could push them possibly towards the World Series.

The final prediction I want to make is, what players could be traded throughout the course of the season? Could Madison Bumgarner be a Yankee? Could Nicholas Castellanos be a Dodger? All of these things are unknown but I do expect a few things to happen. One, the Brewers will trade for a starting pitcher. I don’t know who exactly but they have learned that their current rotation can not carry them throughout the playoffs. Second, Zack Greinke will be traded. He has not performed well after taking his talents to Arizona a few years back, and I expect that the rebuilding Diamondbacks will look to move him. A team like the Twins or Braves could maybe try to pick him up at the trade deadline. Finally, yes, I do believe that Madison Bumgarner will be traded. The Giants are in an odd place with large contracts, and underperforming players. A rental on Bumgarner could still bring a lot of prospects back to San Francisco and officially start their rebuild.

Predictions are not always true, but they are fun to make. Every year in MLB sees different kinds of things that nobody expected, which is why if somebody predicts them, they could brag about it. We will have to wait and see if any of these are right, as the baseball season unfolds in 2019.