Early 2013 MLB Predictions

[Tucker (Padres GM)]

So i'm going to start throwing a bunch of new discussion topics up, mainly because i want to get to know everyone a little bit better. so here is the first one. I'm interested in everyone's predictions for the 2013 real life MLB season

Who wins the world series?
Rookie of the year?
MVP?
Surprise teams?

[Alex (Nationals GM)]

World Series: Giants ( how could I not! )
MVP: AL - someone from the Angels ie. Trout, Pujols or Hamilton. The line up is so ridiculous they're all gonna see a lot of good pitches to hit
NL - Mccutchen
ROY: NL - Shelby Miller or Trevor Rosenthal (whichever gets a rotation spot out of spring training)
AL - Wil Meyers
CY Young NL - Matt Cain AL - Verlander

Surprise Team - Padres win a wild card spot

[Rob (Rockies GM)]

World Series - Tigers. I love their 1-4 rotation, even 5 with Smyly or Porcello is better than most. Adding V-Mart and Hunter, and getting rid of Delmon Young should be a boost.

MVP - AL - I don't know how Trout doesn't dominate this category for years.
- NL - Joey Votto
ROY - AL - Dylan Bundy
- NL - Adam Eaton
Cy Young - AL - Verlander
- NL - Kris Medlen .. If that was for real, holy crap.

[Ben (Rays GM)]

World Series - Reds. With Choo that's gotta be the best lineup in the NL, and the rotation is very good. I've loved that team for years, but now I'm even more excited to see what they can accomplish.

AL MVP: Bautista. It's time.
NL MVP: McCutchen
AL CY: Verlander
NL CY: Greinke. Back in the NL, in that park, I'm happy.
AL ROY: Bundy
NL ROY: Ruf. Will he get the playing time? Sometimes when you think you've caught lightning in a bottle, you have to open the bottle up to check or you'll never know.

AL Surprise Team: Blue Jays. Does that count? I'm not sure. Their offseason has certainly thrust them into the spotlight, but I do think it'll pay off; between their acquisitions and their young talent, they're ready to contend. The Orioles, meanwhile, will fall and finish fifth in that division.

NL Surprise Team: METS! Maybe it's the homer in me speaking - I don't think they make the playoffs, but I think they'll challenge for the Wild Card and, although they'll fall off in September, they'll finish above .500. I've done pretty well with my surprise team predictions in recent years: I accurately predicted the Rockies' emergence in '07, the Rays' and Brewers' emergence in '08, the Rangers' emergence in '09, the Reds' emergence in '10, and the Pirates' (relative) emergence in '12, so hopefully I'm right on this one as well

[Brian (Blue Jays GM)]

AL MVP - Robinson Cano. In a contract year, with Jeter and A-rod both suffering major injury setbacks, Cano is going to carry the Yankees on his back and earn that mega contract next off-season. Look for Miguel Cabrera, Albert Pujols, and Adrian Beltre to also be strong contenders here.

NL MVP - Ryan Braun. It's #2 for Braun and this one will feel much more legitimate. There is no better power hitter with speed in the game today. McCutchen and Votto will be the next 2 in the voting.

AL CY - David Price. Verlander and King Felix put up very strong opposition but Price edges them out.

NL CY - Clayton Kershaw. It's the year of the young lefty as Kershaw runs away with his second CY. Doc Halladay and Stephen Strasburg are his closest competitors for this award, but it's not that close.

AL ROY - Wil Myers. Won't be as mind-boggling as Mike Trout, but this kid will easily lead all rookies in HR and RBI this season. Dylan Bundy place second after a strong second half in the Baltimore rotation. Mike Zunino is my dark horse for this race.

NL ROY - Tyler Skaggs. With the elbow injury keeping Daniel Hudson on the DL for much of the year, Skaggs emerges as the next big rotation piece for the Diamondbacks. Shelby Miller puts up good numbers as well but doesn't get nearly as much opportunity early in the year. Travis D'Arnaud has the best shot among a weak NL hitting rookie class.

NL surprise team - Pittsburgh Pirates take the next step led by superstar Andrew McCutchen. Wandy Rodriguez, AJ Burnett, and Francisco Liriano form a dynamic veteran trio at the top of the rotation with Jeff Locke and Kyle McPherson emerging at the back end (sorry James McDonald, you're the odd man out by season's end). The big difference though is the veteran leadership of Russell Martin, who proves to be the glue guy of this team.

AL surprise team - Cleveland Indians fans will have a real team to cheer for this season. Their pitching depth is much improved with Ubaldo Jimenez, Justin Masterson, Trevor Bauer, and veteran Brett Myers. Their bullpen is very solid, with big years from Chris Perez and Vinny Pestano at the back end. The added power of Drew Stubbs, Mark Reynolds, and Nick Swisher combined with a bounce back year from Carlos Santana pushes this team into the thick of the AL wildcard race while the AL East teams all beat up on each other. Super-sub Mike Aviles displaces Lonnie Chisenhall at 3B by mid-season and proves to be a better than replacement level player in the 2nd half.

Playoffs:

NL WC Game: SF Giants defeat Pittsburgh Pirates
NL Div Series: Cincinnati Reds defeat SF Giants
Washington Nationals defeat Los Angeles Dodgers
NL Champ Series: Washington Nationals defeat Cincinnati Reds

AL WC Game: Texas Rangers defeat Cleveland Indians
AL Div Series: Tampa Bay Rays defeat Texas Rangers
Detroit Tigers defeat Los Angeles Angels
AL Champ Series: Tampa Bay Rays defeat Detroit Tigers

World Series: Tampa Bay Rays defeat Washington Nationals in 7 games
In a matchup of 2 young, up and coming teams with bright futures, former number one picks Stephen Strasburg and David Price step into the spotlight battle it out in games 1, 4, and 7 with Price taking home the World Series MVP award. Longoria and Myers put up big numbers in the postseason while Harper and Zimmerman match them stride for stride.

[angels]

AL MVP - Trout

NL MVP - Braun

AL CY - Weaver.

NL CY - Cain

AL ROY - Peacock.

NL ROY - Billy Hamilton or Shelby Miller

NL surprise team - Phillies.

AL surprise team - Royals

[Brian (Blue Jays GM)]

So proud that BOTH of my surprise teams, the Pirates and Indians, made it to the playoffs this season! Also looks like I got it right on Kershaw and maybe Myers. Not a bad round of predictions.