2022 MLB Season Preview

The time has FINALLY arrived. The 2022 Major League Baseball season is here. Thirty teams all aiming for the ultimate goal, being the last team standing at the end of October as World Series Champions. We have got quite a few faces in new place, all with the same goal of knocking off the defending champions the Atlanta Braves.. There's quite a few stories to look at going into this season.

Can anybody top the Dodgers and Astros in the West? Are the Mets the biggest threat to Atlanta in the East? What about the Central, is anybody going to step up and challenge the White Sox? Will all the new faces fit in well in new places? Is this going to be the good swan song for Pujols in St Louis?

Those questions will be answered over the next six months. Right now is when we give our take on how the season unfolds. Here's our predictions for the 2022 Major League Baseball Season.

AL East
1. Toronto Blue Jays (92-70)*
The heart of this Jays batting order is going to be good this year. Like scary good. Vlad Jr, George Spring, Bo Bichette, Teoscar Hernandez are going to help power this high octane offense along with Matt Chapman. This team is going to have little trouble putting up runs. You also know you got a solid rotation when its lead by Jose Berrios, Kevin Gausman, and Hyun-Jin Ryu. If they can pull it off it will be the first East title for the Jays since 2015 and they are the top threat to come out of this tough division.

2. Tampa Bay Rays (91-71) (WC)*
Coming off a division title last year, the Rays are poised for another trip back to the playoffs, making it there for the fourth straight year. And why not with this lineup. Keirmeier, Arozonorana, Choi, Meadows, Low and emerging star Wander Franco makes this team a dangerous one to play against. They have the offensive ability to be able to hang with the likes of the Jays and the Yankees in this division. Only thing that MIGHT hold this Rays team back from a second straight division title is the pitching staff. Shane McClanahan is great, Corey Kluber still has a little something left. The rest is Meh in the rotation and the bullpen is iffy. Still this team is more than good enough to snag and lock up a wild card spot this year.

3. New York Yankees (89-73) (WC)*
What could hold the Yankees back from a possible playoff spot could be its offense. Pitching looks good in the Bronx. Gerritt Cole has been worth it and then some for the Yankees the last few years, so the expectation is there with him again at the top of the staff. He got some backup with  Montgomery and if he's healthy and back to form Louis Severino. Pen could be good to with Loaisiga and Green as the lead in guys for Chapman at the end of ganes. Question is can the offense hang with the two teams ahead of them in this race? Stanton and Judge can produce sure.  Gallo and Rizzo too and you finally got rid of the headache with Sanchez behind the plate. Josh Donaldson could be a swing and a miss. Still there's enough talent here to at least keep interest in the race in the East.

4. Boston Red Sox (88-74) (WC)*
Huge waves made in Boston with the Red Sox signing Trevor Story and moving him over to second base. Had to be done with Bogarts and Devers already locked down Boston's left side of the infield. Throw in JD Martinez at DH,Alex Verdugo and Jackie Bradly Jr from the outfield and you got yourself a pretty good lineup for the Sox. Pitching is going to be a BIG issue in Boston. Sure yo got Chris Sale, if he can stay healthy, and Nathan Evoldi. After that, there isn't much hope holding up for Boston in terms of arms. Lets face fact the offense could be good, like really good. But the arms just don't stack up well enough for Boston to really hang with the top heavy teams in this eastern division.

5. Baltimore Orioles (62-100)
The O's haven't had a winning season since 2016 and that trend will continue this year. Trey Mancini,. Rougy Odor and Robinson Chirinios are powering this pretty weak Baltimore offense. Pitching leaves a lot to be desired in Baltimore as well. John Means does have some promise as the Orioles ace on this staff. Its after him that leaves holes for this team that will be luck to win 65 games this year if that.

AL Central
1. Chicago White Sox (90-72)*
Chicago is looking for its second straight central division title and third straight playoff appearance, and they got the talent in this lineup to be able to do both. Start with the pitching. They have Hendricks and Kimbrul closing out games from the back of the pen, with a decent bridge between them and the starters. Lance Lynn will be relied on as the ace again of this staff. Him and Giolito are expected to be carrying the top of the staff, with the hope that Keuchel can build off that as another stud again on that staff. Then there's the offense, lead by Tim Anderson. Him Abreu and Grandal are going to be counted on again to power the boys from the Windy City. Couple that with the big things expected from Louis Robert and Eloy Jimenaz and its going to be another title for the White Sox.

2. Minnesota Twins (84-78)
The only team, on paper that looks like it could have a shot at taking the division title away from Chicago would be Minnesota. The biggest thing the Twins did was bring Carlos Coreea back into the mix. They had the money to do that by unloading Josh Donaldson off the books in the trade with the Yankees that brought Gary Sanchez and Gio Urshela to Minnesota. Throw them in with Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano, and the Twins might have something brewing with that lineup. Pitching seems alright at best right now for the Twins. Sonny Gray expected to do big things this season. With the exception of maybe Dylan Bundy, who knows what you got behind Grey, which could be a bit of an issue if the Twins are hoping to catch Chicago.

3. Cleveland Guardians (75-87)
New name, much of the same story this year in Cleveland. Hey they have made the playoffs four times in the last six seasons, but haven't won a playoff series since going to the 2016 World Series. The only thing that's really holding Cleveland back is payroll, as in they don't have much. Look there's talent here with up and coming Franmill Reyes and star Jose Ramariez. They do have another solid bat with possibly Austin Hedges, but otherwise this lineup in Cleveland seems average at best. They have decent pitching with Bieber and Quantrill in the rotation, but that's about it. There just isn't enough talent here to really get the Guardians going towards a playoff spot.

4. Detroit Tigers (74-88)
There's still a little hope in the Motor City that Miguel Cabarera has some life left in his bat, and provide some kind of spark that can really send them back to life. Adding Javy Baez into the mix adds a little bit of life to the Tigers lineup. And with Scoop there as well, there is a little bit of pop from the middle of the Detroit lineup. That's about it. They've got some bigtime talent waiting in the wings. That's not coming for another year or two, so it looks like this bunch will have to do till the next generation is ready to get the Tigers back to their former winning ways.

5. Kansas City Royals (72-90)
There's not much worth note in Kansas City. They haven't made the playoffs since winning their World Series title in 2015 and they haven't finished .500 or better since 2016.  Zach Grenkie is back where it all began for him, at the top of the Royals staff, so it will be nice to see what he can do back there. They got some new pieces to work with on offense, like Carlos Santana, Salvador Perez and Hunter Dozier, but that's really it. There's hope for the future with guys like Bobby Whitt Jr but its going to take a little time for that to really come. This year isn't it for Kansas City.

AL West
1. Houston Astros (95-68)*
Houston has the most balanced team in the AL West, which is going to lead to a seventh straight playoff appearance and sixth title in that time. To be fair, Houston did take a big hit with Carlos Correa leaving town and heading to Minnesota. But still, the Astros are loaded with Jose Altuve, Yuli Gurriel, Kyle Tucker, Yordan Alvarez and Alex Bregman. The offense is good, but the pitching could hold them back a little bit from competing with the big boys in the East and Central. They have Verlander and McCullers, who when are both healthy can still be fantastic. The depth behind them could be an issue come fall. It will be enough to get by over the marathon of a regular season, but come the sprint of the playoffs, it could end up hurting them.

2. Seattle Mariners (86-76)
It's going to be close to who comes in second in this division, but edge has to go to Seattle, a team looking to make the playoffs for the first time since 2001. They took steps in the right direction last year winning 90 games. They take a step back a bit this year but will be in the mix for a wild card spot. The offense got a boost adding Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suarez. Those two guys and Mitch Haniger are going to do plenty to try and power things in Seattle. Pitching is going to be an issue. Sure Robbie Ray is going to be a stud at the top of the rotation. But there's not enough depth in pitching to be able to get them to the next level and where they need to be.

3. Los Angeles Angels (86-76)
Two really good positives that the Angles have going for them this season is they have the best player in the world back and healthy on the field in Mike Trout. They also have the best dual role player in the game in Shohei Ohtani. To help Trout they have Anthony Rendon healthy again this season. But they still need help for those three bats in the lineup. Upton and Wade could be impactful bats, but who knows. And with pitching, behind Ohtani there's question marks. Noah Syndergarrd has upside, but coming off the arm issues two years ago there's nothing set in stone with Thor.

4. Texas Rangers (74-88)
Texas could be a surprise and improve over the win loss record we see for them. A lot of the focus is going to be on the middle of that Rangers infield with Marcus Semian and Corey Seager. They also forked over a ton of cash for Jon Gray and Kohl Calhoun. Between the four guys, Texas spent over $560 million. What worries some with this team is how much depth they have in terms of arms behind Gray. The bats seems like they are going to be a big step up this season, but pitching could be a fall off.

5. Oakland Athletics (70-92)
It seems like the wheels are falling off in Oakland and they are taking steps backwards. Chris Bassitt, Matt Chapman and Matt Olson are already gone. Sure Jed Lowire is their main guy, and has Piscotty, Thames and Andrus with him, but that's it. As far as pitching, Sean Manaea is their main weapon, but he could be on his way out the door before long. Ownership doesn't seem interested in putting a contending team on the field everyday and that's sad for fans in Oakland, as they deserve better.

NL East
1. Atlanta Braves (96-66)*
They may have taken a slight step back from a season ago, but there's no denying the fact that the defending World Champion Braves are the best team in this division. Fan favorite Freddy Freeman is gone, replaced at first by Matt Olson. Losing Freeman is going to hurt in Atlanta. But the rest of the core group is still in tact, which makes this team dangerous. They will be without Ronald Acuna Jr for a bit due to injury, but once he's back, Atlanta will insert him right into the middle of the lineup. And when you add him into a team with Riley, Swanson, Olsen, Albies and Duvall, it leads to runs. pitching should be good with Max Fried establishing himself as the ace of this team and coming on strong. Him and Charlie Morton make a pretty good one two punch at the top Kenley Jansen now in the Braves pen to close games for an already solid lineup makes them dangerous.

2. New York Mets (94-68) (WC)*
When they're healthy, the Mets have the best one two at the top of the rotation with DeGrom and Scherzer. But sadly both are hurt to start the season (as of writing), and Jake is long term. Still with that said, the Mets have enough talent here to be a playoff team, at least a wild card spot. Trading for Chris Bassett from Oakland was a big move, adding him in with Walker and Corassco. The Mets just hope that Walker goes back to his form from the first half of last season. On offense, adding new pieces is going to be huge. Alonso and Lindor are expected to carry a lot of the load now that Confroto is gone. Still the team added depth by bringing in Starling Marte, Mark Canha and Eduardo Escoabar. This team has the pieces to make a lot of noise, should they be able to get and stay healthy. If they can do that, they will once again be a bigtime threat to the Braves at the top of this eastern division.

3. Philadelphia Philles (90-72) (WC)*
It's been quite a while since the Phillies last made the playoffs, ten years in fact. Over the winter, the Phillies went from a good team to an even better one. Start with pitching. Zach Wheeler really came into his own, becoming the ace of this Phillies staff, with Nola right behind him leading to a pretty solid and deep starting staff. And with both Brad Hand and Craig Knebel out of the pen, the Phillis look solid. Bryce Harper and J.T. Realmuto power the offense that has two new weapons added to it in the form of Nick Castellanos and Kyle Schwarber. There's balance in this Phillies lineup and its going to be a tough team to beat. Look for them to make quite a lot of noise in their ace for the final wild card spot in the NL this season.

4. Miami Marlines (76-86)
Miami has an advantage over some of the bottom feeding teams in the baseball world. They have themselves a solid pitching staff. Sandy Alcantra, Trevor Rogers and Pablo Lopez make a hell of a top of the rotation. And they have some good young arms waiting in the wings down in the minor leagues. What's holding Miami back from being a real contender in not only this divisional race, but the wild card race as well, is their lack of run support. They've got some good hitters in Wendel, Agular, Chisholm and Solar. That's really it. Hey its a good middle of the order but there's no depth in the Miami order. Failure over the winter to really go out and add to it is going to hurt the Marlins in terms of being right there in contention.

5. Washington Nationals (70-92)
There's no denying the fact that the Nationals have one of the very best young players in the game in Juan Soto in their lineup. This guy has all the makings in the world to be one of the faces of this great sport. He's that good. Problem is, there's not much of a supporting cast around him. Sure Victor Robles, Josh Bell and Maikel Franco are also in this lineup, but that's nowhere near enough for Washington to really be in it as a contender. Yes they do still have Stephen Strasburg in the rotation, and Patrick Corbin too. But that's really not enough to be able to get Washington right into the middle of things with this tough, top heavy division.

NL Central
1. Milwaukee Brewers (91-71)*
Another year, another playoff appearance for the Brewers, this will be not only their fifth straight year making the playoffs, but their second consecutive NL Central title. This pitching staff is still one of the best in the league. We got Josh Hader still shutting the door out of the pen. Then there's the starters, with Burns, Woodruff and Peralta at the top of the staff. It makes for a dangerous pitching staff to go against for anybody else in the league. Oh and the Brewers have a pretty deep lineup as well. Yelich, Cain and Renfro in the outfield is one of the more solid outfields in the game. They have Adames, Wong and McCutchen as well and they are kind of good. This team is solid and they are going to be tough to beat.

2. St Louis Cardinals (88-74)
The Machine is back in St Louis. Albert Pujols is back for his final season in baseball in the city where it all began. Besides him, this team is still pretty balanced and can produce runs. Goldschmidt is going to be there at 1st. And they still have Arenado and DeJong, who can provide plenty of pop in this lineup. But its the pitching that could be holding the Cards back from really challenging the Brewers for the division crown. Sure they have Wainwright and Matz, but they really lack depth here. And that's the biggest difference between them and the Brew Crew.

3. Chicago Cubs (76-86)
Last year was a step backwards for the Cubs, finishing twenty games under .500 on the season. Doesn't look like this season is going to be getting any better. They have a few power strokes in the batting order with Heyward, Happ, Simmonds and Contreras but there's not much else in the way of batting depth. The big story is how well Contreras will be coming into his own. The rest is going to be a work in progress. When it comes to pitching, they have Hendricks and a trying to find himself again Stroman. There's not much to really build on, at least on paper, otherwise.

4. Cincinnati Reds (70-92)
Pitching is going to be a problem for the Reds. hell the Reds said going into the offseason that they were going to be shredding payroll. And they did. Sonny Gray, Eugenio Suarez, Jesse Winker and Wade Miley are all gone, and there isn't much talent left here to really build around. Moustakas, Pham and Naquin can still hit but there's no depth behind them. And the pitching leaves a lot to be desired. Facts are that the Reds are going to be one of the worst teams in the league this season.

5. Pittsburgh Pirates (60-102)
There's bad, and then there's Pirates level bad. Yoshi Tsutsugo, Bryan Reynolds and Daniel Vogelbach are the best hitters in this Pittsburgh lineup, which really lacks depth of any kind. Same goes for the pitching staff, which has Jose Quintana as the ace. There's not much here for Pittsburgh baseball fans to get excited about.

NL West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers (101-61)*
For nine straight years the Dodgers have made the playoffs, and their string of eight straight division titles was stopped a season ago. This year, they not only got better but should be right back on top as king of the hill in the NL West. The Dodgers lost quite a bit of talent from last season, with Scherzer, Jensen and Seager gone. Enter Freddie Freeman. He joins a lineup with Trea Turner, Justin Turner, Max Miucey, Cody Bellenger, the list goes on and on. As for pitching, Jensen is getting a replacement in the pen in the form of Craig Kimbrel. The top of the rotation now looks like Buehler, Kershaw and Uras as the top three. ITs not quite the same thing as the team we saw a season ago, but they are still very good and should be able to squeak out the division title

2. San Francisco Giants (97-65) (WC)*
The Giants made a quick turn around a season ago, knocking off the Dodgers as kings of the NL West. They are a very good team and will be right back in the mix again this season. Pitching a strong point for the Giants, with Webb, Rodon and DiScalfani topping a pretty good starting staff. What complicates things a little is behind the plate. Buster Posey retirement complicates things. New starting catcher Joey Bart has some big shoes to fill and only time will tell if he can fill them. The rest of the lineup, with Belt, Crawford, La Stell, Longoria, Yastrzemski, Pederson, can all rake. The Giants may take a step or two back from last season, but they are more than good enough to lock up a wild card spot in the NL

3. San Diego Padres (90-72)
This team is a good, young club with one of the brightest up and coming stars in the game. Fernando Tatis Jr is going to carry this Padres team for a long time. He's going to miss the start of the season due to an injury, which is why the Padres are going to get off to a bit of a slow start. Still, they are good enough team to be right in the thick of the race all season long. And why not with some of the bats they have. Machado, Voit who was just brought on board, Meyres, Nola, Hosmer. There's plenty of thump in that lineup. Pitching is really really solid. Musgrove, Darvish, Manaea make a pretty good top three in that rotation and they have Blake Snell behind them. This Padres team is going to be good for a long time and in the mix for a long time.

4. Colorado Rockies (71-91)
Colorado paid good money in the offseason to try and get better. At the same time they may have overpaid using said money for the talent they got.Kris Bryant was a huge signing, but it came at a pretty steep price. With Trevor Story now gone, it puts a lot on Bryant to take over as the face of this team. Him, Blackman and Grichuk make a solid middle of the lineup and have a good defense with Iglises at short too. But what faults the Rockies here is going to be pitching. Or rather lack of pitching depth. Marquez, and Freeland are at the top of this staff which isn't so bad, but anything behind that leaves a lot to be desired and is going to hurt the Rockies chances in this loaded division

5. Arizona Diamondbacks (68-94)
There might not be too much to get excited about in the desert, but there are a couple of pieces here that could be worth something over time. They have some solid pieces in this lineup, with Peralta, Ahmed and Marte. That's about it. And the pitching leaves a lot to be desired. Arizona is going to be the whipping boy of not only the Western Division but the National League as well.