TBOH Staff MLB 2016 Predictions
The Philadelphia Phillies writing staff here at TBOH make their predictions for 2016 MLB postseason results and individual award winners.
We previously released our staff predictions for the coming season regarding the complete order of finish in each division, including the Phillies and their NL East rivals. Now we’ll cover the staff predictions for not only each division winner, but also the two Wildcards in each league, and our World Series favorite.
We had eight staff members taking part in the voting process. Eight different teams in each league received playoff consideration on at least one of our ballots. However, except for the NL East, all of the divisional races had clear favorites. It was in the selection of the Wildcards where we saw a few differing opinions.
As for our World Series selection, well, the cover photo accompanying this piece should give you a clue as to our staff cumulative choice. However, that choice was in no way unanimous. The Chicago Cubs received three out of our eight votes. However, the other five votes went to five different ball clubs. This year’s ultimate champion would appear to be up in the air, at least according to our staff writers.
Over the next couple of days we will be releasing our picks for the National and American League Most Valuable Player Award winners, the National and American League Cy Young Award winners, and the National and American League Rookie of the Year Award winners.
It’s not all about success and winning where our staff predictions are concerned, however, We will also be revealing our staff choice as the first manager to be fired in this 2016 season.
As always, we would love to hear from you. Please leave your choices in a comment response accompanying this piece. Let us know what teams and players you think will be the most successful in the 2016 Major League Baseball campaign. Now, begin clicking through the slide show to find out our choices, and those receiving support.
Next: National League Postseason Participants
NATIONAL LEAGUE DIVISION WINNERS AND WILDCARD TEAMS
In the National League, the staff here at TBOH picked the Chicago Cubs to win the NL Central in an 8-0 vote. The San Francisco Giants were a near-unanimous choice out in the NL West, picked by a 7-1 margin. In the NL East, however, the defending National League champion New York Mets were indeed installed as favorites, but by just a 5-3 margin over the Washington Nationals.
Three ball clubs each received four votes as a Wildcard team, including the Nats. The other two were the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Mets received Wildcard votes from two of the writers who didn’t pick them for the NL East crown. Finally, the Saint Louis Cardinals received a Wildcard vote from one of our staff writers.
Next: American League Postseason Participants
AMERICAN LEAGUE DIVISION WINNERS AND WILDCARD TEAMS
In the American League, the staff here at TBOH made the defending world champion Kansas City Royals a unanimous pick by an 8-0 vote to win the AL Central. The Toronto Blue Jays were near-unanimous as 7-1 voting favorites, while the Houston Astros were installed as the favorites out in the AL West by a 6-2 margin.
Receiving votes as a Wildcard team were six different clubs. Among the non-division favorites, the Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers each received four votes as a Wildcard team to become our favorites for those spots. The New York Yankees were right behind with three votes, while the Detroit Tigers received two, and the Cleveland Indians received one vote. The Astros also received a Wildcard vote from one of the writers who hadn’t selected them as the division favorites.
Next: The TBOH Staff Voting for World Series Favorites
WORLD SERIES FAVORITES
As revealed at the start of this piece, the Chicago Cubs are our consensus staff choice to win the 2016 World Series. The Cubbies received votes from three of our eight staff writers, so they are far from a sure thing to end the 108-year stretch of non-championship futility and break the ‘Curse of the Billy Goat’ this year.
Five other teams each received a single vote to come out on top this year as world champions: the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers from the American League, and the San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, and Washington Nationals from the National League. Not a single writer picked the Kansas City Royals to successfully defend their crown and repeat as World Series winners.