It might only be April—and October might as well be lightyears away at this point—but when it comes to placing futures on baseball, there’s hardly ever a bad time to look ahead.
With most of the dust settled from an excruciating 99-day lockout, as well as the furious free agent frenzy that followed (you good, Michael Conforto?), it’s time to once again gaze ahead and pick some winners.
Below you’ll find our best bets for World Series champion as well as MVP, Cy Young and Rookie of the Year in each league and a few fun props we couldn’t stay away from.
Happy Opening Day!
All odds via Tipico Sportsbook.
American League Rookie of the Year
Blake Schuster: Bobby Witt Jr, Kansas City Royals (+280). I wish I had a less boring pick than the odds on favorite, but there’s nothing that isn’t absolutely stunning about the Royals’ shortstop. Kansas City has been developing All-Stars for years now (Sal Perez, Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer, Alex Gordon) and there’s little reason to believe Witt won’t be the next one.
Charles Curtis: Spencer Torkelson, Detroit Tigers (+450). Witt is probably the right call given all the hype, and Julio Rodriguez (+450) is intriguing, but I’ll say Torkelson breaks out in a surprisingly good Tigers lineup and takes home the award.
Prince Grimes: Witt Jr. It’s just hard not to buy into the hype around Witt. I think it’ll be a tight race to the end between him and Rodriguez, but Witt’s power numbers in the minors were a little better and should give him the edge if they translate the same.
Christian D’Andrea: Jeremy Pena, Houston Astros (+1000) looked great in spring training and should have a long runway as Houston’s new shortstop. He’s surrounded by the kind of talent that can lift his game to new heights, and the value at +1000 is solid.
National League Rookie of the Year
Blake Schuster: Brennen Davis, Chicago Cubs (+2000). I went chalk with my AL pick, so I’ll take an extreme long-shot with the Cubs slugger. Last year’s Futures Game MVP will start the year in Triple-A, so the only thing holding him back from becoming a Big League star is whether or not Chicago decides to bring him up in 2022 or keep him stashed away in the minors. If it’s the latter, I’ll be taking his odds again next year.
Charles Curtis: Bryson Stott, Philadelphia Phillies (+750). I love the odds, love the versatility, love the home stadium where he can rake.
Prince Grimes: Edward Cabrera, Miami Marlins (+2000). I’m going long here too just because the NL rookies aren’t as seemingly sure-fire as the AL’s. Cabrera is starting the season in Triple-A, but the pitcher will be back up for starts at some point and has impressed when given the opportunity.
Christian D’Andrea: Joey Bart, San Francisco Giants (+1000). We’ve been hearing about the former No. 2 pick for a while. With Buster Posey retired, he’s set to take over at home plate — where voters are likely to give him a soft learning curve for playing such a demanding and valuable position.
American League Cy Young
Blake Schuster: Dylan Cease, Chicago White Sox (+1200). In his first season tossing more than 150 innings last year, the White Sox starter struck out 226, walked 68, finished with an ERA of 3.91 and a WHIP of 1.249. Bet on him taking another leap forward in 2022.
Charles Curtis: Jose Berrios, Toronto Blue Jays (+2000). He really figured it out last season … and now he’s on a truly special Blue Jays team. If he can get the strikeouts up? You’ll be getting him at a huge discount.
Prince Grimes: Lucas Giolito, White Sox (+900). I’m going with a different Chicago ace here, but you can’t go wrong with either. Giolito needs to be special this season if the White Sox are going to make noise, and I think he will be.
Christian D’Andrea: Kevin Gausman, Blue Jays (+1500). Speaking of new Blue Jays, Gausman has finally honed the tools that made him a stud at LSU into something he can use to devastate MLB batters. He’s a workhorse capable of putting up the kind of stats voters love; 20+ wins for a good Toronto team, 230+ strikeouts, and a top five ERA. He improved significantly each of the last two years. Some modest fine tuning at age 33 could make him a bonafide ace.
National League Cy Young
Blake Schuster: Charlie Morton, Atlanta Braves (+3000). As long as he stays healthy, there’s no reason to believe Max Scherzer won’t be in the running for another Cy Young, but, well…he’s a Met now, soooo. Yeah, I’m going to stay away and instead take a nice price on a solid pitcher who should be in the conversation.
Charles Curtis: Corbin Burnes, Milwauke Brewers (+550). Wish I could tell you to take someone with better odds, but Burnes is just filthy every time he steps on to the mound.
Prince Grimes: Walker Buehler, Los Angeles Dodgers (+650). He was on the doorstep of a Cy Young in 2021, and going into his age-27 season, there’s no reason to think he can’t be even better as he takes over as LA’s ace this year.
Christian D’Andrea: Buehler. I’m counting on him to show the curse of Vanderbilt’s new, horrible logo doesn’t apply to alumni.
American League MVP
Blake Schuster: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays (+350). All eyes will be on the young phenom to take his next step this year. There’s truly no reason why he shouldn’t now that the Blue Jays get a full year in their home park.
Charles Curtis: Vlad, but just to be different, I’ll say Kyle Tucker, Houston Astros (+2000) could have a humongous year.
Prince Grimes: Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels (+350). The only thing holding Trout back the last couple seasons have been injuries. For my money, he’s still the player to beat out if he’s healthy.
Christian D’Andrea: Bo Bichette, Blue Jays (+2000). If we’re investing heavily in a stunning Toronto season, why not take the young stud with an All-Star bloodline who gives you better value?
National League MVP
Blake Schuster: Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers (+900). Frank Robinson is the only player to win MVP in both leagues. This is the year Mookie joins him. He’s the most talented player on a team with nearly zero holes. Opponents simply won’t be able to pitch around him.
Charles Curtis: Ronald Acuna Jr., Atlanta Braves (+650). Can a player win MVP after missing a whole month and maybe more of the season? Yes, absolutely, given how I think he’ll play when he gets back.
Prince Grimes: Juan Soto, Washington Nationals (+260). The pick is boring, but the player is anything but. Soto is soooo good, and with a little more protection in the lineup, I think he hits 40 homers.
Christian D’Andrea: Austin Riley, Braves (+2000). Riley was a revelation in 2021 and is a few modest improvements away from being a top-five MVP candidate. Seeing as he just turned 25 years old, I think he can get there.
Most Strikeouts
Blake Schuster: Lucas Giolito, Chicago White Sox (+1200). His fastball-changeup combo has confused batters for years. It’s hard to see that changing in 2022 with a new crop of players in the AL Central.
Charles Curtis: Burnes (+900). See above.
Prince Grimes: Gerrit Cole (+380), New York Yankees. Going chalk again, but Cole is always among the leaders here, coming up just five short last year.
Christian D’Andrea: Dylan Cease, White Sox (+900). He ranked second in the league in strikeouts per nine innings last season, behind only Burnes (another great value). He’s due for a major bump in mound time this season, especially if he can keep that pace.
Most Home Runs
Blake Schuster: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Toronto Blue Jays (+650). He’s not my AL MVP pick because he steals bases.
Charles Curtis: Aaron Judge (+1200). Got to earn that new contract extension somehow.
Prince Grimes: Guerrero Jr. As a 22-year-old, he crushed 48. And he’s only getting better.
Christian D’Andrea: Shohei Ohtani, Angels (+1500). The man doesn’t hit the ball as much as he does send it to hell. He is baseball Constantine and I am here for it.
World Series Champion
Blake Schuster: Chicago White Sox (+1000). A stacked roster with few weaknesses, a bullpen built for October and a team that could still add a great deal during a year it should run away with the AL Central title. This is the year on the South Side.
Charles Curtis: Toronto Blue Jays (+750). The pitching staff will balance out one of the best lineups in baseball, they’ll make a deal for one more starter in July and won’t look back.
Prince Grimes: Los Angeles Dodgers (+450). They’re the favorites for a reason. Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, Freddie Freeman, etc. etc. This team is loaded. It’ll be a major letdown if they don’t get it done.
Christian D’Andrea: Milwaukee Brewers (+1200). This is an investment in a seven-game World Series in which 17 total runs are scored.
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