Opening Day is finally here! Over the past six weeks I've had a lot of fun putting together a rather comprehensive MLB season preview. In the past, I've recorded singular MLB preview podcasts. That wasn't enough. There was one year where we went over three hours on our MLB preview. Last year, I broke it up in to six different podcast episodes, only to have several months of dead-air with no baseball being played. This year, we finally nailed it. Each episode consisted of a division preview, and at the end of our series, I revealed my postseason, World Series, and MLB awards picks.
I couldn't be more thankful for the contributions from my guests, as well as my listeners. Anthony Franze, Makayla Perkins, Jonathan 'JJ' Jaggard, Grant Smith, Albert Destrade, Jordan Morandini and Jake Paliga all did a fantastic job. On top of that, we received a number of voicemail submissions from fans of various teams that we played on the podcast. It was a lot of fun having crowd participation; something I hope to do more of in the future of the Jack Vita Show.
Upon the conclusion of our MLB Preview Series, I thought it would be helpful to not only bring my predictions to print, but to also bring together the links to all of the episodes in one place. Thus, I present to you my win projections, playoff and awards picks, followed by the box set of the Jack Vita Show 2021 MLB Preview Series.
Below are my win projections and projected division standings. For my guests' win totals, tune in to the MLB Preview Series.
Regular Season
AL East (Full preview)
Tampa Bay Rays 97-65
*New York Yankees 95-67
Toronto Blue Jays 87-75
Boston Red Sox 74-88
Baltimore Orioles 50-112
AL Central (Full preview)
Chicago White Sox 97-65
**Minnesota Twins 91-71
Cleveland Indians 78-84
Kansas City Royals 77-85
Detroit Tigers 63-99
AL West (Full preview)
Oakland Athletics 92-70
Houston Astros 88-68
Seattle Mariners 76-86
LA Angels of Anaheim 70-92
Texas Rangers 67-95
*AL Wild Card #1: New York Yankees 96-66
**AL Wild Card #2: Minnesota Twins 91-71
NL East (Full preview)
Atlanta Braves 97-65 **Philadelphia Phillies 89-73
New York Mets 86-76
Washington Nationals 81-81
Miami Marlins 74-88
NL Central (Full preview)
St. Louis Cardinals 91-71
Milwaukee Brewers 87-75
Cincinnati Reds 78-84
Chicago Cubs 76-86
Pittsburgh Pirates 56-116
NL West (Full preview)
Los Angeles Dodgers 101-61
*San Diego Padres 92-70
Arizona Diamondbacks 85-77
San Francisco Giants 64-98
Colorado Rockies 62-100
*NL Wild Card #1: San Diego Padres 92-70
**NL Wild Card #2: Philadelphia Phillies 89-73
The Playoffs
AL Wild Card Game: New York Yankees over Minnesota Twins NL Wild Card Game: Philadelphia Phillies over San Diego Padres
Division Series
ALDS
Chicago White Sox OVER New York Yankees
Tampa Bay Rays OVER Oakland Athletics
NLDS
Los Angeles Dodgers OVER Philadelphia Phillies
Atlanta Braves OVER St. Louis Cardinals
Championship Series ALCS: Chicago White Sox OVER Tampa Bay Rays
NLCS: Atlanta Braves OVER Los Angeles Dodgers
World Series
Atlanta Braves OVER Chicago White Sox
World Series MVP: Kris Bryant (Atlanta Braves - that's right, you heard that correctly!)
The Awards
AL Rookie of the Year: Wander Franco (Tampa Bay Rays)
NL Rookie of the Year: MacKenzie Gore (San Diego Padres)
AL Manager of the Year: Tony La Russa (Chicago White Sox)
NL Manager of the Year: Joe Girardi (Philadelphia Phillies)
AL Cy Young: Tyler Glasnow (Tampa Bay Rays)
NL Cy Young: Jacob deGrom (New York Mets)
AL MVP: DJ LeMahieu (New York Yankees) NL MVP: Nolan Arenado (St. Louis Cardinals)
The Episodes
Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Amazon | iHeartRadio | Stitcher | Pandora | TuneIn | Listen Notes | Podtail | Podchaser | Hubhopper | Audio junkie | Himalaya | Podcast Addict | Available wherever podcasts are found.
2021 MLB Preview Series - AL West (Feat. Anthony Franze and Mario Lanza) (February 24, 2021)
2021 MLB Preview Series - NL West (Feat. Makayla Perkins) (March 3, 2021)
2021 MLB Preview Series - AL East (Feat. Jonathan 'JJ' Jaggard and Barry Davis) (March 9, 2021)
2021 MLB Preview Series - NL Central with Grant Smith (March 18, 2021)
2021 MLB Preview Series - NL East with Albert Destrade and Jordan Morandini (March 24, 2021)
2021 MLB Preview Series FINALE - AL Central + World Series/Awards Picks with Jake Paliga (March 30, 2021)
Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Amazon | iHeartRadio | Stitcher | Pandora | TuneIn | Listen Notes | Podtail | Podchaser | Hubhopper | Audio junkie | Himalaya | Podcast Addict | Available wherever podcasts are found.
For more sports and entertainment analysis, follow me on Twitter @JackVitaShow, and subscribe to the Jack Vita Show on iTunes or wherever podcasts are found.
