At the start of any new MLB season, there are a ton of expectations. You know, as the old saying goes, “hope springs eternal.” Yet, even more than hope, fans make claims and predictions about what is going to happen in the upcoming season. For some, it’s just about their team’s chance to make a postseason run. Others are banking on not just playing baseball in October but lifting the crown and hoisting the Commissioner’s Trophy. In this article, we take the predictions to the next level. WE’RE GOING BOLD! So here are some of the craziest, wildest, potentially unrealistic predictions that you’ll likely hear all season long.

BOLD PREDICTION #1: AARON JUDGE WINS AL TRIPLE CROWN W/ .331 BA, 80 HRS, 163 RBIS & 13 WAR SEASON

There is arguably no better hitter in baseball currently than Aaron Judge. Aaron is coming off his third fifty-homer campaign in the last four seasons. It’s almost to a point where it’s become the expected norm or a foregone conclusion that Judge will have 50+ home runs in the season. This year, however, to make it BOLD, we have to add a little more to it than just saying fifty plus homers. So, to make the boldest of claims and predictions. Aaron Judge will break Barry Bonds’ single-season home run record with 80 homers, drive in 163 RBIs, and add a .331 batting average to win the American League triple crown. Oh, and not just a throw-in, but Judge will have a WAR (Wins Above Replacement) of 13.

BOLD PREDICTION #2: EVERY TEAM IN THE AL EAST FINISHES OVER .500

The American League East is a beast of a division. And when you examine just how aggressive these teams play each other, it’s not hard to understand why it’s arguably the best division in baseball. And it’s with that thought in mind that this next prediction comes to light. Every team in the AL East will finish with a record better than .500.

BOLD PREDICTION #3: NL CENTRAL DIVISION WINNER WINS DIVISION BY 10 GAMES

The National League Central has been an interesting division over the past few seasons. There have been several teams “rebuilding” and not necessarily trying to compete. And this 2026 campaign will be no different, with another team mired in a rebuild. Many baseball pundits believe that the Chicago Cubs are the class of the division this season and will easily run away with the division. So, it’s with that thought in mind that we predict that the Cubs will win the NL Central by 10+ games.

BOLD PREDICTIONS #4: 2 NO-HITTERS THROWN ON SAME DAY

A no-hitter in baseball is one of the most exciting feats to witness in a baseball game. But what’s better than one no-hitter? Two no-hitters! And better yet, two no-hitters on the same day.

BOLD PREDICTION #5: DODGERS ELIMINATED IN THE NLDS; NO 3 PEAT

The Los Angeles Dodgers look like a juggernaut ready to defend their back-to-back World Championships in 2026. Depth at every potential position is a staple and calling card for the defending champs. So it wouldn’t be a BOLD prediction to say that they can repeat. And since the Dodgers are likely to run away with the National League West division, they will make the postseason. So the BOLD prediction is that they will be defeated in the National League Division Series and not even reach the Championship Series.

BOLD PREDICTION #6: 5 PLAYERS HAVE 40/40 SEASON

• Bobby Witt Jr
• Jose Ramirez
• Elly De La Cruz
• Julio Rodriguez
• Ronald Acuña Jr

A 40 home run and 40 steal season is a rare and impressive feat, and not something we see every year. So to claim that five players will all accomplish the feat is truly a BOLD prediction.

BOLD PREDICTION #7: 6 PLAYERS HIT 50+ HRS

• Aaron Judge
• Kyle Schwarber
• Pete Alonso
• Matt Olson
• Eugenio Suarez
• Nick Kurtz

While not necessarily as difficult as a 40/40 season is to complete in this day and age, a 50-home run campaign is still an impressive feat. To have even two players hit fifty homers in the same season feels special. So, how about if six players were to complete the feat in the same season? Not since the “steroid era” has something even close to this feat been thought possible. Thus, it feels imperative that we BOLDLY predict that it will happen this season.

BOLD PREDICTION #8: BOBBY WITT JR HAS A 10-WAR SEASON

Bobby Witt Jr is one of the best players in Major League Baseball. And the 2026 season will be Bobby’s announcement to the world about just how good he is in all facets of the game of baseball. Witt Jr will dominate the game on both sides of the ball and have an incredible season en route to a second-place finish in the American League Most Valuable Player race. Not winning the AL MVP will also seem like a letdown, but the fun of watching what Witt does this season will be insanely fun to witness. Bobby Witt Jr’s fun season will amass a Wins Above Replacement of 10, not an easy thing to accomplish, but an easy thing to enjoy.

BOLD PREDICTION #9: MASON MILLER GETS TRADED

The San Diego Padres are in a perplexing position as a franchise. San Diego will likely be sold to a new owner in the very near future, thus leaving the state of the franchise up in the air. Another thing that’s clouding the Padres is the plethora of exhorbidant contracts doled out by the late owner Peter Seidler. Expensive contracts to Fernando Tatis Jr, Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, and others leave the Padres in the rear in terms of positive assets. The only real potentially movable asset is closer, Mason Miller. Now, given the king’s ransom that San Diego gave up to get Miller, nothing less than that same kind of return would be acceptable for a franchise facing a lot of tough decisions. Trading away Miller will be the opening salvo that the franchise is coming down the wrong side of the win curve. And that would leave Padres fans feeling upended once again by a franchise that’s been extremely fun to watch over the past several years.

BOLD PREDICTION #10: METS MISS POSTSEASON AGAIN IN TIEBREAKER SEASON SERIES LOSS TO PIRATES

The 2025 New York Mets were expected to be a revelation of a team after handing out the largest contract in MLB history to Juan Soto in the form of a $765 million deal. Yet, that is not how the season turned out. As the Mets would miss out on the postseason due to the tiebreaker scenarios of losing the season series with the Cincinnati Reds. So this season, the same exact thing will happen to the Mets, except with a different NL Central team, in the Pittsburgh Pirates.

BOLD PREDICTION #11: KONNOR GRIFFIN LEADS PIRATES TO POSTSEASON

Speaking of the Pirates, a big part of the reason that the Pirates will be the Mets in the season series will be because of top prospect Konnor Griffin. Griffin started the season in the Minor Leagues but wasn’t long for the Indianapolis Indians, the Triple-A affiliate of the Pirates. Konnor will come up and immediately start to impact the Buccos. And along with Paul Skenes on the mound, Griffin will help lead the Pirates back to the postseason for the first time since the 2015 National League Wildcard loss to the Cubs.

BOLD PREDICTION #12: HELIOT RAMOS FIRST SF GIANTS PLAYER TO HIT 40 HRS SINCE BARRY BONDS

The San Francisco Giants are one of MLB’s most famous and historic franchises. And in the iconic history of the team, they have had some incredible players like Willie Mays, Juan Marichal, Buster Posey, Tim Lincecum, and, of course, Barry Bonds. Speaking of Bonds, no Giants player has hit even as many as 30 home runs in a single season since Barry did in 2004, until last season when Willy Adames hit 30 exactly. This will be the year that the trend changes when Heliot Ramos hits 40+ homers for the San Francisco Giants.

BOLD PREDICTION #13: TIGERS TRADE TARIK

To put it bluntly, the best pitcher in baseball will be traded. Give credit to the Detroit Tigers for trying to make some moves this offseason to try to woo Tarik Skubal into staying in the Motor City. However, there’s no way that Skubal signs an extension before reaching free agency at the end of the season. Skubal is a Scott Boras client, so Tarik will be speaking with many teams this offseason in an effort to get the rumored $400 million contract. Yet, the offseason efforts of the Tigers won’t be enough to keep Skubal. So, the Tigers will move him at the trade deadline to re-up for a longer run of potential postseason opportunities by cashing in on Tarik’s value.

BOLD PREDICTION #14: MIKE TROUT RETURNS TO ALL-STAR FORM

One thing that has been missing from the sport has been a healthy Mike Trout. Arguably the best player of this generation, Trout was (and still is, despite his recent injury history) on a Hall of Fame trajectory. However, the “modern-day Mickey Mantle” was seemingly following in the same footsteps. A brilliant career marred at the end by injuries that sapped his overall potential to claim the crown of the greatest of all-time. A healthy Trout is good for baseball, and this season will see Trout return to All-Star form with an OPS+ of 125+ and a season-ending WAR of 6.5.

BOLD PREDICTION #15: MIKE TROUT TRADED TO PHILLIES

Speaking of Mike Trout, a homecoming for the South Jersey kid who grew up a Philadelphia Phillies fan is a feel-good story, if there ever was one in baseball. Trout is set to be back playing center field for the Angels this season, and the Phillies are set to employ rookie Justin Crawford at that position. Should the rookie struggle and Trout get off to a hot start, a trade back “home” might just be something beneficial for both parties.

BOLD PREDICTION #16: BRYCE HARPER FINISHES INSIDE TOP 10 IN NL MVP RACE

And speaking about the Phillies, this past offseason, the Philadelphia Phillies’ president of baseball operations, Dave Dombrowski, had some poignant comments about the former National League Most Valuable Player, Bryce Harper. Dombrowski said that Harper may no longer be an “elite” player. Obviously, these comments didn’t sit well with Bryce. And Harper commented as much back at the start of Spring Training. But what if Dave Dombrowski was just being an evil genius? What if by making that comment, Dave knew that it would ignite a spark so large within Bryce Harper that it pushed him right back to the top of the National League? And it’s in that spirit that we claim BOLDLY that Bryce Harper will finish inside the Top 10 in the National League Most Valuable Player race of 2026.

BOLD PREDICTION #17: THREE TEAMS WIN 100 GAMES

It takes a great deal of intestinal fortitude and luck to win 100 games in a Major League Baseball season. To win 100 games is such a difficult task that most seasons, you don’t see even one team win 100 games. However, this is where the BOLD prediction comes in and says that there will be three teams that win 100 games in 2026. It’s easy to say the Dodgers, that almost feels like a foregone conclusion at this point. But we’ll also add in two more squads, the New York Yankees and the always-surprising “mystery team” that shows up at the trade deadline.

BOLD PREDICTION #18: TEAM WINS OFFENSIVE TRIPLE CROWN

The idea of winning the offensive triple crown is extremely difficult. To be the best at hitting home runs, driving runs in via RBIs, and having the best batting average is not an easy task. That combination of attributes is not easy to achieve over the course of a few seasons, let alone to do it all in one season. Even harder still would it be for a team to amass the necessary statistics to win a team triple crown, yet BOLDLY, we are stating that will happen this season.

BOLD PREDICTION #19: TARIK SKUBAL & PAUL SKENES STRIKE OUT 300+ EACH

The name of the game in today’s baseball is all about strikeouts, and hitters are no longer stigmatized by striking out. Which means that there are a ton of strikeouts each and every single season. And while there are more strikeouts by pitching staffs as a whole, not always does an individual starter get the opportunity to get 300+ strikeouts as they used to back in the day. However, for the 2026 season, we’ll see two pitchers “K” over 300 batters. Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes are the best starting pitchers in baseball today, and while others are approaching them, Skenes and Skubal are the consensus top two. So they will lead the pitching pack in punch-outs.

BOLD PREDICTION #20: 3 MANAGERS FIRED BY JUNE

You never want to see things like this happen, but the volatility of the sport dictates that sometimes managers take the blame for the woes of an organization. And so we make the claim that three managers will lose their jobs by June. We hope we’re wrong on this one.

BOLD PREDICTION #21: ROOKIE OF THE YEAR WINNERS

Well, when it comes to this year’s rookie crop of MLB talent, it’s absolutely stacked. From players like Chase DeLauter, Kevin McGonigle, JJ Wetherholt, the number one prospect Konnor Griffin, and many more. So, to name just one from each league as the winner can be a difficult prediction to make from year-to-year. This season’s winners of the National League Rookies of the Year award will be Konnor Griffin. Now, when it comes to the American League prediction, the term “rookie” will be used loosely to describe the winner, and that’s because Munetaka Murakami has long been a professional, but in Japan. Murakami will likely win the AL Rookie of the Year.

BOLD PREDICTION #22: MANAGER OF THE YEAR WINNERS

Like with the Rookies of the Year, Managers can also be a very crowded field and a subjective one. Choosing a manager who deserves to win the award becomes a matter of preference and what you use to determine the victor. This season, there could be any number of potential candidates, but as a prediction must be made, we’ll choose Don Kelly of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the NL and Mark Kotsay of the “homeless” Athletics.

BOLD PREDICTION #23: CY YOUNG WINNERS

In one of the two most anticlimactic predictions on this list, making the determination of the Cy Youngs is fairly simple right now. Tarik Skubal and Paul Skenes are the best starters on the planet right now. And you’d be hard-pressed to say that there is a more likely candidate in either league to win the award.

BOLD PREDICTION #24: MOST VALUABLE PLAYER WINNERS

And in the other most “unbold” prediction, unless the writers of the BBWAA decided to have “voter fatigue,” the winners this year will once again be Shohei Ohtani in the National League and Aaron Judge in the American League. Book it now.

BOLD PREDICTION #25: WORLD SERIES WINNER

Ok, so here’s where a little reverse psychology will come into play, every year I pick the Yankees to win the World Series and every year they don’t. So, for this year’s bold prediction, I’m going to pick the Dodgers, and hopefully that will mean they will lose.

BOLD PREDICTION #26: NO LOCKOUT

And for the last BOLD prediction, there will be no lockout. The players and owners will come together, realizing how critical this juncture is for the sport in terms of popularity and growth, and neither side wants that to end. Baseball was nearly lost for good after the strike of 1994, and we don’t have Cal Ripken Jr chasing down Lou Gehrig’s streak or the steroid era to save us this time. So both sides figure out a compromise, and we don’t get locked out.