2022 Preseason World Series Predictions
At last, baseball is back. The season is set to begin imminently, but it is never too early to look ahead to see which teams could win it all. Here are four predictions of what the Fall Classic could look like.
Nolan Wick: Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers
The Houston Astros are battle-tested and well-coached by Dusty Baker, having proved they are built for October. There is a good mix of veterans and young talent from Jose Altuve to Kyle Tucker, and the entire roster is balanced and talented.
Meanwhile, the Milwaukee Brewers are a sleeper pick to make the World Series, but there are reasons to believe they can do it. Milwaukee’s elite pitching staff features reigning Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes, while both he and Brandon Woodruff are contenders for 2022’s award. Great pitching wins in baseball, but not without offense.
Milwaukee’s 2021 offense was sneaky, with the sixth-most RBIs and runs. 2022’s lineup is very similar, with the additions of Hunter Renfroe and Andrew McCutchen in the offseason. Milwaukee has made the playoffs for four consecutive seasons, so don’t be surprised if the Brew Crew finally breakthrough.
Justin Ciavolella: Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Dodgers
The AL East is nothing short of loaded this year with four teams looking like playoff contenders. But one team stands out more than the rest: the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Blue Jays have a lineup loaded with power from top to bottom. They added Matt Chapman to a lineup that includes Vladimir Guerrero Jr., George Springer and Bo Bichette.
They upgraded their rotation by adding Kevin Gausman. Gausman will join José Berríos and Hyun Jin Ryu to form a dominant trio to get through the American League.
There is not much to say about the Los Angeles Dodger other than that the rich got richer.
The Dodgers lost some key players including shortstop Corey Seager, but they filled holes quickly. Seager’s replacement, Trea Turner, was acquired at the deadline last season.
They then added a marquee free agent with Freddie Freeman, who won the World Series with the Atlanta Braves last season, deciding to leave to play for his hometown team
In short, the Dodgers have been a staple in the playoffs lately and this year will be no different.
Connor Fenix: Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers had one of the most productive offseasons, upgrading their lethal offensive arsenal by acquiring star first baseman Freddie Freeman.
Freeman joins a club that sits in easily the most competitive division in baseball as the Dodgers won 106 games in 2021, while still finishing in second place in the NL West behind the San Francisco Giants.
Freeman also joins an offense that slugged .429 in 2021 and will play alongside practical names like Trea Turner, Mookie Betts, Max Muncy, and Cody Bellinger.
Along with the offense, the pitching staff is also phenomenal. After adding Max Scherzer at the trade deadline last season, his departure to the New York Mets still left hope for the Dodger faithful, as they will bring back David Price, Walker Buehler, possibly Trevor Bauer and most notably, Clayton Kershaw.
The Dodgers are a top-tier ballclub, giving them an honest reason to be World Series competitors.
A team that made a lot of noise late in the 2021 season, the Boston Red Sox are once again going to be a competitor not only in the AL East, but the rest of the league should be on alert.
At the plate, the Red Sox finished fourth in the AL as they managed a .261 average during the 2021 season.
With Xander Bogaerts, Alex Verdugo, and Jackie Bradley Jr. all returning, the Red Sox have depth and experience under manager Alex Cora.
Recently adding Trevor Story to the roster, the Red Sox have the talent to make a deep run in the playoffs to secure their spot in the World Series come October.
With the arms of a healthy Chris Sale, Nathan Eovaldi, and a revamped Nick Pivetta, don’t count out the Red Sox to hoist the World Series trophy this fall.
Evan Smith: Chicago White Sox, New York Mets
The Los Angeles Dodgers are the best team in baseball this season; they’re the obvious pick to go to the World Series. However, the obvious pick doesn’t always get the job done. Teams with a reason to win fight harder than teams that are expected to win.
The New York Mets need to win this season. Following the 2020 season, the Mets' new owner decided to open the checkbook to create a winning roster. The experiment failed as the Mets ended the 2021 season with a 77-85 record.
After the failure, Steve Cohen doubled down, going on a historic shopping spree around the Major League Baseball lockout. The team agreed to contracts with Max Scherzer, Starling Marte, Mark Canha, and Eduardo Escobar. The moves left their payroll sitting around $270m.
After all the player moves, the team found their manager in Buck Showalter.
Steve Cohen has made it clear that he will spend as much money as he needs to win, so the Mets have no excuse not to.
The White Sox is a team with the potential to reach the Dodgers’ level of success. They're a young team in a big market loaded with star power.
The rotation is one of the best in the league with borderline aces Dallas Keuchel, Lance Lynn, and Lucas Giolito guiding former top prospects Michael Kopech and Dylan Cease.
Luis Robert can become the best player in the league after batting .338 in 68 games last season. He leads an outfield full of promise with former all-star AJ Pollock, top-5 pick Andrew Vaughn, and utility youngster Gavin Sheetz.
Add to this a young infield led by Tim Anderson and the White Sox seemingly have no weaknesses.
The Chicago White Sox will be contenders this year and beyond.
Nolan Wick is a first-year majoring in journalism. To contact him, email nhw5046@psu.edu.
Connor Fenix is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email cjf5726@psu.edu.
Justin Ciavolella is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email jtc5751@psu.edu.
Evan Smith is a first-year majoring in journalism. To contact him, email ers5828@psu.edu
About the Contributors
Justin Ciavolella
Second-year /
Justin Ciavolella is a second-year student from Sayville, New York, majoring in broadcast journalism. He is a writer, podcaster and broadcaster within the sports department of CommRadio. Ciavolella has written articles on various topics, but tends to focus on previews of Penn State sporting events. He is an analyst on Phone Booth, a sports debate talk show for the station, as well as a co-host on Bomber Boys, a Yankee talk show. He is also involved with the production of After the Whistle. He can be found on Twitter @jciavolella76, and can be emailed at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).
Connor Fenix
Junior / Broadcast Journalism
Connor Fenix is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. Connor is currently a beat writer for both CommRadio and The Daily Collegian. This summer, Connor plans to land a writing internship in South Carolina. To contact Connor, email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Follow him on Twitter @FenixPSU.
Evan Smith
First-Year / Broadcast Journalism
