The 2024 Major League Baseball season is here, with only one more sleep until Opening Day. The start of the season is one of the best times on the baseball calendar, and it is also a great time to make some predictions. No one likes boring predictions that are obvious, which means it’s time to go bold. I went one for five on my bold preseason predictions last year. I hope to do a bit better this year, but the takes shall still be bold.
So with no further wait, here are five bold predictions for the 2024 MLB season.
Masataka Yoshida Wins AL Batting Title
Masataka Yoshida looked like a great piece for the Red Sox offense to start his MLB career, slashing .320/.382/.506 with 22 doubles, 3 triples, and 12 homers for a 140 wRC+ in his first 88 games. However, he hit .233/.255/.337 with 11 doubles and 3 homers for just a 52 wRC+ in his last 52 games. A lot of Yoshida’s issues were due to fatigue, with a more strenuous travel schedule spanning many different time zones and the WBC already under his belt before the start of the season.
Coming into his second season stateside, Yoshida will be more prepared for the travel and schedule without the added burden of the WBC, which should make a positive difference. Add in the fact that he will be DHing a decent chunk of this year to manage his workload, and he should be set to have a strong full season. Only two qualified AL hitters batted over .320 last year (Corey Seager and Yandy Diaz). If Yoshida can hit at the level as his first 88 games last season, he has a legitimate chance to win the AL batting title in 2024.
Yankees Miss Postseason, Soto Leaves, Cashman Fired
The Yankees have been hyped up as the team who made all these big moves during the offseason and is all-in for 2024, but in reality they made just one sizable move this offseason. The trade to acquire Juan Soto might have been the single biggest move of the entire offseason, but the Yankees still have various question marks, especially with Gerrit Cole set to miss time to start the year. The question now becomes: how good are the Yankees?
If the Yankees rotation can’t stay afloat until Cole is healthy or, in the worse case scenario, if Cole doesn’t get healthy, then the Yankees will be in big trouble. Soto should help Judge carry the offensive load, but even then the other guys can be streaky. Judge needs to stay healthy for this team to succeed, and playing center field doesn’t help him in that regard. Should the Yankees miss the postseason, Soto will very likely walk in free agency and there’s no reason the Yankees shouldn’t be looking to go in a different direction in the front office.
Rangers Miss Playoffs
The Texas Rangers ended the 2023 season on the highest of highs, winning their first ever World Series. That postseason success did not carry over to the offseason, with their lack of a TV rights deal massively hampering their ability to make moves. The Rangers did not re-sign any of their fourteen free agents, and when you look at their starting rotation, there are many problems. Nathan Eovaldi will have to be the workhorse with deGrom and Scherzer starting the season injured. After him, the rotation falls into the hands of Jon Gray, Andrew Heaney, Dane Dunning, and Cody Bradford. That isn’t the most enticing of groups.
The Rangers did sign Michael Lorenzen, but he will likely have to start the year outside of the big leagues building up to his starter workload. The Rangers rotation could be Eovaldi, deGrom, Scherzer, Tyler Mahle, and Lorenzen by the end of the season, but the odds of all those guys staying healthy is slim. The Rangers could run into trouble early in the year because of their weakened rotation. In a division that boasts the Astros and Mariners, early trouble could relegate the Rangers to fighting for a wild card spot. Anything can happen once you are in the wild card mix, and there are only so many spots to get into the postseason. I see the Rangers missing out.
Marlins Finish Last In NL East
The Marlins might have had the most puzzling offseason out of all the teams in MLB. They let every single one of their free agents walk other than bringing back Jonathan Davis back on a MiLB deal. They followed that up by bringing in Tim Anderson, arguably the worst hitter in baseball in 2023. Their lineup has clear holes and they might have the worst defense up the middle with a combination of Luis Arraez-Anderson-Jazz Chisholm at second base, shortstop, and center field. Plus their former biggest strength (their starting rotation) is no longer a strength, with Sandy Alcantara out for the season and Eury Perez, Braxton Garrett, and Edward Cabrera all starting the year on the IL.
This has led to a Marlins rotation of Jesus Luzardo, A.J. Puk (who has never started in the majors before), Ryan Weathers (ERA and FIP over 6.00 in 2023), Trevor Rogers (5.26 ERA since his all star year in 2021), and Max Meyer (top prospect but coming off Tommy John, originally optioned to minors in spring training before injuries to others). At least Sixto Sanchez is finally healthy, but he will be in the bullpen. The Marlins could be in legitimate trouble with their starters. If the injuries they currently have are long term, they are in big trouble for the 2024 season.
Francisco Lindor Wins NL MVP
A model of consistency, Francisco Lindor has the third highest fWAR in baseball since the start of the 2015 season, a season where he didn’t even debut until mid-June. As great as Lindor has been over the years, he has never fully catapulted himself into the elite superstar category due to the absence of one massive year. Lindor has received MVP votes in six of the seven full seasons he has played in, yet has never finished higher than fifth in MVP voting. Regardless, he is a three-time Silver Slugger winner, a two-time Gold Glove winner, and even has a Platinum Glove. Lindor has finished ninth in MVP voting in each of the last two seasons despite missing out on the all star team both years. This may be due to Lindor not getting off to a super hot start in the first couple months before torching it up in July and riding that wave through the end of the season. Now it’s about time for Lindor to get out of the gates hot for the Mets and sustaining it all year.
Lindor has proven to be very good defensively at the most important position on the field while staying consistently healthy (with 2021 being a slight exception) and he is in his prime after having two straight 6+ fWAR seasons. If Lindor stays healthy, he could reach the 35-homer mark, hit around the .275-.280 range, and swipe 30+ bags for a second consecutive year. If that happens, he will have a career year and be in the middle of the MVP conversation. If the Mets are better than most expect, which I believe they will be, Lindor’s chances will only rise.
That wraps up my five bold predictions for the 2024 MLB season. I don’t expect all of these things to happen, but the goal is to do better than last year and nail at least two of them. With Opening Day right around the corner, only time will tell if these predictions turn out correct. If you have any thoughts on these bold predictions and would like to join the conversation, either comment on this post or reach out to myself on Twitter/X @derrik_maguire and to @BleacherBrawl to share your bold predictions for the 2024 season with us.