With the MLB playoffs well underway, it’s time to look back at how I did with my preseason predictions. Here’s what I was right and wrong about in my 2020 NL West Predictions.
Stuff I Got Right
1) The Los Angeles Dodgers Easily Won the Division
The San Diego Padres put up a late run to make things close in the NL West, but the Dodgers were just too good, winning over seventy percent of their games. And like I said, they are definitely among the strong contenders to win the World Series. That’s what happens when you add Mookie Betts to a team that was already a contender.
2) Mike Yastrzemski Had a Big Year
Although the team won’t be good, I can see Mike Yastrzemski (yes, the grandson of Carl) continue to develop and have a solid season.
Karl Heiser, 2020 NL West Predictions
This is my favorite baseball prediction I had this season. The 30-year-old second-year player was among the contenders for NL MVP for much of the season, hitting .297 with ten home runs, 35 runs batted in, and a .968 OPS. For those of you who don’t know baseball, that’s pretty darn good. The San Francisco Giants overperformed and nearly made the playoffs. Much of that is thanks to Mike Yastrzemski’s breakout season.
3) The Colorado Rockies Still Have No Direction
I devoted an entire post to how mediocre the Rockies are year after year. To nobody’s surprise, it was more of the same this year, as they finished fourth in the NL West, just one game out of last place. Colorado continues to waste the primes of their best players, namely Nolan Arenado.
4) The San Diego Padres Went from Last to Second
Called this one too. Not many people had San Diego going from last place in the NL West to second in just one season. I initially said the Padres wouldn’t make the playoffs this year because I released the predictions the day before the playoffs expanded. Had I known that, I would have put them in without hesitation. Fernando Tatis Jr. is the real deal and has a legitimate shot at NL MVP. Like I said earlier, check back on this team in a couple of years once Mike Clevinger is fully integrated into the starting rotation, and the team continues to develop. Maybe they’ll finally end the Dodgers’ long NL West reign.
Stuff I Got Wrong
1) The Arizona Diamondbacks Were Awful
I didn’t think they would be great – not a playoff team or anything like that – but the Arizona Diamondbacks were even worse than I predicted. They didn’t even lose in fun ways either.
2) The San Francisco Giants Weren’t That Bad
On paper, the Giants weren’t that great heading into the season. But they messed around and were still in play for a postseason berth on the last day of the season. Their offense showed out, and the pitching was good enough to hang in an NL West that featured offensive juggernauts like the Dodgers and Padres. I’m not sure they’ll be able to build on this season’s third-place finish moving forward, but props to them for proving me wrong.
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