The 2024 Major League Baseball season has been filled with storylines. The New York teams are going in opposite directions, the Dodgers are thriving with Shohei Ohtani, and the Phillies have been scorching hot.
There have already been multiple big trades since the end of spring training, and plenty more are on the horizon with the MLB Trade Deadline less than two months away.
There's still lots of season to be played, but it's never too early to look ahead. So here at Newsweek Sports, we wanted to come up with a few bold predictions for the remainder of the MLB season.
Some will be bolder than others, but there's a confidence level that all of them can (and will) come true.
1. The Mets Finish Above .500, Compete for a Wild Card Spot
If you've watched any Mets baseball this season, you know this is bold.
The Mets enter Wednesday at 26-35, just one game closer to the third place Wild Card Chicago Cubs than they are to the last place Miami Marlins.
And yet, they're going to figure it out.
The Mets will go on a winning streak, won't sell at the deadline, and will get back into contention and even compete for a postseason spot.
Will they make the playoffs? I'm not crazy enough to predict that. But they'll at least turn this season around, and give some hope to Mets fans that a successful near-future could actually be attainable.
Boldness level: 3.5/10
2. Luis Arráez Wins His Third Consecutive Batting Title
Luis Arráez was hitting "just" .299 before he was shockingly traded from the Miami Marlins to the San Diego Padres in early May. Since joining the Padres, Arráez is hitting .377, for a cumulative batting average of .335 that leads all of Major League Baseball.
Arráez has already won back-to-back batting titles with two different teams (the Marlins and Minnesota Twins), and will continue to make MLB history by winning a third consecutive title with a third different team. He'll end up being the answer to a great trivia question in a couple decades.
Boldness level: 5.5/10
3. Shohei Ohtani Finishes 2024 Season as NL Home Run Leader
The boldness is starting to heat up.
Shohei Ohtani, who enters Wednesday with 14 home runs — tied with three others for second place in the National League behind Marcell Ozuna — hasn't hit his hot summer streak yet. Ohtani is known to heat up with the weather in Southern California, and he'll do just that en route to leading the NL in home runs in his first season in a new league.
Ohtani is currently on pace for less than 40 home runs, but he'll get it going and surpass his career-high of 46 in his first season in Dodger blue. Now that the interpreter scandal is officially behind him, he could start heating up even sooner than the summer.
Boldness level: 8.5/10
4. Luis Robert Jr. Gets Traded
We have officially reached scorching levels of boldness. Luis Robert Jr. has always seemed to be untouchable as a budding superstar with multiple years of team control. However, the White Sox are going in the wrong direction, and appear nowhere near contention.
ESPN's Jeff Passan reported on Tuesday that the White Sox are "willing" to trade Robert, and with all the outfield-needy contenders (looking at you, Braves and Dodgers), a package will come together that sends Robert to a contender before the July 30 deadline.
Boldness level: 9/10
5. Jackson Holliday Finishes Top-5 in AL Rookie of the Year Voting
How's this for bold? A player who went 2-for-34 before being sent back down to Triple-A (where he currently resides) will finish in the top five of the American League Rookie of the Year voting.
Jackson Holliday struggled mightily in his first stint at the MLB level, and there's no guarantee he returns anytime soon. But Holliday has continued to prove he can hit at Triple-A, and at some point, the Orioles should give him another chance.
The second time around, Holliday will make the most of his opportunity and put together a season that earns him Rookie of the Year votes and a top-five finish.
Boldness level: 9.5/10
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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