MLB Midseason Predictions- Chris

Predicted order of finish in divisions

NL East

1. Mets
2. Phillies
3. Braves
4. Marlins
5. Nationals

NL Central

1. Cubs
2. Brewers (Wild Card)
3. Cardinals
4. Reds
5. Pirates
6. Astros

NL West

1. Diamondbacks
2. Dodgers
3. Rockies
4. Padres
5. Giants

Playoff matchups
Cubs (Best Record) vs Diamonbacks (Worst Division Leader Record) (DBacks in 5)
Mets (East) vs Brewers (WC) (Mets in 4)

DBacks vs Mets (DBacks in 6)

AL East

1. Red Sox
2. Yankees (Wild Card)
3. Rays
4. Blue Jays
5. Orioles

AL Central

1. White Sox
2. Tigers
3. Twins
4. Indians
5. Royals

AL West

1. Angels
2. Athletics
3. Rangers
4. Mariners

Playoff matchups
Angels (Best Record) vs Yankees (WC) (Angels in 5)
Red Sox (East) vs White Sox (Central) (Red Sox in 3)

Angels vs Red Sox (Red Sox in 5)

World Series Red Sox over Diamondbacks in 5

NL Awards

MVP: Albert Pujols, Cardinals- Despite the Cardinals just missing the playoffs, Pujols will deserve this award because without him the Cardinals would not even be close to the .500 mark, let alone the playoffs. The rest of their lineup certainly doesn't strike fear into the hearts of opposing pitchers.

CY Young: Brandon Webb, Diamondbacks- There are many good Cy Young candidates in the NL, including Webb's teammate Dan Haren, Carlos Zambrano, Ben Sheets, Tim Lincecum among others, but Webb should come out on top partly due to the offensive weakness of his division.

AL Awards:

MVP: Josh Hamilton, Rangers- 95 RBI at the All-Star break is just insane, and even though the Rangers will probably miss the playoffs, he has still made them much more respectable than people thought they would be this season. A good case could be made for Alex Rodriguez especially if the Yankees make the postseason.

Cy Young: Roy Halladay, Blue Jays- I also considered Justin Duchscherer of Oakland and Cliff Lee of Cleveland. Halladay appears to be warming up for a big second half and could possibly get to 20 wins, although that is a long shot for any AL pitcher right now. I do not believe a reliever should win this award, so I did not consider Francisco Rodriguez or Mariano Rivera.

-Chris