5 Bold Predictions for the 2021 MLB Regular Season 3/5/21

 Hey baseball fans!

We are officially in Spring Training, which means the 2021 regular season is less than a month away! Because of this, as is customary on Baseball with Matt, it's time for some of my bold predictions for the upcoming campaign, five of them to be exact. 

Although they have catchy-sounding nicknames, Belli and Yelli will not escape their season-long slumps at the plate from last year. Yes, Cody Bellinger and Christian Yelich have won two of the last three NL MVPs, but they both had really terrible seasons last year. I'm here to tell you that these bad seasons are here to stay, at least for 2021. Bellinger's golf-like baseball bat swing has always been fluky to me and Yelich's eruption of power since he arrived at Milwaukee was never going to stick around; he was a contact hitter with the Marlins and only exhibited enough power and potential to barely crack 20 homers a season. I'm not saying these slumps will end forever, but let's just say that I wasn't surprised to see them both struggle in the shortened 2020 season. 

Now, while these two sluggers will not rebound, Luke Voit will lead the league in homers again. I feel like the baseball media didn't talk enough about Voit's crazy season as much as they should've and still forget to mention that he led the league in dingers. Ever since he got traded to the Yankees from St. Louis, he's shown immense gravitas with the bat, sending balls flying at an impressive pace. I guess the main reason he gets buried in the Yankee talk is because of the stars in the rest of the lineup, but you heard it here first: Nuke Voit will be back and better than ever. 

I'm just going to come out and say this: if Aaron Nola wins the Cy Young, the Phillies win the NL East. Although this is not the most competitive division in baseball, the National League East is a bit of a toss-up. The Braves will probably win it, in my opinion, but the Mets, Nationals, and Marlins have solid rosters, too. And then there are the Phillies, one of the most underachieving teams in baseball that had a historically bad bullpen in 2020. However, they do have a bona fide ace in Aaron Nola, and if he can prove all the doubters wrong, Philadelphia's pitching will catch up to its hitting, propelling the Phils to the top of the East for the first time since 2011. 

Let's stick in the NL and talk about batting average, one of my favorite statistics in baseball. Who will win the NL batting title? Donovan Solano, of course! Solano is a veteran second baseman on the Giants who sneakily batted .326 last year and .330 in 2019. Sure, he's 33, and sure, those impressive marks might be as fluky as Bellinger and Yelich, but this is a real shot in the dark, and if it sticks, I'll be over the moon. 

And finally, the World Series. I end up being close with this pick every year, but in the sense that the matchup usually ends up in the playoffs. This year, I'm hoping for a different outcome, but we'll have to see. Anyway, without further delay, my 2021 World Series picks are the Padres and White Sox. Why? They are the two youngest and most exciting teams in baseball with great rosters and even greater swagger. They were Wild Card teams this past year, but with their amazing players, they could easily meet up in late October for a chance at the Commissioner's Trophy. 

Do you agree with my bold predictions? Let me know in the comments section below. Thanks for reading this post and I hope you enjoyed it. Check back soon for more of "all the buzz on what wuzz."