MLB questions, predictions for ’22
There will be a day, we truly believe, that normalcy will return to the game of baseball.
There will be a 162-game schedule without a single threat of COVID-19 or labor dispute interrupting or delaying the season. MLB and the players union may never agree on what constitutes as fair compensation, but they will at least respect one another and show dignity when they gather together.
Who knows, maybe the Pittsburgh Pirates and Baltimore Orioles will stop tanking and one day return to the World Series, giving us a rematch of 1979. Hey, we can dream, can’t we? Well, whole we still are genuinely optimistic, here are 10 questions and fearless predictions in 2022, from rule changes to who will win the World Series.
1. When will the lockout end?
The lockout will end no later than Feb. 15, if not earlier and no spring training games will be cancelled.
MLB currently is working on a new set of proposals that it plans to present to the MLBPA within the next two weeks.
2. What major changes will be made in the new deal?
● There will be a universal DH with pitchers no longer needing to ever pick up a bat again.
● The playoffs will be expanded from 10 teams to at least 12 teams, but likely 14 teams.
● The minimum salary will rise from $570,500 to at least $700,000.
● The luxury tax, currently at $210 million, will start at $230 million with incremental raises each year.
● Players still will need six years of service time to reach free agency or turn 29 1⁄2, whichever comes first.
● Players will be eligible for salary arbitration earlier than three years or Super 2 status if they make the All-star team, reach a certain WAR score, or attain other incentives.
● Teams cannot receive a top 5 draft pick three consecutive years no matter how awful the team performs.
● There will be advertising logos on uniforms, perhaps even by your favorite betting sites.
● No more seven-inning doubleheaders with ghost runners no longer coming into games before the 12th inning.
● The maximum number of pitchers on a staff will limited to 13 in 2022 and 12 for the duration of the CBA.
3. Who’s under the most pressure to receive a big contract?
Take a bow, Carlos Correa. Correa, the best player on the freeagent market, knows he deserves a more lucrative contract than Francisco Lindor’s 10-year, $341 million deal and certainly more than Corey Seager’s $325 million contract.
Yet, what if no one will give it him? 4. What free-agent contract signed this winter will be most scrutinized?
The Texas Rangers’ 10-year, $325 million for Seager is the biggest gamble of all the deals signed this winter. Seager has battled injuries for years and has missed 231 games in his last three full seasons. Now, with previous back injuries, he will be playing home games on artificial turf.
5. What will happen to Trevor Bauer?
Certainly, he has thrown his last pitch for the Dodgers.
He also won’t throw a single pitch in a major-league game for anyone in 2022.
MLB still is awaiting word from the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office investigating sexual assault allegations against him. Once the findings are revealed, MLB will call Bauer in for questioning, present it case and suspend him for the entire 2022 season.
6. Will anyone be elected to the Hall of Fame, or will this be the second consecutive shutout?
David Ortiz is going to be close. Very, very close.
No one else has a chance.
7. Considering this is the last year on the ballot for Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa and Curt Schilling, what will be the next big Hall of Fame controversy?
We only have to wait until next year. It will be Carlos Beltran’s first year on the Hall of Fame ballot, and although he’s hardly a shoo-in, he has the numbers that would normally give him strong consideration for a home in Cooperstown.
He hit 435 home runs with 1,587 RBI, 2,725 hits and stole 312 bases. He has the fourth-most homers and RBI by anyone who played at least 50% of their games in center field.
Yet, he also was considered one of the ring leaders in the infamous Houston Astros’ cheating scandal in 2017.
It cost him his job as the Mets’ manager, getting fired without managing a single game.
Now, we’ll see if it costs him a chance at Cooperstown.
8. Is this the final season for three likely future Hall of Fame managers?
Dusty Baker of the Astros, Terry Francona of the Cleveland Guardians and Joe Maddon of the Los Angeles Angels are all on the final year of their contracts and could be headed into the sunset with eventual plaques in Cooperstown.
9. How will COVID-19 and the Omicron variant affect attendance in 2022?
It could be a rough year at the gates for the owners even if ballparks are open at full capacity on opening day.
No cities have announced any restrictions in seating at sporting events, but with the virus wildly spreading, and season tickets flatlining with the lockout, attendance likely will be down again.
MLB drew just 45.3 million fans last year, its lowest total since 1984. It represented a 40.7% decline from the 68.5 million in its last full season in 2019.
Why, even with ballparks fully open by June, only the Chicago White Sox and San Diego Padres had an increase in average attendance.
Rest assured, the decline in attendance will be brought up by MLB and the owners during their upcoming labor talks.
10. OK, so who will win the 2022 World Series?
I’ve somehow managed to correctly predict the last three World Series winners beginning with the Washington Nationals in 2019.
I’m going to predict Atlanta to become the first National League team to repeat as World Series champions since the Cincinnati Reds in 1975-76.