The MLB season starts this Sunday, and it is finally the year the Cubs take down the Marlins for their first World Series since 1908.
Unfortunately, that’s not possible because the Cubs and Marlins are both National League teams. But, as a fan of the lovable losers (and “Back to the Future Part II”), I can dream.
In honor of the start of America’s fastest dwindling sport, here are my division winners.
NL East: Washington Nationals
This is the easiest prediction in the bunch.
The Nationals rotation includes Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmermann, Gio Gonzalez and Doug Fister. In any order the Nationals use those arms, they’ll have the best rotation in baseball. The lineup isn’t as stacked, but it still has plenty of quality hitters in outfielders Bryce Harper and Jayson Werth, third-baseman-turned-first-baseman Ryan Zimmerman and shortstop Ian Desmond.
Having so many top-end pitchers with a solid lineup makes the Nationals an embarrassment of riches. Add in the punchline the rest of this division is, and the Nationals should be on their way to a deep run in the postseason. You know, as long as they don’t decide to rest one of their best players for the postseason like in 2012.
NL Central: St. Louis Cardinals
I said it above, and I’ll say it again: I’m a Cubs fan, and I do dream they’ll win the division, but I’m also realistic.
The Cardinals are what every baseball team aims to be. They have won the division title in the last two seasons, going to the World Series once in that span. And the formula is always the same — continuity.
In an era of stars changing teams in every sport, the Cardinals’ biggest stars seem to make St. Louis their permanent homes.
Adam Wainwright, Matt Holliday and Yadier Molina are still wearing red. They added former top prospect Jason Heyward in the offense. Solely because it’s the Cardinals, I expect him to return to superstar prospect form and help lead St. Louis to a third consecutive Central crown.
NL West: Los Angeles Dodgers
Sorry, San Diego, but it takes more than a bunch of busts and over-the-hill superstars to convince me you’re ready to be relevant. The Padres have a solid enough rotation in a pitcher-friendly ballpark to stay close with the Dodgers.
But what the Dodgers have that the Padres don’t is a guaranteed win every fifth game with reigning NL MVP Clayton Kershaw. 
The rest of the Dodgers rotation is average at best, but I would rather have Kershaw than anyone in baseball. Despite what many say, one pitcher can get you to the postseason, and Kershaw can be that guy. Plus, the Dodgers can score runs with Yasiel Puig and underrated young outfielder Joc
Pederson. 
If the lineup can give Kershaw run support, look for him to be pitching Game 1 of a NLDS this fall.
AL East: Toronto Blue Jays
Call me crazy, but this just feels right. The Jays have a stacked lineup with sluggers Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion and Josh Donaldson and speedsters Jose Reyes and Dalton Pompey. 
The biggest problem with the Jays has been their rotation, and that will probably continue. Brett Cecil will be a solid closer, but he needs to cross his fingers the rotation can get him a lead.
If the addition of veteran catcher Russell Martin can help some of Toronto’s pitchers find something resembling mediocrity, Canada could be in the MLB postseason for the first time since the 1993 World Series.
AL Central: Detroit Tigers
This division is an absolute crapshoot. All five of the teams have holes. Four of them have strengths — Minnesota being the ugly duckling.
The biggest strength out of the four teams is the lineup of the Tigers. Miguel Cabrera, Victor Martinez, Ian Kinsler, J.D. Martinez and new addition
Yoenis Cespedes make the Tigers capable of scoring double-digit runs in any game and should be enough to carry them to victories.
On the mound, the Tigers are a barren wasteland compared to what they were last season. Scherzer is with the Nationals, Justin Verlander is losing his touch and Anibal Sanchez isn’t a top-end starter. David Price is still David Price though, and he can help this team enough to push them ahead of the rest of this lackluster division.
AL West: Seattle Mariners
Pitching is becoming dominant in baseball, and the Mariners are going to ride a deep rotation to its first postseason berth since 2001.
Felix Hernandez, Hisashi Iwakuma, James Paxton and Taijuan Walker can each give the Mariners a chance to win any game all season.
The lineup isn’t a joke either — well, at least the 3-4-5 hitters aren’t.
Thanks to Nelson Cruz, Robinson Cano and Kyle Seager, Seattle will have a great run-producing core. The bottom and top of the lineup aren’t exactly intimidating or even worthy of concern, but this team doesn’t need to score a ton of runs to win games thanks to that rotation.
If this turns out anything like my March Madness column, I’ll probably only get one of these right. Either way, it’s great to have the MLB back.
Brian Pellerin is a 21-year-old mass communication junior from Kenner, Louisiana. You can reach him on Twitter @Pellerin_TDR.