“It’s the most wonderful time of the year…” It’s Opening Day 2025! Not only do we have our schedules packed with games all day and night with the Buds flowing and enough food to pack our bellies like it’s Thanksgiving but this is the time of year to make our bold predictions. The predictions will consist of the top players of the year in categories like Most Valuable Player, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, and more. Predictions for the League’s Division Winners, teams playoff bound, and the World Series Winners will be in another post. This truly is the celebration of America’s pastime we all tune in to watch our teams determined to be the team hoisting up the trophy and flashing off our new finger hardware at the end of the season. Below are lists of my top three favorites to win each award for both leagues and the person I picked to win each award.

Most Valuable Player

AL – Aaron Judge, Gunnar Henderson, Bobby Witt Jr.

NL – Shohei Ohtani, Ronald Acuna, Juan Soto, Mookie Betts

This is no surprise that Shohei Ohtani showing off both of his talents with the bat and arm as the favorite to win MVP this season. Ronald Acuna will have a bounce back season and return to form and Juan Soto is going to do his best with his new contract to prove his worth in the Mets’ lineup with protection all around him. That leaves the American League as the harder decision and it may be a battle of 1st place votes between all three contenders. Gunnar Henderson is my pick seeing him lead a contending team in the AL East as Aaron Judge comes up just shy of him in the voting.

Cy Young

AL – Jacob deGrom, Garrett Crochet, Max Fried

NL – Paul Skenes, Shohei Ohtani, Zach Wheeler

This is going to be a huge comeback season for Jacob deGrom. The Rangers are finally going to get the guy they have been waiting for. He will help lead them to a likely playoff spot in the American League. Crochet will shine and Fried will perform in his new home in New York taking over the Ace role in Gerritt Cole’s absence but it will be deGrom’s ERA that gets him the Award. Paul Skenes will be dominant this season in his first full season where he will pitch to just above 2.00 ERA with 180 K’s. Only deGrom will be going to pitch sub 2.00 ERA this year. Ohtani will anchor the Dodgers’ stacked rotation which would have been good enough to win if it weren’t for Skenes.

Rookie of the Year (ROY)

AL – Kristian Campbell, Jackson Jobe, Coby Mayo

NL – Roki Sasaki, Bubba Chandler, Matt Shaw

Coby Mayo of the Orioles and Bubba Chandler of the Pirates both have had coaching on their sides before they make their trip to the Majors. Mayo’s bat follows Gunnar Henderson and Adley Rutschman in the Orioles farm system where they have been developing great hitters. Bubba Chandler follows Cy Young contender Paul Skenes and Jared Jones that both graduated from the Pirates’ farm of arms. This is the reason I am picking Mayo and Chandler to be the ROY’s of the 2025 season.

Home Run Leaders

AL – Aaron Judge, Yordan Alvarez, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

NL – Shohei Ohtani, Matt Olson, Marcell Ozuna

There will be no one from the AL within 5 home runs of Aaron Judge‘s pace this season as he approaches and surpasses 60. Yordan Alvarez and Vladimir Guerrero may hit the 50’s but Judge will lead the pack. Matt Olson is my pick to lead the National League as Ozuna gets older and Ohtani misses more chances for extra bases off the bat and on the base path.

Stolen Base Leaders

AL – Bobby Witt Jr, Jazz Chisholm, Victor Robles

NL – Trea Turner, Elly De La Cruz, Corbin Carroll

The favorites for the AL seem like the likely men seeing as they were the top SB leaders in the AL last season. Of the three, I expect Victor Robles to lead the group. In the National League, you may be surprised that I left Shohei Ohtani out of the group. He paced the NL last season but this was because he was not pitching last season. I think Dave Roberts is going to hold back a bit seeing how important his arm is to the Dodgers. I expect Elly De La Cruz to lead the pack of these youngsters.