2022 Top 5 MLB Team Previews

Well here we are, 2022 and we’re getting ready for spring, and we know what that means.  
Baseball.
We’re almost there, getting ready for a season that we all love.

Let’s take a look at some very early VTD power rankings for the top 5 teams going into the 2022 MLB campaign.

1. Los Angeles Dodgers
This year’s Dodgers team has a ton of promise after a great 2021 campaign. There is a lot to be super excited about for LA fans. After winning 106 games last year, I don’t know if they can win the same amount, but they will still be knocking on the door of 100+. Having players like Julio Urias and Max Muncy is always going to put your team in a great spot and a chance of winning a lot of big games.

2. Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays play in a tough division in the AL East fighting the Yankees and the Sox, both who are going to be fighting as tough as they ever have. The pitching for the Rays last year was solid, having a team ERA of 3.67 – but this year, they should be even better. Their pitching wasn’t as good as what they were hoping it would have been last season, but they still racked up 100 wins – this team is going to be tough. Out of their 3 pitchers with the most starts, 2 out of 3 of them had ERA of 5.00 or higher. This year, with Shane Baz and Drew Rasmussen in the rotation on the mound this year, they have a good chance of those numbers greatly improving – this team is going to be tough as nails. They both showed great promise in the time they got, not to mention Corey Kluber who joined them as well. Also a sleeper team in the division is the Toronto Blue Jays as I expect a big season out of them as long as they stay healthy.

3. San Francisco Giants
Not a whole lot of people expected the San Francisco Giants to be as good as they were in 2021. But not only were they better than expected, but they were really good – as they racked up 107 wins, which put them tops in the majors. They put together a very good veteran team, with 4 of their top 6 hitters being 33 or older. Granted, they made some changes, and they still aren’t getting any younger – but I still think they have more than enough juice in the tank. This team still will have the ability to run up a quick 8+ runs very quickly on anybody still, as they showed last year.

4. Chicago White Sox
The statistical top 5 team across the board, from last season is returning, to finish what they looked like they were on the way to doing. Chicago has a team that easily could be in the fight for the championship for the next 5 seasons, as long as they can keep it together. They have excellent pitching, so that will not be a problem, and they also have a handful of players who can all connect and drop the ball all over the field. The pitching squad on this team has 4 guys with the ability for 150 or more Ks.

5. Atlanta Braves
After winning 88 games last year, but still battling and winning the championship, it’s not hard to see why the Braves are here. They showed clutch play and played best when they needed to – they deserve more respect. The offense should still be in good shape with Austin Riley and Ozzie Albies. This is going to be a big year for Atlanta to see what they’re made of. Coming back after the season they had, it is going to be hard, but I think they can do it. The Braves need to improve their batting, because it sat at only 12th in the league, but I think guys like their young sensations Riley and Ronald Acuna Jr. will step up to help improve that, Acuna is just getting better and better, and Riley has shown that more bats mean massive improvement to numbers.

Regardless of who your MLB team is, or whatever players that you’re rooting for, this season should be exceptional. There are a lot of talented young players who can swing the lumber, fly around on the field, and throw hard. This should be a lot of fun.