As you may recall, last year Sports Illustrated picked the Cubs to win the National League pennant!…and then lose to the Astros in the World Series. You may notice that the Astros were not even the best American League team in the state of Texas in 2016.
Not that the baseballrelated.com formula did much better, with our prediction of a 3rd-place finish for the Cubs. But it only claims to be the product of me punching numbers into the Calculator app on the ol’ iPhone, rather than being the product of any sort of analysis, or even thought.
| Sports Illustrated | Baseballrelated.com | Actual Results |
|---|---|---|
| AL East | ||
| 1. Toronto Blue Jays (93-69) | 1. Toronto Blue Jays (90-72) | 1. Boston Red Sox (93-69) |
| 2. Boston Red Sox (92-70) | 2. Baltimore Orioles (86-76) | 2. Baltimore Orioles (89-73) |
| 3. Tampa Bay Rays (84-78) | 2. N.Y. Yankees (86-76) | 2. Toronto Blue Jays (89-73) |
| 4. N.Y. Yankees (83-79) | 4. Tampa Bay Rays (79-83) | 4. N.Y. Yankees (84-78) |
| 5. Baltimore Orioles (69-93) | 5. Boston Red Sox (76-86) | 5. Tampa Bay Rays (68-94) |
| AL Central | ||
| 1. Kansas City Royals (90-72) | 1. Kansas City Royals (93-69) | 1. Cleveland Indians (94-67) |
| 2. Cleveland Indians (83-79) | 2. Cleveland Indians (82-80) | 2. Detroit Tigers (86-75) |
| 3. Detroit Tigers (80-82) | 3. Detroit Tigers (79-83) | 3. Kansas City Royals (81-81) |
| 4. Chicago White Sox (77-85) | 3. Minnesota Twins (79-83) | 4. Chicago White Sox (78-84) |
| 5. Minnesota Twins (74-88) | 5. Chicago White Sox (75-87) | 5. Minnesota Twins (59-103) |
| AL West | ||
| 1. Houston Astros (94-68) | 1. L.A. Angels (89-73) | 1. Texas Rangers (95-67) |
| 2. Texas Rangers (90-72) | 2. Houston Astros (81-81) | 2. Seattle Mariners (86-76) |
| 3. Seattle Mariners (82-80) | 2. Texas Rangers (81-81) | 3. Houston Astros (84-78) |
| 4. L.A. Angels (72-90) | 4. Seattle Mariners (80-82) | 4. L.A. Angels (74-88) |
| 5. Oakland Athletics (63-99) | 5. Oakland Athletics (75-87) | 5. Oakland Athletics (69-93) |
| NL East | ||
| 1. N.Y. Mets (95-67) | 1. Washington Nationals (87-75) | 1. Washington Nationals (95-67) |
| 2. Washington Nationals (86-76) | 2. N.Y. Mets (86-76) | 2. N.Y. Mets (87-75) |
| 3. Miami Marlins (78-84) | 3. Miami Marlins (73-89) | 3. Miami Marlins (79-82) |
| 4. Philadelphia Phillies (63-99) | 4. Atlanta Braves (71-91) | 4. Philadelphia Phillies (71-91) |
| 5. Atlanta Braves (60-102) | 5. Philadelphia Phillies (66-96) | 5. Atlanta Braves (68-93) |
| NL Central | ||
| 1. Chicago Cubs (99-63) | 1. St. Louis Cardinals (97-65) | 1. Chicago Cubs (103-58) |
| 2. St. Louis Cardinals (90-72) | 2. Pittsburgh Pirates (95-67) | 2. St. Louis Cardinals (86-76) |
| 3. Pittsburgh Pirates (87-75) | 3. Chicago Cubs (89-73) | 3. Pittsburgh Pirates (78-83) |
| 4. Milwaukee Brewers (70-92) | 4. Milwaukee Brewers (73-89) | 4. Milwaukee Brewers (73-89) |
| 5. Cincinnati Reds (68-94) | 5. Cincinnati Reds (68-94) | 5. Cincinnati Reds (68-94) |
| NL West | ||
| 1. L.A. Dodgers (93-69) | 1. L.A. Dodgers (93-69) | 1. L.A. Dodgers (91-71) |
| 2. San Francisco Giants (88-74) | 2. San Francisco Giants (85-77) | 2. San Francisco Giants (87-75) |
| 3. Arizona Diamondbacks (81-81) | 3. San Diego Padres (75-87) | 3. Colorado Rockies (75-87) |
| 4. San Diego Padres (73-89) | 4. Arizona Diamondbacks (74-88) | 4. Arizona Diamondbacks (69-93) |
| 4. Colorado Rockies (73-89) | 5. Colorado Rockies (67-95) | 5. San Diego Padres (68-94) |