2022 MLB predictions: Expert picks for division winners and World Series champion ahead of Opening Day

Major League Baseball's 2022 season has arrived. Opening Day is set for Thursday (for 14 teams, at least), and thankfully for baseball fans, we'll still have a full, 162-game season in 2022. Opening Day means one thing: it's time for predictions. 

Our Eye on Baseball team will lay out our predictions for order of finish by division here along with playoff picks and, of course, the World Series. 

We'll find plenty of staff-wide agreements on non-contenders (sorry, Orioles and A's fans) and contenders (hello, Dodgers and Astros) alike. We seem to like the AL East (non-Orioles types) and AL Central to be plenty competitive. A good twist heading into this season is the extra wild card team per league, enabling some divisions to place three -- or even four! -- teams in the postseason. 

Let's get to it!

So we're high on the Dodgers and the Blue Jays, and there's no love for the defending champion Braves to repeat. MLB has not had a repeat champion since the 1998-2000 Yankees, remember.

Looking for more pre-Opening Day content? Check out Dayn Perry's ranking of MLB's top 100 players, as well as Mike Axisa's 22 bold predictions for the 2022 season.