The Major League Baseball talent pool is deep. And it's only getting deeper.
Each year, it seems, new players make a splash, giving MLB an impressive blend of young stars and established veterans ahead of the 2023 season. Throw in the rule changes announced this offseason, and the upcoming campaign should be fascinating, to say the least.
We recently asked the NESN Digital staff to offer their World Series picks before Opening Day. Fun ensued, of course, but why not take the exercise a step further and predict who will win MVP, Cy Young and Rookie of the Year for the American League and National League in 2023?
So, here are our "expert" picks for each MLB award, along with a breakdown at the bottom.
Mike Cole
AL MVP: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
NL MVP: Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers
AL Cy Young: Kevin Gausman, Toronto Blue Jays
NL Cy Young: Corbin Burnes, Milwaukee Brewers
AL Rookie of the Year: Anthony Volpe, New York Yankees
NL Rookie of the Year: Jordan Walker, St. Louis Cardinals
Ricky Doyle
AL MVP: José Ramírez, Cleveland Guardians
NL MVP: Juan Soto, San Diego Padres
AL Cy Young: Shane McClanahan, Tampa Bay Rays
NL Cy Young: Sandy Alcántara, Miami Marlins
AL Rookie of the Year: Anthony Volpe, New York Yankees
NL Rookie of the Year: Miguel Vargas, Los Angeles Dodgers
Greg Dudek
AL MVP: Julio Rodríguez, Seattle Mariners
NL MVP: Juan Soto, San Diego Padres
AL Cy Young: Shane Bieber, Cleveland Guardians
NL Cy Young: Spencer Strider, Atlanta Braves
AL Rookie of the Year: Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore Orioles
NL Rookie of the Year: Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks
Adam London
AL MVP: Alex Bregman, Houston Astros
NL MVP: Trea Turner, Philadelphia Phillies
AL Cy Young: Framber Valdez, Houston Astros
NL Cy Young: Julio Urías, Los Angeles Dodgers
AL Rookie of the Year: Anthony Volpe, New York Yankees
NL Rookie of the Year: Kodai Senga, New York Mets
Sean McGuire
AL MVP: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
NL MVP: Trea Turner, Philadelphia Phillies
AL Cy Young: Gerrit Cole, New York Yankees
NL Cy Young: Justin Verlander, New York Mets
AL Rookie of the Year: Anthony Volpe, New York Yankees
NL Rookie of the Year: Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks
Jason Ounpraseuth
AL MVP: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
NL MVP: Ronald Acuña Jr., Atlanta Braves
AL Cy Young: Alek Manoah, Toronto Blue Jays
NL Cy Young: Max Scherzer, New York Mets
AL Rookie of the Year: Masataka Yoshida, Boston Red Sox
NL Rookie of the Year: Jordan Walker, St. Louis Cardinals
Gio Rivera
AL MVP: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
NL MVP: Mookie Betts, Los Angeles Dodgers
AL Cy Young: Shane Bieber, Cleveland Guardians
NL Cy Young: Julio Urías, Los Angeles Dodgers
AL Rookie of the Year: Masataka Yoshida, Boston Red Sox
NL Rookie of the Year: Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks
Keagan Stiefel
AL MVP: Kyle Tucker, Houston Astros
NL MVP: Trea Turner, Philadelphia Phillies
AL Cy Young: Framber Valdez, Houston Astros
NL Cy Young: Max Fried, Atlanta Braves
AL Rookie of the Year: Masataka Yoshida, Boston Red Sox
NL Rookie of the Year: Jordan Walker, St. Louis Cardinals
Gayle Troiani
AL MVP: Julio Rodríguez, Seattle Mariners
NL MVP: Manny Machado, San Diego Padres
AL Cy Young: Jacob deGrom, Texas Rangers
NL Cy Young: Zac Gallen, Arizona Diamondbacks
AL Rookie of the Year: Anthony Volpe, New York Yankees
NL Rookie of the Year: Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks
Ben Watanabe
AL MVP: Yordan Álvarez, Houston Astros
NL MVP: Trea Turner, Philadelphia Phillies
AL Cy Young: Tyler Glasnow, Tampa Bay Rays
NL Cy Young: Kodai Senga, New York Mets
AL Rookie of the Year: Gunnar Henderson, Baltimore Orioles
NL Rookie of the Year: Kodai Senga, New York Mets
Lauren Willand
AL MVP: Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels
NL MVP: Trea Turner, Philadelphia Phillies
AL Cy Young: Alek Manoah, Toronto Blue Jays
NL Cy Young: Corbin Burnes, Milwaukee Brewers
AL Rookie of the Year: Anthony Volpe, New York Yankees
NL Rookie of the Year: Corbin Carroll, Arizona Diamondbacks
BREAKDOWN
Now that each person's picks have been revealed, here's a top-level overview of the responses, by award.
AL MVP: Shohei Ohtani (5), Julio Rodríguez (2), Yordan Álvarez, Alex Bregman, Kyle Tucker, José Ramírez
NL MVP: Trea Turner (5), Mookie Betts (2), Juan Soto (2), Ronald Acuña Jr., Manny Machado
AL Cy Young: Shane Bieber (2), Alek Manoah (2), Framber Valdez (2), Gerrit Cole, Jacob deGrom, Kevin Gausman, Tyler Glasnow, Shane McClanahan
NL Cy Young: Corbin Burnes (2), Julio Urías (2), Sandy Alcantara, Max Fried, Zac Gallen, Kodai Senga, Spencer Strider, Max Scherzer, Justin Verlander
AL Rookie of the Year: Anthony Volpe (6), Masataka Yoshida (3), Gunnar Henderson (2)
NL Rookie of the Year: Corbin Carroll (5), Jordan Walker (3), Kodai Senga (2), Miguel Vargas
