With baseball’s second half beginning, following an amazing All-Star break, there are many surprises sure to greet us in the remaining two and a half months. Whether it is an unexpected trade, a sudden playoff push, or even the end of an era, baseball still has much in store for its fans and followers. The following are my three predictions for the remainder of the season. But seeing as how I was pretty dead on in my assessment of the Jered Weaver situation and how that played out, I’m going to go out on a limb with some of my clairvoyant thoughts.

Neither the Boston Red Sox nor the New York Yankees will make the playoffs this year.

As bold as this prediction is, and as upsetting as it might be for Red Sox nation and the Yankees’ faithful to absorb, it is going to happen. Toronto, currently 3.5 games back of Boston and three games behind New York, will win this division, and either Detroit or the White Sox, whichever does not win that interdivision race, will be the Wild Card team.

Currently, Boston is simply an injury in their starting rotation away from falling by the wayside, which it is notorious for doing in the second half of the year, and New York is in the same situation. Toronto, which may not sport a flashy, or dominating rotation, has been the most consistent of the three and that consistency will carry them to the top of the division by season’s end. This race will not be decided until the end of the season when Toronto will take two out of three in their final series of the year to take the division and send both New York and Boston home for October.

Colorado will win the National League Wild Card
    
As the teams currently sit in the standings, Cincinnati leads the way, ahead of nine teams that are within 7.5 games. Colorado sits four games back in the Wild Card and the National League West. I don’t see Colorado being able to catch up with San Diego, but I see the team able to pass the inconsistent offenses of Los Angeles and San Francisco, and the one-man rotation of Brandon Webb in Arizona.

That leaves Cincinnati as the final hurdle to the Wild Card, and while the Reds have played very well up to this point, they simply don’t have the pitching, even after the Austin Kearns and Felipe Lopez trade with Washington. The Reds can only be carried so far by Adam Dunn hitting under .250 and having only Aaron Harang and Bronson Arroyo to lead the rotation. Colorado, meanwhile, has a young, talented core of players lead by Matt Holliday and Garret Atkins in the field and Aaron Cook and Jason Jennings in the starting rotation. Colorado will pass Cincinnati by the last week of August and will hold that position through the end of the season to make the playoffs.

Barry Bonds will be finished with baseball by season’s end

Not only does Bonds have to deal with pending legal troubles concerning tax evasion, dealing with his personal trainer being introduced to a jail cell, and an ever decreasing fan base, his body isn’t holding up too well either.

Pending any time served for a conviction, he should finish out the season with the San Francisco Giants, who although they are within range of a playoff berth, will not catch San Diego and will be passed up by Colorado by the end of July. Bonds will decide that he has had enough of the constant inquisitions and questioning, will leave baseball, and will end up an enigma, much like Mark McGwire. Bonds will make the Hall of Fame, in my mind undeservingly, but he will be inducted nonetheless. The repercussions of Bonds’ legacy will change the face of baseball forever, and will always taint America’s pastime.

Now I may be completely wrong on all accounts with these predictions. Both Boston and New York may pull off surprising second half surges and both could make the playoffs; Colorado’s young, inexperienced group could falter and collapse in later stages of the season; and Bonds could decide that he will attempt to break Hank Aaron’s home run record as an American League designated hitter. But hey, I’m one for one in baseball predictions, so I’ll try to ride this hot streak for as long as it will take me.