SB Nation Reacts: Where the Cubs will finish, who will win the World Series, and more

Before I reveal the results of the latest SB Nation survey about where the Cubs will finish this year, here are the results of the questions asked of fans of all MLB teams.

First, here’s who survey respondents picked as the 2023 World Series champion:

This should be no surprise, as the Braves appear to be the best team in baseball right now. However, the Braves also won the 2021 World Series as an 89-win Wild Card team, so once things get to October, anything can happen.

Since the Cubs won the World Series in 2016 with MLB’s best regular-season record, just two of the subsequent six World Series winners had the best regular-season mark, and one of those was the pandemic season Dodgers. The other: the 2018 Red Sox.

SB Nation Reacts also asked a couple of questions about Shohei Ohtani.

I would say “no” to that question. Ohtani is still a great player even if he’s “just” a designated hitter. Speaking of which:

That’s about $33 million a year, which is quite a bit lower than the $50 million a year some were guessing Ohtani might get in free agency.

With Tommy John surgery a possibility, Ohtani’s best bet might be to sign a one-year deal somewhere, then go to FA again in the 2024-25 offseason. That’s especially true since the Angels will almost certainly give him a qualifying offer this winter. That would make him ineligible for a QO the following year, so any team signing him after that would not lose a draft pick.

Now, on to what you guys said about the Cubs:

Sure, there’s a chance the Cubs miss the postseason, but 88 percent of you had them somewhere in the postseason mix, with a large plurality picking “second wild card.” Check out Sara Sanchez’s article about the upcoming schedule to see how that will affect the Cubs’ quest for a division title or wild card spot.

Thanks for participating in the survey; we’ll have others as the season continues. Sign up here to participate in emailed surveys.

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