(Photo Credit: MLB.com)
In this article, I predict award winners for the 2025 MLB season, including star slugger Aaron Judge and his fellow teammates in New York.

NL MVP: Juan Soto

I’m almost fully convinced Juan Soto isn’t human. At only 26 years old, he was an MVP Caliber player on the Yankees during his first adjustment season in New York. He has thrived in the spotlight, hitting .288 with 41 home runs and 109 RBI’s in 2024. Now, in his second year in New York (except this year he’s across town), I truly believe Juan Soto is going to have a monster year and finally break .300 while hitting 40 or more home runs. He has fully adjusted to his new role in the MLB while hitting in an already NCLS-level offense. Now, I have Soto beating the obvious favorite; Shohei Ohtani. The only reason I don’t think Ohtani will three-peat is because of injuries. Now that he’s back to pitching, Ohtani will decrease his level of focus on hitting and this may have a decline on his offensive stats. Furthermore, Ohtani might not pitch as well as we think after Tommy John surgery. This is a extremely serious surgery that when pitchers come back from, many times they come back much worse. Take Walker Buehler, for example. So aside from Ohtani, why do I choose Soto over Fransisco Lindor or Elly de la Cruz? With the mediocre Reds lineup, it was a clear elimination of Elly de la Cruz. That leaves Soto or Lindor. Lindor is batting leadoff, so we might not see the power we are used to seeing in him. With Soto batting right between All-Stars Lindor and Alonso, he stats will be heavily inflated this year, leading to an MVP.

AL MVP: Bobby Witt Jr.

Bobby Witt Jr. is one of the most fundamental baseball players of his generation. When his easygoing, simple style of playing is combined with a man of his raw talent, you have a superstar on your hands. I truly believe Bobby Witt is going to have another .330+ season, with more than 35 home runs. At only 24- yes, 24 years old,- he is going to have another breakout season, this one even better than the last. The Royals have added key pieces including 2B Jonathan India around him, combined with reliable C Salvador Perez and 1B Vinnie Pasquintino, The morale of the story? This team is downright dangerous. So, again, why did I not go for the obvious pick, Aaron Judge? Well, while the Yankees team is deeper than last year, they have a lack of star power around him. Goldschmidt and Judge doesn’t quite hit as much as Soto and Judge. Witt Jr. has a claim to MVP this season, and I believe he will take the opportunity and win it.

NL Rookie of the year: Roki Sasaki

While I haven’t been going for favorites so far in this article, I’m giving it to who deserves it. And yes, the clear but boring choice is none other than Roki Sasaki. He has already established himself as one of the best pitchers in the world, and has pro experience under his belt from his time in Japan. He’s just an elite pitcher with multiple strikeout pitches that are at an extremely high level. Many scouts have been watching him for years now, and at this point in his career he is a dominant force. So yeah, while he is an obvious choice, he’s an obvious choice for a reason.

AL Rookie of the year: Jackson Jobe

It seems as if every few years, MLB gets the satisfaction of a new young star reliever, and even then, rarely is one a rookie. With the exception of Jackson Jobe. MLB scouts have been monitoring this breakout star since high school, thanks to his high velocity fastball (99 mph) and other good side pitchers to combine with it. He makes an elite prospect not to be reckoned with. In fact, I feel sorry for whomever the Tigers are playing. With Tarik Skubal starting, and Jobe relieving, hitters are going to have a nightmare. And the best part about Jobe? He could start. He is a dual threat, as he was a starter for most of his career, but due to his power and electric fastball, became a reliever in the minors. Don’t be surprised if Jobe works his way out of the pen, and towards the end of the season start a few games. He definitely has the potential to be an elite pitcher and is one of the favorites for Rookie of the Year.

NL Cy Young: Paul Skenes

Paul Skenes amazes me. The only reason he didn’t win a Cy Young in his rookie year - let me repeat that, his ROOKIE year- was the fact that he didn’t pitch enough innings to qualify. In his first year in the MLB, he had an ERA of 1.96 over 130 inning, with a strikeout total of 170 K’s. This guy is insane. In 2025, nothing is stopping him. There is a clear path for him to take the Cy Young award, as he is the most dominant pitcher the MLB has seen since Jacob DeGrom. He reminds me of Spencer Strider, if Strider was even better than he already is. Or maybe it’s just the mustache. Back to the point, Paul Skenes is going to breeze to the Cy Young award. No one’s coming close.

Al Cy Young: Tarik Skubal

Skubal is the AL version of Paul Skenes, only 6 years older and in his prime. Just to put it into perspective on how amazing the guy is, only 4 years ago, Skubal posted a 4.3 ERA over 31 games played. Talk about a turnaround. After getting Tommy John Surgery at a young age of 20, he kept coming back stronger every year, until last year when he posted a crazy 2.39 ERA over, funnily enough, another 31 games played. Oh, and also, he won the Cy Young award last year. With 228 K’s over 190 inning, he clearly is a workhorse. Skubal is the type of pitcher that goes out on the mound for 8 innings and doesn’t complain one bit. Again, similar to Skenes, Skubal will win the Cy Young Award with no one even coming close to him.

MLB: MVP, Cy Young, and Rookie of the year predictions