We’re halfway through July (ugh, too quick) and with the All-Star break over, just beyond the halfway mark of the 2023 Major League Baseball season.

Time to take stock? We haven’t done this in year’s past, but let’s take a peek at our preseason predictions and see how we’re doing so far. Why not, right?

Yeah, we’d love to tell you we said that Cincinnati, Arizona and Texas would be good and Tampa would be on a roll. Nope. Maybe those three will fade and none will make the playoffs, but maybe all three will.

On the Red Sox, we’ve been pretty close. Back in March we wrote “We’re here to tell you the Boston Red Sox may not be quite as bad as everyone thinks, because they have some pitching quantity hoping for quality and the veterans they’ve brought in (Justin Turner, Kenley Jansen) have won, and Japanese star Masataka Yoshida could be a key.”

Not bad. We also said they may not last in the second half, so we’ll see.

In the AL East, we picked the Blue Jays, and they’re not close but that could change. They are a playoff team, though. We said Tampa would likely make the playoffs, and of course they’ve dominated the East so far. We didn’t give them their just due. We did say the Yankees would not be that good (pretty close). Where were we way off? By saying this: ” Baltimore surprised everyone last year but we say they’ll take a step back and finish last.”

Oops.

As for the rest of the AL, we were vague enough in the Central and picked the Guardians to win it. We also said Twins manager Roco Baldelli would be fired by now. Well, the Twinkies are 45-46, but were a half-game out at the break. We did say the Guardians, but who knew they’ be 45-45? The big blunder? Saying the White Sox would finish second. Chicago is now 38-54 and they’re second, all right – second to last.

As for the West, we picked the Astros, but who knew the Rangers would be this good? We did predict Jacob de Grom would end up on DL, but in no way did we choose Texas as the winner. The Rangers are up, but just by two games over the ‘Stros.

In the NL, we said the Braves would repeat in the East, and the Mets would not come close. But still make the playoffs. Doesn’t look good at 42-48 right now, does it? And who saw the Marlins being this good?

The Cardinals were our pick in the Central, and forget it at 38-52. Amazing. Who saw the Reds and their young talent coming? The Brewers were our backup ;plan. Maybe, maybe not.

The big boo-boo looks like the NL West. Who thought the Padres would revert to their 1970s and ’80s selves?

“We love the spendthrift Padres,” we wrote in March. “They just need to be able to pitch to go with the everyday lineup they put out there,”

At 43-47, not good. We did pick the Dodgers and Giants as Wild Cards, but Arizona?

So far four of the teams we picked for the playoffs in the AL are good – Toronto, Cleveland, Houston, Tampa.

It’s the NL where we’ve bombed, with half – Dodgers, Giants and Braves. Hey give us credit for the Giants.

The real tough one is this: Our World Series prediction was Cleveland vs. San Diego with the Padres winning it all. Combined they are 88-92. Fairy tales can come true, they can happen to you. What the heck has happened to some of these teams?

The odds could improve in the AL if the Yankees can get rid of their dead wood and actually find someone who can hit a baseball, and if the Mariners (now over .500) can catch fire. In the NL, no hope of coming close. Three playoff teams right will be the max.

That’s why we tell you to clip, save and at the end of October, laugh. Although you’re probably chuckling now.

Enjoy the second half of the MLB season, fans.

Tom King can be reached at tking@nashuatelegraph.com, or on twitter @Telegraph _TomK.