Dan’s daring predictions for diamond action

Predicting the future — in any venue — is difficult even for Alison DuBois or others blessed with psychic powers.

That is especially true when it comes to baseball, where teams play nearly 200 games and face each one without knowing who will get hot, who will get hurt, or who will perform above or below expectations.

That being said, here’s an uneducated guess as to some unexpected things that might happen this season:

• Johann Santana will pitch the first no-hitter in Mets history but will get no support from the rest of the rotation
• The Washington Nationals, after starting spring training with 11 straight losses, will manage to meet the Mets in the NL East standings and pass them
• Jason Heyward will become the first man in National League history to win the Rookie of the Year and MVP awards in the same season
• John Smoltz won’t pitch again but Pedro Martinez will, signing with the Yankees as their fifth starter during the second half
• Minus Joe Nathan, the Minnesota Twins won’t contend in the AL Central
• The leaner, meaner Andruw Jones, a free agent bargain at $500,000, will win American League Comeback of the Year honors and lead the Chicago White Sox into the playoffs
• The Chicago Cubs will show why they’re in the 102nd year of their rebuilding program
• The New York Yankees will miss Johnny Damon, Melky Cabrera, and Hideki Matsui more than they gain from Curtis Granderson
• Adrian Gonzalez and Grady Sizemore will be traded by July 31
• Manny Acta of the Cleveland Indians will be the first manager fired
• The Mets will regret not signing Jason Marquis
• Gary Sheffield, a 2009 Met, will sign somewhere as a designated hitter
• Joe Mauer may be a great player but the Minnesota Twins will have trouble paying him more than the Pittsburgh Pirates pay their whole team
• The Pirates will finish with more losses than wins, extending their record for most consecutive losing seasons to 18
• Back problems will dog Albert Pujols all season but the St. Louis Cardinals will still nose out the pitching-rich Cincinnati Reds in the NL Central
• Three octogenarian announcers — Vin Scully (Dodgers), Jerry Coleman (Padres), and Milo Hamilton (Astros) — will have better seasons than their teams
• The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, who split 18 regular-season games last year, will battle to draw again
• Adam LaRoche and Kelly Johnson, free-agent infielders just signed by Arizona, will help the D’backs return to contention in the NL West
• The Philadelphia Phillies will NOT win a third straight NL East title
• Jamie Moyer will finally see the handwriting on the wall and retire short of his dream to pitch at age 50
• Nobody will hit 50 home runs, steal 70 bases, or win 20 games
• This column will find a happy home in numerous bird-cages.