AL East Preview

Winter is finally starting to lose its grip on the weather for most of the nation. Spring being right around the corner can only mean one thing for a lot of sports fans. The start of a new baseball season is rapidly approaching. Over the next couple of weeks I’ll be breaking down all six divisions with some predictions as well. Starting with the AL East division we will work our way west and then double back finishing with the NL East. So let’s jump into this and see how the AL East will finish this season.

New York Yankees

It will come to no one’s surprise if and when the Yankees win this division. New York is head and shoulders the class of this division. They boast one of the most dangerous lineups in the league. Any Lineup with heavy hitters Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton is guaranteed to have lots of home runs. Adding a supporting cast of Luke Voit, Gary Sanchez and Aaron Hicks leave little doubt as to why they are nicknamed the Bronx Bombers.

Pitching wise the additions of former CY Young winner Corey Kluber and Jameson Taillon will help boost a pitching rotation that was in need of an upgrade. A bullpen featuring Chapman and Britton is always solid and should help New York finish off close games. The one worry with this team is their defense. No team was worse defensively last year than the Yankees. They have enough firepower offensively to overcome this during the regular season and proved as much last season. However, the Yankees ultimately based their success in the postseason, and having such a porous defense could ultimately be their downfall again.

Toronto Blue Jays

If there is one team that could shock the Yankees and take the division it’s the up and coming Blue Jays. This team has an embarrassment of riches when it comes to young talent. The prized jewel Vlad Guerrero Jr leads a young core that has fans in Toronto giddy about witnessing the next couple of seasons. Adding to that mix is a statement of intent from the front office by splashing the cash to sign one of the best free agents in George Springer. That Toronto lineup will be fun to watch this season.

As excited as fans may be about their hitters the opposite can be said about their pitching. The pitching has been a bit of a sore spot for the Blue Jays for a while now. Management has spent money on pitchers Robbie Ray and Hyun-Jin Ryu to help. But the pitching rotation will definitely be something to keep an eye on moving forward. Toronto does have a few top-end prospects that could be used to grab another pitcher. But they likely won’t make a deal anytime soon otherwise they would’ve landed Kluber instead of the Yankees. All in all, you can expect Toronto to be in the thick of the playoff race.

Tampa Bay Rays

Last year’s runners-up in the World Series come into this new season without their ace Blake Snell. Trading him to the Padres this offseason leaves a massive void in their rotation. Tyler Glasnow will now headline the rotation. With veterans such as Michael Wacha, Chris Archer, and Rich Hill, the Rays will hope that will be enough for another playoff appearance. Diego Castillo is one of the better closers in the league and should help the Rays win plenty of close games.

Offensively the Rays are led by last year’s playoff darling Randy Arozarena. The 25-year-old will look to continue his stellar play after setting the record for most home runs in a single playoff (9). No one else in the lineup jumps out the way Randy does, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be dangerous. Even if the offense takes a step back, the Rays hang their hats on defense. Kevin Kiermaier is one of the best defensive outfielders in the league and should continue to play at a high level this year. The Rays Cinderella run last year was fun, but fell just short. Without Snell, I don’t know if the Rays will even make it back to the playoffs.

Boston Red Sox

I initially had the Red Sox as the third best team in this division and they could prove me right. But salary dumping two of your three outfielders of the future these last two offseasons means they must be punished. I don’t have a problem with salary dumping or cutting costs. However, Boston, one of the biggest markets in baseball, can’t use the excuse of cutting costs when even in a pandemic they are generating hundreds of millions of dollars. All that being said, this team still does have some weapons in their lineup. If Rafael Devers can be consistent and stay healthy he could blossom into an MVP candidate.

Pitching was a major sore spot for Boston last season and it most likely won’t change this season. Eduardo Rodriguez leads a rotation that leaves a lot to be desired. Boston fans will be hoping management makes some deals in a year or two to address this issue. The bullpen isn’t much better as they blew leads for fun last year. Matt Barnes could have a bounce-back year or he can fit in with the rest of the team’s pitching woes. Don’t expect to see Boston play any postseason baseball this year.

Baltimore Orioles

The Orioles surprised a few people last year by hanging around .500 before falling away later in the year. The 60 game sample probably did Baltimore more justice than they deserve. With a full slate of games this season we will be able to accurately find out who this team really is.  What we know for sure is that this team is in full rebuild mode. Austin Hays is perhaps the headliner in a group of young talent that the organization is hoping will one day lead them to the promise land.

Pitching in Baltimore the past few seasons has been akin to being part of the home run derby. Any fan hoping to one day catch a real baseball need only to get bleacher seats to an Orioles game. That trend should continue throughout this season as no considerable upgrades were made. Baltimore’s management seems content on waiting down the road before making any big moves. This approach leaves me no choice, but to leave them in the basement of this division.