AL East:
1. New York Yankees 96-66*
2. Toronto Blue Jays 92-70 (WC)*
3. Tampa Bay Rays 90-72 (WC)*
4. Baltimore Orioles 84-78
5. Boston Red Sox 75-87
Things have been brewing in the Bronx for some time now as the Yankees title drought has now hit 13 seasons. They gave Aaron Judge the big contract extension he was looking for. They added Carlos Rodon on a big contract. The core is in tact and they have two young guns waiting in the wings in Anthony Volpe and Jason Dominguez. The bullpen is solid as is the starting rotation. The Yankees are going to be very tough to beat. Meanwhile, North of the boarder, the Blue Jays managed to get a little bit better compared to what they had a season ago. They have a question at the end of the rotation, but adding Chris Bassett was a huge plus. To help out their defense, Kevin Kiermaier and Daulton Varsho were added into the mix for an already solid club. Don't be surprised if the Jays make a lot of noise come the fall. Things are going to get more and more interesting for the Rays as time goes on. They missed out on the free agent marker in the offseason and are going to be missing Tyler Glasnow with injury for some time. But they still somehow have enough talent to be able to put pressure on the top of the divisions. The Orioles seem like they are always in a rebuilding mode. Its been six years since a playoff appearance and the first time they've had a winning season since said appearance. They've got a fantastic young core to be able to build around in Baltimore in the form of Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson and Cedric Mullins. it feels like there a few steps behind but Baltimore sems like they heading in the right direction with the talent that's assembled here. After finishing in last place a season ago, it doesn't look like things are going to get any better for the Red Sox this year. They lost a lot of talent from last year, JD Martinez, Xander Bogarts, Rich Hill all gone. In comes Justin Turner, Masataka Yoshida, Adam Duvall and Corey Kluber. Won't help move the needle much at Fenway.
AL Central:
1. Minnesota Twins 88-74*
2. Cleveland Guardians 85-77
3. Chicago White Sox 81-81
4. Detroit Tigers 68-94
5. Kansas City Royals 66-96
Injuries cost the Twins last year, but this year they seem to be healthy and back on the right track. They got plenty of talent on offense, lead by Carlos Correa, Byron Buxton, max Kepler and Jorge Polanco. That starting rotation at the top seems legit with Sonny Gray, Joe Ryan and Pablo Lopez. They have enough talent in their everyday lineup that, when healthy, they are going to be very tough to beat. Then there's the Guardians, who are coming off winning the division last year. Jose Ramariez was a major factor in that and is expected to have another big year this year, as is Amed Rosario. They have Josh Bell as DH and added Mike Zunino behind the plate to add to an already solid team. Only thing that worries me is the pitching depth behind Shane Beiber on the Cleveland staff. And then we have the White Sox, who are still powered by Tim Anderson, Elvis Andrus and an up and coming Andrew Vaugh. Vaughn is going to have a big bat to fill with Jose Abru no longer in the windy city. They have a pretty good starting staff with Dylan Cease, Lance Lynn, and Lucas Giolito at the top. The talent is there, but there's still a few concerns as to whether this team is going to be better than it was last year. Now as for the Tigers, they have a young team led by Javy Baez and Jonathan Scoop. But with the Tigers having spent so much on Baez there's little room for them to work with. Finally the Royals are going to be at the bottom of this division once again. There is no denying that they have a star in the making there in Bobby Witt Jr and they have the best offensive catcher in the AL in Salvador Parez. That's about it. There starting rotation is bad, and that's putting it nicely. They'll be lucky to hit the mark we have set for them at 66 wins on the year.
AL West:
1. Houston Astros 98-64*
2. Seattle Mariners 92-70 (WC)*
3. Los Angeles Angels 76-86
4. Texas Rangers 73-89
5. Oakland Athletics 56-106
Looks like its another year and another AL West tile for the Astros, who even with injuries are still the best team in this division. Altuve is going to be out at least two months with a broken thumb. Jose Abru comes aboard to an already loaded cast. Bregman, Alverez, Tucker, Brantley. Gonna be tough to beat. The pitching took a bit of a hit with Verlander leaving for New York and McCullers dealing with a lingering issue in his pitching arm. Still I cant see anybody in the West topping Houston. The one who going to come close to it and will make the playoffs with be the Mariners, who look to build on what they were able to do last year. Julio Rodriguez is a star in the making and the Mariners even better was adding Kolton Wong and Teoscar Hernandez. Throw in Suarez, Crawford and Pollack with that core group, its scary how good they could be. Oh and the pitching staff with Castillo and Ray at the top is going to be pretty good too. It almost makes one feel bad for what's going on with the Angels right now, wasting the prime years of Mike Trout and Shohi Otani. On paper, what's around those two guys, this team should be solid. Rendon, Renfro, Walsh and Drury should be good. Its the pitching depth behind Otani that's holding them back. Going back to Texas, things aren't looking great for the Rangers. If everybody can stay healthy, the Texas staff could be one of the best in the entire game. Jacob deGrom, Nathan Evoldi and Andrew Heaney all came in, but all have had durability issues of late. Scoring could be their downfall, with not much major offensive punch. Finally the Athletics are going to bring up the rear in the West. There's nothing here in Oakland to even get remotely excited about. Nothing. Only way that might even happen is if the A's move.
NL East:
1. Atlanta Braves 100-62*
2. New York Mets 98-64 (WC)*
3. Philadelphia Phillies 89-74 (WC)*
4. Miami Marlins 70-92
5. Washington Nationals 54-108
This is sounding like a broken record but its going to come as no surprise that the Braves will once again win the NL East. This team has the offensive firepower to be able to dominate in this game. Ronald Acuña Jr. is healthy and you add in Matt Olson, Austin Riley, Michael Harris II, and Eddie Rosario, they are going to be good. Throw in the staff lead by Max Freid and Spencer Streider, they are going to be good. One team that could match the top of that rotation is the one possessed by the Mets, who now have Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer at the top of it. What might be holding the Mets back is, aside from a possible injury to their top two starters and closer Edwin Diaz, is the lack of depth at the back of that rotation. Still there's plenty of talent on this club to make the playoffs. With the offense powered by Lindor, Alonso and a hopefully healthy clutch Starling Marte, this New York team is going to be good for a long time. Meanwhile the Phillies will be looking to build off that magical postseason run a year ago, reaching all the way to the World Series. That took a big blow during camp with Hoskins injuring his knee badly. Couple that with no real timetable for the return of Bryce Harper and it going to be a tough starting out of the gate for the boys from Philly. Still with Bohm and Turner and Schwarber, they can pack enough punch to hang around a while And with a solid staff it should keep them in the hunt for a while. Same can't be said for what the Marlins are doing. They were so rough last year they overpaid, according to some, to bring in Luis Aarez. Miami is hoping him and Jean Segura can actually power this team, because that's all they really got in the offensive game. On the mound, Sandy Alcantra is a huge bright spot, so here's hoping the Marlins might actually find support for their star pitcher one of these days. Finally, there's the Nationals, who are pretty much like the A's of the NL. The only real bright spot left for this team is Stephen Strausberg is still under contract for three more seasons.
NL Central:
1. St Louis Cardinals 90-72*
2. Milwaukee Brewers 87-75
3. Chicago Cubs 81-81
4. Pittsburgh Pirates 65-97
5. Cincinnati Reds 62-100
Another year, another division title for the Cardinals. St Louis still has one of the best one-two punches in the middle of their lineup with Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Aranado. Add in Edmand and Contreas, it adds yet another layer of depth to that lineup. Oh and lets not forget that the Cards, lead by Flarety and Mikolas, have one of the better rotations in the league. All in all, the Central has to go through St Louis. No surprise, the team that's going to be right on their heels are the Brewers. As good as the St Louis starting staff is, the pitching staff in Milwaukee is even better. What has some worried is that there's no extension in place for Corbin Burnes and he isn't happy. Which could be a problem for the Brewers. That and they don't have Adames locked up long term either. There good, but could be better if their players were happier. The talent is here to keep them in the mix, but will it come through all year to really threaten the Cards or even a wild card spot? Now we move on to the Cubs, who spent the money to get better this year. Chicago brought in Cody Bellinger, Brad Boxberger, Jameson Taillon, and Dansby Swanson. With the talent that's already been assembled in Chicago, the Cubs have a chance to really make a lot of noise in this division. It's going to be another long suffering season for Pirates fans, who haven't had much positive to cheer for in recent years. Ji-Man Choi was brought in for defense and Andrew McCutchen is back on his farewell tour in the steel city. Other then that, there isn't much tor really go off of. Hayes and Hedges are good and Brian Reynolds has a huge upside. Otherwise there isn't much. If you think that's bad, its even worse for Reds fans. They still have Votto, India and Meyers, that's about it. Sure, there's young talent waiting in the wings in Elly De La Cruz and Noelvi Marte, but they aren't ready just yet to pull the Reds out of the basement in the Central.
NL West:
1. San Diego Padres 94-68*
2. Los Angeles Dodgers 88-74 (WC)*
3. Arizona Diamondbacks 78-84
4. San Francisco Giants 74-88
5. Colorado Rockies 62-100
This is the year that we get a new champion out West in the form of the Padres. They have injury issues going into the start of the season and Tatis is still on suspension. Once everybody comes back and is healthy, they are going to be a very tough team to deal with this year. They gave extensions to Yu Darvis and Manny Machado, both worthy of it. Oh and they added more depth to the team by adding in a talent like Xander Bogarts. With the starting staff they have, and Josh Hader closing games out, the NL West is going through the Padres this year. The team to beat had been the Dodgers, but they seem like they're going to take a step backwards this year. They are still a playoff team and still a loaded team, but its a down year by Dodger expectations. Urias and Kershaw are at the top of the rotation, but its now closer by rotation as the season goes along. There still punch at the plate with Freeman, Betts and Muncy. But still something looks off in Dodger land heading into this season. Now for the Diamondbacks, they still aren't really to contend, but they have taken steps in the right direction. They have experience with guys like Longoria at the dish and young guns like Gurriel and Marte. And then there's Gabriel Moreno, Alek Thomas and Zac Gallen making up that young core. Things kind of fell apart for the Giants when Carlos Correa didn't pan out on the West Coast. They still have a good young core lead by Mike Yastrzemski to build around and they brought in talent to build around with Conforto and Haniger. It's going to take time but there's something to work with. Bringing up the rear in the West is going to be the Rockies. They still have Blackman and Kris Bryant, but they going to be without Brandon Rogers for most of the season. It going to be a long rebuild in Denver this season.
