Spring training is cruising along quickly. We're over 10 games into the schedule now and the WBC is about to kick off this week.
With opening day quickly approaching, now just a little over three weeks out, I wanted to start a little overview of both leagues. With the balanced schedule this season, every team will play one another at some point so it's more important than ever to really know both leagues.
We'll start off in the AL East. Here's a glimpse at all teams in the division and a prediction as to how I think it will shape up for the 2023 season.
First Place, Toronto Blue Jays
Lineup: 1. LF George Springer 2. SS Bo Bichette 3. 1B Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 4. 3B Matt Chapman 5. DH Brandon Belt 6. C Alejandro Kirk 7. RF Daulton Varsho 8. 2B Whit Merrifield 9. CF Kevin Kiermaier
Rotation/Closer: 1. RHP Alek Manoah 2. RHP Kevin Gausman 3 RHP Chris Bassitt 4. RHP Jose Berrios 5. LHP Yusei Kikuchi CL: RHP Jordan Romano
The Blue Jays were a playoff team a year ago and improved themselves over the winter. They deepened their rotation with adding Bassitt. If Berrios and Kikuchi are healthy then they should have one of the better rotations in baseball. They also have one of the best closers in the game shutting things down for them.
Offensively, the Jays lost Teoscar Hernandez but gained both Varsho and Belt, two left-handed bats they needed to help balance their lineup. The outfield defense got a whole lot better as well. They have some guys on the roster who have had issues staying on the field but based on assumed health, they should have one of the best teams in American League and will be the team to beat in the AL East.
2nd Place, New York Yankees (AL Wild Card)
Lineup: 1. CF Harrison Bader 2. RF Aaron Judge 3. 1B Anthony Rizzo 4. DH Giancarlo Stanton 5. 2B Gleyber Torres 6. 3B Josh Donaldson/DJ LeMahieu 7. SS Oswaldo Peraza 8. LF Aaron Hicks 9. C Jose Trevino
Rotation/Closer: 1. RHP Gerrit Cole 2. LHP Carlos Rodon 3. LHP Nestor Cortes 4. RHP Luis Severino 5. RHP Domingo German CL: RHP Clay Holmes
The Yankees brought Judge back this winter, and added Rodon to their rotation, but I think Yankee fans were expecting more. Their lineup has a ton of question marks. They have some vets like Donaldson, LeMahieu and Hicks who are capable of bounce back seasons but you can't count on that. They have some intriguing young guys ready to contribute though and that middle of the order is still one of the scarier ones in the game.
As far as the rotation, they took a big hit with the loss of Frankie Montas but they still have one of the top-5 rotations in baseball. That has to be what leads them this year. They'll hit enough to win games, and if that pitching performs like it's capable of then they'll have no problems making it back to October. And of course, if they're competitive like we assume they will be, you can bet that Brian Cashman and company will be very aggressive around the trade deadline.
3rd Place, Tampa Bay Rays
Lineup: 1. 1B Yandy Diaz 2. SS Wander Franco 3. LF Randy Arozarena 4. 2B Brandon Lowe 5. DH Harold Ramirez 6. RF Manuel Margot 7. 3B Isaac Paredes 8. CF Jose Siri 9. C Christian Bethancourt
Rotation/Closer: 1. LHP Shane McClanahan 2. RHP Tyler Glasnow* 3. LHP Jeffrey Springs 4. RHP Drew Rasmussen 5. RHP Zach Eflin CL: RHP Pete Fairbanks/RHP Jason Adam (*Glasnow is expected to miss first month of season)
The Rays should again be a pesky team that is not easy to beat. They may not have the power to keep up with the Yankees and Blue Jays, but their 1-4 in their lineup could be very good. They have some questions around the bottom half of the lineup though. Margot showed flashes last season and Paredes has some big power potential. They need that bottom half to produce if they're serious about making a playoff run.
I love their rotation. Hate that Glasnow will once again be on the shelf heading in but if they can get him back strong by May/June, it could help him stay fresh the rest of the way. McLanahan is a true ace and Springs looks like the real deal.
4th Place, Baltimore Orioles
Lineup: 1. CF Cedric Mullins 2. C Adley Rutschman 3. 3B Gunnar Henderson 4. 1B Ryan Mountcastle 5. RF Anthony Santandar 6. DH Kyle Stowers 7. LF Austin Hays 8. 2B Adam Frazier 9. SS Jorge Mateo
Rotation/Closer: 1. RHP Kyle Gibson 2. LHP Cole Irwin 3. RHP Dean Kremer 4. RHP Grayson Rodriguez 5. RHP Tyler Wells CL: RHP Felix Bautista
The Rays and O's are so close in my rankings, but I gave Tampa the edge because of pitching. Baltimore definitely a team that is ascending, but I think they're still a year away. The combo of Rutschman and Henderson might be the best young duo in the game. Much like the Rays, they have that strength in their top half of the batting order but it falls off quick. Frazier has been a solid big league hitter and could bring some stability down there but they'll need a couple guys to help solidify that area.
Their rotation is still a work in progress as well. They have some nice complementary pieces but no real ace. We should get a good look at Greyson Rodriguez this year, and he very well could become that guy moving forward but still is very green. They probably won't make any playoff noise this year, but they'll be fun to watch and should be in the mix in 2024 if they keep on this path.
5th Place, Boston Red Sox
Lineup: 1. 1B Triston Casas 2. 3B Rafael Devers 3. DH Justin Turner 4. LF Masataka Yoshida 5. RF Alex Verdugo 6. SS Enrique Hernandez 7. CF Adam Duval 8. C Reese McGuire 9. 2B Christian Arroyo/Adalberto Mondesi
Rotation/Closer: 1. LHP Chris Sale 2. RHP Corey Kluber 3. RHP Nick Pivetta 4. LHP James Paxton 5. RHP Tanner Houck/Bryan Bello/Garrett Whitlock CL: RHP Kenley Jansen
The Red Sox are sort of entering rebuild mode, but they're still loaded with veterans. Losing JD Martinez and Xander Boegarts will definitely hurt them. I think Yoshida has a chance to be pretty good but it may take him a while to settle in. Even if Trevor Story had been healthy I still see this team having to overcome too much.
The rotation has more questions than their lineup. A lot of age and guys coming off injury-plagued seasons, it's just hard to know what to expect. Sale should be OK, even if he's lost some life on his fastball, but I have no confidence in any of the guys behind him. I would expect a lot of these veterans to be auctioned off in July if they're performing anywhere near their career norm. Then we could start to see more of the youth movement over the second half.
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