How To Make Sense of a Loaded AL East

The AL East figures to be one of the most competitive divisions in all of baseball. At the very least, it’s poised to be the most talented collection of teams within the American League.

The Yankees are coming off an appearance in the World Series. While they were soundly beaten by the juggernaut Los Angeles Dodgers, New York still has a roster good enough to get back to the Fall Classic.

In the offseason, the team aimed to make up for the loss of Juan Soto by adding depth across the board. Max Fried was added to an already good rotation. A fiery competitor with above-average stuff, he should thrive in the Big Apple.

Paul Goldschmidt was brought in as a veteran presence at 1B. Cody Bellinger’s positional versatility figures to be utilized heavily. Star reliever Devin Williams should also aid in fortifying the backend of the Yankees’ bullpen.

The rival Red Sox made some headlines by actually spending money in the offseason. World Series hero Walker Buehler came over to be a fixture in the starting rotation. Alex Bregman also inked a multi-year deal to play in Boston (where he’ll be slotted in positionally still remains a mystery).

The team also acquired Garrett Crochet to be Boston’s ace. The lefty has some of the best stuff in the sport, and he could tick up even further considering he’s now playing for a contender. When factoring in the likes of Warren Duran, Rafael Devers, Triston Casas, Garrett Whitlock, Aroldis Chapman, and a plethora of highly-touted prospects, Boston is a real candidate to win the AL East.

Baltimore is chock-full of multiple elite young players. Gunnar Henderson has arrived as a true star. Adley Rutschman is arguably the best catcher in baseball. Colton Bowser, Jordan Westburg, Coby Mayo, and Jackson Holliday all have massive upsides. The Orioles have to hope a few of these guys pan out to give the team some offensive thump in the wake of losing Anthony Santander in free agency.

Pitching wise, replacing Corbin Burnes with veteran arms in Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano seems like a sizable downgrade. Having said that, closer Felix Bautista will be back to shut the door in the 9th.

After these clear top three, there’s a rather sizable drop-off. Toronto did add Santander, Andres Jimenez, Max Scherzer, and Jeff Hoffman over the offseason. This came in the wake of striking out on Juan Soto, Alex Bergman, and practically every other major free agent.

What hurts Toronto potentially more than anything is the impending free agency of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette. Guerrero Jr. was unable to come to an agreement on an extension, and has since said he’ll play out the season without any dialogue on coming back. This could very well hang over the team negatively if he’s not moved sooner than later.

Tampa did Tampa things — operating on the fringes without spending much money. The Rays did ink former San Diego INF Ha-seong Kim to a deal. One could see him reverting back to his impressive form for a team playing without any real expectations.

Assuming the pitching staff gets healthy, you’re looking at a group with some real upside. Shane McClanahan, Shane Baz, Drew Rasmussen, and Taj Bradley are all quite talented. Ryan Pepiot has also proven to be a very solid arm.

Offensively, everything begins and ends with Junior Caminero. He’s one of the biggest budding stars in the spot. Ex-Cubs player Christopher Morel also looks like a breakout candidate.

While Baltimore, New. York, and Boston figure to be atop the division, there’s still plenty of talent existing for both Toronto and Tampa Bay. This should be a highly competitive division — and one with plenty of twists and turns.