Predicting the 2024 MLB Season — American League
As a Blue Jays fan, I want you to know how much it hurts to talk about the Texas Rangers as World Champions. A team that came out of nowhere (with the minor assistance of spending big bucks on Corey Seager and Marcus Semien, among others) going all the way, while my team in a similar shade of blue was once again wiped out in the Wild Card round? Baseball at it’s finest.
Anyway, here’s my guesses for this upcoming season. Like with my NHL season predictions, I’ll be using a system I made up to rank how I feel each franchise will do — from top to bottom: Contender, Early Exit, Sleeper and Rebuilder. We’ll start with the American League.
AL East
Baltimore Orioles — Contender
As someone who mainly watched the Orioles’ division last season (and for the past decade), seeing Baltimore this good — a scary type of good team, is almost a welcome sight. And given the age of the stars on the Orioles, not to mention the young stars that haven’t even cracked the big club yet, this team is one to watch this year.
Corbin Burnes should help the O’s starting rotation out too. I concede — the pitching is my one concern with this team. If one thing sinks the ship, look at the mound. But Rutschman, Henderson, Holliday (when he comes up), and the rest of this young, talented core are too good to ignore.
Tampa Bay Rays — Early Exit
I don’t care for your Tampa Bay erasure — this team, even if their stadium is half empty while they win a hundred games, has no reason to not be solid again this year. The concern here is the same that I have with the Orioles — the pitching is lackluster. Tyler Glasnow’s departure was the biggest headline, but the staff overall is filled with a lot of new faces. Pete Fairbanks and Zach Eflin headlines the bigger names that remain.
The non-pitching Rays remain a good team to look at on paper. Díaz, Lowe and Arozarena among others make for a decent lineup. That said, this division is going to be a wildfire, as usual. The Rays, pending them turning pitching into a bunch of Cy Young nominees (shockingly plausible, for the record), have some work to do to prove themselves to me.
Toronto Blue Jays — Sleeper
Fair note — this is the team I pay most attention to. And in my eyes, they almost deserve their own category. The Blue Jays are far from a team people would be shocked to see succeed, with Vlad, Bo, Springer and the rest of the amazing hitting talent still intact.
That said, after the disappointment of last season, it’s tough to be optimistic as a Jays supporter. The offseason did not prove successful, at least on paper. Joey Votto, fan favourite status regardless, is not an amazing headline signing. For the first time in years, Toronto has some proving to do. The potential is there — including in a still good starting rotation — but the pressure is on.
New York Yankees — Contender
Mister President, the Yankees are spending in the offseason again. And after a very sad 2023 for New York, the name they went for during the winter was a big one. Juan Soto. Acquired from San Diego for, well, quite honestly, who cares — Aaron Judge has another big bat to help out.
The pitching is still good too, with Gerrit Cole coming off a well-earned Cy Young last season. Marcus Stroman might help out there too a bit. The Yankees haven’t really had to fully rebuild, and this season will prove if the plan to go right back in the deep end is worth it.
Boston Red Sox — Rebuilder
Well, I like adding Liam Hendriks. Vaughn Grissom isn’t a terrible pickup either, I guess. But besides that, boy, Boston’s still got work to do. Devers can’t carry this franchise on his back, and while there’s definitely pieces here to a good core, I don’t see Boston being there yet.
Will the Sox be a competitive club? Perhaps. But this is the same team that gave up twenty-eight runs (!!!) to the Blue Jays a couple seasons ago — and not much on this roster has really changed since then for the most part. In this division? Good luck, Boston.
AL Central
Minnesota Twins — Early Exit
I noted earlier that I’m a Blue Jays fan before any other franchise, so that should add some context to what I’m about to say — the Twins look like a good baseball team. And the pieces are honestly there to prove that to be true. Pablo Lopez remains an elite starting pitcher. Ageless wonders like Jay Jackson and Carlos Santana are on the roster. Royce Lewis is primed for a breakout season at third base.
An unrelated note — weird that before Fanatics was even in the conversation for jerseys, the Twins rebranded to jerseys that look like they are from a Wal-Mart clearance rack. That’s right, I said it. Anyway, Twins for the AL Central title. Why Minnesota?
Detroit Tigers — Rebuilder
The rest of this division sucks, that’s why. The Central division isn’t nicknamed the midwest for nothing. Detroit, despite having big young pieces that do continue to develop like Torkelson and Greene, doesn’t have a ton to be excited about. When the highlight of the offseason includes picking up Javier Báez, you know things aren’t going stellar.
The Tigers have potential in the system, and that’s a key reason they still have the ability to play good baseball — but they aren’t a team I expect to do particularly well this year.
Cleveland Guardians — Rebuilder
As a friend of someone who is a Guardians fan — and as someone who had the chance to see the team live last year at Progressive Field, I do have to say that there’s some potential here for Cleveland fans. I don’t think I see this team making the playoffs this year, especially with how top-heavy the AL East and West will be for Wild Card spots. But the bright spot to me?
That starting rotation. Shane Bieber is still terrific. Then you add Tanner Bibee and Triston McKenzie, who last year, displayed some bright spots for sure. There’s something good there. If the bats come out, this team could be fun to watch.
Chicago White Sox — Rebuilder
This team is not the worst in the division, but boy, there are still some gaps. The big guns like Moancada, Jiménez and Robert Jr. remain and they still bring some pop to the lineup, but the pitching is not what it was even a couple years ago. The #1 pitcher on this team’s 40-man by Wins is Michael Bummer, who didn’t hit double digits last year in the bullpen. Cease is gone, and that obviously won’t help at all.
If they can find some pitching, the White Sox have a chance to be okay — but until then, I can’t put too much faith in this depth chart.
Kansas City Royals — Rebuilder
The Royals will not likely contend this season, for many reasons shared with other rebuilders in the Central. Pitching that lacks big name talent, lineups that may feature some star power (hello, Bobby Witt. Jr, here’s an extension forever), but the rest of the lineup is set to mostly be full of names that don’t convene fear in an opposing team’s dugout.
Salvador Perez can’t be terrific forever, right? At least the Royals have a proposal for a new stadium in the downtown core… just a reminder, Oakland, it is possible.
AL West
Houston Astros — Contender
Valdez. Javier. Verlander. Garcia. McCullers. Brown. France. Urquidy. Imagine, as a fan of any other MLB team, having that list of starters to pick from to build a starting rotation. Forget Altuve, Bregman, Alvarez and the rest of the gang. The pitching on this team’s roster remains fantastic. I don’t even know where to start.
This team will contend again, as expected by everyone. Oh, and Josh Hader is their closer now, too. That could be a nice bonus to the bullpen, speaking of the pitching situation. The team’s branding for the ’24 season is “Relentless”, and, well, yeah. That’s about accurate in my opinion.
Texas Rangers — Contender
Wait, the Rangers did what? But they didn’t even win the division! Well, in case you forgot, the Rangers and Astros actually had the exact same record coming into the 2023 postseason, so they weren’t a team to be spat on. And they proved it — as the core of big money acquisitions came through big for Texas and got them the franchise’s first World Series. It’s about time, after a handful of heartbreaks. I was starting to worry the Rangers were going to get a Jon Bois series about their failure to win after so long.
For the most part, the team that won last year is back this year — the rotation is a bit different, but not weakened. The lineup is just one year more mature. This team should be near the top, perhaps even at the top of the division come the playoffs.
Seattle Mariners — Early Exit
Look, despite the Blue Jays and Mariners forming a bit of a rivalry over the years, especially more recently thanks to MLB’s new playoff format — I like Seattle. I grew up watching my Blue Jays lose to Ichiro and King Felix. I want this team to succeed. I just have some concerns this year.
The pitching should still be good. Castillo headlining a rotation including Kirby and Gilbert is a good foundation. Julio Rodríguez continues to be the big piece of the franchise, and is sticking around long-term. There’s a team that could go far here, if things come together. But, especially in the west, it’s difficult to be at the top. There will be a fight to have. Good luck, Seattle.
Los Angeles Angels — Rebuilder
Shohei is gone. Hope is lost. Mike Trout is no longer in his early 20’s and is only still one of the best baseball players on the planet. But he’s the only big name on this team’s lineup. I can’t bet money on a core of Trout, Rendon and, uh, the other guys being that good.
There’s bright spots that could appear on the Angels, absolutely. But the loss of Ohtani — especially to the Dodgers, is a heartbreaker for sure. If I were an Angels fan, I’d be asking for financial compensation for this sadness.
Oakland Athletics — Sell The Team
I’m breaking my own rule for titles, because I genuinely don’t see the A’s winning fifty games this season. The biggest name on this roster is probably, uh, nobody. I don’t know, take your pick. J.D. Davis? Maybe it’s Shea Langeliers. If they’re any good at the midway point, I’m sure they’ll be traded to a team that will turn them into MVP candidates, as per tradition.
The Oakland ownership is in a tough spot — obviously leaving for Vegas in the near future, but still confined to the Colliseum until a new home — even if it is a temporary home while the stadium in Las Vegas is built. They are not building up for anything. Sure, a few prospects are in the system. But ownership doesn’t care. Sell the team and give Oakland this team back. These fans don’t deserve to lose another major sports team. Especially not to Vegas again.
Well, there you have it. My thoughts on the American League. This year, full of a little bit of everything — from top tier contenders, to teams that may as well skip out on the first few months. Now, let’s play ball.
