5. American League East
There is everything to love about the Orioles. There’s so much power on offense with Mark Trumbo, Chris Davis, Welington Castillo, Manny Machado and even Seth Smith, who should take advantage of the right side of Camden Yards. Lefties thrive there.
Machado will be a free agent in 2018 along with teammate Zach Britton. That they want to go out with a bang should be kept in the back of your mind.
The Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees have one of the most well-known rivalries in all of sports. This season it’ll be interesting to see what they both bring to the table.
The Sox have Chris Sale as a new member of the pitching staff. Last year with the White Sox he had a 3.34 ERA and a 9.25 K/9 rate. He will start off the rotation with David Price who is due for a strong season this time around.
The defense will be solid with Xander Bogaerts, Jackie Bradley Jr., Mookie Bets and number one overall prospect Andrew Benintendi. And the best part is they can hit pretty well too. If they can make it to the postseason, they will do amazing things.
Their rivals, the Yankees, have a lot of talent on the team. A lot of young talent. The giant known as Aaron Judge will be battling Aaron Hicks for the Opening Day start at right field. At the moment, it’s looking like manager Joe Girardi is leaning towards Hicks for the start, but you never know.
Speaking of battles. Greg Bird and Chris Carter have been involved in a battle for first base responsibilities, and Bird did not make the decision easy for the situation. He was very successful during spring training.
The Blue Jays will also have a rewarding season. Not only should their offense be strong, but starting pitcher Marcus Stroman has a good chance to be one of the stellar pitchers this season, thanks to a successful second half in 2016. Especially with his sinker, which has the “most sink in all of baseball among qualified starters.”
Kendrys Morales coming to Rogers Centre has his Steamer projections set at a .295/.266/.330. That increase has a lot to do with the ballpark factor. His fly ball rate along with his power surge in 2016 just adds to his value both as a Blue Jays fan and fantasy perspective.
Notables: Tampa Bay Rays