2. Minnesota Twins
Center fielder Byron Buxton seemed to break out of his funk in September of last season, hitting .287/.357/.653, a welcome shift from the disappointment of the earlier parts of the year. He also hit nine home runs in that month alone. The 23-year old was heralded as a five-tool player throughout his time in the minors and finally started to show it. If he can keep up his head of steam heading into this season, Buxton could be an All-Star sooner rather than later.
The Twins have some nice young players filling out the rest of their lineup as well. Third baseman Miguel Sano hit 25 home runs with a .227 ISO last season and will likely be in the middle of their lineup for a long time. Right fielder Max Kepler put up solid numbers last season in the power department and if his .261 BABIP regresses, he could be in for a nice season.
There’s even room for optimism at shortstop, where 23-year old Jorge Polanco slashed .282/.332/.424 last season. However, questions remain about his ability in the field as he accounted for minus-eight defensive runs saved last season.