MLB News: AL East Lines and Division Breakdown
It’s time to get excited! Fingers crossed as nothing is confirmed just yet, but it looks like the 2020 MLB season will finally get underway starting in the middle of June!
So, with that in mind, let’s do a refresher crash course on the American League East and each team’s odds to win the World Series.
The most obvious choice at this point is the New York Yankees, as their MLB Lines are at the top of the futures odds boards.
Odds to win the AL East:
● New York Yankees -370
● Tampa Bay Rays +400
● Boston Red Sox +800
● Toronto Blue Jays +5000
● Baltimore Orioles +10000
The New York Yankees
The Yanks aren’t only at the top of the list to win their division, they are +350 to win the World Series. So, the second most probable team in the league to win it all. It’s no wonder. They’ve filled most of their pitching gaps with the acquisition of Gerritt Cole and the return of Luis Severino. So, now not only will they have one of the most potent lineups in all of baseball but also allow fewer runs – Their biggest weak point last season.
The Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays are next in line to win the AL East and are tied with the New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals to win the Fall Classic at +2200 apiece. It’s been 10 years since they’ve won the division … a long drought, indeed. But they played well last season, finishing second. They are going to be a tough team again in 2020, but with the offensive fire-power of the Yanks, and now that the Bronx Bombers have touched up their starting rotation, they are going to play second fiddle for another year.
The Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox have the most Division wins in modern history, but they have taken a major step back on the odds boards after trading away Mookie Betts to the LA Dodgers. They are going to be in a tough fight with both the Rays and the Yanks. But there is good news ahead for the Sox. They might finally end up underneath the luxury tax threshold and for Betts, they got a couple of solid players that will help them over the next couple of years.
If your a Sox fan, keep in mind that the Red Sox tried to sign Mookie a couple of times. On one occasion, reportedly to the tune of a 300 million dollar deal. But Betts wanted his Free Agency and this is the last year the Sox would have had control of his contract. So, what were they to do? Might as well flip Betts for what they can now as even with him, it’s unlikely that they would win the division. So, instead of losing the AL East then likely losing Betts next year, they remove some salary cap burden and get a couple of players to boot.
The Toronto Blue Jays
The Blue Jays are on the up, but they are still at least a year out of really competing for the AL East. They are on a quest to contend, rebuilding their starting rotation and calling up some solid players. Honestly, this team could be quite scary in a couple of years and I think we’ll see them pass the Red Sox this season in wins, or come close to it. Their lineup is bestial and can hang with most batting orders in the American League. But as I mentioned above, the Yanks are loaded … bringing on Gerritt Cole is akin to the GSW signing Kevin Durant a couple of years ago.
The Baltimore Orioles
It’s been a tough few years for the O’s and it doesn’t look like it’s going to get any better any time soon. With the rest of the AL East rebuilding the Orioles just haven’t been able to keep up and 2020 is going to be another year where the O’s ride the bottom of the division again.
What will happen with Chris Davis? That’s the biggest question. Will he stay or will he go after 2020. And what will his productivity look like this year, how much does he have left in the tank? Well, we’ll find out soon enough. Maybe the extended offseason was just what he needed.
