Joel Sherman of The Post anticipates AL East.
1. Tampa Bay Rays
O / U wins: 3. 4
Key player: Austin Meadows The Rays’ offense is largely interchangeable pieces used to maximize selective skills and hide deficiencies. Meadows’ .922 OPS was best for Ray who qualified for the batting title since Ben Zobrist (.948) in 2009. The left-hander could have been the best hitter in the majors last September (nine home runs, 1,216). OPS). However, he will probably miss out on at least the beginning of the season after hiring COVID-19.
Player to be intensified: Hunter Renfroe. He’s talented enough to have hit the same 33 home runs as Meadows last year despite playing at home in San Diego. But Renfroe also managed to hit just .216 with a .289 on-base percentage. The Rays got Renfroe in hopes of unlocking a suitable snap for Meadows, who was chosen four times ahead of Renfroe, who placed 13th in the 2013 draft.
Name you will know: Nick Anderson Who was the best reliever in the majors since August 1 of last year? The Rays got Anderson on July 31 from the Mariners, and thereafter struck out 41 of the 78 hitters he faced and walked just two while keeping the hitters with a .160 batting average. He has one of the best curved balls in the majors. Tampa Bay does not lock itself into relief roles, but switched to its primary closer, Emilio Pagan, in the offseason, so Anderson’s importance only grows.
The biggest question mark: Will they score enough? No team can reach 20 or 25 depths as comfortably with pure pitches as the Rays. Again they are projected as elite preventives. To beat the Yankees in the American League East, the Rays have to score more. The wild card in all this is Wander Franco. He’s only 19. He hasn’t played above High-A. But he is the best consensus prospect in the game, which means the shortstop has a chance to show up at some point and make an impact. Is that 2020?
How will it go down: The first game pioneers have been unknowingly preparing to play a 60-game season. By deploying multiple pitchers to attack each game, the Rays were emphasizing games all the time in September. Piles of power weapons are an even greater blessing on this forum.
2. New York Yankees
O / U wins: 37 ¹ / ₂
Key player: James Paxton There is no Luis Severino or Domingo German this season. Masahiro Tanaka may be limited early after taking a liner from Giancarlo Stanton. Thus, the need grows for Paxton to be a worthy No. 2 behind Gerrit Cole. Paxton has never been healthy enough to qualify for an ERA title in a 162-game season. Can he make 12 starts after a low season in which he had back surgery?
Player to be intensified: Gary Sanchez. He has been on the disabled list four times in the past two seasons, all due to lower body disease. How many games does he catch this year? Because the backup now is not the reliable Austin Romine, but the greatest unknown of Kyle Higashioka. Can Sánchez avoid injuries, extended binging and persistent balls?
Name you will know: Clarke Schmidt. Severino and German are out. Tanaka, Aroldis Chapman and Luis Cessa are out or doubtful at least at the beginning of the season. The Yankees will be challenged to cover innings. Schmidt, the 16th overall pick in 2017, went from Tommy John surgery to a potential key piece along with other youngsters like Deivi Garcia and Jonathan Loaisiga.
The biggest question mark: How much of last year was a fluke? Players like Mike Ford, Mike Tauchman and Gio Urshela went from unknown to great producers. Was this a sign of an organization that will always find a way or a fortune?
How will it go down: The Yankees are very talented, and what’s interesting is that the team that was once owned by George Steinbrenner now believes in patience over the course of a season to gain depth of talent. Depth is obviously valuable no matter how many games, but are the dents in launch health a bad omen from the start?
3. Toronto Blue Jays
O / U wins: 28 ¹ / ₂
Key player: Hyun-Jin Ryu. Before internally believing they were true contenders, the Blue Jays head office stepped out of its financial comfort zone to hand Ryu a four-year, $ 80 million deal. His 2.32 ERA led the National League for the Dodgers last year. How does the left-handed translate to East AL? He pitched well in his two starts at the AL parks last year (13 innings, three runs against the Angels and the Red Sox).
Player to be intensified: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was good last year, but not as good as 2019 rookie shortstop Bo Bichette. The Jays envision a future where that duo anchors the lineup for years. Guerrero went from third to first this year to give him more comfort.
Name you will know: Nate Pearson. He is 6 feet 6 inches, weighs 250 pounds, and launches his three-digit fastball regularly. If Toronto is a surprise contender, it’s because its positional young core came out early, and Ryu’s finesse and Pearson’s power drove the rotation.
The biggest question mark: How does a mostly young roster handle being a team nomad? The Canadian government prohibited the Blue Jays from playing their home games in Toronto. So, in this already bizarre season, they are essentially watching 60 road games. This for a team in which only two players, Randal Grichuk and Travis Shaw, are the only projected players from nine positions with even more than three years of experience.
How will it go down: If his young players continue to make progress and can turn closer Ken Giles into another piece or two before the trade deadline of August 31, that would mark this as a forward season for the Jays.
4. Boston Red Sox
O / U wins: 29 ¹ / ₂
Key player: Nathan Eovaldi. Rick Porcello left in free agency. David Price was changed. Eduardo Rodríguez was on the COVID-19 Related Injury List for much of Spring 2.0 training. Chris Sale will miss all of 2020 after Tommy John’s surgery. They made 113 combined starts last year. Eovaldi is in the second season of a four-year, $ 68 million deal. Boston needs you to do your own thing if, for nothing else, perhaps it makes you more attractive in an exchange.
Player to be intensified: Alex Executioner. At Andrew Benintendi, Rafael Devers, Xander Bogaerts and JD Martinez, Boston still has a formidable top-four lineup. But it’s not as formidable as when Mookie Betts was on it. He was traded to the Dodgers and Verdugo was the lynchpin in return. The left-handed libertine will replace Betts in right field. What part of the production can you replace to make this exchange more acceptable to the faithful of the Red Sox?
Name you will know: Bobby Dalbec. He missed the first part of spring 2.0 training recovering from the coronavirus. To gain playing time, you may have to move from third, where Devers plays, to first. There’s a Luke Voit profile there: home runs, strikeouts, walks.
The biggest question mark: How far will a 2020 takedown go? The 2018 season ended in a championship, with Betts as Boston’s best player and Best pitcher Out. Can the Red Sox find new homes for Martinez, Eovaldi, and perhaps Benintendi and a talented reliever like Matt Barnes or Brandon Workman?
How will it go down: The rotation is too devastated, so even the dispute of more than 60 games will be difficult.
5. Baltimore Orioles
O / U wins: twenty-one
Key player: Mike Elias. In his second year as general manager, Elias oversees a roster that clearly does not have a player who will be part of the Orioles’ next good team beyond perhaps starter John Means and reliever Hunter Harvey. Elias was part of the Astros decommissioning / build-up and possibly has a more difficult task here. Baltimore had the first pick in the draft in 2019 (catcher Adley Rutschman) and the second this year (outfielder Heston Kjerstad). Is that the beginning of a building block towards a better tomorrow?
Player to be intensified: Harvey The 22nd pick in the 2013 draft, Harvey has had just 6 ¹ / ₃ innings in the majors due to injury. Former star closer Bryan Harvey’s son will have the opportunity to demonstrate his worth full time.
Name you will know: Ryan Mountcastle. His bat appears to be ready, but questions persist where in the diamond (third, first, outfield) he will play and whether the Orioles will start their service clock this year.
The biggest question mark: Is there anything more important than nearing the end of contracts for Chris Davis (two years at $ 46 million after this season) and Alex Cobb (one year at $ 15 million)? Both have been a crisis and Baltimore is playing for a future date when he hopes to have more talent and a cleaner financial image.
How will it go down: The Yankees were 17-2 against the Orioles in 2019 and won the division by seven games over the Rays, who were 12-7 against Baltimore. For now, the Orioles are a piñata that the best teams must beat in more than 162 games or 60.
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