The AL East has long been the powerhouse of the American League. In the 90's and early 2000's it was dominated by the Yankees and Red Sox. In the last few years, the Tampa Bay Rays entered the foray as a young contender, and even appeared in a World Series. This year, it seems as if the Baltimore Orioles are dead set into entering the conversation. With four strong teams in the AL East, one has to wonder if the tides will be changing again.
The Baltimore Orioles can throw a pretty big wrench into the AL East picture. While not good enough to win the division, the O's can do some damage in the role of spoiler, and possibly enter the Wild card race as a contender for the first time in over 14 years. The city of Baltimore has been on the irrelevant list in baseball for far too long. Earl Weaver would have been thrown out of more games than all other 29 coaches in baseball since 1996, if he were managing. With the acquisition of HOFer to be Vladimir Guererro, along with the additions of 3B Mark Reynolds, SS JJ Hardy, 1B Derek Lee, and pitchers Kevin Gregg and Justin Duchsherer, the O's have a team that can hover around .500. My prediction? The Orioles will stick around for 2/3 of the season, sputter in the end, fire Buck Showalter, and then win the World Series in 2012. Just kidding about those last couple of lines.
The Boston Red Sox are the big winners of off season free agency/trade market. You add a slugging first baseman, great leadoff hitter/gold glove caliber outfielder, and a premium bullpen arm. That all adds up to a A+ offseason for general manager Theo Epstein. With the additions of Gonzalez, Crawford, and Jenks the Red Sox can hopefully make a run for the AL Pennant, especially with Youkilis, Pedroia, and Beckett coming back healthy. The Red Sox may have the best all round pitching staff in the American League. Is it enough to climb back atop the AL East?
The Tampa Bay Rays have lost three big pieces to their team that made them so successful in the last three years. Carl Crawford signed with AL East rival Boston. Rafael Soriano took the big pay day with another AL East rival New York, and Carlos Pena went to Chicago to replace Derek Lee who was traded last season from Chicago to Atlanta, and eventually signed with the Baltimore Orioles during this off season. They did however sign some of the old guard of the AL East. Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez both agreed to minimal contracts with the Rays. The Rays also have one of the best, young rotations in the Majors. Their biggest weak spot is their plundered bullpen. Tampa Bay will have to find a way to win without a dominant closer.
The New York Yankees lost Andy Pettite to retirement this off season. They also lost Javier Vasquez, who was ineffective in second stint with the Yankees. AJ Burnett needs to have a bounce back season, for the Yankees to have any hopes of returning to the post season. New york will have to rely on their high octane offense, and the best bullpen in the majors to make a run at number 28. While missing out on Cliff Lee, the Yankees decided to compensate with quantity and not quality. They either signed or invited to spring training 3 low risk pitchers in Freddy Garcia, Mark Prior, and Bartolo Colon. Jorge Posada finds a new home at DH, while New York brings in a younger, better defensive catcher in Russell Martin. Marcus Thames signed with the Dodgers, and the Yankees replaced him with Andruw Jones, who is an upgrade as a defender, and brings pop off the bench as a right handed option. The Yankees have, arguably, the best bullpen in the Majors. Mariona Rivera will be in his 14th season as the Bombers closer, with Rafael Soriano, Pedro Feliciano, and Joba Chamberlain setting the table. Having this sort of bullpen is any teams dream, effectively shortening the game to 6 or 7 innings.
The Toronto Blue Jays parted with Vernon Wells this off season. He had the longest tenure of any player on this Toronto squad. Cito Gaston retired at the end of last season. I don't see enough offense or leadership for this team to contend in 2011. While their starting rotation is solid with the likes of Shaun Marcum, Brandon Morrow, Brett Cecil, and Ricky Romero, I just don't see any depth in their bullpen. Things can go right for the Jays, but everything must go right for them to contend. If Aaron Hill and Adam Lind can have bounce back years, Jose Bautista puts up a repeat of last season, and Octavio Dotel can close again, then I can be wrong.
How the East ends up:
1. Red Sox
2. Yankees
3. Orioles
4. Rays
5. Blue Jays
