2013 AL East Projections

The American League East is arguably the toughest division in baseball and 2013 should not be any different. Last season three teams won at least 90 games with two making the postseason. I don’t think that one team will win 90 games in this division due to the fact that each team is poised to be so tough on one another that it will an old-fashioned war of attrition.

The Baltimore Orioles made a huge improvement last season under manager Buck Showalter. The Orioles had a 24-game improvement from 2011 which saw them make the playoffs for the first time since 1997. Now under Showalter, The Orioles are hoping to ride a wave of momentum into this season.

Showalter along with Orioles general manager Dan Duquette have put together a young and talented lineup. Centerfielder Adam Jones had his best season last year as he hit 32 home runs and had a .287 batting average. Jones is a dynamic five-tool player that is just beginning to take the cover off of his potential. In just 51 games played last season, third baseman Manny Machado hit 7 home runs as he is expected to be a vital piece to The Orioles offense. Catcher Matt Wieters is helping to pace a pitching staff that had the sixth best earned run average in The American League at 3.90.

Showalter is once again building a contender the same way that he did with The New York Yankees, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Texas Rangers. This Orioles team is out to prove that they are not a one-year wonder.

The best word to use as far as describing the upcoming season for The New York Yankees is “transition”. The Yankees front office consisting of owners Hank and Hal Steinbrenner along with general manager Brian Cashman know that this is an aging team. The Yankees are in the process of lowering their team payroll in order to make another free-agent binge in 2014. After winning 95 games last season before being swept by The Detroit Tigers in The American League Championship Series, The Yankees head into this season not expected to with The AL East by many fans and writers alike.

Yankees All-Star shortstop Derek Jeter is trying to recover from a fractured left ankle which he sustained in last season’s ALCS. Jeter comes into this season with 3,304 career hits as he is on pace to finish the season 6th on MLB’s all-time hits list. All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano is entering the final year of his contract which means that he should put up career numbers. Cano is a lifetime .308 hitter and I expect him to hit at least 35 homers this season. Along with first baseman Mark Teixeira and center fielder Curtis Granderson, The Yankees will once again to live up to their nickname as “The Bronx Bombers” as The Yankees led Major League Baseball last season with 245 home runs. The Yankees must try to fill the void of the departed utility man Nick Swisher who left as a free-agent to sign with The Cleveland Indians. Swisher has a career on-base percentage of .364. Swisher also hit 24 home runs last season along with 8 outfield assists as he practically dared runners to score on him from third base.

The Yankees are expected to be without All-Star shortstop Alex Rodriguez for the majority of the season as he recovers from hip surgery which is why Cashman signed free-agent infielder Kevin Youkilis. Youkilis is now on “the other side” of The Yankees rivalry with The Boston Red Sox after spending eight-plus seasons of his career in a Red Sox uniform. The Yankees hope to spark some magic in Youkilis as his numbers have steadily dipped since 2010. In 2010, Youkilis had a .307 batting average which dipped to .236 last season.

The Yankees will have a huge question mark at the catching position after Russell Martin left as a free-agent to sign a two-year, $17 million deal with The Pittsburgh Pirates. Martin only had a .211 batting average last season, but he had career high in home runs with 21 as well as being respected by Yankee pitchers. Martin was behind the plate for 104 games last season as The Yankees pitching staff had the fifth best team earned run average in The American League at 3.85. After trading their top catching prospect Jesus Montero to The Seattle Mariners in 2011, The Yankees will rely on light-hitting Francisco Cervelli to fit in with a veteran pitching staff.

Starting pitchers Hiroki Kuroda, Phil Hughes, CC Sabathia, and Ivan Nova combined to win 59 games last season and they will be expected to be on the same pace if not better for 2013. Sabathia is coming off of arthroscopic surgery to remove a bone spur in his pitching elbow. The “hefty lefty” has been an innings eater for The Yankees as he has pitched at least 200 innings in every season since joining The Yanks. It will be important to see which Phil Hughes shows up for The Yankees. Will it be the one who combined for 34 wins in 2010 and 2012, or the man who had a 5.79 earned run average in 2011? The Yankees need a steady second starter in the pitching rotation behind Sabathia. 40-year old Andy Pettitte is expected to be back in the fold for The Yankees, but you don’t know that his body will have enough to last through a 162-game schedule.

This won’t be your typical season for The Yankees and skipper Joe Girardi, but they will once again be playing meaningful games late in September.

The Toronto Blue Jays enter this season as everyone’s “flavor of the month”. The Blue Jays have an new but old manager in John Gibbons who compiled a record of 305-305 as he managed The Jays from 2004-2008. Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos went to South Florida to do some clearance shopping. The Miami Marlins had one of their infamous fire sales which saw them ship shortstop Jose Reyes, infielder Emilio Bonafacio along with starting pitchers Josh Johnson and Mark Buerhle to Toronto. The Jays weren’t done wheeling and dealing with The National League East as they acquired 2012 NL Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey from The New York Mets. Dickey became the first Cy Young Award winner since Roger Clemens to be traded after winning the award. When it occurred with Clemens, he was traded from The Jays to The Yankees.

What hurt The Marlins last year could possibly hurt The Blue Jays this year as well which was unfamiliarity between the team. The Marlins went crazy in free-agency to bring in new players and a new manager in Ozzie Guillen. What ensued was a train wreck that saw The Marlins win only 69 games last season when most observers had the team pegged for the postseason. The AL East is an extremely tough division that will not allow for much time to let The Blue Jays get acclimated with one another.

Another year has seen The Tampa Bay Rays depart with a key player, but that doesn’t mean that this team will begin to whine and moan. The Rays traded starting pitcher James Shields to The Kansas City Royals for outfield prospect Will Myers who is regarded by many as one of the best current minor-league prospects. The Rays won 90 games last season and once again manager Joe Maddon will put a tough team on the field. What The Rays lack in skill they make up for it with shear determination. 

Maddon is hoping to have the services of a healthy Evan Longoria at third base. Longoria only appeared in 74 games last season after suffering a torn hamstring, but he still managed to hit 17 home runs. The Rays pitching staff is once again talented. Overall Tampa Bay’s staff had the best earned run average in Major League Baseball at 3.19. Starting pitcher David Price is fresh off of his first American League Cy Young Award after winning 20 games last season. The Rays are also high on a pair of young starting pitchers in Jeremy Hellickson and Matt Moore who both have the potential to win 15 games this season.

Once again The Rays will make it exciting for their fans while making it tough on the other teams in The AL East.

Last year was a train wreck for The Boston Red Sox. The Sox only won 69 games. It was the team’s lowest win total since 1965 when they only won 62 games. The season was over before it started. It culminated with Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington trading Adrian Gonzalez, Carl Crawford, Nick Punto, and Josh Beckett to The Los Angeles Dodgers and after one season manager Bobby Valentine was relieved of his duties.

Former Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell was brought back to Fenway Park to right the ship for a team that has failed to make the postseason in the last three seasons. Farrell must improve a pitching staff that finished 12th in The American League in earned run average at 4.70. Boston is hoping for bounce back seasons from starting pitchers Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz as the duo only combined to win 20 games in 2012. After two subpar seasons with The Red Sox, starting pitcher John Lackey missed the entire 2012 campaign after undergoing Tommy John surgery. In 2009, Lackey signed a five-year, $82.5 million deal with The Red Sox and it is time for him to deliver.

The Red Sox are hoping for a bounce back season as well from outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury. Ellsbury only played in 74 games last season after suffering a shoulder injury. Designated hitter David Ortiz missed 72 games as he dealt with a troublesome heel injury and The Fenway Faithful are looking for a typical 25-plus home run season from “Big Papi”. Outfielder Shane Victorino has been a career National League player, but The Red Sox are hopeful that he  will bring some well needed toughness to the club.

At this point The Red Sox organization is at the crossroads as they try to figure out if they are in full rebuilding mode or are they trying to compete for a division title. This will once again be a trying season for The Red Sox and The Fenway faithful.

Source: Baseball-reference.com

X=Clinched Division
Y=Clinched Wild Card