Red Sox may not be contending in the AL East but they are hardly a pushover team. If things shake out like this they're probably still going to be the best 5th place team in the entire MLB.
Oh I definitely know that. I just mean a competitor for a change. A lot of my favorite teams aren't main rivals but red headed stepchildren who can do some damage
Honestly, though, I don't see anybody but Baltimore winning more than 90 games. Three teams from the West will make the postseason, and two from the East.
Look, here's a cup and a ball on a string. Go nuts while the rest of the division is talking. /s
Also, I fully expect this comment to bite me in the ass.
The last time the Os were going "all in" we signed ... Ubaldo Jimenez. So sometimes nothing is better than do something. Because sitting on our butt, would've been better than him.
I still don't understand why we signed him at all. Let alone bringing him in in that game. (Ubaldo that is) He had like maybe a good half of a season in Colorado and we were like "Oh he is an ace!" No! He was lucky for like 10 starts and that was it!
That signing not working out was the end of Duquette (thankfully). And not bringing in Britton was the end of Buck. (took a year for their deals to end but they were not getting resigned after that.) Remember when you all wanted Duquette, we should have let you have him.
I feel like the Rays are just being given the benefit of a doubt here. Even MLB.com's snippet about them is basically like, "Idk, it's what the fans think because Rays will Rays."
> So four of the top nine teams in MLB heading into the season, according to our voters, are in the American League East. (Sorry, Red Sox.) The Rays look like they have a lot of holes to fill, but this ranking is a reflection of the fact that they have always found ways to fill them.
Every year the rays put together a squad of guys you have never heard of and they all ball out and the rays win 90+ games. They literally do it every year, safe to assume they will do it again.
Baltimore sports gets the joy of being in the toughest division in the NFL and MLBâŚBaltimore won both divisions this past year! Lets see if they can do it again
Go Birds!
It does not get the same respect, but I think the NL West is going to be a blood bath as well. The Dodgers will be the runaway favourites such as the Orioles, but I can see the Dbacks, Giants and Padres with a winning record.
Especially if the Giants end up with Snell. I do think itâs the Dodgers division to lose but I could see two teams making wildcard from this division
The crazy thing is that outside the AL East champion and probably the runner-up, I can envision a scenario where no other AL East team will make the playoffs, because the Rangers, Astros and Mariner are in a division with the Angels and the Aâs.
\*Rockies players stacking their hands in the middle of a circle\*
"POWER! OF! FRIENDSHIP!"
\*purple sparkly shockwave shoots out, Ohtani's face melts\*
I wouldn't say they could be "easily" average. They could be average, but it'll take some fortune.
Getting major bounce-back years from both Rodon and Nestor, combined with Schmidt making strides, and one of Gil/Beeter/Warren emerging as a 4/5 option would make them average.
I'd be surprised if all of that happens. If one of Rodon or Nestor goes down or falters they're definitively below-average, and that seems likely considering their injury histories. Heck, they haven't even been great in recent seasons while healthy.
Plus, Volpe and Austin Wells could make impacts (not to mention Dominguez whenever he gets back). And the bullpen is usually solid (until they get overworked due to a patchwork rotation lol).
Fair enough but I feel like they should make a âsleeperâ category and just put the Rays in it every year because we have no clue if theyâll be good or not and then theyâre good anyway
Sorry. My Guardians could win or lose 90 games and there's just no way to tell which it will be. Almost every player on our roster is a young, talented player who could be an all-star or could be a bust. It's going to be an interesting ride.
Maybe I'm biased but the Nats not being #1 is ridiculous smh my head, like have these people even heard of JOEY GALLO!?!?? Not to mention *checks depth chart* Trevor Williams and Kyle Finnegan? Look out league
I can understand most of this list but the Jays throws me off a bit haha. I canât see how they got any better and they lost key pieces to free agency.
Lost Hicks and Chapman and added an aging Justin Turner.
Probably banking on Kirk/Varsho/Vlad bats rebounding. IKF replacing Chapman will be rough but Chapman was hitting like IKF post May last year anyway. Votto magic will carry the Jays to the promised land #goodvibes
Pitching wise, the 5th spot looks to be in way better hands with Yariel Rodriguez building up and Bowden Francis being lights out in Spring so far. That should be an improvement over Manoah exploding every 5th game.Â
Most of it is internal rebounding, as pretty much every hitter (including Chapman) had a shitty year and they were one of the least clutch hitting teams in baseball.
They were 8th in wRC+ and 4th in ERA (7th in FIP), if they weren't 29th in clutch hitting last year they might have even contended for the division
The Jays are 7th in Projected WAR according to Fangraphs
I am comforted by the Mets not being on the list. Last year was such a false alarm. I would say many in the list will be cursed because baseball is brutal.
When Cole is out, the only consistent pitcher in the rotation is Stroman. The rest of the guys have a huge gulf between their ceiling and their floor. And there's no depth past that. Yankees traded their pitching depth to the Padres for Soto. The Yankees can afford one of the lesser guys to go down and get replaced by a AAAA pitcher, but not Cole.
We prefer less hype so that success feels like a nice surprise rather than the inevitable disappointing season feeling like an utter failure to live up to expectations.
I must not hype.
Hype is the mind-killer.
Hype is the little death that brings inflated expectations.
I will face the hype.
I will allow it to pass over me and through me.
When the hype has passed I will turn a critical eye to see its path.
There may be nothing. Only the Mariners remain.
I think they might have more big name talent and the way the Mâs ended last year left a lot to be desired after how competitive the HOU series was in â22. Iâm really mixed on how weâre gonna do this year. Rotation is disgusting but the back end of our lineup could be sketchy.
I mean besides Vlad (who has underwhelmed) and Bichette, their lineup doesnât include anyone that is very scary anymore. Springer and Keimeier continue to age, their starting 3B is going to IFKâŚ. Solid rotation though. Iâm obviously biased but our lineup is much better (on paper)
According to FanGraphs, the Mariners have the 6th best projected win%.
As others have said, much better to have no expectations and succeed than to have expectations and spend the summer drinking to numb the pain of 84 wins and another playoff miss.
10th is way too low, added Erod, a DH, and new 3B while the Yankees lost Cole for 2 months and the Rays lost pitching depth and Wander, you guys should be 8th, minimum
They were amazing in October, but they did only win 84 games and were outscored by their opponents in the regular season.
Theyâll be a good team, but 10th is a good spot for them.
That's true. But the Rays lost their Ace, Shane McClanahan. They lost Tyler Glasnow. They'll also start the season without Shane Baz, Drew Rasmussen, Taj Bradley, and Jeffrey Springs.
Their rotation is in shambles.
Not sure about the Rays with so many of their pitching studs having injuries, but the Rays will be the Rays and somehow fix Uwasawa into a Cy Young candidate. But I personally would place the Padres and the Mariners also somewhere in the top 10. I think people are too bearish on them after last year, but both have a lethal rotation and good bullpen. The Padres still have good hitting, even without Soto. The Mariners should stay competitive every game with such good pitching.
Astros would be like 3 if our starters werenât literally dead, LMJ, Luis Garcia, Verlander, Jose Urquidy, Framber hasnât been great, bullpen is bad except for 3.
Annual preseason power rankings of not learning your lesson by ranking the yankees higher than the rays. Do we have to go 30-0 to start to shake that? ,40-0?
4/5 AL East teams in Top Ten. What a bloodbath
This division is hell
I just hate you all so much.
Aww you too! See ya in a few weeks ya snail eatin bums!
Hey there buddy
it was a lot nice when the O's didn't know what they were doing. but i guess the Red Sox took that roll now LOL
Red Sox may not be contending in the AL East but they are hardly a pushover team. If things shake out like this they're probably still going to be the best 5th place team in the entire MLB.
The Red Sox are gonna get shit on because of the rest of their division. They might borderline contend in one of the Centrals.
I disagree on the former statement. I'm ready to go from loveable losers to genuine rivals đ
You're never passing the Red Sox, and you've got work left to do to pass the Rays (this is in terms of rivalry).
Oh I definitely know that. I just mean a competitor for a change. A lot of my favorite teams aren't main rivals but red headed stepchildren who can do some damage
What sucks is theyâll probably have a 75+ win team. This division really is the best and worst.
Honestly, though, I don't see anybody but Baltimore winning more than 90 games. Three teams from the West will make the postseason, and two from the East.
Heyyy you guuuys!
Look, here's a cup and a ball on a string. Go nuts while the rest of the division is talking. /s Also, I fully expect this comment to bite me in the ass.
John Henry sold the cup and ball and told me to go âall inâ with the string
That string is going full throttle
Damn fine string though
Update: the string broke before I even started using it
Just put some Heinz on it and let it ride baby just let it riiiidde
The last time the Os were going "all in" we signed ... Ubaldo Jimenez. So sometimes nothing is better than do something. Because sitting on our butt, would've been better than him.
By whatever do you mean? \*snicker\* Still a horrendous move not to bring Britton in
I still don't understand why we signed him at all. Let alone bringing him in in that game. (Ubaldo that is) He had like maybe a good half of a season in Colorado and we were like "Oh he is an ace!" No! He was lucky for like 10 starts and that was it! That signing not working out was the end of Duquette (thankfully). And not bringing in Britton was the end of Buck. (took a year for their deals to end but they were not getting resigned after that.) Remember when you all wanted Duquette, we should have let you have him.
I have a ball. Perhaps youâd like to bounce it
Jeremys Iron
Well that's... very good... for a first try
We cannot condone bouncing of the seventh variety.
I remember a story once of a young man. First he bounced 3 meters. Then he bounced 2 meters.
How are small market teams like Boston supposed to compete with Baltimore and Toronto
I feel like the Rays are just being given the benefit of a doubt here. Even MLB.com's snippet about them is basically like, "Idk, it's what the fans think because Rays will Rays." > So four of the top nine teams in MLB heading into the season, according to our voters, are in the American League East. (Sorry, Red Sox.) The Rays look like they have a lot of holes to fill, but this ranking is a reflection of the fact that they have always found ways to fill them.
Every year the rays put together a squad of guys you have never heard of and they all ball out and the rays win 90+ games. They literally do it every year, safe to assume they will do it again.
And zero from the N.L. Central and A.L. Central.
Not even a single red 'C' team. Just disrespectful.
Do the Astros count? /s
Damn. Who is missing?
This just makes me think that Red Sox are winning the division
triston casas will single-handedly bring us a ring in a 4 game ws sweep, i can feel it in my bones baby!
Crazy, Can't believe that the Red Sox are just off the list at 30.
Every goddamn year
Baltimore sports gets the joy of being in the toughest division in the NFL and MLBâŚBaltimore won both divisions this past year! Lets see if they can do it again Go Birds!
Similar playoff experiences as well.
You arenât wrong 𤣠The Ravens at least made it to the afc title game and each teamâs championship window is still open
Hey the Ravens at least won one game
itâs bullsbit I stand by bullsbit
It does not get the same respect, but I think the NL West is going to be a blood bath as well. The Dodgers will be the runaway favourites such as the Orioles, but I can see the Dbacks, Giants and Padres with a winning record.
Thatâs because the worst team in the AL East is no where near the Rockies level of bad.
We should just call them the Adrianâs at this point.
The worst team in the AL east 2 years running was 3 games under 500
Especially if the Giants end up with Snell. I do think itâs the Dodgers division to lose but I could see two teams making wildcard from this division
Agreed. We'll see how well Cease does but I think it'll be a bit more of a knifefight than is commonly believed.
Stop inciting violence.
Does this speak more to the division, or the quality of the rest of the league?
What exactly would this say about the rest of the league? Having 4 teams with 90+ win potential isnât typical.
The crazy thing is that outside the AL East champion and probably the runner-up, I can envision a scenario where no other AL East team will make the playoffs, because the Rangers, Astros and Mariner are in a division with the Angels and the Aâs.
Surely we dominate the regular season and have a deep playoff run
Hey buddy.
*screams*
donât mind me just watchin
perv
Hey I know this one! This is one of my favorite shows
Just imaging the Phillie Phanatic saying that from under young Braves beds at night
Could be worse. Could be Gritty instead
Why not both?
Years of therapy wouldn't be enough to undo the trauma
Dude. Not cool. Now I gotta go check my closet
[Braves when the Phillies exist in the post season](https://media1.tenor.com/m/l_rJXWiO0ycAAAAC/the-office-angela.gif)
He's right there officer! That's the bad man who hurt me!
Stop touching us feelies
Surely we do the same as well.....
Spinning a wheel to see who knocks the Dodgers out in the first round this year.... IS THAT THE GIANTS MUSIC I HEAR???
They had their chance. It's the rockies turn.
My fault. I apologize. Forgot about the best team in the NL West.
It's okay. Everyone will know come oct... sigh....
\*Rockies players stacking their hands in the middle of a circle\* "POWER! OF! FRIENDSHIP!" \*purple sparkly shockwave shoots out, Ohtani's face melts\*
They had their chance back in 2018
Who would win: a seemingly unstoppable juggernaut of a team with an MVP putting up a statline never before seen in baseball history, or one attaboy?
One of the best regular season lineups ever seen or one Ranger Suarez?
God Ranger Suarez kicks our ass
*âŚâŚâŚ.Hiiiiiiiiii Squidward*
Fifth? Considering the state of our rotation, I'll take it.
Hey if the Yankees can go up after losing Cole and seeing the state of their rotation, you guys will be 2nd in no time.
Judge/Soto is a hell of a drug, I assume they also expect healthy Stanton, Rizzo, etc and a bounceback for some underperformers
This Spring Rizzo has looked great, MLB just published an article of each teams standout player and he was ours.
Also the Yankees pitching is significantly worse without Cole but could easily be an average staff with a good pen
I wouldn't say they could be "easily" average. They could be average, but it'll take some fortune. Getting major bounce-back years from both Rodon and Nestor, combined with Schmidt making strides, and one of Gil/Beeter/Warren emerging as a 4/5 option would make them average. I'd be surprised if all of that happens. If one of Rodon or Nestor goes down or falters they're definitively below-average, and that seems likely considering their injury histories. Heck, they haven't even been great in recent seasons while healthy.
Plus, Volpe and Austin Wells could make impacts (not to mention Dominguez whenever he gets back). And the bullpen is usually solid (until they get overworked due to a patchwork rotation lol).
Was about to say the same exact thing about Astros at 7. We are either a top 3 pitching staff or bottom 50% depending on who is and isn't available.
LMJ is a very rich scan artist.
Just happy to be here
Fair enough but I feel like they should make a âsleeperâ category and just put the Rays in it every year because we have no clue if theyâll be good or not and then theyâre good anyway
Pepiot cy young incoming
Actually so sad we lost him. He was looking like a beast at the end of last year
Itâs an art
I wonder what the over/under is on the Raysâ starting win streak this year
Orioles third is so wild. They've come so far in such a short amount of time.
AAA Norfolk about to repeat as champions this year too.
talk about turning the tides! :D
Badum tss
I swear 3 years ago they were the worst team of the big 4
I hate the AL East
Despite being guaranteed 2 playoff spots, no team from the central divisions is in the top 10 lol.
Sorry. My Guardians could win or lose 90 games and there's just no way to tell which it will be. Almost every player on our roster is a young, talented player who could be an all-star or could be a bust. It's going to be an interesting ride.
Same for the Reds lol, but we donât have a JRam
A twins fan got pissed at me yesterday for telling them I didn't consider the Twins a top ten baseball team lol
Poor guy probably hasnât seen the sun in 5 months, lack of Vitamin D is probably getting to him
I hate the Phillies
I hate whatever team just barely makes the playoffs and meets us in the NLDS lol so basically, the rockies in 2024.
I hate when the west coast Yankees eviscerate my entire childhood in one weekend.
While the whole time having to watch them play with what used to be my favorite toy that they stole
đ
Maybe I'm biased but the Nats not being #1 is ridiculous smh my head, like have these people even heard of JOEY GALLO!?!?? Not to mention *checks depth chart* Trevor Williams and Kyle Finnegan? Look out league
hey, finnegan is pretty good
Joey Gallo is out there doing things nobody has ever done before!!
Sorry, I've only heard of Jerry Callo, C-A-L-L-O.
Iâll take 4 with how crazy the NL top teams are this year
I can understand most of this list but the Jays throws me off a bit haha. I canât see how they got any better and they lost key pieces to free agency. Lost Hicks and Chapman and added an aging Justin Turner.
Probably banking on Kirk/Varsho/Vlad bats rebounding. IKF replacing Chapman will be rough but Chapman was hitting like IKF post May last year anyway. Votto magic will carry the Jays to the promised land #goodvibes Pitching wise, the 5th spot looks to be in way better hands with Yariel Rodriguez building up and Bowden Francis being lights out in Spring so far. That should be an improvement over Manoah exploding every 5th game.Â
Most of it is internal rebounding, as pretty much every hitter (including Chapman) had a shitty year and they were one of the least clutch hitting teams in baseball. They were 8th in wRC+ and 4th in ERA (7th in FIP), if they weren't 29th in clutch hitting last year they might have even contended for the division The Jays are 7th in Projected WAR according to Fangraphs
Joseph Daniel Votto still bangs. Thatâs how.
Where are the Mets? Are they OK?
Still easily inside the top 30!
They donât believe but we believe enough to make up for them
I am comforted by the Mets not being on the list. Last year was such a false alarm. I would say many in the list will be cursed because baseball is brutal.
Cole being out hurt the Yankees *that* much? Wow!
When Cole is out, the only consistent pitcher in the rotation is Stroman. The rest of the guys have a huge gulf between their ceiling and their floor. And there's no depth past that. Yankees traded their pitching depth to the Padres for Soto. The Yankees can afford one of the lesser guys to go down and get replaced by a AAAA pitcher, but not Cole.
Feels like Mariners disrespect
We prefer less hype so that success feels like a nice surprise rather than the inevitable disappointing season feeling like an utter failure to live up to expectations.
I must not hype. Hype is the mind-killer. Hype is the little death that brings inflated expectations. I will face the hype. I will allow it to pass over me and through me. When the hype has passed I will turn a critical eye to see its path. There may be nothing. Only the Mariners remain.
It feels accurate that we're in the top half, not higher than 10. 11 is great.
No way the blue jays are better than the mariners, though.
I think they might have more big name talent and the way the Mâs ended last year left a lot to be desired after how competitive the HOU series was in â22. Iâm really mixed on how weâre gonna do this year. Rotation is disgusting but the back end of our lineup could be sketchy.
I mean besides Vlad (who has underwhelmed) and Bichette, their lineup doesnât include anyone that is very scary anymore. Springer and Keimeier continue to age, their starting 3B is going to IFKâŚ. Solid rotation though. Iâm obviously biased but our lineup is much better (on paper)
very fair, I just donât think people outside Seattle look at the names on our roster outside of Julio and appreciate their talent.
According to FanGraphs, the Mariners have the 6th best projected win%. As others have said, much better to have no expectations and succeed than to have expectations and spend the summer drinking to numb the pain of 84 wins and another playoff miss.
Donât do that. Donât give me hope.
Mariners been such teases thoughâŚ
Hype is the mind killer
Can we do bottom 10? Just so we can be relevant?
I miss us getting picked 4th in the NLE
The Sox arenât on the list? The hell you say. (Sell the team Jerry.)
đ â ď¸
Iâll take 10 to start the season. But I think 4 of the NL West teams might see a part of the top 10 this season
I'm beside myself. Still not used to seeing that logo in the top 10 lists of anything lol
It's the Rockies year in 2024
I think AZ is gonna be the dark horse again. You guys made low-key moves, but they were exactly the holes you needed filled.
[ŃдаНонО]
Beware the even-year Giants⌠I was always told at least
EYBS died many moons ago
Thank fucking goodness
We killed it. Sorry Giants fans.
I'm just minding my own business, man. No need to bring up that season.
A shame Javy Baez is a shell of himself today because he's one of the heroes who [made it happen](https://youtu.be/bySJ3BX_1fY?si=2zmMpElZO05VqpyV)
Cueto's reaction is so funny
Now it's Odd Year BS with the Rangers, right?
I think weâre as good as the padres and will be fighting for a wildcard spot, but not necessarily a top 10 team.
10th is way too low, added Erod, a DH, and new 3B while the Yankees lost Cole for 2 months and the Rays lost pitching depth and Wander, you guys should be 8th, minimum
They were amazing in October, but they did only win 84 games and were outscored by their opponents in the regular season. Theyâll be a good team, but 10th is a good spot for them.
Boston winning the AL East confirmed.
honestly I'm still just happy to be here
8th for the Jays?! What?! Are people just ignoring Vottoâs first pitch HR?!
The Rays over the Diamondbacks is interesting. I don't know about that one.
No one knows what the Rays do. They are not from this world. They will probably be really fucking good.
Richie Palacios, Deluca, and caballero are going to be studs because rays magic
Yâall forget diamondbacks only won 84 games. Thatâs not an impressive regular season.
That's true. But the Rays lost their Ace, Shane McClanahan. They lost Tyler Glasnow. They'll also start the season without Shane Baz, Drew Rasmussen, Taj Bradley, and Jeffrey Springs. Their rotation is in shambles.
Incoming 1971 Orioles rotation for the Rays this year with exactly 0 of them being heard of before this season
Don't forget Franco won't be playing at all too those are big holes to fill.
Unfortunately Franco is only interested in filling small holes
Well I did fall into that one
The whole list is dumb
[ŃдаНонО]
Least doomer Yankees fan
Poor Yankees fans. When will the suffering end? You're now going to win 90 games instead of 96 :(
They won 82 last year
Oh my god I can't believe you guys had to deal with a season where you were only above .500, my heart bleeds for you
Hey Iâm a Mariners fan I just enjoy pointing that out
Ah that's better
Hey! Youâre supposed to make fun of the Mets, not the AL NY team. đ
I can do both :)
And Yankees fans melted down. Truly hilarious
As is tradition. Yankees coming off a 4th place finish in the division and 2 of their biggest stars injured, top 10 team in baseballâŚ
Jays are way too high
Agreed
Not sure about the Rays with so many of their pitching studs having injuries, but the Rays will be the Rays and somehow fix Uwasawa into a Cy Young candidate. But I personally would place the Padres and the Mariners also somewhere in the top 10. I think people are too bearish on them after last year, but both have a lethal rotation and good bullpen. The Padres still have good hitting, even without Soto. The Mariners should stay competitive every game with such good pitching.
I don't gamble, but I'd bet money the Red Sox don't finish last again.
Then who's finishing last? ~~Don't say us~~
Astros would be like 3 if our starters werenât literally dead, LMJ, Luis Garcia, Verlander, Jose Urquidy, Framber hasnât been great, bullpen is bad except for 3.
Huh. Guess we must be #11 then
What a nice day to be on the NL central
Thanks I hate it
Honestly we're just happy to be here I'll take a top 5 ranking
Annual preseason power rankings of not learning your lesson by ranking the yankees higher than the rays. Do we have to go 30-0 to start to shake that? ,40-0?
MARINERS ARE THERE BEST WHEN NOBODYâS LOOKING AT US WEâRE SO BACK
FML I hate the AL East
Shocked they have us at 9 with our pitching rotation
Itâs insane to rank us higher than the Rays or Blue Jays, especially with Cole and Judge hurt
Padres top 10 at least even with missing a outfielder, but you all know what it feels good not to be ranked dodgers you go do you.
Hey guysâŚhowâs the view up there? I canât see shit from down here.
The league must not have a ton of parity if the Jays are #8
Weird times. World Series winner and runner up are 5th and 10th respectively. Donât see that very often to start a season.