2020 MLB Division Overviews

It’s hard to believe, but we’re already in the thick of spring training. And while most of the discussion around MLB continues to focus on the Houston Astros and their incredible inability to properly apologize, there are some actual games to prepare for, and I for one am looking forward to that.

So with that in mind, let’s look ahead to the 2020 season and try to do a little bit of prognosticating. You won’t save this and check it later for accuracy, right? Thank you.

(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)

AL East

The New York Yankees took this division by seven games last season, winning 103 games in the process. That win total was actually only the third-highest total in MLB (Astros, 107; Dodgers 106), which mostly seems to be a commentary on the current state of MLB, in which a solid third of the teams favor scorched-earth rebuilds over chasing wild card spots. That’s understandable, if largely unfortunate. The Bombers made a big splash with the addition of Gerrit Cole, of course, and assuming they have more luck in the health department this season, they should be at least as good as last season, if not better.

The Rays, who won 96 games last season and were 44-32 in division contests, should be right there once again. They made some interesting moves this offseason, transactions that should fall into the “sneaky good” category – acquiring players like center fielder Manuel Margot and Hunter Renfroe from the San Diego Padres, and Jose Martinez from the Cardinals.

The rest is the rest, with the Red Sox trimming payroll in the Mookie Betts-David Price trade, the Blue Jays focusing on youth (despite the addition of Hyun-Jin Ryu) and the Orioles, as we all know, entering season two of their massive overhaul.

AL Central

I’ll never understand why the Cleveland Indians have been so intent on pulling apart a young, talented and entertaining team, but here we are. At least they didn’t get rid of Francisco Lindor (yet) despite a whole offseason of buzz to the contrary. And they did get a serviceable center fielder (Delino DeShields) and an electric bullpen arm (Emmanuel Clase) from the Texas Rangers in the Corey Kluber deal.

Regardless, this division now belongs to the Minnesota Twins, who refused to rest on the laurels of their 101-victory 2019 season. In addition to all that power they’ll have coming back, they added third baseman Josh Donaldson on a four-year deal. They also bulked up an already strong pitching staff by re-signing Michael Pineda, trading for Kenta Maeda and adding veterans Rich Hill, Tyler Clippard and Sergio Romo. They even took a flyer on Homer Bailey.

After the Twins, the White Sox seem like the most likely team to vie for the postseason, provided their young roster can continue to mature. The addition of Edwin Encarnacion could help with that, provided the aging slugger has anything left in the tank. But he’s not their only solid addition, as they bulked up their staff with Dallas Keuchel and Gio Gonzalez and added veteran bat Nomar Mazara in a deal with the Rangers.

AL West

Despite all the controversy around the Houston Astros, this team is simply too talented to fade away. In fact, their circle-the-wagons mentality, right or wrong, could prove to be a good rallying cry as they try to prove to the world that they never needed to cheat in the first place. And that’s fine. Frankly, MLB could stand for a little villainy, and the attention that comes with it. The only weird thing about it all will be watching a classy guy like Dusty Baker running things – talk about mixed feelings!

The Angels will be interesting to watch, too, at least at the start of the season. Anthony Rendon is a great addition, and if Shohei Ohtani can just stay healthy you suddenly have a nice-looking collection of bats around Mike Trout. The problem in Anaheim will be pitching depth, as the additions of Dylan Bundy and Julio Teheran are probably better moves in theory than in practicality.

As far as the rest of the division goes, the A’s will probably be sneaky good again (easy to forget they won 97 games last season!) and the Mariners are still a couple years away from being interesting. The Rangers, though, might be worth keeping an eye on as Corey Kluber joins the rotation, in addition to other interesting offseason acquisitions like Todd Frazier, Juan Nicasio, Jordan Lyles and Kyle Gibson.

NL East

Aside from the Marlins, the NL East might be the most wide-open division in baseball. And yes, that’s taking into account that it’s the home of the World Series champion Washington Nationals. And this is not a knock on the Nats at all, who were more than just a team that got hot at the right time. In fact, the Nationals were excellent over the last four months of the 2019 regular season, winning 65.7 percent of their games from June 1 on.

But the fact is that the year after they lost Bryce Harper, they went and lost Anthony Rendon, and as talented as their roster remains, particularly that starting rotation, it’s simply going to be too hard to stay atop the heap in that division.

That’s because the Braves (97 wins) remain young and deep despite the losses of Josh Donaldson, the Phillies continue to be aggressive (adding Zack Wheeler and Didi Gregorius) and the Mets should be better than their 86-76 team of 2019. It all adds up to a big dogfight ahead in the NL East.

NL Central

The Central might be similar to the East in its wide-open nature, only not as good. The Brewers are hoping Christian Yelich returns to good health and MVP-form, but they have to replace Yasmani Grandal (news flash, they haven’t) and had a pretty quiet offseason.

The Cubs continue to trend in the wrong direction, likely relying too much on Jon Lester and an aging rotation, while watching Kris Bryant grow increasingly frustrated.  The defending division champs in St. Louis are growing old, and lost Marcel Ozuna during the offseason. And the Pirates are across the board, merely, OK.

That leaves the Reds, who are perhaps the division’s most interesting team. The Reds added Nick Castellanos and Mike Moustakas to an already solid lineup, and boast an intriguing rotation led by Trevor Bauer, Sonny Gray, Luis Castillo and Anthony DeSclafani. Time will tell if the Reds can find another 15-20 wins to become a playoff contender, but they should be poised to at least give it a shot.

NL West

The Dodgers have had this division on lockdown since 2012 and there isn’t really any reason to think it will be different in 2020. Andrew Friedman has been a master at roster building – and I mean the 40-man, not just the 25-man roster – mixing in farmhands like Cody Bellinger and Corey Seager with overlooked talents like Max Muncy and Chris Taylor. And now, after missing out on all the big-name free agents early in the offseason, he soothed an agitated fan base by adding Mookie Betts (and David Price) to the mix. Is this the year they finally win their first World Series since 1988?

There is unlikely to be any kind of challenge from their rival Giants, who have eased into rebuilding mode, and the Rockies seem uncertain what kind of path they will chart (will Nolan Arenado be traded?).

The Arizona Diamondbacks could be intriguing after adding Starling Marte in a trade with the Pirates, as well as free agents Madison Bumgarner (Mason Saunders?) and Kole Calhoun. And the Padres will continue to possess a collection of tantalizing young talent, but neither team figures to have the depth of talent necessary to compete with the Dodgers over the course of a long season.