Predicting the Division winners for the 2019 MLB Season
The long, cold winter is over! The clocks have sprung forward, which can only mean one thing! The Boys of Summer are back and the 2019 Major League Baseball season is officially upon us.
The season technically began this past week as the Seattle Mariners swept a two-gem series against the Oakland Athletics in the Tokyo Dome. This also marked the end of Ichiro Suzuki's legendary career as he retired after Thursday's game.
The "real" Opening Day is this coming Thursday as all of the teams will have their first game of the season. After a climatic end to last year's season, which saw two Game 163's in the NL Central and West, this season is looking to be just as competitive.
The Yankees and Red Sox will battle it out for the AL East Crown once again, with no team having a clear edge over the other. While the AL Central and West might not be as competitive, it will be interesting to see which teams will be contending for the second Wild Card spot.
On the other side, the NL is shaping up to be the most competitive league. There is no clear favorite for the NL East, which is shaping up to be the most competitive division in baseball this season.
The Braves, Phillies, Nationals, and Mets each have a legitimate case as to why they can be considered the favorites.
In the NL Central and West, none of the top teams were extremely busy this offseason, with only the Cardinals being the most competitive team to make moves. Unlike past years, the second-place team in either division can't depend on the Wild Card this season with how competitive the NL East will be.
With that being said, here are the predictions for each division for the 2019 MLB season.
AL East: Boston Red Sox
The current World Series Champions are set to defend their title this season and that will begin with trying to win their AL East title.
The Red Sox had a pretty quiet offseason, but they did lose two major names in the bullpen in Craig Kimbrel and Joe Kelly.
The bullpen was the one weakness of the Red Sox last season, so losing two big arms won’t do them any favors. However, their offense is still intact and can carry them.
The Yankees would be the favorites this season, but they have been decimated by injuries this spring.
Ace Luis Severino, CC Sabathia, Delin Betances, Aaron Hicks, Greg Bird, and Didi Gregorious will all miss time this season due to injuries so it will be interesting to see how the Bronx Bombers respond. The additions of Zack Britton and Adam Ottavino will definitely help matters.
The Rays and Blue Jays will battle it out for 3rd and 4th. The Rays had a great season last year and would have made the playoffs if they were in almost any other division, but the Red Sox and Yankees were just that much better.
The Rays didn’t add much this offseason, but Blake Snell and Charlie Morton can be a nice 1-2 punch. The Blue Jays added some decent names with Clay Bucholtz, Bud Norris, and Clayton Richard, as well as Freddy Galvis.
The winner of the AL East will likely be decided by who beats up on the rebuilding Orioles the best.
The Yankees struggled a bit last year against Baltimore, while the Red Sox beefed up against them, which was the difference last season as it will be this season.