2019 MLB American League preview

The Boston Red Sox enter the 2019 MLB season as the team to beat in the American League after an impressive 2018 MLB season that finished with a World Series title. Along with winning the World Series, the Red Sox were one of three teams in all of Major League Baseball to win at least 100 games, all coming out of the American League. The other two teams were the New York Yankees who finished second in the AL East and the Houston Astros who finished in first in the AL West.

Now as we move forward to the 2019 MLB season, the question that everyone is asking is which five teams will make another run to play postseason ball in October? Can the Red Sox repeat in the AL East? Can the Astros continue to dominate out West? Will there be any test for the Cleveland Indians inside the AL Central? Here is a quick look at the 2019 MLB American League divisions.

American League East Division

Champ – Boston Red Sox

The American League East should be an interesting division to watch as both the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox will continue to fight to take home the division. As you look at those two teams, the slight advantage leans to the Red Sox based on their young core of studs led by AL MVP winner Mookie Betts. Along with Betts, the Red Sox core includes Jackie Bradley Jr, Andrew Benintendi, Rafael Devers and Xander Bogaerts, while veteran J.D. Martinez looks to anchor the middle. The Red Sox also have one of the strongest rotations in all of baseball led by Chris Sale.

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Meanwhile, despite adding James Paxton, Troy Tulowitzki and DJ LeMahieu to a team that already included stars like Aaron Judge, Miguel Andujar and Giancarlo Stanton, the team might still lack the talent to take over the Red Sox. Along with the lack of talent, the team also has big question marks with the health of some stars like Troy Tulowitzki and Aroldis Chapman while question marks in the rotation could also hurt them.

Outside of these two teams the only other team that should see the .500 mark in the division is the Tampa Bay Rays after an impressive 2018 MLB season. While the top is strong, the AL East may feature two clubs to top the 100 loss mark with the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles.

American League Central Division

Champ – Cleveland Indians

This might be the easiest of the divisions to pick heading into the 2019 MLB Season as many question marks sit with the rest of the division outside of the Cleveland Indians. Despite making a few moves this offseason the Indians still have a very strong rotation that includes Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco and Trevor Bauer. Along with the rotation the Indians have two of the top infielders in all of baseball with Jose Ramirez and Francisco Lindor. While question marks arise among the outfield, the team still has the talent to win the division.

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Outside of the Indians, the Minnesota Twins was the only other team to show success at times during the 2018 MLB season but struggled outside of Minnesota losing 52 of 81 contests. While the club added big weapons in Nelson Cruz and Jonathan Schoop, their success will revolve around their rotation in 2019.

Rounding out the division will be the Chicago White Sox who is filled with young talent but can they take a big step forward while the Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals just don’t have the talent at this stage to compete.

American League West Division

Champ – Houston Astros

After taking home another AL West crown, the Astros will look to continue their success in 2019 despite failing to add a big weapon during the offseason while losing veteran starter Dallas Kuechel to free agency. In the end, though, the Astros still have a very talented rotation led by All-Stars Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole and a lineup that includes a healthy Jose Altuve, young star Alex Bregman and Carlos Correa as well as offseason addition Michael Brantley. In the end, the Astros still have the talent plus some young stars in the Minors that should help them win the division.

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Rounding out the division will be the Oakland A’s who might have been the biggest story of the 2018 MLB Season after taking home one of the two wildcard spots. The only question now is can the same roster put up the type of production it did last season? Can Khris Davis smash another 48 home runs? Can Matt Olson, Scott Piscotty and Matt Chapman combine to hit 80 home runs? These questions make the A’s a difficult team to predict heading into 2019.

One of the big questions marks in the division is can the Angels find a way to overseed the A’s and other clubs to finally land Mike Trout in the postseason? While the Angels are a surprise team to watch in 2019, both the Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers could be in for long seasons while finding a way to retool their franchises.